Holding three silver pebbles, I could feel the minute fluctuations of space around my hand. The fabric of its existence seemed to bend and swirl, acting like a liquid at some moments, and as a malleable alloy in some.

Without [Absolute Awareness], these fluctuations would be unobservable to my weak, human senses. Even heightened to their limits, I still could not perceive the intricacies and subtleties of its changes. It was like the influence of gravitational waves, expanding and contracting reality as they propagated through space.

Mesmerized by the sight, I watched as a palpable change in the world occurred. Space shifted, and the members of Heaven's Grasp all brandished their weapons. Spells were held in midair, awaiting the arrival of the inevitable.

'The <Archmagus> is here,'

The odd and discomforting spiritual mark on my soul was still present and I did not have the means to erase it.

—[ You have all done well, coming this far and defeating the monsters that guard the Royal Treasury. ]

The voice of a young man boomed within our minds. I watched as the great party of Heaven's Grasp crumbled like a sandcastle, simply due to the domination of his voice. Cold sweat trickled down my back.

Telepathy...

It was clear that my presence had been confirmed here. Not just some fleeting mark, as if he was unsure.

—[ However, I have a duty to uphold. ]

Mana began to coalesce, moving like a swirling galaxy, boundless and unimaginable. 

Lila, who had fallen to her knees nearby, struggled to mutter a command. 

"L-Laurence!"

—[ I am the <Archmagus> Daimyuon. ]

A tall young man appeared within our vision, with white hair that reached the floor, dragging behind him like a wedding gown. The young man stood with a lithe stature, seemingly frail at first glance.

The paleness of his skin likened him to those nobles who only ever stayed indoors. His eyes, however, shone in a myriad of colors, dancing like an aurora borealis with each passing moment.

The man before me was quite the existence. The power he emanated felt only a few steps below that of the goddess Minerva.

—[ Let us change our surroundings, shall we? ]

With a rush of mana and Lila's desperate yell, the world shifted. The light of Daimyuon's mana and the flash of a thousand runes collided. It was a clash between photons. 

—Swaaaah!

In the next moment, I was standing alone, without the members of Heaven's Grasp nearby. The previous spacious room had turned into a study. Instead of monster blood everywhere, only the scent of old books wafted throughout. After a brief moment of disorientation, it occurred to me.

I was standing face-to-face with the <Archmagus> himself.

"...Uh, hello," I said.

My invisibility had been deactivated without my knowledge. How terrifying.

"Yes, hello—"

Thus, the moment when I heard Daimyuon speak was the same moment I smashed one of the pebbles in my hands. This time, I relied mostly on my intuition. I could not confirm its uses completely. I did not have the mana.

These stones were my only means of escape.

'I hope it works,' I thought.

In my mind, I pictured the place I had seen through [Absolute Awareness].

While the shattering happened instantaneously, a massive flow of force erupted. Surrounding me like a maelstrom, I felt the world begin to shift.

"Oho? How decisive." Daimyuon seemed to have given me praise. With a wave of his hand, several shackles of pure mana flew to bind my limbs.

"It is a necessary action, <Archamagus>, sir." I smiled back, hurriedly summoning a whirlwind as an indigent means of protection for myself.

I knew that it would be nothing but paper in the face of an <Archmagus>, however, I still wanted to try.

—Clack, clack, clack!

Indeed, as expected, I couldn't escape his grasp. Suddenly, the changing world stopped yet the spatial force raged on.

"Do you not want to hear what I must say first?" Daimyuon asked, with a curious glint in his eyes.

Each wave of spatial force brought about the rattling of my mana shackles. Chains that held me down, anchored in space.

[Absolute Awareness] erupted within my mind, and I met Daimyuon's gaze.

With a chuckle, I replied, "Of course not."

I poured my all into [Absolute Awareness]. This was going to be another once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, just like with Minerva.

As my mana drained completely, I stole all the knowledge I could from such a lofty figure's mind. 

"Hm—?" Daimyuon felt something occur, however he didn't know what exactly it was.

Thus, I heard a gasp, however, it was no longer any of my concern.

I smashed another pebble. They were much more fragile than I thought.

Spatial force erupted once more. This time, the mana shackles that bound me could do nothing but break.

—BOOM!

A fluctuation in space, rivaling that of Daimyuon's governance over magic, pried me out of his grasp.

The world spun. I felt my stomach lurch in pure hatred, despising every decision I made thus far. On the other hand, my mind felt like it had been turned to mush and then frozen back into its normal state over and over again.

"Ugh,"

This movement through space was far less refined than Daimyuon's [Presence Shifting]. However, it was forceful enough to allow me to escape. I didn't know which one I preferred more at this point.

It was a dizzying experience.

Luckily, after a breath, I found myself back on solid ground. I looked around, and the sight of mountains surrounded me.

—Mountains and mountains of gold.

"Damn,"

I couldn't help but curse despite fully expecting the sight before me. It was different seeing it all in person.

"I have to take what I can and leave," Feeling the last pebble in my hand, a sense of urgency consumed me.

That <Archmagus> Daimyuon was an eccentric one. After sifting through the wisdom and memories that I had stolen, I discovered something within me changing. Perhaps it was due to the nature of magic, but the multitude of spell formulas Daimyuon had memorized, as well as the bits and pieces of knowledge he had over special <Laws> of the world weren't disipating despite my weak memory.

I would have to check. It seemed like there were some small intricacies in this world that were beyond my own common sense.

Shaking my head, I recalled the surface-level thoughts that Daimyuon had.

He wanted me as his student?

Yeah... I would rather not.

Plus, I doubted he could teach me anything at this point. All the magic he knew was stored eerily inside my brain. I wasn't yet sure if it would be safe to practice them, but it was very likely that they would prove useful in some way or another.

In fact,

With a whirlpool of mana in my body, I devoured the spiritual mark on my soul using the knowledge I had gained. Although it was not exactly magic, I was able to get rid of the discomfort that plagued me.

For that, I was grateful.

"Now... let's see what we have here,"

After a brief wait, I activated [Absolute Awareness]. My senses spread out, encompassing the room like a net, letting nothing hide away from my scrutinizing gaze.

I looked for the most appropriate treasure for myself.

Not the most powerful, no.

But the one that I could wield the most comfortably.