kscans

Chapter 161 - Chapter 2. Another Objective

On the opposite side of the room, in front of the stone slate, the magic team and the others were discussing the magic analysis device. Fulsy was there, of course, and even a terrified Noel was somehow managing to hold a conversation with Maytyl.

"I thought this would be a disaster at first, but it seems we've managed for now."

I let out a breath by the window. I couldn't let my guard down, but it looked like we could get by if I kept things steered toward technical objectives. Once the real work began, I, who cannot handle magic, would only be in the way.

Now then, to ensure the magic team and the others can focus on the technical problems, I have to fulfill my role as coordinator. This is a joint research project that crosses not just company lines but national borders. There are countless subtle yet crucial issues to handle.

"Senior Leonard."

I called out to the Chancellor's second son, who was silently letting his pen fly across the paper. Leonard subtly covered his documents. The characters I glimpsed were scrawled, likely notes for a report. There were a great many of them, a testament to his hard work.

"I will be reporting the full contents of this meeting to the Chancellor's Office. I trust there are no issues with that."

"Of course," I replied solemnly. Truthfully, he doesn't even need to ask permission. An official observer's position is a powerful one. Or rather, you can't be an observer without being powerful. It may be a tragedy that Yoshitsune, the seemingly invincible general of the Genpei War, was brought to ruin by his military supervisor, Kajiwara Kagetoki, but it’s hardly a surprising turn of events.

Besides, given Leonard’s position, he would report it even if I said no.

"I'll ask just in case. Was there anything that seemed problematic? I'm not very well versed in politics."

"...Not as far as I understand. ...However, I have one question."

Tension crossed Leonard's face.

"Today's discussion focused on research for observing the magic veins. But that won't be enough to liberate the new territories from the monsters, will it?"

"As you'd expect, I believe it's still too early to discuss that particular matter."

We spoke, glossing over the crucial details. Leonard’s point was perfectly valid. An observation device cannot repel a swarm of wyverns. The development of magic technology is, of course, directly linked to the development of weapons. That is why Maytyl is so fixated on my magic semiconductor.

That was why, at the outset, I presented a fundamental objective like clarifying the nature of magic. If we focused solely on observing the magic veins, no one would lose anything. For the Empire, which is far closer to the magic veins than the Kingdom, the benefits are significant.

Of course, this is about magic, the foundation of both the Kingdom's magic and the Empire's sorcery. Any progress in understanding it will ripple through everything. For instance, it connects directly to Fulsy's antenna, which is to say, radar. But the Kingdom, which relies less on sorcery weapons, stands to benefit more from this than the Empire, whose reliance is much greater.

I explained as much to Leonard.

"Understood. I will report to the Chancellor's Office your policy of proceeding cautiously with the observation of magic veins as the primary objective."

For the time being, there is no conflict of interest between the Kingdom and me. But as this research progresses, a situation where our interests no longer align could arise in the future.

"You've worked hard, Ricardo-kun. ...I'm sorry. I wasn't of any help, was I?"

As I moved away from Leonard, Alfina approached me.

"Not at all, I was the one who asked something so difficult of you."

Seeing Alfina's apologetic expression pained me. Considering what just happened, the problem was clearly on the other side.

"I believe that if I could understand your earlier explanation more thoroughly, I could converse a bit more with Princess Maytyl. With that said, could you please teach me about the rainbow you mentioned earlier?"

Alfina opened her notebook. She’s almost too good of a person.

The notes she’d taken on her lap were filled with neat characters. She hadn’t just copied things down. I could tell she was truly trying to understand. She had recorded the information, thought about it herself, organized what she didn't understand, and even listed potential questions. This is an application of the Sky-Rain-Umbrella method I taught her...

"Of course. Try to think of it like waves in water..."

I explained it as clearly as I possibly could. Alfina was honest, admitting what she didn't understand, and straightforward. She was a pleasure to teach. On top of that, she would look up at me with such respect in her eyes.

Well, as someone with knowledge from a past life, I do feel a certain guilt.

...Putting that last part aside, while she may not have any extraordinary talents, she might be well-suited to be an educator. From what I hear from Mia, she’s apparently a good teacher in their study group, too.

"Hey, Ricardo. I have a lot of things I want to ask, too."

Maytyl, who must have moved away from the stone slate at some point, cut in.

"Princess Maytyl. Um, right now I'm..."

"Oh, I waited for you to reach a stopping point. Besides, do you truly understand the value of Ricardo's knowledge? A moment ago, you were just marveling at his words and didn't utter a single one yourself."

Maytyl glanced at Alfina's notes. It was true, I had just finished answering her last question. Alfina cast her eyes downward.

"At this rate, it seems you just happened to be on the same wavelength as the ancient magic tool. It looks like when it came to the prophecy, you were just saved by Ricardo. Am I wrong?"

"That's not—"

"It is alright. It's true that Ricardo-kun has helped me time and again. That is precisely why I want to be useful as his partner."

Alfina stopped me, then looked Maytyl straight in the eyes. Hmm, since I left the task of communicating with Maytyl to Alfina, perhaps I shouldn't interfere.

"In any case, if you're finished, I'd like you to let me have Ricardo. Besides..."

Maytyl opened her palm. There, like on the arm of that horse-dragon rider, was a sorcery circuit. It was much smaller, but the color suggested it was the same thing.

"You have questions for me too, don't you, Ricardo?"

She’s right. I actually want Alfina to hear this as well, but... I recalled Alfina's fixation on the crystal before we entered the lab.

"You're right, I do want to ask about the symptom the Empire's horse-dragon knight displayed. Since we'll all be handling magic in various forms from now on, it concerns every one of us."

"...I see. I understand. Thank you, Ricardo-kun."

Alfina stood up. Maytyl wasted no time in taking the seat Alfina had vacated. Her lonely-looking figure as she walked away bothered me, but Alfina and I live under the same roof. My time to interact with Maytyl, on the other hand, is limited.

"So, what do you want to ask about this?"

"First is the depth of the pattern. To put it bluntly, would it not work if it were just drawn on the skin?" I raised my voice, conscious of Leonard.

It was like a tattoo, with the pigment injected deep into the skin, into the dermis. That was to make it permanent, of course, but that likely wasn't the only reason. Considering the symptoms of the Empire's horse-dragon riders, implanting a circuit inside the body must carry a significant risk.

"Yes, even for those with an aptitude, the surface of human skin has its limits for conducting magic. And then there's the problem of controlling the circuit..."

Maytyl explained. The surface of the skin is made of dead cells. That's probably related. I continued to question Maytyl.

"...So, if the sorcery semiconductor I showed you could be used to transfer the sorcery circuits meant to be carved into the human body onto a magic tool instead, that symptom wouldn't occur, or would at least be reduced."

"That's right. You get it. And that's not all."

"The pattern on the arm absorbs the differences in aptitude. In other words, if we can miniaturize the sorcery circuits and process more information on the magic tool's side, the number of people who can use horse-dragons or sorcery staves will increase."

I spoke while watching from a distance as Leonard's pen moved ever faster. I have no intention of hiding this. I already explained that for the time being, we won't be touching efficiency improvements for circuits that are directly linked to weapons development.

"You really can't keep a secret, can you," Maytyl said with an exasperated look. I, for my part, had gained a great deal. Just as I thought, it’s problematic for the human body to continuously receive uncontrolled magic. That problem is related to distance. Carving it directly into the body is the most dangerous path. The Empire had no choice but to adopt such a dangerous technology to counter the threat of monsters.

By that standard, the Kingdom's magic tools are safe. But that assumes a similar level of magical intensity.

"I can't wait for our next meeting. If you make progress without me, you'll pay for it." I nodded to Maytyl as she was hurried along by a retainer from the ducal house where she was staying.

With Maytyl's departure, the tension in the room eased. Noel was especially relieved, and Leonard was next. It seems he hasn't noticed the "concern" that I don't want known at this stage.

My reason for being so particular about magic wavelengths isn't just about the Blood Mountains.

If I think according to my hypothesis about magic, that it's a form of information processing, then the power of the prophetic crystal is far too strong. The crystal handles the incredible information known as prophecy. And there's an extremely close relationship between wavelengths and the acquisition and transmission of information. That relationship, which one might associate with light, is not a comforting one.

I actually asked Fulsy and Euphillia to gather information on the lifespans of past Oracle Princesses. But the records themselves are incomplete, and the further back you go, the harder it becomes to tell who was genuine and who was a fraud. On top of that, there's no baseline data, like average life expectancy statistics from insurance, to compare against. At the very least, no one had died at an extremely young age, and even with the incomplete data, there was no significant difference in their lifespans compared to other royals. That said, it seems there were quite a few other royals whose recorded cause of death was questionable.

Looking at the Imperial prisoners, individual differences based on aptitude are large. Alfina is highly compatible with the crystal. From an objective standpoint, there is currently no data to indicate any danger.

Still, I will remain cautious. Alfina has felt unwell at least twice when a prophecy has appeared. Although she recovered quickly each time, it remains a cause for concern.

Honestly, I don't want her anywhere near that crystal until I properly understand what's going on. But ironically, the prophetic crystal has played a major role. To put it in extreme terms, it's a matter of national security versus a personal, and possibly groundless, fear. Besides, Alfina herself would never agree.

And another prophecy might appear. Furthermore, if the worst-case scenario I'm envisioning occurs, that the fluctuations in the magic veins grow even larger, Alfina's contact with the crystal will only increase.

If we can observe the Blood Mountains, the very source of the magic veins, by analyzing the magic spectrum, we might be able to respond to the calamities in the prophecies more quickly. We could shorten the time Alfina has to be in contact with the crystal.

We might even be able to analyze the crystal itself. Ultimately, I want to automatically extract at least the general timing and direction from the crystal. That would, at a minimum, reduce her contact time. If it comes to it, I might even be able to free her from her duty as the Oracle Princess.