5 Discovery

Black Bear City was a bustling metropolis in the past, known for its rich blacksmith business and thriving marketplaces. However, in recent years, the city has fallen on hard times. An especially long and harsh winter has brought with it a time of poverty and hardship.

The streets of Black Bear City are now lined with beggars and homeless people, huddled together for warmth against the cold. The once-bustling marketplaces have become ghost towns, with few people able to afford to buy or sell goods. Many of the city's residents have been forced to rely on charitable donations just to get by. But even the Silver Church could only give as much as they possessed.

Despite the challenges, the people of Black Bear City remain resilient and determined to weather the storm. They huddle around fires in their homes, trying to stay warm and praying for an end to the endless winter. Some have even taken to raiding the abandoned houses of the wealthy, looking for anything they can find to help them survive. Doing so alone would be madness. Doing so under the name of a 'gang' was different.

The Western District was the calmest of all. Only beggars lived there, under the protection of the Black Serpent Siblings. Although they were ruthless, they would not commit crimes in broad daylight. They would only kill when endangered, and they would only seldomly steal travelers. They knew, after all, that their survival depended on how low of a profile they kept.

The Northern and Southern districts were not so calm, with slums birthing monsters and mad men. In the power race determining who the next gang leader would be, heads would fall.

This time, however, Arthur Thorn had broken his own code and stole something of incredible value.

At first, he had only thought of earning some leverage. What he had targeted were blacksmith blueprints, knowledge of incredible value if the blacksmith union was to be revived in the future. The knowledge supposedly contained in the scrolls and books he had stolen came from hard-obtained hardships from previous generations. They contained the wisdom of people who had worked with local iron for decades.

However, it was not the only thing that was inscribed in those scrolls. Had he been a normal human, Arthur would have never discovered that there was something even more valuable inside those books.

[Beep! Analysis Complete]

[Data has been stored in the file [Magical Meditation Technique - Black Bear City Inheritance]. It contains the meditation technique to increase one's magical power]

As a fallen noble and reincarnated soul, Arthur knew what it was about. His parents were knights, and possessed tremendous worldly experience as they travelled the world as hedge knights before being recognized for their merit. In their travel, they had encountered what they called 'mysterious entities' going by the name of 'acolytes'. These beings, capable of wielding magic, were tremendously dangerous.

Be it summoning flames or controlling wild animals, acolytes were capable of wonders.

Little did he know, for these stories were actually real.

'So...the world I have reincarnated into does possess magic', Arthur analysed

As surprising as it was, Arthur was not shocked. After all, he had seen the physical wonders of the breathing technique he was practicing. The strength, agility and endurance he was displaying at the young age of 14 were unrealistic for a teenager his age. All of it was achieved in a single decade of training. He could only imagine how much better he would become by the time he would reach 30 of age. At least compared to Olympic Athletes, none would be able to rival with him in terms of physical abilities.

Hence, ever since he was born, Arthur knew that there was some supernatural features in this world.

'But, magic...This is truly an incredible surprise', Arthur thought, 'The real reason why Black Bear City prospered for so long...is probably linked to the now deceased head of the Black Bear Blacksmith Union. With him dead along with his secrets, no one was able to refine the low quality iron, and with decreasing quality of goods, came an economic crisis. Banditry and unlawfulness only came as consequences of his death...'

Without wasting any more time, Arthur began to practice the art.

A week later, something changed.

[Beep! You have awoken your magical core]