"Alright! Here we go!"

Though not as advanced as Earth’s digital cameras, this Arcane-punk color camera, which recorded scenes onto mana stone plates, was leagues ahead of Earth’s early black-and-white cameras.

"Let’s see… like this, and then like this, right?"

Jarvis, the building manager, was proving that his skills far exceeded his title. With just a single lesson on how to use the mana-stone camera from his employer, he had already mastered its operation.

"Position is good, lighting is good—everyone, smile!"

Jarvis, ever resourceful, even instinctively knew how to arrange people and lighting for the best possible shot.

"What has the Northern Sorcerer made this time?"
"A magic device that instantly creates a picture, apparently."
"Wait, what? How does that even work?"
"We just have to stand still for a moment, I think."

Everyone stood in front of the unfamiliar camera, their curiosity piqued as they awaited Jarvis’s signal.

"Alright, just don’t blink, everyone—don’t blink."

Meanwhile, Arad was busy giving constant reminders to the bride, groom, and guests not to blink.

This was, after all, the first photograph ever taken in this world. A ruined shot with half the subjects blinking would have been a tragedy.

The issue? Everyone was so focused on keeping their eyes open that the wedding photograph ended up looking somewhat… intense. It was an unintended side effect that even Arad hadn’t anticipated.

Click! Ka-ching!
"One more!"
Click! Ka-ching!
"Last one!"
Click! Ka-ching!

The light-attribute mana stone in the magical camera flickered, and the sound of the mana stone plate being replaced repeated three times.

And thus, the first photo shoot in this world’s history was a success.

With the groundbreaking photo session concluded, the wedding reception began.

"Congratulations, Theo."
"Thank you, sir."

Arad personally approached the bride and groom to offer his congratulations.

"To think, the bride is the second daughter of the High Administrator! Theo, you’ve outdone yourself."
"I only found out later. My wife only told me about her family when we were about to marry."

This was Arad’s first meeting with the couple. Normally, he didn’t meddle in his employees’ private affairs. The sole exception to this was anything involving Mary.

It was likely a lingering side effect of the mental magic that had affected him in the past.

"Hello, I’m Maria. I’ve heard a lot about you from my husband. And… thank you for healing his arm."
"Think nothing of it. I should be the one thanking you for taking care of one of my key staff members."
"I’ll do my best to support him so he can focus on his work."
"Support? If you’re capable, you should also consider outside activities. By the way, I heard you run a bookstore?"
"Yes."
"You’re the one who introduced Theo to the joys of reading!"
"Although, he doesn’t seem to read much these days."

At Arad’s comment, Maria glanced at her husband, her expression faintly scolding.

Come to think of it… I’ve recently advanced the tech tree with the steam engine into papermaking and printing…

Arad’s eyes sparkled as he looked at Maria.

“That’s the boss’s talent-scouting gaze!”
“Dangerous!”

Both Theo and Mary stiffened, their faces darkening.

"Hahaha! Today is such a joyous occasion, wouldn’t you agree?"

At that moment, the somewhat tipsy High Administrator Rio Hightide appeared before Arad.

"Father! How much have you had to drink?!"

Maria, startled, scolded her father.

"Today’s a special day! My second daughter, who was on the verge of becoming an old maid, is finally married! And she’s already expecting a child!"

Hightide looked at his daughter with nothing but affectionate pride.

"Isn’t that right, Sir Rojie?"
"Hahaha! Indeed, sir."

Beside him stood Sir Rojie Shapiro, Theo’s half-brother and a high-ranking knight, his face equally flushed from drink.

Even Theo’s biological father was off in another corner, deeply engrossed in conversation with the other nobles.

"My son Theo, congratulations."
"Mother."

At some point, Theo’s biological mother approached, holding his hand tightly with teary eyes.

Even though Theo was born to a concubine, he was now a full-fledged executive of Arad Company and the husband of the High Administrator’s second daughter.

Theo had secured a position of significant influence within the Shapiro family, which even his biological mother benefited from, as her status within the family had risen dramatically overnight.

"So, where are you going for your honeymoon?"

As the reception reached its peak, Arad casually asked the couple.

"Honeymoon? What’s that?"

Both the bride and groom, along with the surrounding guests, reacted with confusion.

"Oh… I see it’s not a thing here. Makes sense; running into monsters or bandits on a trip would be its own problem."

Realizing his cultural faux pas, Arad chuckled awkwardly and smoothly changed the subject.

"Theo, I’ll give you a week of paid leave. Take your time and enjoy your newlywed life."

"Really?!"

"Of course. This applies to all our employees moving forward. And let’s not forget a wedding gift for everyone too."

"!!"
"!!"

Arad’s declaration left everyone present awestruck.

The unmarried employees of Arad Company, in particular, had flames of determination blazing in their eyes. The wedding reception suddenly turned into a scene from The Animal Kingdom, with people eyeing potential partners left and right.

"If I get married, do I also get a week off? And a gift?"

Mary was among those asking, her tone surprisingly casual.

"Naturally."

"I see."

Mary’s gaze turned predatory, her eyes gleaming like a beast sizing up prey.

"Ah, Jarvis, how did it turn out? Did the photos come out well?"

Completely oblivious to Mary’s intense gaze, Arad called out to Jarvis.

"Ooooh! They turned out… well, mostly. Everyone’s expressions look a bit stiff. They’re smiling with their mouths, but their eyes are all strained. Hmm? Even I was tensing my eyes!"

Arad, utterly engrossed, was busy scrutinizing the photos taken with the magical camera.

***

Two Days After Theo’s Wedding

With the newlywed Theo enjoying his honeymoon, everyone else returned to their regular routines as if nothing had changed.

Meanwhile, my day was slightly more unusual than what could be called "routine."

High Citadel, Inner Castle.
The Hall of Glory.

Today was one of my regular sessions to examine Arina’s health.

Ever since her near-death experience in the Abyssal Depths, Arina had called on me periodically to monitor her condition.

"Mm…," I murmured, gently holding Arina’s wrist to check her pulse.

"Your body is in excellent condition."

The results of my diagnosis showed her to be the picture of health.

After releasing her arm, I recorded my observations on her lower dantian and upper dantian—points central to the flow of mana in her body.

Incidentally, Mary wasn’t present today, as she had business to attend to.

"Arad, is this something you don't know?"

"Even I can’t know everything."

"Really? Hard to believe."

"You’ll have to trust me. I’m neither a dragon nor a god."

"Fair enough."

"My knowledge about the lower and upper dantians is limited."

Arina’s injuries from the Abyssal Depths had been entirely healed, thanks to the incredible success of a half-elixir’s restorative effects.

All she needed now was to accumulate mana in her reset mana core.

"It’s baffling that the speed and volume of mana accumulation are so deficient."

This was where the problems began.

Arina had resumed training with renewed determination, but something was wrong. The mana accumulation in her lower dantian was abnormally slow, and the amount was inadequate.

But the bigger issue lay elsewhere.

"Every time you train, the mana is absorbed into the circle near your heart," I explained.

"And I can’t control it," she added.

When Arina tried to gather mana, it wasn’t just her lower dantian but also the circle near her heart that absorbed it.

For someone who needed to avoid becoming a magic swordsman, this was highly undesirable.

"Still, there’s something I can do."

At that moment, Arina suddenly unveiled something.

"This is a technique I recently discovered. You’re the first to see it."

The mana in her heart and lower dantian collided within her body, fusing together into an enormous force like a nuclear reaction.

"Your Highness! This is dangerous!"

Alarmed, I shouted as I watched her mana surge violently.

The sheer magnitude of mana radiating from her lower dantian was unheard of.

The problem was Arina’s body—there was no way it could endure such strain.

"I know. That’s why I haven’t used it," she said calmly.

She was well aware of the risks and had only demonstrated the technique briefly to show me.

"Do not, under any circumstances, use this technique."

"I can only hope I won’t need to."

"You won’t. Not ever."

Our exchange felt like something straight out of a cliché, filled with ominous foreshadowing.

With the situation calmed, I conveyed the results of my examination.

"In any case, I recommend consulting with experts like Sir Balzac, Isabel, or Commander Sun. They may offer better insight."

"I already spoke with them recently."

"And what did they say?"

"They told me to ask you."

"…"

These people… really?

"It’s possible, Your Highness, that you’re encountering a new type of wall. The change in the color of your mana and sword aura might not be unrelated."

"That’s exactly what they said."

"In my humble opinion, I strongly advise against training to accumulate mana for the time being."

"Then what should I do in the meantime?"

"Meditation and philosophical discussions might lead to enlightenment. That would be the safest approach."

From what I could infer, Arina seemed to have hit a barrier—a limit that needed to be overcome to achieve the next stage: Grand Sword Master.

"Apologies if my assistance feels inadequate."

I had no expertise in this area, being strictly non-combatant.

"It’s not your fault."

Arina offered a gentle smile as she rolled down the sleeve I had examined earlier.

"But surely you have a hypothesis? Something other than meditation or discussion? Both Isabel and Balzac suggested those already."

"A hypothesis…"

Pressed for an answer, I recalled a detail from the Silver Era 1 of the original timeline.

In the Silver Era 1, the only person to achieve the rank of Grand Sword Master was the Dark Grand Duke, Doom.

The tale of how Doom ascended to that rank was legendary.

‘At the Ragoite Great Barrier, Doom fought tirelessly against overwhelming Mongar Orc forces. Through countless life-or-death battles, he achieved enlightenment.’

Specifically, through a life-or-death battle. In the original history, Doom, abandoned by Carpe and without sufficient Imperial support, fought alone against thousands of elite Mongar Orcs.

‘They say he regained his youth upon becoming a Grand Sword Master.’

The technique Arina had shown might very well be usable only after achieving a similar transformation.

‘But it’s too dangerous. Completely unrealistic.’

For Arina, attempting such a feat was far riskier than it had been for Doom. Failure could leave her crippled or dead, endangering Renslet’s succession and inviting the Empire to invade.

"Well?"

Unaware of my thoughts, Arina urged me to speak.

"Please take this as mere reference, Your Highness. And I need your word that you won’t attempt it."

"I swear."

Hearing her solemn promise, I reluctantly spoke.

"A life-or-death battle."

"I see."

With a short response, Arina nodded as though she had anticipated this answer.

"You suspected as much?"

"Commander Sun mentioned it."

"…"

These people… unbelievable.

"Don’t worry. A life-or-death battle is far beyond my capabilities right now."

"Good. And as for that technique you showed earlier—please, under no circumstances, use it."

"I’m more aware of its dangers than anyone. And about that technique… don’t mention it to anyone."

"As a physician, I keep my patients' conditions confidential."

Even though my words carried a commanding tone, Arina didn’t seem offended.

"Well then… I’ll take my leave."

"Thank you for your help. Go on, now."

With a light smile, she bid me farewell.

I bowed respectfully to her and began making my way out of the Hall of Glory.

"Oh, by the way, Theo Shapiro just got married, didn’t he?"

Unexpectedly, Arina brought up Theo.

"Yes, Your Highness. That’s correct."

"Convey my congratulations to Theo and Maria Shapiro."

"Of course, Your Highness."

It was an honor that the ruler of Renslet remembered the marriage of a mere company executive. I’d be sure to tell Theo as soon as he returned to work.