The Extra Who Stole the Hero's System-Chapter 31: Mana Core - 2

I left the garden, the cool night air doing little to soothe the turmoil in my heart. My footsteps were heavy as I walked back towards the manor, my gaze fixed on the ground. The sounds of frantic activity from the medical passage had quieted, replaced by a tense, somber hush.

As I approached the passage, Chief Doctor Alaric emerged, his face grim, his shoulders slumped. Lord and Lady Sapphire stood before him, their faces pale and etched with despair. Luminous, his small body trembling, clung to his mother’s hand.

"My Lord, My Lady," Doctor Alaric began, his voice heavy with sorrow, "I... I have done all I can. I managed to prevent any lethal incident. Her life is no longer in immediate danger."

A collective sigh of relief escaped the family, quickly followed by a renewed wave of apprehension. Lady Sapphire’s eyes, fixed on the doctor, she asked. "But... but her mana core? Will she recover, Alaric? Will she be able to become a Mage Knight?" Her voice was a desperate whisper, clinging to a fragile hope.

Doctor Alaric shook his head slowly, his gaze filled with profound regret. "I am truly sorry, My Lady. The elixir was too potent. The mana... it was too much for her mana core to process. It has been severely, irrevocably damaged." He paused, his voice barely above a whisper. "She... she will never be able to refine mana again. Her mana core is completely inert."

Lady Sapphire’s gasp was raw. Her body sagged, and she would have collapsed if Lord Sapphire hadn’t quickly caught her. "No!" she sobbed, a heartbroken wail that tore through the quiet passage. "My daughter! Her dream! Her life’s ambition!" She buried her face in Lord Sapphire’s chest, her body wracked with uncontrollable sobs.

Lord Sapphire held her, his own face a mask of grim despair. Luminous, witnessing his mother’s profound grief, began to cry again, his small body trembling. The scene was heartbreaking, a tableau of utter devastation.

My own heart plummeted. Not Evelina. She had dedicated her life to this, to becoming a Mage Knight, to fulfilling Prudee’s legacy, to seeking her revenge. And now, it was all gone. Her dream, her purpose, shattered by a single potion. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

A wave of crushing guilt washed over me, heavier and more suffocating than before. I wished, with every fiber of my being, that I had used ’Pause & Observe,’ that I had risked everything to snatch that vial from her hand. What if I had acted quickly, without hesitation? Maybe she wouldn’t be in this situation. Maybe her mana core wouldn’t be irrevocably damaged. Maybe her dream wouldn’t be shattered. The ’what ifs’ screamed in my mind, a relentless torment.

I remembered a scene from my past life as Alex Miller. A vivid, painful memory. It was during my senior year of high school. I had been a promising baseball player, a pitcher with a fastball that turned heads. My dream, my long-held ambition, was to play in the Nationals, to make it big. But then, a hamstring injury. A brutal, career-ending tear that sidelined me for an entire year, forcing me to miss the most crucial season of my amateur career. The dream, the years of practice, the countless hours on the mound – all gone, just like that. I had felt the crushing weight of a dream stolen, the agonizing helplessness of watching my future slip away.

Now, Evelina was experiencing the same fate. Her mana core, her very connection to the power that defined her ambition, was irrevocably damaged. She would never be able to refine mana again. She would never become a Mage Knight. She would never be able to have justice, to have her revenge. The thought was a cold, bitter pill.

And she was in an indefinite coma. Her body lay still, her breathing shallow, her dreams shattered, her future stolen.

I stood there, a silent, helpless witness to the family’s grief, my own guilt a burning in my chest. I turned and walked away, headed to my room.

Hours passed. The manor remained hushed, steeped in a profound sorrow. I lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling, the images of Evelina’s agony and the family’s despair replaying in my mind.

A soft knock at my door broke the silence. I sat up, responding to the knock.

"Kai? My dear, may I come in?" It was Lady Sapphire’s voice, soft and fragile.

"Yes, Lady Sapphire," I replied, my voice a little hoarse.

She entered, her eyes still red-rimmed, but her posture composed. She walked to my bedside and sat down, her gaze gentle, yet filled with a deep sorrow.

"My dear boy," she began, her voice a soft murmur, "this is... terrible. For Evelina. For our family." She sighed, a long, weary sound. "She has always been so driven. So determined. Especially after... after Prudee."

My gaze met hers. She was going to talk about him.

"You remind me of him, you know," she continued, a faint, sad smile touching her lips. "Prudee. He was so full of life. So brave. Always wanted to be a knight, not a scholar. He was so much like you, in that way. Your quiet strength. Your... resilience." She paused, her eyes searching mine. "He always promised to protect Evelina. To be her knight."

My heart ached. The weight of her words, the unspoken plea, was immense.

"Evelina... she needs something now, Kai," Lady Sapphire continued, her voice gaining a quiet urgency. "Something to hold onto. Something to believe in. Her dream is shattered. Her purpose... gone." She reached out, her hand gently resting on my arm. "You are her brother. You have his spirit. His strength."

Her gaze was pleading, desperate. "The Ostinian Knight Academy Entrance Exam... it has two paths. The Mage Knight path, which Evelina pursued. And the Sword Knight path. A path Prudee always dreamed of." She squeezed my arm gently. "Kai, my dear. Would you... would you consider taking the Sword Knight exam? For Evelina? To make her happy? To be her knight? To make Prudee’s presence felt again, through you?"

My mind reeled. The Sword Knight exam. For Evelina. For Prudee. To fill the void. To be her knight. The thought was overwhelming, a sudden, unexpected burden. I never intended to become a knight — let alone someone’s knight. I had only one goal in this world: to survive, and nothing more.

****

THIRD PERSON POV

~~~

Far from the Sapphire manor, in the bustling capital of Elyndor, a man moved through the shadowed alleys of the lower market. He was cloaked in dark, unassuming fabric, his face hidden beneath a deep hood. He approached a small, nondescript stall, where an old trader sat hunched over a collection of antiques of history.

"I am interested in antique coins," the cloaked man said, his voice low and smooth, devoid of any discernible accent.

The trader, his eyes sharp and shrewd, looked up. "Ah, a connoisseur! I have many. From the early days of the Ostinan Kingdom, to the more recent... turbulent times."

The cloaked man’s gaze fell upon a small, tarnished copper coin, its surface etched with an unfamiliar symbol. He picked it up, turning it over in his gloved fingers. "This one," he murmured, "is from the Tumedia Empire. A rare piece. From the early days of their expansion, before the Great War of Unification."

The trader’s eyes widened in surprise. "Indeed! Your knowledge of the past is commendable, sir. Few recognize such a piece. May I inquire your name, noble sir?"

The cloaked man’s lips, hidden beneath the shadow of his hood, curved into a faint, almost imperceptible smile. "You may call me Herald."