Ethereal

## **User(s)**

Ivonne Houdini (Inventor)

****Ethereal**** 「神髄器(エーテイアル) *Ēteruiaru*, literally meaning: Vessel of Quintessence」 is a Magic Tool developed by Ivonne Houdini. It is a tool that, in Ivonne's words, completely destroys the boundaries of an individual's mana limit and bypasses the need for training.

## Overview

Ethereal appears as a small orb that is merely the size of a coin. It has a pinkish hue and glows extremely brightly. It seems, no matter what situation it is, the orb continues to glow. Ivonne explains that Ethereal passively absorbs magical energy from the environment and releases excess outwards in the form of this aura. Due to this, an Ethereal's presence can be tracked within an area by someone with adequate sensory skills.

When an Ethereal is consumed, that is when the true ability of the stone is revealed. An Ethereal's passive mana absorption ability is tremendous, especially when stimulated with the natural regeneration of a human's mana. When in a body that hosts mana, the Ethereal causes the body's natural mana regeneration to become hyper-stimulated, to the point where the body automatically draws in mana from the environment because their own mana production simply cannot keep up with the demands of the body. In other words, through consumption of an Ethereal, the user is forced into activating Mana Zone. Unlike a typical Mana Zone, rather than extend the range of one's individual attribute, it instead empowers the attribute several times over by breaking through one's latent mana potential. According to Ivonne, the potency of an Ethereal is enough to transform a peasant with the *barest* amount of potential to the potential achievable by a mage born of elite nobility.

If the consumer of an Ethereal is able to maintain some degree of control over this extreme increase in mana potency and quantity, they are able to utilize power far beyond any limits they previously held. Whether it be conjuring multiple pillars of fire simultaneously, or rewriting an entire room into an illusory space, it will all be capable for those who are able to have a grasp of the Ethereal's power. That said, the Ethereal's time is short. The excess mana consumption within a biological body means that the stone slowly breaks down. When fully broken down, the mana being absorbed will be completely released into the environment, causing significant changes to the body of the user.

Those unable to control the massive influx of mana into the body will find that their body will no longer respond to their thoughts. The excess mana will, rather than be exerted as energy, instead use the physical body as a means to escape. This causes extreme transformations and quickly causes individuals to go berserk. Often times, the forms that people take when they have consumed an Ethereal and gone out of control are representations of their Magic Attribute. Once in this state, they possess supreme power, akin to high-ranking magic beasts. However even this power is limited. As the Ethereal breaks down in the body, this state will also disappear. Unlike the controlled state, however, the user is unable to survive the toll of their body's extreme transformation, and often dies as a consequence.