Actions and Consequences

After penning a letter to his father and waiting nearly two weeks for a response, Paul couldn't help feeling disappointed when he opened it to find the exact answer he expected.

"What does it say...?"

Looking to the blue-haired girl standing off to his left, Paul's expression became somber as he explained, "My father contacted House Vale to try and reach an accord, but they refused. The person who sanctioned Sera's addition to the Palace of Concubines was the 8th Prince of the preceding generation, the current King's youngest brother. House-"

With tears building in the corners of her eyes, Xiangling slapped the table, screaming, "We have to help her! It...it isn't right to send such a young girl off to such a terrible place...!"

Closing his eyes, Paul was doing his best to appear calm as he answered, "We're weak, Xiangling. Trying to oppose the Royal Family with our current power will get us killed. If we die, then there would be no one to save our worlds...no one to save the girls that would inevitably replace Sera..."

With Xiangling trembling in indignant rage and sadness at his side, Paul reached into the top drawer of his desk for a small lockbox. Inside was the tiny crystalline vial Sera had gifted him two weeks prior, the interior filled with three drops of highly condensed, almost gelatine-like beads of Mana.

Seeing the crystalline vial, Xiangling wiped away some of the tears from her eyes as she asked, "Are you going to take them?"

Nodding his head in affirmation, Paul answered, "Now, more than ever, I feel the need to grow stronger. Sera gave these to me in exchange for a place to belong. If I die before then, I will have failed her thrice over..."

Rising to his feet, Paul made his way to the kitchen in order to retrieve a large glass of water. Trying to consume the concentrated Mana directly could burn the inside of your mouth and throat, so it was recommended to place a single drop into a large glass of cold milk or water.

Having spotted Paul and Xiangling exiting the former's bedroom, Zhongli set aside her long-armed feather duster to check and see what they were doing. When she spotted the vial in Paul's hands, she asked, "Are you sure you wish to consume them now? If you wait another year or two, you may have enough Mana to cast a Beginner Level Detoxification Spell. You still have a lot of room for growth, Master Paul. If you injure yourself now, you risk undoing all the progress you've made these past few months."

Though he understood where Zhongli was coming from, Paul maintained a resolute expression as he answered, "There is one thing I learned back in my previous world, Zhongli. When presented with a choice like this, those with powerful fates will surely pull through. If I falter at a time like this, I may as well resign myself to the position of a Regional Lord and let you all handle everything..."

Without waiting for Zhongli's response, Paul dropped one of the glowing blue beads of Mana into the glass. The moment it came into contact with the water, it dissolved like a piece of cotton candy. In its wake, Paul held a glass of glowing blue water that, if you listened closely, emanated soft sounds similar to a wind chime.

Understanding that the Mana would dissipate rapidly, Paul didn't allow himself to be mesmerized by the glacial-looking water. Instead, he took one final breath before downing the entire glass in a series of large gulps. Swallowing it was like chugging a glass of piping hot coffee and a glass of ice water at the same time, but Paul didn't stop until the glass was totally empty. Then, just as Zhongli had predicted, he promptly collapsed like a marionette that had its strings cut, his body lightly convulsing in her arms as she whispered, "How reckless..." with a faint smile on her face.

...

..

.

Waking after being unconscious for nearly six hours, the first thing Paul noticed was a tension headache that made the back of his head feel like it was going to explode. The next thing he noticed was Xiangling sleeping at the side of his bed with a bucket of cool water and several rags sitting on the table next to him.

"Haaaaa..."

Exhaling a pained sigh, Paul was about to wake Xiangling when he noticed something odd. Her clothes seemed to be radiating a soft glow, and, upon closer inspection, he noticed that his entire room was unusually bright.

"Don't tell me..."

Looking to his bedside table, Paul confirmed that the oil lamp was set to its lowest setting. Despite this, he could clearly make out every feature of the room, even the titles of books located several meters away from him. It was almost as though he had developed night vision. Either that or he could suddenly see the Mana contained within objects...

Returning his attention to Xiangling, Paul quickly dismissed the notion he could see Mana. He could make out the features of her hair and face, but it was only her clothes that were glowing. He knew she had a remarkable amount of Mana for her age, so it wouldn't make sense for her to be mute while her clothes appeared to be getting brighter by the moment.

Focusing on the phenomenon, Paul immediately came to regret it when he noticed Xiangling's clothes gaining a translucent quality. There were times when she helped to wash his back, but she always made sure to wear two layers of towels, one around her body and one around her bottom.

Turning away before he could catch a glimpse of something he shouldn't, Paul attempted to focus on pretty much anything else within the room. In the end, he decided on a dimple in the wall, the remnants of a small hole that had been painted over.

Similar to when Paul had focused on Xiangling's clothes, the wall steadily gained a translucent quality. More accurately, an oval that was wider than it was tall formed on the wall, layer after layer of the building's materials being revealed until Paul could see clearly into the next room.

"The Demon Eyes of X-Ray Vision..."

Recognizing his ability from the original series, contradicting waves of excitement and frustration washed over Paul. He had planned to visit the Demon Continent at some point to track down Kishiraka or whatever her name was, the reincarnated Demon Empress. If he managed to find and help her, she would have rewarded him with one or more Demon Eyes of his choosing.

The problem with awakening Demon Eyes naturally was that it prevented you from acquiring an additional set. Fortunately, awakening even a single Demon Eye was pretty rare. Paul was apparently the exception to this as both of his eyes now emitted a faint golden glow that was visible against his palms when he took turns covering his eyes.

"There goes my dream of obtaining Demon eyes of Magic Power and Identification..."

Shaking his head to clear his negative thoughts, Paul was reminded of the fact that he had a pulsating headache. He did his best to hold it in, but a pained groan escaped his throat as he cradled his head with both hands. Xiangling heard this and, upon waking up, immediately raised her hands to chant, "Divine Power, become a nourishing light that gives strength to those in need. Healing...!"

Following Xiangling's slightly modified chant, pale red light emanated from her palms. Paul could feel his body warming up as the usually gentle light washed over him, but instead of providing relief for his headache, it made it a lot worse. So much so that an involuntary whimper escaped his throat as he muttered, "Please stop..."

Realizing she had somehow made things worse, Xiangling began to panic as she bounced to her feet and shouted, "I'm getting Zhongli! Just hold on...!"

Fortunately for both Xiangling and Paul, Zhongli opened the door at nearly that exact moment, calmly advising, "Compose yourself, Xiangling. Panic is rarely the appropriate response to a situation."

Though she wanted to protest, Xiangling ultimately slumped her head and shoulders as Zhongli promptly walked past her. When she reached Paul's bedside, her glowing, diamond-shaped pupils expanded and contracted a few times before she said, "You need to oust the Mana from your body as soon as possible. Your life isn't in any danger, but you might become blind if you don't expel it soon. Your occipital lobe, the region of your brain that controls your vision, is swelling."

Forcing a wry smile, Paul groaned, "That actually makes a lot of sense..." before raising his hand and droning, "Please just fucking work...Healing...!"

Since the most crucial aspect to casting Magic was visualization, it was possible to forgo the chant entirely if you had a good imagination. Paul had always imagined the scene of Orihime, a character from a popular anime known as Bleach, practically rewriting causality with her healing abilities. He doubted he would ever reach that point, but the only other scene Paul could vividly recall was Wolverine regenerating from having his entire musculature incinerated by a nuclear bomb.

Fortunately, unlike every other time Paul tried using Healing Magic, this time a faint green glow emanated from his body. It lasted less than two seconds, but the amount of relief he felt was enough to make him slump in his bed, a satisfied and prolonged groan emanating from his throat.

With a visibly amused smile on her face, Zhongli remarked, "Good job. You let it out splendidly..."

Though Xiangling didn't seem to catch it, Paul stared at the young Archon with a deadpan expression on his face, entreating, "Please don't start with that crap...I get that you're trying to lighten the mood, but there are much better ways..."

Without losing her smile, Zhongli remarked, "Perhaps." before turning to Xiangling and ordering, "Prepare a fresh bucket and some clean towels. Our Master needs to cleanse himself. I will put on some teas."

Since they had previously agreed that Zhongli would be the Chief Maid, Xiangling could only sigh and do as she was told. Before leaving, however, she gave Paul one last glance and said, "I'm glad you woke up..."

Blinking in surprise, Paul waited until Xiangling had left the room before looking up at Zhongli and asking, "Was my condition that bad...?"

Nodding her head in affirmation, Zhongli sat down in Xiangling's previous spot before explaining, "The nucleus that contains a person's Mana is like a rigid container. It is possible to increase the size by straining the vessel and repairing the cracks, but if there is too much damage...well, it would be like trying to glue together a fine ceramic vase. Even if you managed to do so, it would constantly be at risk of fracturing a second time..."