I headed to my room deep in thought.
Realizing that, despite all of my progress, I never actually managed to break through once.
All of my power and feats until now have relied solely on my new artifacts and photographic memory.
It meant I still had a ton of potential, and luckily for me, with how powerful I already am, a simple breakthrough to a few levels won't be much of a problem anymore.
Maybe I could fix the problems I would cause Evelina in the future when I make myself even more powerful than before...
Yes...
That's certainly the right choice here...
But getting a breakthrough...
I don't even know how to achieve it; the only thing I know is that it's supposed to happen automatically once you master your attunement's current level.
And in my case, beginner level.
But by that logic, shouldn't I have originally surpassed beginner level a long time ago?
I sat at the side of my bed.
"I guess it doesn't hurt to experiment."
[Profaned Fireball]
A simple, unique fireball, a lot stronger than the old dark fireballs I used to cast, but even then, it wasn't enough to get a breakthrough.
But what if I just brute forced it instead?
[Profaned Fireball]
[Profaned Fireball]
[Profaned Fireball]
[Profaned Fireball]
I couldn't even tell how many times I repeatedly cast the same spell. Before I knew it, the spell in my hands was condensed enough to level an entire building, probably.
But again, I didn't feel any different.
That meant I just wasn't brute-forcing it hard enough.
There were two ways I approached things in life: either smartly or through sheer, relentless stubbornness.
And well... stubbornness seems like the perfect method here.
[Profaned Fireball]
***
I didn't even realize it was already daytime.
All my focus went on repeatedly casting the same spell again and again, only stopping until my mind reached failure due to the number of spell formulas I was solving.
And... I was stupidly close to that.
But...
[Profaned Fireball]
FWOOSH!
Without any warning, the very condensed fireball in my hand suddenly started to converge on itself, the sheer energy combining into a single small spot that began acting like a mini black hole.
Subtly pulling in a few dust particles and even extinguishing a few lamps in my room.
"Is this it?"
I tiredly smiled.
After the fireball finished forming into... something else entirely.
It entered my palm, the energy that accumulated within the ball now distributing evenly throughout my body.
It was warm, cold, painful, and even soothing.
It was exactly what you would expect to feel after absorbing something called 'Profaned'.
[Chaos and Divine Attunement]
[Subtypes: Dark and Light]
[Beginner: Lvl 2]
"F-Finally..."
I laugh a bit more manically than I should.
CREAK.
Huh...?
Did the door just open?
I looked to the side, and unexpectedly, it was Evelina, and well... she had an expression that bordered on concern and mild disgust.
I don't blame her... how else would you react to seeing someone who looked like they'd barely slept and was now laughing crazily in their bed?
"Am I interrupting something...?"
Evelina tilted her head in question.
"I was just attempting a breakthrough."
"A breakthrough? With what exactly?"
She narrowed her eyes, seeing subtle magic floating all around my room.
"Did you stay up all night casting spells?"
I was about to answer her question, but she immediately interrupted me.
"You could have just asked me to help you with that..."
"Ask you?"
"Yes, quid pro quo, as the saying goes, if I recall."
Evelina grabbed a small journal from her handbag, the cover neatly labeled with 'Breakthrough 101'.
"But didn't I trouble you yesterday?"
"That was a joke, you idiot."
She sighed, not sure whether to be disappointed or amused by the fact that her strongest pawn was literally dumb enough not to catch her tone.
"And where was the old confidence you showed me when we first met?"
She chuckled.
"Don't tell me you're getting cold feet."
Ah...
Right...
I definitely was more... straightforward then than I am now.
But that was before I was exposed to all her greatness firsthand.
"No, please don't be mistaken, you are simply... far greater than I had originally imagined."
"Oh...?"
Evelina raised a brow.
She was curious to what in the world did I even imagine for me to be able to say something like that.
'I barely showed him anything... where's he getting this? Never mind, I should be used to this already.'
Evelina thought to herself, shaking her head.
"Get ready for class already, we're going to be late."
"What...?"
"What do you mean what? I thought you wanted this to be a routine?"
She said bluntly.
And I swore I just felt my heart skip a beat.
"I'm on it!"
I moved quickly, preparing as fast as I could, using every spell I had in my arsenal for something as mundane as preparing for school.
Evelina closed the door and waited outside while I was preparing, crossing her arms.
"Did that idiot really just try breaking through just by repeatedly casting over and over again...?"