"Why...?"
A petite figure sat in the darkness, her childlike physique trembling as she struggled to make sense of something.
"Why didn’t it work? Why is he still alive?" She quietly asked herself as she curled up into a ball.
The woman was still in her maid outfit despite most of her colleagues already having changed into their nightwear.
She had also excused herself to this obscure corner to reflect on her actions.
Especially the fact that she failed!
’I did everything I was told to. The poison should have worked perfectly. How did he survive?’
She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn’t realize that someone had already appeared in front of her at some point in time.
This person had deep vermillion eyes and short silvery white hair.
Her gaze was cold and her expression stoic. She donned a simple black gown, contrasting heavily with her fair skin largely exposed by her bespectacled face.
"So this is where you were hiding, Sasha..."
It was only after hearing those words that the maid realized she wasn’t alone.
She jumped to her feet and nearly hit her head on the wall behind her. Fear mixed with shame quickly filled her perspiring face as she quickly bowed.
"L-Lady Melanie, I’m sorry... I didn’t... I don’t know—"
"Did you think there wouldn’t be any consequences for trying to assassinate two core members of the Lewis Family?"
"E-eh?"
Sasha’s face froze in shock at that moment.
She looked at her Lady for the first time and noticed the cold, murderous intent that was on her face.
It immediately sent her to her knees as she knelt in terror.
"I failed! I’m sorry! I poisoned the meals as you told me to, including yours... so there wouldn’t be any reason to suspect you. I don’t know why it didn’t work, but please give me another chance to rectify my mistake and kill that bastard child. I will do it perfectly this time! I will repay the kindness you have shown me in the past and help re-establish the glory of the Lewis Fami—"
"What the hell are you talking about?"
SWOOSH!
Before Sasha could even finish her long rant or respond to Melanie’s words, both of her arms were instantly sliced off their hinges.
At that moment, the only thing that could be heard was her loud, blood-curdling scream.
Blood spurted out of her two open wounds as she cried and squirmed in the thick puddle that formed beneath her.
She begged for mercy.
She shouted for help.
All the while, watching Melanie stand atop her with an unfeeling gaze.
"Everything you said is nonsense. You are an assassin sent by our enemies to kill both me and my brother. As the head of household affairs, it is my duty to eliminate you as quickly as possible."
"B-but... Lady Melanie... You told me... You said... arrghhh!!!"
"Enough."
Melanie stabbed Sasha in her chest with an invisible blade, her vermillion gaze shining in the darkness.
Even as tiny droplets of blood splattered on her face, she didn’t flinch.
The moment she withdrew her blade, Sasha’s dainty body crumpled on the ground and lost all the luster of life.
"Take care of this mess, would you?"
Dark-robed men suddenly appeared from the shadows as soon as those words echoed within the stench-filled void.
"Yes, Lady Melanie!"
"There are still many things that don’t make sense about this incident..." Tilting her glasses ever so slightly, Melanie sighed and took one final look at the gory corpse.
"I’ll investigate it myself."
.....
[One Week Later]
Derek held his breath as he sat cross-legged in his room.
Beads of sweat had long formed on his face, but he ignored the rising heat of his body and kept his eyes tightly shut.
After three excruciating hours of remaining in this position, he finally released a cloud of turbid breath and slowly pried his eyes open.
"Finally..." His lips curled up into a smile as he listened to the voice in his mind.
[After a whole week, Magia Circuits connecting your right hand and head to your Central Path have been fully formed.]
"Thanks, Max... We really did it!"
[It should be noted that the channels are not as complex as they ought to be, since we focused on efficiency and speed. The channels in your hand do not extend to all of your individual fingers, only your palm and index finger. As for your head, the channels are limited to your eyes, throat, lips, and brain. Every other aspect will require further time to fully connect. However, the bare minimum has been reached, as you wished.]
"I understand..." Derek sighed before looking at his right hand with a beaming smile.
Normally, when a Magia Circuit formed on its own, it would connect every part of the body to the Central Path. That would allow the Magus to release Magia from any part of their body and use the energy freely.
Derek, however, opted for a shortcut.
[With this development, you can use Spells by uttering the appropriate chants with Magia infused in them. You can also engrave runes using your right index finger. In addition, you can emit Magia when you cast a Spell through your hand, eyes, and mouth. It will take a little longer to fully connect every other essential component of those two parts.]
"Thanks. Once it’s finished, you should focus on my feet. I can’t forget mobility, since it’ll be crucial for escaping any enemy assault."
[Understood.]
"Also—" Derek’s smile suddenly froze when he realized something.
It wasn’t as important back when he couldn’t even utilize Magia, but with the prospect now before him, he couldn’t help but recall...
"... I don’t know any Spells or Runes."
He pressed both hands on his head as he loudly groaned in frustration.
The truth was, despite being Inept, Derek still had a passion for Magecraft and he desired to study Spells and Runes even if he couldn’t use them.
However, because of the interference of his siblings, he was denied access to any meaningful texts.
Thus, he never learned any of the basics and he barely even witnessed the use of any Spells or Runes. It almost seemed as though he wasn’t a core member of a Magus Household.
"It seems the next step is trying to figure out how to gain access to the necessary Spells and Runes that I need."
[That is incorrect.]
"What do you mean?"
Derek paused his assessment and focused on the Magus Codex.
The next thing he heard shocked him.
[Have you already forgotten? Your sister used two Spells in front of you last week. I was able to memorize both of them without any problems.]
"H-hold on... So I can replicate them?!"
Derek’s heart jumped almost as soon as he processed those words.
[Not yet. According to my calculations, the Magia required to execute those Spells far exceeds your current threshold. Even the barest minimum is above your level. In that case, they are Spells inaccessible to the current you.]
"I see..." His expression fell almost as soon as it rose.
[However, that’s not all. After doing another quick scan of your memories, I have noticed many instances of you reading Magus texts. I can extrapolate the data from those books to yield a meaningful result.]
"Oh... those." Derek heard this and sighed, still dejected. "I couldn’t understand anything in those texts. My siblings restricted access to any information that could benefit me in any way. I doubt you will—"
[Few matches found. I have been able to decipher some of the texts and cross-referenced them with certain visual and auditory data found in your memories. I will now begin deciphering...]
’Huh?’
Derek was dumbfounded as he waited a few seconds until the Magus Codex spoke once again.
[Matches confirmed! After my analysis, I found three complete Runes that are consistent with everything in my database. They are safe to use, they fall under the limits of your current Magia capacity, and their functions have been determined. If you wish, I can transcribe these Runes into Spells for ease of access.]
"P-please do..." Derek’s heart began to race with uncontrollable speed.
It felt like his chest was about to explode.
[Transcribing Complete!
Spell #1: Illuminate
Source: Extrapolated from the Runes used to maintain continuous lighting in the Estate.
Spell #2: Invigorate
Source: Extrapolated from the Runes that can be found in the infirmary. You have visited that place many times after consistent run-ins with your older brother.
Spell #9: Projection
Source: Extrapolated from the Runes engraved in certain parts of the Estate to disseminate auditory and visual information, like signs and direction.
NOTE: Naturally, these were analyzed alongside information from the texts in your memories]
"Amazing..." Derek was tongue-tied, his quivering lips unable to mutter any other word as he was assailed with different emotions.
As he watched the texts dance before him, another set of words appeared before his eyes and played in his mind.
[Which Spell do you wish to try out first?]
He remained speechless for some time until he inevitably broke the silence.
"The first..."
Derek stretched out his right hand and closed his eyes.
He felt the flow of Magia ooze through the channels in his body, from his Central Path to his right arm.
The energy coalesced atop his palm.
Then, he whispered.
"... Spell #1: Illuminate."
In an instant, an illusory white light materialized above his right hand.
The brilliance was so intense that despite his eyes being closed, he could feel its glow piercing his eyelids.
Derek raised his right hand above his head as he slowly opened his eyes.
He watched sparks of luminescence flutter around the room, fueling the sparks that blinked in and out of existence.
He stood at the center of the radiance.
The magical moment deeply moved him, causing him to tremble as the lights slowly dimmed.
"I did it..." Derek whispered, his vision turning dark as tears rolled down his cheeks and quietly fell to the ground.
"I cast my first Spell."