The Return

In the Forbidden Forest of Okibnas, a site considered an ancient ruin and a prison for one of history's most dangerous sorcerers. He is the only human who transcended the limits of human understanding of the essence of magic, and he is also the most dangerous villain throughout history—the villain whose like will never be born again. This was due to his boundary-defying ambition, his attempt to defy the Deity, and his practice of one of the most dangerous forbidden magics: the Magic of Immortality.

​In this world, known as Evalivia in relation to the Goddess Evalivia, he was the person who built one of the greatest empires, and his tyranny reached the farthest corners of the Earth. However, after the intervention of the Goddess and the birth of four of the greatest experts in Divine Magic, they managed to imprison and seal him using the power of their souls. The end of that dark era occurred in this forest.

​That sorcerer called himself "Evalivia's Nightmare", and his real name is Arduvinas.

​In this forest, there was a young man wearing black academy clothes. From the emblem (the winged dragon and the spear), it was clear he belonged to the prestigious Foldris Academy. With his tied black hair and handsome face, one might assume he was noble or wealthy, yet he had come to this forbidden forest to search for ancient treasures to pay his tuition fees.

​While exploring, he reached a spot with an underground passage led by stone stairs. He was certainly cautious because it was highly suspicious, yet it looked like an ancient place containing treasures, so he did not hesitate to descend. After reaching the bottom, there was a gigantic stone gate. He was happy and optimistic about his discovery. He tried to open the gate, but it was solid and colossal, and he could not budge it. Exhausted after several attempts, he sat down, trying to catch his breath. As he leaned against the gate, it opened automatically.

​He rose again and entered the profoundly dark place. He had no lamp or means of illumination, but he continued to walk in the darkness until he heard a repeated and broken voice calling from the midst of the gloom.

​"Welcome, visitor. I know what you came for." With strange laughter, he continued:

"You came here, boy, to get my treasures! Hahahaha."

​The voice was loud and terrifying. At that moment, he froze without locating the source of the sound.

​He felt terrified and tried to flee, but the gate closed again, and he could not open it. He had no other solution but to turn back towards the source of the sound and try to appease the entity, wherever it was.

​His body was trembling, and his words barely escaped his mouth as he said:

"I came here after I lost my way. I am sorry for the disturbance, please let me out of here."

​The reply came with louder, more mocking laughter: "I know you came for the treasures."

​He then continued: "It is fine. You can have what you want, but first, you must pay the price for what you take."

​The boy was surprised and, of course, disbelieving of what he was saying, but fear had another opinion.

​"Are you sure?" He advanced, walking very slowly until a part of the vocal entity began to appear. It was restrained by gigantic chains all over its body, and all that was visible was the gleam of its red eyes in the dark.

​It painfully extended an arm that was still bound by what looked like solid, heavy shackles.

​"Come on, quickly! Pay the price for what you get, and I will offer you something you have never seen in your life. Hold my hand quickly," he said, strongly extending his hand toward him.

​The boy did not know what to do; he was afraid, but also terrified of angering this mysterious entity. He reached out to grab the entity’s hand. The moment they touched, the entity exploded with laughter, as if it had not laughed for centuries.

​Meanwhile, the boy suddenly began screaming non-stop from the pain.

​"Hahahaha! Yes, scream, scream at the top of your lungs! This is the greatest treasure you can get: entertaining this Honored One with your pain! Hahahaha."

​Suddenly, the boy stopped screaming. At that moment, the entity's hand fell limp and lifeless, while a new soul was breathed into the boy's body. His eyes, which had been white and empty, regained life.

​He raised his head up and then burst into laughter, shouting:

"I have returned! I have finally returned!"

​In this world, the single most important thing a magic practitioner must know is how to deal with the symbols drawn on the Magical Circuit engraved in their body. To do this, one must gain experience and skill and develop the drawings and symbols that form the individual's magical foundation. All this requires numerous experiments, and the more complex the Magical Circuit, the more powerful the person.

​In a specific case that only one person knew about—the Great Sorcerer Arduvinas—the magical formula could be linked in his specific Circuit via symbols he invented himself with his soul. In that case, when he tries to tamper with the magical formula of simple and weak mages, he can overwrite their souls with his magical formula, shattering their souls and taking over their bodies, which is exactly what he did to the boy.

​Arduvinas was happy to obtain a new body, but when he inspected the boy’s body, he realized he had neglected to fully form his Magical Circuit formula and had made a fatal mistake. His Magical Circuit was undergoing a state of slow erasure due to not using magic for a very long period. He needed the assistance of an expert in Divine Magic, at the very least, to redraw the formula, as he could not do it himself because his body would enter a state of deep relaxation and meditation during the process.

​Although his Magical Circuit was useless, he was proficient in many solutions for using his power without a traditional Magical Circuit. He managed to create another source known as "Ancient Storage".

​The method of the Magical Circuit is to create multi-faceted magic according to the commands received from the user. As a result, the symbolic form of the formula changes according to the technique used. The more complex and intricate the process, the stronger the technique and the longer its effective duration. Its most distinguishing feature is the possibility of gaining power through the most brutal experiences.

​Ancient Storage is a complex process: when a magical formula is created outside the scope of the Circuit in any part of the body, it can work continuously without stopping. For example, creating a formula for physical enhancement will always work non-stop, but the continuous consumption of Mana will result in general weakness and physical exhaustion.

​This is where Arduvinas intervenes and creates a magical formula that controls all formulas outside the scope of the Circuit. This is linked to the Circuit’s edge, which consists of two circular lines: the first line represents the inner boundary of the Circuit, and the line surrounding it represents its outer boundary. The space between the two lines consists of symbols that can be erased when magic is not used for a long time, and others that are not erased and remain active.

​The formula that Arduvinas devised, which is responsible for sealing the other formulas, is linked by a line of magical symbols to the edge of the Circuit. Thus, when the Circuit's edge rotates, connection and disconnection occur. When the line of symbols connects with the active, un-erasable symbols, the sealing circuit begins to operate and seals all external symbols related to the Ancient Storage.

​The process takes a long time due to the slow rotation of the Magical Circuit.

​When it reaches the void where the symbols are inactive, the sealing circuit loses its effectiveness, and the external symbols begin permanent operation until the cycle repeats periodically.

​In this way, the external symbols remain and are not subjected to erasure like the Magical Circuit.

​There are pros and cons to Ancient Storage: it possesses magical power that rivals the Magical Circuit, but it works for a certain hour and stops for other hours, so the effectiveness of its permanent operation cannot be controlled.

​Arduvinas stood before the giant gate, and at first glance, he knew how to open it. This type of gate opens through simple contact, away from the use of force. Indeed, he gently placed his hands on it, and it simply opened. He stepped out, feeling reborn, as the door closed behind him.

​The place was spacious and had a high ceiling, meaning he was deep underground. There was a gap in the wall that looked like an exit. When he decided to use that door to leave, he was surprised by the entrance of someone: an old man, gray-haired and bearded, with a massive build, carrying an axe.

​When the old man saw him, he sighed and said: "I left the door slightly open, and now that I've returned, I see an insect messing around."

​Arduvinas was cautious of him; from his manner of speaking, he could infer that this old man might be a guard of the place and must be strong. While highly focused on observing the old man and ready to counter any attack, the old man vanished from sight. All Arduvinas saw next was the gigantic axe approaching to split him in half.

​Very quickly, he managed to form a simple defensive barrier, but the blow was so powerful that the barrier shattered like glass. The impact of blocking the blow was so strong that he was thrown backward to slam into the thick rock wall.

​The air was very dusty. After the atmosphere settled, Arduvinas emerged from the dust, standing on his feet. However, he was bleeding profusely from his head, much to the old man's surprise that he was still alive and able to stand. What was even more provoking to the old man was the smile that adorned his face.

​Arduvinas then burst into laughter, saying: "This is truly wonderful! I have never received such a painful blow in my life; this excites me greatly."

​The old man was very calm. He rested his axe on his shoulder and said: "I don't believe a damned insect like you is still alive after that blow, but I appreciate your resilience."

​He threw his axe aside and continued: "I will give you a chance to survive. If you can inflict any minor scratch on me, I will let you live, and I will fight without any weapon for a fair battle. I do this because I haven't fought in years. Now, what do you say, insect?"

​Arduvinas smiled: "That sounds very entertaining, old man."

​He knew there was a huge difference in power, the reason being his lack of familiarity with Ancient Storage in combat, as he had never used it before and had relied on the Magical Circuit's Mana. He agreed to the fight, betting solely on his rapid adaptation during the battle.