Chương 57: Mana Laundry

Now that Lira could actively perceive mana disturbances, she immediately set about examining the library to determine just how much magical evidence she had been leaving behind. If her recent discoveries had taught her anything, it was that ignorance was a luxury she could no longer afford. She started on the main floor, moving carefully between shelves while her magical perception spell was active.

"Pika. Maja. Syneth." The translucent overlay of magical sight settled over her vision once more, revealing the subtle currents of ambient mana drifting throughout the library like invisible streams. She was still adjusting to the strange new perspective, even if the world itself looked mostly unchanged aside from every enchanted object or active magical process now carrying an additional layer of complexity.

Lira approached the shelves where she had most recently cast her cleaning spells and book absorption spells. These were the areas she had expected to be the most incriminating. Yet, to her surprise, she found nothing. There was no visible evidence whatsoever that she had repeatedly cast spells in that exact location. She decided to actively test it and see what happened. First, she cast the book absorption spell first, "Pika. Linasara. Cognar. Coopar. Nagla."

As the knowledge from a history book entered her mind, with her magical sight, she observed a thread of mana linking her forehead with the book. When the knowledge upload was finished, a fine line of magical disturbance remained, only for it to stabilize back into normal ambient mana after a dozen seconds. Next was the book cleaning spell, "Linasara. Luneth. Velar."

This time the mana disturbance was localised on top of the book and lasted for three minutes before returning to normal, That meant most magical residuals from conventional spellcasting dissipated so quickly that they were effectively irrelevant, at least when it came to cantrips and simple tier one spells. That was somewhat reassuring.

There was likewise no visible trace of her book summoning spell, despite how often she had used it, nor any evidence of the divination magic she frequently cast while reading or organizing books. Lira placed a hand thoughtfully against her chin. That seemed to confirm an emerging pattern. Traditional spellcasting was comparatively cleaner than Runic magic. Mana was shaped, used, and then apparently returned to a neutral state quickly enough to avoid long-term disturbance.

Runic magic, by contrast, was a different matter entirely. The longevity of the spell seemed to affect the natural mana balance more severely. She made her way upstairs to inspect the rooms she had cleaned using her dust retrieval enchantments. The magical disturbances were still present, but noticeably weaker than what she had observed downstairs. The glowing trails and mana distortions around dust collection points had already begun fading naturally.

Lira crouched near the locations where she had tested the dust magic for the first time and studied the remaining distortion carefully. It had been a few hours since she had tested the spell, yet the disturbance was still here. The mana was visibly stabilizing on its own, albeit very slowly. The disturbances were thinner and less concentrated compared to newer locations. If left alone, they would likely disappear entirely within a few hours. That was better than expected, honestly.

Still, it was nowhere near acceptable. A timeframe measured in hours was far too long for regular use. A competent mage walking near the library tower during that window of time could still potentially notice something unusual. That would not do at all. If runic magic naturally created mana turbulence, then she needed a solution. Not merely a way to hide the spell itself, but a way to actively restore the mana to a neutral state afterward.

And to her own surprise, she already had a spell structure in mind almost immediately. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Lira smiled. She had created enough spells that she no longer needed to check her father's lexicon for new vocabulary; she had all the words needed in the spells she already knew. The answer was obvious; she did not need to erase mana, merely stabilize it. Smooth it out. Flatten it. Reset the magical ripples.

Lira smiled slightly as a clear idea formed in her mind. And since she already knew the words for such a spell. She just needed to meditate on them. She returned to the alcove, retrieved fresh paper, and began writing. Kisar. Maja. Tureth. Tarasana. Kurur. Symbol. Magic. Balance. Pocket. Space. A runic symbol with the aim of creating a field designed to isolate a pocket of space and stabilize the mana within it.

If successful, the spell should function almost like ironing wrinkles from cloth, forcing mana inside the designated area to settle into equilibrium more quickly. More importantly, because it was runic, she could physically move the runes across an area like a tool. A magical smoothing iron. Lira was pleased with the concept. Before attempting the imprint, she entered meditation once more.

"Pika. Selan. Tureth." Her thoughts sharpened. She focused on everything she had just observed. The way mana entered runic configurations, the visible turbulence created by spell effects, the gradual stabilization process occurred naturally over time, and the way isolated systems seemed to settle faster when no additional magical effects were introduced in too rapid succession. She focused on the concept of containment, stillness, and balance. On forcing disorder back into harmony.

Eventually, the spell clicked into place. Lira exhaled slowly in satisfaction. She then used her ink manipulation spell to create the rune configuration.

"Asatan. Tir. Kisar." The ink moved beneath her control, arranging itself into a circular design composed of alternating Tarasana and Kurur runes forming the outer ring. Inside the circle, she created orderly, repeating lines of Maja and Tureth symbols in carefully spaced geometric symmetry. The final design looked less like a magical diagram and more like a seal: structured, balanced, and symmetrical. She cast the spell immediately.

"Kisar. Maja. Tureth. Tarasana. Kurur." Nothing happened. At least, nothing visible to normal sight, which was to be expected. Lira immediately followed up with her magical perception spell.

"Pika. Maja. Syneth." And then she smiled. The effect was subtle but unmistakable. Her heating rune still functioned normally. Mana continued flowing through the configuration and changing as expected, but the aftereffects were noticeably reduced. The lingering magical dye effect in the surrounding ambient mana had diminished significantly. Rather than exiting the rune in turbulent distortions that slowly dissipated outward, the mana now seemed to normalize much more rapidly.

The effect was cleaner, smoother, and more contained. She hovered a hand over the heating paper, checking whether the new spell had accidentally dampened enchantment functionality. The heat remained unchanged. She concluded that the new spell was only affecting residual mana disturbances, not the active enchantment itself. That was exactly what she wanted. Lira stood and exited the alcove, carrying the new stabilizing rune with her.

She walked directly to an area previously disturbed by her dust retrieval enchantment, then waited. Under magical sight, the effect was almost immediate. The ambient distortions surrounding the space visibly softened, smoothed, and normalized. Within less than twenty seconds, the visible disturbance had fully disappeared. Lira grinned. That was absurdly effective. An undeniable success. Without wasting any time, she spent the next hour systematically combing through the entire library.

Every room, every shelf, and every upper-floor corridor. Any location where she might have left magical residue was treated preemptively. Even areas that looked undisturbed to magical sight. Even areas she doubted anyone would ever inspect. Paranoia was a virtue when her life was on the line. By the time she was done, the entire library appeared magically pristine.

Lira felt an immense sense of relief settle into her shoulders, and as she returned to her alcove to put away her materials, another idea began forming in the back of her mind. If she could create a runic structure capable of stabilizing ambient mana around spell effects, then theoretically she could create an enchantment specifically designed to mask active spellcasting itself. An isolated magical field where mana disturbances appeared naturally stable. A portable anti-detection zone.

By layering both enchantments on top of each other, both her active use of magic as well as the aftereffects of such casting would be rendered invisible. Which would mean she could safely and openly cast magic outside the library. Lira stopped walking. That idea was dangerous and far too ambitious to begin while half asleep. She yawned so hard her eyes watered. No. That was tomorrow-Lira's problem. Current-Lira had already pushed sleep far too long.

She deactivated her spells, cleaned her workspace, secured her father's lexicon, and slipped quietly back toward the dormitories. Tonight, under absolutely no circumstances, was she sleeping on a chair again.