Chapter 32 - The Power Of Title!
Leora stepped closer, inspecting the pot and the scarecrow.
"Your theory worked. It's a weapon now, not just a shield."
Isaac grinned, wiping dirt off his hands.
Tyr, the Deathwood Guardian, and the poison flowers. He had an impressive and powerful arsenal to fight his opponents.
"Tomorrow, we'll measure Tyr's stats and fine-tune this setup," Professor Catherine said. "Now let's have some snacks. We've been at this for hours, and I'm starving."
They walked toward the house when Catherine paused, turning back to him with a curious look.
"By the way, Isaac, you must've have hit 100 Mana in the morning when you harvested the crops. Did you check the title?"
Isaac blinked, then scratched the back of his head.
"Honestly, I forgot to look. I was too busy with all this."
"I suppose you couldn't take your eyes off me, and forget about everything else."
Isaac rolled his eyes at her exaggerated shy expression.
He called up the system interface.
Title: None → Mana Resonance
"It's called Mana Resonance. It doesn't say what it does, though."
Catherine's smile widened, a knowing glint in her eyes.
"You will have to figure it out yourself. That's your homework for today. I've got to head out now, but I'll see you tomorrow."
They had some snacks later after which Professor Catherine left.
Isaac watched her go, then headed inside, settling into the second-floor study with a stack of theory books Catherine had left.
They were thick volumes on plant properties, mana interactions, and soil enhancement.
He spent the next few hours poring over them. The quiet scratch of pages turning filled the room as the sun dipped lower.
The texts were dense, but they sparked ideas about his skills and how far he could push them.
By evening, he closed the last book and stretched, feeling the itch to get back to the field.
He grabbed a pouch of Vitality Grain seeds and stepped outside.
The cool air brushed his skin.
The original 0.5-hectare plot was still fresh from the ash fertilizer, so he planted the seeds there, pressing them into the soil with steady hands.
As he finished, a thought struck him, and he called out to Leora, who was tidying up near the house.
"Leora, what happens if I pour a mana potion on the ground?" he asked, brushing dirt off his knees. "Wouldn't that boost the soil for crops?"
"No. The mana would distribute unevenly. It would be too much in some spots, none in others. It'd make the land toxic for crops, and kill them off instead of helping."
Isaac tilted his head, thinking it over.
"That's not a problem for me. My Sovereign of Land skill has a passive—soil manipulation and land empowerment. It allows me to feel and control the nutrients in the dirt, the mana too. I think I could spread it out evenly."
"Skill descriptions are often vague, Isaac. You'd need to be careful. Even if it works, fine control over that much mana might be tricky—"
She paused, as if she'd remembered something, then continued.
"Go ahead if you're set on it. Use those potions you made in class, just not on the crop field. If it goes wrong, you'll ruin what's already growing."
Isaac frowned, glancing at his planted plot.
"I don't have cash to buy more land here yet."
Before he could say more, Leora cut in. "You can take another 0.5 hectare for free."
"No price? How's that work?"
"Your discovery with the Deathwood Guardian about the relative position trick. It's valuable intel. We can apply it to flag-type relics or similar items. The knowledge is worth enough to cover 0.5 hectare."
Isaac knew a student wouldn't have the pull to hand out land like that.
Besides, an entire 0.5-hectare in a new City was too sweet for the discovery about relics that were rarely found.
She was using her authority to help him for free.
"Alright, I'll take it," he said, grabbing ten mana potions from his spatial ring. These were the ones he'd made earlier in the class.
He marked out a new 0.5-hectare patch next to his first and poured the potions slowly, letting the liquid seep into the soil.
If this worked, he'd double his farmland. The thought sent a thrill through him.
The mana sank in, and a faint shimmer spread across the dirt.
He activated Sovereign of Land, reaching out with his senses.
It was tough.
Threads of mana were tangled beneath the surface.
His high Spirit Power stat helped, but it was still a slog.
He switched on his Demonic Eyes skill, and the world sharpened.
Thin, glowing lines of mana appeared in the soil, jumbled like a mess of yarn.
Seeing the mana made things easier.
But the process would take long, and using the skill for too much time put strain on his eyes.
Suddenly, something clicked.
There was a hum, a pulse deep in his chest.
The mana in the ground felt like it was *his*, moving with his will.
He shaped it, smoothing the threads into an even flow, and the effort lightened.
"Mana Resonance," he muttered, realizing the title's effect.
It let him wield ambient mana as his own, like an extension of himself.
Powerful.
He wondered what titles his other stats might unlock as he finished the task easily with the help of Mana Resonance.
The soil was now packed with balanced energy.
He planted more Vitality Grains, eager to see the results by morning.
Back at the house, he washed his hands and feet in a basin by the door.
Leora approached, holding a glass of cold juice.
"Here," she said, handing it over.
"Thanks," Isaac said, and took a sip.
The chill was refreshing after the day's work.
Inwardly, he couldn't help but smile. Leora, the Vice Principal, had gone from grumbling about maid duties to pulling it off flawlessly.
She didn't even seem to mind anymore.
Dinner was ready soon after.
Leora cooked a mana-rich meal with grilled steak from a high-rank mana beast, seasoned with herbs, paired with roasted potatoes and a thick, savory broth.
Isaac dug in, feeling the food's energy seep into him.
The aching muscles felt like a thirsty man in desert finding water. They were being turned stronger.
The mana in the meat boosted his body in small, steady ways.
"This is good," he said between bites. "Doesn't vegetables do this too? It feels like all the body-improving stuff is meat."
"Yes, some do. But mana-rich vegetables are rare and expensive. They are harder to source than beast meat. You won't find them easy around here."
Isaac nodded, finishing his plate.
After cleaning up along, he headed to bed, pulling out his phone to call Emily.
She picked up. Her soft voice and warm smile made Isaac smile too.
"Isaac, guess what? My Spectral Claw skill leveled up today! Even my strength went up a little."
"That's awesome. Congrats, Emily."
They talked for hours.
She told him about her day, and he shared about the field experiments until her voice grew sleepy.
"Good Night, Isaac," she murmured, drifting off.
"Good Night," he said, waiting until her breathing steadied before ending the call.
As he set the phone down, he called his Bonded Blessing System.