“Haa... haa...”
Oscar, his stamina and mana depleted, was gasping heavily, unable to move easily.
The mountain was shrouded in such deep darkness that it was impossible to distinguish anything right in front of him.
Occasionally, when the sleet lightened, a faint green aurora appeared in the night sky.
“...This is ridiculously hard.”
For a moment, he missed his past life.
Back then, he had used the Flight spell to reach the summit in just a few hours.
“Sigh.”
But what could he do?
His current body wasn't at that level yet.
Activating Night Vision, Oscar carefully surveyed his surroundings.
Confirming there was no one around, he dug into the snow to create a small burrow and crawled inside.
“...Ugh.”
His entire body’s muscles and mana circuits screamed in unison.
He gulped down a superior potion like water and poured another bottle over his swollen legs.
Only then did the pain subside, and his mind began to clear.
‘Something feels off. Sure, I’m just Level 3, but this is over the top.’
It had been 21 hours since he started climbing the mountain.
The first ambush had merely been a prelude—four more attacks followed.
As he ascended, the skill level of those trying to steal his invitation increased.
The last group included a Level 5 mage.
‘Right now, I’m compensating for my lack of level with experience and mana reserves, but... that has its limits.’
He still had at least a full day of climbing to reach the summit.
In that time, how many more attackers would he encounter?
How strong would they be?
Oscar sighed deeply.
‘Logically, the stronger ones would gather near the top.’
After all, there was no reason for skilled individuals to waste time bickering at the base.
Waiting patiently at the top meant the invitation holder would eventually come to them.
Oscar analyzed his current abilities objectively.
‘...At my level, I can handle opponents up to Level 5 somehow.’
But Level 6?
That was impossible.
No matter how much the opponent underestimated him, the overwhelming difference in power couldn’t be bridged.
Closing his eyes, Oscar sank into deep thought.
Should he keep climbing the mountain, or should he come back stronger and try again later?
If he returned after reaching Level 6, he was confident he could reach the summit.
He had succeeded in the past, and there weren’t many ways to stop a flying mage.
‘But it’s already taken five days to get here, and another day to climb this mountain.’
The time he promised the Deputy Tower Master was one month.
If he descended and returned to Sirin, he would have only 20 days left.
Ten days would be wasted without achieving anything.
‘Twenty days... there’s no way I can reach Level 4 in that short time, not even me.’
In his past life, it had taken a year and a half to progress from Level 3 to Level 4.
With his current breathing technique, that could be shortened to six months.
‘But it’s only been two months since I reached Level 3...’
If he trained diligently, he might reach Level 4 in four months.
Other mages would be astonished, but for him, even that felt too slow.
‘Twenty-five days... only twenty-five days left...’
After agonizing for a long time, Oscar finally made up his mind and slowly opened his eyes.
‘I won’t descend this mountain.’
It was a decision that would shock those who knew him well.
He had always emphasized that recognizing one’s limits and retreating took courage, especially for those aspiring to become high-level mages.
‘But I won’t keep climbing either.’
Instead, Oscar chose a third option.
‘This place is brimming with mana, far more than other regions.’
It was the perfect training ground.
Rich mana and harsh natural conditions would push his circuits to their limits 24/7.
More importantly, training was most effective when survival was on the line.
‘The attackers.’
The enemies swarming this mountain would provide excellent experience.
The peak where the Sage of Stars resided was the closest place to the heavens.
Depending on how one defined “sky,” it could even be considered the sky itself.
It was so high that even the clouds lay far below.
“Hmm.”
A massive circular observatory stood at the summit.
No one knew who built it, when, how, or why—it was an enigmatic structure.
Living there was an elderly man, known to the world as the “Sage of Stars.”
“Sigh... So this star is not the one either.”
The old man gazed through his telescope, disappointment clear in his voice.
A star he had been observing for days had dimmed and faded away.
“It’s worrisome... time is of the essence...”
Muttering cryptically, he left the dark room with a grim expression.
The hem of his robe brushed against the floor with a soft rustle as he moved to another room and sat on a sofa, staring blankly at the ceiling.
All he could do now was wait for a new star to be born.
Crackle, crackle.
Suddenly, an unusual sound came from the floating holographic map in the center of the room.
Recognizing it as the sound of fire, the old man reacted with mild interest.
‘Ah, come to think of it...’
About ten days ago, a new challenger had entered his domain.
A Level 3 harmony mage.
He had expected the challenger to fail within hours and planned to teach them a basic spell as a parting gift.
Naturally, he hadn’t paid them any attention or held any expectations.
‘And yet, that one is still holding on?’
Surprised, the old man approached the holographic map with growing curiosity.
He waved his hand lightly, zooming in on the desired area.
As the scene came into view, a question mark floated above his head.
“...Hmm?”
No wonder.
There, in the middle of a cleared snowy slope, stood a small cabin.
Crackle, crackle.
The earlier sound came from the mage roasting rabbit meat over a torch outside the cabin.
“Unbelievable. Has he been living here this whole time? How?”
The old man’s face, rarely showing any emotion, was now painted with a rare look of bewilderment.
In the centuries he had spent atop this peak, he had never encountered anyone like this.
Typically, the mages who entered his mountain could be categorized into three groups.
‘Weak mages, fairly skilled mages, and monsters.’
Weak mages couldn’t even make it to the summit.
Hence, the knowledge they could acquire was minimal.
Fairly skilled mages somehow managed to reach the top, earning themselves some moderately useful knowledge.
And the final category: monsters.
They arrived at the summit effortlessly and obtained knowledge that became a significant asset to their lives.
‘But this one... what is he?’
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
He had thought the man was a weak mage, but as time went on, it seemed the man was holding his own.
Perhaps he could even reach the summit.
The Sage of Stars believed the man was exceptionally lucky.
‘If he had encountered the dolls, he would have been eliminated by now... What are they doing?’
He checked on the dolls he had scattered throughout the mountain, referred to by others as “disciples.”
"What?"
At the same time, a strange groan escaped his lips.
Out of the total 108 dolls, only 12 remained; the rest had been destroyed.
‘So he didn’t just avoid them by luck; he survived encounters with the dolls?’
The young man appeared to be someone who wouldn’t last even two hours in the mountain.
His demeanor exuded refinement and delicacy.
But how?
As the question filled his mind, the old man, unable to contain his curiosity, gestured with his hand.
A sofa dragged itself across the floor toward him, and as he sat down, he waved his hand again.
‘I need to see every record of what this man has done since entering the mountain.’
Only then did he think he could understand the situation.
The old man sat back in a relaxed posture, watching the scenes projected before him.
He became a meticulous observer, watching the young mage climb the mountain.
At times, he paused the scenes, rewinding to rewatch moments that intrigued him.
‘Hah, he’s quick to assess situations. The moment he sensed a doll approaching, he pretended to be dead.’
‘Even the details—controlling his heartbeat and mimicking convulsions—are flawless. It's almost obsessive.’
‘It seems he’s been in the mountain for 15 hours now... yet he hasn’t let up on his acceleration and temperature-maintenance spells. His mana reserves must be enormous, and there’s no sign of waste.’
What impressed the old man the most was his mental fortitude.
‘Even the most well-trained soldiers falter before the relentless cold and the terror of constant attacks.’
But the young man remained steadfast.
In every situation, he adhered to his beliefs without compromise.
Perhaps that was why the old man thought he resembled a shining star at times.
A brilliance that could only be felt from a newly born star.
How could such radiance come from a mere human climbing from the depths?
Driven by curiosity, the old man retreated to his darkroom to read the young man’s constellation.
At the same time, his expression hardened, and his gaze faltered.
Though he had spent centuries reading the stars, this was the first time he had encountered such a case.
‘This... this is impossible.’
Looking at the stars, he understood.
He knew who the young man was.
‘Oscar Crucian.’
He was a star the old man once held high hopes for, a man who radiated brilliance like no other.
That’s why he remembered him so vividly.
When Oscar’s star burned to ash and faded into a dull, lifeless light, the old man had mourned deeply.
‘But how? How could this be?’
That star was shining again.
It burned fiercely, brighter than ever before.
It raged as if to say it had never faded, outshining every other star around it.
‘If his star was shining so brightly, why didn’t I notice until now?’
After much thought, the answer was obvious.
He had stopped paying attention to faded stars, never looking their way again.
His interest and hope had been reserved solely for newly born, glittering stars.
The Sage of Stars continued to stare at Oscar Crucian’s star for a long time.
“Huff, huff.”
Oscar sprinted across the snowy mountain from dawn like a snow leopard.
As proof of his speed, without even using 『Acceleration』, he snatched a zigzagging hare in an instant.
-Squeak, squeak!
Oscar glanced at the struggling rabbit in his grasp and chuckled.
“Sorry about that.”
He released the rabbit without hesitation; he had only caught it for training purposes.
As the rabbit quickly disappeared, Oscar took a light sip from a potion bottle.
“Ahhh.”
It had already been fifteen days since he entered the snowy mountain.
During that time, he had undergone significant changes.
‘Training in a place rich with mana really is effective.’
First, his mana reserves had increased significantly, thanks to absorbing dense mana 24/7.
Additionally, battling frequent attackers had greatly enhanced the quality of his muscles and mana circuits in a short time.
If he trained here for just two more months—or even one more month—he was confident he could reach Level 4.
But he didn’t have that luxury.
He had spent five days reaching the mountain, and with fifteen days already gone, his remaining time was limited.
Most importantly, there had been no attackers since yesterday.
‘So, it’s time to climb higher, huh?’
Oscar looked up at the peak towering above and lightly stretched his body.
His condition today was optimal.
“Alright, let’s do this.”
Bidding farewell to the cabin he had grown fond of, Oscar resumed his ascent of the mountain.
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]

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