I Became a Genius Mechanic at the Academy – Chapter 13

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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Mana Refinement.

The act of imbuing one’s body and mind with mana.

He was currently performing mana refinement, activating his mana receptors to receive and circulate the ambient mana throughout his body.

-Goooooooo…

However, his mana refinement differed from the typical process.

He had significantly fewer mana receptors than the average mage, which limited the amount of mana he could absorb.

Therefore, his method of receiving mana was different.

While other mages activated the mana receptors in their brains, he activated the core mana stone located in the center of his chest.

The mana stone, shaped like Iron Man’s arc reactor, glowed brightly, absorbing the ambient mana.

-Ziiiiiiiiing…

The amount of mana this large mana stone absorbed exceeded five times that of an average mage.

After all, unless one was a monster like Elena, no human could surpass a mineral specifically designed to absorb mana.

“Huu…”

He exhaled deeply.

Having successfully completed the first stage of absorbing mana into his body, it was time to move on to the next stage with renewed resolve.

‘Circulate mana throughout the entire body.’

He visualized a formula in his mind.

A formula combining the principles of “wave,” “transmission,” and “distribution.”

He visualized the formula Elena had taught him and activated it.

The mana receptors residing in his brain carried this image information and began moving towards the core mana stone to transmit and activate the formula within it.

-Ziiiiiiiiing…

The formula information reached the core mana stone.

The core mana stone interpreted the information transmitted by his mana receptors and began to execute it, distributing the mana evenly to the mana stones scattered throughout his body.

-Swoooooooo…

He felt the mana circulating throughout his body. Chest, shoulders, arms, wrists, hands, abdomen, waist, thighs, calves, feet.

The mana stones implanted in all these body parts absorbed mana, and a blue haze emanated from his entire body.

Mana refinement, the state of mana circulating throughout the body, was complete.

“…Huh.”

Elena chuckled, witnessing this.

Even the Grand Mage Elena couldn’t maintain her composure after witnessing the complete destruction of her established knowledge.

“Really, this is… how… acquired mana…”

This was originally impossible in this world.

Mana was the exclusive domain and power of the nobles.

The methods of manipulating mana, the genes for manipulating mana, the techniques utilizing mana – all of these were passed down only to their descendants.

“It seems the first stage is a success.”

But not anymore.

Highly advanced science was akin to magic and I had entered the heart of their domain solely through his own technology.

“Huu… Yes. Seeing the mana circulating throughout your body… it seems like a success.”

“It’s thanks to you, Master.”

“Thanks to me? You did it all. The toxins emitted from the mana stones are being purified properly as well.”

As Elena said, toxic substances were being emitted from the mana stones implanted throughout his body.

The biggest flaw of mana stones had manifested as expected.

However, he had designed the system so that all toxins would gather in the “purification stone,” and it was performing its role successfully, eliminating the toxic substances using the “Mutual Destruction” formula he had learned from dissecting the Blue Dragon.

“Then I’ll move on to the next stage.”

The next stage.

Having successfully spread mana throughout his body, it was time to utilize it.

He simultaneously visualized the “strengthening” formula and “A1” in his mind and transmitted the command to the core mana stone for activation.

The mana stone corresponding to A1, the one implanted in his right palm, activated, and his palm began to strengthen.

*Crack!*

He slammed his strengthened fist into the ground.

*Crack*

The marble cracked and fissures appeared.

His command to “strengthen only the right hand” was successful.

“…With that level of power, you’d be around the level of an Advanced Sword User.”

Elena observed the cracked ground and assessed the destructive power as that of an “Advanced Sword User.”

Sword User was the rank above Sword Runner, and most aspiring knights entering the Imperial Academy held this rank.

“The more I learn, the more surprised I am. Starting at the Sword User level right off the bat. Usually, one starts as a Sword Runner and trains for at least four more years.”

Elena was right.

According to the setting of “El Pandor Runterra,” aspiring knights usually began as Sword Runners.

Only a few talented individuals could achieve the Sword User rank while learning the sword.

‘Well, prestigious knight families start as Sword Experts, though.’

However, among the great swordsmen who left their names in history, there were cases where individuals started as “Sword Experts.”

In the present era, Enya of the prestigious Cruel family was one such example.

She was also an academy student participating in the entrance ceremony two weeks later and was one of the key NPCs who would lead this era.

“Anyway, with that level of ability, starting as a knight isn’t a bad idea. After all, there will be limitations in handling formulas…”

He nodded at Elena’s words.

She was right; there were clear limitations in handling formulas.

Indeed, he could currently only use the formulas inscribed in the core mana stone: Wave, Transmission, Distribution, Strengthening, Elemental Transmutation, and Release.

These six were all he could use.

‘It’s because I borrowed the Blue Dragon’s mechanism as it is.’

The Blue Dragon.

That creature could only strengthen its body with mana or breathe its breath.

This was because it processed all commands with a single core mana stone instead of hundreds or thousands of mana receptors.

Therefore, he, who had adopted their system as it is, could only release the four elements or strengthen his body.

The advantages were as clear as the disadvantages.

“Let’s go with knight, ‘for now.'”

However, as always, he had no intention of accepting this.

He would accept his current situation for now, but if he upgraded the mana stones and built a new system, he could overcome these limitations.

After all, this was just a prototype.

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After successfully completing the mana stone implantation surgery, he began exploring routes to infiltrate classrooms.

The entrance ceremony would begin in two weeks, and classes would commence, so he needed to establish infiltration routes for sneaking into classes.

‘Since I’ve decided on the knight position, I need to learn swordsmanship.’

Therefore, the first place he started exploring was Classroom 11, where Professor Gracia taught.

Swordsmanship taught by Professor Gracia, one of the five Sword Masters of the empire, would surely be of great help to him.

Since he had decided to stick with the knight position for the time being, he intended to learn diligently, even if it meant sneaking into classes.

“Ed, the Chief Professor is calling for you.”

While he was contemplating how to modify the ventilation shaft of Classroom 11, James informed him that Elena was calling for him.

James only knew that Elena was sponsoring him and looked at him with pride every day.

He was probably the only commoner of his age who was doing this well.

“Ahem. Sorry for always disappearing. I feel like I’m making Father do all the work alone.”

“Hehe, go ahead. Dad can handle this much on his own. Don’t worry about me.”

After spending the past few days with Elena, James had taken on almost all the work required for the academy’s opening.

Even with the increased workload, James, with his swift hands, could manage it, but he still felt apologetic for not having helped at all, considering he came as his assistant.

“Hurry~ The professor will be waiting.”

“…I’ll come back and help you soon.”

He had intended to help James today, but Elena’s summons couldn’t be ignored.

Besides, his own growth was the most important thing.

“Master, it’s Ed.”

Putting aside his apologetic feelings towards James for the moment, he headed to Elena’s office.

After receiving permission to enter, he opened the door and found Elena greeting him with a smile, a letter fluttering in her hand.

“Master, you called for me.”

“Huhu, yes. I have good news. Have a seat first.”

Elena looked particularly cheerful. What news could have made her so excited?

As instructed, he sat on the sofa, and she brought him a teacup, pouring black tea into it.

Offering tea meant a long conversation.

While he was speculating about the news, Elena sat on the opposite sofa and poured black tea into her own cup.

After taking a sip, she slid the letter in her hand towards him.

She took another sip of tea and asked, “Ed, do you recognize the emblem on this letter?”

The emblem on the letter?

He took a closer look and recognized the imperial emblem.

“Um… this is the imperial emblem, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is. This is a piping hot official document that just arrived from the Imperial Palace. Would you like to read it?”

An official document from the Imperial Palace.

Had Elena pulled some strings for me?

With a sense of anticipation, he unfolded the letter.

Countless, densely packed letters filled the page.

In short, the letter granted him permission to enroll in the academy.

“…Master, this is…”

“Yes. You can enroll here.”

…Jackpot.

This was a true jackpot.

A commoner could attend the academy as a student.

Something that had never been allowed in history was being applied to him as an exception.

This meant he wouldn’t have to squeeze through ventilation shafts to audit classes!

“…Thank you. I actually had a lot I wanted to learn here.”

“Huhu. I could tell. You wanting to stay at the academy, wanting me as your master. And above all, that nightmare you have… it would be best to gain strength here to overcome it.”

“…”

Elena seemed to feel a sense of camaraderie with him, considering how much she was dwelling on the nightmare story he had used as a temporary excuse.

“…It’s just a dream, but thank you for your concern.”

“No. I understand how you feel. The feeling of being chased by a dream. It’s a feeling only I can understand. Something only you and I know.”

…A feeling only they could understand?

The nuance of her words felt strange.

It wasn’t as if she was saying only she could understand him, was it?

Elena’s hidden event shouldn’t be triggered yet.

“Ahem. Anyway, thank you very much. It couldn’t have been easy to get a commoner like me enrolled here.”

Elena’s gaze was strange, so he quickly changed the subject under the guise of expressing gratitude.

Elena picked up her teacup and sank into the sofa.

“Well, there were a lot of things to take care of. Some dealings as well. But, well, getting you enrolled here was the most important thing.”

Elena took a sip of her tea, then placed the cup back on the table and continued, “However, there’s a condition. You read that in the letter, right?”

“…Yes.”

The condition for remaining a student.

Of course, he knew.

The reason he could become an academy student was because of Elena’s promise to produce the first human blacksmith to receive the title of “Creator.”

For this reason, he had to prove his skills, and the method of proof was to create equipment once a month and present it to the faculty.

Then, after an evaluation with three examiners dispatched by the Imperial Family, if he passed, he would maintain his student status; if he failed, he would be immediately expelled.

“…Yes. I don’t think you’ll fail the test. You can handle it, right?”

Elena had pushed for his enrollment even with these conditions attached.

It showed how much she trusted him.

“Of course. Whose disciple am I?”

He responded to her trust with confidence.

Elena chuckled.

“Huhu, it’s an honor to be treated as a master when I haven’t taught you anything. Anyway, Ed, you’ll be allowed to observe classes under the pretense of research necessary for equipment creation. So, you’ll be assigned a separate seat… but it’s assigned at the professors’ discretion, so there might be some discrimination.”

*Discrimination.*

He was already prepared for it.

There was no way the haughty nobles would leave a commoner among them alone.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m grateful just to be able to attend the classes.”

“…Huhu. Alright. And as you know, the entrance ceremony will be held in two weeks. You’ll be participating as well.”

“Yes.”

“And the ‘Class Placement Competition’ is held after the entrance ceremony. You’ll be participating in that too.”

The Class Placement Competition.

It was a ranking competition held every quarter.

In this competition, academy cadets fought duels under unlimited rules, and based on the results, they were assigned to classes ranging from S to E rank.

‘And it’s best to be placed in a high-ranking class.’

The Imperial Academy had a systematic form of discrimination.

S-class cadets could attend all lectures, but lower-ranked cadets could only attend lectures corresponding to their rank.

“So, my dear disciple. Can you get good results?”

For this reason, he had to give his all in the Class Placement Competition.

He needed to attend all the lectures to prepare for the “Destruction” scenario.

“Yes, of course. I’ll aim for S-rank.”

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