Surviving As The 5Th Prince Of Hellman Kingdom [EN]: Chapter 8

009

I manipulated mana to activate my brain.

With a click, like a switch turning on, my third eye opened, allowing me to perceive mana.

‘This is the world that mages see…’

The world I had seen until now felt foreign.

It was hard to explain in words. It felt like witnessing a full-color flower in a black and white world. Briefly stunned, I quickly regained my senses and focused my gaze on the ghost hand.

“Ah!”

I finally understood the essence of the ghost hand that had followed me my whole life. My gaze automatically shifted to the status windows I had tucked away in the corner of my vision. Those were the same as the ghost hand.

Mana.

Why hadn’t other mages noticed the existence of the ghost hand? My meager magical knowledge couldn’t explain it yet.

I decided to move on for now, as I could investigate it properly once I seriously delved into magic.

More important than that.

‘My mana sensitivity didn’t drop.’

Rather, it had been excellent from the start, seeing the ghost hand, which was practically a lump of mana, since I was a baby. Enough to feel mana and create a core as soon as I started the mana cultivation.

The ball I chose during the sensitivity test. It wasn’t for nothing that it caught my eye. I had chosen the right answer.

Gritting my teeth at the bald bastard who had declared that being a mage would be difficult for me.

‘Who was that guy taking orders from?’

First Queen? Second Queen? Too many figures flashed through my mind. It would be hard to find a place as full of people wanting to trample on budding sprouts as the royal palace.

It wasn’t a direct harm, just a bit of gaslighting, saying, ‘You have no talent,’ so it would have been easy to pull off.

‘Still, to feel mana as soon as I started mana cultivation.’

Many claim that the records of figures in myths and legends feeling mana instantly are just fiction.

A silly thought crossed my mind that I could now listen to the arguments of such people with a relaxed attitude, and I chuckled.

If I had made a safe choice and learned the Lionel Mana Cultivation Method….

‘I don’t even want to imagine it.’

I almost buried the talent I hadn’t noticed because of the bald mage’s gaslighting.

If I had known that my mana sensitivity was this high, I would have learned the introductory mana cultivation method of the Four Great Magic Towers without any problems.

I shook off the lingering feelings, thinking it was meaningless now.

I was able to not give up on magic because I chose the [Limitless Mana Cultivation Method]. Deciding to think positively, I carefully examined the status window to see if anything had changed.

[Magic Power: ★] caught my eye.

Achievement was being evaluated with star symbols instead of letters. Would it be two stars when I reached 2 stars? I felt strange, like I had become a game character.

Other than that, nothing much had changed.

‘Remaining RP is 9,287.’

Thanks to learning the [Limitless Mana Cultivation Method] at a low price, my wallet was still full.

Even if I set aside some for information usage fees, it was still a considerable amount. Just as I was about to start happily contemplating what other skills to learn.

Knock, knock.

The sly guy was back.

“Your Highness! I have returned after finishing the cleaning!”

“Oh, I think I’ll be using the training grounds, so clean that up too.”

“I got soaked in the rain.”

“Okay. Good job.”

“……”

Before skill shopping, it might be good to check how Alfonso’s status window has changed now that our relationship has improved to ‘Friendly.’

***

The Emerald Palace servants were busy gossiping about Evan whenever they gathered these days. Two maids cleaning the bathroom were no exception.

“Did you hear that story?”

“What story?”

“Do you remember how Prince Evan recently told the youngest kitchen worker to hurry home?”

“Of course. They say he sent him away as if it was urgent? What was that all about?”
Turbuk, Turbuk, Alfonso, who was walking down the hallway carrying a mountain of books, paused briefly at their conversation flowing out from the bathroom door.

“Yesterday, that kitchen worker came back and said that thanks to the prince, he was able to be there for his grandmother’s death.”

“Oh my gosh! How did he know that?”

“That’s what I’m saying. Could it be that he has received the Stigmata of Paturashit [a divine mark granting miraculous powers] like the rumors say?”

Alfonso shook his head.

The miracles used by those who have received the stigmata are not something they can freely use whenever they want like magic.

In addition, Alfonso knows why the rumor can never be true.

‘Don’t those women know that those who obtain the Stigmata of Paturashit are also cursed to become blind?’

Well, the priests of the Paturashit Order all wear blindfolds. Only a very few people know that those with the stigmata are truly blind. Such rumors could circulate among the ignorant. He decided to understand it that way and nodded.

“Oh, right. Where did you go last night? Confess.”

“Well, um… Ronnie asked me to see him for a bit…”

Alfonso, who was about to move on, stopped again.

“Oh my, oh my, so! What did he say? What did he say? Did he confess?”

“…… Yes.”

Ronnie, Ronnie, huh.

Come to think of it, Evan casually said something to the guy who came to clean the study the day before yesterday.

– Ronnie. Haven’t you been worried about something lately? So much that you can’t sleep at night.

– Huh? How did you know!

– That’s not important. What’s important is that you need to be brave. Then you will surely be rewarded.

– R, really?

– Have you only lived being deceived?

– Ah, no! I will be brave as you say, Your Highness. Thank you!

– Okay, if you’ve made up your mind, put it into practice quickly.

He wondered what he was talking about, but it turned out to be a trivial love story.

‘But, he really is like a ghost.’

The day he questioned me about the purpose of entering the palace.

– The person I asked was you, Alfonso Einberg. Not the third son of Baron Heimdel.

That’s when it started.

Each word Evan casually threw out began to create ripples in the tranquil lives of the Emerald Palace servants.

Already five couples have been formed in the meantime.

“So, did you decide to date Ronnie? Tell me quickly.”

“U, um.”

‘No, is it six couples now….’

Alfonso smiled bitterly and moved on again.

Soon after, he arrived at his destination, the study, and found three maids loitering around.

Looking at their faces, they were lonely souls who wanted to run into Evan by chance and receive a word of blessing.

“Excuse me~ I’m passing through!”

Thud!

He put the mountain of books in front of the door, cleared his throat, and knocked on the door.

Knock, knock.

“Your Highness, I have brought the books you asked for.”

“Come in.”

“Yes! Ugh.”

Alfonso opened the door and entered the study. Evan was sitting at his desk, spreading out magic books and busily moving his pen.

“Please organize the things you brought on the bookshelf.”

“Yes! I’ll organize them right away.”

Alfonso began to place the books he had brought on the bookshelf one by one.

『Understanding Water Attribute』

『36 Ways to Manipulate Water Flow』

『Dancing with the Waves』

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.

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All basic magic books from the Blue Tower.

‘Last time it was magic books from the Red Tower.’

Even though they are basic magic books, there is a reason why you can easily obtain those from the Blue and Red Towers.

A kind of bait.

Magic is a discipline that is nearly impossible to learn on your own.

There is a rumor that geniuses who have mastered the theories of basic magic books available on the market through self-study can see hidden messages.

Like the address of a certain mage.

– Welcome. If you found my home address in the magic book, you have proven that you are qualified to enter magic. Have you taken the mana sensitivity test? You haven’t? Come in quickly. I’ll give it to you for free. What? What if your mana sensitivity is below the standard? Don’t worry about it, we’ll think about it then, just come in. I won’t ask for money.

The rumor is that if you go there, you can be enthusiastically welcomed by a mage.

The sensitivity test, the first gateway to selecting mages. For those who are busy earning a living day by day, the examination fee is burdensome and nearly impossible.

However, brilliant talents can exist even in slums. It was an arrangement by each magic tower to find such pearls in the mud.

Alfonso knows that such stories circulating among people are not nonsense.

In his opinion, Evan’s learning ability was quite excellent. Especially languages. He often saw him reading books written in foreign languages as well as ancient languages in their original form.

So, is Evan like a genius….

Alfonso shook his head.

‘I don’t think it’s that level.’

He had seen those so-called geniuses a few times. That unique madness of theirs? He couldn’t see that in Evan.

Alfonso also knows that he may be committing a generalization fallacy because the sample size is countable on one hand.

‘I thought he didn’t pass the mana sensitivity test, so why magic all of a sudden?’

Come to think of it, Evan, who hadn’t moved his body before, recently started training in [Lionel Formal Swordsmanship]. Was there a textbook in the study?

Alfonso couldn’t get used to Evan’s changed appearance after his head was smashed by the 4th Prince.

Still, what is certain is that the current situation is much better than before, when he felt like he was becoming lethargic just by being in the same space.

***

I could feel Alfonso’s gaze stealing glances at me. I could guess what he was thinking. Why magic all of a sudden? Something like that. I didn’t care and focused on the magic book I was looking at.

After learning the mana cultivation method, I used the [Library] to improve my relationship with the Emerald Palace servants. There were many people in their prime, so I often gave advice related to love.

As expected, the rewards I received differed depending on the other person’s status, ability, etc.

The RP [Relationship Points] I earned through improving my relationship with them was really just pocket money after deducting the information usage fee paid to Genie.

‘So far, I’ve earned the most RP through improving my relationship with Alfonso.’

My thoughts were interrupted, and I took my eyes off the magic book I was looking at and looked at the guy organizing the bookshelf.

Alfonso Einberg.

As the relationship improved to ‘Friendly,’ I was able to see some of the guy’s stats that were [?]. As a result, I saw the letter B for the first time in Alfonso’s flexibility section.

I wonder how much it is?

‘Does his neck rotate 360 degrees?’

Anyway, how hypocritical is it that such a guy makes a fuss about me stretching, saying I look like a contortionist?

I also checked some of the guy’s hidden skills. As expected of someone from the Einberg knight family, he had learned various weapon techniques such as spears, axes, and daggers in addition to several basic swordsmanship skills.

But that’s it.

There are still many [?] in his skill window.

Looking at the others, it seems that the higher the skill level, and… this is just a guess, the more they want to hide the fact, the harder it is to confirm.

‘Well, whatever.’

Alfonso seems to be watching me these days and not doing anything strange, so I decided to watch a little more.

A relationship with a person can become more distant the more you try to get close. I shifted my gaze back to the magic book I was looking at.

『The Source of Fire』.

It was a magic book that dealt with [Ignition], which can be said to be the root of fire attribute magic.

After learning the [Limitless Mana Cultivation Method], I learned basic magic with the remaining RP. It was necessary to check what differences there were between the theory imprinted by learning the skill and the theory contained in the magic books available on the market.

I haven’t found any significant differences yet.

Rustle, rustle.

As I quickly flipped through the pages, I soon reached the last chapter.

+ + +

Charles, a trainee mage from the Red Tower, cast Ignition to light the fireplace. But nothing happened. The following is the formula Charles created. Correct it correctly.

The fireplace is centered on Charles….

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.

.

+ + +

‘Shall I solve it?’

I started solving the problem with a serious expression. It was a bit confusing because what should have been a 3D solid was forcibly transferred to paper.

I manipulated mana to open my third eye, designed the formula drawn in the magic book in my head, and built it on the palm of my hand.

It was a handball-sized formula with mana circuits packed on the outside and inside.

I glanced at Alfonso.

He had finished organizing the books and was standing there blankly. He looked like he was dozing off because of his unique squinting eyes.

‘Well, it doesn’t matter since he can’t see it.’

One piece of magical common sense imprinted while learning basic magic skills: except in special cases, only the mage can see the formula they have constructed.

To explain the reason in a way that anyone can easily understand, it is because once refined, mana has a unique magical wavelength unique to the mage. Perhaps the ghost hand was also unnoticed by other mages for a similar reason.

I took my eyes off Alfonso and looked back at the formula in question.

‘The spatial coordinates are a mess? Even if it had activated properly, the ignition would have occurred in the wrong place, not the fireplace.’

‘Parallel connection here? It’s a good thing nothing happened. Mana might have flowed backward.’

‘Here, rather than connecting three points….’

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.

.

After a while, I couldn’t hide my bewildered expression as I looked at the formula I had modified.

What had been a handball-sized sphere had turned into a heart shape, and the mana circuits drawn on the outside of the formula were creating letters.

‘34-231 Queen’s Crossroads, Barona, Royal Capital, shout loudly in front of the door, ‘Beautiful mage, please accept me as your disciple,’ and bow 9 times?’

…What is this?