After getting clean, Raze stood in the room in a new set of clothes. He took a deep, long breath to calm himself.
Now he had mana, he could use it, but he didn't know how yet. He looked at the book on the shelf, pulled it out, and sat down again.
He got back into reading, and unlike what had happened before, this time he actually understood what came after, the concept of magic when the core had been successfully formed.
The body was a massive machine used to control the mana that he now had.
The flow worked with intent and imagination. As long as he did it the right way, he would be able to use magic.
Raze spent a couple of hours reading the book, and before he knew it, it was done. The book only held details on how to sense mana, and also output it after forming the core.
He closed the book and leaned back into the chair. "I'm going to need the next volume," he muttered, then got on his feet.
Before he went on to do that, he needed to do the most important thing now, and that was finishing his understanding of the mana, and that meant controlling the mana.
He stood at the center of the room, closed his eyes, and then visualized his core. He saw it glowing and pulsing with mana. With his will and intent, he began controlling it, pulling a single strand of mana from the core.
It flowed through his mana veins, the constructs that formed after his mana core was established. They carried the mana like veins carried blood, and they allowed him to output it.
He kept going, but just when it was about to leave his body, he hesitated a bit and it all shattered. Not giving up, he took a deep breath and started again, controlling the mana.
And this time, from the center of his palms, he felt the mana seep out. With just a thought, the mana started spinning around in his palm. He could feel it right there.
He looked at the book on the table and controlled the mana to flow toward it. It moved slowly and wrapped around the book, lifting it off the table.
"It's working, it's actually working," he spoke, excited. He could actually use magic now.
Knock knock.
He stopped immediately and the book dropped to the table. He turned and walked to the door. "Who's there?"
"It's me, young master. You didn't have breakfast, so I brought some up to you," the maid said.
'I haven't eaten anything since yesterday, I should eat,' he thought before opening the door for her. She walked in with a plate of bread and broth.
This was a normal meal that commoners ate. Nobles would eat something far more lavish, but their family situation was that bad.
She placed the tray on the bed and was about to leave.
"Thank you for yesterday, I really appreciate you looking over me," he said.
She stopped close to the door. She wanted to say something; she looked pressed to do so, but she took a deep breath. "It's my job to take care of you, young master. Now please eat," she said and left.
After she shut the door, he locked it and walked to the table. He rushed through the broth and semi-stale bread. It was no delicacy, but it filled him.
When he was done, he sat on the bed with the book, took a deep breath, and with a deep breath, he returned to the library.
He opened his eyes to the place that was now his own.
[Congratulations User on fully understanding a book, 100% completion on your first book]
[A new section of the library is unlocked]
Raze placed the book back on the shelf. He looked around.
'I have a few things on my mind to handle. First is to learn some sort of elemental magic, and also find a way to stop my father from sending me away.'
"What will work for me? Tsk, first I need to know the issues that are facing the barony. If I can start fixing the issues that my father is unable to fix and at a low cost, it will work.
Right now, staying here is my main priority. If they took me away, I'm sure my life would become a lot harder."
He looked around the library for a bit and then spotted a book that caught his interest. [Basic Fire Magic.]
He pulled it out, and with a thought, he left the library. That was all he needed for now.
With the book in hand, he left the room and left the manor. Luckily, none of his family members saw him, so he headed into the town.
The barony wasn't large, everything was within walking distance for the most part. As he entered the town, right off the bat, he didn't like what he saw. The streets were dirty, the roads were awfully bad, and there were some poorly covered cracks that exposed the underground sewage system.
But beyond that, the people of the town seemed happy for the most part. Everyone talked in a joyous tone.
'The people are happy despite their situation. That means they aren't at a state of depression yet, which means they'll be open to listening to me,' he thought.
He looked around and started scanning the town even more. He wasn't an engineer, but he had read enough books that fixing some of the minor issues shouldn't be too hard as long as he knew what he was doing.
'I think the first issue should be the houses. Most of them are worn down and very bad, and there is a forest in the distance. Why can't they use the wood to fix their houses?
Some are downright so bad they need to be remade from scratch. I should find someone I can talk to about it, the maid, she'll do. I should learn her name if I'm going to be talking to her a lot though.'