Chapter 87: Mana Control
He continued to observe her as she channeled more of her mana through his hands, guiding it across his wounds.
The faint tingling sensation steadily intensified. At first, it felt almost like a tickle, but soon it developed into a slight pinching sensation.
As he focused on it, he noticed the damaged flesh along the edges of his wounds beginning to mend, the rawness gradually fading as the healing process took hold.
It wasn’t the instant, miraculous recovery he had imagined when thinking about healing magic.
Instead, it felt as though she was accelerating his body’s natural healing process, pushing it forward at an unnatural pace.
As the treatment continued, Denzel kept his eyes fixed on her.
’She really looks down on men, you know. It’s going to be a lot, it’s going to be almost... it’s going to be just as good as when I had Aisha on her knees begging for my cock. Perhaps this time I won’t just have this girl beg for my cock, but I’ll have her beg for me to stick my cock in her ass.’
The thought made him chuckle inwardly.
’Since she wants to keep that pussy for some fucking lesbians, then maybe I should fuck her ass to teach her a lesson.’
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips as the thought lingered in his mind.
Unlike the darkness hidden beneath those thoughts, however, his outward demeanor remained calm and approachable.
"I mean, I get you, but stereotyping men like that is not exactly brilliant, is it? But hey, we all have different lives to live, I suppose."
Antonia paused and stared at him for a moment before responding.
"It’s not like it’s going to be that easy to change my mind as well."
With that, she continued channeling her mana into his hands.
Several more moments passed before she finally finished treating both his hands.
The results were immediate enough for Denzel to notice. His hands no longer felt like they were burning in hell, and he no longer felt any need for the bandages wrapped around them. There were still a few light bruises scattered across the skin, but the horrific burned appearance was gone.
Letting out a long, exhausted sigh, Antonia practically threw herself onto the massage slab. Her palms slapped against the surface as she sat down heavily.
Meanwhile, Denzel rubbed his hands together, visibly impressed by her talent.
"I’m sorry. It’s not exactly A-grade healing, but that’s the best I could do at this point."
Denzel immediately shook his head.
"No, no, no. It’s actually really nice, to be honest."
He flexed his fingers a few times before smiling.
"It sounds like you did a really nice job, Antonia. Thanks. Thank you."
’I have to start off with this. Let’s start off by appearing a bit charming until she’s free to begin her trust toward me.’
He thought to himself.
Hearing the praise, Antonia smiled faintly.
"Hmm, yeah. You’re welcome."
Denzel nodded before continuing.
"Well, I honestly feel a bit sorry to do this, but I sort of wonder if we could still have the training today."
"The training?" Antonia repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Alright, I mean, if you’re really up for it, but I don’t really know if that’s the best idea"
"I mean, I’m ready for it. That was mostly the first thing I came here with in mind. So I’d like to at least try. Come on, give me a chance. Give me a chance."
Antonia narrowed her eyes at him.
"Alright, sure. If you believe you’re really up for it, then yeah, I suppose we could."
***
With his wounds mostly healed, the two of them recommenced their training, getting right back to work.
The training itself was quite rigorous, but it all amounted to the same frustrating result.
He could feel the mana.
Yes, he could definitely feel it.
But at the end of the day, he couldn’t control it.
It felt more like trying to grab hold of a rolling ball than anything else.
The exercise was simple. Antonia would raise a mass of water into the air, forming a wobbly, floating sphere, and from that point onward Denzel was supposed to take control of it himself.
The problem was that he couldn’t.
Every single time Antonia released her control over the water, it would immediately lose shape and splash onto the floor.
Denzel was completely unable to control it.
Again.
And again.
And again.
The latest attempt ended no differently.
The moment Antonia released the water, it collapsed and splashed across the ground.
SPLASH!
’Mmm...that sound brings back memories when I was fingering Aisha and she came like a fountain.’
Denzel thought as he grunted in frustration, taking several steps backward before leaning heavily against the wall. An angry glare spread across his face as he clenched his jaw.
He let out another irritated grunt.
Antonia sighed.
"Calm down. This is just basic training. You shouldn’t be pushing yourself this hard."
She folded her arms, her breasts visibly protruding.
"I think this is a bit too much for you. We should probably start with something easier. Ripples, maybe. If you could create ripples in a cup, your understanding of mana would drastically increase."
Denzel immediately shook his head.
"No."
’The problem is that I can’t create any mana of my own. From the elemental description, I’m sure of that. So this is basically the only kind of basic training I can think of.’
Then he looked back at her.
"Just tell me how exactly you control the mana. Don’t tell me any other shitty stuff like letting the mana flow through me."
He waved a hand dismissively.
"That’s all just cheesy talk and bullshit because it doesn’t fucking work."
He grunted angrily and slammed his hand against the wall.
Antonia stared at him for a moment.
"So you don’t want any bullshit?"
She rubbed her chin thoughtfully.
"I suppose there is something I could tell you."
Denzel immediately straightened.
"Something that isn’t cheesy or bullshit?...Please, be my guest. I’m listening. What is it?"
Antonia nodded.
"Instead of letting the mana flow through you... instead of becoming one with the mana"
She even made air quotes with her fingers.
"How about making the mana your bitch?"
Denzel blinked.
"To be my bitch?"
"Yeah. You could just literally control it. Make it do exactly what you want it to do."
She pointed toward the puddle of water on the floor.
"Think about it this way. Instead of the mana controlling you, you’ll be the one in charge."
Her gaze remained fixed on him.
"You’ll be the one taking control of it and making it obey your will."
"Alright then, let’s try again."
Antonia raised the water once more.
The mass of water slowly lifted into the air, wobbling as it hovered between them like a liquid sphere struggling to maintain its shape.
Denzel raised his hand toward it.
Immediately, he felt the mana.
The sensation was familiar now, yet still frustratingly elusive. He focused on it with everything he had, trying to understand how to seize control of it rather than merely sense its existence.
The floating sphere trembled.
His brow furrowed as he struggled to find a rhythm but, Slowly... Very slowly...
The feeling became clearer.
The mana no longer felt like some distant current brushing against his senses.
Antonia’s eyes narrowed as she carefully observed him.
"Now I’m going to let go."
Her gaze shifted toward the floating sphere.
"And when I do, you need to hold onto it."
She raised three fingers.
"Three..."
One finger lowered.
"Two..."
Without properly counting to one, she immediately released her control and the moment she did, the water immediately began to fall.
For a split second, gravity reclaimed it.
Then
It stopped.
Less than a foot above the floor, the sphere froze in place.
Silence filled the room as a look of genuine shock spread across her face as she stared at the suspended water.
The sphere quivered violently, rippling and shaking as if it might collapse at any second.
Yet it remained there.
Floating.
Denzel staggered slightly.
His raised hand shook from the strain, but his eyes were locked onto the floating water, disbelief written all over his face.
’I ..I can feel it...the mana...I can actually feel it.’
And then
[Ding!]
[Player has learned Mana Control!]
