WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: LilGuyBlastoise
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◈ I Made Magic Easier by Changing the Formula ◈
Chapter 14: The Mana Reflux Magic Circle
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The attack weapon was ready.
Now all that remained was defense.
Buying magic-infused armor from a merchant was madness.
It cost dozens, even hundreds, of gold.
Besides, if a commoner walked around in gleaming armor, that alone would make them a target.
“Rather than buy it, I’ll make it.”
A protective top in the form of an undershirt, not outerwear.
It had to be inconspicuous while still able to stop swords, arrows, and concealed weapons.
The problem was the materials.
It would be nice if I had something like the legendary Arachne’s spiderweb, but of course I didn’t.
All I had was tough silk thread and hemp thread commonly sold at the market.
Could that stop an assassin’s blade?
‘Not normally. But there’s a way.’
If the materials were ordinary, I just had to make the process special.
I arranged five intermediate mana crystals in a pentagon on the workbench.
I placed a skein of silk thread in the center.
According to what I had read in books, magic armor was made by coating an object’s surface in mana to harden it.
That gave it a metallic sheen and made it rigid.
Anyone could tell at a glance that it was enchanted.
My method was different.
[First-Tier Transformation Formula: Compression]
[First-Tier Transformation Formula: Flexibility]
Naturally, no First-Tier household magic with names like these existed anywhere in academia.
I had taken existing formulas apart, modified them, and combined them anew.
I only classified them as First Tier because First Tier was all I could use.
Theoretically, they even incorporated material from the Third Tier.
‘It doesn’t matter. If I say it’s First Tier, it’s First Tier.’
If high-ranking mages saw this, they might get angry that I was applying advanced Third-Tier knowledge to something so trivial.
‘It’s not like I’m going to show anyone.’
This was magic I made for myself alone, to use myself alone.
[Compression]
[Flexibility]
Tssst! Whoooosh!
The mana from the intermediate mana crystals was continuously drawn into the skein of thread.
All night, I compressed the thread’s structure.
Only its internal density changed while its volume remained the same.
I continually layered flexibility-enhancing magic over it so it would not become stiff.
Three full days passed.
The ordinary silk thread was reborn as something entirely different.
“It worked.”
It was highly compressed, yet not hard.
If anything, it felt softer than before.
But when I tried to cut it with scissors, the blades bounced away.
Snip! Snip!
Even after dozens of cuts, it was useless.
The same went for a knife.
‘It won’t cut easily by ordinary means.’
Only the aura of knights or the magic of high-ranking mages could cut it.
An ordinary sword or pair of scissors could not.
Of course, I could cut it.
All I had to do was change the flow in the part I wanted to sever.
It was a secret formula I had created, a method only I could use.
That was the power of the household magic I had made.
“The thread is ready, so now let’s make the clothes.”
I spread out a shirt pattern and picked up a needle.
This was war.
A war against myself.
In the instant the needle pierced the cloth, I had to inject mana and fuse the thread and fabric into one.
Mana injection with every stitch.
Impact dispersion with every stitch.
Poke, rrrip!
Each time the needle passed through the fabric, veins bulged in my forehead.
My finger joints hurt as though they would snap.
“Urgh...”
I had only sewn one sleeve cuff, yet my mana core was empty.
I nearly collapsed onto the workbench from dizziness.
Normally, I should have stopped here and rested.
But I could not rest.
I had no idea when the assassin might come again.
‘I think there was a way to recover mana quickly in times like this.’
An ancient forbidden training method I had read about in a book.
[Mana Reflux Magic Circle]
After draining one’s mana completely, it forcibly replenished it.
It was a bizarre training method that repeated the process endlessly, tearing and expanding the core.
‘They said ancient mages either went mad and died doing this, or their cores burst and left them crippled.’
There was a reason it was called a forbidden magic circle.
Even afterward, countless mages had ruined themselves trying to imitate it.
Many still pursued it despite knowing the danger because it was that tempting.
‘For a mage, being able to quickly replenish depleted mana is more deadly than any temptation.’
I had a pathetic mana core that ran dry as soon as I cast a single spell.
‘If I can make this work...’
The Mana Reflux Magic Circle.
Until now, I had not even attempted it.
I did not want to become crippled.
‘Instead of thinking it can’t be done, let’s change the formula to suit me.’
I opened the library in my mind.
[Mana Reflux Magic Circle: Original Formula]
- Release core mana
- Inject external mana
- Expand the core!
Countless people had followed those three steps, and every one of them had failed.
‘They all failed.’
The biggest problem was forcibly injecting external mana.
It was a gamble of pouring mana into a solid core just to see whether it broke.
‘I’ll change the formula.’
Countless combinations ran through my mind.
I caught the ones that seemed most promising.
Then I modified the original formula.
[Mana Reflux Magic Circle: Transformation Formula]
- Disassemble the core circuit
- Rearrange mana
- Restore the mana circuit
‘This removes the risk of failure from forced injection.’
The circuit would even be restored to its original state with my mana fully recovered.
That was the mystery of the Mana Reflux Magic Circle.
‘There is one condition, though.’
A circuit did not remain still while mana flowed through it.
It was constantly moving.
I had to follow every movement, unravel it, and weave it again.
If I missed even one strand, it would be restored in the wrong place.
‘...That’s why no one has succeeded for hundreds of years.’
My heart pounded.
‘I’m different. I never forget anything I see.’
The flow of the circuit changed moment by moment.
I etched every strand into my mind exactly as it changed.
That was right.
The formula no one had solved for hundreds of years.
The key to solving it was Absolute Memory.
‘Mana Reflux Magic Circle! You’re mine now.’
I inscribed the magic circle beneath the workbench.
The Mana Reflux Magic Circle would operate beneath my feet while I worked.
Tssst!
First, I unraveled my core.
The instant I etched its ever-changing flow into my mind, mana from the concentrated mana crystals surged through the unraveled circuit.
“Ghk, urgh...!”
The pain felt as though my blood vessels would burst.
It was like pouring molten metal into my body.
I gritted my teeth and picked up the needle again.
[First-Tier Transformation Formula: Trace Erasure]
[First-Tier Transformation Formula: Strong Knot]
[First-Tier Transformation Formula: Rewind Cloth]
I consumed mana by casting household magic one after another.
Then I replenished it with the Mana Reflux Magic Circle.
Emptying and refilling.
Emptying and refilling.
Several days passed like that.
* * *
[Day 7 of Work]
During the day, I returned to being an ordinary mender.
Mending Ellen’s clothes came first.
When I had time, I fixed the maids’ clothes too and watched over the annex with a smile.
It was work I did not have to do.
But the process itself helped with my magic training.
Thanks to that, all the maids liked me and were cooperative.
At night, I became a ghost in the underground secret room.
Two hours of sleep a day.
Nothing but sewing and mana training.
The work progressed slowly.
Quilting the entire garment with compressed silk thread was grueling labor, like building a fortress wall with my bare hands.
I was not only making clothes for myself.
Ellen had readily given me ten expensive intermediate mana crystals.
I could not simply overlook that debt.
‘Let’s make her something.’
I remembered something she had said in passing.
“...I’ve been practicing Second-Tier magic lately, but the casting delay is troublesome. Once I cast a spell, it takes a long time before I can cast the next one.”
I could see the cause.
Residue remained in her mana circuit, obstructing the flow.
‘It’s just like soot building up in a chimney.’
All I needed to do was loosen the flow and clean away the residue.
I cut a scrap of fabric into a long strip to make a bracelet lining.
Then I applied a Transformation Formula to it and embroidered a magic circuit.
‘Done. This will remove the casting delay.’
The corner of my mouth lifted slightly.
Eliminating the casting delay meant she could cast spells in rapid succession faster than usual.
Any mage would immediately understand what that meant.
‘I wonder what expression Ellen will make when she gets it.’
It was an unimpressive scrap of rough gray fabric.
Thin and light.
Even if she wore it beneath the lavish jeweled bracelet she usually wore, no one would notice it.
I wrapped it nicely and set it aside.
* * *
[Day 15 of Work]
As dawn began to break.
‘It’s finished.’
The fingers gripping my needle were covered in calluses from burst blisters.
There were deep hollows beneath my eyes.
But my face was filled with overwhelming emotion.
‘I finally made it.’
A completed garment lay on the workbench.
It was light.
As light as a feather.
Its texture was as soft as a baby’s skin.
My masterpiece, made by pouring in the mana of five intermediate mana crystals.
[Snow-White Undershirt]
It looked like a cheap cotton shirt sold at the market.
A magical aura?
None leaked out at all.
I had hidden the mana perfectly deep within the fabric.
‘Anyone would think it was a commoner’s undershirt.’
But if someone thrust a knife at it...
It would repel it.
Arrows too.
Concealed weapons as well.
“Let’s try it on.”
The fabric, synchronized with my mana, clung to me like a second skin.
It did not hinder my movements in the slightest.
It fit wonderfully.
“My mana has increased quite a bit too.”
My mana core had always looked dry and empty.
For fifteen days, I had emptied and refilled it countless times through the Mana Reflux Magic Circle.
As a result, the core had visibly expanded.
“I reached First-Tier proficiency sooner than expected.”
I was still not at the Second Tier.
Fortunately, though, I was no longer a weakling who had to rest after every cast.
I had reached the point where I could fire [Mana Needle] several times in succession without mana crystals or equipment.
* * *
“Hans!”
Ellen entered the secret room, wrapped in a thick robe.
It had been a while since I had seen her.
“Sorry, it’s been so long, hasn’t it? I just couldn’t find time to come.”
“It’s all right.”
She looked around the cave and sniffed.
The acrid smell of burned mana.
“It’s a little messy, isn’t it? I’ll clean it up soon.”
Beneath the workbench was a heap of used gray mana crystal dust.
The five mana crystals that had formed the Mana Reflux Magic Circle.
They had reached the end of their lifespan and become spent stones.
“My goodness...”
Ellen stared in surprise at the broken pieces of mana crystal.
“Have you been training alone this entire time?”
“I need to become stronger if I want to survive.”
I answered calmly.
Ellen clicked her tongue.
“Did you get any results?”
“More or less. Ah, this is a gift.”
I held out the small wrapped piece of fabric.
It looked like an unimpressive bracelet lining.
“What is this?”
“You can attach it to the inside of the bracelet you usually wear. It will reduce your casting delay somewhat.”
“My casting delay? Really?”
Half doubtful, Ellen attached the fabric to the inside of her gold bracelet and put it on.
“Huh?”
Her eyes widened.
“This feeling... What is it? It feels like mana is sliding along by itself.”
I smiled.
Reducing casting delay.
It was an area high-ranking mages spent their entire lives training.
Magic staffs and tools that helped with it were sold at high prices.
“Would you like to cast a spell?”
“...All right.”
Ellen stretched out a hand toward an empty area of the cave.
[Fireball]
Fwoosh!
“No way. The activation time is shorter.”
“Try it once more.”
Fwoosh!
Fwoosh!
Ellen stared at me with wide eyes.
“The casting delay has been cut in half. This is the rapid incantation effect that only Third-Tier mages or above can use. How did you make this?”
“Several Composite Formulas are at work, so it would not be easy for you to understand, my lady. But you can use it without understanding it.”
“Thank you, Hans!”
Ellen excitedly grabbed my hand.
“This is really... the best gift!”
She looked as happy as a child.
Seeing that made all my fatigue seem to melt away.
“I’m glad you like it.”
“Oh, right. I have something to give you too.”
Ellen took a heavy pouch from her robe and handed it to me.
“This is your pay for the month.”
When I opened the pouch, it was filled with silver coins.
There had to be at least fifty silver inside.
“This is too much. Wasn’t our contract for five silver a month?”
“Take it. Employing talent like yours for five silver is a crime.”
Ellen hesitated for a moment, then added,
“It’s compensation for what happened with that assassin last time. And a bribe asking you to stay by my side from now on.”
Her gaze was serious.
I stopped refusing and took the pouch.
“Thank you. More importantly, I have a request.”
“What is it? Tell me anything.”
“I would like to take some leave. About ten days.”
“Leave?”
“I want to clear my head, and I have some personal matters to handle.”
The truth was that I planned to sell my stocks and investigate a few things, but there was no need to say so.
“All right. Go ahead.”
Ellen readily nodded.
“...Sophia cannot make a move right now, but be careful when you go outside anyway.”
“Don’t worry.”
I calmly smiled, feeling the [Spatial Stitching Needle] hidden inside my bracelet.
* * *
The next morning.
Rowen’s commercial district.
The stock exchange.
A city’s morning began with desire.
The stock exchange was the furnace where that desire boiled hottest.
At its center was the stock I owned.
[1,058 shares of Black Forest Timber]
‘Let’s see how much it has risen.’
I pulled my hat low and blended into the crowd.
Inside the exchange, it was utter chaos.
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