Gleipnir, the Mana-Eater
We siblings—well, former siblings—gave up on our little revenge shopping spree at the department store and plopped down amiably in front of the TV. According to sis, we had to keep waiting in the hotel until the guild master showed up.
"Sis, you really don't suit the screen..... You look like you're about to gobble up a whole person any second now."
"Are you trying to butter me up by saying I look pretty now?"
Is that how you interpreted it? At least the first part was meant to say you look way better in person than on screen… The truth was, sis's appearance on TV was downright terrifying—enough to make my legs go weak. The news had apparently decided to make today an all-sis special, cutting in clips of her battling inside dungeons and gates like some kind of highlight reel. That expression screaming nothing in this world pleases me, paired with the red glow in her eyes—it was pure berserker vibes.
I'd heard a bit about her unique magic, but damn, she really charged in bare-handed without a scratch on her. Reminded me of those barbarian tribes up north in Triia… Except even they at least held weapons. Our sis? Nada.
"But sis, don't you use any weapons? It's been nothing but bare-handed fight scenes so far."
"I used to, but they couldn't hold up."
"What…? Even with Mana Coating?"
"Mana Coating? What's that?"
"Oh, they call it something else here? It's the technique where you wrap your mana around a body part or weapon."
"Ah, you mean Reinforcement. I can do it over my whole body, but weapons are a no-go. I saw some analysis the Management Bureau did on me without asking—apparently, my Super Regeneration keeps the mana stuck to my body, something like that."
Hmm… So her unique magic is always active, leaving no spare mana to push outside? She can coat her body, so it's not like her mana reserves are low… Her fighting style really does match those northern barbarians.
That thought sparked a memory of a certain curious relic I'd snagged up north. My lips started curling up into a smirk without me even realizing it.
"Sis, want me to give you something nice?"
"?"
"Hold on a sec."
I didn't even wait for her reply before activating my space magic, shoving my hand into the rift that tore open in the air. At that moment, sis's red eyes went wide.
"…?! You can use Inventory?"
"Ugh… That's what they call it here? Total gamer trash…"
Inventory, my ass. After rummaging around for a bit, I grabbed what I wanted and yanked it out. A long, red cloth emerged through the rift. I handed it to sis, and she took it without suspicion, giving me a look that said, 'What's this thing you're giving me?'
"Hold onto that and try wrapping your mana around your body. Something fun will happen."
"…What even is this?"
"Sis has no sense… Don't you know 'surprise'?"
"…"
Now she looked suspicious, furrowing her brow, but she started channeling a bit of mana anyway.
Whoosh—!
In an instant, the red cloth whipped around her right arm like a serpent.
"Hey!! Yu I-kwon…!! What the hell is this…?!!"
Panicking, sis tried to unwind the cloth from her arm, but it only tightened more, gathering at her wrist until it formed a slim red bracelet. Once it stopped moving, she inspected it from every angle, then shot me a death glare once she seemed reassured.
"What is this thing you gave me?"
"Beats me, what could it be? Weird, huh?"
"You little…!!"
"J-Joke! Joke! It's not weird, don't misunderstand!"
Her fist clenched so hard the veins bulged—I straight-up freaked! But honestly, this was my first time seeing it actually equipped on someone, so I was curious too.
"I beat the chief of some northern tribe way back and took—er, received as a gift—this sacred relic called Gleipnir."
"Sacred relic? It's not some artifact someone made…? If this is anything sketchy…!"
"No no, it's a real treasure steeped in one tribe's history!"
"And you stole it from them?"
"What? It was a legit bet I won fair and square!"
Before the war with the gods, Nihilum had sent me north as its rep to recruit mercenaries in response to a support request. Those guys, forged in that harsh environment, were already perfect warriors—flawless hires. The tribe I met was the White Wolf Tribe, the largest and strongest in the north.
Their one condition for joining our united front? 'Prove your strength.' No matter how much we needed their help, they wouldn't risk their lives for someone they didn't respect. Nihilum knew this in advance, which is why they sent me.
My opponent was the chief's son, and I won, obviously. But I stood out too much, so I ended up fighting the chief too. We made it a bonus bet between us. That's when the chief crossed the line—he said if he won, I'd be his fourth wife. Something about liking strong women… I snapped and countered, 'If I win, hand over that sacred relic your tribe brags about.' He refused at first, but when I hit him with the 'You scared?', we got right to it.
I won, and even though he whined it was their tribe's one and only relic, I took it anyway. See? I did nothing wrong.
Back in that world, guys were always buzzing around me like flies—such a pain…
"Anyway, I won the bet, and they tried to welch, so I took it by force."
After I wrapped up my epic tale, sis leaned back on the sofa, arms crossed, staring at me like I was the biggest idiot alive. She let out a sigh that could have sunk the earth. Naturally, I was on my knees by then.
"Fine… Whatever, that's secondary. So why'd you give this to me?"
"I figured it'd suit you. In my world, we called things like that Mana-Eaters—living artifacts that absorb the user's mana to activate their powers."
"Living?"
"Yeah, I've never used it myself, but… Wanna try focusing your intent on it?"
I pointed at the Gleipnir on her wrist. Sis frowned, fiddling with the red bracelet. As she concentrated, it unraveled like a ball of yarn, slithering alive before wrapping her hand in a half-glove form. Amazed, she clenched and unclenched her fist. It unwound again, shifting into a dagger gripped in her hand. She examined it like a kid with a shiny new toy.
"Neat. It even does Reinforcement…"
"Of course. It's feeding off your mana. Legend says it was originally used as manacles, so its durability is top-notch."
"Hmm~ I wonder how far it can stretch?"
"Who knows? Probably depends on you."
Shwick—!
The moment I finished speaking, the red cloth shot out and wrapped around me.
"Hngaaah!!"
What am I, a training dummy?! Zero hesitation—she tested it right on me!
The texture was weirdly rough yet soft, like a cat's tongue. I kept making gross noises, and the cloth squeezing me finally loosened up.
"Oh! For real?"
"…Sis, you into this kinda thing?"
"What? I was just testing if you were right. But it's wild. Feels like my arm got longer."
I nearly ended up with a waist slimmer than an ant's. Still, sis seemed to love my gift, flashing a decadent smile that suited her perfectly. Good thing she liked it.
But sis, did you know? It's permanently bound—once it recognizes your mana, it won't come off. I just remembered that now, so nope. Way worse than yesterday's humiliation revenge. Plus, as a bracelet, it's not even inconvenient, right?
I said nothing, just watched her play with her new toy like a happy kid, smirking wickedly to myself.
A fierce northern wind howled across a towering mountain peak. A place so extreme that not even locals born and bred in the north dared climb it, let alone outsiders. Two black silhouettes ascended it anyway. They were apprentice witches from Nihilum.
"Milpieu! Isn't that thing broken?! How much farther do we have to go?!"
The purple-haired woman, shivering violently with her hands tucked under her armpits, snapped irritably at her companion. Tales, from the Witch Academy's Magic Seal Division. Even with anti-cold spells, she was suffering.
The north wind carried the resentment of ice spirits—a realm of spirit arts over pure magic. If she'd learned spirit arts, she wouldn't be freezing like this.
Her blue-haired partner trudged ahead silently, smacking the detector in her hand. Milpieu, from the same academy's Magic Engineering Division. Frustrated that her gadget wasn't cooperating, her usual blank expression creased into a frown.
"Hmm… Power source is fine… But the cold's messing with the circuits…"
"I'm gonna freeze to death! Fix it quick!!"
"Tales, rushing won't help. Hmm… I'm getting tired too… Didn't wanna risk breaking it, but this is an emergency, right?"
Milpieu popped open the detector's lid and poured mana straight into the mana stone battery. Gray smoke puffed out with a sputter. Tales stomped the ground in outrage.
"What?! If there was a way like that, you should've done it from the start!!"
"It's forcing overload to break through the contracted circuits from the cold—it'll break soon. Anyway!"
"Whatever! Let's hurry. Once this is done, I'll never come north again!"
They pressed on through the blizzard, following the signal. The beeps grew closer until they didn't need the detector anymore. Tales, who'd been whining about the cold the whole way, shifted gears.
"…Milpieu, you feel it too?"
"Yeah, nearby."
"Report to the other search teams first: we've found the Magic Spear."
A wavelength of ultra-dense mana, distinct from normal flows. They were certain their target was close.
Cold. My body, numb to chill, still shuddered… This wasn't physical cold. It was the ache of separation from the one I must always stay with.
I had to find her right now. But… 'So sleepy.'
All my stored mana was spent; I had no strength left. At least this place had no sun or humans—perfect for replenishing.
'Why am I here?'
My last memory was…
—————!!
A woman's voice echoed from somewhere.
'Rose?'
Even in my hazy mind, her name rang clear. So sleepy, but I wanted to greet her.
"Milpieu!! Found it!"
'Not Rose…'
Disappointment drained me further. My consciousness began to fade.