Chapter 1172 — A Suspicious Lead
Blade of Dawn · Page 2 of 4
As expected: when these spells were scattered throughout society and everyone took them for granted, they seemed entirely unproblematic. But once one consciously gathered them together and tried to find the "suspicious points" within, certain leads began to surface.
"The spell model cannot be analyzed; the constructor does not know its principle and can only inject magical power to obtain the effect, without any possibility of modifying or disassembling its runic structure, medium material, or energy flow. Such spells are collectively termed 'black-box magic,' and before runic logic was widely applied, our magic system was riddled with such 'black boxes,'" Hedy's voice came from beside him as Gao Yang sank into thought. "Some of these black boxes, of course, were original to the human magic system—especially those connected to the lost ancient Gondor magic system. But the others…"
"The others all came from the Violet system, is that it?" Gao Yang lifted his eyes from the file, his expression stern as he looked at Hedy. "Among the ancient spells now confirmed to originate from the Violet Kingdom—are there any exceptions?"
"No exceptions. At least, none among the spells we can currently trace with certainty—either the whole is a black box, or a key structure is," Hedy shook her head. "However…"
"However what?"
"However, a good many of these 'black boxes' are already a thing of the past," Hedy said, her expression somewhat odd—whether with relief or some other sentiment, it was hard to tell. "The traditional mage system cannot unlock these black boxes, but the emergence of runic logic has already unlocked many of the old era's 'black boxes'—including the classic spells mentioned in that report in your hands. The Messaging Spell, the Anti-Gravity Spell, most of the arcane evocation field—these have already become things that can be calculated with formulas and explained through the 'sectional decomposition method' in Jenny's Runic Research Institute. Some of them have even become 'basic knowledge' in the elementary classes."
Gao Yang was dumbstruck for a moment, unsure what to feel—but he quickly reined in his thoughts and brought his attention back to the Violet Kingdom. "These black boxes… do you think the Violet mages spread them deliberately?"
"You suspect the Violet Kingdom has spent the past six hundred years consciously planting such 'hidden dangers' in the human magic systems of the Loren continent?" Hedy's brow furrowed again, her expression turning serious. "Actually… when I first received these records, the same thought occurred to me. After all, so many spells originating from the Violet Kingdom, and not one exception—all with black-box components. That cannot help but invite suspicion. And then there are those peculiar 'apprentice inheritance rules,' those mysterious traveling mages, and especially that fog-shrouded Emberfall City…"
Hedy spoke in a low voice, but at last she shook her head. "Yet none of this is decisive evidence—especially when set against the backdrop of the 'classical magic rules.'"
"The classical magic rules… core lockdown, the deliberate erecting of barriers to knowledge, taking pride in forming and maintaining an isolationist 'secret inheritance,' disdaining and even suppressing any attempt to analyze classical magic," Gao Yang said. Though knight-born, he was no stranger to magical common knowledge, and as he spoke he could not help but sigh. "Indeed. Technical black boxes in the field of magic need not stem from malice; more likely they serve to preserve the traditional mage class's monopoly on knowledge. And the Violet Kingdom is a 'nation'—when they transmit magical knowledge to the Loren continent, it is entirely reasonable for them to lock down certain core techniques. The magitech devices we sell to other nations have their share of 'patent secrecy' in this regard, after all."