WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: LilGuyBlastoise
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ I Made Magic Easier by Changing the Formula ◈
Chapter 19: A Miracle Etched with the Mana Needle
──────
How much time had passed?
Footsteps broke the silence of the underground prison.
There was more than one.
Several people were coming.
At last, the moment had arrived.
Torchlight flickered, casting long shadows across the walls. Nen appeared first. Instead of standing before the bars as usual, she stepped aside.
Behind her stood Ellen, her face pale.
And then...
Count Valderk stood there, wrapped in a biting chill.
“...”
The Count looked down at me without a word.
His sharp gaze swept over the tools piled inside the cell and the stacks of finished handkerchiefs.
His eyes held both contempt and disbelief.
“You're quite the crafty one.”
The Count spoke.
“A man with his head on the chopping block is doing business from inside a prison. Is money the only thing in that head of yours?”
His mockery was cold.
I met his eyes directly.
“It isn't for money, my lord.”
“Then what is it for?”
“Good faith.”
“Good faith?”
The Count's brow twitched.
“I promised the Magic Tower that I would deliver these by today. Even if I am destined to die here, I wish to keep the promises I made while alive. It is my final pride as both a merchant and a human being.”
My voice did not waver.
Because it was not a lie.
A strange light entered the Count's eyes.
“I expected you to beg pathetically for your life. Yet a lowly commoner dares speak of good faith and pride before death?”
“What does status matter before good faith?”
“Hah! You've got quite the mouth.”
The Count snorted.
“Fine. Let us say you keep your faith and send out the goods. What then? You asked for dress materials as well. What scheme is that?”
“It is for Lady Ellen.”
I glanced at Ellen.
She was looking at me with desperate eyes.
“I want to make her the star of the ball at the upcoming banquet for the Crown Prince.”
“You? A mere repairman?”
“I heard that Lady Sophia of House Bergen hired Duell, who uses illusion magic. Surely you do not wish to see Lady Ellen lose to them and become a laughingstock.”
The Count's expression hardened.
It seemed I had struck the mark.
‘Count Valderk hates losing to his rival, Count Bergen, more than death itself.’
Realistically, though, he could not find a tailor capable of defeating Duell, so he had been stewing over it.
That was why he needed me.
“You are insolent. Do you truly think you can defeat Duell?”
“I can.”
I answered firmly.
“Duell's magic is flashy, but it is nothing more than a trick. I can show you the real thing. I will make every gaze in that ballroom fall not upon the young lady of House Bergen, but upon the young lady of House Valderk.”
A tense silence followed.
The Count crossed his arms and glared at me.
“You must have a condition.”
His voice was low.
“If you succeed, will you ask to be released?”
Ellen and Nen, standing beside him, brightened.
The Count had shown room for negotiation.
But he coldly drove in the nail.
“Do not misunderstand. I have no intention of releasing you.”
“Father!”
Ellen called out desperately, but the Count ignored her.
“You learned our family's secret passage. There is no way you will leave alive.”
His voice was icy.
“I originally intended to kill you. However, if you defeat Duell, I may consider sparing your life.”
It was a hopeless declaration.
Yet inside, I cheered.
‘That is exactly what I wanted.’
I had never intended to leave in the first place.
There was an endless source of mana deeper inside this prison.
It was a hundred times better to remain trapped here and expand my mana core than to struggle outside with pitiful amounts of mana.
A place that provided food, clothing, shelter, unlimited mana, and safety from outside threats.
To me, this was not a prison. It was a training ground blessed by heaven.
Of course, unlike my true feelings, I put on a solemn expression.
“I understand. If that is the price of learning the secret, I will accept it willingly.”
“You will still do it?”
“Even if I must live imprisoned here for the rest of my life... I want to prove my skill. More than anything, I want to repay the kindness Lady Ellen showed me.”
Tears filled Ellen's eyes.
Nen, too, bit her lip as though moved.
The Count clicked his tongue.
“Are you a clever brat? Or just stubborn to the point of stupidity?”
He muttered something incomprehensible before his gaze hardened.
“I will give you an opportunity. Make Ellen the star of the ball, just as you said. Then I will not kill you, and I will at least allow you to live in there.”
Killing intent flashed in his eyes.
“But if you fail, you will not die peacefully.”
“I will succeed. However...”
I trailed off.
“There is one thing I wish to ask.”
“Speak.”
“No one in Rowen is unaware of House Valderk's prestige. And everyone knows it is nothing like House Bergen.”
The Count's eyebrow moved faintly.
“House Bergen would throw away a promise to a mere commoner like an old shoe the moment it lost its use. But I believe the head of House Valderk would never so lightly take back words once spoken.”
The Count's face froze.
“...Are you comparing Valderk to the likes of Bergen?”
Anger seeped into his low voice.
“That would be unthinkable. Which is why I believe you.”
The Count glared at me for a long while.
“If you believed Valderk's standing was equal to the likes of Bergen, you were gravely mistaken. I give you my word in the name of Valderk. Prove your ability.”
“Yes. I will prove it.”
I lowered my head and cheered inwardly.
‘It is a vow made in the name of his House. The Count can never take back this promise.’
That saved my life for now.
And it gave me the chance to train here without concern from now on.
“Nen.”
The Count turned around.
“Give this man whatever he asks for. Handle the handkerchief delivery and obtain all the materials he needs. But watch him closely. Report it immediately if he tries anything.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Relief colored Nen's voice.
Ellen stepped toward the iron bars.
“I'm sorry, Hans... You're in this situation because of me...”
“Don't cry, my lady. You must smile more beautifully than anyone on the day of the ball.”
“Okay. I will. And I promise, I will convince Father and get you out. Just wait a little longer.”
Ellen and the Count left, while Nen remained behind.
She looked at me with a complicated expression.
“You really are incredible, Hans. I never thought you would persuade the Count.”
“My sincerity must have reached him. Now deliver the handkerchiefs to the Magic Tower and get the materials. There is no time.”
“Alright. I'll be right back.”
Nen hesitated for a moment, then whispered softly.
“Thank you for surviving.”
She gathered the thousand handkerchiefs and left.
The prison was empty again.
I approached the crack in the rock deeper in the cave, where mana poured forth.
The cell was quiet, but my heart pounded as though it would burst.
Not from anxiety or fear.
‘No matter how I look at it, this place is insane. It is truly an insane environment.’
A laugh kept escaping my lips.
“Even if they shove me out, I'm not leaving.”
Thinking of the days when I scraped together scraps just to save on mana crystal costs nearly brought tears to my eyes.
Here, mana flooded into my lungs just by breathing.
‘Of course, I need to stay alive if I want to keep enjoying this.’
Survival was the basic requirement.
I had to successfully alter the dress and prove my worth.
For that, I needed a device to efficiently control this absurdly overflowing mana.
I took out the intermediate mana crystals Nen had brought me.
About half their mana remained, and they glowed faintly.
“I will change what these are used for.”
The old method was to draw out and use the mana inside mana crystals.
But there was no need for that here.
The Mana Reflux Magic Circle would refill an emptied core.
The mana crystals did not need to store mana. They needed another role.
‘I will make another magic circle with these.’
[Ancient Mana Circuit Blueprint]
[Third-Tier Mana Amplification]
[Third-Tier Acceleration Spell Formula]
.
.
.
It required highly complex calculations, but that was nothing to me.
The key to the new magic circle was acceleration.
‘I will use the mana crystals not as power sources, but as accelerators.’
Mana replenished by the Reflux Circle would be released faster and more precisely through the mana crystals.
Before long, a new magic circle of geometric beauty was complete on the floor.
[Acceleration Magic Circle]
The Mana Reflux Magic Circle refilled my mana as soon as my core ran dry.
The Acceleration Magic Circle greatly reduced the delay in casting magic.
‘Shall I begin?’
The moment I poured in a handful of mana as a catalyst,
Hummm!
The Acceleration Magic Circle glowed blue.
At the same time, part of the mana stored in the Mana Reflux Magic Circle was drawn into the mana crystals.
Sizzle!
The incoming mana resonated with the mana within the crystals.
The light grew even stronger.
‘Success.’
Fwoooosh!
Refined, high-purity mana enveloped me.
Unlike the harsh natural mana, mana filtered through the magic circle flowed far more smoothly even into my narrow core.
“With this... I can do anything.”
Whenever my mana was depleted, the Mana Reflux Magic Circle refilled it, and every cycle of depletion and refilling gradually enlarged my mana core.
‘Infinite casting is possible.’
With this much mana, I could even launch a fairly large fireball.
‘But I can't do that.’
If I fired such spells recklessly, this cave would not remain intact.
The noise was also a problem.
If a blast echoed through the walls, the Count would realize someone was using magic underground.
‘I cannot let my own hand expose the training ground I worked so hard to claim.’
The answer was obvious.
Magic I could pour into freely without leaving traces or making noise.
Magic that would let me spend every last drop of mana without waste.
[Mana Needle]
I flicked my finger through the air.
Pop! Pop! Papapop!
Dozens of Mana Needles shot from my fingertips in rapid succession.
Making even three or four had once made me dizzy, but now I could maintain dozens at the same time without harming my core.
The Reflux Circle replenished my core the moment mana left it.
‘It may be First Tier in name, but this casting speed and sustained output are practically Third-Tier level.’
[Multi-Calculation]
[High-Speed Chanting]
[Mana Form Maintenance]
All these advanced techniques had been integrated into a single everyday magic spell, Mana Needle.
“Faster... Even faster.”
I fired Mana Needles into the empty air all day.
My fingers moved so quickly they could no longer be seen.
One day, I would reach the Second Tier, no, even beyond it through my own strength without this tool.
For now, I could only gratefully continue training in this environment.
“...Hans?”
After how much time had passed?
Nen's voice came from the cave entrance.
I stopped training, drew a rough breath, and turned around.
Nen stood outside the bars.
Her face was slightly more flushed than usual.
“I took care of what you asked.”
She handed a pouch through the bars.
“This is fifty gold coins, payment for the thousand handkerchiefs.”
I took the pouch.
Fifty gold.
The heavy weight of the gold coins.
It was payment for my labor and capital for what came next.
“Thank you. But what about the dress materials? I asked you to buy them with this money.”
At my question, Nen pushed another bundle through the bars.
It was full of the materials I had listed.
They were far higher quality and more expensive than what I had requested.
“What is this?”
“It is the head of House's order. He said the family would cover the full cost of materials needed to make the dress.”
Count Valderk.
He was ruthless, but thorough when it came to calculation.
‘Since it is for his daughter, he intends to support it without holding back.’
At the same time, it was pressure.
If I failed, I would die.
“And I informed the Magic Tower branch that additional deliveries will be difficult for a while due to personal circumstances.”
“Well done.”
I answered calmly.
It would be suspicious to keep making and selling goods while imprisoned.
For now, delivering those thousand handkerchiefs had preserved the Magic Tower's trust.
The next transaction would happen after I left here alive.
“Hans.”
Nen called to me.
Her eyes were more serious than ever.
“You know this is truly your last chance, right?”
“...”
“The Count is giving you extraordinary favor. Providing the finest materials to a prisoner and letting you keep the delivery payment... It has never happened before. It means he has great expectations for this ball.”
Nen swallowed.
“If your results do not match the confidence you showed... then neither Lady Ellen nor I will be able to protect you.”
Her voice was filled with worry.
“Don't worry, Nen.”
I smiled.
It was not bravado.
All preparations were complete.
“Everyone will see clothes they have never even imagined.”
Only then did Nen, seeing the confidence in my eyes, let out a relieved sigh.
“This is from Lady Ellen.”
Finally, she handed me a garment bag.
When I opened it, a dress the deep blue of the night sky appeared.
“I received it. You should go now. There is no time.”
“Don't skip meals. I will make sure to bring plenty of food.”
Nen left, her worried gaze lingering behind.
‘I must hurry.’
I immediately spread the dress over the workbench and examined it with High-Precision Vision.
The fabric was good, and the tailoring was excellent.
‘But it is ordinary.’
At this rate, it would be buried beneath Duell's flashy illusion magic and would not even get the chance to shine.
‘I will show them what real magic is.’
I threaded silver thread coated in mana solution through Mana Needles and embedded invisible, delicate currents of light into the fabric's surface.
Mana seeped in each time a needle pierced the cloth.
“...No. This is not enough.”
It certainly glowed mysteriously.
But the fabric and mana had not fused perfectly. They remained separate.
The reason was clear.
‘The limit of First-Tier mana.’
I might be casting at high speed and without delay in ways even Third-Tier mages could not easily imitate.
But that did not change the fact that I was fundamentally limited to the First Tier.
‘No matter how much I compress First-Tier mana, it cannot perfectly fill the tiny gaps between the fibers.’
If I completed it this way, it would only be slightly better than illusion magic.
I could not create an overwhelming difference.
‘It would be different with Second-Tier mana.’
Thick, dense mana could seep into the fibers and turn the fabric itself into a light source.
But my mana core was still only a cramped First-Tier core.
“Phew...”
It was enough to drive me mad.
I had a perfect blueprint in my head, but my body could not keep up.
Should I just compromise?
‘No.’
I shook my head.
My life was at stake.
If I could not surpass that tailor Duell, Count Valderk would have no reason to keep me alive.
“Let's try. If I make it denser, it may be possible even at the First Tier.”
What if I embedded mana ten times... no, a hundred times in every spot where I should place it once?
It was madness.
Unless I had mana to spare.
But...
‘This place has mana to spare. It is not impossible.’
I ran the magic circles at full power.
Hummm!
Mana surged in like a waterfall.
[Mana Needle]
[Mana Needle]
[Mana Needle]
.
.
.
Compress it and make it denser.
Do not stop. Keep going.
My mana core vibrated.
My blood vessels swelled as though they would burst.
‘Urgh!’
Terrible pain washed over me.
But I continued working.
Fill it, then compress it.
When it was spent, fill it again.
Even in this situation, I pursued ultimate efficiency.
I would not allow even a single unit of mana to scatter into the air.
Every bit of overflowing mana went into Mana Needles!
[Mana Needle]
[Mana Needle]
[Mana Needle]
.
.
.
I forgot time.
I forgot myself.
Lost in a trance, I focused only on mechanically repeating the work.
How much time passed like that?
Boom!
A tremendous crash suddenly rang out as though something inside me had exploded.
Before I could even be startled,
Zzzzt!
The mana flowing through my body became incomparably stronger than before.
My entire body felt refreshed.
Energy surged through me as though I could fly.
‘Could this be...?’
My vision abruptly cleared.
Mana Needles formed at my fingertips with absurd ease.
“...My mana core has been reconstructed.”
How had this happened?
My disbelief only lasted a moment.
A thrill ran down my spine.
My obsession with perfecting the dress.
My desperate effort to ensure that not even a single unit of mana escaped!
That had shattered the limits of this trash body.
[Second-Tier Unlocked]
Unbelievably, I had crossed the threshold through an entirely unexpected method.
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