Age 17

Age 17

So, it seems Nadia, the Main Ego of Floating Island Sion, found it strange that I bowed my head to humans.

-Is the situation that serious? I understand that you’re severely injured, Administrator… but should a demigod Administrator bow to humans to that extent?

Whoa…

Is this really an ego?

They said even with Level 1 Administrator authority, I normally wouldn’t have been able to wake her, right? Is that why?

I had always thought Level 1 Administrator authority was the highest. But Nadia, who couldn’t be awakened even with that authority, displayed her full majesty as a superior facility. I should have realized when an ego was given a proper name to begin with.

For instance, the ego of Arsenal #7 and Lanciel’s Cube assisted me without question. They didn’t care whether I bowed to humans or not. But this one cares. She asks questions and shows concern.

She seemed to be judging my actions against her memory of “gods” and feeling specific emotions about it.

Isn’t that more like magical power than an ego?

-Where are the other Administrators? Are they all this severely injured? I’m so upset and worried…

This entity who felt uncomfortable with just my casual greeting.
This entity who was anxious about my power, so much weaker than the old Administrators.

‘I can’t just leave this alone, can I?’

Suddenly I felt I needed to give her confidence. Just like I do with magical powers.

I spoke in a stern voice.

“Nadia.”

-Yes?

“Let me make one thing clear. Don’t call them humans. From now on, call them mages.”

-But they are humans, aren’t they? The technology to use dead divine bodies emerged when the war reached its worst stage, right? I didn’t know such technology would be allowed for humans too, but anyway, they’re humans. Oh! But it is fascinating. This was originally the technology Administrators used as an energy source when operating massive facilities, right? It’s not a technology humans should be able to use like that…

A memory surfaces. Inside the power capsule of Arsenal #7, there was pure magical power. To awaken that capsule, I had to call a specific ‘name’ with my Circle. What was inside that capsule were the remains of a dead god, and the name I called must have been that of the dead god.

Right. The magical powers were quite sad back then.

Nadia seemed to think that mages were carrying something similar to that capsule.

“No. They handle divine bodies with their own power. Not with the help of any technology or tools.”

-What? Is that possible?

“Yes. Much more time has passed than you think, and the world has completely changed. So don’t call them humans. They are mages. The same goes for me. Don’t call me demigod. I am divine mage.”

A mage must not make false statements.

Every cell in my body has been transformed into Philosopher’s Stone, and thanks to that, even perceptive Nadia mistakenly thinks I’m demigod, but I have no intention of pretending to be demigod. Eventually, you can’t deceive the entire world. Of course, acknowledging that I’m human is also problematic. Magical powers reside with us because they mistake us for gods.

Therefore, we just have to insist.

We don’t answer when asked if we’re human, we don’t answer when asked if we’re gods, we just keep accomplishing godlike feats under the name of mage. Until they accept for themselves that mages are indeed descendants of gods.

I am who I am.

A mage of god.

You have to accept that, Nadia.

After a long silence, Nadia answered.

-…Accept. I understand that the world has changed significantly. I’ll modify my existing category system. I won’t blindly believe. They are mages. Our Administrator is a divine mage.

“That’s right. I am divine mage. I will clear away extinction and regenerate you all. So from now on, don’t worry about anything. If anyone should worry, it should be me, not you getting ahead of yourself.”

-Hehe…

Nadia’s laughter gently enveloped all of Lanciel City.

-You know what? That was really cool just now. You reminded me of the Administrator who designed me.

It was a strange feeling, like a sudden silence falling over a noisy classroom.

The magical powers that had been wandering around stopped and focused on me.

As if embracing the bodiless ego Nadia, a warm and gentle feeling suddenly tickled my hair. It seemed like she had just opened her heart to me a little. I had a feeling this was a very important moment.

Was it just my imagination?

Or… was this Nadia ego that special?

-Ah, I miss them. Their name was really cool too. Even cooler than “divine mage,” I think? Their name was… hmm. Hmmm… Oh! I can’t remember. Aww… Divine Mage! I have a request~ Can you please reactivate the auxiliary memory device soon? Look at me. I can’t even remember the name of someone precious. Don’t you feel sorry for me? Can’t you put in just a little more effort…? Please?

Yes.

She was a uniquely whiny ego.

* * *

Nadia. Listen to me, will you?

To raise the operation rate to 5 percent, we first need to repair the energy storage devices and the power unit, right? And to do that, we need Philosopher’s Stone worth 10 million Morning, even if we remove all other materials?

Look at this.

10 million Morning. Yes. If Pathfinder puts in all its effort, we could gather it eventually, though it would take some time. But who’s going to process that into Philosopher’s Stone? How long would that take?

And also look.

After the delegation successfully completes the <Membership Oath> with 13 cities, won’t those cities need food to survive? We need to use the <Sowing> spell extensively to turn the Sand Plateau into fertile land, and we also need to reclaim land throughout the 7th Continent. We need to hunt down rampaging calamities to ensure the smooth Transportation of goods and the safety of wilderness residents.

But we can’t just keep doing that. To prevent the water extinction that will return in a year, we must develop and distribute protective talismans and barriers that prevent water extinction.

Think about it.

If I keep doing all this, when will I have time to train and research?

Even with ten bodies, it wouldn’t be enough.

I absolutely cannot do it alone.

So don’t rush me too much.

It may take some time for now, but once I delegate these tasks to these people, things will become much easier going forward.

Pan-Dalus, the five elders, and their close aides gathered before me.

“Well, shall we start with the Philosopher’s Stone first?”

Everyone’s eyes sparkled. They couldn’t help but be interested in learning the secret of my power.

From now on, I intended to share everything I knew with others.

Until now, I had kept much knowledge private. Some information I didn’t share because I was afraid of being criticized when I wasn’t yet recognized, and partly because I developed a habit of reflexively hiding information due to constant attacks.

But from now on, I plan to share everything openly.

The universe is incredibly vast, and I am unbelievably small. I felt that acutely in the Akashic Record.

All those numerous tasks I must do. Now I plan to share them with others.

At this point, I should be able to trust the companions who have come this far with me.

Having made this decision, Ari’s mood suddenly improved. Its wind brushed against my nose like cotton candy.

-Good. Good. Make others do it. And play with me more. Good~

No, Ari. Do you think I’m doing this just to play? Look, refining 180,000 Morning worth of Philosopher’s Stone took three months last time, right? Even with all my progress, refining 10 million Morning worth would take nearly a year, wouldn’t it? That’s a bit much. We’ll need Philosopher’s Stone for many other things, and if I spend all my time just refining it, I’ll become an old man before I know it.

-Right. Right. That wouldn’t be good. Jun-woo also needs to help me find my kind, right? You need to help restore our memories! Right. You can’t be too busy with other things.

Ah… this is sad. I had to do that too?

Suddenly I had one more task. Trying hard to ignore my increasingly heavy heart, I called for Lanciel’s Cube.

“Cube.”

-Yes.

“Open the subdimensional workshop.”

-Understood.

The cube, small enough to fit in one hand, stretched like a heated metal plate and formed a rectangular door.

“Whoa…”

“Wow…”

The esteemed wizards were at a loss like children. Even Pan-Dalus was speechless. The Mage of Refinement, who carried his own workshop on a large cart, seemed particularly impressed.

I led them into the subdimensional workshop as they remained rooted to the spot, observing the cube.

“Welcome to the workshop from the mythological era.”

Wow. Until now, this had been strictly my private space, and it feels strange to have other people enter like this.

The place we entered was barren. The ceiling and floor were like black mirrors, and the walls were pure white. It was completely empty except for a single smooth silver anvil and hammer sitting alone.

In reality, I had furnished the cube’s interior as my personal laboratory with various equipment to make it cozy, but now I had separated my private space with a partition and entered the room where only ‘The Anvil Itself’ was placed.

Nevertheless, the mages were moved by the very existence of the subdimensional workshop, whose material and principles were unknown.

I slowly walked to stand in front of ‘The Anvil Itself.’

All of Pathfinder’s chairman and five elders had gathered, each bringing one disciple or aide. Including Yuria, Fel, Lytol, Erina, and Kaisel, whom I had specially selected, there were a total of 17 people. These would be the first individuals to receive my knowledge.

I bowed slightly to them.

“I return to you what I have received. May this knowledge serve as another step toward humanity’s victory.”

Although we had become independent as Pathfinder, we still inherited the spirit of the Academy.

All 17 members responded to my intention to spread knowledge with serious expressions and postures.

Good. Then shall we begin?

I placed 100 Morning on the anvil and picked up the silver hammer.

“The technique of refining the Philosopher’s Stone requires Ki-blood magic, not Circle magic. But I hope those who specialize in Circle magic will also learn something from watching. The path we must pursue going forward is the harmony of Circle magic and Ki-blood magic. As I’ve said repeatedly, magic is the study of imitating the ancient gods who had magical power as their bodies.”

Yuria and Fel nodded. Both are currently training to harmonize Circle and Ki-blood under my guidance.

“This hammer and anvil set is called ‘The Anvil Itself.’ First, I’ll refine some Philosopher’s Stone. Now, I grip the hammer with reinforced Ki-blood like this…”

I positioned myself so everyone could see and swung the hammer. The key is to firmly grip the hammer using the cells of the ‘magical joint’ implanted between the thumb and index finger. With minimal grip strength, it allows you to overcome the recoil and swing the hammer all the way through.

Clang-!

The hammer touched the anvil. The mana coins and bills piled on the anvil melted and stuck to the hammer like sticky rice before falling off. What remained on the anvil was Philosopher’s Stone continuously changing through five colors.

-Purity 93.7 percent. A new record.

Hmm—could it be because I’ve also raised my Ki-blood magic level to 5 stars?

Even with a light swing, I achieved better results than ever before.

“So this is the Philosopher’s Stone…”

Refinement examined the Philosopher’s Stone with entranced eyes. Refinement, renowned as a master craftsman of magical devices. He seemed burning with excitement at the thought of researching the Philosopher’s Stone.

Seeing Refinement’s interest made me happy too.

After all, he’s the one I’ve had the most magical conversations with until now.

But mister. Don’t be too amazed already. You might collapse later, you know?

I wanted to teach him quickly, show off thoroughly, and pass on all the annoying work, making the soles of my feet tingle with anticipation.