14 – Mana Whirls

I groaned from atop the bed.

It wasn’t that Erphs was torturing me for declaring I wouldn’t become a wizard.

The old codger had placed his hand upon my chest and was infusing me with mana.

Congenital mana deficiency isn’t a malady that stops mana from being created inside the body.

A living body possessed channels, akin to blood vessels, through which mana flowed; these were termed Circuits (回路).

I was born without it, this thing called a circuit.

That’s why the mana, forming in my heart, simply evaporated instead of circulating. Nob AI, ever helpful, had explained it to me.

Now, the old man was crafting a circuit inside my very being.

“Laying the path is bound to cause some pain.”

“I’ll bear it…”

Beads of sweat glistened on Erf’s brow.

“Ugh, ugh…”

Suddenly, a sharp, brutal pain clamped down on my chest.

My breath hitched, caught in my throat.

For a long moment, the unpleasant sensation of someone squeezing my heart lingered.

I nearly lost consciousness.

Seeing my distress, Erf halted the procedure.

“We should stop here for today.”

“Haa, haa, what was that just now…”

“Establishing circuits puts a strain on the heart. That pain you felt is unavoidable.”

Cold sweat trickled down my skin.

“A normal person possesses between 100 and 150 circuits.”

And he’d only placed a paltry ten.

“At least 120 are needed. The quality of your mana is higher than average. It’s not an issue now, but later, if calcification occurs, it could be fatal.”

The number one cause of death for those afflicted with congenital mana deficiency.

Calcification, they call it.

Mana that doesn’t circulate can, in exceedingly rare cases, turn to stone. It could pierce the heart or block a blood vessel, leading to death.

Even Nob AI hadn’t known this.

If I hadn’t solved the Millennium Problems…

The thought sparked a flash of indignation within me. I wouldn’t have died so easily.

“Currently, there are only three mages in the country, including myself, capable of curing congenital mana deficiency. Even for nobles, it isn’t an easy treatment to obtain.”

Implanting artificial circuits into someone’s heart consumed a significant amount of mana.

It also demanded a profound knowledge of both magic and the human body, something beyond the capabilities of most mages.

Indeed, Erf, who had been overflowing with energy just moments ago, now looked utterly exhausted.

“Oh, and if you’re ever inclined, the Red Magic Tower is always ready to…!!”

“I’m fine.”

“I’m even ready to adopt you as my son…!!”

“I only accept the sentiment.”

Christ, why is he being like this.

Still, if I had a father like Erphss, more cheerful and lively than Porto…

My life might have been more enjoyable than it is now.

I fastened the buttons on my dress shirt.

The old man finally put on his top too. Was this some sort of men’s changing room?

“There’s one thing I’d like to ask.”

“Hmm!?”

“Does Master Appraiser also know about my sister?”

He had investigated information about me beforehand.

“You want to ask about Haneil’s condition?”

“That’s right.”

Erphss seemed to know very well about my second older sister.

“I’ll be honest with you. Even I don’t know the specific cause.”

“…….”

Erphss gave the same answer as Nob AI.

After awakening to my past life, the first thing I did was read every book in the mansion’s study.

This was partly to train Nob AI, but the biggest reason was to seek a solution to Haneil’s condition.

She was the only family I could truly call my own.

Haneil and I came from the same mother’s womb.

She filled the void of our deceased mother from a young age.

When I was being tormented by Felix and crying, she was the only one in this mansion to extend a hand and hug me.

Although, after she fell ill, she was always lying in bed sleeping, making it difficult to even see her face.

Even though it feels awkward now.

The thought that ‘If I use Nob AI, I might be able to cure my sister’s illness’ was the first thing that came to mind, that’s how special she was to me.

“In that case, do you happen to have any research materials or books related to medicine? The field doesn’t matter. The more, the better. If you tell me the price, I’ll be sure to compensate you later.”

I don’t have anything of value right now, but I have Nob AI.

The Millennium Problems were a total of seven.

Unraveling one to make six, it was still, no matter what, a chance to pocket some unexpected coin whenever I pleased.

The means to recompense were certainly within reach.

“I may not have it now, but I can acquire it for you. It seems you hold your sister in high regard.”

“She is, to me, my only family.”

Erphs spoke with a kindly countenance.

“I wouldn’t dream of taking coin from a young scholar in need of knowledge.”

“……”

My impression of Erphs was that of a good-natured old fellow.

“Thank you.”

I bowed with utmost politeness.

“There’s no need for such formality. I am a mage, not a nobleman.”

That presented a certain difficulty.

“One must always show respect to those who offer their kindness.”

Nob AI was, after all, in control of my actions.

And so, the exchange with Erphs concluded successfully.

*Could this be the sensation of mana flowing through the body?*

It was a curious feeling.

A feeling of vigor surging throughout.

Though still a lesser quantity than that of an ordinary person, I could sense the mana circulating within me.

*Twenty next time.*

It seemed I would have cause to visit the Red Tower once a month from here on out.

『From today onwards, you too, user, can wield magic!!』

The more circuits within my body, the more spells the AI could utilize.

*

“Welcome back, young master. Did your conversation go well?”

“Indeed.”

Dalpi bowed her head deeply.

“Welcome back, young lord. You must be weary.”

Arya too, was awaiting my return.

“Professor, you must be weary as well.”

“Then, allow me to escort you back to the Academy.”

With Aria, we returned to Tristi Academy.

Dalpi took her leave to retrieve the carriage she had stored.

Aria bowed to me politely before departing.

I sensed an unfamiliar wariness in her eyes, a gaze different from when she looked at Porto.

It left me a little disconcerted.

When Dalpi returned with the carriage, I asked her.

Naturally, with the same demeanor as always.

“Suddenly, the professor’s looking at me like I’m some frightening superior, what’s that about?”

“Well. She did give me 200,000 Credits to give to you, young master. Perhaps she simply wished to make a good impression?”

Oh, money.

But, I don’t know.

“Tch.”

It was certainly a large sum, yet it felt like small change.

Perhaps because I’d nearly had a hundred million Credits just now.

“Let’s split it in half.”

“Are you sure that’s alright?”

“Of course, of course.”

And so, we returned to the estate.

*

Erphs gazed at the remaining refreshments.

For a man who had avoided sweets and carbohydrates his entire life, eating pastries was an unusual occurrence.

Esther, considering his age of fifteen, had diligently prepared the snacks to the best of her ability.

Yet the boy hadn’t touched a single bite.

Perhaps she should have brought egg whites and potatoes instead.

Not one to leave food unfinished, he stuffed the remaining pastries into his mouth.

‘Such a wasted talent.’

Esther Tristi should have naturally dreamt of becoming a mage.

After all, there had never been a boy with such talent before.

Though it wasn’t yet known publicly, Esther had already achieved something remarkable in that short time.

‘Master Esther has unraveled the Necronomicon’s ward.’

‘The Master spent a mere week deciphering the spellwork. Considering the time letters take to travel, it could be even shorter.’

‘It was a baffling ward, one that neither the demonic hordes nor our most venerable legacy mages could crack.’

The Book of the Dead, sequestered within the Mire of the Silent.

The Necronomicon, a grimoire filled with the forbidden art of resurrecting the deceased.

One of the most abhorrent relics, harboring a malevolent curse potent enough to contaminate an entire region with its miasma.

Its very existence possessed the unsettling ability to animate corpses, granting them a semblance of life.

Until now, it had been sealed within the Mire of the Silent, but after detecting demonic incursions aiming to abscond with it,

the kingdom spurred the Iron Lion Knights into action, expediting the retrieval of the Necronomicon.

However, the ward that bound the Necronomicon was…special.

One could discern this from the magical formulae that composed it.

It was a breed of magic unlike any our mages had studied thus far.

‘Ancient sorcery.’

Magic wielded by our forebears in a bygone era.

A vestige of the past, forgotten in the modern age.

If one were to ask why no one remembers it now, the answer would be simple.

Because, compared to modern magic, ancient magic was… primitive.

In Erphus’s estimation, ancient magic was inefficient, crude, arduous, and aesthetically displeasing.

Devoid of the refinements of efficiency and optimization, it was heavy, clumsy, and abstruse.

Like a miraculous piece of junk where the results amounted to maggots compared to the effort invested.

However, it was precisely because of this that the process of interpretation was, paradoxically, so difficult.

He gazed upon the jumbled mess that was the ward’s spellwork.

“To think that a genius who could solve something this complex in so little time would not become a mage…”

Erphus regarded the solution to the Hellfire Recreation.

He was enamored with the boy’s skill.

Esther’s answer was utterly impeccable.

The Millennium Prize, the method for deciphering and destroying the ward…

All were beautiful.

He was seventy years of age, and yet he had never witnessed such an exquisite spell formula in all his days.

It was, in every sense, a realm of ‘Truth’, comprised of reason and rationality.

Erhphs had fallen, ensnared by a devil of magic.

“…”

Why, then, did he refuse the path of a mage?

The Tower Master activated the communicator.

“Aria.”

“Yes… you called for me?”

“Were you asleep?”

“No. I had just finished my shift…”

Aria’s voice was laced with exhaustion.

“Ester Tristi refuses to walk the path of a mage, it seems.”

He was a being capable of igniting a revolution within the magical world.

“I cannot begin to fathom it.”

Aria spoke softly.

“I can understand it.”

“What?”

“I overheard from his maid that young master Ester Tristi harbors a grand and important ambition.”

A grand and important ambition… what could it possibly be?

Erhphs clenched his fist, and asked.

“What is it?”

“The maid and I only know that such a thing exists.”

It was a jest of poor quality.

Erhphs’ face twisted into a scowl as he prepared to reprimand her, but he closed his mouth as Aria continued her explanation.

“How could a mere mortal ever hope to decipher the thoughts of a genius?”

“…”

Erhphs recalled his conversation with Ester.

-For me, magic is but a means. The heir trials I am currently undergoing are no different. Everything is but a means to an end.

“…”

Erhphs swallowed a low groan.

“Erhphs-nim. I cannot understand young master Ester, and so, I am afraid.”

Like death, disease, the cosmos, the abyssal depths.

Man fears the unknown, that which he cannot control.

It was a dread born of instinct.

To Aria, Esther Trist was such a being.

A prodigy who cracked the Necronomicon’s ward and the Millennium Problem in one fell swoop.

Had there ever been a mage in this world who accomplished such feats at the tender age of fifteen?

No, there hadn’t.

Aria was certain there never would be again.

If such a singular genius were to harbor ill intentions…

What calamity might befall us?

“This is merely hypothetical, but if Esther-sama’s grand design were directed at the Kingdom of Justina…”

“Enough.”

Erps cut Aria off.

“That was a speculation too far.”

Even so, Aria couldn’t mask her disquiet.

“He suffered persecution within his own family. Frankly, it wouldn’t be odd if he harbored dark thoughts. Before a genius, he’s still a person. With a terrorist organization like ‘Wonderland’ about, we can’t be certain it’s 0%.”

Erps closed his eyes.

It was true he couldn’t read Esther’s mind either.

The only thing he could discern in that place was his devotion to his sister.

“Aria.”

“Yes.”

“Summon any clerics and physicians you know to the Magic Tower tomorrow. We must discuss Haniel Trist’s condition.”

He might not know much about Esther, but…

If his sister were to die, even by some remote chance…

“Understood.”

The possibility of horrendous phenomena, too terrible to imagine, would rise.

That thought suddenly occurred to her.