The family was peacefully enjoying their desserts when the sound of hurried footsteps suddenly echoed through the stairwell. A moment later, it seemed as though a meteor had crashed down the stairs and into the dining room. Everyone looked up in surprise just as Arin burst through the doorway, his expression filled with excitement and his breathing slightly uneven. Clutched tightly in his hands was an enormous blue tome that he treated with the utmost care.
"Grandpa! Grandpa! You have to see what Gaia gifted me as a thank you!" Arin exclaimed as he hurried toward the table. Despite his excitement, he stopped just short of placing the book down. The family was still eating, and the thought of even a single crumb or drop of sauce touching his precious gift filled him with horror. Instead, he held it tightly against his chest as though it were a priceless treasure.
"Oh? And what is it?" Karl asked with amusement, not even looking up from his dessert at first. The rest of the family, however, had already shifted their attention to Arin and immediately noticed his appearance. His eyes were bloodshot, his hair looked as though he had fought a losing battle against a storm, and his clothes were wrinkled from having sat in the same position for hours. Overall, he looked absolutely exhausted.
The sight made several family members wonder whether he was entirely sane at the moment. It was difficult to take someone seriously when they looked as though they had not slept in days. Yet the excitement radiating from him was impossible to ignore. Even Karl finally looked up from his plate when he realized how serious his grandson seemed.
"It is a book about improving our forest and increasing the quality of the mana inside it," Arin explained with barely contained enthusiasm. "We need to implement it as soon as possible because it could completely transform our training." The moment those words left his mouth, the atmosphere in the room changed. Even the family members who had initially doubted him suddenly became interested.
Seeing his grandson so excited, Karl concluded that the matter was worth investigating immediately. Arin was usually calm and thoughtful, so for him to behave like this meant he had likely discovered something extraordinary. After a few moments of consideration, Karl slowly placed his spoon down on the table. The old man's expression became much more serious.
"Very well," Karl said. "I suggest that we call the council of elders. The rest of the family can hear the details after we have reviewed the proposal ourselves." Although some people occasionally accused the elders of hoarding authority, there was a practical reason behind the arrangement.
The family deliberately kept major decisions within the council, not because they were power-hungry, although an argument could certainly be made for that on occasions. The primary requirement for becoming an elder was the ability to remain independent and avoid being swayed by public opinion or short-term benefits. That principle had helped the Sonnenbergs survive countless crises throughout their long history. Every plan was carefully examined from every possible angle before being approved.
As a result, the family had avoided many disasters that had ruined other powerful houses. They did not blindly pursue schemes simply because they promised quick profits or looked impressive on the surface. Instead, they focused on long-term stability and carefully weighed the consequences of every decision. It was a slow method of governing, but it had proven its worth time and time again.
"Now then, tell us, Arin. What exactly is inside your book?" Karl asked with obvious curiosity. By then, the first few pages had already been passed around among the elders, and several of them looked intrigued by the title alone. Any method capable of improving the forest and increasing mana quality was worth examining carefully. Such knowledge could potentially alter the future of the entire family.
"Well… I read the whole thing in about a day," Arin admitted somewhat sheepishly. "But we should probably read it again later to make sure I didn't misunderstand anything." He had been so fascinated by the contents that he had practically devoured the entire tome without resting. Looking at himself now, he realized he probably did not appear to be in the best mental state.
"Basically, this book explains a method of making the forest filter the mana that enters and leaves it," Arin continued, unable to hide his excitement. The elders immediately straightened in their seats at those words. The idea alone sounded almost unbelievable. If such a thing were truly possible, the implications would be enormous.
According to the book, the mana people currently absorbed was not a single substance at all. Instead, it was composed of countless different attributes bundled together into one unified energy that every living being could use. Although this mixture allowed nearly everyone to cultivate, the book claimed that it was actually one of the least efficient ways of doing so. The revelation was so surprising that the room fell completely silent.
"If we can separate certain attributes from normal mana and retain them inside the forest," Arin explained, "then both we and the plants and animals living here could cultivate using those specific attributes." His voice grew increasingly animated as he spoke. The more he explained, the more the possibilities seemed endless. Even the elders found themselves leaning forward to listen.
"That all sounds very impressive," Karl said after a moment. "But why should we do it? You just said that our current method isn't ideal, but what exactly makes it so inefficient?" The other elders nodded in agreement. The proposal sounded promising, but they needed to understand the reasoning before becoming too excited.
"The purity of the mana you absorb affects both your strength and your future potential," Arin replied without hesitation. "The mana we currently breathe contains countless attributes that are actually poisonous to our bodies. We unconsciously filter those attributes out every time we cultivate." He shivered at the thought of how much energy humanity had been wasting all this time.
"Other attributes aren't harmful, but they also don't help us in any meaningful way," he continued. "They simply remain in our mana pool and dilute it." If those unnecessary attributes could be removed beforehand, the mana they absorbed would become far purer and much easier to use. According to the book, that alone would significantly increase the speed and efficiency of cultivation."But if all of those unnecessary attributes are filtered out before we even breathe the mana in, then the mana we absorb becomes much purer," Arin continued, his excitement returning in full force. "The remaining attributes also become much more apparent inside our bodies." He carefully turned several pages of the tome and pointed at a detailed diagram showing different types of mana and the effects they had on living beings. Judging by the amount of notes and illustrations, the author had gone to extraordinary lengths to explain the concept.
"The book claims that our forest could retain a large amount of nature-aspected mana," Arin explained. "That type of mana would help our bodies heal more quickly, recover our stamina faster, and strengthen our affinity with the forest itself." Merely reading those words had filled him with excitement earlier in the day. The idea of becoming even more closely connected to the Crimson Forest made him happier than he cared to admit.
The elders exchanged thoughtful glances as they considered the implications of such a change. A richer environment filled with nature mana would not only benefit the family members but also every plant and animal living within the forest. Over time, the entire ecosystem could become stronger and more vibrant than ever before. If the book's claims were accurate, the long-term benefits would be nearly impossible to calculate.
"That certainly sounds promising," Karl admitted as he folded his hands on the table. "If the effects are truly as impressive as you say, then the changes afterward would be substantial." He paused for a moment before asking the question that everyone else was already thinking. "But how exactly are we supposed to accomplish something like that?"
The room immediately grew quiet.
All eyes turned toward Arin, who suddenly became far less enthusiastic than he had been a few moments earlier. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and fidgeted nervously while clutching the enormous tome against his chest. The reaction alone was enough to make several of the elders narrow their eyes in suspicion. They had seen that expression many times before.
"Well…" Arin began before trailing off.
The silence that followed only made the elders even more suspicious.
"Well?" Karl repeated, raising an eyebrow. "You look like someone trying to hide bad news." A few chuckles spread around the table as the others reached the same conclusion. If the plan were entirely good, Arin would have blurted out every detail already.
"The good news is that it's possible," Arin said quickly. "The book contains complete instructions, diagrams, and even several different versions of the magic circle needed to make it work." His voice grew more confident as he described the project itself. "According to the author, the method has already been tested many times and should be perfectly stable."
That answer made several of the elders nod in approval.
A complete set of instructions was far more valuable than a mere theory. It meant that someone had already done the difficult work of experimentation and refinement. If the diagrams were accurate, the family would not need to spend years developing the method themselves. In that regard, Gaia's gift was truly priceless.
"Then what is the bad news?" one of the elders finally asked.
Arin's shoulders slumped.
He looked at his grandfather, then at the other elders, and finally back at the book in his hands as though hoping it would somehow answer for him. Unfortunately, the numbers written inside the tome had not changed since he first read them. No matter how many times he checked, the cost remained exactly the same.
"Out with it," Karl said firmly as he watched his grandson's obvious attempt to avoid the topic. "You wouldn't be standing there looking so guilty if the problem were minor." The old man's expression remained calm, but there was amusement hidden in his eyes. Watching Arin struggle to deliver bad news was surprisingly entertaining.
"Okay," Arin said with a resigned sigh.
He took a deep breath before finally saying the words he had been dreading.
"It will cost at least one hundred and fifty thousand silver coins to make sure the magic circle works properly."
The room fell completely silent.