RMA 07

Episode 7

#1

There are people in this world who just love to brag.

Maybe it’s only natural—perhaps everyone carries that urge, wanting to stand above others.

Most just keep their mouths shut out of concern for social standing, the crises that might come, or fear that envy and jealousy will come back as calamity.

It was no different here.

<Our Benoman family, you see, has the power to turn negative energy into strength.>

<Do you know what that feels like? It’s exhilarating! Too bad for you—you’ll never know that feeling in your entire life.>

At the time, Lawrence had no idea what that chatterbox assassin was getting at.

The man knew Lawrence had no mana and had been practically cast out of his family, sold off to the research lab. Maybe that’s why he rambled so much at him.

Still, it was company, and sometimes it meant a chance to breathe outside air—Lawrence didn’t mind.

“And to think that’s coming back around like this.”

Lawrence chuckled as he looked at the chunk of meat laced with poison.

Back then, he had listened politely, trying to show some empathy. Now those words were helping him grow.

He focused on the artifact inside his body and recited the activation words.

[Negative Energy]
[Absorbing poison.]

He didn’t have a mana road, so he couldn’t feel mana flowing.

But he could see the paths it took through the body, and thanks to what he’d been told in the past, he could put that knowledge to use.

<You have to send mana through every corner of your body—from fingertips to toes, to the crown of your head. That’s how you lay the foundation for growth.>

<Like this! Ah, sorry—you don’t have a mana road, so you wouldn’t know.>

The assassin who had moved so fast he left afterimages.

Lawrence was never sure if the man had come to brag or to tease.

Now he recalled those moments and guided the mana through his body.

[Stored Energy: 500]
[Maximum capacity reached.]
[To increase storage, a better medium is required.]

Once the poison was fully absorbed, the meat and vegetables turned into fine-quality ingredients.

Lawrence looked at the mana gathered in his heart and picked up the food.

“Guess I’ll need to start collecting better ingredients little by little.”

He planned to hand these over to Rachel for today’s meal.

From now on, he’d take responsibility for whatever ingredients came in here.

Nodding firmly to himself, he trotted off toward the kitchen.

“Rachel, let’s eat.”

“Yes, young master. Oh my, you didn’t even ask—I would have taken care of it myself.”

“From now on, only use the ingredients I bring. Got it?”

“But…”

Lawrence laid the food on the table with a thunk and gave her a stern look.

In this world, no matter how skilled people were with magic, mana, swords, or aura—poison and curses were things everyone dreaded.

And in a world like that, poison and curses thrived. How much research, how much refinement had gone into them?

“What if there’s poison in these? Just listen to me, alright?”

“B-but doesn’t that mean I should be the one taking the risk even more?”

“Then who’s going to cook?”

“….”

The logic was strange, but Rachel only nodded quietly.

She was a maid. Her duty above all was not to go against the master she served.

It worried her a little, but the young master was suddenly full of vigor and determination. It would be alright.

“My lady, I think the young master is growing up well.”

Rachel smiled softly and rolled up her sleeves.

She was confident when it came to steak, after all!

“Alright then. I’ll make something full of nutrients so you’ll grow up healthy, young master.”

“Good. Oh, and request more supplies too. I think… we’ll have a guest before long.”

“A guest?”

People always want to check if their schemes are working.

Is the plan unfolding well? Has the enemy truly been broken down?

Medeia would be no different.

“There’s that waste pile in the yard, right?”

“Y-yes…”

“That’ll do nicely.”

Rachel tilted her head, baffled by what he meant.

♪~

Lawrence even hummed to himself as he disappeared somewhere, leaving only the words:

“Call me when the food’s ready.”

#2

Most mages would close their eyes to sense the flow of mana.

But not Lawrence.

He kept his eyes open and watched the mana spread to every corner of his body.

The artifact was truly miraculous—guiding mana through him even though he had no mana road.

Crack.

The human body isn’t perfectly symmetrical.

Dominant muscles, posture, habits, genetics…

All these factors twist and distort the body over time.

“Ugh… feels like I’m getting some kind of chiropractic treatment.”

Ten years of minor misalignments were being corrected at once.

Bones popped and muscles shifted back into place.

Everywhere the mana flowed, this happened—painful, yet oddly refreshing.

[Converted Physical Ability: 500]
[With growth and training, converted energy will gradually decrease.]
[As energy is consumed, negative energy can be stored again.]

A handy little message floated before his eyes.

If he trained and ate well every day, he’d soon have the strongest body possible.

Then the cycle would repeat—supply, absorb, grow…

Medeia would happily keep sending cursed items and ingredients.

“This is why I love living in the annex.”

It let him slip past some of the watchful eyes.

And when “guests” came…

“They’ll probably send someone sharp-eyed. Hm…”

Well, deceiving them would be child’s play.

Lawrence lay down on his bed, his body feeling as loose as if he’d had a full-body massage.

Now was the time to think about physical training and growth.

“An artifact doesn’t have to be tied down to attack magic, does it?”

A sword imbued with magic, armor imbued with magic, even sandbags imbued with magic.

All of those were artifacts too.

Ever since his regression, each day felt more exciting to Lawrence.

“Young master, come down and eat.”

Right on cue, Rachel’s voice came from beyond the door.

The aroma of grilled meat spilled in the moment he opened it, making his mouth water.

He gave her praise without hesitation.

“This is amazing.”

“Isn’t it?”

It was just the two of them, but it felt more plentiful and warm than living alone.

If his mother had been here too, it would’ve been perfect… but longing for the dead only brought sorrow.

Chewing a piece of perfectly cooked steak, Lawrence thought:

“First, I’ll get rid of the nuisances. Then, I’ll either set out on a journey or start gathering information.”

At the very least, he had to keep the promises he’d made before regressing.

The Guardians’ legacy…

It was like being told to find a drifting bottle in the endless sea.

That could wait. For now, his focus needed to be on growth.

He remembered fitness knowledge from Earth, but he had an even more effective idea.

Sometimes brute-force methods brought the fastest results.

“Rachel, do we have writing paper here?”

“Of course~.”

“And when’s the next messenger pigeon due?”

“Hmm… probably tomorrow.”

Lawrence nodded.

As a great house, they received regular reports from their estates, manors, and facilities.

Was anything wrong? Did they need supplies? Any incidents?

If there was a communication crystal, they used that. Otherwise, messenger pigeons flew back and forth.

This place was no different.

Thanks to Rachel’s meticulous reports, they had received just enough support to survive.

Now it was time to request something himself.

“They’ll grant me at least this much.”

There had been a training method he’d taken note of in the past.

Even though he came from a mage family, they hadn’t lived in hostility with knightly families.

Some were rivals, sure, but others exchanged information.

From one of those houses—one that would later rise to prominence—Lawrence had heard about a method.

If he used it now, he could build a stronger, more complete body.

Mages had more weaknesses than most realized.

Chief among them: frail bodies.

“Of course, that’s mostly because they sink all their time into studying magic instead of training.”

To work miracles with a human body required tremendous precision.

But Lawrence didn’t need that study.

As long as his artifact had space, he could use magic without learning a thing.

After filling his stomach, he locked himself away in his workshop.

“I hope he doesn’t end up stunting his growth staying cooped up like that…”

Children were supposed to be active.

Rachel couldn’t help but worry—Lawrence was smaller than other kids his age.

#3

A few days later.

Crash!

A loud sound rang out from behind the annex.

Startled by the noise of something breaking, Rachel rushed outside.

There was Lawrence, smashing the supplies they had received.

“Young master!?”

“What?”

“Ah, I mean—are you hurt?”

“No, I’m fine. There were cracks in them. I figured they were useless, so I’m throwing them out.”

Rachel fussed over him not to get injured and hurried back inside.

In truth, the broken supplies were ones from which he had absorbed all the curses.

If he wanted new cursed goods to arrive, the fastest way was to toss the old ones and request replacements.

Medeia would gladly oblige.

Who wouldn’t, when their enemy was willingly drinking from a poisoned cup?

Lawrence stared at the shattered fragments for a moment, then headed to the yard for some basic training.

Ten years old.

The age when he needed both lots of nutrients and plenty of activity.

“Huup!”

He focused on stretching, cardio, and simple bodyweight exercises—building his foundation without overdoing it.

And each day, after pushing himself, a delightful message appeared:

[Dragon Body has grown.]
[Hatchling: 8.1%]

“Whew… At least I’m steadily making progress.”

It felt like clearing a daily quest.

He never realized how energizing visible growth could be.

Before, he had always been fighting against unseen forces—this was something completely new.

Just as he finished his training and was about to head back inside, Rachel called out again:

“Young master! A messenger pigeon just arrived!”

“Let me see.”

“Take your time reading—I’ll go prepare your bathwater.”

Rachel bustled off while Lawrence carefully untied the letter from the bird.

It was a reply to the request he had sent a few days ago.

Stamped with the family head’s seal.

[Request for supplies confirmed.]
[Knight family training data will be sent by courier.]
[An envoy will arrive soon. Report to them directly.]
[-Edward-]

“Perfect.”

Everything was going according to plan.

A smile tugged at Lawrence’s lips.