Lucien felt a rush of exhilaration.
He could finally see mana!
The radiant swirls in the air.
The glimmering hues dancing with the wind.
The subtle light that colored the world.
He could perceive them now. It was beautiful. Breathtaking, even.
But the joy didn't last.
He could only see mana while using INSPECT. Unlike everyone of this world who could freely observe it with focus, Lucien was still an outsider peeking through a crack in the door.
But then, something else caught his attention...
The mana...
There was no mana inside his body!
His eyes narrowed. That wasn't just odd. It was impossible.
Every living being needed mana to survive. It was like blood... something essential.
"What… is this?" he muttered, unsettled.
It didn't make sense.
There was no damage.
No sign of illness.
Just emptiness.
"Ahem. Clara," Lucien called, masking his confusion behind a veil of mystery. "This vessel of mine seems unable to harness mana. Any idea why?"
Clara blinked in surprise. Without a word of doubt, she stepped closer. Her gaze was filled with reverence and curiosity.
Then she bowed slightly, asking in a tone that barely concealed her eagerness, "My Lord… may I be so bold as to touch your divine body?"
Her voice trembled slightly.... Not from fear but from excitement.
Lucien gave a small nod. "Go ahead. If it helps you understand what's wrong."
She reached out and gently took Lucien's hand. Her fingers trembled ever so slightly. With deliberate care, she cupped his hand between both of hers then closed her eyes as if trying to sense something beyond the physical.
Moments passed in stillness.
Then her brows knit tightly together.
"This is…!"
Her eyes snapped open and shock flooded her face. Then just as quickly, horror overtook her expression.
But what followed next was unexpected.
A crazed, awestruck smile spread across her lips. Her voice trembled with reverence.
"As expected of my Lord…! This vessel is broken… and yet you live!"
Lucien blinked, thrown off by the sudden shift.
"What are you talking about?" he asked, eyes narrowing. "What do you mean by 'broken'?"
Clara answered with reverent awe, her voice filled with unshakable belief.
"A body born with no mana vessels should not exist... At least, not for long. Hypothetically, a newborn like that would die moments after birth. Without mana vessels, the body can't absorb or circulate the mana that permeates this world. It's like blood without veins. The moment mana tries to enter, it becomes poison. The body suffocates from within."
Lucien went quiet.
Twelve years.
He had lived for twelve years in this world, seemingly healthy except for the inability to use magic. Could everything really be traced back to this? A defect so severe it should've killed him as an infant?
Clara pressed on, her eyes now shimmering with admiration.
"And yet, my Lord is here! Alive. Awake. Speaking. Your body defies reason. As expected of my Lord… even in a broken vessel, your power overflows. I feel your power is sustaining this vessel... something beyond natural law! I can feel it... the traces of divine energy. It's woven into the body's very life force."
'Divine energy again... could it be the system?' But that didn't make sense. He only received the system recently. If what Clara said was true, then something else must have kept him alive all this time.
He didn't have all the answers yet but one thing was certain. He finally knew why he couldn't use magic.
No mana vessels.
A congenital defect. If he was truly born this way then it couldn't be healed or trained away. It was a flaw at the foundation of his existence.
But even so, he refused to give up.
Because now… he had a new lead.
Divine Energy.
If he couldn't wield mana then perhaps he could wield something else... something greater.
He exhaled slowly lost in thought until Clara who was still holding his hand, suddenly spoke again with hesitation.
"Also… I can feel another faint trace of divine energy within your vessel, my Lord," she said softly. "It's subtle but familiar. Like the candy you gave me. When I ate it, I felt a small spark of divine energy enter my body. It nourished me, even if only for a moment…"
Lucien's eyes widened. A grin tugged at his lips.
Of course. The drops. The strange items he had consumed.
Clara was sharp. A little unhinged, yes... but incredibly perceptive. Her madness didn't bother him so much anymore, not when she was this useful.
If his understanding was correct, then the drops he'd consumed like the Honey, were slowly nourishing his body with divine energy. That explained the strange descriptions hidden in their item details, the effects he never fully understood until now.
Still, the amount was minimal. Too faint for him to truly feel. It was there but barely.
Lucien then noticed that it was getting late.
"Enough for today," Lucien said, turning to Clara. "Let's head back to my territory. Come eat with me at the manor. Rest for now and we'll talk more tomorrow."
Clara lit up with joy, bowing slightly. "Yes, my Lord!"
She followed behind him... like a devoted servant basking in her master's shadow.
•••
Dawn.
Lucien stirred in his sleep. A low, pained moan escaped his lips. His body trembled under the sheets.
He was dreaming.
But this was no ordinary nightmare.
His entire frame quivered then, with a sudden jolt, he rolled off the bed and crashed to the floor.
His eyes snapped open.
And he screamed.
A blood-curdling howl tore from his throat as invisible pain surged through every inch of his body.
Sharp.
Suffocating.
Relentless.
It felt like a thousand fire ants biting from the inside out. Eating through his nerves and bone.
His limbs jerked uncontrollably. His hands... his own hands... moved to his throat and began choking him as if possessed.
"What the hell is happening?!"
Panic took hold.
The pain dulled his senses.
He couldn't breathe.
Couldn't think.
"INSPECT."
And then he saw it.
A dark, malevolent aura had enveloped his body. A twisted fog of bleak mana writhed like a living curse.
It wasn't just hurting him... it was consuming him!
His vision blurred.
The agony escalated.
His sanity frayed at the edges.
In desperation, Lucien slammed his head against the floor to break the pain.
Blood poured from his nose.
Bruises spread across his arms, legs, chest.
Everywhere.
He activated Slime Beast Mode. But...
Nothing changed.
The transformation only made things worse. The flexible slime body couldn't stop the torment.
Wounds kept forming.
Pain kept rising.
He canceled it immediately.
And then...
BOOM!
It felt as if a massive, invisible hammer struck the very core of his being.
His body convulsed violently as the floor beneath him trembled.
The force was crushing.
Unrelenting.
Lucien's eyes rolled back.
He felt death creeping in.
But suddenly… Lucien's body began to glow.
A soft, golden light pulsed from his chest... Gentle but almost sorrowful.
And then...
[Ting!]
[Life-Link Talisman (Bound) is Destroyed.]
It was like a thread had been severed.
Lucien's breath caught in his throat. His heart skipped a beat then it thundered.
He had died.