"I can come back later," Nina says somewhat awkwardly.
"It's okay," I answer and shift a bit.
Currently, I'm sitting on the floor, and two women are drawing on my skin. My upper body is bare and my pants are pulled up high, revealing my thighs. The women hold brushes in their hands, using some of the mana-conductive paint I have left.
On the ground in front of them is a design of my creation, and they are transferring it to my skin.
It's the middle of day two of my planned 3-day stay in the Sanctuary, and with Darren's help, I went looking for someone to draw circuits of my design. Suspiciously, he picked two pretty young women. Even more suspiciously, they’ve been a bit too friendly as well.
I guess that's probably Darren's attempt at tying me to the Sanctuary?
Well, it doesn't matter. At least they can draw well; otherwise, I would have sent them away.
Nina nods and after glancing at me for a moment, she says, "We started unblocking one of the older facilities. It's a secondary control room, but we’ve never had any use for it, and it's damaged. In an hour or two, it should be ready as you asked."
"That sounds nice," I mean, the current enchanting and smelting facility is nice, and I tested plenty of things, but who wouldn't want to see more?
"Also, your disciple tried to stab and bite one of our men when they tried to help her carry her bag," Nina adds.
I turn to the side where Vega is practicing. The little half-demon doesn't even pretend to not hear and returns my gaze.
"Good job, but next time try the kick first. Stabbing is for when someone means you harm," I tell her. To that, Vega quickly nods and returns to her training.
Nina watches our exchange with a mildly shocked expression, but then quickly shakes her head.
She takes a step closer, "And if you have time tomorrow, my father wants to talk with you about something serious."
"We will see tomorrow." I lift one of my arms so the woman can paint it.
Not having a reason to stay, Nina leaves, and I observe the circuits they’ve drawn on me. It's annoying that I couldn't do it myself, but it's hard to draw on my back or chest while keeping the lines straight.
Sure, the occasional mistake isn’t a problem, and the first attempts I made on my arm weren't that bad. But I want to find out how much things change with well-drawn circuits. Is there a difference between a wobbly line and one that’s well drawn? Does making an oval instead of a circle affect it at all? How much deviation do I need to worry about?
That's the question I’m asking.
The women Darren recommended are doing a good job. Their hands are steady, and they are not wasting any paint. They even stopped ogling to focus on their work. I mean, I don't blame them, hehe. As my mom said around twelve years, three months, and around five days ago, I'm a handsome young man.
"Minion, I'm handsome, right?"
"It's Vega, master, I'm your disciple, not a minion." She’s clearly given up on her attempts at reverse psychology.
"Sure."
"Master's eyes are pretty."
"Only my eyes?"
"Heart too!"
Well, even that much is fine, "I also like your eyes and heart, minion," even though it is an undeserved 4th trait spot the demons must have cheated to get.
One of the women giggles, and when I catch her gaze, she smiles with a slight blush on her face. She quickly averts her gaze and continues.
I send my mana through some of the completed circuits. When mana flows through them, the paint hardens even more, and I immediately notice the difference between my wobbly lines and the nicer ones.
Damn it. I just want to do things in my own janky way.
Sending a bit more mana through them, I activate my Mana Wavelength Iris and observe the movement of the mana. So far, it looks like everything is working as it should.
Sure, I could do a construct instead of this, but right now I hesitate. The drawings should help me deal with black mana, and I'm not ready to create a construct for that until I'm sure it's correct. Anyway, I'm already preparing another construct and I’m still working on its structure, and I’ve recorded it in one of my mana stones. I have no time to create another one.
Unlike lines drawn on my skin, the constructs are much more difficult and require more of me. They need to be carefully placed and connected at the right places, and they affect me more deeply.
Plus, there’s limited space inside of my body, and unlike my skin, I can’t just wash a construct away.
Soon enough, the work is done, and I send both women away before they make any advances.
Sending mana through my skin, I dry the mana infused paint and observe the results. So far, it seems all good, and if it works as intended. I should be able to strengthen my body with black mana without too much in the way of aftereffects. And if that works, I should be able to use black mana to power other skills without my brain melting. That would be nice.
Unfortunately, it seems to be a one-time use as the drawings crumble the moment black mana flows through them, but even that is okay. In the worst scenario, I can use black mana without them, though the aftereffects will be worse.
Standing up, I put my shirt back on and fix it.
"Minion, we are going to see the facility," I have decided to keep Vega close to me as much as possible.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
"Yes, master!"
As we head towards the place I expect to find Darren, I observe Vega. She is still constantly using her mana to observe, and even though she is so low-level, she does it well. Even when I met her for the first time, she did pretty well with it, and it only improved with my amazing mentorship. She even keeps circulating mana through her body, an early attempt at Mana Cycling, as Lissandra taught me.
The fun thing about it is that the more I use Mana Cycling, the more I appreciate it, and it runs the entire time I'm awake. I even suspect that my body is reflexively maintaining it while I sleep.
Mana Cycling takes my mana and sends it through my body in the channels I’ve defined. With a better understanding, you can even stop mana from leaking. I'm not at the level where I can completely pull it off, but it's good enough to trick most people, even some who are higher level than me. Other than hiding mana, it also improves my control.
We reach the circular door entirely made out of the same metal as the others. There is already a group of men nearby who’ve already moved the barricades.
I give time to Nina to greet them and give orders before we follow through the tunnel which serves as a hallway. Unlike the one from before, this one is much smoother, and there are even some decorative lines etched into the walls to our sides. As we pass by them, I touch the wall and after a quick examination, I channel my mana through it, causing them to slowly Illuminate our path as I maintain contact.
The light is gentle and easy on the eyes, yet it’s bright enough to evenly light the hallway. There are a few side rooms, and I peek inside, but most are completely empty and lack much in the way of interesting circuits. At the end of the hallway, there is another circular entrance, and we enter a small chamber.
In the middle of that room stands a single pillar made of mana crystal. This one seems different from the ones in other facilities, and I can’t quite put my finger on how, maybe it’s higher quality? It’s a darker shade of blue as well.
The mana crystal seems to be damaged, or at least the control panel connected to it is.
"Are you not worried about letting me into the control room? I could take over and cause all kinds of trouble." I ask.
Nina flashes me a smile, "You are just that kind of person that rubs me the wrong way. But I can't deny that if you had wanted to, you could have caused much more trouble already. Without having to bother with petty tricks."
"Maybe I'm just playing with you and plotting behind your back."
"Maybe you are, but I trust my father, and he seems to think it’s ok. And it's too late to try to stop you at this point."
I can't help but be a bit disappointed. These people gave up that easily and put their lives into the hands of some random guy just because he’s stronger than them. Yes, there is logic to it, but it's still somewhat disappointing.
Thankfully, at least Vega seems to agree with me, judging by the look she gives Nina.
I’ve already been collecting my mana for a while, and I put my hand on the control panel to send a bit through. I quickly identify where the inscriptions are messed up and search for the secondary pathways, and surprisingly, they are damaged as well.
In the end, I decided to ignore the messed-up parts. Fixing them would take too long and I would have to replace the entire segment. Instead, I just put an anchor on the mana crystal and send my mana directly to it. There will be leaks, but I decide I will overcome them with the sheer amount of mana I will be pushing through.
I step away and continue to send my mana through [Tether], and gradually the room lights up. There is no crystal in the ceiling, instead, beautiful ornaments light up all around the room, and even the mana crystal starts letting out some light.
Taking a few steps, I reach another control panel, the one meant to manage this facility. The mana stone that is the center of it seems okay, and I put my hand on it and send a bit of mana through.
Inside the stone, there are multiple sets of inscriptions, each connecting to a different part of the Sanctuary. Some seem to be devoted to protecting the bunker. Others are for heating, water, and air filtration, and that’s just the start. Several don't seem to be working, not because of any issue with the mana stone, it’s likely because those parts of the bunker are ruined.
Looking though, I still can’t find anything in the hidden tunnels where Darren and others were getting the meat. Interesting, maybe they’ve blocked it on the other side?
Otherwise, there isn't much interesting to do. Sure, it's all fun and cool. I could turn on the heating, send more mana through, and open the door or lock all of them. I could even use water from the tanks to fight against a possible fire. It's something I would otherwise like to play with, but not with the short amount of time I’ve got on this floor.
"Nothing interesting, most of the things are impossible to control from here, and there is plenty of damage in the connections," I tell Nina and stop feeding my mana to the mana crystal.
It gradually dims out, and we leave with her. The door stays open so I can return later.
----------------------------------------
"So, do you understand what to do?" I ask Vega.
"Yes! I will sit here inside of the barrier, and if something happens, I will send a signal through your anchor, and you will return."
"Good. See you later then, okay?"
"I will continue to train."
I give Vega one more look. She is currently inside my room. It's a nice room in one of the original towers in the middle of the main cave. The room is nicely decorated, and most of the furniture is made of stone with some soft cushions to cover it.
There is a barrier made with [Regalia] surrounding Vega. It's powered by one of the higher-grade mana stones I left with her. I’ve used enough power to last for hours without using mana from the stone.
Then it can defend against multiple attacks on its own, and if that's not enough, it will use mana from the mana stone. I don't think there is anyone in the city capable of breaking it quickly, yet I still leave an anchor nearby so I can return quickly. The door into the room is also blocked by my mana, along with the other entrances.
Giving a last look to the room and my disciple, I use [Tether] and teleport to the anchor I left by the hidden tunnels. Then I start hiding my mana and use [Perception] to avoid people.
[Mana Domain] expands, and I create a few more anchors, teleporting multiple times to avoid people. There are a few guards inside of the house over the secret tunnels, but they don't feel me placing anchors or teleporting.
Appearing behind the door they’re guarding, I start walking. The tunnel is dark, and the air here feels different. There also aren't many inscriptions or veins of metal like in the other ones. This tunnel feels much newer. Did they construct it after moving here? That could explain why they weren't on the maps inside the mana crystal.
I feel another presence heading towards me, and I reach past them and place the anchor. Only when I'm about to be spotted, do I teleport past. As with before, the guard doesn't feel my domain, nor do they notice when I place anchors or teleport. I send more of my mana ahead and find a small room at the end of the tunnel. That room currently has a single person inside of it.
The air takes on a smell like rust. It smells like blood, lots of blood.
I detect the guard leaving and continue to walk towards that room. The closer I get, the more I smell it, and the heavier the air feels. There’s even dried blood on the floor and the walls.
Gradually the light permeates the dark tunnels, and I enter the room. The room has been painted bright white, yet that only serves to emphasize the blood covering everything, the floor, the walls, and even the ceiling, all thrown into stark relief by the bright lights.
There are a few boxes stuffed in the corner of the room, each of them filled to the brim with severed legs and arms. In another corner, a man sits on a bed. His legs up, knees in front of his chest. He has long hair covering his face and is wearing bloodied clothes with short sleeves.
His eyes are cold and he watches me calmly. I notice a silver metal collar around his neck and a chain of similar metal tying him to one of the walls.
[Lifebloom Weaver - lvl 206]