Drawing a formation on the rocks was going to be hard work, so Raze decided to walk closer to the stream of water where the pebbles had turned into a type of sand. Doing everything with the stick, he felt a sense of calmness come over him.

"This reminds me of my old life," Raze thought. "I would often have to hide out in the middle of nowhere, away from the eyes of others. The sound of water flowing, it's quite soothing. With the direction I'm going, it might not be a long time until I'm on the run again."

The formation had finished. Sitting down inside the magic circle he had drawn, he took out one of the crystals from his robe and activated the magic. The crystals would then slowly dissolve as they entered through Raze's pores and went into his magic core.

Once he had finished with one crystal, he would then move on to the next, doing the same thing. It was best to do them one at a time; that way, the core was able to grow bit by bit. Expand it too fast, and it could explode, killing the mage on the spot.

"There were many dealers in Alterian that would offer special tools to help enhance one's strength. Some of them would destroy the magic core completely, killing the mage, while others, although they would get a boost in strength, would then become reliant on the tools."

"They were worse than cursed items; they would give a slight rise in power, but then a larger downfall, making them weaker than they would have been if they never used the tools in the first place."

Raze continued to absorb another crystal as memories flashed through his head. He had seen a number of people who had been affected by these items, including one that he would have once called a friend.

"And the one behind the distribution of these tools, Gizin, one of the five Grand Magus. No one would ever have suspected it, and it's one that no one would believe no matter how hard I tried to get the message out." n).1n

After absorbing the eighth crystal, it was right then Raze could feel it in his chest. The magic core had thumped and expanded slightly in size. The outer shell had hardened inside him and was beginning to crack.

"Arghh!" His hand gripped the area around his chest, and dark magic started to swirl all around his body. It was erratic, hitting the pebbles nearby, crashing into the water around him.

A faint purple glow covered his body until his core completely cracked. It shattered on the inside, and the magic from his body exploded, pushing all of the rocks and the water back.

Raze was on his knees, gasping for air. When he went to breathe in, he could feel it; the energy felt cooler as it entered his body. His sense of smell cleared up, and just with the touch on his skin he could feel not only the wind but the energy that flowed through it. It was as if the world that was covered in clouded colors had now become a lot clearer.

"I did it, I did it!" Raze's smile was nearly reaching his eyes. "I finally became a 2-star mage. The amount of mana I can control has increased; I am no longer limited by the attribute cap, and with more mana, it allows me to cast even more spells!"

Looking deep within himself, Raze could tell the core was now more reinforced. The magic core worked similarly to fractures in a human bone. Through the crystals, it would chip away with magic, allowing it to regrow and come back stronger. Then when the outer shell finally broke and a new one was in its place, that's when one would have reached the next star level.

"There were multiple ways to do this, but the quickest by far was using the crystals found within the beasts. Now there was an issue I had to face, though."

"These level 1 power stones, as they call them here, can only increase a mage's star level to level 2 at most. Now, if I want to go to the next stage, I will need higher-grade power stones. To do that, I could try and open a different portal or explore deeper in the one I already opened. I could also go to another Clan; if I went with others, it would be safer."

There was safety in numbers, especially in places that others had been to before. He was sure Clans would have rules for Pagna warriors using the portals they had access to. The main problem was that Raze used magic to kill beasts, and he wouldn't be able to use that with others around.

"I still have six power stones to myself now. Since they're useless for increasing my mana, I can use them for other things."

For mages, sometimes it was the number of items that would help one win a battle, not just one's power. In a way, rare items and enchanted items were one's power.

It was time for him to head back to the temple; otherwise, he would never get some sleep. But he was excited for the next morning because that's when he would have a look and give a go at learning the gift he had been given.

Looking at the area around him, it was a complete mess with the pebbles and sand having blown everywhere. It was a good thing that no one came out here. Walking back through the forest, Raze headed toward the temple.

In the same area where Raze was, sparks were occurring. They were like little shocks of electricity in the air, appearing for a few seconds before disappearing. Eventually, a small glowing portal had opened up, and small black tentacles had shot out, wriggling all over in the air, trying to reach for something.

The portal quickly closed back up, and the tentacles disappeared as well, but the sparks of electricity continued on for a few moments more before stopping.