An Enduring Task

I opened my eyes in bed.

Ah… is it already starting?

A sigh escaped involuntarily.

Though I have a body that doesn’t need sleep, lately I’ve been getting exactly two hours of sleep each day. It’s not because of physical fatigue, but because my mental strength has been battered beyond repair. What’s even more depressing is the fact that I’ll have to push myself to these extremes every day until the final battle ends.

When there’s work that must be done.

But when that work is so tedious and agonizing.

I just have to move. Without thinking about anything, before my body collapses from the torment, I have to move first.

[Simulation]

In the morning when I wake up, I proceed with research using [Simulation], and in the afternoon I gather Refinement and other genius researchers and deploy [Time Stop].

Within stopped time, we engage in endless discussion and research, and when mana and stamina are depleted, I deploy [Time Reversal] to recover before deploying [Time Stop] again…

Since becoming 7th Circle eliminated the disadvantage of simultaneously developing Ki-blood and Circle, the number of spells I can memorize exploded from 19 to 40, and I packed all 40 memorized spells full of [Time Reversal].

So… my days consisted of using [Time Reversal] 40 times a day to restore my body and then using [Time Stop] until complete exhaustion again.

In effect, my days stretched from 200 to 300 hours… Ah, I’m dying of boredom.

The reason I spend these long, long days entirely devoted to research is that time is not on our side.

I need to strengthen the defense team as quickly as possible so they can handle the Outer God’s apostles without me.

And…

There’s one more thing weighing on my mind.

What I realized when I temporarily experienced 8th Circle last time.

‘Maybe 8th Circle is my limit.’

No matter how much mana I absorb to transcend humanity, the will we possess—in other words, our souls—differs from that of gods. What we have are mortal souls, so there are inevitable limits to our achievements.

When I think about that moment when I temporarily transcended through fusion with spirits, I still feel dizzy. My mana had formed a central nervous system that went beyond the peripheral nervous system. But even that alone made the world…

“Ah, shit… damn it.”

Just remembering that moment… my stomach churns and cold sweats pour down.

‘That I endured it then… was thanks to Ari and Inggolli. More than anything, Gyeolli’s will supporting me made it possible.’

It’s not a hardware problem but a software problem.

I might somehow manage to reach 8th Circle. But if I go beyond that… human willpower, limited as it is, could never contain that much intuition.

In the end, at moments like this, there’s no difference between a superhuman mage and an ordinary Earthling. Suppose one day a god gave some Earthling the ability to create anything. And the god gave him one mission. Eliminate all poverty in the world with that ability.

Could that person truly eliminate all poverty in the world?

That’s the kind of problem it is. One human’s will isn’t vast and strong enough to embrace the world. Even if you could create unlimited clothes, bread, and computers, how would you distribute them? You can’t give them out one by one personally, and you can’t just hand them over to governments either. No matter how much bread you made for starving North Korean people out of pity, few countries would permit transporting that bread to North Korea. You couldn’t even know if it would be a good thing. Rather, groups trying to weaponize and monopolize his abilities would make it difficult for him to protect himself. Despite having godlike abilities, he would only realize how insignificant one human’s will truly is.

That was the limitation I felt.

‘Even if I gain power beyond 8th Circle, I won’t be able to fully control that immense power with my will.’

But just how powerful is the Outer God? 10th Circle? Or… beyond that?

With this body, I have to defeat such an Outer God… there’s no choice.

Not 40 times a day, but if possible, I’d deploy [Time Stop] 400 times.

‘Magical exoskeleton. This time I absolutely must complete it.’

The solution to all problems is ultimately the ‘magical exoskeleton.’

My lifelong research subject. Though I’ve applied it partially, I haven’t even approached the threshold of completion—a divine artifact.

The ultimate magical device that will let me transcend humanity while remaining human.

This time, I’ve assembled the finest team to fulfill that long-held aspiration.

“Mmm… this side should be more menacing. If you’re not going to make horns, that’s fine, but if you’ve decided to make them, they should be absolutely ruthless.”

Kaisel, in charge of ‘design’ for the magical exoskeleton research. Lately, she’s been exploding with perversion every day.

“I had no idea. That this would suit me so well! You’ve never seen a god, have you? So you wouldn’t know. The emotion I’m feeling right now! Gods must have been the most beautiful and impressive beings in the world. You know what? When I bring out the most magnificent image in my heart, the magical powers go crazy with joy. That was what gods were! It’s so regrettable. That my memories aren’t complete! In the past, I must have faced such gods directly, right? Gods like these must have spoken to me and given me orders, right? Ahhh—I could die happily.”

Kaisel spewed magical power while imitating various forms of ‘gods.’

Like a skilled model striking poses, her magical power rippled and transformed, switching between demon and god, dramatically changing the atmosphere.

<Ah… how nostalgic.>

<Familiar.>

<Finally found it!>

<Waaaah!>

Each time she changed the form of her magical power, the magical powers drooled and swarmed toward her.

“Oh, yes. Very good. A little slower… that’s right!”

Wizard of Boundary Kim Ji-woong recorded the forms of magical power she assumed and the reactions of surrounding magical powers like a professional cameraman brimming with dedication.

“Mmm… make the horns menacing? According to Baek Jun-woo Magical Theory, I should use black magical power. So if I inlay this area with darkness clay made from grinding cat liver and shadow stones in a double helix pattern…”

Wizard of Refinement Oh Si-jin referenced the data Kim Ji-woong provided while sweating profusely, carving magical materials into a bronze doll.

He created magical power dolls in the forms Kaisel desired.

<Huh…?>

<This one doesn’t move? Is it really alive?>

<But somehow I’m drawn to it…>

There was definite progress.

Unlike when we first started this research days ago, the magical powers’ attention to the magical power dolls that Refinement was creating had increased.

The magical powers that had been drawn to Kaisel would occasionally stop in front of the bronze doll.

This completes the ‘design’ team for the magical exoskeleton research.

“No! No! This way won’t work! Spirits and dragon hearts are different… Dragon hearts had their forms firmly established from the beginning. But spirits? The spirits extracted from natural mana stones have no clear form, right? Will remains, but most of their bodies are lost, right? No matter how amazing my gift [Mutation] is for evolving subjects… turning spirits into something like dragon hearts…”

Tris, in charge of ‘software,’ sighed every day. Consoling such a Tris was Water Wizard Hwi Someong’s role lately.

“Now, now, Tris. Stop sighing and look here.”

“…What is that?”

“I tried containing a spirit in a pendant using Truth Tower’s <Host Transformation Secret Art>. How about this approach? Giving spirits whose forms have collapsed a desired form, even a body capable of self-evolution.”

“Huh…?”

“Right? With your [Mutation], you could fuse spirits with magical devices to evolve them into new life forms, couldn’t you?”

Then Mage of Peace Erina, who had been quietly listening, chimed in.

“Adding my [Wish] to that would definitely produce even better results!”

“Creating a missing form… gives it to them? That sounds promising! Let’s start experimenting right away!”

The moment she saw a breakthrough, Tris’s eyes sparkled as always.

Despite the twists and turns, the software team was also making steady progress step by step.

“It would be better to install a cooling system here using the power of Judgment’s Flood.”

“No, no. If you mess with that area, all the magical circuits I laid will get tangled.”

“We have to prevent tangling.”

“This is the secret technique passed down through generations by our Yeon Gae Martial House!”

“Even so, installing a cooling system would be better.”

On the other side, Wizard of Domestication Pan-Dalus and Wizard of Arrogance Yeon Gae-bu-so argued daily.

What lay before them were the Guardians I had taken from my subspace. The Guardians, intricately inscribed with magical circuits by Pan-Dalus and the Yeon Gae Martial House’s techniques, displayed majesty rivaling that of Ki-blood wizards.

These were the hardware team for the magical exoskeleton.

And my role was… to understand everything they discussed and provide real-time feedback.

I maintained [Time Stop] while endlessly running [Simulation].

“Refinement! Make the horns with three twists!”

“Tris! Try making not just pendants but various forms like staffs, swords, crowns, or brooches.”

“Ah, and Tris! Leave that work to the Water Wizard for now and help the hardware team! Wizard of Arrogance. We’ll accept the cooling system using Judgment’s Flood and also introduce half-dragon hearts. We’ll rebuild the magical circuits with our leader. I’ll tell Refinement to help too.”

As I gave instructions… blood streamed from my nose.

Overload every time a new idea emerged.

I was already struggling, and on top of that I had to run [Simulation] to check and optimize the results in advance. I had to coordinate the research of design, hardware, and software that could easily work at cross-purposes. Every additional use of [Simulation] could shorten research time by that much.

My brain now felt not just hot but soft and melting.

Heh… hehehe.

Good.

What did I say this morning?

That it was torturous, that it was tedious?

Hehe.

Of course,

Tonight when evening comes, tomorrow when morning comes, I’ll surely whine like that again. Human will is something that gets consumed. But right now, with my brain hot enough to steam…

“Kehe. This is fun.”

Sweet madness born from the crucible of pain envelops me.

I want to squeeze out more, more. Until my brain melts and flows out my nose. Kehe.

The limitation of will that mortals inevitably possess.

Right. The wall I’ll eventually face, one I can’t overcome alone.

But not yet.

Though I may sometimes falter, my will fills faster than it’s consumed. It has yet to show its bottom.

[Time Reversal]

I replenished my depleted stamina and mana and flashed my eyes.

Three days have actually passed since I killed the fifth apostle, and in the time I’ve stopped and extended, thirty-two days have passed.

Design.

Hardware.

Software.

The three elements of the magical exoskeleton are steadily building their foundations.

“We’ll complete the first prototype within a week. I’ll restore my former appearance and stand before you. This is just the beginning.”

This was both covenant and incantation.

In this context, ‘former appearance’ naturally meant the form of gods. A declaration that I would walk upon the ashes of destruction and begin regeneration, just as I had first sworn as the ‘Divine Mage.’

The magical powers all turned to look at me in unison.

Despite Kaisel modeling and drawing attention in every direction, they fixed their gazes on me and didn’t move.

Laughter escaped me.

‘Right. Focus. 8th Circle… no, I’m still slightly short of the mana to ascend to the ‘8th level.”

I burned my will that still gushed forth like a fountain blazingly bright.