Testing out a new power

***

"Connecting to the Gula Archive..."

"Execute Thema!"

As the magic power started settling down, Arata glanced down at his sudden new attire.

He was supposed to be in hospital garments but his current appearance was completely different, as if it had manifested through spatial magic. As though his previous clothes had simply been overwritten.

He was now wearing a grey jacket with a white shirt, dark pants, shoes and a black blazer.

"This is..."

[This is your Magus Mode, Master. The battle attire for Magicians. Now, activate the [Mantra Enchant] by visualizing it on your body.]

As Arata concentrated, magic characters, with the appearance of ancient hieroglyphs started manifesting on both his arms and legs.

'Now then, the spell to invoke it...'

[Wait, Master. Don't activate it here. You could end up destroying this room if you do.]

Arata glanced around him. Certainly. Small spiderweb like cracks had already appeared on the walls.

Arata took a deep breath in order to settle down his magic. His Magus Mode also dissolved into white particles as he reverted back to his original clothes.

"This is really something else." Arata clenched his fists together tightly.

***

"Is it alright if I head out to get some fresh air?"

"Eh? You are...Kasuga Arata right? Let me check with the doctor first. Please wait for awhile."

Arata waited while the Nurse went to clarify with the doctor.

After a few minutes, she returned.

"Yes you can, but you still need to be warded for a few days just in case. The doctor want's to make sure you are perfectly fine before we can release you."

Sure, they might not be the patient or the relatives of one themselves, but you wouldn't find a doctor or a nurse who wished ill on those they were in charge of.

The Hunter's hospital especially saw many heavily-injured patients every day. At the bare minimum, she'd like to never see another one of her patients she was looking after get worse under her care. That was why they took things quite seriously.

"Thanks."

***

After heading to the outside perimeters of the hospital, Arata discovered a dark alley and proceeded to head inside.

'This should be far enough.'

'Whew...'

Arata took a deep breath.

"Execute Thema!"

This time, he could activate his Magus Mode almost instantaneously. The hieroglyphic characters appeared at the same spot as it did previously.

[Conception.]

All at once, light blue magic circles with the exact same characters etched on it, manifested around his arms and legs.

However...

Arata clenched his fist into a ball as he launched it against the solid wall.

Although there was a dent, Arata felt a strong feedback instead as he rebounded from the wall.

[Master, you need to have 'Significance' when activating [Mantra Enchant]. If you lack feelings and particularly determination, you will take damage instead. Just like what happened just now.]

Arata relaxed his nerves and closed his eyes as he recalled his past memories again. All that he had endured up till now, all the humiliation and suffering...

'That's right, for what reason did I even want power? Hasn't determination been the driving factor in my life so far? This magic...shouldn't it suit me perfectly?'

[Exactly, Master. Your life, what you have experienced so far, it is exactly because of your tragic past that your will has been greatly influenced. That is precisely why this magic suits you the best.]

Arata repeated the same action, except this time...

Crack!

Crack!

Large cracks started emerging from the centrifugal force and it soon started spreading quickly into a web-like appearance.

'Let's try this next.'

Arata put even more force into his legs, and propelled an upward kick. The magic circle glowed brighter in accordance as an ominous crack echoed in the alley.

A large fissure could now be seen in the once sturdy wall; when putting into account the damage done, its previous appearance was now unrecognizable.

'So this is the power of [Mantra Enchant]', Arata' heart began beating faster as he felt a sudden surge of emotions course through him.

[If Master continues to possess that amount of determination and will, you will be able to use [Mantra Enchant] without a problem. But, that is only the beginning. Master has only scratched the surface of this "Thema". The founder of [Mantra Enchant] could do the same feat without any magic. That is why you need to quickly train your body as well. Your base stats may have been enhanced but physical training is still just as important.]

'That's right, I still haven't completed that 15km run. Since I am already outside, might as well just do it.'

[Running, 15 km: Complete (15/15)]

Unfortunately, even after completing every exercise, no new message popped out.

***

'I wonder how other Re-Awakening processes are like.'

Feeling a little curious, Arata settled down in front of a computer located at the corner of the hospital.

Taptaptaptap….

His fingers started typing on the keyboard.

Searching, searching, and then, more searching…..

He visited countless websites, even those websites that one couldn't even get anywhere near without a Hunter's licence.

Not surprising though, he couldn't find any mention of a precedence to his.

Most other Hunters who underwent Re-Awakening process simply gained their new found strength through roughly the similar process as their first Awakening as a Hunter. There was nothing really interesting to be found.

When he took a look outside, the night had deepened quite considerably.

"When did the time get so late….?"

It appeared that Lemegeton was 'sleeping' as she didn't speak even once.

Arata massaged his forehead and stood up from the chair to loosen his body with a bout of light stretching.

After a while...

Arata sharpened his eyes considerably.

Reality was really different from one's imagination.

If he didn't want to be ashamed of himself again, then he simply had to become stronger.

***

"Oh my goodness. Look at that guy's physique."

"Was that patient's body that good before?"

Two young female nurses walking in the corridor whispered to each other as soon as they spotted Arata.

He pretended to have not heard them and quietly returned to his room.

A few days has passed since he started taking on the Daily Workout.

Several changes took place during this time. One of them happened to be the transformation of his body.

Arata stood before the mirror mounted on the hospital room's wall by the corner.

The most eye-catching change was the drastic increase of his muscles. Although he didn't use [Mantra Enchant] while doing the daily workout, his overall physique was boosted by the inherent magic dwelling within him. After all, his body couldn't transform this much simply from exercising for a few days. His muscles has grown in proportion to the magic within him in order to display the maximum amount of effect. Thanks to that, his shoulders had widened more and his overall frame had grown bigger as well.

The number of times he was mentioned by the nurses was constantly on the rise. Since their job involved looking after human bodies, their levels of discernment could have been higher than most.

Another thing Arata noticed, was that his hair was slowly turning white. Streaks of white could now be seen, although, they didn't serve to make him look weird or anything. Rather, it made for a very unique appearance.

However, when he asked Lemegeton about this change, she didn't say anything. No, she couldn't say anything. After deliberating for awhile, he decided that it was most likely just a side effect from the magic and didn't dwell on it too much after that.

***

'Now then, I guess it's time for me to leave this hospital."