As the mana surged into Vanessa, the magic circles she had summoned solidified.

Since she had mastered spells up to the 5th Circle, it was likely she was casting one of those high-level spells. And with Ghislain’s mana fueling them, their destructive power would be overwhelming.

If these spells were fully cast, the training grounds would be obliterated, and everyone nearby would be severely injured.

Whirrrr...

Ghislain quickly began cutting off the wild flow of mana inside Vanessa’s body one by one.

As the mana flow diminished, the magic circles flickered and started to distort.

‘This is dangerous,’ he thought.

He couldn’t maintain this level of control forever. However, if he simply stopped, Vanessa’s life force would be drained entirely.

Unless she regained control and stopped herself, the magic would continue to activate relentlessly.

Ghislain had no choice—he had to forcibly wake her, despite the risk.

With a deep breath, he gathered his mana and abruptly blocked all of her mana paths at once.

The mana, which had been raging inside her, suddenly came to a halt as all the channels in her body were sealed off.

Not missing a beat, Ghislain shouted loudly, “Open your eyes!”

Boom!

His voice echoed across the training grounds like a thunderclap, shaking the space. At last, Vanessa regained consciousness.

Swoosh...

The magic circles floating in the air flickered out and vanished, losing their light.

Ghislain, sensing the raging mana had subsided, slowly withdrew his hand from Vanessa’s back.

Gasp!

Vanessa hunched over, coughing up blood.

Though she writhed in pain, a strange sense of elation washed over her. She had finally felt it—mana.

The tiny bit of mana that now resided within her body gave her the certainty she had longed for.

Hurk!

Despite vomiting blood, she couldn’t help but smile. It felt like a blockage in her soul had finally been cleared.

Through her dazed mind, she gazed at Ghislain—the man who had given her the gift of feeling mana. In this moment, she was overwhelmed with gratitude.

Ghislain, too, looked at her with satisfaction, smiling to himself.

‘It worked, just as I had hoped. Still, that was close. Things could have gone terribly wrong.’

For someone to perform multi-casting immediately after sensing mana for the first time—this was a result far beyond his expectations.

Vanessa, still catching her breath, asked cautiously, “Why... why did you go to such lengths for someone like me?”

Ghislain smirked, as if amused by the question.

“Because I need your strength. You’ll help me, right?”

“Do you really think I’ll be of any use to you?”

With a playful grin, Ghislain answered, “Of course. You’ll be of great use. Now that you’ve sensed mana, I’ll teach you the mana cultivation technique that’s perfect for you.”

Seeing the mischievous expression on Ghislain’s face, Vanessa couldn’t help but shed tears.

She had been fortunate enough to meet a great master and be accepted into the most prestigious magic tower in the north, but reality had been harsh.

Her poor talent, the disdain from others, and the unchanging reality no matter how hard she tried had weighed heavily on her.

After her master’s death, her situation had worsened. She had been relegated to the status of a mere servant, struggling through endless hardships, without a single person acknowledging her.

Even the other maids had tormented and ostracized her because she had once been a mage’s apprentice.

She had been an outsider in the Tower, neither a mage nor a maid.

But now, an unbelievable miracle had occurred.

Barely able to speak, Vanessa whispered, “I want to...”

“What was that?” Ghislain asked.

Her thoughts were clear: she genuinely wanted to help him.

“I want to be of help to you.”

Ghislain chuckled, amused by her sincerity. “Don’t worry. I’m good at using people. You’ll have to be prepared for that.”

Vanessa smiled as well, wiping away her tears.

Squatting down in front of her, Ghislain met her gaze.

“Welcome to my mercenary group, Vanessa.”

With Ghislain’s guidance, Vanessa began training in earnest, learning a modified version of Feridium’s mana cultivation technique that was designed for safety and efficiency.

Had Count Feridium and his vassals known that Ghislain had altered the family’s secret technique and taught it to someone outside the family, they would have been outraged.

Both modifying the family’s legacy and teaching it to an outsider were strictly taboo among noble circles.

But Ghislain couldn’t have cared less.

“If you could handle the technique I use, it would be much faster.”

Ghislain’s own mana cultivation technique was custom-designed for his body. It was too dangerous to teach to anyone else—it would likely cause their body to explode from the strain.

Still, he gave Vanessa what she needed.

“There’s going to be a war soon. Your magic will be crucial,” he explained.

He also gave her a detailed account of the events to come. If something happened unexpectedly, she would need to be mentally prepared to handle it.

“But I can’t even cast magic properly yet,” Vanessa protested.

“That’s fine. You’ve already mastered up to the 5th Circle in theory, right?”

“Yes, but I don’t have enough mana...” she admitted.

Vanessa had yet to accumulate much mana. No matter how talented she was, there was no shortcut to gaining power in such a short time.

With the little mana she had gathered, she could only manage simple spells.

Whoosh.

A small ball of light the size of a fist floated above her palm.

It was a 1st Circle spell—Light. This was her current limit.

Looking worried, she glanced at Ghislain.

“How can this possibly be helpful in a war...?”

“Your mana is lacking, so there’s not much you can do right now. Don’t worry about that. Just focus on your training, and I’ll take care of the rest.”

Vanessa, still anxious, nodded slowly.

“When will the war start?” she asked.

“Soon. Maybe in a month? Two months at the latest.”

It had already been a month and a half since Ghislain and his group had left the Forest of Beasts. The enemy forces would have heard the news by now and would be preparing for war.

Ghislain had spent that time wisely.

For the first month, he used the money from the Runestones to gather mercenaries.

The next half-month had been spent teaching Vanessa the mana cultivation technique.

Though it had taken time, it was a crucial part of preparing for victory in the upcoming war.

Once Vanessa had reached the stage where she could gather mana on her own, Ghislain reduced the time he spent teaching her and began tackling the tasks that had piled up.

“Gillian, how’s the training of the mercenaries coming along?”

“No issues. They’re now better than most soldiers in any regular estate,” Gillian replied with satisfaction.

The focus of their training wasn’t on individual strength but on coordination as a unit.

Since Ghislain had recruited experienced fighters, they quickly adapted and showed results.

After a brief moment of thought, Ghislain gave his next command.

“Then it’s time. Let’s head into the Forest of Beasts.”

With around three hundred mercenaries in tow, Ghislain led them back into the forest.

Although they had destroyed the monster dens during their first journey, the forest was prone to new monsters filling the vacated spaces.

To prevent the monsters from reestablishing themselves, they needed to regularly clear the area.

“This time, it’ll be easier than the first, so don’t worry.”

The mercenaries who had been in the forest before laughed confidently.

The newer recruits, however, followed behind them with tense faces.

The paths were already clear, and they had harvested the flesh and blood of the Blood Python. As long as they stayed on the path, it would be much safer than before.

With their increased numbers, Ghislain and the mercenaries easily wiped out any wandering monsters and brought back a large haul of Runestones.

Counting the remaining Runestones, Ghislain let out a deep sigh.

“We’re going to have to start rationing these.”

Runestones weren’t an infinite resource. Although there were still plenty left, after harvesting them in large quantities twice, the supply had noticeably decreased.

Leaving the management of the mercenaries to Gillian and Kaor, Ghislain returned to the castle.

“Alright, time to get some training in myself.”

The stronger he became, the more people he could save.

But just as he was about to head to the training grounds, a group of vassals swarmed toward him.

Having heard that more Runestones had been brought back, they came rushing over, their faces full of anticipation.

“Young Lord! Please, give us some Runestones!”

“We have urgent uses for them.”

“Just give us some! Now!”

The vassals stubbornly pressed their case. Reluctantly, Ghislain handed over a small portion of the Runestones.

He had plans for the rest, so he couldn’t give them away freely.

The vassals complained that it wasn’t enough, but Ghislain ignored them and sent them away.

After that, he devoted himself entirely to his training.

His daily routine consisted of physical conditioning, weapon training, including swordsmanship, and mana cultivation.

“If only I had more than one body.”

Once his training was done, he would review the progress on the construction of roads and fortifications in the Forest of Beasts.

He also continued to oversee Vanessa’s training, leaving him with no free time.

Something had been bothering him, but he had been too busy to fully investigate the issue.

“I can’t figure out why this is happening... What caused this?”

Since the battle with the Blood Python, his recovery rate had improved ever so slightly.

The quicker recovery meant less rest and more time to get things done, which was helpful in the current situation. But it was unsettling not knowing why his body was changing.

Power that you don’t fully understand and control isn’t real power.

“Could it be related to that?”

There was only one possible explanation for the change in his body.

With a heavy sigh, Ghislain shook his head.

There was a way to confirm his suspicion, but it would require him to risk his life.

With war looming, he couldn’t afford to take that risk right now.

“I’ll look into it after the war is over.”

For now, he had to focus on his regular training.

While Ghislain was preoccupied with his personal growth, the mercenaries continued to refine their teamwork through regular drills.

Whenever he had the time, Ghislain would check in with Gillian to monitor their progress.

The new recruits were quite pleased with their current situation.

Their duties involved mostly training, occasionally dealing with the monsters in the forest, and protecting the laborers who were building the roads and fortifications.

The workers took care of the actual construction, while Ghislain’s earlier efforts to clear the area of monsters made the mercenaries’ job relatively easy.

“Wow, this is way easier than I thought. All we have to do is train and fight the occasional monster.”

“The Forest of Beasts isn’t as dangerous as people say. They struggled when they first cleared the path, but... I’m not sure how true that is.”

“We’re even getting paid as if we’re at war, with top-tier equipment. Ha!”

Morale among the mercenaries was high, thanks to the generous wages and high-quality gear Ghislain had provided.

However, not all of the mercenaries were fully loyal to him.

There hadn’t been enough time for them to bond, and Ghislain hadn’t done anything extraordinary to win their trust.

Still, they didn’t dare disrespect him.

The veteran mercenaries who had fought with Ghislain were fiercely loyal, and they kept the newer recruits in check.

From the start, Ghislain had planned to use the existing mercenaries to manage the new arrivals.

Between the money and the physical control exerted by his loyalists, managing the rough mercenaries hadn’t been an issue.

“Still, he’s serious about training. Do you think he knows something we don’t? Like an actual invasion?”

“Come on, wars don’t start that easily. It takes at least a year to prepare for a territorial battle.”

“Our young commander doesn’t have much experience with war. Maybe he thinks anyone can invade whenever they want.”

“With the rumors about the Runestones, a lot of lords are probably eyeing this place. It’s natural for him to be worried.”

“But if someone does invade, can we really defend this place? It’s not exactly a strong estate.”

“For now, we’re fine. By the time the rumors spread and the lords make their moves, we’ll have time to slip away if things get too dangerous.”

Before signing their contracts, the mercenaries had calculated the time it would take for the rumors to spread and for other lords to prepare for war.

They didn’t think an invasion would happen immediately, so they were confident they could escape before anything serious happened.

While there was still some unease, they were content with their cushy country lifestyle.

“Man, this is great. I hope it stays like this.”

“Everything’s good, but there’s nowhere to have fun around here.”

“Yeah, it’s a bit boring in the countryside. How about a game of cards?”

The mercenaries were lounging around, enjoying their peaceful lives, when suddenly, one of them came running, out of breath.

“B-big news! There’s big trouble!”

The mercenaries, who had been preparing for a round of gambling, looked at the approaching man with disinterest.

In this estate, “big trouble” usually wasn’t that serious.

Maybe a worker had gotten hurt on the job, or someone had gotten into a fight with Kaor and been beaten up, or perhaps someone had slacked off in training and gotten scolded by Gillian.

“What is it? Did someone get hurt?”

“Did someone mouth off to that mad dog and get themselves thrashed?”

“Or is it the training drillmaster calling us again?”

The mercenaries laughed amongst themselves.

But the next words out of the man’s mouth wiped the smiles off their faces.

“It’s war! A real war has started!”