Aeliana’s breath hitched.
A strange sensation prickled along her skin—subtle at first, like the ghost of a touch, but then it deepened, sinking beneath the surface.
An itch.
Not the kind that could be ignored. This was something else, something buried within her core, a pulse, a shift, a pull.
Her brows furrowed as she pressed a hand against her chest, fingers curling slightly against the fabric of her gown. It was faint but unmistakable.
Mana.
Her mana.
Her heart pounded as realization struck.
It had been nearly a decade since she had last felt this. Since the first time she had awakened, still just a child, still brimming with the potential of something new and unknown. But back then, she had only barely begun training, still learning the foundation of control, still trying to grasp the shape of the power within her.
Then came the illness.
Her body had failed her. Had swallowed her strength whole, leaving her nothing but weakness and exhaustion. The mana that had once stirred within her had faded into silence, lost, unreachable.
Until now.
What is this…?
Aeliana’s fingers twitched as the sensation grew, the itch turning into something deeper, hotter, like a storm pressing against the inside of her ribs, begging to be released.
And then—
A flicker of light.
It came from her hands.
Her breath caught as she stared, her amber eyes widening. A faint, shimmering glow danced along her fingertips, like embers catching in the air.
For the first time in years, her mana was responding.
The realization sent a sharp jolt of both excitement and fear through her. This wasn’t supposed to be possible. She had accepted it—had lived with it. The girl who once dreamed of wielding mana had been forced to become something else entirely.
So why now?
Why was it surging?
The moment stretched, barely more than a handful of seconds, but it was enough for others to notice.
A shift in the air. A ripple of energy, unfamiliar yet unmistakable.
The knights turned.
Their training halted in an instant, their focus snapping toward her with sharp, trained instincts.
And then—
“My lady! Careful!”
A powerful voice rang out, cutting through the courtyard like a blade.
Aeliana barely had time to react before she heard the thunderous steps closing in.
Captain Edran Vaughn.
The leader of the Expedition.
The very man who had once been charged with her safety—until he failed.
She knew why he was here. Why her father had placed him in charge of training rather than letting him take the missions he once led. It was a punishment, though an unfair one. Edran had never been responsible for what happened to her. It had been Madeleina who had ensured her downfall, who had driven her to ruin.
But the Duke needed someone to bear the weight of it. And so, Edran had been sent back, stationed here, watching over the knights rather than standing on the frontlines where he belonged.
Now, he was charging toward her.
“My lady—step back!” His voice was sharp, commanding.
She saw it the moment his instincts took over—mana surging around him as he prepared to stabilize whatever anomaly was happening.
And in that instant—
Something snapped.
The moment his mana flared, her body reacted violently.
Aeliana barely had time to gasp before the pressure inside her burst outward.
A storm of energy surged from within her, raw and unchecked, colliding with Edran’s presence like a clash of opposing forces. The air around her cracked with power, shimmering with an unstable brilliance.
Aeliana’s breath came in short, uneven bursts. But—strangely—she felt no pain.
No harm.
Only the lingering hum of power in the air, the faint crackle of mana still dissipating around her.
Cautiously, she opened her eyes.
And there—
A thin veil of energy surrounded her, shimmering like a translucent shield.
Not her mana.
Someone else’s.
Her gaze flickered downward, taking in the faint glow that pulsed along the air around her—a color familiar, controlled, steady.
The same color as Edran’s mana.
Aeliana’s head snapped up.
Edran stood before her, his stance firm, his hand still raised, fingers curled slightly as if guiding the very energy that encased her. His dark brows were furrowed in concentration, his breath heavier than before—but his expression was composed.
He had protected her.
He had reacted instantly, shielding her before the mana surge could spiral into something worse.
Aeliana swallowed, trying to steady herself. “What… what just happened?”
Edran exhaled, lowering his hand as the protective barrier around her dissolved into nothingness. He studied her carefully before speaking, his voice measured yet firm.
“You experienced a mana backlash,” he explained. “Your core reacted to an external mana source—mine and the knights’—and because you’ve never properly controlled your own energy, it surged out of you without restraint.”
Aeliana’s fingers twitched at her sides.
A mana backlash.
It was a known phenomenon, but it typically only happened to those who advanced too quickly, to those whose mana exceeded their control.
She had never advanced.
She had never even used mana since her childhood.
So why now?
“Then… why did it happen?” she asked, her voice quieter, but there was an edge to it—an uncertainty she wasn’t used to feeling.
Edran’s sharp blue eyes locked onto hers. There was a flicker of hesitation there, as if even he wasn’t entirely certain of the answer. But when he finally spoke, his words carried the weight of someone who had seen enough to recognize something unnatural.
“I am not entirely certain,” he admitted, his voice measured, “but it appears that your body has been accumulating mana for years—without any proper outlet for it.” He exhaled, studying her carefully. “Since you never trained it, never circulated it properly, it remained dormant. And now, it’s reacting on its own.”
Aeliana’s fingers curled slightly against the fabric of her gown.
Accumulated mana.
Dormant, waiting, and now suddenly surging because she had never learned how to control it properly.
Her father had once told her that her mana had faded entirely. That it had vanished after her illness, leaving her without the ability to wield it. But if what Edran was saying was true… then that had never been the case.
It had always been there.
Sleeping.
Waiting.
Edran straightened, crossing his arms over his chest. “I should report this to the Duke.”
Aeliana’s head snapped up. “No.”
Edran’s brows furrowed slightly at her immediate response.
“That isn’t necessary,” she continued, voice firm. “This was just… an accident.”
Edran’s expression darkened slightly. “My lady, this isn’t something that should be ignored. If your mana is reacting like this, it’s only a matter of time before it happens again. The Duke should be informed.”
Aeliana’s lips pressed into a thin line.
Her father would take this as another excuse to control her. Another reason to watch her even more closely. And she refused to give him that.
“I can handle it on my own,” she said, her voice carrying an edge of defiance.
Edran held her gaze, searching her expression, before he sighed, running a hand through his hair. “This is for your safety, my lady. I understand that you may not want the Duke involved, but this isn’t something you can simply ignore.”
Aeliana remained silent.
Seeing her reluctance, Edran shifted his approach. “This kind of phenomenon can happen naturally,” he stated, “and the solution is something you wouldn’t hate.”
Aeliana narrowed her eyes. “Which is?”
“You just need to train mana accumulation,” he explained. “Nothing complex. Just simple exercises to circulate your energy so that it doesn’t build up uncontrollably. If you do that, this shouldn’t happen again.”
Aeliana exhaled slowly, absorbing his words.
He made it sound simple. Manageable.
And yet, something inside her resisted.
She had abandoned that path a long time ago.
Seeing her hesitance, Edran added, “For the time being, you should also be careful about where you are. Stay away from places where Awakened individuals are actively using mana.”
Aeliana frowned.
So, in other words, she had to be cautious around half the people in this damn mansion.
Edran didn’t give her a chance to argue. With a curt nod, he stepped back. “That is all for now. Take care, my lady.”
And just like that, he turned and strode away, leaving Aeliana standing there, her thoughts tangled.
The quiet hum of the courtyard settled once more. The knights, though discreet, had clearly taken notice of the event, but none dared to approach her.
Aeliana inhaled sharply and turned on her heel.
Her feet carried her forward, her mind too tangled to focus on where she was going.
She walked past the gardens, past the towering pillars of the estate, past the familiar corridors that had once enclosed her.
And then—
She found herself standing before the entrance of the mansion, and there she saw someone she didn’t expect.