Chapter 33

Chapter 33: Mana Determinism

The daily routine of Valdrova was truly simple.
An enemy appears.
Tear them to pieces.
Roar.
Return home.
Actions more suited to a barbarian warrior than the title of King Duchess.
She had always exerted her strength to protect the people, and she felt no great reluctance regarding those actions.
Yet, as she was, recently she came to doubt one thing.
— Kroa—.
It was the roar.
That roar, perfectly suited for the exhilaration of battle and for declaring victory, had recently begun to seem embarrassing to her.
— Aah…….
A voice fading away like a rat’s tail.
Valdrova incompletely burned away her sense of liberation and cleared her throat.
Her eyes turned toward the place that had made her like this.
Her gaze turned toward the peak of the Lonely Mountain.
Every time Valdrova went to the battlefield, Ferda was always there at the peak of the Lonely Mountain.
“Did he not come today either……?”
However, that peak showed only the flat and prepared spot, as always.
He did not come to look down as usual.
Valdrova found Ferda’s gaze burdensome.
When he watched her, she grew strangely impatient and restless, making herself look pathetic.
She even thought it would be better if he did not watch her.
“Yes, perhaps it is better.”
Valdrova spread her wings and returned to her lair.
The Lonely Mountain of the Far East.
She had made that place her base precisely because it was difficult for humans to see it.
Upon entering the long cave, Ruri greeted her.
— You have worked very hard, Master-nim.
Valdrova passed by her without answering.
Seeing that she did not react even to a light greeting, Ruri followed her inside the iron door.
— Is something the matter?
— It is not a big deal.
Valdrova curled up as if to say there was no need to worry.
— Do not be like that, please tell this girl. I will do everything possible to be of help.
— Hmm…….
— Did Ferda…… get tired of me?
— …Excuse me?
Ruri put on a stunned expression.
— He did not come today either.
Valdrova thought it was fortunate that he had not come.
Yet an emptiness even greater than that thought settled in.
A day no different from the usual.
However, she felt as though something vast had disappeared.
— At most, it has been twice. One week. Compared to the harsh years that Valdrova-nim has lived, it is an absurdly short time.
— Of course. I know that too.
At most one week, at most twice…….
How could that phrase ‘at most’ be so heavy.
— Ferda-nim has been moving around very busily lately.
Ferda had been doing a lot of work recently.
Cooperating with merchants, handling petitions from provincial lords.
Once he entered his office, he often did not come out until the moon hung high in the sky.
— Even so…… before that, he still came out, did he not?
It was as Valdrova said.
No matter how busy he was, Ferda would come out whenever he heard that Valdrova was fighting.
And when their eyes met, he always smiled.
— Surely…… since I do not even spare him a glance, he must have lost affection.
She bowed her head deeply in sorrow and sighed.
Of course, Ruri did not think that.
“If he had grown tired, he would not be moving around so busily.”
Ferda was moving to look after those under Valdrova.
That driving force was undoubtedly made of affection for Valdrova.
— Ruri.
— Yes, Master-nim.
Valdrova opened her mouth with difficulty.
— That…… that thing young ladies do.
— Are you speaking of a tea party?
— Exactly. That.
Ruri was quite surprised by her words.
Valdrova, who had avoided contact with humans since the Prince Incident.
— Could you…… propose a tea party to Ferda?
She had taken a great step toward facing her fiancé.
Ferda had become a 3rd Circle mage, possessing three overlapping circles.
The 1st Circle is a point,
The 2nd Circle is drawing a line connecting point to point.
And the 3rd Circle consists of those who handle lines to weave them into planes.
That plane is the stage where one can use magic properly through magic circles.
“The Magic Library is also broken.”
The Magic Library is a memorization method that fills a part of the brain purely with magic and spell formulas.
It is something attainable only upon reaching the 5th Circle, and it naturally disappeared when Ferda returned to the past.
“Even so, the magic remains in my body.”
Magic that exists beneath the realm of the unconscious.
Like rummaging alone through a collapsed library, he decided to try drawing magic at random.
He concentrated his mana into his right arm.
Thanks to the three overlapping circles, the movement of mana was swift and natural.
“Drawing magic circles.”
A true mage, yet simultaneously a stage of not being a mage.
Because it is the stage where one begins serious practice to draw magic circles.
“The first stage is Concretization.”
Ferda recalled the formalized magic circles in his memory.
Normally at this stage, one concretizes while looking at magic circles drawn in spellbooks along with incantations.
The more proficient, the shorter that process of concretization becomes.
Yet Ferda conducted this concretization differently.
Without knowing the purpose, trusting in the unconscious, he began to draw magic circles.
Like casting a fishing rod into a lake, he waited and waited.
Just waiting for a great catch that could not resist the temptation of the bait to bite.
“I feel it.”
Then he moved on to the second stage.
“Formalization.”
Ferda imagined a feather dancing upon his palm.
Following the movements of that feather, a simple magic circle formed in Ferda’s hand.
“Third stage, Realization.”
The framework made, now the stage of injecting mana properly.
The completed magic circle changes color as it determines the property of the mana.
The magic circle that glowed with a faint blue suddenly burst with light.
“This magic is…….”
Before Ferda could realize it, his body moved first.
Extending only his index and middle fingers, he aimed at a point on the wall.
Thus the final stage.
Incantation.
— Elemental Lightning.
The moment Ferda chanted the spell, a sharp electrical sound resonated.
Pajijik—!
A bullet of lightning flying in a straight line.
It was Elemental Lightning, a basic attack magic alongside Mana Shot.
“That was dangerous.”
If he had not aimed properly, that dent would have ended up somewhere on Ferda’s body.
“Drawing from the unconscious is not entirely good.”
Even so, Ferda did not stop.
The magic stored in the unconscious, the more familiar to his hands, meant he had favored using it.
He emptied his head, delved into himself, and searched for another magic.
“I feel it.”
Ferda once again let himself be carried by the sensation and drew a magic circle.
Concretization, Formalization, and then Realization.
Then the magic circle that glowed with a faint blue was dyed in a deep black.
The attribute was Darkness.
In other words, pure black magic.
Among those dark attribute magics, which ones did he know?
Before that answer could emerge, Ferda’s hand moved again. This time he brought the hand holding the magic circle toward a candle.
Only at the end did the name emerge.
— Shadow Hand.
At that moment, the part shadowed by the candle bubbled like lava.
Ferda’s shadow swelled and then separated from his arm as if shedding skin.
Another hand made of magic.
“The side effects are also properly felt.”
At the 3rd Tier there is a similar magic called Magic Hand.
The Magic Hand that separates and floats in the air is more akin to overlapping, like a glove.
Because it mimics the movements of the right hand after connecting to it.
Yet the Shadow Hand does not overlap; it flies.
A completely new hand is born.
“Without a price, but with a great condition in its place.”
High-yield black magic for its mana cost demands two things.
The ‘price’ of mental contamination the more you use magic.
The ‘condition’ of requiring mental fortitude when using magic.
This sensation of heterogeneity of a new hand being born is the condition.
One suffers confusion: is this my hand, or a virtual hand?
Failing to accept that means failing to satisfy the ‘condition’ to use Shadow Hand.
A mage who fails the condition suffers terrible phantom pain.
Such a risk meant nothing to Ferda.
The condition of the Shadow Hand was something he had mastered long ago.
“Even so, it still does not completely feel like my arm.”
Ferda looked at that black hand.
He tested it with flexible and delicate movements, drawing ripples with his fingers.
As natural as the original hand.
Ferda turned his eyes to look at the bookshelf.
Normally a distance that required him to stand up and walk 10 steps.
Ferda reached out his hand toward it.
“An arm can stretch.”
Following Ferda’s imagination that shattered common sense, the shadow hand extended beyond its limit and stretched.
It covered the distance of 10 steps, retrieved the book from the shelf, and returned.
“A 3rd Tier magic, yet a burdensome magic for a 3rd Tier to use.”
The more precisely it can move, the more imagination and mental strength it demands.
That is the essence of black magic.
High performance, yet demanding a high level commensurate with that performance.
If you do not reach that level, they are magics that will likely drive you mad.
“Once I reach the 4th Circle, it will be more stable.”
Ferda thought that and murmured.
— The next stage, huh…….?
Ferda’s heart grew complicated.
It was a moment when ambition was needed, but right now he lacked his usual stimulation.
“What is needed to completely stabilize it is mana equivalent to the 4th Circle.”
The amount of mana necessary to completely suppress Valdrova’s blood qi.
He wanted to advance somehow even for that reason.
Yet right now something was blocked.
Reaching the 3rd Circle so weakly was one reason, but the greatest was the Attribute Search he had conducted recently.
‘Magic Determinism…….’
Ferda had learned many things under a money-greedy master, and among them was Magic Determinism.
It was a theory that resonated more with the wielders of the Red Circle than those of the Blue Circle.
Its premise: even if oneself in another timeline awakens for different purposes and events, the attribute one possesses is immutable—a tale derived from fatalism.
‘A useless debate.’
Just as meaningless as proving Utopia.
It is not called the ‘relationship-cleansing spell’ for nothing.
Yet Ferda, who had turned back time, could not dare to ignore it.
‘No more hostility toward family, no more hatred toward the world.’
Ferda, who had sworn to live solely for her, thought that his attribute would also be different.
Yet what was granted to him was Darkness and Lightning.
The exact same magic that Ferda used in the past.
‘How was it when I first learned this attribute?’
How else?
He rejoiced.
There are two attributes that the Blue Circle cannot handle properly.
Light and Darkness.
Light manifests through the righteous mind of clerics.
Darkness manifests from negative emotions such as Ferda’s.
Having an affinity for the Darkness attribute carries the disadvantage of being unable to use light magic or healing magic for others.
Yet compared to other wielders of the Red Circle, other elemental magics do not diminish significantly—an advantage.
Thus, Ferda handled all elements except light on par with the Elemental Masters.
‘Yet now…….’
It was not good.
The history intertwined with Valdrova was now different.
This blessing that allowed Ferda to be active in the past now felt like a curse.
‘Valdrova suffers from the Darkness Phase, and I possess the Darkness attribute.’
That injecting mana exerts influence had already been proven.
Yet if what Ferda does is not a simple stabilization, but watering another seed of Darkness for her who suffers from Darkness, what then?
If giving leads to ruin in the end, can that truly be called doing it for her sake?
‘If the mana that killed her kills her once more…….’
If destiny does not change, just as mana does not change.
‘Can someone like me stand by her side?’
Even for Ferda, once an Archmage who commanded the heavens and the earth, it was an uncharted realm.
When facing such the unknown, Ferda always challenged it.
Yet now it only plunged him into deep worry.
The exploration of a mage connects directly with magic.
Ferda’s deep contemplation drew another magic from his unconscious.
He formalized the magic once more, guided by the sensation.
Only when that magic circle formalized did he barely realize it.
‘What magic is this?’
Not merely forgotten, but a shape that he had truly never seen before.
Incomparably complex formulas with densely packed runic language.
In complexity alone, comparable to Sixth Tier magic.
Yet if it were Sixth Tier, it would have shattered upon formalizing and could not appear like this.
Above all, he would have remembered it.
It is definitely magic drawn from his own unconscious.
Shadow Hand, Elemental Lightning—all drawn from the unconscious, yet he learned their names belatedly.
However, this magic floats in his palm and no name comes to mind.
‘As if it had no name from the beginning.’
He does not know what it is.
Ferda used the manifested Shadow Hand to take out magic copying paper from the cabinet.
He placed it directly over the magic circle he maintained, copying the shape and pattern.
He examined that magic circle.
He attempted to decipher it, but it was something unanalyzable even within his knowledge.
Knock-knock-
Someone knocked on the door.
— It is Ruri.
Ferda rolled up the copy scroll and set it aside.
— Come in.
The door opened and a young maid stepped inside.
Expressionless face as usual.
— It seems you have many worries.
— Thinking about this and that, it turned out this way.
He brushed aside the magic circle and his thoughts.
He thought Ruri did not need to know.
— What do you think of the tea party?
While having lunch, Ruri posed that question.
— Tea party? With whom?
— With whom else but the Master?
Ruri appeared more curt than usual.
— The Master requested ‘directly’ that I organize it, so I am asking. If you wish, we will hold it this afternoon.
— A tea party with my fiancée…….
An image formed in Ferda’s mind.
Her, elegantly lifting the tea in a dress.
Valdrova fitting into a splendid atmosphere.
‘I definitely want to see it.’
Simply, go ahead.
The usual Ferda would have responded in that manner.
— Good idea, but the timing does not seem right.
— …Pardon?
Ruri asked in return as if she had misheard.
Ferda answered once more.
— There is no need to rush too much. I need time to think for a while, so let us postpone it.
— …….
Ferda spoke calmly as always.
Ruri stared intently at Ferda, then opened her mouth.
— Are you playing hard to get with the Master?
— Playing hard to get?
— The lovers’ struggle to seize the initiative. The plan to make Ferda fall head over heels…….
— It is not that.
As for lovers, such sophisticated ideas did not come easily.
— Is something wrong then?
— Nothing in particular.
— The person who was singing about wanting to meet every day acting like this makes me wonder if it is your time to die.
— It is not that, so do not worry.
— I will not back down until you answer.
Because Ferda was different from usual, Ruri persisted tenaciously.
She would follow him even to the latrine.
He thought about simply ignoring her, but,
— Have you grown tired of the Master?
He could not dare to ignore that.
The moment he heard those words, Ferda felt his heart drop.
— Why would you say that?
— The Master said so. That until recently you did not watch her fight. Since you did not even peek, she believes you have grown tired of her.
Tired of her.
Could that be?
Ferda only wanted to see her as well.
Only that watching her was not the same as before.
— If you are not tired, I would like an answer commensurate with that.
Ruri’s loyal eyes gleamed silver.
Ferda uttered the words lingering on his lips.
— ……Just many worries lately.
— Even a blind person would know that. What worries?
— My mana contains Darkness. I was worried thinking that Darkness might harm her.
— Is that so?
Ruri took off her glove and extended her hand.
— Then try it once.
— On you?
Ruri nodded.
— I am also a Progeny descended from dragon blood. It may be a drop in the ocean, but I can discern what harms the Master, so try it.
Ferda worried no longer, took her hand, and decided to test it.
The hand of a small girl.
Yet that hand was not merely soft.
Ferda injected his mana toward that hand.
— How is it?
Ruri, feeling deeply, tilted her head.
— ……I do not know what I am supposed to feel. Is it not just magic power flowing?
— Nothing in particular?
— Nothing.
The mana Ferda emitted was the equivalent of a Mana Shot.
For Valdrova, even this amount already caused a reaction.
— Let me send a bit more.
This time, the equivalent of 5 shots. Enough to touch the mana circuits and feel something.
Ruri’s expression changed subtly.
— How about now?
— As you say, something is felt, but no sensation of harm. It is just mana, after all.
Ruri furrowed her brow and looked at Ferda dumbfounded.
— You worried and scared yourself over just this?
— ……Yes.
— You turn people into dogs, you break fingers, yet you get terribly scared when it comes to the Master.
The Phase of Power that no one can stop, the Red Dragon, Valdrova.
Yet before Ferda, she is merely a woman as fragile as a single flower.
The worry that he might hurt that woman was too burdensome for Ferda.
— As the one who will be her husband, should you not avoid creating worries for the Master, let alone failing to relieve them, over such trivial concerns?
— True, you are right.
— Whew…….
Ferda nodded, and Ruri let out a deep sigh.
Ferda could vividly feel how much suffering she had endured caught between the two of them.
— What will you do then?
What else?
— I will accept that invitation. Since my fiancée requested it personally, I cannot ignore it.
There is no choice but to face it.
— Understood.
Having heard the answer, Ruri bowed politely and left the dining hall.
While she was gone, Ferda glanced sideways at the scroll he had set aside.
‘Investigating it now would only turn into a worry.’
He could ask Mori to find the type of magic circle.
He could ask Echidna, well-versed in runic language, to interpret it.
Yet he had a premonition that this magic circle was something he had to understand on his own.
So Ferda carefully folded that scroll and slipped it between the pages of a book.
Naturally forgotten, only to appear suddenly when he pulled out the book—he would think about it again then.
Thinking thus, he decided to forget it.
‘Honestly, a person who puts his hands in useless places.’
Walking through the long corridor, Ruri grumbled to herself.
He rejected the invitation with arrogance, and the reason is also trivial.
‘Normally he goes without hesitation, why is he like that before the Master?’
He turns into a psychopath who gets what he wants, yet regarding Valdrova he is a fool and a coward.
‘His mana harming the Master…….’
Ruri looked at her right hand.
She said she felt nothing, but in truth Ruri felt a strange sensation.
And that sensation still remained on the hand Ferda had held.
‘I do not know what this is…….’
It is a subtle sensation, yet definitely harmless.
‘There is no need to mention it and scare him…….’
Ruri put her gloves back on and moved along.
A loyal attendant also had to spend busy days without a moment to close her eyes.