The metal table groaned under the pressure of the energy.
The shadow phantom opened its mouth. No sound came out, but a wave of cold hit Maria's face, freezing her eyelashes.
It was as if that artificial creature was suffering. This wasn't life. It was a miscalculation tearing reality apart.
Varon growled through clenched teeth:
"Stay stable... damn it... take shape!"
But the shadow was unstable. Like ink spreading in water, it began to tremble and fall apart.
The silver lines on the circuit heated up and smoked.
BOOM!
With a muffled sound, the shadow phantom exploded into particles of black dust.
Varon cut the power.
The laboratory lit up again, but the pungent smell of burning and stench remained in the air.
A little mana current still remained in the device. Its magic circuits had a faint, blinking purple light and made a continuous buzzing sound.
Varon slammed his fist on the table.
"See?!"
He pointed to the blackened circuit.
"'Shadow Movement' isn't ordinary magic. It's a phase shift. Matter turns into energy and comes back again. Every time I try to simulate it, the circuit melts because it can't handle the 'density' of this volume of transfer."
He looked at Maria. His eyes were tired and red.
"Mages say this is 'God's Will'. I say this is a 'Magic Circuit problem'."
He approached Maria.
"You said you neutralized the trap with 'Laws of Physics'. Now tell me... how can I control this pressure without the device exploding?"
Varon looked with anger and desperation at the blackened silver lines, as if he wanted to force them to obey with his gaze.
"The calculations were correct... the crystals were pure... why?!"
Maria stepped closer. Unlike Varon who looked for "mistakes in magic incantations," Maria was looking at the "physics of flow."
Her eyes locked onto the point where the circuit had melted.
The remaining purple light in the circuit had gathered there and was trembling. Like water gathering behind a blocked dam, pressing against the walls.
She unconsciously whispered:
" The flow has nowhere to go."
Varon turned his head sharply.
"What?"
Maria brought her finger close to the circuit but didn't touch it. Intense heat radiated from that spot.
" It's sealed too tightly, Master. Energy enters, takes shape, but has nowhere to go. It's like a pipe capped at the end. When pressure rises, the pipe can't handle it and bursts."
Varon frowned.
"This is a 'Containment Field'! Of course it has to be closed. If I open it, the shadow will dissipate!"
"A shadow needs 'flow' to take shape, not confinement. Entropy must be discharged."
Without waiting for permission, Maria put on the thick leather glove lying on the table.
"What are you doing, girl?! Don't touch it!"
"Maybe the problem is that energy just gathers, but has nowhere to vent..."
She picked up a small blue crystal (stabilizer) from the corner of the table.
"If this just spreads the pressure... maybe the circuit won't burn."
She placed the crystal slightly askew on the circuit where it had burned.
The jarring sound of the device calmed down.
Varon immediately leaned forward, made a few quick adjustments, and balanced the flow.
A quiet hum echoed in the device.
The condensed purple light slowly flowed into the blue crystal and changed from an "explosive" state to a "circulating" state.
Varon stared at the stabilized device, reviewing his calculations in his mind. What Maria did was against all traditional principles of containment magic, but... it worked.
He turned his head slowly and stared at Maria with a different look for the first time.
He wasn't looking at her like a nuisance.
His gaze was scrutinizing, like when he had discovered a rare new species.
"You don't respect the 'Essence of Magic', Maria. Mages try to 'understand' mana... but you try to 'plumb' it."
Varon came forward and put his hands in his coat pockets.
"You aren't a mage... you're an engineer."
Maria breathed a sigh of relief. She took off the glove and put it on the table.
"Engineering is what works, Master. Magic... is sometimes just wishful thinking."
Varon stared at her for a few seconds. Then his cold, ruthless mask settled back on his face. He shouldn't let this girl feel important.
He sneered and turned his back to Maria.
"Don't get cocky, kid. You were just lucky the device didn't explode in your face. There's still a long way to go until you understand what's going on here."
He gestured to the exit door.
"Work hours are over. Get lost to the dorm. Tomorrow night, same time. And remember..."
He showed his profile.
"If you say a word about what you saw here to anyone, I'll perform the next experiment on your nervous system. Is that clear?"
Maria picked up her bag.
"Perfectly, Master."
She went toward the door.
When the heavy metal door closed behind her, Varon looked at the circuit again. He ran his finger over the crystal Maria had moved.
He whispered under his breath:
"Outlet flow... Hmm. Maybe she's right. Maybe we've been plumbing it wrong for centuries."
The heavy iron door closed behind Maria with a muffled thud, as if the mouth of a monster had been shut.
The cold, damp air of dawn hit her face, clearing the ozone and chemical stench from her lungs.
Maria stumbled a few steps and leaned against the stone wall of the corridor.
She raised her hands. Her fingertips were blackened with crystal dust and soot. The smell of metal and burnt oil had permeated her clothes.
She looked toward the tall dormitory buildings hidden in the morning mist.
Varon... that man is mad. Morality means nothing to him. If I take one wrong step, I'll become one of those specimens in the jars too.
She clenched her fist. The blackness on her fingers sank into the lines of her palm.
But... that lab is the only place I can breathe. The only place I can overcome my mana weakness.
She shifted her heavy backpack on her shoulder.
It doesn't matter who I work with... I just mustn't become like him.
She forced her steps to stay steady, though fatigue made them tremble. She headed toward the dormitory to pretend she had been in her bed all night before Sarah woke up.
***
The harsh morning sun was like a dagger to Maria's sleep-deprived eyes.
First-year students stood in orderly lines. In front of each, a small stone golem (the size of a doll) was placed.
Master Garret shouted:
"Focus! Guide the golems with continuous mana control. Not too much, not too little. You must be able to walk them in a straight line."
Maria grit her teeth to stop a yawn. She had barely slept last night. Her head was heavy, and her focus constantly slipped.
She held her hand toward the small golem.
Move... just walk...
The mana flow was shaky and intermittent.
The stone golem took a trembling step. Its foot caught. It stumbled and...
Thud.
It fell face-down on the ground and deactivated, like a lifeless stone.
Master Garret came forward with a frown.
"Focus, Maria! You were a masterpiece in the simulator that day, today you can't even walk a doll? You lack focus stability."
The usual whispers rose from the back row (Brook's and Damian's group):
"See? I said it was just luck."
"It was obvious that strategy battle win was just a fluke."
Maria blinked. The world blurred for a moment. She heard their words but had no strength to reply. Fatigue filled her mind like a thick fog.
Suddenly, a quiet voice was heard by her ear.
"Where were you last night?"
Maria froze. She turned her head slightly.
Sarah stood beside her. Sarah's golem was walking flawlessly, but Sarah's gaze wasn't on her golem; it was locked on Maria's pale face and the dark circles under her eyes.
"I woke up in the middle of the night... your bed was empty. You weren't in the bathroom either."
Maria's heart beat faster.
Damn... I thought she was asleep.
She tried to make her tone indifferent, but her voice was raspy:
"I couldn't sleep. I went for a walk in the courtyard to get some fresh air. That's all."
Sarah said nothing and looked back at her golem.
She didn't repeat her question.
Maria held her hand toward the golem again.
Move, damn it...
The golem shivered, took a step, and deactivated again.
Maria looked at her hands. She could still feel the coldness of last night's crystals under her fingernails.
A chill twisted in her gut.
If I continue like this... if I can't balance my classes with the night work... everyone will find out.
She had just realized a terrifying truth:
Maintaining two lives demanded more balance than any experiment in Varon's lab.
***
Absolute silence had returned to the laboratory. The devices no longer buzzed. Varon no longer shouted.
Varon stood behind his work desk. Staring at the same circuit that had gone to the brink of explosion last night.
He ran his bony finger gently over the blue crystal Maria had placed askew.
A weak purple current still circulated in the circuit. Stable. Calm, like the pulse of a living being.
Varon took off his magnifying goggles and rubbed his tired, sunken eyes.
"A mana-less girl who understands flow better than Grandmasters."
He reached his hand toward the desk drawer. He opened it and touched an old, creased photo hidden under a pile of thick files.
A bitter, painful smile appeared on his lips.
"If she can solve the shadow instability problem... if she can keep the gate open..."
He closed his eyes and whispered:
"I will finally find it..."