This Actually Works
The teacher, who had been glancing back and forth between the machine and me, suddenly spat out those words.
“Sorry, but you might not be able to use magic.”
What was the problem this time?
“With a vessel this big… filling it itself might be impossible.”
As I stared blankly at her after hearing that, the teacher tapped the machine she was holding and continued her explanation.
“For an ordinary person to first feel mana, about thirty percent of their vessel needs to be filled.”
Thirty percent…
I kept my mouth shut and quietly waited for her to go on.
“Someone with a small vessel can feel mana easily because even a little absorption fills it to thirty percent right away. Conversely, someone with a large vessel has to absorb a huge amount just to barely reach that thirty percent.”
So that’s why I couldn’t feel any mana.
The pieces were clicking into place perfectly.
“That’s why the Magic Tower sometimes gets called out to help fill a beginner’s vessel. Like me, right now.”
…Then just fill it for me.
No matter how big my vessel was, it was only thirty percent. That couldn’t be impossible.
I floated that thought inside my head and looked at her. The teacher’s lips started moving again.
“Of course, for most people I only have to help a little and they hit thirty percent in no time. Even the ones who take forever—I’ve never failed to fill them.”
“…….”
“But your vessel… I don’t think I could ever fill thirty percent of it by myself. No—I can’t fill it.”
…What was that supposed to mean?
She’d said my mana sensitivity was so good that I sucked up every drop she poured in without leaving a single scrap. And yet she still couldn’t fill it alone…
What, is my vessel some kind of bottomless jar?
Was there a defect in it or something?
When I furrowed my brow, the teacher pointed at the thermometer-like device in her hand.
“This machine. When the Magic Tower Master—the one with the largest mana vessel in the entire Empire—uses it, it hits exactly one hundred points.”
And that’s a problem because…?
I still kept my mouth closed and waited. She swallowed once, then showed me the gauge.
“But just now, from you… it read ninety-seven.”
“…….”
“Ninety-seven… that’s an insane number. Honestly, your vessel size is basically on the same level as the Tower Master’s.”
My brain froze.
…How much?
The strongest mage in the Empire was a hundred, and mine was ninety-seven?
You’ve got to be kidding me.
Had I asked for something that hard? All I’d wanted was to become a mage who could cast simple healing spells.
…But this level of bullshit was just unfair.
“Anyway… you’ve probably guessed, but the situation’s pretty bleak.”
“…….”
“Still, I came here on His Majesty’s orders, so I’ll help as much as I can before I leave. First, can you tell me why you wanted to use magic in the first place?”
The answer was simple. From beginning to end, the only thing I’d ever wanted was healing magic.
“I wanted to use healing magic.”
“What kind of healing magic?”
“…Excuse me?”
“There are different kinds of healing magic, you know.”
“…….”
There were?
It wasn’t like Pokémon where you chanted spells, so I’d figured they were all the same. The teacher seemed to sense my ignorance and kept talking without waiting for an answer.
“Well, anyway, you wanted healing magic, huh?”
“That’s right.”
“Hmm… to be honest, it’s probably impossible. Casting magic without feeling mana is the same as trying to walk when your legs have no sensation.”
She patted my shoulder as if she felt sorry for me.
In that case…
What could I even learn from this person?
Instead of sinking into despair, I quickly started thinking.
Something that would help with medical work…
Like making a syringe out of mana, for example.
…It sounded insanely difficult just thinking about it. But I still had to learn something.
After a short moment of consideration, I opened my mouth.
“I understand I can’t cast magic. Then… is there a way to take the mana inside my body, bring it outside, and make it interact with the laws of physics?”
“The laws of physics?”
“For instance, if I made a thin needle out of mana and stabbed someone with it, could it exert the exact same physical force as a real needle? Is something like that possible?”
At my question the teacher’s face went blank for a second, then she let out a hollow laugh.
“That’s Aura.”
“Aura?”
“Turning mana into a physical substance that exerts force—that’s Aura. The stuff knights coat their swords with, or use instead of a sword.”
She stroked her chin for a moment, then flashed me a thumbs-up.
“The good news first: you can create Aura even if you can’t feel mana.”
“…Is it really possible to handle Aura without feeling mana?”
“It is. When you clearly picture the shape and the intent of the Aura you want, the necessary amount of mana automatically leaves your body and takes form.”
She added gestures as she explained.
“Think of it like molten metal automatically pouring into a mold.”
“…….”
Finally, some news I liked.
According to that, any medical tool whose structure I knew perfectly could be manifested with Aura. Syringes, hemostats, surgical scissors, needle holders, suture thread, scalpels… the list went on just from what I could think of right now.
If I can use all of those… there’s no reason not to learn it.
“However… actually manifesting Aura is insanely hard.”
“…….”
“To bring it out, you have to perfectly calculate every detail of the shape you’re creating. And the thing that makes Aura appear is pure will.”
“…….”
“Something clear like ‘I’ll cut down the enemy!’—only when the will is that definite does mana start to move. That’s why, if you searched the whole Empire, people who can use Aura are far rarer than mages.”
…It was all theoretical talk with no real tips.
Anyway, the core point was that I had to design exactly what I was making and how it would act, crystal-clear inside my head.
I’ll have to try it to know.
I asked the teacher whether I might already be able to use Aura right now.
“If you’re a genius, sure. I poured thirty percent of my own mana into you, so you won’t run short for Aura. Want to try once?”
She added that the Commander of the Imperial Knights would know far more about handling Aura than she did, so she’d go fetch him while I practiced, then left the room.
Earlier the Chancellor had said to call him anytime if needed, so she was going to get him.
Left alone, I sat still for a while and sank into thought.
What should I make?
The simplest thing whose structure I understood completely. The tool I had held more times than I could count, the one that felt most familiar and most missed ever since I arrived in this world.
I drew a short breath and quietly closed my eyes.
Scalpel.
I began constructing the mold inside my mind.
The fine texture of the hard, cold metal handle. The unique balance of weight that settled perfectly into the palm. The exact length, thickness, and angle of the thin, razor-sharp blade at the end.
I summoned every memory of gripping that instrument tens of thousands of times and parting skin with it, painting the image as vividly as I could.
While I was wringing my brain dry with that imagination for what felt like a long time—
Ssshk—
A strange shape and weight settled into my empty hand.
“…….”
My eyes snapped open.
My gaze shot straight to the place where the weight had appeared.
In my right hand rested a single scalpel, flickering with translucent blue light.
This actually works?
It could just be a pretty illusion. Half-doubting, I brought the blue blade to the thumbnail of my left hand, relaxed my grip, and drew it across.
Ssshk—
A faint scraping sound. At the same time a clean white scratch was carved into the hard nail.
“…It works.”
She’d said Aura wouldn’t form without will. So why had it appeared when I simply pictured a scalpel without any special resolve?
That question was still floating in my head while I turned the long-missed instrument this way and that—when
“……?!”
I sensed someone and looked toward the door.
The teacher and the Chancellor of the Imperial Knights were standing side by side, eyes wide, staring at me.
“…You were a genius…?”
The fact that Jian had manifested Aura spread through every corner of the Grand Ducal household.
It reached the ears of the Emperor, who was still remaining in the North, and those of Grand Duke Rudiger as well.
It reached the ears of fellow butlers and maids.
And…
“The butler used Aura…”
It also reached the ears of Selene, who had longed for Aura manifestation more than anyone.
When the news reached her, a hollow feeling washed over Selene’s chest.
Do I just have no talent?
Her father Rudiger had manifested Aura even younger than her own twelve years. Yet she…
The moment her thoughts reached that point, a dull ache settled in her chest.
Just as the gloom was about to swallow her, Selene raised a different question instead.
Maybe… there really is a special way to make Aura appear easily?
So she decided: she would go find Jian and ask him how he had done it.
But barging in and immediately demanding the secret would be rude. She had received so much one-sided kindness from him already. Before asking, she ought to give him something first.
…Does he like snacks?
While she fretted over what to bring, her gaze drifted to one side of her room.
There sat her favorite treat—dried fruit that had arrived from the capital of the Empire.
I’ll share that with him, say thank you for everything so far…
Then, riding that mood, she’d naturally ask about Aura as well.
Selene walked toward the basket of dried fruit and carefully firmed her resolve. At the same time a small excitement fluttered inside her.
Because… Selene had never had a friend. Not even one.
She had never once chatted with someone her own age. Preparing to meet Jian like this was itself a brand-new, enjoyable experience.
The North, for all its fame, was an utterly isolated region.
Several days had passed since I manifested Aura.
And I had successfully pulled off a reverse-reverse life turnaround.
“This is it.”
I could now create syringes or scalpels out of Aura so that patients would never be infected by medical instruments.
A doctor who used an Aura Sword as a scalpel. Didn’t that sound cool just hearing it?
Of course, that alone wasn’t the whole reverse-reverse…
Too much of a mouthful. Let’s just call it a life turnaround.
Anyway, that wasn’t the only reason I’d succeeded in turning my life around.
“They actually built an infirmary in the Annex!”
Besides my own room, I now had an additional space dedicated solely to me inside the Annex.
You might ask why an infirmary made me so happy. Because once it was established, I no longer had to do any more odd jobs.
From now on my only duty as a butler was to help sick servants in the infirmary.
Compared to everyone else I was basically coasting on easy mode—how was that not a life turnaround?
Apparently the Emperor himself had suggested to the Grand Duke that they build the infirmary first…
Truly a wise ruler.
There was a reason he was the Emperor.
While I was examining the medical tools piled in one corner of the infirmary—
Knock knock—
My first visitor arrived.
Creak—
The door opened to reveal Selene, whose black hair made her look just like the Grand Duke.
“Are you unwell somewhere, my lady?”
Hmm. Selene got sick pretty often. Was she one of those kids who treated the hospital like a playground?
I stared at her with that question in mind. She began fumbling something out of a small pouch.
“……?”
When I looked at her curiously, Selene opened her mouth with hesitation.
“I didn’t come because I’m sick. I just… wanted to thank you for helping me before.”
What she awkwardly held out was a piece of dried fruit.
My mood lifted considerably. Proper noble etiquette after all. Coming all the way here, even belatedly, to express her gratitude was really admirable.
But while accepting it, the shape of the fruit she was offering…
…Dried persimmon?
Anyone could see it was a dried persimmon.
A slight sense of confusion hit me, but it had been so long since I’d tasted anything sweet that I accepted it politely and chewed it with enjoyment.
After I’d eaten about three of them, the atmosphere in the infirmary gradually turned awkward.
Given the master-and-servant relationship, silence inevitably brought awkwardness. I was about to offer her a tour of the infirmary just to lighten the mood when—
“Um… I heard you manifested Aura.”
Selene’s lips moved.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
I answered immediately.
“Then… was there something important for manifesting Aura? Or some kind of feeling you had when it appeared… anything like that…?”
Ah.
Our young lady was asking me for tips on Aura manifestation.
Sorry, kid, but there’s nothing like that.
Really. I had simply drawn a scalpel from the bone structure outward inside my head, and it had popped into existence. No grand enlightenment involved.
But sending her home empty-handed after she’d come all the way to the Annex would look terrible.
The dried persimmons were probably a bribe so she could ask this, anyway.
So I decided to at least tell her the method I had used.
“Hmm… in my opinion, the most important thing is to picture exactly what you’re going to create, with absolute clarity.”
“…What you’re going to create?”
“Yes. Please try picturing the sword you normally handle, my lady.”
At my words Selene closed her eyes and concentrated, then soon gave a small nod.
“…I pictured it.”
.
.
.
A long time passed, yet nothing appeared in Selene’s hands.
She claimed she had imagined the length of the blade, its sharpness, the center of gravity and weight, the grip of the hilt—everything—and still failed.
If it isn’t a problem of form, then only one thing remains.
What the Magic Tower teacher had said: the will that makes Aura appear seemed to be the issue.
“May I ask what thought you held while picturing the sword just now?”
“…I thought about cutting down the enemy.”
Hmm.
That was probably the problem.
There was no enemy right in front of her; how could a clear will to cut someone down form so easily?
Besides, a person like Selene simply didn’t match the bloody purpose of slashing someone to death.
Rather…
“My lady, what if you tried changing your thought a little?”
“…How?”
“Please attempt it again with the will to protect the North with an Aura Sword.”
At my suggestion Selene obediently nodded. Once more she closed her eyes and focused her mind—this time filling it not with the desire to kill an enemy, but with the firm resolve to protect the North.
A short while later—
“…Huh?”
A startled gasp slipped from Selene’s lips.
I, too, had no choice but to widen my eyes.
Above Selene’s empty palm, translucent Aura had manifested and taken the shape of a sword.
“…….”
Whew…
Maybe I should open an Aura academy instead of a hospital.
That thought brushed through my mind for a moment.