"Can't I at least keep the Silence Curse? It's technically my first spell—"

//Unnecessary. Sound can be interfered with using your spell Gravity Manipulation at the right control—

Glenn sighed heavily, cutting the robot off. He was in the process of sealing all the spells and powers that he could supposedly re-create with his specialty Astral Sorcery. The sealing process was rather simple, a basic mental operation. As long as he willed to stop himself from using certain spells, his Mana would remain stuck until he begged for the access back, which was a strangely long and annoying process as if nagging a stubborn person.

"So, let's see what I got rid of," Glenn counted on his hands, "The Silence Curse, Earthquake, Sword Grave, Lion's Roar, Carbon Blade, Lord's Shield, Arcane Surge, and Overload. Phew...feels like I just lost access to many possibilities."

"Don't forget about these two weird powers you took from the necromancer and the farmer's statues," Diamanes remarked.

Glenn snorted, "I don't know what they were for anyway! Might as well clean my spell repertoire entirely while I'm there."

//Excellent initiative, Descendant. The robot nodded in agreement.

//From what I've noticed when you tried out those spells, these only allowed you to explode corpses or control them with plant-based abilities. They're filthy abilities that will only get in the way of true strength.

Glenn paused. 'What? Corpse explosion and...basically necromancy but with plants? Is this the Last of Us? What the fuck are those skills? Maybe I should keep them just in—'

//Rein in your thoughts, Descendants. True power comes from the Specialty of one's Mana Heart, and nothing else. Now that you have gotten rid of the bloat, dismiss every spell that isn't pure in a similar way to your Gravity Manipulation.

"Spells that aren't pure..." Glenn repeated slowly, "Could you explain why?"

//Explanation: Conceptualization can get in the way of creating truly powerful spells. Example: 'Solar Flare' could be exchanged for the simpler but more powerful 'Sun'. Manipulation of 'Sun' could achieve the same results as 'Solar Flare' with better efficiency and lower Mana consumption.

Glenn's mouth opened slightly. Wasn't that a little too broad, though?

'What would happen if I just used "The Sun" as a spell? Isn't that a little...absurd?'

Diamanes snickered. 'Actually, think about it. Your spells are like molds. They will always be restrained by your imagination and conceptualization. But look—your most powerful spells are copied from actual physical events. Solar Flare, Black Hole, or even Gravitational Singularity.'

"Shit..." Glenn exhaled heavily and sealed the rest of his spells.

"Now...what I have left are all the gravity-related spells, such as Blackhole, as well as Nitrogen, Divine Blessing, C.P.R, and the Saturn Rings. Oh, and let's not forget Milena's mind powers."

//Acknowledged. Solar Flare, Solar Laser, and Sun's Touch are not lost. Simply focus on their essence—the Sun. You'll be able to conceptualize a spell comparable to the pure energy of Nitrogen.

The robot sounded certain of himself. Glenn grimaced, "Easy to say...You're not the one doing the conceptualizing, are you?"

Gundam didn't bother replying, while Diamanes chuckled. Glenn clenched his teeth and closed his eyes, concentrating. He imagined the Sun. The source of all light and warmth, a ticking bomb that would explode in billions of years. Only one of the byproducts of the greatest explosion in the universe, the Big Bang. The Sun wasn't an action, it was an entity, something that saw the birth of men and will see their extinction. Something ancient, so old that even Gods were probably younger than it.

Glenn channeled his Mana as his back became drenched in sweat. Large drops beaded down his face as his focus only grew.

'What are the elements of the Sun?' Glenn asked himself.

'Heat, light, gravity...energy. It's the reason for life, for if there was no Sun, there would only be the coldness of space, and the Limbo would only be a cold rock like the Moons...' A small orb of pure power appeared above Glenn's palm, humming with heat and energy. It was glowing with mild radiance, and yet both Diamanes and Gundam could see the might contained in that small, apple-sized orb. Glenn's Mana was funneling directly into the small, pocket-sized Sun, feeding it as if it were some sort of hungry baby.

Glenn opened his eyes, staring at the growing Sun in his palm. The power contained in it was powerful enough that if unleashed on a village, it would probably annihilate a good portion of it.

And yet...

'Why does it feel so...insignificant?' Glenn wondered. This was the power of the Sun, after all. Why did it feel like only one star among countless others? Glenn's Mana Heart suddenly pulsed with energy, expanding as a Fifth Circle of stars appeared around the Milky Way. The Mana twirled around Glenn, fueling the Milky Way and the miniature Sun in turn. Glenn's eyes glowed with bright light, the purple hue of his left arm receding slightly.

Glenn's lips curved upward and he approached his hand to the Sun, feeling as if all the possibilities were within his reach. His body flew over the floor without him even trying, and at this moment, Glenn truly felt like he held all the power.

"Fifth Circle...?" He whispered softly as he slowly grabbed the Sun, his eyes gleaming with that same solar might, "...Why would I stop there? I feel it—I can reach even beyond that!" He laughed widely as the Sun exploded into a rain of light, crackling and harmlessly bouncing off the Core's walls. Gundam watched silently, waiting for Glenn's enlightenment to be over.

Glenn's smile faded as the sensation of immense power slipped away, so close and yet so far. He fell to his knees and gasped heavily, his magic disappearing in a myriad of blue and orange particles. Silence reigned once more in the Laboratory, barely disturbed by Glenn's ragged breathing.

"Hah...hah...Had I known it was so simple, I would have sealed my abilities sooner," Glenn laughed, exhausted. He laid back on the metal flooring, panting. His racing heart didn't seem to have any intention of calming down, so Glenn simply lay there, grinning and waiting.

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//Congratulations, Descendant. You are one step closer to the Creator. Gundam emotionlessly applauded him.

Diamanes snorted. "That leaves him with how many steps to be equal to that Creator of yours?"

The robot took a moment to reply.

//...A lot of steps.

"Hah, sure enough."

Glenn waved his hand weakly as he sat up, "Guys, let's not fight. I feel incredibly great right now, so let's not ruin my moment, okay?"

Diamanes grunted while Gundam uttered his usual 'Acknowledged'. Glenn dragged himself to a chair nearby and sat comfortably, unable to keep himself from smiling.

The Fifth Circle. He was an Expert Magi now.

'Sahro is going to be sooo jealous, hehe...' He chuckled expectantly. The Black Heir was still stuck at the third level after all, be it in Aura or Mana. What excited Glenn even more was the prospect of teaching all of that knowledge to his sister. Comprehending the nature of one's Mana Heart was absolutely a key component to breaking through—that, Glenn was now sure of it.

"But I also think there's more to it..." Glenn muttered as he pulled out a small notebook from his dimensional pouch. He scribbled a line on the paper.

"The first component...comprehending the nature of one's Mana Heart." Glenn scratched the top of his head with his pencil. "That makes sense, considering that the Second Circle is created as soon as you understand even a little your Specialty. But comprehension didn't play as much of a part in the creation of my Third Circle."

He scribbled down once again and looked at the Core's robot. "You wouldn't have any information about breaking through Circles, Gundam?"

Gundam turned his sleek, metal head and stared at Glenn. //Descendant. The creation of Circles is inherently limited to the Mage's essence. The Creator only ever needed to accumulate Mana to reach higher Circles. On the other hand, the Creator's friend required intense stimuli to converge a new Circle.

Glenn raised an interested eyebrow. "The Creator's friend? That D?"

Gundam processed the information for an instant before replying, //Error. Creator's status is necessary to access this information.

"I expected as much," Glenn shrugged, still happy. Nothing could take away his excitement right now. He didn't know what else he needed to reach the Sixth Circle, but Glenn was sure of one thing. He was already halfway through becoming an Archmagi. He just needed more time to digest his breakthrough, and he should be able to easily reach beyond that.

Glenn leaned back in his seat and dove into Meditation, reveling in the easiness of the process. Each time he managed to Converge a new Circle, each time he felt his body become stronger, his mental capacities become faster, and his instincts sharper.

'This is almost addicting...' He smirked. Right now, all his worries had faded away like lies in the wind. There was only the bliss of ranking up left. Just like that, another day was spent purely Meditating. Truly, Glenn was making his money's worth from this technique these past few days. And even though he spent so much time recovering his Mana, he could only fill his reserve up to two-thirds of its maximum capacity.

'I have a lot more Mana to play around with now...and will have even more in the future. Ahh...this truly feels like actual progression.'

Glenn glanced at his left, purple hand and grinned widely, "Well, seems like you're growing to be less and less useful, Diamanes."

The entity sneered, "Is that right? Well, we shall see. I sure wonder how you'll be able to conjure Divine powers or strange healing spells with Astral Sorcery, hehe."

Glenn rolled his eyes, "Come on, can't you let me have the win for once?"

"Nope."

"Tsk."

//Entertaining. Gundam's voice interrupted their bickering emotionlessly. //Descendant. Are you ready for another bout against the 'Source Specimen'?

Glenn's lips curved upward as he rolled his sleeves up and took Nelg out of his soul.

"I've never been more ready. Send me in, Gundam."

//Acknowledged. Teleportation in three...two...one—"

Glenn's sight flashed as he reappeared once more in the white prison caging the Lightbringer, Doyle Malory. The ancient being was walking on the ceiling, his hands in his pocket and his blond hair defying gravity as it remained stuck to his shoulders.

"Erosion is the answer. If I step on the ceiling, maybe it'll collapse?" Doyle was muttering nonsense, once again unbothered by Glenn's sudden appearance.

"Doyle Malory," Glenn called up as he channeled his Mana, excited to try out his newest spell, "I'm back!"

Doyle turned towards him with an annoyed smile, "Yes, I noticed that, thank you. Are you going to help me get the hell out of here, or are you just going to play around like last time?"

Glenn grinned and stretched his palm out, "I'm playing around once again. I think I should be more than just flick you on the forehead this time!"

The Lightbringer lifted an amused eyebrow, "Oh, is that right? Well, please, do relieve my boredom. I can't even eat you, too damned stinky. Why didn't you bring that Gold Dragon's dog? That one tasted good!"

"I doubt he'd like to see your face again," Glenn hissed through his teeth as he channeled his Mana to conjure an apple-sized Sun. Doyle Malory's eyes widened in interest.

"Wait...you reached the Fifth Circle, didn't you? And you're even properly using Draconic Magic now! Interesting, interesting...You might be worth fostering as an amusing toy!" The insane man cackled as he suddenly reappeared a few meters in front of Glenn, his arms crossed behind his back. Glenn didn't let it get to his head and instead sent his will through the Sun.

He needed something that would burn through even the hardest body, that would consume even the greatest shield. Glenn clenched the miniature Sun tightly and willed it to change shape into the strongest offensive weapon. Something that would pierce that invulnerable barrier around Doyle. The Sun, originally orange and yellow, changed color to blue as it was compressed into a long, thin shape.

As he watched Glenn conjure his spell, for the first time in countless years, Doyle Malory felt a drop of sweat bead down his forehead.

Was he feeling...excited? By this child, this tool of the Gods?

"Haha...hahaha!" Doyle Malory laughed heartily, opening his arms widely to welcome the incoming attack. Glenn took a deep, measured breath. Doyle's excited laugh, Diamanes wicked sneers, the crackling of the magic flame in his hand...It all went silent as his entire being concentrated on the spell.

"Let's see if you can continue laughing after that..." He muttered. The Sun finally settled on Glenn's desired shape. The world seemed to twist around his hand as he thrust forward. The Sun pierced forward, guided by his hand. It was imperceptible, for it moved beyond the speed of sound. Pure, burning light. Plasma that could incinerate even the toughest of things.

Doyle Malory hurriedly crossed his arms in front of him, but it was too late. A bright flash blinded Glenn as he felt all the Mana he had recovered disappear, consumed by that one, incredible spell. The white room flickered, the light disturbed by the power of Glenn's attack.

"Hah...Haha...Hahahaha!" Doyle Malory's laugh echoed from beyond the smoke. Glenn collapsed to one knee, heaving with difficulty. The skin on his hand was charred black, unable to handle the power of the spell.

"Hahahaha! Did you see that, Gods?" Doyle laughed fanatically, "A spell that defied the rules of your world! A spell that defied your rules! True Draconic Magic is back, you fuckers! Hahaha!"

Glenn looked up at the sound of Doyle's approaching steps. The ancient being pulled Glenn up and dusted his shoulders off, a large grin on his handsome face.

"Well, see, I never expected that of you! Hey, can I be your friend?" Doyle asked with shining eyes. Glenn slowly looked down, his eyes widening at the sight of Doyle's stomach. The entire right side of his abdomen was charred black, burnt to the utmost degree. The flesh was already growing back, but the proof was there. Glenn had managed to wound Doyle Malory, the Lightbringer.

An ancient monster that played on the chessboard of the Gods themselves.

"Hey, hey, can you be my friend?" Doyle repeated with an excited smile. Once again, his words went through one ear and out the other. They made so little sense to Glenn's Mana-exhausted brain. He simply couldn't comprehend them.

An instant later, Glenn was back in the Core, lying on the metal floor.

//Analysis of the wound — Fourth-degree burn. Requires surgical intervention. Anesthesia in process.

At the moment, Glenn could only feel the heat of that spell he just created. A spear-shaped spell using the might of the Sun.

The Lance of Prometheus.