Chapter 6 : Chapter 6
Chapter 6.
Logaris stood in the laboratory, staring at the Book of Prophecy lying on the table.
It had been him who tampered with the train the previous night.
The power core of the Magitech Train had been secretly “adjusted” by him.
It was not sabotage.
He had merely caused the inspection program to falsely report a malfunction, forcing the departure time to be delayed.
Logaris did this only to verify one thing.
Could prophecy be changed?
If the train were delayed, would the prophecy of Sylvia’s death disappear?
Logaris opened the Book of Prophecy and flipped directly to the final page.
Unexpectedly, nothing had changed.
Logically speaking, since he had interfered with the train, the event should have been postponed at the very least.
Could it be that the prophecy had some kind of refresh timing?
It seemed he would have to think of another method.
***
The director’s tower of Saint Arcadia Academy stood at the highest point of the academy.
Logaris pushed open the office door, and a rich scent of candy immediately rushed toward him.
The headmaster, Barnabas Reinhardt, sat behind a desk piled high with books and parchment.
He held a massive glass candy jar in his hands and was stuffing a honey caramel into his mouth.
The old man squinted his eyes, and powdered sugar clung to his silver-white beard.
“Oh? Isn’t this my proudest student?”
Barnabas looked up and smiled warmly at Logaris.
“What kind of wind has blown you to visit this old man today?”
Logaris ignored the teasing and stated his purpose directly.
“I need to request leave.”
“Leave?”
Barnabas tossed a milk candy into his mouth.
“Where to?”
“The Northern Territory.”
“The Northern Territory?”
The old man raised an eyebrow.
“That place is nothing but ice and snow.What are you going there for?”
Logaris had already prepared his explanation.
“Research on the adaptability of Magitech equipment in frigid environments.”
He paused briefly.
“Existing Magitech equipment shows certain performance deviations in extremely cold conditions.I need field data.”
Barnabas stared at him without speaking.
“Is it for Sylvia?”
Barnabas asked with a faint smile.
The office door suddenly swung open.
Three elderly professors poked their heads inside.
“Barnabas, I heard Logaris came?”
“What a rare guest.
Isn’t this boy either in the laboratory or on the way to one?”
“Kid, I heard you blew up Laboratory No. 3 again last week.
Quite the commotion.”
Logaris' face darkened.
Those old men had clearly heard Barnabas' earlier remark.
“Ahem.”
He cleared his throat.
“I merely—”
“You are merely worried about Her Highness the Princess' safety in the Northern Territory, right?”
An elderly professor wearing a monocle finished the sentence for him.
“Young people truly have energy.”
“Back when I was chasing my current wife, I also crossed mountains and valleys—”
“Enough.”
Logaris interrupted him.
“I am going there for research.”
“Research?”
Another elderly professor burst into laughter.
“Kid, I still remember the paper you wrote in my class back then. What was the title again? ‘On the Attenuation Pattern of Mana Circulation Systems in High-Latitude Regions,’ correct?”
“You even wrote in the paper yourself that ‘the data is complete and field verification is unnecessary.’”
“So why are you suddenly going to the Northern Territory now?”
Logaris fell silent.
Each of these old men was sharper than the last.
Barnabas leaned back in his chair, smiling until his eyes narrowed into slits.
“Alright, alright.Stop teasing him.”
He waved his hand.
“Logaris, if you want to go, then go.Your leave is approved.”
Logaris let out a sigh of relief.
“Thank you, Headmaster.”
“However—”
Barnabas' tone suddenly changed.
The joking atmosphere vanished.
Within his slightly clouded eyes, dulled from years of excessive candy, a sharp clarity appeared.
“Be careful.”
Logaris paused.
“The old Duke Fenrir is on the brink of death.The entire Northern Territory is now a muddy pool.”
Barnabas spoke in a low voice.
“Agents of the First Prince and the Second Prince are both infiltrating the region.The eyes of the Holy Church are watching as well.Not to mention the Demi-Human Empire across the border.”
“If you go there under the identity of a professor from Saint Arcadia Academy, your presence itself will be a signal.”
“It will stir the nerves of many people.”
“They will see you as the academy’s representative. As my representative.”
“And some people will do everything they can to make sure you stay in the Northern Territory forever.”
***
Logaris left the director’s tower, and the scene from six years ago surfaced in his mind.
He had been sixteen that year.
After studying at Saint Arcadia Academy for only four years, he published a paper in the academic journals of the time.
Its title was:
“On the Synthetic Pathways of Life-Origin Essence in Non-Living Matter.”
The paper included complete experimental records and detailed procedures.
The core argument was extremely simple, yet utterly insane.
Life was not the creation of the gods.
It was merely a series of complex material reactions.
As long as the conditions were suitable, life could be artificially synthesized.
There was no need for prayer.
No need for divine magic.
There was not even any need for magic or alchemy.
The moment the paper was published, the entire academic world exploded.
The reaction of the Holy Church was the most intense.
They had nearly stormed the academy and dragged him away.
To this day, Logaris still remembered the expression on their faces, as though their own mothers had just died.
Later, it was his partner at the time, Sylvia, who stepped forward.
She took him to find Headmaster Barnabas, who had been traveling the world at the time, and persuaded him to accept Logaris as his disciple.
At the same time, Sylvia used her own connections to maneuver behind the scenes.
Only then was Logaris able to survive.
He was even able to continue studying peacefully within the academy.
Logaris also remembered that when he excitedly showed Sylvia that “world-changing” paper, she merely glanced at it once.
Then she looked at him as if he were an idiot and asked a single question.
“Are you tired of living?”
Of course, none of this came without a price.
At the time, Sylvia and he signed a contract.
From then on, Sylvia would fund Logaris' research.
In return, all of Logaris' research results had to be shared with her immediately.
Whether the results would be made public, and when they would be made public, would be decided jointly by both of them.
The contract had a duration of five years.
By calculation, it had actually expired a year ago.
But neither of them mentioned it.
Sylvia continued to provide funding.
Logaris continued sending her his latest research reports.
It had already become a habit.
Logaris shook his head and cast these thoughts aside.
Now was not the time to think about such things.
***
Logaris returned to the laboratory.
He opened a massive metal cabinet.
Inside, various Magitech equipment was neatly arranged.
Logaris estimated that Sylvia might face a fierce battle this time.
He needed to make preparations as well.
The Magitech Gun “Piercing Ignorance,” a weapon developed by Logaris himself, served as his exclusive casting tool.
More than thirty amplification spell arrays were embedded inside the gun barrel.
Fifty specially made protective rune scrolls.
One hundred high-energy explosive crystals.
And various miscellaneous experimental tools.
Logaris checked each item one by one and then placed them all into a spatial ring.
He walked to the workbench and picked up a black metal case.
The case was heavy.
Inside it was his newest Magitech device—
The “Justice” Model Fifth-Generation Magitech Armor.
One of Logaris' trump cards.
This thing had not yet undergone full testing, but its power was absolutely immense.
Logaris hesitated for several seconds before finally storing the case away.
He stood in the laboratory and looked at the now empty workbench.
Everything was ready.
It was time to depart.