Late Wednesday, I visited the Alchemist’s Tower with Wilton Roberts after a long time.
Wilton was three times more delighted than Maelo Sanson upon hearing the story of catching the Chilopoda-Worm at the Summer Hunting Festival. He explained that it was thanks to the poison he had given me in advance that I was safe.
“Centipede or insect-type Monsters usually have b-35 type poison. Your body is already immune to the poison of five types of Worm Monsters, but prolonged exposure to the toxicity will naturally take a toll. Be careful.”
“Yes.”
“The Second Prince’s response was also excellent. You should always make it a habit to hide your skills. Killing the strong is arrogance. The brighter the light, the darker the shadow that follows. Always be humble and be ready to strike from a low position.”
“Yes.”
Indeed, those were wise words. I readily agreed without adding anything.
Wilton Roberts also explained that what I had encountered last semester was a typical type of material poison that is frequently encountered, and that I would now be dealing with non-material poisons.
“Material poisons, simply put, are poisons derived from the poisonous substances and herbs of this land. They have unique numbers from type a to d. Poisons from type e to h are non-material poisons, that is, intangible poisons.”
“Are they related to the non-material realm?”
“Yes. Do you know about Contaminated Mana?”
“…Yes. I’ve heard that it’s a byproduct of using Mana and shouldn’t remain in the body for too long.”
“Poisons made by refining Contaminated Mana are called non-material poisons. Poisons made of matter are treated by neutralizing them with antidotes, but the standard way to treat non-material poisons is by using Mana.”
“Why is that?”
“Because Contaminated Mana that has seeped into the human body usually doesn’t have a fixed shape, making it difficult to track, and symptoms vary from person to person. Even someone skilled in using Mana can’t find the exact non-material poison number. If you don’t know the poison number, you can’t find the antidote, so you can only suffer and die from the pain of your whole body burning.”
“…”
Indeed, everyone didn’t know that Bill Brown had a broken Dantian until this age. I quietly agreed. I received the poison in a familiar way. Inside a glass bottle that looked exactly like the one I received last semester, there was a seemingly ordinary liquid.
“The goal of this semester is to feel the poison completely spread through your body, and then directly guide Mana to move the Contaminated Mana to the extremities of your body. Since all of these poisons are harmful if they stay in the organs for too long, we’ll use the fingertips.”
“Gathering it all together, to the fingertips.”
“Yes, and usually you cut the fingertips with a knife to expel it from the body. Try it.”
“Yes.”
Without hesitation, I swallowed the poison.
After enduring for an hour, I tried to expel the poison using internal energy, but it wasn’t easy. The Contaminated Mana was touching unexpected Acupoints all over my body, causing my internal organs to shake and making it difficult to perform Breathing and Regulating Energy.
In the end, I took the antidote today. Wilton comforted me, saying he didn’t expect me to do it right away, but I couldn’t listen properly because I felt uncomfortable.
Thursday afternoon.
As I had been told in advance, I called Benjamin Claudian and Bill Brown to Douglas’s office for aura and Mana class. I heard at this time that both children had worked hard to take an extra class each last semester in order to take this class this semester.
I decided to teach the two children a Divine Art modified to suit Sierren. The Mind method had the same roots as the Great expansive divine skill of azure sky, but the way it was used was different. It focused on using aura but refined the excess Mana and accumulated it in the Lower Dantian, which was for people in Sierren who were already familiar with using aura.
Douglas told me to give him his wrist and check it myself.
“What do you think, Young Master Ernhardt?”
“…It’s still a small amount, but… Yes, it looks like a complete Dantian.”
“Besides me, four Sword Masters and one Advanced Sword Expert Holy Knight have succeeded in creating a Dantian. They may not use internal energy as their main focus, but… in case of emergency, being able to use cleanly Refined Mana as a last resort is a blessing.”
“Hmm.”
“Of course, Young Master Ernhardt might think it’s unnecessary since you’ve become able to use aura completely like internal energy.”
Did I unknowingly show a dissatisfied expression? I was surprised and composed myself.
“No, it’s not.”
“There was also a unique side effect.”
“…A side effect?”
“Perhaps because it’s a Mind method made to imitate Divine Power, internal energy gathers even while moving.”
“…Yes?”
I took Douglas’s Pulse Diagnosis again. Douglas Mustang readily offered his pulse so that I could check it. Indeed, it was a weak force that wasn’t even a year’s worth of internal energy yet, but he could feel the slow flow of energy himself.
He had created a Dynamic qi, an Internal energy cultivation method that allowed Energy Accumulation even while moving. A gasp escaped through my teeth.
The Great expansive divine skill of azure sky was orthodox. It was standard to sit in the Lotus Position and Circulating Qi. If one could accumulate and gather internal energy while walking, sleeping, and eating, it would show even better results in the Mana-rich Yuil Mountains. I was immediately intrigued.
“…This is, yes. Really… Me too…?”
“Yes. It has the same roots as Young Master Ernhardt’s Mind method now, and it’s designed to allow you to Circulating Qi in the most stable way possible. You’ll be able to learn it together. However, when Breathing and Regulating Energy, you’re usually drawn to the big picture, so you won’t be able to operate them at the same time.”
“That’s enough. Thank you.”
And so, the two guys who were standing next to me with blank faces, blinking their eyes, and I each received a new booklet.
It is natural to learn about Acupoints before learning the Mind method. Most of the Acupoints written in Sierren’s style and names were the same as what I knew, but there were some that were completely different because the physical characteristics of the Zhongyuan people and the Sierren people were different.
I realized once again why the research on Pressure Point Striking that I had told him about before was so difficult. I received another handful of related reports and looked through them. Most of the names of Sierren Acupoints were similar to the words used in Magic Formula.
Naturally, I, who had been steadily learning magic words, learned them easily. But Benjamin and Bill kept making whining noises all the way back to the dormitory. I soothed them, saying that there is no royal road to learning.
❖ ❖ ❖
It’s so strange.
These days, there have been many more Children who loiter around and talk to me during breaks in class, during meals, or when I’m out on the Martial arts training ground.
At first, I accepted as many as they talked to me, but after even receiving trivial notes during class, I couldn’t just let this bizarre thing go.
First, I asked Shayden to find out the reason, and the Child shrugged and explained.
“Well… you’re in your second semester of your third year now.”
“So?”
“You spent time with only the Second Prince at the New Year Festival and the Hunting Festival, so you couldn’t hang out with them. They think it’s their last chance to build a friendship. Treat them appropriately. Especially the Young Master and Young Lady of the Count and Viscount families near the Duchy of Valentia, it’s good to pay attention to them.”
“…Hmm. But it’s distracting in class.”
Shayden replied, tilting his teacup in a leisurely manner.
“Then let’s just meet for lunch. If Ivan says it’s okay, it would be good to gather about eight people and have a meal.”
“Will everyone have time?”
“They’ll make time. I’ll contact them.”
“Okay, thank you.”
For that reason, I ended up having lunch with several Children every time. It was a time reminiscent of a day at the beginning of the New Year Festival.
Besides the Children that Shayden first asked to have a meal with, other Children joined or left, helping them to show their faces appropriately. There was no harm in treating the Children well, and it made me feel good to see the chattering young ones, so I ate well.
The Children often talked about love. These days, I was the Child who thought of someone whenever I heard the two words, love. Knowing that it was a topic I was interested in, many Children told me about their dreams, meetings, and breakups about love.
I also heard in detail about the romance novels that are popular in Sierren at this time.
Daisy, who introduced herself as Jenny’s friend, boasted that she liked her name very much and opened her mouth.
“Most of the novels like ‘The Story of Countess Daisy’ were written during the Shiaren Great Reform. They somehow succeeded in securing food by squeezing the Wizards, but so many people died that the entire Empire became depressed. The Empire’s leaders chose romance novels as a means to fill the hearts of the people.”
“Hearts?”
“Yes. They persuaded people to be able to love others, to be able to live even in dramatic situations if they only had love. They gave huge subsidies to the writers of the time and made them create interesting stories, and voila. A huge number of works poured out.”
The girl smiled brightly and skewered broccoli on her fork. The other Children sitting in the seats also received the words with smiling faces.
“At that time, there were so many titles that had lost their owners that it was okay to write any name. Ruby, a commoner who fell in love with a knight, Shelly, an unwanted child who married the Grand Duke of the North in a contract, Calypse, a bastard who lives an ambitious life to gain a new title… They are all characters who were saved by love.”
“There were also group weddings twice a month.”
“That’s right. The saying that men and women in love deserve to wear good clothes, pretty dresses, and hold flowers also came from that time. Many people wanted to love in order to live happily and more joyfully, and they actually had dreamlike love.”
“People who newly received noble titles also took the names of characters from romance novels when deciding on their family names or their children’s names.”
Daisy chewed and swallowed the broccoli, then quickly showed off her name again. As if not to forget.
“When great and wonderful stories become popular, children born that year often receive the names of the novel’s protagonists.”
“That’s why I like my name. Whenever I read the story of Countess Daisy, I think that I, too, will find true love and be happy in the end, no matter what hardships I go through.”
“That’s right, after all. If I decide to give flowers and happiness to the person I love, I can overcome any pain.”
That was the explanation that Sierren Empire citizens, regardless of gender, like romance novels. Some of the Children said they wanted to give me romance novels as gifts, so I said I would gratefully accept them.
Among them were Ivan and his twin brother, Alan Holmes.
Alan said that he believed in the love that would suddenly come into his life. He said that he wanted to travel the continent, thinking that he might find his destined partner in a place other than the Academy since he hadn’t met them by the time he was a senior.
Ivan simply replied that he would be satisfied with living a peaceful and stable life, so he would continue to live diligently as he does now. He said that he could have a calm and static love with anyone he met, and that he felt like he could easily accept any kind of life.
It was on the third Saturday of August that Ivan Holmes appeared with a worried face.