So, it sounds like I should devour little holes in the metal plates so mana can enter. Since I have a manual on how to form a mana core and have to do it, I may as well help this kid do it too. After all, she seems to know more about mana than I do currently, so maybe she can help.
"Can you sense mana?" I have no idea what mana feels like, but I'm hoping she can sense it even though her core is broken.
She nodded, "But there isn't any here."
I gave a smirk and started devouring little holes in the roof, much to her shock, then excitement. It was slow going; whatever this metal stuff is, it's a bit slow to devour with my current energy, however, it seems to be pretty energy-dense. I wasn't sure where the symbols written on the metal were, so I ended up with lots of little holes before I finally heard an excited voice.
"Mana!" She was taking in deep breaths and smiling.
Then she opened her eyes and looked disappointed; her shoulders slumped, "but it's useless with broken cores."
I looked through one of the holes and saw a wood roof above the metal sheets as I spoke, "I once heard a story of a guy who reformed his core, and I memorized the instructions; it's just a little complicated."
It seems like the structure is made of wood, and the metal is fastened inside it. This effectively transformed a shed into a prison cell.
I looked back at Lila and saw a doubtful expression.
"I'm gonna try it, and if it works, I'll help you do it too. And, what is this stuff?" I pointed at the metal.
She nodded but looked extremely doubtful. "It's a metal forged with basic mana crystals, so it's almost unbreakable."
I decided to see what was in the crates and started taking the lids off that were nailed down. Inside were many books, old weapons, some decorations, and other miscellaneous little things.
"Can you read?"
She held her fingers together and looked a little shy, "Not really, can you tell me how?"
I nodded, "Sure."
I set all the books in a stack to the side; there were some on magic that I also wanted to read to get a better understanding of the power. Most of the books were for fun reading, including fantasy, mystery, history, romance, etc. I can teach Lila to read, and she can read these when she wants.
The old beat-up weapons were probably long forgotten spares, thrown in storage in case there was a big war. Since weapons must be made with mana stones they are good materials for devouring.
I'm kind of surprised Lila never opened the crates, seeing as though they're all still sealed. "Why didn't you open the crates?"
"I couldn't. it was too hard."
I never asked how long she'd been in here or if we need to leave soon. I'm kind of hoping we can stay a while; after all, it's a shelter and there are plenty of things to devour while learning about magic and trying to form my mana core.
"How long have you been here?"
She got an ugly expression, "Just over 2 years."
I was shocked; I knew it must have been a while, but living in these conditions for 2 years, I don't know if I could do it.
"How old are you?"
She held out 7 little fingers and said, "7."
This much determination at 7, no 5, staying alive just to spite someone. Still, she never lost her kindness as shown when she gave me some of her bread. My admiration for this little girl grew, and I wanted to show her the outside world sometime.
"Will anyone come in here?"
"Probably not. There isn't even a door big enough for people."
I nodded in satisfaction and started stacking up the crates near the little opening in a way that would allow the bread to be tossed in but they couldn't see in. I didn't want them to think something was amiss sometime and come investigate.
After the crates were arranged, the clear area was quite spacious, big enough to start practicing swordsmanship after forming my mana core.
I was going to add some blankets for a bed, but I decided first things first; we needed a bath. I hung a sheet for some privacy and added a large barrel with water. After washing and putting on new clothing, I refreshed the water and walked out.
"You need to go take a bath. I put new clothing behind the curtain for you after you're done."
She jumped up with stars in her eyes and rushed to hug me, but I held out my hands stopping her.
"Go take a bath."
She nodded, grinning happily, and ran behind the sheet to the barrel. I heard splashing and was about to tell her not to make a mess, but shaking my head, I decided to leave it be just this once.
After sweeping the floor, I sat down and started studying the manual for the mana core again. There was a noticeable difference in my comprehension speed from before I completed the body forging.
From time to time, I could hear some splashing and sounds of blowing bubbles.
After a few hours, Lila came out wearing a loose navy long sleeve shirt with gold and white trim and black pants. The skin on her fingers was swollen and wrinkly from all the time spent in the water. I could now tell what color her hair and fur were, it was a dark purple and depending on how the light hits it looked black. Here ears and tail were the same color but tipped in jet black.
She looked a little embarrassed and bowed.
"I'm sorry I made a mess; I'll find some way to clean it."
I had a slight smile and gave her some towels, which she accepted and went back to wipe up the water. After she was done, she came back, and I devoured the barrel and other things again while she watched in fascination.
"How do you make things disappear and appear without magic?"
"Everything is made of a substance, and I can break it down and form things from it."
She had bright eyes as she looked up at me, "Can you teach me?"
I shook my head, "Sorry, it's a unique ability of mine."
She looked a little sad.
I made some blankets for her to use as a bed and sat down to keep reading the text.
After about a week, I could sense mana and was ready to try forming my core. I once again told her not to disturb me for a while. I didn't think it would take nearly as long to do this as the body forging, maybe only a day or so.
I started drawing mana into myself by breathing, guiding it into my chest around my heart. A mana core isn't something physical that takes up space in the body but still exists tied to the body. After I had drawn enough mana in and what seemed to be a sufficient amount, I started distributing it throughout my body and the pattern of mana veins described in the book.
Mana veins carry the mana throughout the body, and the quality of the vein structure has a large impact on the strength and cast time of spells. According to the book when forming a mana core, you must inscribe mana veins to the body at the same time or it will fail. Everyone who tries to make a mana core tries to use their old veins, but they have also been broken; this is one reason why it's thought to be impossible to remake a mana core.
The book also contains a vein diagram for the most optimal mana veins possible allowing the strongest and fastest casting of spells.
After I got the mana distributed into the proper places, I started pulling on more mana to solidify it and burn the mana veins into myself. I could feel sweat on my forehead and the mana veins heating to a boil; although it hurt, it wasn't as bad as the first time I took the pills Kitty told me to. In this regard, I'm a little thankful for that experience as I know I can handle this one.
After what seemed like ages, the mana veins were fully formed, and there was a phantom of a core also there, but I couldn't stop here. I had to keep drawing in mana and packing it into the core until it fully solidified. Thankfully this part didn't hurt; it was just time-consuming and required full concentration.
Finally, there was an audible snap as the core suddenly solidified. I opened my eyes to see Lila staring at me only inches from my face with a gleeful expression.
"You have a mana core now! Can you help me now? Please?"
I nodded and couldn't help but smile, "I'm mentally exhausted, wait till tomorrow, and you get some sleep also."
For some reason, I don't think she's going to get any sleep, but as soon as I lay down, I was out.
After a day of rest, I took out the manual in book form so she could see it, but then I remembered I hadn't taught her to read yet, so I put it away and started explaining it. After many questions, she was ready to start. Her ability to understand and figure out what was supposed to happen was extraordinary for anyone but especially a child; I was even a little jealous.
She was going to draw mana into herself, and I would help guide her and make sure she was putting it in all the right places. I also made sure she was prepared and knew it was going to hurt a lot.
She sat with her back facing me, and I placed my hand on her back; then we started. After drawing the mana in and starting to inscribe the veins, she didn't even once make a sound from the pain. Soon she had finished the veins and was packing the core full until there was another snap, it solidified.
She opened her eyes and raised her hand; fire danced on her fingertips. Yep, I'm a little jealous; I couldn't even do that yet. Then she turned around with a huge smile and a few tears in her eyes, then gave me a hug.
"I'm going to burn them all!"
I placed my hand on her head between her ears and said, "Ok good, but you should practice to get stronger first; it wouldn't do to die right away."
She let go and held up her little fist and declared, "I'm going to be the strongest in the world then burn them all!"
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