Sword of Dawn

Page 155

Newspapers, this is also something unique to this land, it appeared not too early, so far only three issues have been published, but Cohen is very interested in it, reading newspapers is not as exhausting as reading magic books , while the content on it was entertaining and practical, and Cohen used it as a kind of relaxation reading to regulate energy—and he knew many people in the institute did the same.

Moreover, Cohen knew that the recent project he and his colleagues in the institute were working on had a lot to do with this "newspaper".

"Cohen—good morning," after entering the laboratory, colleagues greeted him immediately. A familiar magician greeted Cohen. The magician saw the newspaper in Cohen's hand. , couldn't help being curious, "What was written on it this time? I haven't had time to read it yet."

Another magician next to him smiled and said, "I hope to see the sequel to the last issue of "Strange Tales in the Northern Mountains"—I really didn't expect that there are so many strange legends in the northern part of the kingdom."

"Pay more attention to the useful news." Cohen glanced at the magician and raised the newspaper in his hand, "It says that our King has gone to the border to negotiate with Emperor Typhon—and Gord Mr Wen deduced that they would meet next week."

"Tsk, this day is still here," the magician who spoke first smacked his lips. "It seems that our King is also in a hurry."

"No one likes to fight, especially His Majesty the King - he has to spend a lot of money," the No.2 magician laughed while talking, "He spent a lot of money on the renovation of the Silver Castle ten years ago. savings!"

Cohen did not participate in the ensuing conversation, he just shook his head with a smile, folded the newspaper and put it in his cabinet.

On the frontier of the remote southern frontier, two people who were born as craftsmen and mage apprentices so naturally talked about the topic of negotiations between the king and the emperor of the neighboring country-and this negotiation was not old news a few years ago, but What's going on these days, it's really an incredible scene.

Cecil seems to be used to accepting all kinds of incredible things, but it may take a little time for him, a magician from the capital, to fully adapt to all this.

At this moment, a person walked into the laboratory, and the magicians who were chatting and arranging and storing personal belongings immediately fell silent.

It was a girl with dark brown hair, younger than everyone in the room, she even seemed to have just grown up, she had a bright smile on her face, and she walked like a tiger, but no one in the laboratory dared to Belittle this young girl, including Cohen.

Because this girl, who looked only seventeen or eighteen years old, was the master of the entire magic technology research institute, and also the heir to the ancient family that ruled this land, inheriting the Cecil surname.

"Hello, everyone!" The girl happily walked to the center of the laboratory and waved her hand to greet the people present. She could not see any aristocratic aura at all, but Cohen still bowed his head respectfully like everyone else, and spoke in a neat voice. Pay your respects: "Good morning, Lady Rebecca."

"Okay, everyone, don't be too polite," Rebecca waved her hands, "We will continue the project today, and each group will continue to test the data and materials that they are responsible for. Bruce, Terry, come here, I have a new idea Need to verify."

The workflow of the laboratory took effect immediately, and the people in each "team" entered the working state in the shortest possible time, and Cohen also devoted himself to his task-he has not yet become an official magician, but He was being trained as an apprentice, but with a third-level Arcanist qualification, he was making rapid progress in the field of rune logic, so he obtained the qualification to work in the laboratory in advance.

He himself cherishes such an opportunity.

The "Magic Research" of the Institute of Magic Technology is different from other places. There are no dark and cramped magic towers and gloomy and lonely magicians, nor are there trembling magic apprentices and weird and obscure spell experiments that are all based on luck. Here, A large number of technicians discuss and cooperate with each other. Everyone's inspiration and ideas will be discussed and verified. A large topic is split into small parts in the laboratory, and then several groups work together to "research" , this unprecedented way of studying magic opened Cohen's eyes at the beginning, and it didn't take long for him to fully immerse himself in it-this kind of collision of ideas, inspiration and inspiration, everyone sharing knowledge together, Working hard with a goal is much more comfortable than staying in the Wangdu Mage Association.

Cohen's task was simple -- he was tasked with testing which magic could imprint which materials, and making sure the process was reversible.

In fact, most of the working groups in the laboratory are doing this simple but boring work.

Cohen knew the purpose of this work—to create a "printing tool" that could be quickly plate-making and could be reused. This mission goal was hung on the wall facing the door of the laboratory Been there for many days.

That's why the project he and his colleagues are working on now has a lot to do with "newspapers" - the people in the lab are very smart, and everyone can figure out that once their research is successful, this new printing tool can In what field is it used.

The thought that the research he was doing could be translated into something new and significant made Cohen feel a sense of motivation that he hadn't experienced before—a drive that was nothing like mastering a new spell after months of memorizing it by rote. different.

He has a feeling that he is also participating in the construction of history.

Chapter 0373 Back to Cecil

It is a boring thing to test out the combinations that meet the requirements from the vast number of basic spells and basic materials-although the overall research environment of the Institute of Magic Technology is pleasant, it does not mean that the research work itself is also easy and pleasant of.

Cohen has been conducting these basic tests for dozens of days. During these dozens of days, he has tested nearly a hundred different magic materials with more than a dozen different magic effects—including new ones formed by mixing various magic materials. In these tests, he did find that some substances will change when stimulated by specific types of spells, such as softening, hardening, expansion and contraction, etc., but they fully meet the requirements of the project, and the combination of reversible processes has not yet been established. appeared.

But he was still doing these tests silently, and recorded the results of each test in detail.

He is used to this kind of boring work, in fact, he even likes this kind of boring work a little bit, just like he also likes precision, likes planning, and likes to walk from the gate of the research institute to the laboratory with one step at a time— —When he was in the capital, a girl he secretly admired once commented on his eccentricities as "weird, rigid, and a bit neurotic", but Cohen couldn't change his habits after all.

After the test runes on the magic test bench slowly faded, Cohen emptied the samples and put them away, and then reset the experimental environment.He took out a thin piece of copper-silver alloy from the sample box at hand, clamped the alloy on a fixed bracket in the center of the experimental table, and then pressed the bracket down so that it touched the rune carved on the experimental table circuit, and then he raised a set of metal devices next to the test bench—

This metal device looks like an arm composed of several iron rods painted with runes. At the front of the "arm", a high-quality magic focusing crystal is fixed.This set of devices is called the "magic trigger", and it is one of the most indispensable tools in the magic technology laboratory.By adjusting the sequence of several rune triggers at the connection between the rune iron rod and the experimental table, it can be connected with a large rune "palette" on the back of the table. The disc-shaped symbol jokingly called "palette" More than a dozen of the most basic magic circles are prefabricated on the text device, which can easily release the magic effects required by the experimenter.

Ordinary technicians in the magic laboratory who don't have magic talent rely on this kind of thing to conduct complex magic experiments.

And a magician like Cohen, who has the ability to cast spells, soon realized the value of the "magic trigger" after coming into contact with it, and fell in love with this useful device in just a few days.

In his opinion, this is simply a great invention-the magic power generator is powered by the magic net buried under the laboratory floor, so there is almost no problem of mana exhaustion, and it can release almost all kinds of basic magic effects However, ordinary spellcasters are limited by their talents, and there are situations where certain spells cannot be released. The last and most satisfying point for Cohen is that the magic power generator is a kind of machine, and all its structures, materials, and parameters are It is fixed. Before malfunctioning, this device can guarantee that every spell impact released is exactly the same. It is self-evident what significance this has for people engaged in magic research!

And such a genius creation was invented by the young Viches who was standing in the center of the laboratory, discussing with several senior technicians in full swing—in fact, more than half of the new devices in the entire laboratory were made of She invented it.

It is said that her spellcasting level is only three levels.

Everyone is a low-level mage, why is she so good... Could it be because of the surname "Cecil"?

Cohen restrained the wandering thoughts in his mind and activated the magic trigger.

The focusing crystal quickly brightened, and a moment later, an electric arc struck the surface of the alloy from the tip of the crystal, and left shallow traces on the surface of the alloy as the crystal moved.

Then Cohen immediately began to test the various changes of the alloy sample after that, and recorded the results:

"On X, X, X, the XX test, sample number XX, the arcane lightning acted on the surface of the copper-silver alloy, leaving discoloration dents, and the area of ​​the sample affected by the magic power produced a weak arcane affinity property, the process Irreversible. This characteristic may be used to manufacture new high-performance array substrates..."

The tests so far have not yielded the desired results, but this does not mean that these tests are meaningless. In almost random tests, researchers have discovered many new properties of magic materials, and more than half of them are It is a new characteristic of mixed materials, and all these characteristics will be recorded in detail. One day in the future, perhaps one of the characteristics will come in handy--the project has been carried on to this day, and some researchers have even discovered new materials. feature as a work goal, and this is really a very motivating thing.

As an orthodox mage in the royal capital, Cohen knew that in the past, there were not no mages who discovered new material properties or created new mixed magic materials through daily experiments. However, all old-style research was independent, closed, and fragmented. Yes, those traditional mages found them in their dark and cramped mage towers, and then regarded them as treasures. They may never share their discoveries with the outside world, and as long as these mages die, their discoveries will also be buried. In the tomb—like in the Institute of Magic Technology, a large group of people conduct large-scale tests in a planned and orderly manner, and then gather all the findings together. At the same time, there are people who are responsible for coordinating the laws of experiments. From the perspective of traditional wizards is unimaginable.

It is precisely because of this that the experimental efficiency here is simply astonishingly high.

After completing this batch of data records, Cohen did not rest. He sealed up the samples and related records, handed them over to his colleagues, and immediately prepared to test the next sample.

But just as he clamped the sample, aligned the crystal of the magic trigger with the fixed bracket, and was about to press the rune trigger, a gradually low buzzing sound suddenly came from under the experiment table, followed by his experiment Inside the table, the flashing runes on the tables of several groups around them all dimmed.

"What's the matter, the equipment here is stopped..." "The newly replaced crystal, isn't it overloaded?" On the side of the bolt—who is checking the side of the bolt to see if the fuse is blown."

Cohen was stunned for a moment, and then realized from the complaints around him that the problem was not on the test bench. It should be that something went wrong with the magic net node in the laboratory—there are currently two forms of magic power supply in the territory, one is The magic energy obelisks in each block provide wireless magic fields. One is the traditional direct contact with the magic net to extract energy. The First Practical Technology Research Office happens to have a built-in magic net in the laboratory (experimental nature of the high-performance magic net), so half of the test benches are connected to the magic net in the traditional way.

After reacting, Cohen immediately put down the things in his hands and went around behind his experimental table—behind his experimental table, there was a hexagonal metal stake as thick as an arm extending from the floor, which was the so-called "check bolt".

One of the six silver-white facades of the checkbolt had obviously turned black. Cohen carefully leaned his hand on it, and immediately felt a burst of heat.

He glanced at the node position represented by the blackened facade, waved his hand and shouted: "The node on the third or fourth ring in District 6 is burned, and the other nodes seem to be fine."

"Shield that node first, and fix it after work is over," Rebecca in the center of the laboratory gave an order. "In addition, who told me that someone used a heating pad to cook noodles in the laboratory? Is there really someone like this?" did it?"

The laboratory suddenly fell silent...

Cohen also shrunk his neck subconsciously. He didn't use the heating pad on the laboratory bench to cook, but he baked bread...

But at this moment, the peripheral vision from the corner of his eye suddenly swept across the check plug that was blackened and heated due to the surge of arcane energy.

After the surge of arcane energy receded, the changed mithril coating on the check pin was gradually returning to its original state...

One of the characteristics of Mithril is that it will accumulate magic power during the process of absorbing arcane energy, and there will be no change in appearance during this process; it will quickly release magic power after the external arcane energy disappears, and Mithril will heat up and change color during this process... …

The young mage from the royal capital fell into deep thought...

In the north of the main city of Cecil, on the wharf of the White Water River, a cargo ship with the logo of the Cecil Chamber of Commerce slowly approached the case under the command of the dock staff.

The gangway of the cargo ship boarded the trestle, and the captain stepped down to hand over to the staff on the pier, and leaving the cargo ship with the captain was a burly figure and a dozen shabby-clothed civilians from other places.

"Have you formed a group of migrants?" Seeing those people walking off the gangplank, the manager of the dock turned to the captain and said, "Don't forget to register, otherwise these migrants will not be able to leave the trestle area."

"I'm not responsible for these immigrants," the captain waved his hand, pointing to the extraordinarily burly figure, "They were brought by Pastor Mr. Wright."

"Mr. Wright?" Only then did the dock manager realize that the person who stepped off the diving board turned out to be the pastor on the territory—it's just that the pastor was not wearing the iconic old pastor's robe at the moment, but was wearing a matching one. He didn’t recognize the shabby clothes of the poor, but now that he recognized it, he immediately ran forward, “Mr. Wright! Didn’t you go back to the Plain of the Holy Spirit? Why did you come back so soon?”

"I've seen what I want to see, so naturally I want to go back to where I should go," Wright Aviken smiled gently, pointing to the immigrants brought by him behind him, "These people are people I helped on the way. The past victims were all persecuted by the Church of the Holy Light, and the lord said that he would accept them."

"Church persecution... oh, ok, I'll arrange the registration right now," the dock manager didn't expect that the only pastor in the territory would come back so soon, let alone that the priest of Shengguang led a team to bring back ten Several people who were persecuted by the Church of the Holy Light, the fact that there is a lot of information made him stumped for a while before he realized it, and then, he noticed that there seemed to be some faint blood on Wright's clothes, "Mr. yes……"

Wright looked down at the marks on his clothes that he couldn't clean, and shook his head helplessly: "It got on when I was reasoning with people."

The dock manager breathed a sigh of relief: "Oh, that's okay, I thought you were going to reason with the bear again-everyone has had enough bear meat."

Chapter 0374 The Priest Who Lost the Holy Light

It took Wright a long time to carry out the handover on the pier—until he watched the refugees from the Holy Spirit Plain complete all the registrations, accepted the doctor's disease examination, and was led by the soldiers to the buffer camp to rest. Take it easy.

These people chose to leave their hometown because of their trust in him, and chose to go to an unknown land like the southern border. Although they were attacked by the Church of the Holy Light and captured by the lord there, they had no way out, but they were not the only ones in the southern border This is the way to go, but since these people chose to follow him, then he must bear the responsibility to the end.

Only when one fulfills one's duty can one talk about morality—this is what the Holy Light told him.

Holy light...

Standing on the edge of the pier square, Wright looked down at his strong and strong hands. On the palms, he could see two wounds that were still healing. Soldiers clashed and left two small wounds in exchange for the life of an innocent girl who was designated as a cultist. This is a very worthwhile price, but these two small wounds have not yet Completely healed, this can only show that the Holy Light has really left him.

Wright sighed softly, then raised his head and looked at the bustling, lively and vibrant neighborhoods in the city.

"Cecile... I'm back."

He walked through the busy and fish-smelling streets of the Docklands, through Pine Street and Cobble Park, and finally came to the Lord's mansion.

In the study room of the lord's mansion, Gao Wen, who was reviewing the report, saw Wright Aviken wearing ordinary clothes. He was also a little surprised that the pastor returned early, but before Wright entered the door, he had already heard from Amber. Hearing what happened in the pier square, he nodded to the strong pastor: "Welcome back——I heard that you brought back a dozen or so escaped people? Did the journey go smoothly?"

"Thank you for your concern," Wright lowered his head slightly, "I met those people on the way back—it was an unexpected situation."

He really didn't expect that he would bring so many people back. At the beginning, he just wanted to bring the young couple he met in the northern village of the Rock Fortress back to Cecil Territory, but he didn't expect to encounter more needs on the way back. Helping people, in the end more and more people followed him, and it seemed to be a small team—fortunately, he met a caravan that was about to return to Cecil after passing through the Carroll Territory, otherwise the journey would have been difficult. It will definitely be much harder.

"Where's your priest's robe?" Gawain looked at Wright curiously, "And the prayer book you usually hang around your waist?"

"It's sold," Wright said frankly, "a dozen people need to eat, and I don't have enough travel expenses-they are all poor people, and most of their property has been taken away by the local lord or the church. When I was penniless, I sold my robes and prayer books."

Gao Wen was taken aback: "Sold it? Shouldn't it be very important to you?"

Wright smiled slightly: "That robe is just an old robe. Although the material is very good, it is just a piece of clothing. I also copied the prayer book myself, and I can memorize all the contents on it. I can write another book silently. The teaching of the Holy Light does not lie in the carrier, but in the heart."

Looking at this calm priest of Holy Light, Gao Wen couldn't help but feel a little touched. He nodded slightly, and didn't mention the robe and prayer book anymore, but asked about the other party's journey to the Holy Spirit Plain this time. Knowledge: "If you returned early, you must have seen what you wanted to see, right?"

"To be honest, I would rather not have seen..." Wright sighed, "The church has fallen... It should be said that it has fallen long ago, but I have been deliberately ignoring this fact, using the phrase 'everyone believes in the Holy Light' It’s just to anesthetize yourself. Today’s Holy Spirit Plain is no longer a paradise for the Holy Light to protect the world. The greedy priests and greedy nobles and lords have colluded together to squeeze the last drop of blood and sweat from the common people, and make all those who disobey them come from The only thing I can't believe is that it's only been two years since I left there, yet they can degenerate so quickly and completely..."

"According to the information from the Plain of the Holy Spirit, since the Cathedral of the Holy Light held a meeting of cardinals at the level of bishops and above last year, their behavior has become more extreme. This aspect is the strength of the Holy Light Sect as a sect for so many years. On the other hand, it must have been inspired by the upper echelon of the church," Gao Wen said what he knew, and looked into Wright's eyes after speaking, "But I believe that it is impossible for a church to be [-]% Fallen, just like you, in my eyes is a true practitioner of the Holy Light - Mr. Wright, welcome back to this land that is still clean, the key to the church is with the administrator of Mission Square, as I have ordered , you can always go back and manage the church again."

"...Lord, this is exactly what I want to say," Wright suddenly smiled wryly, and spread his hands, "I'm afraid I won't be able to hold the post of Holy Light Pastor—the same goes for the management of the church."

This was really beyond Gao Wen's expectation. He stopped reviewing the report and looked at the only pastor in the territory in surprise: "What's going on? You won't be too stimulated to quit the church immediately." Bar?"

Wright didn't answer directly, but raised his hands, and a moment later, a little holy white light burst out between his hands, but the light didn't persist for a second before it disintegrated.

Gao Wen only felt a very weak wave of magic power, and the weak wave is not a formal magic or magic, it can't even be called a trick.

"What's going on here?" He frowned and asked—he knew Wright's original strength. Although the pastor had a strange style of painting, his divine skills and priest professional level were still real, and because of his firm belief The Holy Light has a high affinity, and its magical power is even at the upper level among priests of the same level. How can it be that after going out and coming back, it can't even hit a spark of the Holy Light?

"I did something against the Holy Light," Wright said with a wry smile, "I beat up fellow church members who also believed in the Holy Light, and I continued to beat him after he lost his ability to resist. After that, my Holy Light power declined rapidly gone."

Gawain's expression became serious, and he stared into Wright's eyes: "What exactly happened?"

Wright didn't hide anything, and immediately told the truth about his experience in the small village north of the Rock Fortress. He didn't hide his anger and violence when he taught the two soldiers and the priest a lesson, and he didn't hide it. His contempt and disgust for the other party, but after finishing the story, he still sighed long: "I don't regret my behavior, but I did violate the teachings of the Holy Light. I should have had a better life." plan of action—but still overwhelmed by rage."

Gao Wen frowned: "After this?"

Wright spread his hands: "After that, I started the return journey, and rescued a dozen more people on the way... I also taught a dozen people a lesson."

Gao Wenxin said that this pastor seems to have been dazzled by anger quite a few times... Maybe it was broken?

He stood up from behind the desk and walked back and forth in front of Wright, lost in thought as he walked. After a while, he raised his head again: "You think it is because your behavior deviated from the Holy Light that you lost the Holy Light the power of?"

Wright nodded: "There is only this explanation."

Gawain stroked the beard on his chin, looked at Wright after a moment of pondering, and asked, "Compared with the priest you taught, which one of you deviates from the Holy Light more seriously?"

"This..." Wright was probably so shocked that he didn't think about this question at all. When Gao Wen asked him, he thought about it, "I don't know..."

"You know, no one has a deeper understanding of the Holy Light than you, and no one practices the morals of the Holy Light more than you," Gawain interrupted Wright, "Obviously, if you beat a priest, it is a violation of the Holy Light." If it is light, then those priests who collude with local nobles for money, falsely accuse and frame innocent civilians, and use magic to harm innocent people are simply enemies of the Holy Light, and the dark side of the world."

Wright was a little speechless for a while: "This..."

Gawain did not give the other party a chance to continue thinking, but continued: "The current situation is that you have lost the power of the Holy Light, but those priests who violated the teachings of the Holy Light even more than you can still use divine magic. why?"

Wright was lost in thought, while Gawain looked at the priest who had lost the power of the Holy Light and also lost in thought.

He has always been curious about the gods of this world and related religious beliefs, but he dare not study in depth because of the weird attributes of the gods, but now a special research sample has appeared—maybe it is a bit unfair to Wright, but This Mr. Pastor has indeed become a special research sample.

Right in front of Gao Wen, there was a living example of losing divine power due to wavering faith.

The process of Wright losing the favor of the Holy Light... Did it reveal some secrets of divine arts?Or... revealed some secrets of the connection between man and god?

Is the so-called divine art just a process of "self-suggestion", "self-affirmation", and "self-identification"?Or... this process strengthened the connection between humans and gods, which led to the creation of divine arts?

While thinking about it, Gawain came up with another idea - if Wright could re-establish his self-affirmation and let him believe from the bottom of his heart that his behavior was in line with the true meaning of the Holy Light, would his magic come back?

But this idea was denied by him as soon as it came out: Although Wright has been saying that his behavior violates the teachings of the Holy Light, but judging from his current performance, it is obvious that he does not think so deep down in his heart. It was the priest who was beaten by him who violated the teachings of the Holy Light...so he subconsciously did not shake his belief in the Holy Light...

His wavering is from another level.

Gawain thought very fast, and it took only a few seconds for so many thoughts to flash through one by one. He looked at Wright who was still thinking, and after a moment of pondering, he broke the silence: "Mr. Wright, you are still in the territory. Priest."

Wright raised his head in surprise: "But the lord..."

"I know you've lost your magic," Gawain raised his hand to interrupt the other person, "but is magic really everything you need as a priest?

"Your belief in the Holy Light, your insistence on those virtues, and your enthusiasm for the work of leading people to be good are still unchanged, and as long as these things do not change, you are the best candidate for priest in the territory .

"Mr. Wright, you are only temporarily confused, but remember, losing your magic doesn't mean you can't continue to help others—the dozen or so people you brought back were basically lost after you lost your magic. It was rescued after the surgery, wasn’t it?”

Wright was stunned for a moment, and finally nodded slightly: "As you said."