28th of High-Sols
I’m writing this journal for personal reasons.
As I come to realize what I experienced is out of ordinary, I want to write this in case I misremember later, which I do a lot times.
I’m Catisha Ovelia. I’m 19 years old. I’m a freshmen Magi studying at The Royal Academy of Luminescence. I work at The Royal Research Institute. And I live at the flat number 14 on the 4th floor of the female dorms.
So if by any chance you find this note, please return it to me. Although we are prohibited from sharing what we are researching before it is published, I have a feeling that i will not lose this note.
Currently among freshmen I’m regarded as talented in a field of Rune, specifically in research. It is because I have the innate talent to sense runic expression of anything.
When I first saw a Rune Array, it was when look closer at a wheel of a wagon. It was a series of patterns in the form of 2-dimensional shapes. Reading that runic expression was easy, instantly I know that it was for the purpose of lubricating the wheel’s rotation and fortifying the wheels.
Of course any official magi can also achieve that feat. But I was only 11 years old at that time. It wasn’t long until I became an official Magi and my ability kept growing as I studied more about magic.
Now I’m able to comprehend Runes on Artificial Constructs—or Artifact as we used to call it—such as Runic Bracelets at ease.
What is Rune you might ask?
Rune is the physical manifestation of Mana. It is a medium that lets physical object to interact with Mana without the presence of Magi. So even a normal person who didn’t study magic can use Artifact. (An object infused with Runes)
The presence of Mana in a normal object can enhance, transform, or even alter the object if it is manipulated in a certain way by Rune Array. It has infinite potential regarding its applications.
Sadly, we haven’t solved the problem of Rune Degradation and the energy consumption of Runes.
Mana is a very dynamic energy. It moves a lot from place to place. When the Runes in an Artifact are exposed to different level of Mana, it tends to bend in a certain way. So when an Artifact is used many times, the Runes inscription will slowly degrade until it is unusable.
Low-level Artifact such as temperature manipulation wall, fortified wheels, and runic lamps are simple in design but able to last for tens of years compared to a Runic Bracelets which is a high end commercial Artifact which have many function but instead have life span of around a year.
Runic Bracelets are Artifact with the ability to input, process, and output information. It is used by the wealthy individual and almost all noble wear them. Many have the ability of erecting wards to defend. And even some have the ability to cast spells.
But the Runic Bracelet needs to be constantly maintained, and recharged by a Magi. And this comes to the second problem of Artifact—Mana.
Artifact can gather surrounding Mana to feed its energy consumption. But creating Rune Array that gather a lot of Mana in a short amount of time will be detrimental to the Rune Array, even affecting the function of the Artifact. As the higher level of Mana—the more unstable the Artifact is. It can endanger the user as well.
So Artifact with high-level Mana consumption needs to be charged by a Magi. The magi will inject the Mana without damaging the Rune Array.
Two weeks ago, The Royal Research Institute (TROI) dispatched me to an urgent project—leaving my other project behind.
At the base of TROI a foreign vessel bigger than what I have seen is concealed from the eyes of the world. It is protected by ward after wards layered on top of another. An eccentric amount of Mana can be detected forming them.
And as if it wasn’t enough to shock us, an even higher amount of Mana is contained inside that vessel.
“Senior Agris, just what we are looking at?” I said when I first saw it.
There I was standing at the hexagonal steel platform on the research site. That thing was multiple storey high. The silhouette is that of a ship bigger than any that I have ever seen.
“None from our record can explain, looking at it now—it clearly belongs to the La’ Mast region. But the design can also be traced to the federation” she paused.
“The mana… only one thing can explain it.”
“Yes, it is inside.”
Agris Beoulve is one of the supervisors mandated to oversee the entire research group responsible in this project. She was the closest Hexamagi to break through the barrier of becoming Septamagi.
Together with almost 20 people, we were only tasked one thing by the chief of TROI—to find a defect in the wards of the Flying Ark.
Wasn’t it odd to assign a group of 20 people of just to find a defect in a ward? Not only that but I can also see more group researching the same object as us. At that time, we were even short of hand in our other projects.
This is TROI and every single one of our group, is group of a Magi capable of improving the lives of the citizen to the tedious task of inventing most of the military weaponry— we made breakthrough that no standalone magi could ever achieve by doing experiments. We own most of the patent for the Artifact in the kingdom—we are capable of advancing the knowledge of the kingdom.
Is what I probably thought two weeks ago. But looking at it now, achieving that before the deadline seems pretty satisfying enough.
The reason being is the moment look at the object’s Rune Array, it hits my head with a round of stinging ache literally and figuratively.
It seems that the barrier even have the mechanism of dealing with people like me. Of course it is still very much doable, someone needs to break down the Rune Array to create rough translation, and I’ll do the rest.
Obviously, by looking at the silhouette of the vessel, it is clearly a Flying Ark. But it has Rune Array intricate enough to say comparing it to our flying ship here is to say to compare a Runic Bracelets to enchanted wheels of a wagon.
Not only that but as we break apart the Rune Array to a more simple forms—more questions started popping up rather than being answered.
Starting by how can it gather so much Mana, until it become why can Mana behave like an obedient child?
Luckily, we found a way to degrade the wards in a certain way by absorbing the Mana little by little from an imperfection in the wards’ Array—basically starving the wards from the outside. But still it will take months to achieve that.
There are also a method of using costly material and a powerful Warrior to brute force the wards open, but it is not regarded as a real solution as we researcher uses our wits not our muscle.
Senior Agris and the other senior are on the verge of breakthrough to significantly reduce the time.
They are currently building a Construct which concerns the ship’s mana-processing Rune. With it, they can syphon mana out from the vessel in only days of time.
The idea of starving the wards from an imperfection was proposed by interns we recruited in the same time as I was relocated.
They were both a traveling researcher from different region. They have the goal of “exploring” this region’s knowledge in the hope of a new discovery. They even have the approval of the Ma’Least Court of Magic.
And that finally led to the point of this journal entry.
“Hello senior Ovelia have you considered about joining our explorer group yet? No? Well…”
I just smiled at him, I don’t know how to respond.
“How about a midnight snack?”
The boy asked. He was one of the interns that joined the group the same time with me. Judging from his looks, he is around 13 years old, someone who has the ability regarding Runes as well. A genius among his peers—yes, but he still have a long way ahead.
His name is Louis Orthus. A boy with blond hair and modest attire, he wore a white shirt with red scarf so long that it reached his knees even after it surrounded his neck. His appearance reminds me of the young waiter at a certain reception desk.
We were on the research site where I work. Although we are strict regarding activities within the research site, today was exception.
The ship which sits upon a platform is hexagonal shaped. The closed atrium doesn’t help with the echoing of sounds here because this underground base sits just below the academy. You can see the various runic tool and charts containing the symbols of Rune scattered among the metal table.
I was among the metallic tables. Standing on top of the platform makes me look like a little goblin compared to the behemoth-sized Flying Ark. Various shapes of lines were moving on the luminescent barrier.
The soft glow of the round barrier shone. Sometimes it was expressing equation of the nature—spiraling out until it was no longer seen or sensed. But sometimes the shapes would appear tangible to the eyes and the other senses—almost touchable.
Interestingly enough, when I reach my hand into the wards— it had no offensive traits attached other than protection, encryption and concealment. It contrasted to the amount of raging Mana inside it.
We were staying late on the research site, and currently only three people are here—me, Louis, and Aurelle. Aurelle was the other newcomer. She was the one who proposed the new method for breaching the wards.
I was deciphering Rune behind the inscription table. Although reaching the wards from time to time is a unique experience, I won’t do it just because I was bored. Glancing to the right, I could saw a girl on my peripheral doing the same thing not too far from my table.
She wore a kind of dark garb which contrasted her light colored hair. Her face was that of a royalty—flawless but not featureless. Instead her eyes were round and big, light azure. Unfortunately a lethargic —but almost cold—look was on her face almost every day.
“Louis, don’t bother Ovelia and just finish your work. No one wants to be bothered at work, especially by you” she said in a monotone voice.
“It’s alright, I’m feeling a little empty anyway” I replied.
“See? You’re the one who should get back to work” He shrugged. Both hands rose up.
I chuckled. Well they do seem friendly at each other.
Louis gave me a Dumbapple. It was bright blue with a little green patch close to its stem which means it is ripe, but still have that bit of sour after you gulped its content. He also gave one to Aurelle.
“Do you prefer your Dumbapple peeled?” He said while throwing and catching the Dumbapple in his hand.
“Yeah, I grew up eating my Dumbapple peeled”
“Is it? Well, I think I want to try to.”
I nodded and he turned away. I slowly peel the blue fruit. At that moment—
*Sswoop*
The sound of brushing clothing can be heard in the silent research site.
At that time, I could swear that from the corner of my eyes I saw the blue Dumbapple slipped from Louis hands. The fruit passes the repulsive force of the barrier serenely. His hand reaching the Dumbapple went into the semi-transparent barrier too. He was only a few steps away from me.
But the next moment as I blinked my eyes and started glancing at him, I saw the Dumbapple at Louis’ hand again, his posture return to normal. The bright blue fruit were in his left hand with his back facing me.
Even the rustling sound still travelling from his shirt disappeared—or I stopped hallucinating.
That all happened in an instant. I am not certain of anything at all.
Noticing me staring at him, he stared back at me.
“Is there a problem senior Ovelia?”
“No, but just before…” I was still processing what really happened. That time, Aurelle too caught interest in her eyes.
“Did you see what happened? He…” I asked at Aurelle.
“Did something happen?”
“Nothing… Perhaps I’m just a bit lightheaded. I’m sorry” She nodded.
There is of course the problem of the Dumbapple entering the barrier. There is no way it was able to enter the barrier. It was impossible unless the designer was able to manipulate the barrier in real time to allow a certain object inside.
Which means the owner is able to control the ship from the distance.
And it is also impossible to tear open wards at that scale without having a subtle Mana interference. Imagine throwing a little rock into a pond but seeing no ripple.
Then again, there is also the problem of me getting mentally stressed every day. And you’re probably thinking that I’m just going insane.
Why did the fruit go inside the barrier alongside with Louis hand?
Either way, with this written down, I’ll never forget that event.
My thoughts were probably not in the right place… At least, I hope so.
