I Became a Genius Mechanic at the Academy

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Elena’s eyes widened.

She simply couldn’t believe Edgar’s claim that he had uncovered the secret of the Blue Dragon.

After all, he hadn’t exactly done anything all that impressive.

He had merely observed the Blue Dragon shooting its breath and what was happening to its internal organs during the process.

Yet, it seemed that was enough for him to figure something out.

“Hey, do you see that Mana Stone?”

In the midst of her surprise, Edgar pointed to a Mana Stone.

It was located at the base of the Blue Dragon’s tail.

“When that guy was about to shoot his breath earlier, the Mana Stone activated and gathered the surrounding Mana. It was to supply the Mana needed for the breath.”

Edgar explained, pointing to another Mana Stone.

It was the Mana Stone closest to the one on the tail.

“That Mana Stone exhibited the same phenomenon. It collected the surrounding Mana and then sent it upwards.”

Edgar said as he pointed out one Mana Stone after another spread throughout the Blue Dragon’s body, explaining that the same phenomenon occurred at all of them.

Then he added, “Eventually, all the Mana in its body gathers at the largest Mana Stone located near the heart. That’s where the property transformation of the Mana happens, and the immense energy transformed into fire element is expelled through its mouth.”

Elena nodded while listening to Edgar’s explanation.

This much was already known to her.

However, she found it puzzling how Edgar, who had no Mana Tracking ability, could have figured this out, but nevertheless, she readily accepted his words since she was thinking the same thing.

“Right. You might be right. Perhaps each Mana Stone is inscribed with a spell.”

“Yeah. There must be a spell inscribed that allows them to exchange Mana with each other.”

“Exactly. And a spell that can enhance the body as well. The Blue Dragon excels in close combat. It must have used the Mana Stones spread throughout its body to enhance its physical strength.”

“Yes, as you said, Master, there probably was an enhancement spell. When swinging its arm, it likely drew Mana from the surrounding Mana Stones to amplify its explosive power.”

“…”

Elena gazed at Edgar, who was effortlessly exchanging knowledge with her.

How could he communicate so naturally with a Great Mage like herself?

This kid probably hadn’t even learned magic.

“But there’s still the most crucial mystery left.”

At that moment, Edgar looked at Elena with a significant expression.

Feeling a chill from the certainty reflected in Edgar’s eyes, Elena realized that he seemed to have uncovered the biggest secret of the Blue Dragon.

“Why is the Blue Dragon able to remain unscathed even though it harbors Mana Stones within its body? This is actually the biggest question.”

Mana Stones.

Mysterious gems that can completely contain and release Mana.

However, there was a fatal flaw with Mana Stones.

The more one uses them, the more deadly toxins are released into living beings.

Moreover, that toxin was potent enough to corrode steel.

So how could the Blue Dragon remain unaffected?

With a smirk on his face, Edgar said, “But today, I think I’ve figured out that secret. First, look over there.”

Elena followed the direction of Edgar’s finger.

One of the Blue Dragon’s organs caught her eye.

“Do you see that organ with a purplish hue? Its activity increased by about 45% after shooting its breath. The heartbeat rate is different.”

Elena squinted as she looked at the organ Edgar mentioned.

However, she couldn’t really see any significant difference.

How could he have noticed something like that?

“That organ probably plays a role in purifying the toxins. You can see it is positioned right in the center of the body. It’s to efficiently absorb the toxins.”

In short, that organ was the focal point of this research.

If they could uncover the secret of that organ, they might discover how to safely use Mana Stones.

“Hmmm. We should focus on researching that organ. So, how do we study it?”

“…Well, we probably have to remove the organ, right?”

“Then we’ll have to kill it.”

“No. We need to heal it afterward. Just in case if we need to remove it again if we fail.”

“…”

Elena silently turned to look at Edgar.

How cruel could this kid be to achieve his goals?

At that moment, Edgar snapped his fingers and said, “Oh! Should we also remove a Mana Stone? We need to research the spell inscribed on it, right?”

***

It all went according to plan.

Elena’s gaze seemed somewhat dubious as she looked at me.

It seemed like she was skeptically questioning my humanity.

‘Well, my likability might take a slight hit, but it can’t be helped.’

However, this was an unavoidable choice for me.

If her favor reached a certain level, a hidden event called [Elena’s Pursuit] would trigger.

‘I absolutely need to avoid that at this stage.’

The hidden event, [Elena’s Pursuit].

This event had very clear pros and cons.

Once it activated, Elena would pursue me at all times, and I would enjoy the joy of freely appreciating her 19+ illustrations (?). However, it would end up severing all relations with other NPCs.

The jealousy and obsession of Elena, the Great Mage, were immense.

At this point, there was no other NPC capable of enduring the jealousy of a Great Mage.

‘To prepare for the doom part, I need to raise the abilities of all NPCs.’

The worst difficulty, the ‘Doom Part’.

To successfully clear this part, it was necessary to raise all NPCs evenly.

Of course, Great Mage Elena was an excellent NPC, and her child could become an immense monster, but this Academy was overflowing with talented NPCs.

I simply could not miss the opportunity to nurture them for the sake of the Academy’s top professor and such grown-up 19+ leisure activities.

‘Most importantly, if I can’t prevent the doom part, it means total annihilation.’

And if I cannot prevent the doom part, it would result in a game over.

Which literally meant complete destruction of the Empire.

Thus, I needed to maintain a proper distance from Elena and cultivate a favor that was just enough for “master and disciple.”

Being so strongly liked by her as it is was somewhat problematic.

‘Well, this should have dropped my favor a bit.’

I deliberately spoke harshly for this reason.

I had implied that I would heal the Blue Dragon to ensure an endless supply of its organs.

However, healing the Blue Dragon was ultimately to release it back into nature.

Originally, I planned to finish the research and remove everything, then use healing magic and potions to restore its scales.

My aim was to understand the Mana Stone’s mechanics, not to use it as a lifelong test subject.

“Then shall we remove the organ? We can cut that part with a scalpel.”

So, I made Edgar fall asleep again and, with a beaming smile, gave Elena the order.

Elena looked at me with a somewhat dubious expression but soon complied with the instructions.

Looking at her expression, it was clear that my likability had indeed dropped.

-Thud!

Anyway.

Now, I had managed to secure an organ responsible for purification.

The secret to purifying the toxins from the Mana Stones lay dormant within that organ.

Now was the time to unveil that secret.

***

Another four days passed.

During this time, I studied the organ responsible for toxin purification and finally uncovered its secret.

‘So, the Mana Stones have evolved over a long period of time.’

Surprisingly, the Blue Dragon’s organ responsible for purification was originally a Mana Stone.

Upon investigating its components, there were striking similarities with the composition of the Mana Stones.

It seemed that over a long time, the Mana Stone had evolved into its organ.

‘The interior of the organ was even more surprising. I never imagined it would be composed of toxic substances.’

Moreover, the inside of the organ was quite astonishing.

It was the solidified version of the toxic substances expelled when using the Mana Stones.

Thus, I was able to discern how the organ that absorbed toxins managed to remain intact.

Since it was composed of the same toxic substances, there was no reason for it to decay.

Just as hydrochloric acid cannot dissolve itself.

‘The method of purifying the toxins was also beyond imagination.’

Then, how could the absorbed liquid form of the toxins be purified?

Elena and I had thought it was because a ‘purification’ spell was inscribed within the organ.

After I revealed that the organ tissues of the Blue Dragon were similar to Mana Stones, Elena came up with the idea that perhaps a ‘purification’ spell was inscribed.

‘At first, I thought it was true too.’

And I thought so too.

If the organ possessed the properties of a Mana Stone, the spell would activate, and the most effective spell for removing toxins would indeed be a purification spell.

“Perhaps there’s an incredibly powerful purification spell inscribed?”

“I’m honestly looking forward to it. No matter how much I’ve researched, I couldn’t purify the toxins expelled by the Mana Stones, but it feels like this research might uncover that.”

Thus, Elena and I were quietly excited.

We felt we could discover a top-tier purification spell.

“Wait?”

However, when we opened the lid, what in the world?

The purification spell was nowhere to be found.

Instead, there were only strange destructive spells of a form I’d never seen before inscribed within.

“Th-this is…”

And upon seeing that spell, Elena froze.

It was an unknown realm she couldn’t even imagine.

“I-I need to investigate this.”

Elena couldn’t hide her excitement as she began to replicate the inscribed spell.

Then, three days later, she came to me and revealed the identity of the spell.

She called it ‘Mutual Annihilation.’

“Mutual Annihilation. It’s an incredible spell. It forces all organic entities within the casting range to devour each other.”

‘Mutual Annihilation’ was, quite literally, a spell that made them kill each other.

In other words, it caused pollutants to devour each other, leading to mutual destruction.

That was the Blue Dragon’s method of purification.

‘This is just like that meme.’

Meanwhile, I was reminded of a meme I had seen countless times back on Earth.

You know, the one famous for “From now on, let’s all kill each other,” right?

“How could such a spell exist? It’s too, too beautiful…”

Nevertheless, such an idea here was revolutionary.

Even Great Mage Elena had not yet conceived of this unexplored territory.

…Indeed, humans here seemed quite a way from matching the madness of Earth.

***

“I’ll conclude the research now. Let’s restore its scales.”

After grasping all the mechanisms of the Blue Dragon, Edgar suggested to Elena that they heal it and set it free.

However, Elena looked at Edgar with surprise, her eyes wide open as if she couldn’t believe it.

“Wait, weren’t you planning to keep using it as a test subject?”

“I’ve accomplished my goal. There’s no reason to keep it anymore.”

“…I thought you’d just kill it.”

“It would be cruel, wouldn’t it?”

Edgar said this while gazing at the Blue Dragon.

It trembled and whined just from seeing Edgar’s eyes.

It seemed that since the dragon possessed a certain level of intelligence, it understood that everything that happened was because of that human boy.

【The commands of a crazy psycho human male… the monstrous human female follows… that boy… is scary.】

With tears rolling down its face, the Blue Dragon looked at Edgar.

It could never forget.

The image of that crazy human boy, smiling brightly while cutting its organ.

“It’s hard to let it go like this. I’ve grown fond of it over the time.”

“…Haha. You actually got attached? We must seem like horrible beings to that dragon.”

“Even so, I want to give it a parting gift. I think I’ll implant a Mana Stone.”

“A Mana Stone?”

“Yes. A Mana Stone inscribed with a tracking spell. It would make it easier to capture it again if we need to conduct experiments. Since we’ve tamed it like this, there shouldn’t be much resistance.”

“…”

“Of course, there’s a real gift as well. An elemental transformation spell. If we implant a Mana Stone inscribed with the elemental transformation spell into the Blue Dragon’s body, wouldn’t you be curious if it could actually utilize it? If that’s possible, this fellow could become the ultimate Blue Dragon.”

“…That’s true. It could gain an advantage in elemental battles.”

Elena’s face flushed with excitement.

How could she come up with such a terrifying yet interesting idea?

For the curious Elena, it was an exhilarating thought.

“Then, Master. Please take care of the spell. I’ll refine the Mana Stones.”

“Uh? Oh! Let’s do it right away!”

***

Five days later.

Finally, ‘Blue’ was set free.

Across its back was a distinct engraving of the initials ‘BLUE.’

【Roar! I’m freeeeeee!!】

Regardless, Blue finally reveled in the joy of regained freedom.

It watched the human male and female enthusiastically discussing as they peered into its insides.

The crazy human boy who was shouting “Hahaha! Eureka!” while cutting its organ.

Now that it was free from that madness, it was time to soar through the skies and feel its true essence.

In that sense, Blue let out a roar of joy.

It exhaled the signature breath of the strongest being on the ground, a dragon.

Kwahhhaaa!

【…??】

However, the nature of the breath was strange.

Fire was supposed to spew forth, but ice came out of nowhere.

Why is this happening?

Blue tried to breathe out again.

This time, an incredible electric breath erupted.

【No, could it be…!?】

A chill ran down its spine.

A realization crossed its mind.

It had evolved into a legendary dragon, one that is born once every thousand years.

The legendary dragon that can wield all types of breath had now been reborn.

And not just any dragon, but one in the midst of its growth!

“Grrrrrooooaaarrrrrr!!!”

Blue soared happily through the air, returning to its nest.