Chapter 41
Chapter 41
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 41
Chapter Title: Innate Limits
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"……."
"……."
A piercing, cold northern wind blew relentlessly between the two individuals facing each other in the bleak courtyard, the intense chill causing their cloaks to rustle softly in the quiet air.
The very tips of their intense gazes, which remained pointed strictly toward the frosted stone floor, gave them the distinct appearance of two figures locked in a somber, bowed stance.
“Human beings naturally accumulate latent mana within their bodies over time by constantly absorbing it from the surrounding air,” Rianna began her quiet, highly deliberate explanation of the foundational magical mechanics.
“However, that energy does not build up infinitely within your vessels just because you choose not to utilize it, because the maximum amount of mana a human body can successfully accept is strictly set from the very moment of birth, meaning that anything beyond that personal threshold naturally gets expelled by the physical system.”
Through the regular cycles of deep breathing, perspiration, physical excretion, and deep sleep, the mortal body constantly prevents an excess buildup of magical energy through various biological means.
If left unchecked, a severe overload of energy can easily cause the dangerous condition known as 'mana saturation,' where the flesh painfully swells up from within, or lead to the formation of 'mana stones,' which are jagged crystals that crystallize directly inside the vital organs.
On a mental level, such instability can even fracture the psyche completely, plunging the victim into the chaotic madness known as a 'mana frenzy.'
“Your congenital capacity happens to be overwhelmingly low, and to be perfectly honest with you—” Rianna hesitated for a brief moment, her voice trailing off as she struggled to find the right words.
She stammered slightly, appearing thoroughly unsure of how to deliver the harsh reality without completely crushing his spirit.
“It is not even comparable to the capacity of a wolf... perhaps it is a bit less than that of a common dog, and no, I do not mean just a tiny bit less.”
"……."
“It is likely not even on the level of a tree, I think, but it is definitely more than that of a simple flower, and you can at least be absolutely sure of that part.”
“Saying my capacity is 'more than a flower' was entirely meant to console me in my misery, right?” Isaac asked with a faint, knowing smile.
Rianna clamped her mouth shut instantly, refusing to confirm his suspicion, but Isaac, who knew her subtle personality remarkably well, immediately caught on to the fact that the final poetic comparison was indeed her awkward attempt at offering comfort.
Of course, to any outside observer who didn't understand her stoic nature, such a blunt description would have easily sounded like a form of cruel mockery.
“Well, handling raw aura certainly isn't the end-all-be-all of combat prowess, now is it?” Silberna offered an awkward consolation from the side, trying to alleviate the heavy tension settling over the group.
In truth, the total inability to utilize aura did not necessarily prove to be a major flaw on the battlefield, especially since Isaac's legendary martial master had famously never handled a single shred of aura throughout her entire career.
“I have never really used much aura myself during my battles, and my father barely touches the energy either,” Silberna added, referencing the Lord of Caldias.
The prestigious Caldias family had historically held a somewhat skeptical and pragmatic view regarding the reliance on aura, though this cultural philosophy stemmed not from an inherent inability to wield the energy, but rather from their focus on developing advanced spearmanship techniques designed for large-scale military deployments of regular soldiers.
After all, within the harsh reality of war, exceptionally few individuals among the ranks of ordinary soldiers could ever successfully manage to handle aura anyway.
“I completely agree with her assessment, because the mere ability to handle raw aura does not automatically make it the definitive measure of a warrior's true strength,” Rianna added in support of Silberna's practical point, noting that relying on it simply raised the technical difficulty of the style without offering any absolute guarantee of superior combat skill.
“Even if that is the case for others, I still absolutely need to acquire it,” Isaac stated resolutely, his conviction remaining entirely unshaken by their logical arguments.
This deep internal need for aura had firmly solidified within his mind, especially after firsthand experiencing the terrifying, destructive pressure of clashing directly against Sharen's vibrant Red Aura during their recent encounter.
"……."
"……."
As the two red-haired women fell silent, pondering alongside Isaac while remaining deep in their own complex thoughts, the heavy toll of a distant bell suddenly echoed across the fortress.
Dang!
Dang!
Dang!
The massive bell rang out exactly three times in rapid succession, its booming resonance shattering the quiet dawn.
“Judging by the pattern, it looks like a sudden monster assault has breached the front wall defenses,” Silberna announced, smoothly slung her heavy spear over her shoulder and instantly breaking into a full sprint toward the ramparts, while the other two immediately followed close behind her heels.
The chaotic assault on the front wall dragged on brutally until the arrival of lunchtime, finally drawing to a definitive close only when Silberna's powerful spear managed to cleanly pierce the vitals of the named beast leading the horde—a massive, raging northern troll.
The intense battle, which had originally sparked during the early hours of the morning, had finally wrapped up past the hour of noon, leaving the defenders exhausted as Isaac made his way back into the relative warmth of the castle's central infirmary.
“Th-thank you so much for saving me, sir— Ugh!” a wounded warrior groaned from the cot.
“Easy there, soldier, you still have several jagged wooden thorns embedded deep within your flesh, so you better keep still and stop trying to talk for now,” Isaac instructed gently.
Isaac had personally carried the private into the ward, having taken full responsibility for the man's safety since the soldier had been brutally skewered by a stray projectile that Isaac himself had agilely dodged during the frantic clash.
Having escorted the man all the way from the ramparts, he stood by as a medical healing mage with prominent dark circles under his eyes bustled frantically around the cramped infirmary to check on the private's vitals.
Isaac watched closely, wondering if the eccentric practitioner would utilize some form of rare healing magic to close the wounds right away.
Instead, the man simply grabbed a pair of large iron tongs, thoroughly disinfected the area, and ruthlessly pulled the thick thorns out one by one before applying direct pressure to staunch the heavy bleeding.
Observing Isaac's curious gaze, the exhausted mage displayed a tired grin and deliberately clacked the heavy iron tongs together twice—clang clang—to ease the tension.
“When I was first deployed to this godforsaken border post, I foolishly brought a delicate set of precision medical tweezers, but I have completely tossed those useless tools away by now because when you are dealing with demonic thorns that are literally as thick as a man's arm, a pair of heavy iron tongs is by far the best option available, which I actually borrowed directly from the head chef in the kitchens.”
“My name is Isaac,” the young swordsman introduced himself calmly.
“Oh, look at me, I completely forgot to introduce myself in the chaos,” the mage muttered, quickly wiping his blood-stained hands on the front of his stained robe.
“I am Vivian, officially affiliated with the prestigious Mage Tower.”
“Judging by your actions, it certainly does not seem like you rely solely on standard magical spells to do your job here,” Isaac noted, gesturing toward the other successfully treated soldiers resting on the nearby cots.
The man's foundational medical knowledge and practical surgical skills seemed exceptionally advanced, far surpassing what a typical mage relying entirely on basic healing incantations would possess.
“Haha, genuine high-tier healing magic is an incredibly rare talent, so I prefer to handle things manually unless a patient is in truly dire straits, especially since you have to thoroughly understand this anatomical stuff to even attempt casting a proper healing spell without killing the subject,” Vivian explained, his weary, sleep-deprived appearance contrasting sharply with his surprisingly affable and talkative demeanor.
That profound physical fatigue was a clear, unspoken signal of just how incredibly grueling and relentless the current Mallidan deployment truly was for the staff.
“If you don't mind, would it be alright if I asked you a professional question?” Isaac inquired, realizing that this was the perfect opportunity to seek expert advice regarding the troubling mana capacity issue that had been puzzling him since dawn.
“Eh, why not? The mess hall would only be serving watery cabbage soup at this hour anyway,” Vivian chuckled wryly, leaning back against his desk.
“Go ahead and shoot, what exactly is weighing heavily on your mind?”
“My personal mana capacity happens to be congenitally low, practically non-existent,” Isaac stated plainly.
Upon hearing those words, Vivian's casual smile slowly faded from his face, and his previously mild, tired eyes instantly sharpened with a keen, frightening display of academic intelligence.
“I want to find a viable method to actively increase that baseline capacity, so I must ask if any such techniques exist within the Mage Tower's archives?”
“Hm,” Vivian nodded slowly, strolling over to the narrow glass window before pointing outside with a cynical grin, “Go jump off the highest tower.”
"……."
“Total biological rebirth, that is the sole method in existence to alter your capacity, because let me ask you, do you even know where mana is permanently stored within the human body, Isaac?” Vivian asked, his tone becoming highly theatrical as he strode back across the room, his voice rising with eccentric excitement.
“It is stored within the heart, the literal heart, and have you ever heard of a single case where someone successfully swapped out their living heart for another and survived the process? I certainly have never seen or heard of such a miracle occurring in my entire life.”
"……."
“That vital organ is the absolute core of your magical being, which is exactly why it is officially designated as the 'mana core,' and it is the primary reason why genuine mages are so exceedingly rare throughout the continent,” Vivian explained, his smile brimming with an intense, elitist pride as he rested a hand over his own chest as if guarding a sacred, treasured artifact.
“Your magical limits are unalterably set from the very moment of birth, and nothing can ever change that fundamental truth.”
‘I had always heard that high-ranking mages possessed a severe chosen-people complex, and it seems the rumors were entirely true,’ Isaac thought to himself, observing the man's demeanor.
The internal hierarchy of the Mage Tower operated on a completely independent wavelength, remaining entirely unbound to the laws or rulers of worldly kingdoms, for within their absolute worldview, there were only two distinct classes of existence: mages and non-mages.
To them, even the grandest nobles and royal princes were nothing more than simple, mana-less plebeians who were beneath their concern.
“The world is certainly full of fabled elixirs, and I am sure a member of your house is fully aware of the famous Helmunt's Rose Elixir,” Vivian continued, his words remaining polite on the surface while his overall manner practically screamed his disdain for martial struggles.
“Such treasures can deeply enhance your physical flesh and increase your current mana density, but they can do absolutely nothing to expand your core capacity.”
It was clear that touching upon a mage's sacred, fundamental truth had slightly irked Vivian's academic pride, prompting him to offer a final, biting conclusion.
“It is a pity, but some things in this cruel world are just entirely innate,” he said, bowing slightly with a smug smile.
“And that unyielding reality is precisely why ordinary people obsess so heavily over natural geniuses, simply because those blessed individuals possess from birth what we can never acquire through mere effort.”
"……."
“So, tell me, was that a thoroughly satisfactory answer for you, Sir Isaac?”
“It was adequate enough,” Isaac replied, nodding calmly as his expression remained completely unchanged from before, showing absolutely no hint of surrender or despair despite his persistent, thoughtful frown.
“...You certainly don't look like a man who has accepted the truth,” Vivian noted, appearing slightly irked that despite investing his valuable time to explain and persuade the swordsman, there was absolutely no shift in the young man's stubborn resolve.
“Listen to me, young man, there is an official research paper published by the Mage Tower titled 'The Correlation Between Growth Environment and Structural Mana Capacity' that explicitly states—”
“If your own latent mana capacity had been found to be abysmally low during your youth, would you have simply quit trying to become a mage altogether?” Isaac interrupted smoothly, his voice cutting through the lecture.
“Are you truly interrupting me right now...? But to answer your question: obviously I would have quit, because magic is entirely the domain of natural talent, so why on earth would anyone waste their life challenging an absolute impossibility? I would have just quit and found another path.”
In Vivian's mind, attempting to breach a boundary set by nature was an exercise in futility that lay far beyond the reach of the untalented.
“Unfortunately, some people simply do not possess the luxury of quitting,” Isaac stated quietly.
As a man who had stubbornly refused to ever quit the path of the sword despite suffering crippling injuries in his past life, he possessed the absolute right to speak those words with complete conviction.
“I suppose you are just entirely not my type of person to converse with, huh,” Vivian pouted, quickly deeming any further discussion to be utterly pointless before turning his back to check on the wounded soldiers once more.
Isaac scratched his cheek awkwardly at the mage's sudden dismissal, turning to quietly make his way out of the ward.
‘I guess I naturally vibe a lot more with a stubborn idiot like Jonathan than with this intellectual type,’ Isaac reflected, thinking of how Jonathan had fiercely idolized Arandel and forced himself to become a proud Helmunt knight against his very biological instincts, finding a strange parallel to his own struggle.
Realizing that no further useful information could be gained here, he headed out into the long hallway.
“Ah, there you are, I was wondering when you would finally step out,” Silberna, who was undoubtedly today's star after taking down the troll, announced cheerfully as she waited by the entrance.
“...Weren't you supposedly heading off to the barracks to grab some lunch?” Isaac asked, surprised to see her.
“I was, but I decided it would be much better if we ate together, so ta-da!” she cheered, proudly proffering a woven basket packed to the brim with fresh sandwich fixings.
“Heading to the main mess hall right now means we would just get dragged into a round two of military celebrations right after that intense battle, so it is infinitely easier if we eat separately in private.”
“When exactly did you manage to find the time to prepare all of this?” Isaac asked, narrowing his eyes as he inspected the basket, noting that the ingredients looked thoroughly pre-made ahead of time, which definitely didn't match her usual impatient style.
“Ahem, does the exact preparation history truly matter at all right now?” she huffed, looking away.
‘Ah, Anna was clearly the one who actually prepared this entire basket for her,’ Isaac deduced instantly, though he chose to keep the thought to himself since it wasn't important anyway.
“Come on, look at this, I even managed to secure something incredibly special for us,” she murmured excitedly, rummaging through the contents before revealing a thick, perfectly smoked chunk of seasoned meat wrapped neatly in fresh green leaves.
The meat was fresh from the smokehouse today, still steaming slightly while radiating a rich, savory aroma into the chilly corridor.
“Amazing, right? Have you ever heard of northern troll meat before? It is notoriously rubbery and inedible when consumed raw, but when it is properly northern-smoked by the garrison experts? The taste is absolutely divine.”
Isaac let out a sudden, quiet laugh at her intense enthusiasm.
“Hey, why on earth are you laughing at me? This is an incredibly rare delicacy around here!” she huffed, playfully nudging his shoulder before forcefully dragging him along by the arm.
“Come on, let's go find a nice, sheltered spot outside where the wind can't reach us so we can assemble these sandwiches.”
‘I really shouldn't be thinking about this comparison, but with the way she is practically wagging her tail in excitement right now, she could easily pass for an energetic pup,’ Isaac thought with amusement.
Thud.
“Ah,” a voice uttered from behind them as the infirmary door opened, and Vivian emerged into the hallway.
Heading out to grab his own lunch, the healing mage glanced briefly at the pair, offered a curt nod of recognition, and quickly went on his way down the corridor.
Silberna eyed his retreating figure curiously, and once she confirmed that Vivian was fully out of earshot, she quietly turned to Isaac to ask, “Did something strange happen between you two inside? He is usually incredibly friendly and talkative with everyone in the fortress.”
“Uh... it's a bit complicated,” Isaac summarized, explaining how he had accidentally stepped directly upon the proud mage's academic reverse scale during their debate about talent.
Silberna nodded her head slowly, a complex, slightly somber expression settling over her features as she listened.
“To be fair to him, I have never actually heard of a single case where someone successfully managed to permanently increase their congenital mana capacity anywhere on the continent,” she admitted quietly.
Isaac hadn't either, not even within his memories of the future ten years from now, yet as she glanced at his deeply troubled look, she carefully asked a vital question.
“Are you finally thinking about giving up then?”
“Hm? Giving up on what exactly?”
“On your pursuit of mastering aura.”
“Why on earth would I do that?” Isaac retorted instantly, his tone making it sound as if the very idea of quitting was completely absurd to him.
Upon hearing his unwavering response, Silberna's lips violently twitched upward into a genuine, bright smile.
“Why? Because it is technically impossible according to the laws of magic, and your current mana pool simply won't cut the baseline requirements no matter how hard you try.”
Displaying a bitter, self-deprecating smile, Isaac continued to walk alongside her toward the courtyard.
“It is an absolute impossibility, a completely wasted effort, a delusional fantasy born of madness—I have literally heard those exact phrases directed at me throughout my entire life, to the point where my ears have become completely numb to the criticism by now, and plus—”
Vivian's harsh medical truths had left Isaac's internal will entirely unscratched.
“I have never actually experienced a single piece of truly wasted effort in my life yet,” he added, scratching his cheek slightly as a flash of pride crossed his eyes.
He knew that all the grueling hours he had spent compiling and studying old martial texts back at the archive formed the absolute foundation of his current style, meaning that while he was still building his base from the ground up, he was steadily advancing step by step along his own unique path.
“You truly are a remarkably arrogant rascal, aren't you?” Silberna laughed loudly, playfully slapping his back with enough force to make him wince.
“But tell me, is all this stubborn suffering truly worth it to you? If you are that desperate for a miracle, you should probably start praying to the holy goddess every single night before bed.”
“And why on earth should I start doing that?”
“Who knows? She might suddenly get deeply moved by your pathetic, daily struggles and decide to grant you an 'earth-shatteringly immense gift' out of pure pity!” she shouted dramatically, flinging her arms wide into the air to emphasize the scale of the miracle.
Having finally stepped outside into the open air of the fortress, the two continued to banter idly under the pale sky.
“Earth-shatteringly immense? Why exactly do you feel the need to add such an extra, ridiculous modifier to the sentence?” Isaac asked with a chuckle.
“Because it has to be exactly that immense to fix a stubborn guy like you!” she retorted playfully.
“Pfft, whatever you say.”
“Whatever! Let's just hurry up and find a proper spot to sit and eat, because I promise you that these smoked troll sandwiches are going to taste absolutely *earth-shatteringly* good!” she cheered, her incredibly good mood likely stemming from her spectacular combat feats during the morning raid.
Isaac let her words slide past his ears, scanning the immediate surroundings of the courtyard before suddenly pausing his steps as a thought occurred to him.
“Wait a moment, is it truly just going to be the two of us eating alone out here?”
“What, are you honestly feeling weirded out by that prospect? We are supposed to be close friends, aren't we?” she asked, tilting her head.
“W-well, yeah, I suppose we are, but...” Isaac stammered slightly, feeling a bit awkward.
“Then as a happily married man, you really shouldn't be sweating the small stuff so much,” she teased him with a bright grin, leaning in closer to his side.
Isaac couldn't help but wonder about her sudden bold shift in dynamic, remembering how he had previously used his official marriage status as a polite shield to rebuff any unwanted advances from others, yet here she was, deliberately leaning into his space more while using that exact marriage status as a perfect excuse to lower her guard around him.
“What exactly is wrong with you today, my dear hubby? If you are truly feeling that guilty about eating with a beautiful girl, you can go ahead and call your precious wife out here to join us if you want,” she whispered with a playful glint in her eyes.
“Nah, there is no need to do that,” Isaac replied curtly, turning his face away to hide his slight embarrassment.
“Heh, I knew you would say exactly that,” Silberna whispered softly under her breath, her gentle, teasing words immediately being stolen away by the howling northern wind before they could ever reach his ears.
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