Terrifying Neighbor, Hidden Crisis

Ron was eating in the public cafeteria when the chatter of several Candidate Apprentices at the next table reached his ears:

"Did you hear that Darund bought that kind of potion?" a tall, thin man with medium-length hair asked mysteriously.

"What potion? The one that develops the brain?" his companion asked, eyes widening in surprise.

"Yeah. He said he was going to complete the Conception for that Sonic Spell..." The long-haired man nodded, his expression a mixture of surprise and disdain.

"Is he crazy? So many people have tried that thing, and none of them succeeded..."

A third person sneered and shook his head:

"With that little mental power, using that potion will only turn him into a monster."

Ron had been chewing tough black bread while thinking about the Potions material he needed to review.

But when he heard them mention his neighbor Darund, he frowned and set down the tray in his hands.

Over the past few days, the experimental noises from Darund's room had become increasingly scarce. Ron had assumed that the mad researcher had finally reached a bottleneck and chosen to take a temporary break.

Now, however, it seemed that might not be the case.

"The dormitory area really has been too quiet lately. I hope it isn't what I think..."

He muttered under his breath. He glanced at the half-eaten black bread in his hand and found that he had lost his appetite.

Come to think of it, when he had first arrived at the Black Mist Forest, he and his neighbor Darund had been fairly familiar with each other.

His first meal after arriving had been eaten at the same table as Darund.

"My home is Cedar City, in the northern part of the Black Mist Forest."

Back then, Darund had not yet developed his current strange and irritable temperament. The somewhat chubby boy stirred the beet soup in his bowl as he softly introduced himself:

"Our family has been Musicians for generations. We perform music for the nobles in the city and compose musical pieces."

His eyes became extraordinarily bright when he mentioned music:

"Can you imagine it, Ron? Music isn't merely sound. It's a fluctuation of energy, a Resonance of the soul. Ever since I was young, I've been able to sense the connections between different notes—their Rhythms, their power..."

Ron remembered that he had merely nodded politely at the time, without truly understanding Darund's enthusiasm.

"My mental aptitude isn't high. I didn't even reach the Fifth-Rank Star. I was practically despairing on the way here."

Darund stirred his bowl of soup, his voice low, seemingly oblivious to the fact that the food inside had gradually gone cold:

"But on the first day of enrollment, I saw an opportunity on the bulletin board."

He lowered his voice mysteriously:

"Besides the regular mental-power tests, the School has another path to advancement—perfecting a Conception for a commissioned spell. If you can develop a semi-finished spell to the practical stage, you can obtain the qualification to stay as well."

"And I found a subject that perfectly matches my specialty..."

Darund's eyes glittered. "Sonic Conduction Mental Field. The moment I saw that name, I knew it had been prepared for me."

Over the following months, Darund truly devoted himself to the research wholeheartedly.

Ron would occasionally catch glimpses of his room while passing by, seeing it piled high with equipment and notes, with strange symbols and musical diagrams covering the walls.

For the first two months, Darund would regularly strike various metal vessels every day. Sometimes he would also produce strange tones, then curse and start over.

Back then, Ron often complained to Andre that his neighbor's noise was affecting his meditation.

But about a month ago, Darund began to grow dejected.

The research seemed to have reached a bottleneck. No matter how he tried, he could not make the sound waves truly affect the mental field.

"The problem is that my mental power is too weak." Once, he had complained to Ron in frustration, "If I were just a little stronger, I could break through this obstacle."

Over the past few days, those sounds had grown increasingly scarce.

At first, Ron thought Darund had finally given up. But yesterday, when he happened to encounter him in the public bathhouse, he noticed an almost insane light flickering in Darund's eyes. His face was sallow, and his originally plump body had become so thin that he was nearly emaciated.

"Are you all right?" Ron had asked casually at the time.

Darund had looked at him and smiled. The smile carried a strange quality. "All right? Of course I'm all right... I'm going to succeed soon, Ron."

After saying that, he had ignored Ron and left without looking back.

Thinking back on it now, Darund had already shown signs of something being wrong at that time...

With that thought, Ron used the bread to wipe the last bit of sauce from his tray, forced it into his mouth, and then headed toward the washing area.

Perhaps... I should be a little more wary of this neighbor. He thought so as he washed his tray.

After returning to his room, Ron opened the book titled "Basic Meditation Method" and continued meditating. He should still be able to meditate for a while today.

Although he had already expended a considerable amount of energy, the effects of the Refreshing Potion over the past few days had kept his mental state at a fairly high level.

Basic Meditation begins

This time, he tried incorporating the knowledge he had learned from Mrs. Allen into his meditation.

He no longer merely sketched the runes. Instead, he tried to sense the natural flow of his mental power.

Whenever the flow of mental power encountered resistance, he would gently guide it, allowing it to follow the most natural path forward, like an experienced helmsman drawing upon the force of the current instead of fighting against it.

Within the consciousness space, the rune formed by three arcs began to flicker with a faint glow.

Unlike its rigid form in the past, the rune now seemed to possess life, trembling slightly along with the fluctuations of his mental power.

Special effect triggered: Rhythm Resonance—meditation effect slightly increased

Basic Meditation Experience +1

Basic Meditation Experience +1

Basic Meditation Experience +1

...

Today's cultivation time has reached its limit. Rest is recommended

Ron opened his eyes. Although the result was slightly weaker than when he meditated using only the Refreshing Potion, it was still far better than when he had first begun.

"Looks like 'Rhythm' really is the key."

Ron muttered softly as he recorded his insights from the day in his notebook.

His notes had already become quite comprehensive. They had developed from scattered observations at the beginning into a relatively systematic theory.

After organizing his notes, Ron picked up the training wooden sword and began practicing the basic moves of "Corona Swordsmanship."

Although he had no professional instructor, he could refer to the notes Andre had given him and feel his way forward bit by bit.

Each swing of the sword followed the rhythm of the "Corona Breathing Technique," bringing his movements and breathing into a subtle balance.

As his practice deepened, he found that the coordination grew increasingly smooth, and his movements became more fluid as well.

Basic Swordsmanship Experience +1

Basic Swordsmanship Experience +1

Basic Swordsmanship Experience +1

...

The sky had gradually darkened. Ron tidied his room, set down the wooden sword, took off his clothes, and lay on the bed to rest for a while.

Just as he was about to fall into a dream, a strange sensation suddenly welled up in his heart.

It was an indescribable, hazy perception, as if someone—or something—were peering at him.

A burst of extremely eerie sound suddenly came from the room next door. At times it was high-pitched, at times low, like someone—or some kind of thing—struggling in agony.