Chapter 688 — Dragon and Sky

That giant wing was somewhat smaller than the wings she bore after full dragon transformation, but it still made Rebecca's eyes go wide.

Along the edges of that black giant wing, Rebecca could see many magical runes faintly emerging. Between the wing's framework and veins, lines of magic power also shimmered faintly into view.

"Transforming into a dragon in the castle courtyard would cause a huge commotion, but I can project part of my body," Maggie said slowly. She felt she was being somewhat impulsive—this was the courtyard of Silverhold, after all. Though no one was nearby at the moment, there were surely many guards and attendants who could see what was happening here. Yet she found herself rather enjoying this feeling... Apart from the time she left her homeland, it had been far too long since she had done anything impulsive. "Look if you wish, but it may not be complete."

Yes, the runes on Maggie's wing were incomplete.

Rebecca needed only a single glance to realize that something was wrong with this black dragon lady's wing—part of its edge was missing, and the main framework showed signs of stunted deformity, as though it had suddenly stopped growing halfway through development and then been brutally damaged by some external force. This pitiful appearance... no wonder Maggie harbored such misgivings about her dragon form.

And this incomplete wing had undoubtedly resulted in an incomplete runic array.

Rebecca's gaze swept across those runes and magical patterns, and only then did she slowly draw it back: "I see..."

Maggie waved her hand, withdrawing the partially projected limb, then shook her head: "I'm sorry, I only have these broken remnants. So if you wish to study the flight capabilities of dragons, you'd best find a true, healthy dragon. I am not a suitable subject for research."

"...The Ancestral Inkstone people said that unless absolutely necessary, it's best not to do business with dragons—they're stingy and greedy," Rebecca said with a serious face. "And I think an ordinary dragon probably wouldn't be willing to let me study them anyway, right?"

"Stingy and greedy..." Maggie blinked, then suddenly couldn't help but burst out laughing, laughing with exceptional delight. "Haha, you put it so well—stingy and greedy indeed... And those proud, healthy dragons certainly wouldn't be willing to let you study them, since they're the ones being studied..."

"I think having these rune samples from you is enough," Rebecca continued. "Any functional runic array possesses a certain self-interpreting and self-supplementing property. This property is also commonly used by the Runic Research Institute as a reference for eliminating invalid structures in traditional spell formations. I'll go find Jenny and borrow a few experts—perhaps we can fill in all your missing runes. And those parts that are stacked and distorted from the deformity should also be repairable and restorable. Theoretically, as long as we can restore seventy percent of the runes, we can build a first-generation working prototype. Machines and equipment—they always get refined gradually through use..."

At this point Rebecca paused to think, then suddenly brightened: "And who knows, maybe we could even build something you could use!"

"Something I could use?" Maggie didn't react for a moment. "What thing?"

"Try to repair your wings," Rebecca's imagination took flight. "When a person is disabled they can use prosthetics—inconvenient, but they can still stand. Maybe we could build you mechanical wings. They might not work well, but at least they could let you fly on your own—I heard you have to rely on extra airflow or glide from a cliff to take off, right? If we succeed, maybe you could take off from flat ground under your own power!!"

Maggie's eyes went wide, and she stared at Rebecca, somewhat dazed.

What an utterly wild notion, what optimistic imagination—how many years had it been since she herself had dared to dream such a dream?

After several seconds of stunned silence, Rebecca's voice suddenly came from beside her: "Hey, Maggie, why aren't you saying anything? Did my idea scare you?"

"No, I just... well, I am a little startled," Maggie said, somewhat at a loss. She felt that the composed demeanor she had painstakingly maintained for years was being rapidly shattered before this unconventional princess—yet she felt not the slightest regret. "Your idea is very bold, but it won't be easy to achieve. The runes on our bodies are quite different from the runes you humans commonly use—they are the fundamental elements of the dragon tongue..."

"We've already cracked the elven runic language. We don't mind adding dragon tongue runes to the list. Whatever the system, at least mathematics is universal," Rebecca said with considerable confidence. "And from what I know, humanity's earliest magic was created by referencing the patterns on magical beasts in nature. The original 'primordial runes' were the natural patterns on magical creatures. Since our ancestors already succeeded once with magical beasts, why can't we modern people—armed with modern tools—succeed a second time?"

Maggie looked at Rebecca and could not help but smile. "Talk like that, putting dragons and magical beasts on the same footing—if any other dragon heard you, I fear it would come to blows."

"...Whoa!"

"But please rest easy. I know you meant no offense."

"Oh, good," Rebecca said, hastily patting her chest. "Don't hold it against me, all right? Sometimes I talk before I think. My aunt and the Zuyan—they're always on at me, saying that kind of talk will get me beaten one day, but I just can't break the habit..."

Maggie watched Rebecca with the faintest smile—what a darling girl she was. To think she had once taken her for a brainless, ill-mannered brat of the arrogant nobility. How absurd that seemed now.

"So, will you come back to Xuanyao City with me?" Rebecca rattled on. "All my research facilities are there..."

"I must first obtain the mistress's permission," Maggie said, turning it over in her mind. "From what I know, she will be staying in the north for the time being."

"Then I'll go tell her~ Consider it settled, then!"