Once inside, he took a brief glance around the room before letting out a quiet sigh. 'It's a pity the apartment's too small to have a dedicated space for working on arrays… I'll have to make do with the bedroom...'
'Still, it doesn't matter all that much. This isn't like blacksmithing, where you need a forge and a stable setup. Array creation is far more flexible and can be done more or less anywhere. What truly matters are the resources and the knowledge behind the process—and I have both.'
From the storage ring on his finger, an item shimmered into existence: a so-called 'runic inscriber'. 'I was fortunate that the main vault contained a legendary weapon "Runic Inscriber". Of course, it isn't quite the same as the ones used in the Dirarnia world, but its base frame is similar enough to serve as a functional substitute. The structure is solid, and the edge is more than sharp enough. In fact, when it comes to these basic traits, it even outperforms the one I previously used to craft my own aura and mana generator.'
'But that's where its advantages end. When it comes to mana inscription, it's absolutely dreadful—utterly incompatible. Not that it's surprising. It is a relic from Kazramar, after all—a world completely devoid of aura and mana. Naturally, anything tied to those elements would be poorly integrated, if not entirely ineffective.'
Running a hand through his hair, he let out another quiet sigh. 'If only I still had the original runic inscriber from Dirarnia… and more importantly, the magical ink. That would've made everything so much easier. Especially the ink—I'll have to craft it from scratch, and I already know it's going to be a nightmare. But there's no use lamenting now. It's my own fault for not thinking to store my array tools in my inventory. I left them all in the workshop back at the mansion. And now, I'm the one paying for that oversight.'
Pushing aside the frustration, Mikael forced himself to focus on the present. 'Alright. What matters now is what I can do. For this, I'll need a few key materials. The most difficult to obtain will be the magical ink—mainly because I'll have to produce it myself. I've never done it before, but I've studied the process thoroughly. I understand the theory… now I'll just have to rely on that and hope for the best.'
Knowing that time wasn't on his side—especially with the girls already worrying about his lifespan—Mikael began gathering the materials necessary for the ink's creation.
The first material was a special type of plant, one that needed to be crushed in order to extract a unique kind of juice, which would serve as the primary base for the magical ink.
To find the right type, he pulled a blue plant from his inventory. This particular specimen came from a section of the main vault where numerous plants were stored, preserved in optimal conditions specifically designed to maintain their properties over time. As the plant materialized in his hand, seemingly out of thin air, he immediately activated the Analyse spell.
It was a relatively simple spell—nothing particularly advanced—but it allowed one to obtain a general understanding of a material's properties and potential uses. While it couldn't analyze objects imbued with excessively powerful mana or aura, it was more than enough for this situation, given that all the ingredients he planned to use were considered 'normal' by the standards of magical materials.
A few seconds passed while the spell worked, then he shook his head. "Not this one." He sent the plant back into his inventory before summoning another one and repeating the process.
He continued like this, again and again. Several plants did have the required properties and could theoretically be used, but Mikael wasn't content with just finding something that worked. He wanted the best possible result. So he kept testing, one plant after another, until he had gone through every single option available. The process took him an entire hour.
Once done, he carefully noted the specific plant that possessed the most favorable attributes for the ink's creation. With that, the first material was secured—and he made sure it would be the most optimal choice among everything he had.
Next came the second component: a rare kind of dark mineral. Just like before, he followed the same meticulous approach, evaluating every variation in his possession to identify the one with the best magical compatibility.
The third material he required was mana-enhanced water—or, at the very least, something that could serve a similar purpose. Unfortunately, it wasn't something he had stored in his inventory. He would have to craft it later, so for now, he set that ingredient aside.
The fourth and final material was a specific type of wood, meant to serve as a binding agent. Its purpose was to harmonize the other materials, allowing them to fuse together properly and form the magical ink.
Once again, he repeated the same careful process he had used for the previous ingredients. And after testing each possibility, he eventually identified the wood with the most suitable properties for the task.
With materials one, two, and four secured for the magical ink's creation, only the mana-enhanced water remained. In order to create it, he would need a bowl—or at least something that could function similarly. Naturally, he didn't have one readily available. However, after spending a few LP in the System Shop, he managed to acquire a set of bowls and other basic items that would be useful during the ink crafting process.
That said, the shop only offered mundane, non-magical items. Under normal circumstances, the materials he purchased wouldn't be able to withstand the stress and instability involved in crafting magical ink. Which is why, over the next three hours, Mikael took the time to inscribe durability arrays—without ink—onto every single one of the tools he planned to use.
These arrays were of low tier, both because he had rushed their creation to save time and because he hadn't used any specialized materials apart from his own mana. Still, despite their simplicity, the arrays were effective enough to significantly increase the durability of the objects, making them resilient enough to survive the magical ink crafting process.
With all the necessary preparations complete, Mikael grabbed one of the now-reinforced bowls and placed it carefully on the bedside table. Then, using a refined application of water magic, he created water from nothing, drawing it directly out of his mana core before allowing it to fill the bowl.
Since the water had been created from his own mana, it wasn't just ordinary water—it was inherently mana-infused. And not just average-quality mana, either. The water produced through this method contained a fairly high mana density. That was due to the nature of Mikael's core and his overall stats. Even though his mana core was only at D- rank, his Good level talent, his remarkable control, and especially his high Spirit stat combined to produce a quality of mana that was, in truth, slightly superior to what an A+ rank mage with average talent would typically generate.
Thanks to this, he was able to create a high-quality mana-infused water suitable for the task at hand. Yet Mikael wasn't satisfied with simply good. He wanted the best he could produce.
With that in mind, he gently placed his hand over the surface of the bowl and began to slowly inject mana directly into the water it contained.
The infusion process was slow and demanding. Each droplet of mana needed to blend seamlessly into the already-enhanced water. Under normal circumstances, such a procedure would require specialized tools to stabilize the mana flow and ensure uniform absorption. But lacking that equipment, Mikael relied entirely on the precision of his control to compensate for the gap.
His mana trickled down into the liquid in a steady rhythm, gradually increasing the concentration and quality of the infused water. It was a difficult, painstaking task—but one he was willing to endure if it meant getting closer to perfection.
Minutes slipped by as Mikael remained motionless, his hands firmly placed on the bowl. Beads of sweat began to slide down his brow, a clear sign of the intense effort this task required. It was far from easy and consumed all of his attention. After nearly a full thirty minutes of continuous mana infusion, Mikael finally halted the flow.
He released a quiet, tired sigh tinged with satisfaction as his gaze settled on the bowl. The water inside now 'glowed' faintly, pulsing with the presence of an unusually dense concentration of high-quality mana. "With this, the preparation phase is complete. Now I can truly begin working on the creation of magical ink," he murmured.
Gently, he set the bowl aside on the bedside table and moved to a nearby piece of furniture where a large, bowl-sized mortar and its accompanying pestle waited. Without delay, he summoned the first plant-based ingredient, making it appear in his hand as if conjured from thin air. He immediately began infusing it with mana—something he would need to repeat for nearly every ingredient to follow.
After all, these materials didn't naturally contain mana. If he didn't handle the infusion himself, the resulting ink wouldn't possess the magical properties he needed. Another thirty minutes passed as he poured his mana into the plant, leaving him panting and visibly drained by the time it was done. The plant now pulsed faintly, vibrating with newly embedded energy.
He placed the mana-charged plant into the mortar and covered the pestle with a thin layer of his aura before pressing it down and starting to crush the material beneath. His movements were methodical, deliberate.
Several minutes later, once the plant had been thoroughly crushed into a thick juice-like mixture—something between a solid and a liquid—he lifted the mortar with care and began slowly pouring its contents into the same bowl that held the mana-infused water.
As the two substances met, a slow merging began, the mana-rich juice and the infused water gradually starting to blend. Mikael knew the fusion process would take time. That was why he settled into a seated position, retrieved the aura and mana generator from his inventory, and closed his eyes to meditate. First, he focused on recovering the large amount of mana he had expended during the infusions. Once he stabilized his reserves, he shifted to growing his cores, continuing to nurture their growth as he waited for the fusion to complete.
In this manner, an entire day and a half passed without Mikael moving even once. During this prolonged period of stillness, both his mana and aura cores advanced significantly, nearing the threshold of D rank. However, that progress was merely a welcome bonus. What truly mattered was the result of the long fusion—by the end, the infused water and the plant-based mana juice had successfully merged into a new liquid, one that shimmered with an iridescent glow.
Mikael leaned closer to the bowl, observing the transformed substance with sharp, critical eyes. He took a brief moment to analyze its properties before giving a slight nod. 'The first stage of magical ink creation seems to have gone well.'
Author Note:
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