A Talentless Mage Devours a Disaster-Class Future - Chapter 52

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 52

The blue glow of the system window faded beyond the rising steam.

Aion stepped back and began surveying his surroundings with a sharp gaze.

“A windfall? What do you mean by that?”

【Daeji: Literally. This isn’t just any hot spring. The roiling Mana all around us proves it.】
【Hwayeom: Aion, this is a place called a Ley Line.】

“…A Ley Line?”

The term was entirely new to him.

【Daeji: Tsk… and here I thought you were a mage.】
【Saengmyeong: It’s not entirely unusual, really. Very few mages ever encounter an actual Ley Line in their lifetime.】
【Daeji: Well, when you put it that way, I suppose it makes sense. Listen carefully. A Ley Line is a region where Mana flowing through the earth creates a bottleneck, resulting in an area of abnormally concentrated Mana.】

“…This hot spring?”

【Hwayeom: It’s merely taken the form of a spring, but Ley Lines manifest in various ways. Sometimes as lakes, sometimes as forests.】
【Daeji: The nature of the Mana varies greatly depending on the form the Ley Line takes.】

“Hmm… I see.”

To think he’d stumble upon something so rare in a place like this.

【Daeji: Do you know that Mana flow across the continent isn’t uniform?】

“…I didn’t.”

【Daeji: I suspected as much. Mana varies by direction and terrain. Naturally, regions where massive Mana flows have already been claimed by others. The Mana Towers are the prime example.】

“Mana Towers?”

【Daeji: Yes, Mana Towers. There are nine across the continent in total. All of them are built atop Ley Lines.】

“…I see.”

【Hwayeom: At last you grasp it? The true value of a Ley Line. Even this magic academy, Excion, stands upon a substantial one.】
【Daeji: Of course, this particular Ley Line here isn’t quite at that scale. Though honestly, that’s something to be grateful for.】

“Grateful? Why?”

【Daeji: If the Ley Line were any larger, you’d have to refine the Mana before using it. Unrefined Mana in its pure form could warp your body itself.】

The hot spring before him looked to be just the right size for five or six people.

“I hear what you’re saying, but looking at it, the scale seems… a bit small. Is a Ley Line this size really effective?”

【Hwayeom: We’ll have to verify that from now on. Looking at it alone won’t tell us anything.】
【Daeji: I agree. We need to soak in it first to truly feel its essence, don’t we?】

So Aion found himself about to bathe in a hot spring under the moonlight.

‘…Well, I finished today’s training anyway.’

There was one thing that nagged at him, though.

【Saengmyeong: Why are you hesitating? Is something wrong?】

“It’s just… I’ve never been naked outside before.”

At that, Hwayeom’s Extreme Point let out a loud cackle.

【Hwayeom: You fool, doesn’t that Cassius fellow walk around in nothing but his underclothes?】

Fair point.

“…That’s true enough.”

Aion nodded briefly and began peeling off his Excion Academy Uniform, piece by piece.

Slip—

The cool forest air swept across his muscular torso, marked here and there with old scars, but he paid no mind and slowly stepped into the hot spring.

Splash—

Aion lowered himself until the water enveloped him up to his shoulders.
The moment he submerged, every Extreme Point in his mind fell silent and began watching his reaction intently.

【Hwayeom: ……How is it?】

“…How is what?”

【Daeji: Do you feel the energy flooding into your body?】

Their questions hung thick with tension. But Aion, from within the water, rolled his shoulders lightly and opened his mouth with an unmoved expression.

“…It just feels like a pleasantly hot spring, that’s all.”

【Suryu: …That can’t be right. You’re saying you feel nothing at all?】

“The muscles I’ve been overworking lately feel like they’re loosening up. Otherwise, not really… wait.”

Aion’s words cut off mid-sentence. His calm expression suddenly froze.
The warmth and gentleness of the hot spring’s energy was shifting, transforming in an instant.

“This is…….”

A strange sensation boring through his skin, burrowing into his veins.

Shhhhh…

An unpleasant chill that seemed to freeze him to the bone rose along his spine,

Hisss…

Then a searing heat erupted and savagely pierced through his entire body.

“Hngh…!”

Aion let out an involuntary groan.

It felt like ice needles stabbing through him, like burning cloth abrading his skin—and yet, simultaneously, a rush of exhilarating freshness washed over the pain, tangling his senses in confusion.

“My body… something’s wrong.”

【Noejeon: Ehehehe! If you put it that way, I can’t tell!】
【Daeji: Speak clearly. You need to describe your perception accurately.】

“Well, it’ll sound strange, but it’s cold yet burning. It hurts, yet it feels… not unpleasant at all?”

At those words, the voices of the Extreme Points brightened in unison.

【Daeji: Ah… I see what you mean.】

“You do?”

【Daeji: A Wild Ley Line is burrowing into your body. That sensation is the aftereffect of Extreme Mana colliding.】

“Extreme Mana? Isn’t all Mana the same?”

When Aion asked about the Ley Line information he didn’t know, Hwayeom’s Extreme Point answered.

【Hwayeom: Each Ley Line carries its own Mana. This one appears to have two elemental attributes. Both are striving with all their might to seep into your body.】

“They’re trying to enter my body? Two elemental attributes….”

Now he understood why the Extreme Points had asked him to describe in detail what he was sensing.

【Hwayeom: The burning sensation is likely Flame Mana….】
【Suryu: The cold sensation must be Water Mana.】

Two elemental Manas.
Opposing ones at that.

The fact that these Manas were clashing didn’t sound reassuring to him at all.

“Isn’t that… dangerous?”

【Suryu: Normally, you’d be right. But here, the two forces seem to be in perfect balance.】
【Hwayeom: A stroke of fortune, truly. You, of all of us, have the most luck.】

Aion finally released his tension and sank deeper into the hot water.

The stinging sensation soon transformed into a pleasant stimulation, melting into lazy contentment.

Blub-blub-blub…

“It really is… quite nice.”

【Daeji: Would I have told you to stay here merely for fatigue recovery? Doesn’t something occur to you?】

“Something that occurs to me….”

Abundant Mana.
Balanced Extreme elemental forces.

To make better use of these….

“…Grounding.”

【Daeji: You understand, so what are you doing?】

Aion settled himself comfortably on the ground and slowly closed his eyes.

Rather than adopting a horse stance, he settled into a seated position with his arms spread wide at shoulder width.

If asked why, he would simply say it felt natural that way.

Whoooosh…

As he drained the shallow Mana from his body with practiced ease, the pure energy of the Ley Line dissolved in the hot spring water flowed naturally into the void he had created.

Ahhhhh—

What surprised him most was that, contrary to his fears, there was no pain whatsoever.
The warm essence of fire and the cool essence of water flowed through his veins in a gentle intertwine, filling his body with a pleasant saturation.

‘Is it maintaining order?’

Since balance was already established, the Mana seeped in without runaway acceleration.

A strange sensation wholly different from ordinary Grounding.

‘I could get addicted to this.’

How much time had passed while he basked in this refreshing state? A cheerful chime sounded, and Yggdrasil’s system window appeared before his eyes.

Ding—!

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
[!] Absorbing Wild Ley Line energy.
[!] MANA increased by 1.
[!] VIT increased by 1.
[!] Fire Elemental Affinity increased very slightly.
[!] Water Elemental Affinity increased very slightly.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Aion’s eyes snapped open.
His fatigue had been thoroughly washed away, and vitality surged through his body.

“Still, it doesn’t seem like that much of a change…”

As Aion swept back his damp hair, Daeji’s Extreme Point offered an explanation.

【Daeji: Your body has limits in how much it can absorb. Return here each day after you finish your training.】

“…You don’t mean I’ll grow this much every single day?”

The Extreme Points laughed wickedly at his response.

【Hwayeom: Hehehehe… don’t you think we called it a windfall for a reason?】

***

Aion rose to his feet.
He dried his body, soaked from the hot spring, using the Sky Movement Technique, and retrieved the Excion Academy Uniform he had left on the rock.

Though his entire body thrummed with vitality from the bath, his eyes had shed the languor of moments before and returned to the keen gaze of a hunter.

“It’s definitely a pleasant windfall, but something feels off about it.”

Aion placed his hand on the hilt of the Short Sword at his waist and began to walk slowly around the hot spring.

“A ley line of this magnitude—the mages of Excion would’ve discovered it long ago.”

【Daeji: True. As I mentioned before, finding a ley line is pure windfall for any mage.】
【Suryu: There’s no sign of anyone staking a claim, nor do wild beasts occupy this place. It’s as if this entire space has been erased from the world itself.】
【Daeji: Something is definitely off about this….】

Aion crouched down and swept the earth with his bare hand.
The ground was pristine—not a single monster’s footprint in sight.

Now that he thought about it, despite the regular extermination operations supposedly conducted each season, there hadn’t been a single monster from Mistbeil Forest anywhere in this vicinity.

His gaze shifted toward the dense fog encircling the area.

Something felt wrong about dismissing it as the forest’s natural mist.

“The fog… isn’t it oddly thick only around here?”

【Hwayeom: You’re right. The fog’s movement is unnatural.】

Aion reached out and lightly stirred the air’s mist with his hand.

‘…It doesn’t disperse.’

Normal mist would scatter in the wind or thin out with temperature changes. Yet even before the boiling hot spring, the fog clung together like a wall.

【Mado: This might not be natural.】

Aion hesitated for a moment before the hazy barrier of fog.

‘…Should we turn back?’

They’d already found a ley line—nature’s gift. Did he really need to be greedy for more?

No—his curiosity about what lay beyond this wall wasn’t greed; it was simple wondering.

And once Aion’s curiosity took hold, he rarely surrendered it.

“I’m going to look inside.”

【Hwayeom: I could warn you it’s dangerous, but you won’t listen anyway.】
【Daeji: Do whatever you want. Just remember—no one will come running if you scream out here.】

Ignoring words that blurred the line between curse and concern, Aion walked forward as if drawn in.

Beyond lay a narrow dark crevice in the rock wall, where thick steam and strange fog tangled together, obscuring everything more than a hand’s breadth ahead.

‘Something’s in here, I can feel it.’

If the ley line outside was merely a fragment of something greater within, then Aion might be on the verge of a far more significant discovery.

Breathing shallow, he stepped cautiously toward the dark crevice.

Ssshhhhh….

The deeper he went, the fiercer the wind became.

And then, as the steam gradually thinned and the outline of a narrow cavern beyond the rock fissure began to emerge faintly—

A chasm opened before him, vast enough to swallow an entire building.

“…….”

【Hwayeom: That’s strange….】
【Daeji: …It seems that Ley Line already had an owner.】

Two moons gazed down at him.

More precisely, two Golden Eyes.
Sien, the Wind Overlord, swept away the mist and revealed herself.

Then she thrust her head forward toward Aion and spoke with a mocking smile.

【…You’ve had quite the pleasant time, haven’t you?】

Untalented Mage Swallows Catastrophic Future 52

Author
Wang Mo-jji
Publisher
DaonCreative
Planning / Editing / Production
Yeon
Cover
Dali

UCI
G720:N+A036-20260706063.0052

ⓒ2026. Wang Mo-jji

※ This e-book is a copyrighted work protected under the Copyright Law of the Republic of Korea.
No part or all of this work may be reproduced in any form without the permission of the author and publisher.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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