章 31: Out of Misery
Author's note: I do research my stuff, but please remember that this is a work of fiction, not a medical textbook. If among you there is some nit-picky doctor, please be nice and cut me some slack. Enjoy your read.
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Lith spent the next few days familiarizing himself with the changes in both his body and mana core. Healing with true magic was very different from the on/off effects that fake magic used. Not to mention that the procedure for Tista required surgical precision.
So, he used his new job as Nana's assistant to once again master his mana flow. Lith also personally reported the slaying of the magical beast to Count Lark via Nana's communication amulet.
He gave the Count the chance to buy the perfectly preserved pelt, but for that he needed to get in touch with Selia. Lith had no idea how to tan and preserve such a magnificent fur, and neither did he know how much it was worth.
So, he had been forced to turn to the huntress for help. Selia had accepted in exchange for 25% on the final price. The same fate befell the deer carcass.
Lith's goal was to improve his relationship with Count Lark by earning merits for both of them.
Through their confidential agreement, Lith would achieve merits because he had eliminated a threat to the County, while the Count would take the credit for the kill. Lark would say that it was him who had discovered Lith's talent and claim to have entrusted him with the task.
According to the law book in Lith's possession, a noble could achieve great fame and honors, according to how his subjects performed.
While they would get merits, the noble would improve his social status and importance in the King's Court, raising his chances of achieving one more title with all the lands attached to it.
It was a perfect win-win situation.
Lith hoped to reel in Count Lark among his official backers. Having him has a patron was not enough. Being that the Count was a magic enthusiast, Lith was just one of the many talented youths he was sponsoring and nothing more.
Lith wanted their relationship to develop further, so that when he finally could leave the village, he would have someone to rely on.
If there was one thing that he had learned from Nana's story, it was that a country bumpkin like him was in desperate need of someone trustworthy in an influential position.
Count Lark was obviously thrilled at the idea that one of his proteges had achieved such a result. His hopes for Lith being accepted at the Lightning Griffon Academy skyrocketed. After so many failures, another success was in his sights.
It would further raise the Count's status in the eyes of the Court. Killing a magical beast was good, but finding and developing the talent of a powerful mage was much better. Together with the military, mages were the backbone of the Kingdom.
After settling his business with Count Lark, Lith had Solus help him completely rethink his concept of magic.
'So far I have used magic just like a club, to hit and kill. But Gerda and Irtu have shown me that magic, in this world is not fixed as it is in Dungeons & Looting. I have been too narrow-minded. It's not only light magic that can act at a cellular level.
'All kinds of magic can interact with matter, changing its properties. If Irtu could make the ground elastic, then I should be able to walk on water without freezing it first, by altering its density. I need more advanced spellbooks to understand magic's limits.
'It's no wonder that a Magus' talent increases exponentially after discovering true magic.
'Not only do they start with a better core than mine, so they can refine it to further heights, but they also become capable of replicating every single spell they saw until that point
'While inventing a new spell takes a lot of time for a fake mage, finding the right balance between hand signs and magic words to obtain the desired effect, a true mage just needs to understand the underlying principles behind a spell to perform it.'
Thanks to his battle with the magical beasts, Lith was able to quickly develop new spells, by either imitating their tactics or experimenting by himself.
After about two weeks, his body, mind, and mana core were perfectly in tune. Lith asked Rena to go to the village with Trion, giving him the opportunity to freely talk with his parents and Tista.
Trion and Lith were now in a more neutral relationship, there were no hard feelings left, but no trust either.
Lith had to dumb the concepts down a lot to make his parents understand the risks of the procedure. He was not a doctor, but they were his parents just like Tista was their beloved daughter and his beloved sister.
Lith would not proceed unless he received their informed consent, or at least the next best thing, since they understood very little of magic and nothing at all of anatomy.
"How sure are you about this thing?" Asked Raaz, holding Tista as tight as he could, like Lith was going to take her away.
"I'd love to tell you that everything will be alright, but I can't. I never tried something so big and complex. Tista, I worked years to develop this spell, just for you. The only thing that I can promise, is that I will give my all.
"I have obsessed over this for many nights and days, because I want you to be free and happy like everyone else, instead of being stuck in a cage. Be it your body or this house, no matter how golden we can make it, it's still a cage.
"I want you to be able to run in the wind, walk in the snow. To get out of this house, to meet people, make friends, maybe someday fall in love with someone and be loved back.
"I will do all I can to free you from these shackles, but I can't do it without your trust and consent."
Lith looked them in the eyes, one at a time, to show them his resolve and determination.
Tista escaped her father's arms and hugged Lith tight.
"Oh, Lith. When you talk like that you sound more like dad than a little brother." She said crying.
"Of course I trust you. You have always been by my side, taking care of me, even when I could do nothing but stay in bed all day. You worked so hard, giving me so much.
"Food, clothes, you even invented the rocking chair for me (AN: is actually a swing. See chap 17 for more details). Mom, Dad, I want to do it. Whatever happens, I could never regret having trust in my little brother."
Without saying a word, Raaz and Elina joined her in the embrace. All of them sobbed together, even Lith, so fond of their bond and so scared to lose one of them at the same time.
After Lith calmed down, he could finally start. On paper, the treatment was simple. By using Invigoration's real-time imaging of Tista's body, Lith would use light and dark magic in synch.
Dark magic would destroy the damaged cells that composed almost half of Tista's lungs, while at the same rate light magic would enhance the healthy cells' ability to multiply, instantly replacing the lost organ tissue.
Even with his limited knowledge of medicine, Lith could see many underlying problems. The destroyed cells would release toxins and impurities in Tista's system. If too many of them accumulated too fast, she could die of shock or organ failure.
Also, regenerating a vital organ like the lungs was a delicate process, that would consume lots of her strength and she hadn't much to begin with.
Lith decided to take things slow, treating only a minimal part of her lungs to begin with. Then he would use his control over her mana flow to expel all toxins and impurities the dead tissues would release from her body.
Then, he would give her some time to recover before attempting another session.
During the whole process, he took care of her, ensuring that she was eating and resting properly. To do that, Lith skipped hunting and magic training, only keeping his job with Nana to have a steady source of income while Tista was resting.
The whole procedure took over a month, but thanks to all his painstaking efforts and meticulous bordering on anal-retentive preparations, everything went well.
In some respects, even too well.
After the treatment, Tista's mana core had gone from light orange to yellow, and according to Solus, it kept evolving over time.
'Seems your sister was quite talented, but her illness prevented her core from properly growing.'
'That's good.' Lith nodded 'As soon as she completely recovers, I can bring her to Nana to learn magic. That way she will be able to learn a trade and achieve a social status on her own. What comes next depends entirely on her.'
'Won't you teach her true magic?'
'That would be idiotic. She is just ten years old. If there's really some sort of global conspiracy and control over magic, that would mean putting her in danger. She deserves to finally have some fun. To live instead of just surviving.
'I won't drag her into a hornet nest unless that's what she wants.'
Lith made sure that everyone in the family understood the importance of keeping Tista's recovery a secret. Lith was still a no one, if the rumor spread, nobles or other mages could hunt them down to get their hands on the procedure.
Despite the fact that they regretted being forced to keep Trion in the dark, they accepted wholeheartedly. None of them was stupid enough to endanger such a newly achieved happiness just for a bit of bragging.
Since according to Nana there was a chance for Tista to heal by herself when her growth spurt hit, they decided to stick with that story and claim it to be a miracle of nature.
Lith had g developed a spell to alter the results of Nana's Vinire Rad Tu, so that when she checked on Tista she would still appear ill, but slowly improving. This time he would not slip up on the details.
Tista had to put up a façade every time Trion was around, but she soldiered on bravely. Being sick was second nature to her, sometimes she even fooled Lith and her parents with her acting.
But whenever she could, she would walk with Lith through the Trawn woods, going together to his secret clearing where she could finally be free to run, swim in the river, sing, and dance at her heart's content.
Lith didn't regret even one moment spent with her instead of practicing magic or refining his mana core. Those things were of secondary importance to him.
He had started practicing magic only because of his hunger for power, to put this new world to the test before committing suicide again. But then he had fallen in love with his new family, and magic had become a tool instead of a purpose.
And that purpose was laughing and jumping around, in front of his eyes.
Lith couldn't and wouldn't hold his tears back.
'Wherever you are, Carl, I hope with all my heart that you too have found someone to love and to protect. I love you, little brother, and no matter how distant we are, you'll always be with me.'
A few months later, Lith received an invitation from Count Lark, to join him for a day in his manor as his esteemed guest.
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