C217: Mana Path (1)
Chapter sponsored by Nidin. Thank you for your support.
The brighter scenery greeted me as I came out of the conference hall. Unlike before, when it was like a lake at dawn, a white cloud appeared over the blue sky.
The sun was rising over the horizon and the stars were no longer visible under the surface of the water touching the soles of the feet.
The stars in this world are dreams of the people but it was time for people to wake up from their dreams now that the night was over and dawn was coming.
'It looks more like a salt desert.'
The calm water on the floor became a mirror that reflected the sky, dividing the world into top and bottom.
'In the past, if I could travel abroad, I wanted to go to places like this.'
It was all in the past and now I was left with nothing but longing.
* * *
"……Aldan, what's wrong with your face?"
Leo, who sat in the classroom, was surprised to see Aidan's expression and asked.
"Huh? Why?"
"No, your eyes……."
Aidan's face had very thick dark circles.
"Aidan, are you sick? You don't look so well. Don't you have to go to the nurse's office?"
Even the disingenuous Tracy advised with a worried face.
Aidan's complexion was not so good but he smiled awkwardly and scratched his head at the consideration of his friends.
"Haha. It's okay. It's not like I'm sick."
"But why…."
"Just, I couldn't sleep well last night."
"Is that because of Mr. Rudger's research?"
Leo, who was quick-witted, immediately recognized the reason.
"If there's something wrong……."
"No, it's not. It's not like there's a problem. It's just that I overworked myself. You don't have to worry too much."
"Did you get any results?"
"Yes, I mean……."
Aidan was about to say something.
"Uh, well, first of all, Mr. Rudger's research is correct, but I can't say since it's a secret. I'm sorry."
Aidan couldn't say more since he signed a contract and immediately shut up.
'I almost said it.'
Aidan spent yesterday and the last night training and his efforts paid off a little.
With the mana inhibitor on his body, Aidan is able to move his mana a little. Of course, when it became possible, he didn't get enough sleep because it was already dawn.
Although his body was tired because of the effort his mind was clearer than ever because of the satisfaction of achieving something.
To be honest, he was very excited. To the point where he almost told his friends even though he signed a contract.
'I can't wait to finish the class and show everyone the results of my training.'
What happened to the other applicants? Is there anyone else who succeeded besides me? What else are we doing today?
Aidan's eyes glistened.
His face was pale, but his eyes were alive, so the teacher, who just came into class, trembled when he saw Aidan.
'What is it? Did I enter the wrong lecture room?'
No matter how the teacher looked at it, it was the right classroom.
The teacher conducted the class in a cold sweat as Aidan had a strange smile on his face.
* * *
"Today's class is over! I'm going to go now!"
"Huh? Aidan!"
Aidan, who wanted to show his results as soon as possible, ran straight to Rudger's lab. His friends called him from behind, but he couldn't care less about it.
"Teacher! I'm here!"
When he opened the laboratory door and entered, Rudger, who was reviewing the data from the inside, glanced at him.
"You're loud, Aidan. If you're going to come in, come in quietly."
"Yes. I'm sorry."
"Sit down for now. You came sooner than I thought."
"Oh, yes. I couldn't wait to come."
"Looking at your reaction, it seems you realized something yesterday."
"Yes, that's right! So yesterday, I……."
"Stop. We'll talk about it later when everyone else gets here. Stay calm for now."
In response to Rudger's cold, dull reaction, Aidan's emotions that were about to overflow became surprisingly calm. As the tension and excitement were relieved, he felt like he was getting tired.
'I shouldn't be sleeping.'
At the moment when Aidan, who sat down and was about to fall asleep, shaking his head without realizing it a sudden sound was heard and he raised his head.
Before he knew it, Rudger was looking down at him closely.
"What?"
"You have dark circles under your eyes. Did you stay up all night?"
Aidan hesitated, unable to answer the question and Rudger shook his head because that alone was enough of an answer.
"Aldan it's quite commendable that you're passionate about this study, but it's not good to try to get results by overworking yourself like that."
"Oh, no. I did it because I liked it."
"Still, you have to take care of your body more. A good night's sleep is especially necessary. Your health will deteriorate if you miss too much sleep."
Rudger said so and held out a bottle.
"Drink it."
"What's this?"
"It's a remedy for fatigue. At least it'll help blow your sleep away for now. And Aidan, get some sleep early today. Do you understand?"
"Oh, that's…."
"All right?"
"Yes, yes!"
"Good."
Rudger nodded as if he was satisfied with the answer and began to review his data again while Aidan stared blankly at the water bottle in front of him then grabbed it and gulped down the contents.
"Oh."
As Rudger said, after drinking it, he felt like the fog in his head was disappearing. However, it was nothing more than a delay in time because it did not remove the fatigue itself that was coming in now, but pushed back for a while.
'I should rest really early today.'
He was grateful for Rudger's consideration. Come to think of it, Leo, Tracy, and Iona were worried about him too.
The expectation and burden of participating in such an important study made him overdo it.
'I have to reflect on myself. When I meet them later, I'll apologize for making them worry.'
Meanwhile the other students arrived one by one.
"We're here."
All the students sat down. Their expressions were different, but some looked tired like Aidan, and on the contrary, some were relaxed as usual.
"I think everyone is fully used to the state of the body where mana is suppressed."
Rudger glanced around at the students.
"Of course, I said this, but everyone must have tried to manage their magic somehow."
Everyone was poked by the words, so they avoided Rudger's eyes.
"I won't blame you. It was your choice, and I didn't stop you from doing it. So, is there anyone who succeeded in releasing mana after drinking the mana inhibitor?"
Aidan raised his hand as if he had been waiting for the question but he was surprised when I looked around because everyone else raised their hands, too.
'As expected, it wasn't just me.'
Some of them even had relaxed expressions and Aidan felt again that he was in Theon. Even considering that, the people who gathered here were especially unusual.
"This is surprising. Usually, on the first day, you would have been busy adjusting to your heavy and drowsy physical condition."
The students thought Rudger was talking empty words. Even if he was surprised, his expression was natural as if he knew this would happen but on the inside he was not like that.
'I didn't expect that all of them would be successful.'
Besides, every single one of them succeeded in releasing mana in a day.
I guess it's because they're talented kids.
"There is no need for further explanation, let's get to the main point. Drink this first."
Sedina, who was waiting next to him, handed each applicant a mana inhibitor and they drank it.
"Ugh. I feel bloated."
"I thought I'll get used to it, but I can't."
They feel like their bodies, which were about to get a little lighter, were wrapped around a chain again and submerged under the water but it was a little better than when they first drank a mana inhibitor.
"Now, show us your achievements. First of all, it's the basic mana release."
Each applicant began to activate their mana.
Most of the students put mana on their hands without any properties or models. It was literally a basic mana release.
However, although they managed to do so, most of the students' foreheads were covered with sweat and only three were still looking relaxed: Flora Lumos, Freuden Ulburg, and Julia Plumhart.
'Julia Plumhart. Does that mean that the top student is different? Freuden and Flora you kept your pride as seniors.'
Rudger's eyes naturally turned to Erendir.
'The 3rd princess…….'
Erendir was all about maintaining mana. Her amount of mana and the quality of mana are certainly great, but he was only at the level of a beginner in dealing with it.
'You have a sharp sword, but you don't know how to swing it.'
She was so different from her sister.
Rene, who was closing her eyes calmly next to her, seemed more relaxed.
"Enough."
When Rudger's words fell, the students gathered their mana while some gasped and wiped off their sweat.
In fact, only one minute went by, but they felt like an hour had passed.
"We have confirmed the basic mana release. At least you've learned how to get through the road with your mana suppressed. However, some people may not understand it with their heads because they learned it with their bodies, so I will explain it to you."
Rudger said so and distributed the materials he had prepared in advance to the students.
"After drinking mana inhibitors, it is difficult to release mana. It's hard to say, but it's actually close to impossible. Nevertheless, the reason I said you should do this is because there is a way."
Rudger looked at Aidan, saying so.
"Aidan."
"Yes."
"How did you manage to release your magical powers?"
"Uh, well, that's……I just did it as if I was pushing it away."
"Tell me more details."
"So, at first, I felt that the mana itself was trapped inside my body and could not escape."
Aidan recalled what he felt when he tried to release mana last night.
"It felt like I was locked in a prison that fit my body and I couldn't move no matter how much I tried."
"But how did you succeed?"
"I kept trying and I felt a gap."
Aidan couldn't think of anything other than that word.
"Rene, how about you?"
"Me? I felt the same way. I was trying to squeeze out mana through the gap as much as I could. As a result, something that was originally narrow gradually opened up and the path became larger."
"Is it the same for the rest?"
When Rudger asked, the rest of the students all nodded.
Aidan breathed a sigh of relief at the sight, thinking, "I wasn't the only one."
"Everyone must have felt the same way. Actually, mana inhibitors literally block your mana. Nevertheless, you have forged a way through the oppression."
Rudger said so and floated a picture on the magic board. It was a painting of a man, with blue lines drawn over his body.
"Each wizard's body has its own optimal route."
"Route?"
"Yes, in other words, it's called path."
"Are you saying that's the way? But that's a taboo……."
"Yeah. It's like the magic circuit that black wizards forcefully carve and widen through surgery. But this is different from that since it's not made through artificial procedures, but it exists from birth."
The students looked suspicious at his words because no one has felt the magic circuit in their body so far.
"Everyone seems surprised. I understand that feeling. It's something that you didn't realize because you usually handle magic naturally."
It's like recognizing how to breathe.
Breathing is natural and so it's using your body.
There is no overdoing it and of course they wouldn't realize it's uncomfortable. But what if the whole process is suppressed for some reason?
What if it's hard to breathe?
What if it's hard to even walk normally?
Then people would change their mind and would search for a way instead of taking it for granted.
"When there is a problem, people try to solve it and find the most efficient way through many attempts."
The knights learn how to use their body during training.
Anyone can swing a sword however it would take a lot of effort and time to wield the sword in the best way without exerting as much force as possible.
The optimal path and method are completed through the process of trimming and sharpening.
"The gap you found is the optimal mana path that you have always had but have not been aware of until now."
And the role of this mana inhibitor was to make the hidden mana pass recognizable by the body.