Aziel stared, speechless, at the space where leaves had danced moments before.
The summoned arm remained motionless, like a statue in the dimly lit cave.
The way the arm moved, calculated, swift, and lethal, hinted at a lifetime dedicated to the blade.
He glanced at the summoned arm in his grip.
The straight stick in its grasp looked worn after being used like a blade to slice the leaves.
Thinking back, even that was already incredible enough.
Then, a new thought sparked in his mind, igniting a fresh wave of excitement.
What if he had another arm? In his left hand? An arm with another skill, another fighting style?
A vivid image flashed in his mind — dual-wielding.
He envisioned himself weaving intricate patterns of attack and defense, combining the strengths of different fighting styles at the same time.
The possibilities were exciting.
He could become a whirlwind of limbs, a one-man army.
Then, a more practical question surfaced, deflating his soaring imagination slightly.
How many arms could I summon?
His mind conjured the image of the colossal limb he'd summoned earlier.
Other than the arm he had collected from the Crazy Beast he had killed earlier, the other 2 arms — the human one & the gigantic metal one — must have been collected before he lost his memories.
Which meant, he might have collected more. Many more arms.
The thought hung in the air. Aziel felt a rush of excitement as he fantasized the possibilities of that.
"Blackie, you said... you said these arms are from creatures I've killed?"
"Correct, Aziel. Every creature you killed, you can collect one of their arm."
"And the giant metal arm... and this human one... I collected those before I lost my memory?"
"Indeed."
"So, how many are there? How many arms have I... collected?"
Blackie remained silent for a moment. "Quite a lot"
Aziel wondered about that answer.
Quite a lot? What did that even mean? Dozens? Hundreds?
But he kept his attention locked on Blackie's next words.
"But right now, you can only use these three arms. You sealed away all the others before you lost your memory. Well, you just need to kill and collect more arms after this if you want to use more," Blackie added.
Aziel was not too keen about Blackie's suggestion.
"By the way, power has a price, Aziel. Magic power also needs fuel. For most magic users, that fuel is Mana, drawn from their Mana Pool."
Blackie paused, allowing the information to sink in. "The more magic power you use, the more Mana it needs. A mage's magical capacity is limited by the size of their Mana Pool. The same principle also applies to stronger magic power. That's why magic users need to be good at managing the Mana in their pool."
Aziel listened intently, nodding slowly.
Blackie continued. "And that's the system for those who use Mana. But, Aziel, you are not like other magic users," the ring's voice took on a different inflection.
Aziel frowned. "What do you mean?"
Blackie posed a question in return. "Think back to when you first tried to use magic, back in the forest when we were running from that Crazy Beast. Did you notice anything... missing?"
Aziel racked his memory, recalling the frantic moments. He'd focused on the idea of magic, of power, of something to stop the Crazy Beast.
"Wait... yeah. I was... I was kinda expecting fire, or wind, something elemental, right? But then... the arm just appeared."
"Exactly, you tried to use your magic power, but elemental magic didn't come. That's because your power doesn't draw on Mana, Aziel."
Aziel's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "It doesn't use Mana? Then... what does it use?"
"Your magic is fueled by Miasma."
"Miasma? What is that?"
"Think of it like Mana's... cousin or something. Similar in some ways, both are mystical energy, but fundamentally different."
"Different how?"
"Mana is the lifeblood of this world — present in the air, water, and trees. Nature generates it as part of the natural cycle. Miasma, however, is an outsider. It's not a natural energy of this world and only appeared recently."
"If it's not natural, where does it come from?"
"The Abyss."
The word hung in the air. Aziel recalled Blackie's description of the bottomless chasms that spawned the Crazy Beast.
Blackie continued, "Miasma originates from there. It seeps out from the Abyss, spreading to the areas around it. That's why Crazy Beasts are so different from normal Beasts, they're creatures of Miasma, not Mana."
Aziel considered this, his brow furrowed in thought.
Mana, natural, life-giving. Miasma, unnatural, from a dark abyss. Opposites.
"So, Mana and Miasma are like... rivals?" He ventured, trying to simplify the complex idea.
"More like oil and water. They don't mix — they push against each other."
"Push?" Aziel asked.
"Exactly. In areas saturated with Miasma, near the Abyss, Mana users struggle to restore their Mana. Their bodies naturally take in Mana, but in areas filled with Miasma, there is no Mana to absorb, like trying to breathe where there is no air. Don't worry, they won't die, they just can't refill their Mana pools."
"And the same holds true for Miasma users, correct? Outside the Abyss, in Mana-rich areas, I'd have trouble replenishing my Miasma, wouldn't I?"
"Yes," Blackie conceded.
Aziel nodded slowly, processing the information.
Mana, Miasma, their pools, the Abysses, Crazy Beasts... it was a lot to take in.
"So, if I use up all the Miasma in my pool, how do I get more? Do I have to go for a swim in the Abyss or something?"
Blackie answered in return, "Not quite swimming, thankfully. But you're on the right track. Replenishing your Miasma pool in a Mana-rich environment like this... well, it's like trying to fill a bucket with holes in the rain. You might catch a few drops, but it's going to take a while. It all comes down to how much Miasma are there around you. To properly refill your Miasma pool, you'd need to be near a source of Miasma. Like the Abyss. Or at least, somewhere close enough to catch the... Miasma fumes, shall we say, leaking out."
Aziel considered this, his eyes drifting towards the cave entrance, then back to the forest beyond. The Abyss... based on what Blackie had said, going there wouldn't be that easy right?
"Hold on a sec... Miasma comes from the Abyss, right? Like that Crazy Beast — a miasma creature. That makes me wonder... since I use Miasma for my magic, does that mean I also originated from the Abyss?" Aziel started to question his origin.
"Yeah, that's right. Actually, you're from the Abyss. In fact, you're not even human. You're a cursed creature born in the depths of the Abyss, and all those Crazy Beasts? They're your offspring," Blackie said, his tone serious.
Aziel's eyes widened in disbelief, a wave of shock washing over him and momentarily freezing him in place as he struggled to process the weight of Blackie's words.
"Hahaha!! Just kidding! You're not special or anything. You're just like any other human," Blackie burst into laughter, clearly enjoying his little prank.
Aziel felt an irritation bubbling inside him at Blackie's teasing. A vein throbbed in his temple.
This guy's got a death wish.
He took a deep breath, reminding himself that he needed information from Blackie. He forced a smirk onto his face, playing along.
"Haa… that's a good one. Alright now back to the topic. Like I told ya, you use Miasma instead of Mana. And the reason for that is pretty simple, really — it's because what you consume isn't a Mana Stone, but a Miasma Stone," Blackie explained.
Blackie then told Aziel about Miasma Stones.
Like Mana Stones, Miasma Stones was one of the way for humans to wield magical power, but instead of Mana, they rely on Miasma as the source of energy.
Both stones were crystalline in appearance, though Miasma Stones were stark black, reminiscent of obsidian, in contrast to the white, crystal-like Mana Stones.
Consuming either type of stone granted humans the ability to manipulate their respective energies. Both offered a boost to physical resilience, yet their magical manifestations diverged.
Mana Stones were known to bestow elemental magic and had a chance, albeit slim, of unlocking unique magic.
Miasma Stones, on the other hand, did not grant elemental magic. Their unique magic manifestation was even rarer, occurring in a mere 1% of consumers, compared to the 10% chance for the consumers of Mana Stones.
Other than that, a crucial distinction lay in the user's connection to the environment.
Mana Stone users could only directly draw upon their internal Mana pool to fuel their magic power, whereas those who consumed Miasma Stones could tap into both their internal Miasma pool and the ambient Miasma in their surroundings.
Finally, and perhaps most critically, consuming a Miasma Stone carried a significant risk.
Unlike Mana Stones, which were relatively safer, Miasma Stones demanded immense mental fortitude from the consumer.
Should the individual lack this mental resilience, they risked succumbing to madness, transforming into a Crazy Beast.