Cherreads

Chapter 32 - First Circle

Enrico remained collapsed on the cold cave floor, completely unconscious. The sound of silence was almost deafening, broken only by his weak, unstable breathing, wavering between life and stillness.

[Enrico...?]

The system's voice echoed softly, for the first time without sarcasm—only uncertainty.

[Are you still there...?]

The system circled around Enrico's body, observing, trying, searching for any trace of the Nartheis. But there were no marks, no curses, no runes or noticeable manipulation. Nothing. Just the broken body of the boy lying on the ground, and the necklace still glowing faintly.

[She... left nothing behind? No magic, no curse...? What did she want from you?]

Time passed slowly. Hours became half a day. The night swallowed the cave with no sense of time for anyone inside. And Enrico remained motionless, breathing faintly, his eyes still shut.

[There's nothing I can do but watch. All I can do is wait...]

As time went on, the system noticed Enrico's plan to increase his circle seemed to be working, and then it began.

The Mana Zone's poison, still coursing through Enrico's body in minimal doses, acted relentlessly—but also consistently. The internal pain had stopped, but the mana's reaction in his body had not.

The percentage of the Fire Zero Circle rose slowly:

77%

82%

88%

Time felt frozen inside that isolated cave, part of a dimension apart from reality. Even unconscious, Enrico's body absorbed, resisted, and, above all else, endured.

92%

95%

97%

99%

And then finally—it reached 100%.

A silent explosion of magical light surged through Enrico's body. A perfect magic circle formed around his heart, pulsing in reddish and orange tones.

And then, Enrico's magical limit shattered—his first circle had formed, and his magic increased as a result.

Name: Enrico Solcren Ferreira

Magic: Fire — Circle 1 — 0%

Mana Capacity: 134

Unique Skill: Elemental Clone

Soul: 60

Enrico's body trembled slightly, even while unconscious. But along with that breakthrough... came collapse.

The mana that now existed inside Enrico began to destabilize.

His body couldn't handle the sudden transition. His magic began to fade, dissolving slowly like sand carried away by wind.

[No!]

The necklace responded, glowing brightly one last time—a warm, firm, intense light—restoring everything the poisoning had damaged, healing every corrupted cell, every severed nerve.

And as its final act before going dark, the necklace emitted a small magical barrier around Enrico's body—a protective field that completely isolated him from the Mana Zone. And then, at last, the necklace's light vanished.

The system remained silent.

[You... survived. Still ali—not that I was worried or anything.]

Time passed, and the small barrier weakened more and more as the hours ticked by.

[He needs to wake up soon or his mana will get poisoned again.]

More time passed, and then—Enrico opened his eyes And the first thing he felt... was pain. Not in one specific spot—in every muscle. It felt like his body had been crushed and then hastily put back together. His eyelids were heavy, his arms trembled, and every breath seemed to cut from the inside.

"Gah..."

He forced himself to sit up. His head pounded like a drum. Cold sweat trickled down his neck. But the worst feeling... was the emptiness. The helplessness.

[Finally woke up, hero.]

The system's voice rang with an unusual tone. Sarcastic... and relieved?

"How long... was I unconscious...?"

[Almost two days. You broke your mana limit and formed your first circle... but you nearly died in the process. If it weren't for the necklace...]

Enrico touched his chest. The necklace was still there—quiet, cold, drained.

"...Her?"

[Gone. Like smoke. Left nothing behind.]

Frustration gripped Enrico's chest. He slammed his fist against the stone wall, ignoring the pain that shot back up his arm.

"Weak... I'm still weak."

He grit his teeth, pushing himself up on trembling legs. The echo of the battle—or rather, the massacre he endured—still haunted him.

"That wasn't even a fight. I just... tried to run. Tried to survive."

He clenched his eyes shut.

'Maybe if I had at least used my unique skill—Elemental Clone…'

But he quickly shook his head.

"No. She would've destroyed the clone with a glance. I'd just be more exhausted. Another useless trick."

[It was obvious she didn't want to kill you. She was evaluating you. You held out long enough. That counts for something.]

"Held out? Please. I didn't even touch her. My magic... was like wind against a wall."

Enrico dragged himself toward the cave wall where his bag still rested. He pulled it slowly, nearly out of strength.

"If I keep going like this... those words..."

Tolen's face came to his mind—and the last look he gave him.

Get stronger.

"I'll never be able to fulfill that."

[You're at the first circle now. It's a start.]

"Yeah... but only the first three are considered easy. After the second, everything slows down. The third too. And the others can take a full year if you don't have potential...! How am I supposed to keep going if I almost died just to climb one step?"

[You still have paths. You still have pacts. Strategies. Knowledge of the future.]

Enrico took a deep breath. The anger inside his chest grew—but not toward the Nartheis. This anger... was toward himself. He slammed his fist into the ground.

[You survived. And she let you live. For some reason... she saw something. Maybe—]

"It doesn't matter why. If I stay like this, she'll kill me next time."

Silence fell for a few seconds. Enrico closed his eyes and muttered

"Tolen, I'm still not strong. But I won't die without trying to fulfill your last ..."

He looked at his hand and clenched it into a fist, his eyes burning with a new fire.

"This pain... I'll remember it. Every muscle screaming. Every strike. Every second I ran like a coward. I'll remember."

[Heh... that's the part I like about you.]

"I'll use this anger. I'll grow from it. Even if I have to carve a path through monsters, mages, gods, or curses."

Enrico stood up slowly, staggering—but firm. The first circle pulsed faintly in his chest. He climbed out of the hole and walked through the cave.

Upon reaching the other side, he saw Serenya and Valença training. Both turned their heads upon seeing Enrico emerge, bruised and beaten. Serenya rushed toward him.

"What happened to you, subordinate?"

Valença approached from a distance, trying to notice anything different and when they looked at him, they felt something else—an aura that wasn't there before. He stopped and gave a smile.

"You could say I failed while trying to use the magic my family sent me."

Both were surprised, and Serenya looked like she wanted to comfort him.

"It's alright. You'll succeed next time, subordinate. I'll make sure to help you."

Valença, however, stared at Enrico in surprise

'So even a prodigy like him can fail?'

She looked at her own hand and clenched it.

'Lately, I haven't been able to cast the spell I wanted... but if even he couldn't now...'

Valença's eyes lit up with flames

'Then I'll manage to do mine before he does.'

While the two girls were thinking, Enrico's eyes changed for a moment—filled with determination

'I will make sure to become stronger.'

Because if he didn't... everyone in this world would die.

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