Akiko groaned, curling tighter into the narrow space of her bunk. The weight of mana exhaustion pressed like lead against her temples. Dull, throbbing, relentless.

She rubbed her forehead, muttering a curse under her breath. "What I wouldn't give for one of the entity's mana batteries right now…"

Her tail twitched weakly against the wall. "Or even an old-fashioned mana potion," she added, grimacing. "Gag factor and all."

The ache pulsed behind her eyes, dragging her down. She glanced at her HUD. Still hours before the crew returned from shore leave.

Too long to waste doing nothing.

"Anything you can do to help with control?" she asked aloud, voice rough with fatigue. "Or is that outside your genius programming?"

Takuto stirred, his fox avatar blinking into view, all too cheerful for her current state. A prompt flashed across her vision:

Bio-computation module available. Elevated authentication required. Proceed? [Y/N]

She hesitated only a second. She had dismissed the System's help with actively developing her skills, preferring slow but organic development.

This wasn't so different, but under the weight of her exhaustion, it was tempting. Too tempting.

If it just helped with managing her mana flow, that wouldn't be too bad. It was just a tool.

"Why not," she muttered, willing the System forward.

And the world changed.

Precision slammed through her mind. Cold, clinical, absolute. Thoughts narrowed into ordered columns. Reflexes restructured. Emotions silenced. She was no longer Akiko.

She was a process. A collection of priorities, optimized functions, filtered input. No fear. No self.

Then, panic. Raw instinct tore through the order, ripping at the clean architecture. Her mind bucked against the grip, lashing out. The System fractured.

The HUD flashed red.

Authentication rejected.

Akiko gasped.

Skill Layer Update:

New Category Detected: Cognitive Systems Interface

Status: Novice (0% milestone achieved).

She clawed at the back of her neck as though she could tear the sensation free, heart pounding, lungs dragging in air like she'd just surfaced from drowning.

Subskill Acquisition (Cognitive Systems Interface): Mental Containment – 0.6% milestone achieved.

Status: Rejection logged. Core structure reasserted.

The words hovered in the edge of her vision. Cold, detached, and brutally calm.

Akiko stared at them, chest still rising and falling in uneven rhythm.

A milestone. For fighting something off. For holding on to herself. Not a victory. Just survival, measured in percentage points.

User stability restored. Adaptive reinforcement pending.

"Don't congratulate me," she whispered hoarsely. "You weren't the one unraveling."

The HUD pulsed once in response. Neutral. Nonjudgmental.

Of course it was tracking. Of course it had seen. That was the point, wasn't it?

Build a path. Mark the fall. Learn the shape of breaking.

Takuto's fox avatar cocked its head innocently. "Bio-computation enhancement inaccessible without elevated permissions," he said calmly. "It is designed to assist with mental regulation and control. User rejection noted."

Akiko's hand trembled against her temple.

"Yeah," she rasped. "Rejection's putting it real lightly."

The lingering precision still haunted the edges of her thoughts. Ghost code and shattered structure. Too clean. Too alien.

"Next time," she muttered, "warn me before trying to rewire my entire brain."

The avatar blinked, tail flicking. "Acknowledged."

Akiko slumped back against the bunk, tail curling tight around her legs. The headache had returned. Familiar and awful, but somehow reassuring. A reminder that she was still her.

Control was still a problem. But whatever that had been? Not the answer.

She closed her eyes and pressed her palms to her temples, forcing the tremor from her breath. If machine-perfect focus was off the table, she'd have to do it the old way.

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Discipline. Training. Effort.

She almost laughed at the thought, bitter but fond. Somewhere in her bones, Kaede would be proud.

Akiko let the quiet settle, the ache in her skull pulsing like a slow heartbeat. The Driftknight creaked faintly around her, metal and gravity humming low.

One step at a time. And this time, she'd do it her way.

She leaned back, spine catching against the chilled metal bulkhead, and let the silence settle into her bones.

No more lights. No more System prompts. Just breath, and the pulse behind her eyes. Her thoughts drifted. Not forward, but inward. Back.

Back to the place where she'd first learned how to hold still.

How to shape power through control, not impulse.

Not in the Driftknight. Not in zero-g.

The scent of pine. The hush of wind through leaves. A flicker of firelight, dancing behind her eyes.

The memory didn't ask permission. It rose like breath. Like instinct.

The flickering glow of the campfire lit the clearing, warm light dancing across the forest shadows. Akiko sat cross-legged on the ground, her tail swishing with impatience, glaring at Kaede from across the fire.

"This is boring," she grumbled, ears twitching. "Why do I have to sit still when I could just burn through the problem like always?"

Kaede, calm as ever, sat with her spine straight, hands resting lightly on her knees. Her long dark hair caught the firelight, and her expression was patient, but resolute.

"Because burning through the problem is why you're always exhausted when we need you most," she said. "Control, Akiko. Precision. Those are what keep you alive."

Akiko groaned, slumping. "Yeah, yeah. You've said that a thousand times. Just give me a mana potion and let's call it a night."

Kaede's eyes sharpened.

"And what happens when you don't have a potion?" Her voice stayed even, but her gaze pinned Akiko in place. "You can't rely on crutches forever. If you want to grow, if you want to survive, you need to understand your mana. Not just use it."

Akiko sighed, dragging herself upright. "Fine. But this had better work."

Kaede's expression softened. She gave a small nod. "It will. You just have to trust the process."

She reached out, hand glowing faintly with soft blue light. "Close your eyes," she said gently. "Focus on your breathing. In through your nose, out through your mouth. Let the rhythm guide you."

Akiko obeyed, though her tail kept flicking behind her. The sounds of the forest faded as she settled into the rhythm. Breath in. Breath out.

"Now," Kaede continued, voice low and soothing, "feel for your core. The center of your being, where your mana resides. It's like a flame. Steady, warm, and alive."

Akiko frowned in concentration. She'd never really thought about her core. It had always just been there, a faucet she turned on when needed. But now, focusing inward, she sensed it. A faint flicker in the dark. Small. Waiting.

"Good," Kaede murmured. "Now draw from the world around you. The air. The earth. The fire. Let it flow to you, but don't grab it. Guide it. Gently."

Akiko exhaled slowly. Her fingers twitched.

She imagined mana as a current, flowing in delicate, shimmering streams. Her instinct screamed to seize it, but Kaede's words echoed in her thoughts. Gently.

"Refine it," Kaede said, nearly a whisper. "Let it settle in your core. Feed the flame, make it steady. The more you refine, the more you'll have when you need it."

Akiko felt the flicker grow stronger. Brighter, steadier. It wasn't the chaotic rush she was used to. It was quieter. Clearer. Still strange. But not wrong.

"See?" Kaede said, smiling softly. "Not so bad, is it?"

Akiko opened one eye, giving her sister a look. "It's tedious."

Kaede laughed, light and melodic. "Tedious, but effective. Keep at it and one day you'll thank me."

The memory faded as Akiko opened her eyes, breath steady and slow. Her bunk's restraint straps pressed lightly across her chest, the hum of the Driftknight a low vibration in her bones. The ache of mana depletion still lingered, but the sharp edge was gone.

Skill Layer Reference Logged: Mana Manipulation

Acquisition Buff: Kaede-Style Refinement Protocol (Manual)

"Alright, Kaede," she murmured, a faint smile tugging at her lips. "I guess it's time to give the old-fashioned way another shot."

She closed her eyes again and reached inward, focusing past the noise of the ship and into herself, toward that quiet, infinite void she'd come to recognize.

Her inner space welcomed her.

Darkness stretched endlessly in all directions, familiar diagnostic panels suspended in the air with soft, ambient hums. This was where she'd first met her AI face-to-face. Where everything began.

Near the center of the void, a spark glowed, small but steady. Refined mana. It pulsed with quiet life, fed by thin streams of ambient energy drawn inward from her meditative focus in the real world. Like a seed just beginning to root.

Takuto's fox avatar circled it in lazy loops, chasing specks of light as they drifted free. Its tail flicked playfully with every spin. The sight drew a smile from Akiko despite herself.

"This space is about refining control, right?" she said, voice resonating softly in the dark. The fox paused mid-leap, ears perking as it turned toward her.

"Maybe you can help me in a more subtle way."

She gestured to the floating panels. "If you can interact with this space, and you already know how I manipulate mana, then maybe we could simulate the process. Practice without waiting hours in the real world?"

The fox yipped, bounding toward one of the panels. Its paws tapped across unseen inputs. The screen shimmered, symbols reorganizing into a new interface.

"Proposal initiated," Takuto said, voice calm and clear. "Simulated mana flow will mirror real-world parameters. Feedback will be provided based on precision, efficiency, and impact."

Akiko smirked. "Sounds fancy. Let's see what you've got."

The panels shifted, diagrams unfolding like petals around the glowing spark. Pathways extended from it. Delicate threads waiting to be shaped. She felt the link in her mind, like muscle memory waking up.

"Alright," she breathed. "Start small."

She extended a thin stream of mana from the spark, directing it along one of the paths. The channel lit with soft blue light. But as she pushed farther, the flow wavered. Too loose, too eager.

A faint buzz echoed through the space. One of the panels flashed red.

Inefficient flow detected.

Akiko sighed. "Yeah, yeah. I get it. Sloppy."

The fox hopped closer, nudging the diagram with its nose. A new overlay appeared, highlighting a cleaner path.

Akiko narrowed her eyes, adjusted her intent, and tried again. The stream steadied. The lines lit evenly, and a gentle chime sounded.

Successful flow.

A sense of satisfaction bloomed low in her chest. Not power, not conquest, just progress.

Subskill Progress (Mana Manipulation): Volumetric Control – 10.1% milestone achieved.

Precision threshold exceeded. Flow stability improved.

The fox wagged its tail, clearly pleased. "Practice will increase efficiency and stability. Simulated time compression enabled."

Akiko blinked. "Wait—you're saying I can train in here and not lose real time?"

"Estimated compression: ten-to-one ratio."

System Function: Neural simulation support active.

Cognitive load within optimal bounds.

Mana Manipulation training multiplier: x10 (simulated)

She grinned, eyes lighting up. "Now that's what I'm talking about."

Her gaze returned to the spark. Her mana core. Brighter now. Steady.

"Alright, little fox," she said, squaring her shoulders. "Let's see how far I can push this before the day's out."

The fox barked once and leapt back to the panels. Akiko followed, sinking deeper into the simulation.

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