Hero From The Toilet

3. So... Magic Follows Physics?

Several people in the castle courtyard were now watching Rangga more seriously.

Earlier, he had seemed panicked and confused.

But now, the way he spoke was beginning to sound like someone who was actually thinking things through.

Rangga simply shrugged.

"See?"

He casually pointed toward the mages, then at himself.

"I don't wanna be here."

Then his hand moved around, gesturing toward everything surrounding him—the knights, the stone fortress, and all the people gathered around.

"And you guys don't really want me here either, right? Except because of that ritual."

Several mages exchanged glances.

No one denied it.

"So we're both stuck with this," Rangga continued lightly. "Guess we'll have to work together."

The guard captain narrowed his eyes, seemingly beginning to appreciate the surprisingly practical way Rangga was looking at the situation.

Rangga glanced around again—the stone walls, armored knights, and massive unfamiliar buildings—then shrugged.

"Still haven't decided, though... whether I wanna go back to being a corporate slave or just stay here."

Several people clearly had no idea what that meant.

But before anyone could ask, Rangga simply sat down on the ground in the middle of the castle courtyard.

Several knights looked startled. The King did not stop him and Rangga looked toward the mages.

"Now. Whatever chose me probably had a reason."

He pointed toward the hall where the summoning circle was located.

"And you guys definitely have some way to test me, right?"

The elderly mage stared at him for several seconds before slowly nodding.

"We do."

Several other mages visibly relaxed and he stepped forward.

"Every summoned Hero possesses a resonance mark," he explained, pointing toward Rangga's hand. "The mark usually manifests somewhere on their body."

The young mage immediately added enthusiastically,

"It is called the Hero Sigil."

The guard captain folded his arms.

"It usually appears on the palm."

Everyone's attention shifted toward Rangga's hands.

"The mark allows a Hero to naturally manipulate mana," the elderly mage continued, "and typically... they possess the ability to grow in ways ordinary humans cannot."

The King finally spoke.

"We can perform several basic tests to determine whether the ritual succeeded."

He looked calmly at Rangga.

"But the decision remains yours. You may refuse."

Several knights clearly didn't like hearing that but the King continued anyway.

"If you choose to proceed... we will assist you."

The young mage pointed toward the training grounds.

"We will begin with a mana test."

It was then that Rangga noticed something. His palm felt warm. As though something inside it was slowly becoming active.

Several people looked relieved when Rangga finally said,

"Alright. I'll take the test."

He stood up while scratching his head, his expression still half-lazy.

"Come on. Let's go."

The knights immediately cleared a path. The most enthusiastic young mage practically jumped forward.

"Excellent! Very good!"

The elderly mage behind him merely sighed, but followed along anyway. The guard captain gave a quick hand signal.

"Loose formation. Don't make him feel surrounded."

The group moved toward the eastern side of the courtyard.

A large training ground stretched out before them—packed earth covered in sword marks, straw targets lined up at the far end, and racks of wooden weapons standing near the fence.

The knights who had been training there immediately moved aside.

The young mage walked to the center of the field and turned around, his face filled with excitement.

"Very well, Rangga. The first step is extremely simple."

The elderly mage approached while pulling a transparent crystal the size of a fist from inside his robe.

It shimmered faintly beneath the afternoon sunlight.

"This is a Mana Resonance Crystal," he said, placing it atop a flat stone. "If someone possesses mana resonance... the crystal will react."

The young mage pointed toward it.

"Normally, you only need to touch it."

The guard captain stood several steps behind Rangga. The King remained at the edge of the training ground.

Everyone waited and then the young mage smiled broadly.

"Please."

Rangga smirked.

"Ah, I know how this goes... it's gonna light up like crazy, right?"

The young mage blinked.

"...Not necessarily—"

But Rangga was already walking forward with the casual pace of someone clocking in for work.

He stopped in front of the stone, reached out, and placed his hand on the crystal.

Several seconds passed but nothing happened. The young mage began opening his mouth to speak when suddenly—

KRIIIIIIING!

A piercing sound echoed across the training ground. The crystal instantly erupted with light.

Far too much light.

Several knights instinctively covered their eyes, while the young mage stumbled back a step in shock.

"What—?!"

The light inside the crystal began swirling, forming constantly shifting patterns of energy.

The elderly mage stiffened.

"...Wait."

The light grew brighter and the crystal began to tremble.

"This isn't normal!" the young mage shouted in panic.

Faint runes began appearing in the air around Rangga's hand—As though the world itself were responding to his presence.

The elderly mage shouted,

"Take your hand off it!"

Too late.

CRACK.

A fracture appeared across the crystal.

Then—

SHATTER!

Light exploded outward like stardust. The mages immediately backed away, while the royal knights instinctively reached for their swords.

Then the shattered pieces of crystal fell to the ground. The young mage stared at them, his face pale.

"...That was the kingdom's official measuring crystal."

The elderly mage stared at Rangga for a long time. A very long time.

"...I have never seen resonance like this before."

The guard captain narrowed his eyes and The King finally spoke.

"What does it mean?"

The elderly mage answered without taking his eyes off Rangga.

"Two possibilities."

He raised one finger.

"An extraordinarily vast mana potential."

Then a second.

"...Or the mana of this world cannot properly recognize him."

Several mages looked even more confused. Meanwhile, Rangga's palm still felt warm. Warmer than before as though something had just awakened.

Rangga brushed his hands together, knocking away a few tiny crystal fragments.

"See? Told you."

But then his expression slowly changed.

"Shit..."

He stared at his own hand.

"...Wait a minute."

He looked around. Mages. Knights. A castle.

"Is this... magic?"

Several mages immediately tensed as Rangga closed his eyes and extended one hand.

The young mage panicked.

"What is he doing—?"

The elderly mage raised a hand.

"Do not disturb him."

Rangga muttered quietly,

"There's water vapor in the air, right...?"

The mages exchanged confused looks, clearly having no idea what he was talking about.

"...So if I condense it..."

The air across the training ground shifted. The elderly mage immediately noticed. His eyebrows rose.

"The mana in the air... is moving."

Something began forming above Rangga's palm.

At first, it was nothing more than a tiny speck then it became a droplet of water.

One. Two. Three. Within seconds, dozens of tiny droplets gathered together.

The young mage's eyes widened.

"...Water?"

But Rangga wasn't finished. He imagined rotation.

The droplets began to move. They started spinning around each other. Slowly at first then faster and faster.

The water twisted into a tiny vortex—growing denser, tighter, and faster—until a faint hiss began cutting through the air.

The guard captain immediately tensed.

"Everyone, step back."

The knights retreated several paces but Rangga was still muttering to himself.

"...Should be safe if I throw this at the castle wall, right?"

The young mage's face instantly went pale.

"SAFE?!"

The elderly mage shouted,

"WAIT—"

But Rangga had already thrown it.

The tiny water vortex shot forward. At first, it looked harmless. Nothing more than a spinning ball of water.

Then—

WHIIIIIIIIIIT!

Its speed increased explosively like a bullet. In an instant, the spinning water slammed into the castle's stone wall.

TSSSSHHHHK!

A sharp sound tore through the air. Not the sound of water striking stone. But something cutting through it.

The entire training ground fell silent.