Chapter 289: His Circuit

Thankfully, such an unimaginable thing was not in the cards for the next few days.

Instead, the newly engaged learner screamed in pure delight.

Only, what came after was the world lurching as space folded.

And in the next heartbeat, Riley found himself flat on the floor, mouth open mid-scream, lungs still fully committed to the sound.

“AAAA—”

Unfortunately, the commitment was not shared by his other body parts and his voice died in his throat.

Because multiple faces were suddenly staring down at him.

Up close.

Very close.

“—ck!” Riley choked, slapping a hand to his chest as his heart tried to escape his ribs.

The beings who were summoned by the alarming scream moved without being told.

Lady Cirila’s posture straightened instantly, her gaze sweeping the area with sharp precision. Lord Karion took one step forward, eyes narrowed, aura restrained but ready. Kael’s presence shifted subtly behind Riley, protective and immediate.

“What?!” A serious voice piped.

“Where?!”

Orien was already halfway into a battle stance.

The golden baby dragon spun in a tight circle, wings flaring, claws flexed, tail lashing with intent as his eyes scanned every possible direction.

“Who did it?!” he barked. “Where are they?!”

Riley coughed hard, pounding his chest twice before forcing air back into his lungs.

“N-no! No, wait!” he blurted out hoarsely.

Cough, cough!

“T-there’s no attack! I swear! I was just really surprised!”

The room stilled.

“Huh?” Orien paused mid turn.

“Why? Auntie, what happened to you?”

The excited learner who couldn’t believe he almost got taken out by his own saliva pushed himself upright, breath still uneven, but his face was already betraying him.

Because he was smiling.

No. Grinning.

Wide. Uncontrollable.

“Well,” he said, voice trembling with excitement, “look!”

He extended both hands forward.

Palms open.

Everyone stared.

Silence followed.

People glanced at his hands. Then at each other. Then back at Riley, clearly confused.

Nothing looked different. At least, not at first glance.

Same number of limbs, intact head and no odd bruises, injuries, or blood.

But maybe it was because they had grown used to this version of Riley. One where he didn’t really leak anything that they had somehow forgotten.

Forgotten that for a while now, he had been leaking mana.

Lady Cirila suddenly stiffened.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, stepping closer. “Oh! Child!”

Her eyes widened.

“Your mana!”

Riley’s grin stretched impossibly wider.

“Yes!” he said brightly, chest puffing with pride. “My lady! I did it!”

His voice wobbled with joy.

“I managed to contain it!”

__

It was a moment of pride.

Sure, to everyone else it was probably comparable to applauding an adult for finally learning the alphabet. He was aware that it was a basic step and something that should have come naturally.

But even so, Riley could not help but feel proud.

Because he knew exactly how much he had poured into reaching this point.

He had always been someone who studied hard and well all his life, painfully aware that sometimes talent simply wouldn’t be enough. And because of that, he felt he could confidently claim that the work he had put into figuring out what actually worked for him deserved to be called a feat.

Yes, Kael’s method had done wonders for him.

And yes, the engagement ring had allowed him to practice anytime he wanted.

But he felt that what truly pushed his progress forward was something else entirely.

It was admitting that he was not like everyone else.

While it was nice to be unique and all, sometimes there were moments when he wished he were just “normal”. But what exactly was normal and what should he do when he couldn’t fit in with the norm?

That realization finally settled in the moment he managed to circulate his mana around his body.

He probably looked insane doing it. Tracing lines along his skin with the ring like some sort of unhinged ritual, pacing around while muttering under his breath. But in the end, it worked. It helped him identify the pathways. Helped him feel where the mana naturally preferred to move and where it resisted.

See? A total feat for someone who just days before had been stuck with his damn knees.

The problem was that he couldn’t hold it for long.

Unlike others, he had finally accepted that his current method wasn’t instinctive.

To get it everywhere, he would usually start with using the ring as a magnetic lead. And while that took some effort, the real issue was how it took an absurd amount of mental effort to keep his mana displaced evenly throughout his body.

So even after succeeding once, Riley knew that plugging every leak was a completely different challenge.

And apparently, it was hard.

Well.

No shit.

It was even worse because his body felt so much larger than a child’s. There were simply too many places where mana could escape. Like seriously, was he that porous?!

Forget holding it in for an hour.

At that rate, he wouldn’t have been able to manage five minutes.

And unfortunately for all of them, five minutes would not even get them out of the parking lot.

And that was not even accounting for distractions.

What if he had to walk?

What if someone talked to him?

Worse, what if he had to respond?

How was he supposed to keep his mana sealed while holding a conversation without his thoughts scattering?

That realization hit him hard and he couldn’t help but be momentarily depressed by it. Genuinely so.

But since that time when Kael helped pull him out of that slump, Riley found himself thinking differently. Less rigid. More willing to explore alternatives before giving up.

He just needed creative solutions.

Apparently, Thyrran supported that line of thinking.

The guardian had even gone so far as to say that the most unusual trait Riley possessed, the one that had drawn all the guardians’ attention, was his ability to think outside the box.

More specifically, outside the box that had constrained dragons for a very long time.

Riley had been stunned by that.

For a brief moment, he had almost joked that Thyrran was just saying that to make him feel better. But the former guardian had looked entirely serious. So the touched young master swallowed the joke, nodded, and instead asked something else.

“Do I really need to keep my mana equally spread throughout my entire body?”

The pudgy snake had reacted as if Riley had just suggested setting himself on fire. He looked like he was planning to retract his earlier statement.

The hiss that followed was long and deeply offended.

“Ideally, yes.”

“Yes? But why?” Riley pressed.

“Because that’s how you can best protect yourself,” Thyrran replied sharply. “If your mana isn’t properly displaced, it will take longer to shift into your dragon form and longer to command mana. You’d inevitably be a sitting duck.”

Riley hummed quietly.

In his head, it clicked into place.

It was like a holstered weapon.

Two people could own the same armament. But someone with a drawn weapon would always act faster than someone whose weapon was locked away in a safe.

But what if Riley didn’t plan on shifting? Not forever, obviously. But just for now?

What if he had no intention of using mana at all for the time being?

Did he still need to maintain that balance?

The curious learner voiced the question.

And earned himself another very long hiss.

Then again, a crazy idea wouldn’t sound so crazy the moment it actually works, right?

And so he tried.

Because what if I can just confine it in a much smaller area?

“Ha! I knew it! This traitorous mana!” Riley chuckled before cackling.

While it sucked that his own mana didn’t seem to like him very much, for now, this was useful.

__

“Wait. Auntie, what did you do?”

Orien’s head tilted sharply as he stared at Riley, golden eyes wide with confusion. He squinted, then leaned closer, clearly trying to feel something that was no longer there.

Riley straightened a little, still sitting on the floor, and lifted his hand proudly.

“I picked the shortest closed loop,” he said. “So I’m just confining my mana from my core straight to the ring and back.”

“Huh?” Liam blinked. “To the ring?”

“Yes,” Riley replied easily. “Because I figured that instead of forcing my mana to spread everywhere else when it’s pretty obvious it just wants to go here.” He pointed at his finger. “Why not let it go there instead? That way, I have one less thing to think about.”

The children stared.

“So now,” Riley continued, growing more confident as he spoke, “instead of protecting this huge area.” He gestured vaguely at his whole body. “I only need to concentrate on a much smaller one.”

There was a brief pause.

“But Riley,” Lord Karion began slowly, eyes narrowing as understanding dawned on him, “if you do it like that, then—”

“Ah. Yes, my lord,” Riley cut in politely, nodding. “I would not be able to wield my mana effectively.”

He said it without embarrassment.

“But considering our main priority, and the fact that I am not equipped with the right knowledge to actually wield it properly yet, wouldn’t it be better to min-max?”

“Min-max?” Lord Karion repeated.

“Yes, my lord. It means minimizing weaknesses while maximizing strengths.”

“?”

“It means accepting that I’m really weak in refined control and usefulness. So instead of investing in those aspects that would remain weak until I get the inheritance, it would be more productive to focus on my strengths instead.” Riley explained before tapping his chest once.

“And right now, my strengths are pretty simple. My mana’s predictable movement. And this guy.” He pointed straight at Kael.

Kael blinked.

“So why would I try to do both,” Riley finished calmly, “when I can focus on one aspect for now, while he takes care of the part I am not good at yet?”

Silence settled over the room.

Kael looked at Riley.

Then he looked away.

Then he cleared his throat.

He was trying very hard not to look pleased.

But he absolutely was.

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