Hero From The Toilet

6. Science Is More Fun with Mana

She looked at Rangga again.

"But that does explain something—the mana of this world reacts extremely strongly to you."

Her mind returned to the hole in the castle wall.

"What you did earlier wasn't simply using mana..."

She narrowed her eyes.

"You treated it like a tool." Arcelia continued, "We need to conduct several more tests."

She paused.

"...And no, you do not need to show me the Sigil." Then, in a dry tone, "...I would prefer not to see it."

Rangga suddenly raised his index finger.

"So if I want fire... something like this?"

He closed his eyes. In his mind, he wasn't simply thinking of the word fire.

He was thinking of a concept plasma. Ionized gas. Electrons stripped away from atoms.

In his world, creating it required extremely high temperatures but here there was mana.

Arcelia immediately sensed a change in the air. Not heat, but energy pressure.

She stood up.

"Wait—"

Too late. A bluish-white spark appeared at the tip of Rangga's finger.

Zzzzzzt—

The air hissed softly and Arcelia froze.

"...That is not fire magic."

She slowly stepped closer without taking her eyes off it.

"Most mages use mana to summon flames... but this is different."

She paused.

"...You aren't summoning fire."

Her eyes narrowed.

"...You're creating the conditions that cause it to exist."

No chant, no runes, no magic circle. The spark grew slightly larger.

ZZZTT.

The oil lamps in the room flickered and Arcelia immediately raised a hand.

"Alright. Stop."

Her tone was far more serious now.

"If that truly is plasma... then you're creating something far more dangerous than ordinary fire."

The energy at the tip of Rangga's finger began to feel unstable—As though the world itself didn't fully understand what he was trying to create.

Arcelia stared sharply at him.

"Do you actually know what you're making?"

Zzzt.

Rangga slowly exhaled, then extinguished it. The spark vanished instantly and the room became quiet again.

Arcelia remained standing for several seconds, staring at Rangga's finger as though she had just witnessed something that should not exist.

Rangga grinned.

"I understand the concept," he said casually. "...But this is the first time I've ever been able to experiment without restrictions."

Then he laughed. Not a small chuckle. It was the laugh of someone who had just discovered a world without limits.

Arcelia narrowed her eyes.

"...You're enjoying this."

"Of course I am."

Rangga stood up and stretched.

"Back in my world, experiments like that could blow up a laboratory."

He started walking toward the door.

"But now?"

He laughed again.

"Free experimental materials."

Rangga turned toward Arcelia.

"I'm going outside to experiment. Wanna watch?"

He opened the door, allowing the cool night air to flow into the room. Arcelia remained silent for several seconds before finally picking up her robe.

"...Of course."

She walked past Rangga.

"If I leave you alone..." She glanced at him. "...I'm fairly certain half the castle might disappear."

They stepped outside into the backyard. The skies of Aetheris were growing dark, with stars appearing one by one.

The night air was cool and peaceful and the open space was wide enough to try something dangerous.

Arcelia stood several steps behind Rangga with her arms crossed.

"Show me." Then she added flatly, "But if something explodes... I will hold you entirely responsible."

Rangga frowned slightly at that and turned toward her, pointing at the magnificent castle standing in the distance.

"Hey... that's a terrible thing to wish for. Don't say half the castle's gonna disappear."

Arcelia raised one eyebrow without changing her expression.

"That was not a wish."

She crossed her arms again and stood several steps behind Rangga, giving him enough room while still keeping watch.

"It was a prediction." She nodded toward the open space. "Go ahead."

Rangga turned his attention back to the clear night sky of Aetheris.

The stars looked far sharper than anything he had ever seen in his own world.

Slowly, he raised one hand. This time, he didn't think about the light element Arcelia had described.

Instead, he thought about something more familiar. Photons. Electromagnetic waves. Massless energy.

In his world, light could be produced through changes in the energy states of electrons. But here is mana.

He imagined something simple. Releasing photons not fire, not plasma just light. His palm began to feel warm again.

The Hero Sigil hidden somewhere on his body reacted faintly, and the air around him began to tremble.

"...Mana is gathering again," Arcelia murmured.

But this time, it was different. There was no heat and no pressure. Only a tiny glow slowly forming above Rangga's palm until it became a small point of white light—Like a miniature star.

Arcelia frowned.

"...Is that light magic?"

The point of light didn't stop growing. It became brighter and brighter. Not like a flame more like a lamp whose intensity was continuously increasing.

Ting.

The air hummed softly then suddenly—The light shot straight into the night sky.

Not an explosion but a beam. A thin line of brilliant white light streaked upward like a needle piercing the heavens.

Arcelia instinctively covered her eyes.

"—!"

For one brief second, the night sky seemed to split apart beneath a razor-sharp white line. Then the light vanished.

Silence returned and the night breeze began blowing normally again.

Arcelia slowly lowered her hand. She stared at the sky for a moment before turning back toward Rangga.

"...That was not light magic."

She pointed toward the sky.

"Light magic usually manifests as auras, barriers, or illusions."

Her expression became more serious.

"That was closer to pure energy."

She stared sharply at Rangga.

"You are not summoning elements."

A pause.

"You are creating phenomena."

She remained silent for several seconds before pointing toward the castle.

"...Do you realize what you just did?"

"If someone over there saw that, they might think the gods themselves had just fired a spear of divine light into the sky."

As though the world itself had decided to prove her point—A shout came from the direction of the castle.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!"

Several torches began moving rapidly along the castle walls. Guards could be seen pointing toward the backyard.

Arcelia let out a long sigh.

"...Too late."

A faint trace of light still lingered in the sky when Rangga suddenly shouted,

"OH, SHIT!"

He immediately turned toward Arcelia and pointed directly at her.

"SHE TAUGHT ME HOW TO DO IT!"

Arcelia froze.

"...WHAT?"

But Rangga had already turned around and sprinted into the house. He shoved the door open.

BAM!

Outside, the sound of armored boots rapidly approaching could already be heard.

Arcelia remained standing there for several seconds, staring blankly at the door then she slowly sighed.

"...Remarkable."

Her expression remained completely flat.

"He's been in this world for only a few hours..."

She paused.

"...and he's already trying to frame me."

Moments later, three knights arrived.

"Lady Arcelia! Did you see that light?!"

"That was high-level light magic! Is there an intruder?!"

Arcelia remained calm. She looked toward the sky for a moment before answering in a controlled voice.

"...A minor experiment."

The knights exchanged glances.

"An experiment?"

"Was it performed by the Hero who was summoned earlier?"

Arcelia slowly turned her gaze toward the door of the house. Her expression remained calm but now, there was something else behind her eyes.

The unmistakable promise of scientific revenge.

"...Yes."

She paused.

"And he is still learning."

Inside the house, Rangga was already sitting comfortably in the living room, flipping through the book Arcelia had been using earlier.

Its pages were filled with magical symbols, circles, and notes about the different elements.

"Water... done," he muttered, remembering the vortex that had pierced the castle wall.

"Fire... done."

"Light... done."

He sighed.

"Shadow..."

He considered it for a moment then immediately shook his head.

"Nope... That could end even worse than the last one."

Rangga glanced toward the window, watching the guards' torches still moving along the castle walls.

A faint grin appeared on his face.

"They think light comes from the gods..."

He scratched his chin.

"If I start messing around with shadows, they'll probably think the Demon King is attacking."

He looked back down at the book.

"Wind..."

He tapped the page with one finger.

"Wind is just moving air."

Then his eyes stopped on the page describing the earth element.

"Earth..."

He frowned.

"What am I supposed to do with that? Make dirt?"

He stared at an illustration of a mage lifting a massive stone from the ground then slowly shook his head.

"That's weird."

To Rangga, earth wasn't an element. It was matter. Minerals. Silicates. Metals.

The problem was he couldn't create matter from nothing. Unless he simply manipulated what was already there.

Just as that thought crossed his mind, the door opened.

Arcelia entered with calm, measured steps but her eyes immediately locked onto Rangga.

"...So."

She crossed her arms.

"Hero from another world."

Her voice was dangerously calm.

"You blamed me in front of the guards, ran inside to hide..."

Her eyes shifted toward the book in Rangga's hands.

"...and now you're reading a beginner's magic textbook like a schoolboy."