You don't just reboot your life overnight. Maybe some people can move on that fast, but they're just forgetting the weight of it. That's not me.
I wished I could just wake up and say, "Holy crap, that was some crazy dream."
I tried. I went back to sleep, hoping to wake up in my own bed. But now I'm standing in front of the bathroom mirror, and it's already evening. My appetite is completely gone.
Honestly, looking closely... he isn't even ugly. If he actually groomed himself and lost the weight, he could be a total ikemen.
He's got soft white hair and circular purple eyes, that reminds me of a certain character who likes to own Dogs from a popular anime.
Shaking my head.
He's just… really chubby.
'It's just his fat and his mana…'
After sorting through the memories, I realized the true flaw in his character or rather, his body.
The Undeveloped Mana Veins. It's like a disability but for mages.
Despite having an ocean-sized mana pool, he can't use a drop of it because he lacks the proper channels to circulate it.
So, all that power just piled up inside him, turning into this absurdly massive body.
And to make things clearer, there was this.
"Status," I muttered. It's the only cheat—if you can call it that—I got after becoming Aoi.
× × × × × × ×
[ STATUS WINDOW ]
Name: Kurogane Aoi
Age: 17
Affinity: None (Null)
[ PARAMETERS ]
Strength: E-
Agility: F (Overburdened)
Stamina: F-
Mana Capacity: S+ (Anomalous)
Mana Control: E
[ Mana Units ]: 4886/4886
[Mana Poisoning]: 43.7%
° ° ° ° ° ° ° °
[TRAITS ]
Mana Battery (Cursed): Your body generates and stores an immense amount of Mana, far exceeding human limits.
However, due to the lack of Developed Mana Veins (and No Affinity), this Mana stagnates, causing lethargy, weight gain, and a "slimy" aura that repels others.
Effect: +500% Mana Regeneration / -50% Physical Stamina / High risk of Mana Poisoning.
Unsettling Visage (Passive): A trait designed to make the user unappealing to the main cast.
-Your presence naturally triggers a "Disgust" response in characters with high Charisma or Holy alignment.
Effect: Diplomacy checks with Heroines suffer a -80% penalty.
Punching Bag (Passive): The world creates scenarios where you are the target of violence.
Effect: You take 20% reduced damage from blunt force trauma, but you are 200% more likely to be targeted by critical hits.
× × ×
[ SKILLS ]
[Active] Groping Hands (Lv. 1): A low-level grappling skill originally intended for harassment events.
Current Effect: Increases grip strength slightly when holding onto a target. (Useless in combat... unless repurposed).
[Active] Heavy Press (Lv. 1): Uses body weight to pin a target down.
Current Effect: Effective only on targets smaller than the user. Leaves the user vulnerable if missed.
[Passive] Gluttony: A compulsion to consume food, converting calories directly into Mana storage.
Effect: Eating restores HP slightly but accelerates "Mana accumulation" and causes lethargy/weight gain.
× × × × × × ×
Groping Hands? Seriously? A flush of secondhand embarrassment heated my neck. I needed to ensure I never utilized that skill.
"Sigh." I exhaled. It was little wonder he failed to improve his physique. The game was rigged against him from the start.
Almost 5,000 mana units.
For context, starter characters have like 80 to 250.
It's insane.
"Still, my main problems right now are Mana Poisoning and No Affinity."
Calling myself a mini-hydrogen bomb isn't even a joke. That was literally Aoi's fate in the bad endings.
When he died, he didn't just drop loot; he caused an explosion big enough to wipe cities off the map.
I don't know the trigger conditions.
Maybe hitting 100% Mana Poisoning? Or just overflowing?
The original Aoi probably didn't know the exact rate of the poison, but he definitely felt the clock ticking. It explains a lot.
I used to think he was kidnapped by the villains, but now? I think he went to them.
He realized the mana was killing him and got desperate enough to join the Final Boss just to survive.
I racked my brain for a solution, but came up empty. I wasn't the only cursed person in this world, 'Wait... am I the only one with this much mana?'
Yeah, probably. There are others but the situation isn't similar.
I was the only one with this specific problem—immense power with no way to use it, just waiting to be sucked by the final boss.
Dejected, I tried thinking outside the box or rather, inside the game logic.
Was there a cure for Undeveloped Mana Veins?
The Popular restoration items are…
'Fruit of the World Tree? Impossible.' How could I get that from those nasty elves, Unlikely. The elves' pride would never permit them to give such a treasure to a human, they are a racist race.
let alone one of my status, they didn't even give one after saving them in the game many times.
'Saintess Purification?' It could likely halt the Mana Poisoning, but only temporarily.
And securing her aid was a hurdle in itself.
'I know it can stop the Mana Poisoning, but for how long? And would they even agree to help?'
'Blessing of the Elder Dragon?' Yeah, right. Keep dreaming. Might as well kill myself.
What about Mana-Suppressing Shackles? The ones for mage prisoners.
If I wear those, maybe it stops the battery from overcharging, giving me time to burn off the excess?
No, I shook my head. Aoi wore those in the lore. Didn't work.
Then... pests? Like the Mana Leeches in the Swamp of Sorrows. Usually, you put up a barrier to keep them away.
'But what if I... invited them in?' If I let a parasite attach to my spine and feed on the overflow…
Spine... Alchemy... wait a second.
"Wait, wait, wait…"
I bolted into my room and grabbed my phone.
"What's today's date?!"
***
For a side Note: System is for display, its not even system just status which gonna be stay irrelevant in future.
Thanks for the read I Guess.
I will try to lessen this Author notes and notes.