The Over-Break System

“Oculus, what?” However, Cynrik was more confused by Norik’s words and concerned about being ripped away from his work in such a ruthless fashion.

“Your eyes, Kid, the way you are channeling your Mana into your Eyes, also known as the Oculus Uterque, is a sure-fire way to pop them like grapes if you try and increase your vision past the 4x level.” Opening his hand and releasing Cynrik, who landed on the ground butt first, Norik began explaining something Cynrik had been unaware of since the moment he started constricting the blood vessels of his eye to see further.

Staring questioningly at Norik, Cynrik patiently waited to be tutored. Although he had figured out quite a bit about his abilities over time, he was always open to learning new and proper ways to utilize Mana to its full extent.

“Sigh, stop looking at me like a kid on Christmas; it isn’t that big of a deal. Around two thousand years ago, an unknown being devised a new method of safely increasing one’s dynamic vision. Up until that point, the absolute limit was 4x zoom.”

“The way you do it is no different from olden times; by restricting the blood vessels and constricting your pupils with Mana, you can increase how far you can see. But as I am sure you probably know by now, since you no doubt have tried, the amount of strain on your eyes is immense the instant you try pushing further.”

“Yeah, it starts with a sore feeling that advances into a massive headache, and then comes the intense burning.” Nodding his head as he spoke, Cynrik finished Norik’s statement.

“Correct, but if you continue pushing toward 6x zoom, the following effect is the bursting of your blood vessels causing a massive decline in how far you can see. Lastly, your eyes will pop into a bloody mess if you push through the pain and continue forcing yourself.” Bringing his hand to his chin, Norik observed the bloodshot lines strung across the whites of Cynrik’s eyes.

“It looks like you’ve done a little damage, but it isn’t permanent; my timing was spot on, though; if you had continued well, we would be having a very different conversation right now.”

“Even if technology and Affinity Skills have come a long way, growing a new pair of eyes is both unpleasant and extremely expensive. Not to mention, you would never be able to see as well with the new set as you would have with your originals.” Shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly, Norik returned to the recliner, crossed his right leg over his left knee, and examined Cynrik.

The boy had fallen deep into thought, a sign that he was trying to figure out a solution on his own instead of relying on Norik’s advice, which the old man found not only pleasing but intriguing.

He had already prepared to pass down the skill and how to use it without a fight; however, seeing that Cynrik appeared to be determined to figure it out alone, Norik gave him some time.

For the next few minutes, Norik watched as Cynrik tried several methods, one of which came strangely close to the skill he planned on teaching the boy. But what surprised him the most was when a thin dome of pure Dark Mana covered the entirety of Cynrik’s eyeball, turning it pitch black and almost demonlike.

‘This kid isn’t half bad, his mind is quite advanced, and unlike many of us who reincarnated previously, he has fully adapted to the environment Vinestra presents. It took me almost 30 years before I had a firm grasp on how Mana worked, but I can’t be faulted because Mana doesn’t exist on Earth except in fictional stories.’ Smiling faintly, Norik reminisced while Cynrik worked through one theory after another.

‘Tobs, cross off theory Ey-041 and repeat the process out loud to me that I used for Ey-040, E-22, and Y-14.’ Cynrik had already burned through hundreds of combinations of ideas on increasing his vision to 6x zoom. Having Labeled his left eye with E and his right eye with Y, he would combine options into usable techniques to correct his vision as if wearing glasses.

-Experiment E-22 Involved creating a thin layer over your left eye using Fire, Wind, and Lightning Mana, creating a pseudo-contact lens. In contrast, Experiment Y-14 involved creating a larger round disk over your right eye using Wind and Fire Mana.-

-Ey-040 combined the properties of E-22, and Y-19, to create a pair of lenses placed on top of a secondary layer made of Dark Mana to create the telescopic shaded contact lens effect.-

‘Got it; cross reference every experiment and give me the best potential option. I am going for a sunglass contact lens effect with a thickness of no more than one millimeter. It also needs to work on both eyes while draining the least amount of Mana.’ The biggest problem he had found so far was the drain on his Mana when using each of his theorized techniques.

Unlike [Mana Sight], which had virtually zero Mana cost, each of his ideas sucked down Mana like the ground after a dry spell.

Unfortunately, even with Tobs help, Cynrik soon got stuck, and his progress stagnated; at that point, having seen the frustration forming on Cynrik’s face, Norik had seen enough and finally stepped in.

“Movement CynBrat, you aren’t moving the Mana Particles around your eye; think like a camera lens, not glasses or contacts. When a camera lens zooms in, it moves, putting space between the sensor and, in turn, increasing the magnification. You need to increase the focal length and start viewing Mana Particles as non-physical and more fluid.

“When you zoom in with a camera, parts twist, bringing the lens forward or back, that is the key to what you are trying to do, not forcefully condensing the particles into a construct.”

Pausing to glance at Norik, Cynrik quickly nodded and considered his advice. As Norik had observed, Cynrik had also tried something similar, but when it couldn’t achieve more than 4x zoom, he scrapped the idea and moved on to something like glasses or contact lenses.

Still, there was a more significant issue at hand, the refraction caused by the Cachint. Thus, not only was Cynrik attempting to create a new skill for zooming in on his vision, but he also had to ensure that it could reduce the blinding sight created by looking at everything in the room with [Mana Sight].

For the next few minutes, Cynrik replicated his earlier scrapped ideas and combined them into a singular mold that didn’t have any adverse reaction when he added Dark Mana to protect his eyes. However, after completing his idea, Cynrik was caught off guard by a chain of notifications.

-You have created a new skill by combining your knowledge of previous skills and technology before pairing it with your high level of Mana Control. Since this skill is entirely new, as its Creator, you have been allowed to name it by the Central System Hub.-

“Huh, Holy shit, I FUCKING NAILED IT, HAHAHA!” Seeing the first line, Cynrik burst out with laughter and began bouncing up and down like a child. In contrast, Norik was fighting the urge to jump to his feet and freak out. As a high-level admin for the CSH, he received the notification of Cynrik’s achievement, and his eyes flicked back and forth between the screen floating in his vision and the overly excited Cynrik.

“Dynamic Lens, Name it Dynamic Lens.” Calming himself down, Cynrik blurted out the first name that came to mind triggering the rest of the subsequent notifications.

– Your skill has been registered in the official skill database after being approved by the Central System Hub.-

-The Central System Hub has generated an adequate effect and description; you may view them at any time within your Fusion Affinity Skills Tab.-

-You have learned the Tier-3 Quad-Fusion Affinity Skill (Conditional, Requires Minimum of Four Affinities): Dynamic Lens.-

-You have created a never before seen Fusion Affinity Skill; as such, you have been given a reward pack from the CSH.-

-You have received 500 Points in all basic Stats.-

-You have received 300 Free Allocation Stat points.-

-You have received 200 Skill Points.-

-You have been awarded the Title “Skill Creator”.-

-Since you are in the process of Evolution, all Stats and Points will be held until you complete your Advancement to Tier-3.-

-Tier-3 Quad-Fusion Affinity Skill [Dynamic Lens]-

-Category: Active Ocular Skill-

-A Skill Created by Cynrik Jetlensr, using technological knowledge combined with Fine Mana control, this skill allows the User to increase their Dynamic Vision by a Maximum of 12x zoom.-

-The User creates a one-millimeter round disc above each eye’s iris. The size of the disc can be adjusted to fit the size of the User’s eye. By controlling the lens’s movement, either forward or back, and adjusting its thickness, a being can increase their distance vision by a Large amount.-

-Additional Effect: (Shaded Lens)- If the Skill user has the Dark Affinity, they can add an equal part of MP in that Affinity to change the lens tint, increasing the User’s protection against Bright Light.-

-Requirement: User Must have a minimum of Four Tier-3 or higher Affinities .-

-Activation costs: 200 of each Affinity Type, minimum of Four Types.-

-Sustain Cost: 80 MP per Second.-

-Cooldown: None.-

“Woah…” Reading the skill’s effects, Cynrik felt the urge to sit down. Putting aside the immense rewards he received in the form of Points, the fact that his new skill had a maximum effectiveness of 12x zoom, and the desired “Sunglasses” effect, Cynrik couldn’t be happier.

“You little fucking monster, how in the hell did you create something so insane just off the little advice I gave you? Talk!” Exasperated and rushing forward before catching Cynrik by the collar of his shirt and lifting him into the air, Norik grilled him.

“Even the skill I was going to pass down only had a maximum effectiveness of 8x Zoom, yet here you are creating a new skill out of thin air with a 12x zoom.”

“That is where you are wrong, Old man; I didn’t pull it out of nowhere; I ran through nearly 200 different applications and theories before you even gave me that bit of advice. Honestly, I would have eventually reached the same conclusion as you said, but it probably would have taken me weeks to figure it out.” Holding onto Norik’s wrist to give himself some space to breathe, Cynrik snarkily replied.

“Anywho, release me so I can get to work locating the damn dongle. I don’t even get to enjoy the rewards until I finish my damn Evolution, so time is of the essence.” Gritting his teeth while keeping his body perfectly still, Cynrik angrily glared at Norik until he finally let him go.

“Get to it; the sooner, the better; I don’t have all day.” After dropping Cynrik and shooing him away, Norik set about scrolling through his control panel and examining the [Dynamic Lens] skill in its entirety.

‘This little bastard is going to pull off some crazy shit the more powerful he becomes; I can’t believe I am finding myself looking forward to it.’ Norik thought while hiding the faint smile creeping onto his lips with his hand.