#73 Awakening (1)
“Congratulations, Madam. Word is spreading that the ball was a great success,”
Ivan said with a rare smile.
It was unusual for the reserved man to show such joy—he must have been very satisfied.
“Can we also look forward to the young master’s coming-of-age ceremony?”
“Ah…”
Sasha blinked in surprise.
“So Pavel comes of age this year.”
Already?
Time had passed so quickly that she could hardly believe it.
Privately startled by how fast the years had flowed, Sasha thought—
‘The last hurdle is coming.’
Blessed with mana, Pavel had to take in a heavy amount of mana every year.
Until now, he had managed by training his body, while Sasha performed emergency treatments to draw out the excess mana inside him.
But this year would be different.
‘On the day he comes of age, his mana will surge explosively.’
If something went wrong, what Sasha had feared from the beginning could happen.
‘A horrible death from the body bursting due to mana overload—
that must never happen.’
To prevent it, she had been preparing for years.
Sasha quickly ended her talk with Ivan.
The official work had already been finished; they had just been chatting.
She sent Ivan away, saying they’d talk about the ceremony later, and went to find Pavel before speaking with Dmitri.
Knock, knock.
“Pavel, are you inside?”
There was some rustling, then Pavel’s voice.
“…I’m here. Come in.”
He was fastening the last button on his shirt when he turned.
“Why are you standing there? Come sit here.”
After a slight pause, Sasha went to sit on the sofa he pointed to.
Once he finished tidying himself, Pavel sat beside her.
Sasha hesitated, then began.
“Remember the book I showed you before about the ‘Blessing of Mana’?”
“Yeah.”
Of course he remembered.
That day had been the second time his life had turned upside down.
The first was marrying Sasha.
The second was learning he wasn’t terminally ill.
It was the day he first truly felt hope for the future.
“Because of the Blessing of Mana, the mana inside you will grow denser until you come of age, and that year it will increase explosively. Until now, strengthening your body was enough to endure it, but now it’s different.”
“…”
“That’s the final hurdle.”
“…Then what should I do?”
Pavel spoke calmly.
Sasha wouldn’t bring this up without a reason.
She was always thinking ahead, preparing the next move.
After so many years by her side, Pavel trusted that if he believed in her, he could overcome any danger.
She met that trust.
“We need to create a ‘mana hole’ to absorb it.”
“Mana hole?”
Sasha explained the now-forgotten concept.
“It’s creating a new organ in your body—
a space to capture the surging mana so you can control it.”
She continued explaining.
“When you don’t have one, the mana inside you is almost neutral. But how you make the mana hole can give your mana an attribute.”
In the past, mages gained their own specialties from the element—fire, water, wind, earth, light—dwelling in their mana hole.
Her friend Tabarishi from her previous life, for example, was famous as a “Mage of Light” for his light attribute.
“Well? Don’t you want one?”
But Pavel still looked uncertain.
Probably because she had used an example of a mage he had never seen.
Sasha thought a moment, then continued.
“Mana holes aren’t just for magic. Any mana-using skill can use them. Sword Masters, for example, put attributes into their sword strikes.”
“Sword Master…”
Pavel muttered the legendary title. Sasha gave a closer example.
“Lord Sergei is a Sword Master.”
Sergei, Pavel’s sword teacher, was one of the few in existence.
“They say when he swings his sword properly, it’s like lightning strikes.”
Pavel remembered the rare times Sergei’s blade had crackled with blue current when infused with mana.
“…That ability comes from creating a mana hole?”
“That’s right.”
Pavel seemed to understand now, and Sasha quickly added:
“Of course, you can’t match his skill and experience yet, but one day you could catch up.”
Pavel touched his lips thoughtfully.
It was surprising to think he might one day reach Sergei’s level.
“I’ll help you.”
In her past life as Hirote, Sasha had often met Sword Masters.
It was natural for famous healers to receive visits from them.
Sword Masters healed quickly, even without treatment, but if they were injured beyond natural recovery, ordinary doctors couldn’t help—so they came to her.
Thanks to that, she knew more than most about them—
what that lofty level truly was, and how to reach it with less difficulty.
“The most important thing is the mana hole. How big and strong you can make it—that’s the key.”
Sasha’s eyes shone as she spoke softly.
Then—
Pavel, looking closely at her, asked,
“But… are you okay?”
“Hm?”
“You look tired.”
“Do I?”
Sasha touched her face—her skin felt a little rough.
“You must have overworked yourself with the ball. You should rest.”
“Mm…”
Checking herself, she realized she had been feeling tired and headachy lately.
“I do need rest.”
“Then rest,” Pavel said firmly.
Sasha blinked, then replied,
“I have too much to do to rest comfortably.”
“Rest anyway. You’re the most important.”
“Uh…”
“There are other people to work. Marquis Sobakin, Count Kozlov, Father’s back, the butler, Olga…”
He listed all those who could take over duties.
‘It’s true I could step away for a while.’
While she handled much of the workload, her role wasn’t irreplaceable—especially now, in winter, with the Grand Duke at home.
After considering, Sasha suddenly suggested,
“Then… shall we travel?”
“Travel?”
“Yes. I could rest here, but there are too many distractions. Let’s go somewhere we can really relax.”
“…Alright.”
Sasha recalled the map of Volkov territory—there was a nearby place famous as a resort.
Not a beach or valley—it was the north, after all.
‘The best way to recover is soaking in hot water.’
A city with hot springs was a fine resort.
And it wasn’t only for her benefit.
“How about Sullis? It’s famous for its hot springs,” she said in a coaxing tone.
“There’s also something there we need.”
“Something we need?”
Excited, Sasha explained to the puzzled Pavel:
“Sullis has an item that will greatly help make a mana hole. There’s a secret ruin from the Golden Age there—it should have almost everything we want.”
“…”
“Especially magical items. The owner collected anything that looked good—not a hoarder, just a maximalist…”
She suddenly fell silent, realizing the odd term she had just used.
“What?” Pavel asked.
In that moment—
‘Come to think of it…’
It hit her like a blow to the back of the head.
‘Pavel has never asked me about anything.’
She must have said strange things or acted oddly many times over the years—things only someone from another life would know.
But Pavel had never once questioned her—never asked where she had learned such things.
Just like now, he only looked at her calmly.
