Chapter 8

“Dimensional Gate—open.”

With a soft whoosh, the portal materialized in front of him.

Without hesitation, he stepped through.

The familiar ruins came into view.

The old mage was waiting.

“Oh, you’re back.” The man smiled. “I assume you’re ready to begin your lessons?”

“Yes.”

More than ready.

Before, he had only been training for survival.

Now, he had a very specific reason to get stronger.

Alex had given him a deadline.

Two days.

And considering his personality, there was a high chance he’d actually show up.

A man who never let even the smallest grudge go unpunished?

Of course, he’d come.

Which meant it was his job to be ready.

You just made a huge mistake, Alex.

You think I’m still weak?

Let’s see how tough you are when I’m the one standing over you.

Before beginning the lesson, the old mage introduced himself.

“I am Julius.”

“This is Justin.”

With the brief introductions out of the way, Julius spoke calmly.

“Let’s clarify something first. I offered to teach you magic, but that doesn’t mean I’ll be explaining magic theory.”

“I understand. You’re referring to teaching me skills, not the theory behind them.”

“Exactly.”

Julius smiled and waved a hand through the air.

A glowing skill window appeared, filled with various spells—high-tier attack magic, buffs, healing, and curses.

Compared to his own single Magic Missile, the list was dazzlingly vast.

“What I will teach you is not the complicated theory behind magic, but rather how to use it effectively. That includes usage limits, recharging methods, and practical applications.”

“There’s a deeper theoretical study of magic, then?”

“There is. But it’s irrelevant to you.”

Julius shook his head dismissively.

“Think about it. The spell you just learned—Magic Missile—would normally take at least a year to master without a system. Would you still want to study the theory behind it?”

“…Probably not.”

“Wise choice.”

He smirked.

“A fish doesn’t need to learn how to swim like a cat. It just needs to use the gills and fins it already has.”

“I see your point.”

It was like comparing physical training to increasing a stat through a system.

If you had access to a leveling system, it made more sense to level up and increase stats rather than wasting time on slow, traditional training.

“How much do you actually know about your skills and stats?”

“I know the theory perfectly. I just lack practical experience and applications.”

“Be more specific.”

“I know that meditation restores spell uses, but I don’t actually know how to meditate.”

It wasn’t just luck that had made him the #1 ranked player.

If it was something within the game system, he had already memorized it down to the finest details.

Honestly, he might have known the mechanics better than even the game developers.

Julius nodded in approval.

“That’s good to hear.”

“Sorry?”

“My primary job is to help with your practical skills and applications.”

He could provide theory if needed, but learning things you could study elsewhere was a waste of time.

It was more valuable to focus on what could only be learned here.

“Let’s start with meditation.”

After a day and a half of training with Julius, Justin sat down, adjusting his posture.

He wasn’t trying to do anything special—just assuming the correct stance.

A few moments later, a system message rang in his ears.

《Ding! Meditation initiated. Recharging used spell slots.》
《If you open your eyes or disrupt your posture, meditation will be forcibly terminated.》

It turned out that meditation was absurdly simple.

All he had to do was sit with proper posture, close his eyes, and wait.

When he first learned this, he had actually questioned it out of sheer disbelief.

– “So you’re saying I just sit here, close my eyes, and wait a few seconds?”
– “That’s right. That’s all it takes.”
– “Isn’t this supposed to be ‘meditation’? Shouldn’t there be a special breathing technique or something?”
– “Breathing? Please. You’re not the one doing the recovering—the system detects your posture and handles it for you. Just sit properly, and you’re good.”

In reality, meditation was nothing more than ringing the system’s doorbell to request a recharge.

Even now, the concept felt ridiculous—but it was incredibly convenient.

One proper sitting position, and his spell slots refilled without effort.

The problem is… I’m completely defenseless while doing this.

To meditate, he had to sit still with his eyes closed.

Sure, he could stop anytime, but if someone snuck up on him, he wouldn’t be able to react in time.

On top of that, each Magic Missile took about one minute to recharge.

If he had zero spells left, it would take a full ten minutes to restore them all.

If people like Alex were lurking around during the apocalypse, those ten minutes could be fatal.

Good thing I already prepared a countermeasure for that.

《Magic Missile fully recharged.》

At the system message, he opened his eyes and stood up.

Then, without hesitation, he moved toward the opposite passageway.

Julius watched him silently, already familiar with the routine.

After all, Justin had been repeating this cycle over and over again.

Three goblins stood in his way.

These were the same goblins he had already defeated for a quest, but it seemed they respawned over time.

He pointed at each of their heads and muttered,

“Magic Missile. Magic Missile. Magic Missile.”

Pew! Pew! Pew!

The goblins collapsed without even having the chance to scream.

With his increased magic stat, Magic Missile now hit as hard as a crossbow bolt.

Even if they were struck in the chest, survival was now unlikely.

Stepping forward, he examined the goblins’ wounds.

Did I aim too carelessly? My accuracy is a little off.

Up close, it wasn’t a problem.

But at a distance, the slight deviation could lead to misses.

It might be better to slow down and focus on precision rather than spamming spells.

By now, I should be close to leveling up…

Killing goblins wasn’t just about training—it was also for leveling up.

Julius had mentioned that this tutorial dungeon allowed progression up to Level 3.

That was the cutoff point—the moment a player evolved from a basic class to an advanced one.