Chapter : 41
“Wow… it’s really amazing…!”
“Be careful, Eani. It’s dangerous if you get too close.”
When I stepped nearer to the edge of the cliff, Hutton firmly wrapped an arm around my waist.
I glanced at him briefly, then leaned back comfortably into his chest.
“In times like this, Hutton will protect me, right? Won’t you?”
“Of course…! No matter what happens, I’ll protect you!”
“How reassuring~.”
Even as I exchanged sweet, playful words with Hutton, my eyes were sharply observing our surroundings.
There’s definitely a faint but distinct fluctuation of mana here.
More precisely, it was coming from beyond the cliff, to the right.
It was so weak that even an elder of the Mage Tower would have trouble sensing it.
But I knew exactly what was hidden here, so a grin slowly spread across my face.
To think I’d end up using the most valuable piece of information from the original story like this.
The place we were currently visiting was a canyon in the western part of the Empire, called Roktabia Gorge.
Among the mountainous western regions, this gorge was especially famous for its treacherous terrain—but in exchange, it boasted vast and breathtaking scenery.
Thanks to that, it had become a popular tourist destination.
Of course, for safety reasons, only a very small portion is open to tourists.
And since Hutton and I were visiting this time, the local lord had completely blocked off tourist access.
So at the moment, the only people here were Hutton, myself, and the attendants accompanying us.
For the record, the reason I’d coaxed Hutton into traveling all the way out here wasn’t just sightseeing.
There’s a mana core hidden here, after all.
A mana core.
It was a mineral far superior even to the mana stones I had used to threaten the ducal couple.
Ordinarily, a mana stone could only store a single spell at most.
But this core can store mana itself—limitlessly.
Mana was a power that could not normally be stored artificially.
The only way to accumulate it by human will was to store it inside a mana core.
And if you link a magic circle or a magitech device to the core, you can draw on the stored mana whenever you want.
If I had to compare it to something—it was like switching from disposable batteries to electricity.
As long as the mana inside the core wasn’t depleted, magic circles and devices could be used freely without recharging.
Because of that, mana cores were considered outrageously overpowered items even in this world.
And this precious core exists in only one place across the entire continent.
The Mage Tower.
That was precisely why the Mage Tower could run a continent-wide mana-charging service.
The mana consumed inside the tower comes from cores that were stockpiled long ago.
That’s why they could afford to dispatch mages externally.
Because mana cores were so incredibly useful—capable of completely overturning the balance of power on the continent—countless nations had searched for them over the past several centuries.
Especially now, when the Mage Tower’s tyranny was growing worse by the day.
But in the end, no one ever managed to claim one.
That didn’t mean cores were never discovered.
Ironically, mana cores had been found multiple times.
Some in the depths of the sea.
Some atop snow-covered high mountains.
Some in vast deserts.
Yet no one was ever able to possess them…
Because of the terrifying mana traps surrounding the cores.
Traps so powerful that no human strength could break through them.
Countless people who tried to claim a mana core failed to overcome those traps and were later found dead.
The exact reason those traps existed was still unknown.
The most accepted theory was that the core itself created powerful defensive mechanisms to protect itself.
Honestly, the underlying theory doesn’t matter to me.
What matters is this.
Whether or not I can get my hands on that core.
And the mana core in Roktabia Gorge hasn’t been discovered by anyone yet.
“Hehehe.”
Just thinking about it made a smile spread across my face.
Truth be told, I didn’t intend to obtain the mana core immediately.
No matter how amazing a mana core was, the mana inside it had to be charged by me personally.
Sure, I have a large mana capacity and fast recovery. If I pushed myself, I could store a usable amount within two weeks.
But that was assuming I overworked myself.
And in the early stages, I’d need to recharge it regularly. If I got careless, I could collapse again from mana exhaustion.
That’s why I planned to retrieve the core only after the resort was established and I could calculate the fixed mana consumption.
Well…
Given that I’d already earned the Mage Tower’s hostility, that kind of leisure had become a luxury.
Even though I could clearly see the hardships awaiting me in the future, the thought of acquiring such an invaluable treasure made my heart race.
Ahh, if I sold the mana core instead of using it for the resort~.
I’d earn far more than the fortune I accumulated in my previous life.
The temptation made me waver briefly—but I quickly corrected myself.
Fast, short-term dopamine fades quickly.
I knew that from firsthand experience.
In my previous life, I’d made a fortune through stock investments and became a billionaire overnight—but that joy didn’t last long.
What was far more fun and satisfying was setting goals based on that money and growing my business.
And when I made my family kneel at my feet one by one… the thrill sent shivers down my spine~.
Money really is the best~.
As I reminisced about that rush, Hutton stepped closer and whispered,
“Eani, do you like this gorge that much? Should I buy this place too?”
His surprisingly serious tone snapped me back to my senses.
Oh no—did my expression soften while I was lost in thought?
In any case, based on my experience, what I truly wanted wasn’t a single massive windfall.
It was capital that would grow steadily and give me new goals.
So using the mana core to develop the resort is the right choice.
That was the path I could truly immerse myself in.
Having made up my mind again, I shook my head at Hutton.
“It’s okay. Taking care of Tadibna is more than enough for now.”
I naturally leaned into his arms.
“And besides, there’s something else I want~.”
When I nestled against him, Hutton’s body twitched slightly.
We’d shared this level of skinship countless times by now, yet he still got tense whenever I touched him.
He cleared his throat softly and hugged me back, whispering,
“Right. As your engagement gift, I’ll make sure to put that into your arms.”
His eyes burned with determination.
“I’m the person you can trust the most, after all…!”
Seeing that, I curled my lips into a wide grin.
I had already told Hutton that a mana core was hidden in this gorge—and that I wanted it.
And the flattery I’d added on top of that clearly worked wonders.
- A mana core? How would you even know about that, Eani…?
- Shh, it’s a huge secret. No one else can know. I told only you, Hutton.
- Only me…?
- Yes…! You’re the person I trust the most in the world…!
- !!!!!
It’s not exactly a lie~.
I truly do trust Hutton.
There’s just the small condition that he has to remain cursed~.
Anyway, there was one simple reason I shared this information with him in advance.
This man is the only way to break through the traps surrounding the mana core!
Because of the ancestral curse placed upon him, Hutton Seind was the one and only person immune to magic.
Well, technically there are a few tricks you could use—but still.
Being immune to magic had its downsides, but it also came with undeniable advantages.
A perfect example was this very situation.
Even dangerous magic doesn’t work on Hutton.
That meant the magical traps formed around the core were useless against him.
So if I wanted to obtain the mana core, Hutton’s direct cooperation was absolutely essential.
Oh—and it’s not like no one had ever come up with this theory before.
Stories of magic-immune children occasionally being born into the Seind bloodline were already well known.
That was partly why the ducal house was one of the few families that built its fortune on science and technology rather than relying on magic.
So people had always suspected it.
That a magic-immune Seind might be able to break through the traps surrounding a mana core.
