When I tilted my head to look at Dominic, he opened his mouth and said, “If you can’t believe it, let’s do a test.” With those words, Dominic held out his palm upwards in front of me. A warm, starlight-like glow began to gently flow into his hand. It was a large, round cluster of white light.
“Can you see this light?”
“Yes.”
As I nodded, Dominic replied with an arrogant tone as if he had expected it. “Seeing the yellow starlight means you have mana.”
I frowned and checked the magical structure again. “Yellow?”
“Yes.”
I looked at the twinkling cluster of pure white light in front of me and tilted my head in confusion. “No, it looks white to me.”
Dominic tilted his head in puzzlement. “Not yellow?”
“No, white? Like the color of a wedding dress.”
The light sphere in front of my eyes was clearly white.
Hearing this, Dominic murmured quietly, “You…”
“Yes?”
“It seems you have pure mana in your body.”
“Pure mana? There are types of mana?”
I was a novice in magic, so I could only perk up my ears to what Dominic was saying.
“To an ordinary person with mana, that is, someone who uses mana for magic, this light appears yellow. But to you, it appears white.”
“Yes.”
“It means that your ability is a power that can’t be detected by a standard mana test.”
If it can’t be detected normally…
‘Does that mean I have a special power?’
I tilted my head, looking at the white sphere that was still bouncing in Dominic’s hand.
‘How can I, who is supposed to be cursed, possess pure mana?’
Dominic looked at me with curiosity as he continued to explain.
“Someone with pure mana doesn’t just have the qualities to become a magician.”
“Then?”
“It means there’s a possibility you could become an alchemist.”
My mind was filled with question marks. And for good reason, as I was at a turning point in my life.
What is pure mana, and what does it have to do with becoming an alchemist?
Dominic patiently explained like a teacher.
“Both magic and alchemy are studies that use mana. However, the type of mana they use is different.”
“How is it different?”
“As you know, each magician has their own element. Water, earth, light, wood, metal. Every magician chooses one of these five elements.”
He continued.
“While every magician has a different element, the way they use mana is similar. They draw mana from nature close to their hearts before using it. That’s why the mana magicians use is also called ‘natural mana’.”
“Oh, isn’t that strange?”
“The wizard says so.”
I decided to ask directly about the main topic.
“So what about alchemists?”
“Alchemists in this world do not use natural mana. They craft things using mana that comes from the source of human life.”
“The source of life…”
That sentence feels unsettling.
“Surely using up all that mana doesn’t deplete one’s life force, does it?”
As I asked with a suspicious look, Dominic shook his head.
“Probably not? The mana used by alchemists is usually referred to as ‘pure mana’, and unless one is quite skilled, they won’t be able to detect its presence.”
“So that’s why the academy’s simple tests couldn’t detect it?”
“Most likely. After all, there are very few who actually know about alchemy. Except for a great hero like me.”
So, I had the potential to become an alchemist! It wasn’t some cursed lineage after all!
With a pleased smile, I crossed my arms and looked at Dominic.
Dominic cleared his throat and responded with a sincere tone.
“There’s no way I could have misjudged someone else’s abilities. You can take pride in yourself.”
Dominic had seen all kinds of talented individuals. The chance of him misjudging the mana within me was virtually zero.
“No way, to think that Meldenik, the bottom of bottoms, had a hidden talent.”
I looked at Dominic with sparkling eyes.
“I’ve heard of alchemists. They appear in the original work too!”
Alchemists were those who could create something out of nothing.
“Of course, a novice alchemist can’t immediately produce bundles of gold.”
Speaking of which, there was a side story in the original work where Lennox gains the talent for alchemy at the end.
Unfortunately, Lennox was a munchkin who only picked the good things.
But now it’s okay. Since they say I also have the talent for alchemy!
The thought that a windfall wasn’t far off made my heart pound and race.
“Since I have mana, all I need to do is learn about alchemy!”
Now it was time to take a closer look at the abilities I possessed.
“Alright, good. Exactly what is alchemy?”
“Alchemists can infinitely create platinum, gold, too. All families covet them. Because they can create all sorts of objects.”
Crazy.
Dominic saw my greedy gaze and smiled very satisfactorily.
I showed my fist to Dominic in excitement.
“So, you can make anything? Like gold?”
“Yes. But there are levels even among alchemists.”
“Levels? What level am I!”
Perhaps already the strongest in the world…
“You’re low-level.”
…That didn’t happen.
I looked at Dominic with eyes wide open.
“Where did you learn to call someone ‘low-level’?”
“Big.”
…Let’s just endure for now! Don’t lose hope!
“What about potential? Maybe you’re a beginner with tremendous potential!”
“Hmm…”
I looked at Dominic with a pounding heart.
Dominic placed his hand near my heart.
“…Mel.”
“Yes!”
I began to twinkle my eyes towards Dominic. Maybe… me too!
Catching my gaze, Dominic quietly said, turning his eyes away.
“You have as much mana as a mouse’s worth.”
…A mouse’s worth?
‘There’s no such thing as a “mouse’s worth.” It must be “mouse’s droppings” amount.’
Still, I thought I had no mana at all, but whether it’s mouse droppings or a mouse’s worth, having some mana is not a bad thing.
I grasped the rope of hope and asked.
“So, I do have some mana, right?”
“Yes, that’s certain. It feels like it’s continuously filling up… Well, for sure, you don’t have much mana.”
At this moment, I was filled with the highest motivation. Just like the first day of the new school year in March.
“If I have some mana, then I can summon the winter demon we met before?”
“To summon a demon, you need powerful mana. You were born with a little. About 3 seconds… Well, you might be able to summon and command that long.”
3 seconds is almost the same as not summoning it at all. It seems like it would return right away.
Making slush was dismissed.
Dominic, who received my desperate gaze, subtly offered hopeful words.
“Don’t be too discouraged. You can also learn how to generate pure mana.”
I nodded in amazement.
When there’s no bowl at all, it’s extremely hard to make a new bowl.
However, applying glaze to a small bowl to make it into a larger one is easier than creating something from nothing. It seemed that pure mana operated on a similar principle.
“Then teach me how to generate it!”
“I’m not well-versed in alchemy. I only know the very basics.”
“Basic knowledge…”
In the original work, alchemists possessing pure mana were almost nonexistent.
‘Only Isaac, the owner of the magic tower, possessed pure mana and could use alchemy skillfully, probably.’
But the whereabouts, even the life or death, of that man are unknown now. Besides, there was no connection with Meldenik in the original work. He disappeared suddenly while attacking Lennox, so the chance of meeting him again was virtually nil.
‘I can’t capture the owner of the magic tower alive from anywhere, and it’s extremely difficult.’
Yet, it was too precious to give up on the possibility I discovered by chance.
“I’ll somehow generate more mana and refine my skills further, Dominic! I want to be the best!”
I clenched my fist and shouted.
At the word ‘best,’ Dominic brought his hand to his mouth and laughed.
His tone was like that of an elderly who had lived long, but the handsome man’s bright laughter made the surroundings seem brightly lit.
“As expected… I was trusting you. I will teach you diligently from now on. Let’s start with the first step of making the strongest sword.”
“Let’s quickly make beer candy!”
Dominic’s expression soured as if he had chewed on something bitter.
“That…?”
His gaze landed on the oak barrels around us.
I nodded in response.
“Yes, you said you can’t make it! Then I’ll make the beer candy! And I’ll also make and sell super cute character-shaped dishes! Like character pork cutlets!”
I’d love to make Pikachu pork cutlets.
I swallowed greedily with a covetous expression.
“Isn’t there anything else?”
Dominic asked in a somewhat hesitant voice.
I fiddled with my chin with my thumb, pondering in my head.
Ah, that’s right, there was something else I wanted to do.
“If I can increase mana… I’ll capture, no, summon the Winter Moon Demon alive and create unlimited free slushies!”
“…You’ve forgotten that we don’t have a summoning spell.”
Dominic shook his head as he spoke.
“Ah, right.”
I scratched my neck.
“But Dominic, you have experience with sealing before. Do you remember how you did it? It seems possible to find a spell to enslave demons in reverse.”
“Yes.”
With Dominic’s nonchalant response, I was confident.
Bringing this hero here was indeed a great decision. It was the best choice of the year.
“I’ll definitely create a mountain of gold for you.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll even create a fountain filled with money.”
Suddenly, Dominic’s eyes sparkled as he obediently said,
“I’m really looking forward to it, Mel.”
It’s hard to believe that such an innocent person once wielded a sword and saved the empire…
But if Dominic creates the formula!
Though generating ice costs a tremendous amount of money, with the winter demon, it’s zero becquerels.
‘Crazy.’
With rising greed, I clenched my fists tightly and stomped my feet on the ground.
“Slushies are essential in a stationery store, right?”
Pineapple, orange, and grape flavors. This trio was indeed the best.
Mixing two flavors together tastes really good. It’s practically children’s drug.
Hearing me, Dominic grabbed his head in despair.
“I am supposed to be a powerful hero, a god among knights, who will survive until the end of the world… How did I end up in such a deceptive contract…”
Regardless, I started planning one by one in my head.
I have the perfect Dominic by my side!
So, I will learn magic and alchemy…
“And become the best stationery shop owner.”
I clenched my fist tightly.
I’ll be the Pied Piper of stationery store owners, leading the children around.
Watching me, Dominic drooped his shoulders.
I heard him mutter through his teeth, “It’s such a humble wish…” but I casually ignored it.
