The OC12 Pro

Catherine was currently renting a studio apartment in a building owned by Jack's father, Raymond. Shortly after Catherine moved in, Jack began showing up at her doorstep from time to time.

That alone would not have been strange. However, Jack never bothered to hide the lecherous look on his face every time he appeared, and it was even more obvious whenever Catherine answered the door while working out.

Perhaps because it had always been her routine to work out right after returning home, this happened far too often for comfort.

Unfortunately, Jack was the landlord's son, so it was not like she could just shut him out, unless she wanted to risk making things awkward between her and the landlord.

The good thing was that, regardless of what his intentions truly were, he had never done anything that directly crossed the line. With that thought in mind, Catherine could still somehow force herself to bear with the rude stares.

"Here, my dad made extras," Jack passed over the tiffin carrier in his hand while flashing a confident smile.

"Thank you," Catherine answered politely while receiving the tiffin carrier from him.

This was not the first time that this happened.

Even though Raymond was her landlord, he was a genuine and friendly person who never put on airs. As if that were not enough, he would often make food for Catherine to have for dinner, perhaps afraid that a young school girl living alone like her would not be eating well otherwise.

Catherine did feel bad about accepting it initially, but Raymond repeatedly assured her that it was no trouble at all since he had to pack food for his kids anyway. All he had to do was prepare one more serving while he was at it.

Not wanting to waste his efforts, and also because it helped her save money, Catherine gladly accepted it every time. Had it not been the case, Catherine would have long fallen for the temptation of settling her dinner with instant food every other evening.

"I see that you are working out as always," Jack remarked. "How hardworking. It seems like that great figure of yours is not there without reason!"

"Thank you," Catherine forced a smile.

"Well then, you must be tired from preparing for the coming examinations. I can come collect the carrier later, so just drop me a text when you are done," Jack offered with a confident smirk.

"Don't worry about that. I will bring it down myself when I'm done," Catherine quickly rejected his offer. "Is there anything else?"

"Come to think of it, your exams are just around the corner, aren't they? If you need help with anything, feel free to ask me. Just for you, I can take some time out of my schedule to give a bit of free tuition anytime," Jack said.

"There's no need for that," Catherine's reply came in a heartbeat. "If there's nothing else, then I would need to get back to studying."

"All right then, all the best for your preparations!" Jack showed a thumbs up sign and flashed his trademark smile right before Catherine closed the door on him.

Jack's expression darkened the moment the door closed in front of him.

Still, he only stared at the closed door for a good few seconds before eventually walking away in silence, so there was no way for Catherine to know that from behind the door.

Phew-!

Catherine let out a sigh of relief before proceeding to clear a space on her cluttered desk, on which she put down the tiffin carrier.

After taking a quick one-hour shower, Catherine finally got to opening up the tiffin carrier, and could not help but smile when she took in the scent of the food.

Uncle Raymond's culinary skills were as good as ever!

Now that she had been staying alone for a while, she was starting to miss her mum's homecooked food more and more. In that regard, Uncle Raymond's food served as a great substitute.

In fact, they tasted even better than her mum's cooking!

Catherine quickly gobbled down the food, then hesitated as she looked at the empty tiffin container.

It's still early, so it should be fine if she waited till later to wash it and bring it down, right?

Yeah, it should be fine.

Catherine placed the empty tiffin container on the floor, clearing up a bit of space on her messy desk.

Time to start revising!

She opened her bag to retrieve her notes, but a small bag ended up catching her eye instead.

This...

Catherine took it out and looked at the small box within.

She could not help but recall the strange dream that she had during work this morning – the one about Mister Nolan's house turning into a skyscraper and her being escorted around a strange cosplay event by a handsome man.

In that dream, a lady in a bob cut had passed her this small box, telling her that it was a show of appreciation for the VIP guests.

But now that the box was truly here in her hands, it seemed that what happened earlier might not be just her imagination after all?

Was that really possible?

There was only one way to find out...

With trembling hands, Catherine carefully opened up the box to see a crystal sphere around the size of a marble ball.

The blue crystal looked rather elegant, sparkling beautifully under the sunlight that shone in through the window.

There was a note included within as well, which Catherine promptly unfolded to read.

[Did you just come out of a life-and-death battle and have no mana to spare?

Or are you under a curse and is thus incapable of using your mana for the time being, lest your enemies use that to track you down?

Introducing the OC12 Pro – proud product of the Orchid Corporation!

We have heard you!

This time, unlike its predecessors, the new OC12 Pro comes completely self-powered, no longer requiring any energy input to activate!

With this newest design in the OC-series of mana awakening crystals, it is now easier than ever for your young and aspiring mage apprentices to awaken their mana! Not only is it easy to use, but it is also self-powered and takes effect fast. Test results have shown that the success rate is a staggering 3% higher than the industrial average, making it the highest ever in contemporary history! To activate it, all you have to do is follow the three simple steps listed below:

Step 1) Gently press the OC12 Pro against your apprentice's body.

Note: It does not matter which part of the body, as long as it is in direct contact with a part with living cells. Please also make sure that it is not in contact with another individual's body at the same time, or the Orchid Corporation will not bear responsibility for failed activation or any damages caused.

Step 2) Say the words 'Activate OC12 Pro Mana Awakening Crystal'.

Step 3) Profit.

Important Note: If it fails to activate despite following the above steps, feel free to either call the Orchid Corporation 24-hour service hotline, or visit our website to request further assistance.]

Catherine fell into deep thought.

This thing is supposed to be meant for young and aspiring mage apprentices?

Mage apprentices...?

If it had been the Catherine from earlier today, she would not have hesitated to brush this off as complete nonsense.

After all, how could mages ever be a thing in this modern society?

It's just not scientific!

But if that were not the case, what would be able to explain the events that transpired earlier?

The cosplay event was one thing, but how could a two-storey house turn into an office building overnight, then turn back again a few moments after she exited?

And if all that was just her imagination, then what could possibly explain this blue crystal that she was holding in her hands right now?

All of a sudden, Catherine recalled Secret Keeper's words to her earlier.

What if I tell you that everything here is absolutely real?

Catherine took another look at the blue crystal in her hands, then nervously swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

Be it real or not, there's no harm in just giving it a shot, is there?

Even if it turned out to be just a toy, she was alone in her room right now, so she did not have to worry about being judged by anyone.

She pressed the blue crystal against her forehead and took a deep breath before speaking out loud.

"Activate OC12 Pro Mana Awakening Crystal."

***

"Professor, I want to go there!" an eight-year-old boy pointed to a playground located not too far away.

Walking by his side was a man who looked to be in his thirties, dressed sharply with a neat blazer over his shirt and long pants. Carrying a nice leather briefcase in his hand, he looked like a typical office worker who was about to attend an important meeting.

It seemed a little too much to be walking under the blazing afternoon sun in such an outfit. But if anyone just looked closely enough, they would be surprised to find that he was actually not sweating one bit!

The man looked over to where the eight-year-old boy was pointing at, and smiled.

"Jin, playgrounds are for kids. Are you still a kid?" the man asked. "If so, we can definitely go over and play to your heart's content."

"Eh?!" the eight-year-old Jin revealed a look of absolute shock. "N-No, I'm not a kid anymore! I don't need to go to the playground!"

He said that before biting his lips in indignance.

"I thought so. Our Jin is a grown man now," the man answered.

It's so easy to deal with kids like this!

Just as he was relishing in his moment of triumph, the man felt a sudden fluctuation of mana nearby.

Hmm?

He looked in the direction of the mana fluctuation, only to see a bright flash of blue light coming from one of the open windows of a nearby apartment block.

"That is...!" the man narrowed his eyes.

"What's wrong, Professor?" Jin asked.

The blue light only flashed for a single moment, so it had already vanished by the time Jin looked over.

"You know, Jin. Let's make a little detour," the man said with a smile.

***

A random purr from Peanut roused Catherine from her sleep.

Catherine felt awful as she slowly opened her eyes.

Right now, she was slumped against the backrest of her chair, similar to the many times when she had fallen asleep while studying.

But the situation this time was clearly different.

Her head was spinning, and there was a strange buzz ringing in her ears. It felt just like a bad hangover after a night of overdrinking, except that she also felt feverish, and her whole body was aching badly.

What happened just now?

The last thing she remembered was sitting at her desk and trying out the strange crystal that she obtained this morning.

Oh, that's right!

When she followed the instructions on the item, there had been a sudden burst of light from the blue crystal.

She did not remember a single thing after that.

Just what the hell could have happened?

Wait a minute... the crystal?

What happened to it?

Both the box and instruction manual were still on her desk, but the crystal itself was no longer anywhere to be seen!

Catherine groaned in pain as she slowly sat up to pick up the instruction manual with hands that were shaking from weakness.

Damn, she was unable to muster any strength either.

"Mana awakening crystal..." Catherine read the words on the note weakly.

Despite her doubts about the authenticity of the crystal, she had still given it a shot.

And now, it actually did have some unnatural effects.

Could it be that the beautiful blue crystal from before was really capable of awakening someone's mana?

In that case, had she managed to become a mage now?

The current situation sure did not seem like that was the case.

She still did not fully understand what just happened, but rather than turning her into a mage, the blue crystal was more like a bomb of sorts!

Catherine let out a long, deep sigh.

To think that she had actually fallen for such a prank. What was she thinking?

Nevertheless, Catherine's gaze could not help but linger on the last line of the instruction manual: [If it fails to activate despite following the above steps, feel free to either call the Orchid Corporation 24-hour service hotline, or visit our website to request further assistance.]

Well, since things had already gotten to this stage, there's no harm in looking it up just to be sure.

Trying her best to endure the pain that she was in, Catherine picked up her phone and started searching online for answers.

Yet no matter which search engine she tried, there was simply no information on the OC12 Pro or even the Orchid Corporation that was supposed to have developed it.

Ding-dong - !

Her doorbell rang while Catherine was still engrossed in her online searches, trying to scour through the internet for any relevant information.

"C-Coming!" Catherine reluctantly put down her phone before wobbling over to answer the door.

When the door opened, Catherine was surprised to see a completely unfamiliar duo standing by the doorway.

One of them was a man in his thirties, wearing a neat blazer over his shirt and long pants. By his side was a cute little boy who looked like he was probably still in primary school.

"Greetings, Young Miss. I am the Professor, best known for my expertise in foundation meditation techniques," the man performed a polite bow as he quickly introduced himself. "Pardon our sudden intrusion, but the two of us were just passing by when we noticed you performing a mana awakening here. As a mage teacher myself, I would like to take this opportunity to exchange a few pointers in education. May I know if that would be convenient?"