Ever since Aimi's update let her measure mana like it was just another data column, Ethan stopped pretending to be normal.
The basement of Vale Manor used to be a storage room. Now it was a battlefield of inventions. Copper wires hung from beams like jungle vines. Luminous pearls glowed in cups. Three different screwdrivers argued for dominance on a stained workbench. The place smelled like oil, hot metal, and the exact moment before something pops.
"Mana quantification complete," Aimi announced, calm and far too cheerful. "You may want to sit."
"I'm young and powerful," Ethan said, waving a hand. "Show me."
Blue panels slid into his vision like smug sheets of light.
Designation: Servant A, Vale Estate
Affiliation: House Vale
Strength: 1.20
Agility: 1.04
Constitution: 1.63
Perception: 0.97
Intelligence: 1.06
Mana: 1.00
Luck: Variable not in database
Magic Element: Wood (from observation)
He flicked through more names. Guards, maids, the cook, even Old Mint-Breath the gardener. Everyone had mana. Different amounts, same basic presence, like a small generator humming inside a rib cage.
"Interesting," Ethan murmured.
Footsteps thumped on the stairs. A maid stuck her head in, then her whole body, hands on hips.
"Young Master, the kitchen says if you are summoning spirits again, please use the east ventilation. Last time the soup tasted like metal."
"I am not summoning spirits," Ethan said. "I am doing science. Leave the snacks by the door."
She squinted at the hovering blue screens. "So you are not talking with ghosts."
"Definitely not," he said.
"Good," she said. She lifted a tray and promptly nicked her palm on the bent metal edge. "Ow."
Ethan flinched, then froze. The cut closed by itself. Not slowly. Not with effort. The skin pulled together and sealed as if someone had pressed an undo button.
The maid blinked and wiped her hand on her apron. "Happens every week." She set down a plate of biscuits and left like this was nothing.
Ethan stared at Aimi. Aimi stared back.
"External validation," she said. "Mana as biological maintenance."
Ethan's brain clicked several layers deeper.
He sent the scan toward the stables and gardens, hungry for wider patterns. The numbers flatlined.
Animals: Mana 0.00
Plants: Mana 0.00
He sucked in a breath. "So humans only. It is like we were made for it."
"Host," Aimi said quietly, "if humans alone possess mana, it suggests intentional design."
Ethan pinched the bridge of his nose. "I did not need existential dread before lunch."
"Logging dread," Aimi said. "Severity mild."
He scrolled again until his own profile formed.
Designation: Ethan Vale
Current Status: ACTIVE - System Unlocked: 28%
Strength: 89/100 (adult)
Agility: 92/100 (adult)
Constitution: 97/100 (adult)
Perception: 102/100 (adult) = 1.02 (above average for an untrained adult)
Intelligence: 67/100 (adult)
Mana: 125/100 (adult) = 1.25 (above average for an untrained adult)
Luck:Luck variable not available in data base
Cortical Strain: 8% (LOW)
[SYSTEM TASKS]
Mission 14: Practice Vale sword-technique
Timeline: None
Reward: System unlocks knowledge of advanced programming
Penalty for failure: none
"I have mana too," he muttered. "More than average. Still cannot use it."
"Because you do not believe you can," Aimi said.
"I believe in physics."
"Here, physics is rude and invites magic to dinner, Host."
Ethan chewed that, then looked at the hum of tools around him. Tiny pulses in human tissue. Self-repair. Energy moving like charge. If raw mana is a reservoir, then you need a device to convert it into work.
"A converter," he whispered. "A mana-electric bridge."
Aimi threw up a schematic, his own midnight scribble converted into clean lines. "Proposed: copper–zinc core for charge separation. Biomass layer for heat. Luminous pearl as mana attractor. Feedback loop links pearl to core."
"A resonance cell," Ethan said, smiling. "Mana feeds current. Current excites mana. Stable oscillation."
"Or mana explosion," Aimi said. "Possibly both."
Ethan reached for a wire, misjudged, and crossed two contacts. There was a sharp pop, a white spark, and the smart part of his hair stood up in a heroic crown.
"Ow," he said, patting at invisible flames.
"Mini-failure noted," Aimi said. "No permanent damage. Eyebrow density reduced three percent."
"Do not quantify eyebrow density."
"Too late."
"Spacing matters," Aimi said. "If the plates are not separated by precisely 4.78 nanometers, thermal runaway is likely."
"That is small."
"That is the point."
He adjusted a plate with tweezers and a prayer.
"Stop touching," Aimi warned. "Calculations in progress."
"Fine," he said, stepping back. "Go faster."
"I could, but your brain will be exhausted"
He blew out a long breath. "Noted."
...….
...…
Vale Manor: Study of Duke Arione
The study smelled of sandalwood and old ink. Heavy curtains swallowed the moonlight, and the only glow came from a small blue flame hovering over Duke Arione Vale's desk. Papers were spread everywhere, patrol reports, mana readings, hastily scribbled sketches. And right in the center lay a drawing of a very confused chicken with crystal-tipped feathers.
Lyra Dareth Vale stood by the window, smoothing her gown after the "friendly" sparring session with Arione that had nearly broken a chair. Or three desks.
"So it's confirmed," she said, voice low. "Our youngest actually did it."
Arione picked up the chicken drawing, Genesis, as the boys named it. He leaned back and exhaled, a mix of pride and dread in the sound.
"Our little doom-bringer changed life as we know it. Took a barn chicken and turned it into… a magical beast."
Lyra's eyes sharpened. "That isn't reassuring. You know exactly what this means."
"I do," he replied. His tone dropped. "A creature born from mana manipulation. That kind of discovery draws attention no one sane wants."
Lyra crossed her arms, nails tapping lightly. "We've kept it contained. But secrets have legs. They run when we're not watching."
Arione nodded slowly. "The manor's defenses are strong. But not absolute. If this leaks… vultures will circle."
He glanced toward the window, as if expecting spies to drop from the roof.
Both of them knew who would come first:
Scholars hungry for breakthroughs.
Nobles hungry for power.
And worse, those who saw children as tools.
Arione's jaw tightened. "No one touches our sons."
"Of course not," Lyra agreed. "But we can't turn this place into a war zone. There are families living under our roof. If we fight at full power… the manor won't survive US."
Arione opened his mouth to protest, then shut it. She was right. He hated that she was right.
Lyra sighed, though her expression softened. "And you've already broken enough chairs."
"It offended my eyes."
Despite herself, she smiled.
"At least Guision isn't here," she said. "That boy plus your temper equals disaster. And you still let him train under that man."
"Sir Garon is the best Storm Swordsman I know. His disciples become legends."
Lyra pinched the bridge of her nose. "He once shouted, 'No woman will ever touch my heart, for my sword shall pierce immortals instead!' while shirtless on a palace balcony."
Arione chuckled,"He was drunk."
"He's always drunk."
"Still the best."
"You call that parenting?"
But the amusement faded quickly. Her gaze dropped back to the reports.
"That leaves Ethan and Kael."
Arione's hand tightened on the chair. "Kael improves every day… but Ethan gathers trouble like a magnet. If anyone learns what he's done… they'll come for him."
Lyra stepped forward. Calm. Deadly calm. "Then we make sure they never reach him."
A soft knock interrupted the rising tension.
Safrena, the head maid, slipped in and bowed. "My lord, my lady. Sir Charles of Solaris has arrived. Unannounced."
Arione stiffened. "Charles? The Empress's right hand?"
"Yes, my lord. He is in the main hall. Butler Hans is… entertaining him."
Arione rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Did you give him wine?"
Safrena nodded. "Not the good one, as instructed."
Lyra blinked. "You planned this."
"If Charles is here for politics," Arione said with a wicked grin, "Hans's deadpan hospitality will guarantee he reconsiders."
Lyra shook her head. "You truly are a vile man."
Arione brushed off his coat and started toward the door.
...…
Ethan hadn't moved from his chair for hours. His back ached, and his legs had gone numb, but he barely noticed.
Aimi's voice broke the silence. "I've completed the primary design sequence. Now calculating the ideal distance between the circuits."
"How close are we talking?" Ethan asked, leaning forward.
"The margin of error must not exceed 4.78 nanometer," Aimi said. "The luminous pearl acts as the mana attractor. The copper-zinc core provides charge separation. The biomass layer must heat evenly for sustained resonance."
Ethan nodded. "So the pig fat burns, the heat excites the runic plate, and that agitates the pearl, creating the mana draw. The rest follows naturally."
"Correct. But your thermal distribution is unstable. I am recalculating spacing to prevent a meltdown."
Ethan rubbed his eyes and smiled faintly. "Take your time. I'd rather not lose a hand today."
"Estimated completion in twelve minutes and thirty-six seconds," Aimi said. "Running at low processing speed to avoid mental strain."
"Good," he murmured, leaning back. "Plenty of time to…"
He stopped. Something in the air shifted.
The candlelight flickered out of rhythm. The faint chirping of crickets stops.
"Hmmm… what was that?"
"Foreign mana signature detected," Aimi said sharply.
Ethan sat up straight. "What?"
"Normal individuals would not notice. Humans filter out low-priority sound. But I do not. The northern side of the estate has gone silent."
Ethan frowned. "Silent?"
"Completely. The fluctuation is minimal but unusual. The mana field is approximately one hundred and fifty meters wide. It covers the northern section of the estate."
"That's where the horse stables are," Ethan muttered. "Some horse thieves?"
"Most probable, host," Aimi replied.
"Any life signs? Heat traces?"
"Negative. The sound suppression is magical in nature."
Ethan was already on his feet. He grabbed his backpack, stuffed in a few tools, some copper wire, the half-finished mana-electric cell, and a small pouch of luminous dust.
"Ethan," Aimi said. "You are moving toward the anomaly."
"Of course I am. I can handle a few thieves. The new Magitech Energy Core mk.I will be ready by the time we get there. Perfect chance for a field test."
"I will complete the calculations in twelve minutes and thirty-six seconds. Should I accelerate?"
"Not if it drains me again," he said, fastening the straps. "Keep it steady. I'll need my head clear."
"Understood."
He took one last breath and stepped out of the workshop. The air outside felt heavier, thick with something unseen.
Behind him, Aimi's voice whispered in his mind. "Processing. Ten minutes remaining."
Ethan adjusted his pack and headed for the north wing, smiling to himself.
"Let's teach those horse thieves a high-voltage science lesson."