Alex absorbed innumerable specks of mana through his skin.
'Still pretty inefficient.' He sighed, looking at his slightly reddened skin.
'I'm not sure whether this is something unavoidable or not.'
Not knowing how to improve his absorption technique, Alex focused on manipulating his mana.
'What else can I change? I'm pretty good at changing the shape. Temperature? Behavior?'
There were too many things Alex could start with, but he turned his attention to something else. 'How much mana can I wield?'
Technically this wasn't the right time to ask himself this question, as Alex had no core yet.
While the core would help control mana, it was just part of the equation. Most of the lifting would be done by the caster.
Alex shook the unnecessary thoughts. 'Before that, what can I use to catalyze mana? Expending my own energy seems too tedious.'
Without thinking much about the problem, Alex approached the fire and took a lump of unburnt coal before throwing it at the ball of mana.
As expected, nothing much happened besides some slight sparks.
'Haa. Seems like I have to tire myself to make this work.'
In no time, Alex held a globe of mana about the size of a small watermelon above his hand. Sweat pooled at his temples, and his clothes were damp.
Nevertheless, this seemed to be the maximum Alex could wield with relative ease. He could still shape the mana in whatever way he imagined, so that was a relief.
He had been worried mana would resist more as the quantity increased, but that didn't seem to be the case. Or maybe, the quantity Alex wielded was still considered on the lower end of the spectrum.
'Now what?' With everything Alex had in mind more or less completed, he could say he was done with his experiments.
That said, he still didn't have a clue about what a core is, where it should be placed, or whether it can be shaped in any way.
'Do I need a magic circle in order to create a mana core?'
Alex could spend most of his time slowly uncovering magic's secrets, but it would take too much time.
With his experiments complete, Alex decided it was time to head back to the city.
Even though he was physically tired, Alex never felt as powerful. His body brimmed with mana, filling every part with strength.
'I can't waste this now, can I?' Alex pondered, looking at the sizeable amount of mana hovering above his palm.
After a shrug, the mana burst into innumerable smaller parts before each one slowly drifted toward Alex's body.
The absorption process was relatively straightforward. Alex only needed to push the mana through his skin, and then it would be naturally absorbed.
There were no circulation techniques Alex knew of, so he couldn't say there weren't more efficient ways to cultivate. For his purposes, however, this worked just fine.
Even as the large lump of mana pierced through his skin, Alex didn't lose contact with it. Nudging it along his veins, he first waited for the mana to spread evenly across his body before pushing it into his muscles, bones, and skin.
It was a more painful process than it seemed, as Alex had to force the mana into place. It hurt like hell, but the rewards were more than equal to the pain, so he couldn't complain.
Letting out a long breath, Alex opened his eyes and stood up, feeling the strength in his body. He quickly put out the fire and took out his compass before making his way back toward the city.
He dreaded the dense forest that stood between him and his destination, but he didn't know a way around it, so Alex swallowed his curses and stepped forward.
The journey back wasn't as bad as Alex had imagined, probably due to his increased strength, but whatever the case may be, he was relieved he had finally arrived.
As he approached the large gates of Vizin, sweaty and hungry, Alex saw a familiar figure run in his direction.
"Alex… haaa… Miss Violet's… looking for you."
Alex sighed, slightly irritated.
"What now, Vie? I want to take a bath, so make it quick."
Vie raised a hand as she tried reigning in her erratic breathing.
"We're in trouble."
Alex's previous irrigation disappeared, instead replaced by seriousness. "What happened?"
'It can't be those guards, can it? Did Violet do something stupid?' Alex didn't expect to feel this strongly for someone he barely knew. Probably he felt responsible for beating those guards up.
A multitude of thoughts ran through his mind as Alex waited for Vie to respond.
"I cannot talk about it here. Please, come and talk with Madam Violet."
Alex shook his head in exasperation. "Lead the way."
In his mind, Alex let out a sigh. 'Since Vie cannot talk about it here, it must mean whatever problem Violet faces has nothing to do with those guards. On the other hand, this is something much worse.'
As Alex was having these thoughts, he and Vie reached the Red Light district, not far from the gate they entered.
Since it was daylight, there were few people, and most were there to work on the buildings, repair roof tiles, or replace broken windows.
Even so, this wasn't what caught Alex's attention. Violet was pacing in a circle, in front of her establishment, biting her fingernails.
She caught sight of Alex and rushed as fast as her legs carried her.
Seeing as Violet didn't slow down, Alex braced himself as the "Madam" jumped into his arms like a lover. To him, the lady in his arms was light as a feather.
Violet's happiness was, however, short-lived. "You stink." She said, catching a whiff of Alex's sweaty neck.
She immediately climbed down and straightened her dress. "I need your help. Please."
She pleaded before continuing. "And you need a bath."
Alex stared blankly at her before sending a meaningful look at Vie. To Violet, he said. "Less nagging, more telling me what's going on."
"Come inside."
Alex felt like shit. All his clothes stuck to his skin every time he moved, and the unmoving air inside Night's Sky made him sweat even more.
Shaking sweat from his eyes, Alex relied on muscle memory to lead him into Violet's office.
"Where are you going?"
Alex rubbed the salt off his eyes and looked at Violet with difficulty. He saw her walking down a hallway he hadn't been to before.
Violet opened a door and pointed inside. "Get in."
Alex was confused as he couldn't see inside the room yet. 'Oh, bathroom.'
The bathroom wasn't anything fancy. There was a shallow pool on one side of the room, divided by a wooden wall.
Violet entered after Alex but didn't follow him to the pool. "How did your experiments go?"
Alex took off his clothes and placed them in a basket nearby. "Pretty well. I do not have a reference, so I cannot confidently say it went perfectly." He stepped into the pool and proceeded to wash himself.
"What's going on? Is there another job that needs to get done?" He continued.
"Wouldn't have sent word to you if that weren't the case," Violet replied from behind the dividing wall. "Well, the problem is the Vizin's underbelly plans something, and I've been excluded from their little council."
Alex grew a bit serious. "Because you've been dealing with the Moonmares?"
"That's part of the reason, but mostly because my little business has customers from both parts of the city. Thieves, cutthroats, and guards all use my rooms and my girls. If you think about it, I have immunity on both sides."
Alex nodded in understanding. "So you can't be present when the important stuff is brought up."
Violet hummed in agreement, but Alex was still confused.
"And what are you afraid of? What this has anything to do with you?"
Violet sighed and replied. "You may not know this, but a lot of fencers around here are pushed out by the Moonmares. Those nobles don't fear dabbling on the black market, and they monopolized most of it.
And now, those fencers turned their eyes onto my brothel.
"Aha." Alex finally understood. "Let's talk about my pay."
"6 gold coins," Violet replied instantly.
Alex got up from the water and wore a clean white robe. "Who do I need to kill?"