I Became a Genius Mechanic at the Academy

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Edgar Fix.

The more I delved into him, the more interesting he became.

From his talent for creating things to his heart for engaging with people.

And his determination to uphold his own beliefs.

The more Elena learned, the more she realized he was far from an ordinary person.

“But still, mana is out of the question.”

Yet there was something he couldn’t do.

Just like a worm can never become a dragon, every person has a wall they can’t surpass.

For Ed, that wall was his “ability to handle mana.”

“…That seems quite difficult. Mana is not something anyone can handle.”

Mana.

To handle mana, certain conditions must be met.

The foremost condition being the constitution that can accept mana.

In other words, a body that is inherently suitable for it.

“To handle mana, you need special physical conditions. Either you inherit such traits from your parents or you must be exposed to a high concentration of mana from a young age.”

However, Ed met neither of these criteria.

He didn’t inherit a special constitution from his parents, nor was he exposed to mana since childhood.

Given the mana emanating from his body was nearly zero, it was evident.

“So, just rely on Olin…”

“I already knew that.”

But Ed gave an unexpected reply again.

He acknowledged he had a constitution that couldn’t handle mana.

“As the professor said, to handle mana, you need to be born with a special constitution. Or, you must somehow change your constitution before the age of seven.”

Elena’s eyes widened.

From his tone, it seemed Ed was already aware of everything regarding mana.

Then why did he insist on wanting to learn about mana, knowing he couldn’t?

“…What are you trying to say? You can’t be suggesting that you can learn to handle mana through sheer effort, can you?”

So I asked in a perhaps overly cautious manner.

Could he really have learned to handle mana through effort?

Surprisingly, Ed nodded without hesitation.

And then he uttered words that were hard to believe for Elena.

“Yes. It worked when I practiced. Although I’m still quite lacking. That’s why I need your help, Professor.”

It worked when I practiced.

That was such an outrageous statement it sent me into a fit of laughter.

After all, controlling mana was akin to controlling a body that an ordinary person couldn’t.

In essence, it meant being able to manipulate parts of the body like nails or hair with complete freedom.

“How does one practice handling mana…?”

So saying it worked because you practiced was nonsensical.

No matter how much you trained the muscles in your fingers, you can’t shape your nails at will, and no amount of muscle flexing would let you control your hair like you want.

Similarly, unless you’ve been made suitable for handling mana before the age of seven, there’s no way to manage it.

“I can do it. Although I do need some conditions.”

But Ed insisted he could do it and got to his feet.

Then he stood before a full-length mirror in the corner of Elena’s office and turned to her.

“If I show you I can handle mana here, will you accept me as your apprentice?”

“…”

The question of whether he’d be accepted as an apprentice if he proved he could handle mana made Elena’s shoulders jump.

Ed’s reckless and challenging proposal brought an unexpected smile to her face.

Yet amidst all of this, Elena held a thread of hope.

What if Edgar Fix was special?

If he were capable of continuously surprising her, maybe it was indeed possible.

“Then, let’s see. But if you fail, I won’t support you financially.”

So Elena, wiping the smile from her face, looked at Ed seriously.

Handling mana through means other than the innate body isn’t something to take lightly.

However, Ed nodded without hesitation.

He smiled brightly.

***

Nobility.

Mana is a privilege for nobles.

The greatest difference that sets them apart from commoners is whether they can use mana.

As such, they instinctively despised commoners.

To strengthen their own power, they needed to interbreed within the same ‘special constitution’ to pass on the ability to handle mana to their descendants.

Thus, had Ed been of a different noble family, he might have enraged them with his proposal to use mana.

Ed, as a commoner, attempting to use mana challenged their authority.

“But Elena is different.”

Yet, Ed knew.

She, having a commoner background, lacked such authoritative characteristics.

Her coming to apologize to him while holding a high office showed how much she thought on an equal level.

“If I just prove myself, she will accept me.”

So Ed decided to play his ace card.

He would prove that he could handle mana.

For the past two months, Ed had been grinding hard to practice “mana infusion.”

The mana particles floating in the air seeped into various parts of his body, and a blue haze began to rise.

“…What is this?”

The scene was shocking for Elena.

A person capable of accumulating mana in their body just through effort had appeared.

Historically, such individuals were incredibly rare.

Card, Ranseldrof, Cain, Belderos, and herself.

These five were the only ones who had awoken mana without being noble.

“But they were all young back then…”

However, all of them had been young.

This meant they hadn’t missed the only opportunity to awaken mana.

But Ed Fix was different.

He was already eighteen years old.

He had far surpassed the only age period for awakening mana.

Logically, it should have been physically impossible for him to awaken mana.

However, the blue haze rising around his body.

That was a clear sign of mana infusion occurring.

Moreover, Elena could feel mana accumulating within him.

He had managed to awaken mana even after the age of seven.

“How… did you manage to infuse mana? Could it be that your mother had a special constitution?”

It was an unbelievable sight that she couldn’t accept.

Elena asked although she knew the answer.

Ed shook his head and answered.

“No. Both my parents were commoners.”

“…Or did you perhaps awaken mana before the age of seven?”

“No. I only recently awakened it.”

“Could it be you don’t remember because you were too young back then?”

“If I had awakened then, I’d have mana lingering in me like you, Professor. But look at me. If I’m not focusing, the mana dissipates on its own.”

Saying this, Ed ceased mana infusion.

As a result, the mana he had started to dissipate gradually.

This indicated that he hadn’t developed the sensory organs to accept mana.

In other words, Ed had never awakened mana before the age of seven.

“…How is that possible? I can’t believe what I’m seeing…”

Elena mumbled and plopped down into a chair.

She felt so shocked that her legs nearly gave way.

“Well, it’s been a hell of a journey to get this far.”

And Ed was reminiscing about the past.

About two months ago, when he first possessed the body of “Edgar Fix.”

He remembered the despair of realizing it was a body incapable of handling mana.

-Why did it have to be a commoner!!!

Why this body?

He thought it was a twisted fate.

You had to be able to use mana to enroll in the “Imperial Royal Academy,” yet here he was, possessing the body of an ordinary blacksmith’s son.

Plus, he was already eighteen, making it impossible to awaken mana.

He had truly embodied a complete third-rate extra.

-There has to be a way.

But Ed didn’t give up.

He resorted to every possible means to master mana.

He even painfully ground mana stones to eat, suffering for days afterward.

-Wait, what if I use my abilities?

After a month of futile efforts, Ed suddenly had a realization.

What if using his abilities could allow him to manage mana?

He opened his status screen and checked the help text for that ability.

[Lv.2 Engineering Thinking]: Understands all scientific knowledge required to implement any technological mechanism.

This skill ‘Engineering Thinking’ helped him understand technical mechanisms.

Ed had thus far used this skill for making equipment.

Mainly, when townspeople entrusted him with “crafting requests,” he could instantly grasp the engineering knowledge of the item they wanted.

-What if I used this on myself?

But what if he applied this to himself?

He was merely another organic entity comprised of numerous minerals, so what if he thought about endowing the ‘Edgar Fix’ substance with the ‘ability to accept mana’?

Ed promptly conducted that thought experiment.

-Darn!

However, the result was a complete failure.

Merely having that idea wasn’t enough to achieve what he wanted.

Apparently, more conditions were necessary for the skill to activate.

Ed pondered again.

-…!

How long did it take him to think this through?

At last, Ed found the answer.

The answer lay in the level of ‘Engineering Thinking.’

-It’s a matter of insufficient level!

The lack of level in the ‘Engineering Thinking’ skill.

This meant he couldn’t implement his thought experiment because the mechanism was too complex for the skill to activate.

It was too complicated to comprehend an organism as complex as the human body with a level 2 engineering mindset.

-Let’s make the thoughts more concrete.

So Ed stood in front of the mirror.

He decided to focus on his reflection and crystallize his thoughts.

-Endow Edgar Fix’s hands with the property of harboring mana.

Thus, what he attempted was not on ‘Edgar Fix’ himself, but on ‘a part of Edgar Fix’s body’ that could accept mana.

However, it wasn’t happening easily.

Even confining the arm as the target, the skill remained uncooperative.

-Endow Edgar Fix’s eyes with the property of harboring mana.

Yet, Ed refused to give up.

Hands, feet, chest, abdomen, and even his ear canal.

With the wish that something would eventually click, he threw out all possible body parts.

And so he conducted countless thought experiments.

Finally, Ed found the method.

When he thought, ‘Endow Edgar Fix’s frontal lobe with the ability to harbor mana for three seconds,’ the skill activated and he understood the entire process of harboring mana in an instant.

“Well then, Professor Elena, are you feeling inclined to teach me now?”

And at present.

Due to his efforts, Ed was able to harbor mana for twenty seconds and passed Elena’s test by demonstrating the results to her.

Elena got up and said, “Follow me. From now on, you are my unofficial apprentice.”