Vivian's Craving and the Mana Curse
Vivian's condition had improved noticeably compared to when I first brought her here.
But her behavior hadn't changed much at all.
When I got back to the dorm, there she was, always perched on that stiff wooden chair, fiddling with Thousand Changes.
I figured it must be uncomfortable, so I brought her a comfier chair, but she didn't even glance at it. She was stubborn about that one.
Even when I talked to her, she barely reacted, so I had no clue what was going through her head.
Whatever.
As long as she was getting by okay, that was enough.
Personally, though, I wanted to learn a ton about Vivian.
Not her past or anything—just what she liked, what she wanted to do going forward. Stuff about her future.
I couldn't say why.
Maybe it was that manga I read ages ago, the one where a sleazy-looking merchant buys an elf slave and treats her right. It left a real impression.
It's every guy's romantic fantasy to pull that off once, right?
Lying on the bed messing with my smartwatch, I caught Vivian in the corner of my eye.
She was still sitting in her dedicated chair in the corner of the room.
She could relax a bit more...
I walked over to Vivian and scooped her up into my arms.
She leaned into me naturally, without any resistance—like that time she kicked and flailed was just an outlier.
I waited for her to relax, then snatched the Thousand Changes from her hand the moment she did.
Has this thing gotten a little bigger?
If I just asked her to hand it over, she'd pretend not to hear.
But if I took it like this, she reacted right away.
"Ah..."
Just like that.
The weird part came next.
If she had Thousand Changes in her hand, she'd stare at it intently.
But if I slipped it onto the back of my hand, for some reason she'd rest her head against my chest instead of the hand where it went.
What's so special about this spot? I groped around, but felt nothing.
"Something here?"
"..."
No response, even when I asked straight up.
She was totally faking not hearing me.
"No answer, and I won't give it back."
"It's... there..."
Shake Thousand Changes while saying it, and she'd answer like that.
"What's there?"
"Warm... and sparkly... and relaxing..."
Still made no sense to me.
Then I remembered why I'd taken Thousand Changes from her in the first place.
I settled her on my lap and gripped Thousand Changes with both hands.
This feels... promising.
I grabbed both ends and pulled hard.
"Whoa..."
The stretching Thousand Changes split cleanly in two.
So it could divide, huh.
Think "stick back together," and it did.
Didn't even need to pull—just will it to split, and it split.
So it wasn't just changing shape.
I handed one half back to Vivian, and she cradled it preciously in both hands.
I pressed the remaining piece to the back of my hand, and it seeped in naturally, forming a pattern there.
The pattern merged with a faint magic circle, stirring a thrill in any guy's heart.
Felt like I was the protagonist in some shonen manga.
"How's it now?"
Vivian pondered my question, then rested her head against my chest.
So the entrance was the pattern on my hand, but once inside, it went to my chest?
New discovery.
No idea what to do with that info yet.
Concentrating, I could still see the mana squeezing Vivian's body.
Though it felt like the amount had decreased a bit compared to before.
But the mana still radiated from her heart, spreading through her whole body.
Way beyond what I could fix.
I stroked Vivian as she toyed with the shrunken Thousand Changes, wrapping up the long day.
Actively avoiding someone is harder than you'd think.
When someone said that, I kinda got the feeling.
Of course—it's right in front of you; ignoring it ain't easy.
But nope.
Doing it myself, it wasn't just "not easy"—it was brutally tough.
"Ah..."
"..."
First encounter was at the fork where the boys' and girls' dorms split.
Lee Ji-ah was sitting on the bench there, like she'd been waiting for me.
Come to think of it, we'd synced our schedules to walk together as much as possible.
This was awkward as hell.
Uh... what now?
"Um..."
Her expression was dark.
But that alone didn't tell me what she was feeling.
The second she moved to speak, lips parting, I bolted.
I put some distance between us and slipped into the Basic Magic Theory classroom.
I wasn't even that early, but the number of cadets already seated was noticeably low.
Something happen during yesterday's class?
I deliberately sat in a front-row seat, a bit away from my usual spot, and felt stares drilling into the back of my head.
Don't look back.
Can't look.
This was crucial for my future.
For deciding exactly how to use my abilities.
I ignored the stares as best I could until Instructor Nephrian entered.
"As mentioned yesterday, this week will focus on exercises to sense mana. Cadets who can already sense it should start attending from next week. Feel free to ask any questions anytime. Now, let's head to the practice room."
Guess that announcement went out after my thing with Lee Ji-ah yesterday.
No wonder there were so few people.
Since they admitted talented twenty-year-olds, most could sense mana by default.
The ones left were probably here for the theory lessons.
I could sense mana too, so I started to leave—then remembered what he'd said.
Questions welcome, right?
Perfect timing; I wanted to know more about Vivian's condition.
"Instructor, mind if I ask something?"
"Of course, anytime. Shall we go somewhere more comfortable to talk?"
"Yes, Instructor."
I left the classroom with Instructor Nephrian.
The whole way out, I felt someone's gaze on me.
Instructor Nephrian and I sat in a café.
Class time, but still first week, so it was busier than expected.
"So, what's your question?"
"Ah, this isn't about me—it's someone I know..."
I laid out a polite smokescreen, then described Vivian's condition.
Mana bursting out from the heart.
Bundled mana squeezing the whole body.
After a while, the mana dissipates, the body recovers... only for new mana from the heart to squeeze it again, looping endlessly.
Instructor Nephrian listened gravely, then spoke.
"Hmm... tricky. The cause seems rooted in the heart. You're certain mana is coming from the heart?"
"Yes. I've checked multiple times."
"Then, someone likely applied magical tampering to their heart. Without addressing that, it'll persist forever."
"Any way to fix it?"
He pondered my question.
The longer he thought, the more tense I got—it seemed hard to solve.
Finally, after what felt like ages, he spoke.
"Two possibilities: A spell cast to make mana leak from the heart, or magic engraved directly into the heart. Solution depends on which."
Someone cast a spell.
Magic engraved in the heart.
What's the difference?
"Simply put, whether the magic caused a permanent change. If it's just the spell's effect making mana leak, dispelling it cures the symptom. But if engraved, it's a permanent alteration to the heart itself. To dispel engraved magic on a body part, you'd remove or replace it—which is impossible for the heart."
He took a breath, then continued.
"First step for the cadet: Find a mage or artifact that can dispel spells and test if it works. If the issue recurs after dispelling, assume engraving. Then, periodic dispels would allow normal life—but it'd need constant maintenance."
Vivian was a failed test subject.
Not spelled, not engraved—they probably swapped out her heart entirely.
Despair.
No, there had to be something.
My abilities weren't limited to this.
Something more versatile... undiscovered... it was there.
I'd experienced it but hadn't realized.
I sank deep into thought.
Reading my face, Instructor Nephrian stood first.
"I hope it resolves well. Ask anytime for more."
"Thank you, Instructor."
Even after he left, I lingered in the café for a long while.
My head was a mess.
Even meeting Latynia at the cadet cafeteria, my mind hadn't settled.
Worrying over Vivian had pushed my thoughts to a new level.
Weird, right? Why was I so hung up on Vivian?
Too high difficulty to recreate that elf slave manga.
A fairy-tale ending where she just lives happily? Impossible.
Manga isn't reality.
Sensing my turmoil, Latynia fidgeted too.
Never thought I'd worry someone unrelated.
This wasn't right.
I spoke to Latynia, who'd been watching me carefully.
"Why?"
Sharper than intended.
She picked up on it, eyeing me more warily.
"Ah... sorry. Got some complicated stuff on my mind."
"I see. No wonder you seemed different from yesterday. I was worried."
Worried? Felt more like gauging my mood...
Anyway, dragging innocents into my stress wasn't my style.
Brush it off with a joke.
"Actually, I've been stressing over you, Lady Latynia. How to fix that sense of direction of yours..."
Mid-joke to Latynia, I had to stop.
Lee Ji-ah stood frozen before me, holding the same meal as mine.