Chapter 92: We Must Return Home
The magical crystal that had occupied the center of the laboratory table for quite some time now went dark; Amelia had coldly terminated the call from her end just a few minutes prior. However, the moment her image vanished from the opposing screen, the Imperial laboratory was turned utterly upside down in a matter of seconds by the father’s roaring voice, and the surroundings ignited with a raucous frenzy as if a devastating fire had suddenly erupted across the facility!
Or perhaps, the scene was more akin to a nest of insects suddenly sprayed in their hiding place with a lethal pesticide, sending them into a state of wild, frantic scrambling. These farcical explanations were far easier to take seriously than accepting the naked, unbelievable truth:
Concise, brief words uttered by a mere little girl had successfully breathed raw life into the bodies of these stagnant scientists! These were the very men who had spent long, grueling months executing the exact same futile experiments dozens of times, for no other reason than to prove them wrong once more, until absolute despair had colonized their souls.
It felt like a ridiculous joke entirely lacking in logic.
Once the father, Arthur, caught his breath and relayed the newfound piece of data his ears had intercepted across the crystal to the assembled scholars, a spark of realization seemed to transmit into their collective consciousness all at once. The chamber instantly exploded into a thunderous scientific dispute, voices overlapping sharply:
"Are you an idiot?! She specifically stated the eighth month! This means we must strictly concentrate our lenses on the moon’s astronomical trajectory and its precise geographical orientation with the highest degree of accuracy!"
Another scientist bellowed from the far reaches of the laboratory, "I believe we are rushing into things! We must first test the complete trajectory of the entire twelve months and compare the variances between them before we can confidently verify the validity of this hypothesis!"
A third added while adjusting his spectacles, "There is also no harm in testing the dozens of astronomical telescopes we have sitting in the storage vaults, just to determine which perspective is optimal for capturing this magical rotation."
Yet, an elderly scientist interrupted them in stern condemnation, slamming his hand upon the table, "For heaven’s sake! There are thousands of moons drifting across the vast expanse of space! What does a dead, rocky celestial body have to do with the [Star Exploration] technique, which is fundamentally a system designed for the cultivation of spiritual energy?! Have you lost your mind, Arthur, to believe this?!"
His colleague countered with heavy sarcasm, "Since there are thousands of moons, why don’t we start with Jupiter’s 55th moon? It seems the most prominent and attractive on the charts, and then we can finish with Earth’s moon to guarantee everyone is satisfied and no one is wronged!"
Amidst this colossal chaos, Arthur—Cathy’s father—stood completely aloof from the noise, adjusting the massive astronomical telescope stationed at the heart of the facility. Behind his back, dozens of scientists bickered endlessly over trivial technicalities, but Arthur ignored them all as if they were mere ghosts.
Arthur did not see them at that exact microsecond; instead, his vision caught something else entirely... He was looking at the Empire’s "Highest Medal of Science" being pinned upon his chest. He did not listen to their mockery; rather, his imagination began weaving threads of an eternal, never-ending glory: massive scientific presentations, limitless research budgets, and his own curriculum vitae and patents selling to major institutions for millions!
For a fleeting instant, the sound of the squabbling around him dissolved, replaced in his ears by the echo of a thunderous, standing ovation shaking the Imperial halls in reverence of his genius.
Arthur forced his eye against the lens of the telescope with absolute intensity, staring intently at the celestial body of the current moon drifting in the dark sky. In an unconscious reflex, he pulled out his magical quill and began charting calculations onto his notebook with blistering speed, murmuring equations and figures under his breath without pause, his eye glued to the lens as he traced the moon’s path with flawless precision.
However... a massive problem rapidly manifested, shocking his senses and halting the rapid flow of his quill.
The once-impenetrable bottlenecks had undoubtedly become significantly clearer thanks to those words he had intercepted, yet other vital, critical components remained utterly missing. It was as though the phrase had granted them the key, but had failed to swing the door wide open.
According to the ancient manuals and codices, the [Star Exploration] technique adhered to a rigorous, strict paradigm summarized by the rule: ’From the closest to the furthest.’ Or to put it in a more profound manner: ’Follow what is near to you and what you are familiar with, so that you may comprehend that which you cannot yet approach or perceive.’
This particular astronomical concept was highly familiar to them. The specific rotation of the moon in the eighth month, though it appeared unexceptional to the naked eye, carried profound implications within the realm of magical cryptography. In higher astronomy, the moon requires the reflection of light upon its surface to manifest, and the light emanating from the sun in the eighth month concentrates precisely on the outer edges and rims of the moon rather than its depth or center.
In other words, Arthur realized that the [Star Exploration] technique relied entirely on the concept of the "outer framework" rather than the internal depth!
Nonetheless, the missing rifts in the codex were numerous, and he could not fathom whether the data of "the eighth month" alone was capable of covering them and mending the fractured equation.
Ten heavy minutes passed like entire eons... The tip of the quill began pressing down with excessive force onto the paper as a result of the mounting tension. The scientists monitoring him within the laboratory felt despair creeping back into their hearts as they noticed the abrupt halt of the rapid progress Arthur had achieved moments ago.
The pressure devolved into a physical spasm, and Arthur began scratching random, chaotic lines that tore through the pages of the precious journal. When his stifled fury reached its absolute peak, he violently hurled the quill and the notebook onto the floor, his exhausted body collapsing to his knees before the massive iron base of the telescope.
He buried his face in his hands, which had begun to tremble violently, and exhaled a breath heavily weighed down by oppression: "How?! How is it still this cursedly complex and impenetrable?! How did a person even exist in this world capable of inventing and encrypting a technique like this from the very beginning?! I don’t understand... In one single microsecond, everything appeared logical and moving in its proper course, only for reality to return and slap me across the face once more, proving that the matter is far too intricate to conclude at this simple mathematical threshold!"
His wife—Cathy’s mother—moved with quiet steps toward her broken husband, bending down to gently pat his shoulder in an attempt to comfort him: "Don’t worry, Arthur... At least you tried, and you made a stride that none of us has ever managed to reach before..."
Suddenly and shockingly, Arthur whirled toward her. He gripped her comforting hand with immense, crushing force that made her bones groan, staring into her eyes with a terrifying, wild gleam of absolute cognitive obsession: "Who said that?! Tell me right now... Who was the person you were speaking to on the crystal line just a moment ago?! Tell me their identity!"
The mother was startled by her husband’s sudden, violent movement, and a wave of deep tension entered her tone as she stammered under his piercing gaze: "It... the connection originated from our home... from Cathy! But the person who spoke and uttered that exact sentence was a strange-looking little girl. She had night-black hair and stunning purple eyes... appearing to be roughly the exact same age as our daughter! I don’t even know who she is or how she entered our mansion!"
Arthur leaped to his feet with a sudden surge of erratic energy, tearing off the magical corrective glasses he was wearing. He then ripped off his white laboratory coat, tossing it aside carelessly, and began donning his standard outdoor overcoat with frantic speed.
His wife pursued him in utter bewilderment, asking, "Where are you going at this late hour, Arthur?!"
He turned to her while fastening the buttons of his coat, his eyes burning with blind, unyielding determination: "Come with me right this instant! I am returning home now... I will not squander this historic, monumental opportunity as long as I live! That girl possesses the complete master key!"
"But... the research... the scientists... the min—"
The mother found no time to finish her protest; she only caught sight of her husband violently shoving the massive laboratory doors open under the stunned gazes of the remaining scholars, sprinting down the corridors to exit the ministry building. The mother possessed no alternative or choice but to run after him at her absolute maximum speed to keep pace with his rapid strides, without even having the time to discard her official laboratory uniform.