Morena leaned back on the couch and shifted her gaze towards the tinted window, the faint shifting hue of the sun just barely reaching through. It was already evening, how ti had flown, but she ignored it.
She still had too much to think about.
"AI."
[Listening.]
"Keep running through Corin’s notes, but change focus. Don’t waste more ti trying to brute-force a ditation thod that doesn’t exist. Instead, cross-reference my own body. Run simulations on my current circulation thod—the letters carved into ."
She paused for a mont, her mind drifted to many thoughts. As of right now, it seed that taking the path of a Wizard wasn’t possible, at least not properly.
Not until she could get a ditation thod, but she didn’t even know where to begin looking into that.
So for now, she had to instead shift her focus from long-term strength to short-term strength.
"I want to know if I can force sothing closer to mana without a proper matrix. Even a pseudo-version. Show ."
[Processing request...]
The displays shifted, and countless lines of data were processed. It took a few minutes for all the fragnts of information and diagrams to be broken down and analyzed, and finally it was replaced by fresher outlines—her own recorded body scans, energy flows, and the symbols the AI had long since mapped beneath her skin.
[Simulation paraters set.]
[Comparison: Warrior Path vs. Pseudo-Mana Refinent.]
Lines began to trace themselves before her eyes. The warrior path was simple—raw elental energy pulled in, circulated through flesh and core, condensed crudely into fuel for the body.
It was a thod that was crude but effective, the thod every warrior used. The reason it was popular was that they were easy to use, at least compared to the path of a wizard.
But the new projections added sothing else: the carved letters acting not just as conduits, but as filters. The AI layered models of symbolic checkpoints along her veins and nerves, grinding the unrefined energy in stages instead of letting it rush through unchecked.
[Projection result: Partial refinent achieved. Pseudo-refinent.]
Her lips pressed thin as she read the line.
The AI was able to show her a possible solution; it was refining the elental energy in such a way that they weren’t as raw as usual, but also didn’t reach the level of mana.
It wasn’t the best, but it was sothing that could theoretically aid her.
"Show the output."
[Draft - Current: minor gust, unstable.
Draft - With pseudo-refinent: stronger airflow, direction consistent, effective up to two ters. Risk: numbness spreads past the wrist into the elbow within twenty seconds.]
[Ember - Current: spark or warmth, irregular.
Ember - With pseudo-refinent: sparks consistent, weak fla possible on the contact surface. Risk: internal heating of vessels, micro-burns. Pain threshold exceeded if repeated more than three tis per hour.]
[Pin - Current: tether lasts ~30 breaths.
Pin - With pseudo-refinent: tether extended up to 60 breaths. Stable under mild strain. Risk: muscle fatigue, delayed spasm on release.]
Morena leaned forward, studying the new numbers and details about each trick. If she were to use the new form of refined energy, they would all be stronger, more stable—but still held that level of danger.
The tricks weren’t suddenly on the level of spells; they were just less pathetic than before.
"Run simulations of combination use again. Add pseudo-refinent as a variable."
[Draft Ember - With pseudo-refinent: Still conflict. Air warps fla’s seam. Small ignition bursts are possible, but unstable. Risk: backlash in forearm veins, rupture.]
[Draft Pin - Stable. Projection: tethered airflow, usable as a push or drag. Duration is reduced if strain increases. Risk: acute strain in the shoulder.]
[Ember Pin - Slight synergy. Projection: spark fixed in place, short-lived anchor of heat. Risk: minor blister on skin contact.]
Her brow narrowed, and she sighed. They weren’t nearly as good as she had hoped they would be; in fact, they had only a slight increase in use.
But that made sense; they weren’t completely refined either, and she might be able to improve them or make her own, eventually.
"So still flawed."
[Conclusion: Without mana, limits remain severe. Pseudo-refinent improves stability but cannot make them significantly better.]
She tapped her finger against the table, thoughtful. Corin had been right—without a ditation thod, without the matrix, true refinent was impossible.
But still, she had reached farther in a single morning than he had in decades.
’I can have it run passive background research to try and make new tricks. It’ll take so ti, but I have that for now.’
The AI wasn’t done, though, it finally prompted about her previous question.
[Additional simulation: Adapting warrior circulation pattern into pseudo-matrix.]
[Success rate: 22%. Risk: Core instability. Projection: Long-term stress on already damaged core. Recomndation: Do not attempt until a stabilization thod is found.]
Morena exhaled through her nose, the faintest trace of annoyance curling in her chest. Of course, her damaged core again. Even with every advantage, every trick, that wound in her foundation kept her from pushing further.
Still, 22% was better than nothing. Enough to tempt her, enough to make her consider trying eventually.
She began to make notes in the empty book before her, careful handwriting filling the page: adjustnts to ratios, outlines to test on surfaces, and ideas for possible experints she could attempt in the future.
She made sure to write in code, a language no one in this world would understand, to avoid soone finding the notebook. Furthermore, she never revealed or wrote anything too important down, just notes.
The scratching of her pen was the only sound in the study until a soft, hesitant knock ca against the door.
She didn’t answer at first. No one should even know she was here.
When the knock ca again, lighter, almost nervous, she finally stood and cracked the door open.
A maid bowed low on the other side, her face a little flushed, hair askew as if she had been running.
"My Lady... forgive , I... it took a while to find you."
Morena raised a brow.
"Why were you looking for ?"
The girl fumbled with her apron before drawing out a sealed letter, the wax pressed with her family’s crest.
"A ssage from Master Adolf, he told to deliver it to you. He said it was urgent."
Morena took it, broke the seal, and unfolded the parchnt. Adolf’s precise hand filled the page.
My Lady,
The church has called a private gathering this evening—several noble houses have been summoned. Officially, it is to discuss security concerns after the death of one of their n. In truth, I believe there is more to the matter. They seek to asure loyalty and to find faults. I advise caution, however, with many other houses going, attendance is not optional.
At the bottom, his final line was underlined once.
Please do not go alone.
Morena folded the parchnt slowly, her eyes narrowing.
The timing was inconvenient, but she supposed it was inevitable. The church had been very active recently; they had been making many moves, doing many things. The church was bound to start pressing harder.
She waved the maid off and closed the door. Walking back to her seat, she slid the letter on the table and leaned back into the couch.
’I suppose this can wait. Tonight will matter more.’
Her hand brushed lightly against the notebook she had filled, closing the cover and slipping it into her coat.
She didn’t have the luxury of ti. Not for ditation thods, not for searching sub-realms, not for idle experints. At least not right now, there were a lot of things she had to do.
For now, she would prepare for the eting.
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