The two spent a good while busy in the kitchen, the aroma of food gradually drifting through the air of the cave.
At the dining table, Celia pushed a steaming bowl of corn and pork rib soup in front of Ansu.
Her eyes sparkled as she stared at Ansu, blinking expectantly. "Hurry, try it! How does it taste?"
Ansu looked at the bowl of rib soup. In the clear, slightly oily broth, tender yellow corn nestled against ribs stewed until soft. It smelled fragrant and actually looked quite impressive.
"Mhm... let me try."
Ansu picked up a spoon, scooped some up, and slowly brought it to his mouth.
Celia held her breath, watching him with a mix of nervousness and anticipation.
"Mhm, not bad." Ansu nodded, his tone filled with affirmation.
"Really?" A delighted smile bloomed on Celia's face.
"Of course it's real." Ansu took another sip, this time even fishing out a piece of rib to eat.
He really wasn't just comforting the Miss Witch, because the rib soup was indeed well-made.
After all, he had been supervising her while she made it... To prevent her from making it too "strong-flavored" again, he had specifically chosen such a light dish.
But even so, her small hands had been quite restless, reaching for the salt jar several times as if itching to use it...
"Heehee~ Then it seems my cooking skills aren't bad at all!"
Celia rested her chin on her hands with a beaming smile, watching Ansu eat one bite after another, a small sense of pride and satisfaction rising in her heart.
Ansu really likes eating it.
It seems that as long as I get serious, my cooking isn't any worse than Freya's!
Hmph!
As he ate, Ansu pulled out his magitech communicator to take a look, then quickly replied to a message.
"Is it Vera again?" Celia frowned as she watched Ansu's movements. "Or... Freya?"
"Both of them." Ansu put the communicator away and looked at her. "Before we went into seclusion, didn't I ask them to help keep a close eye on the activity at the Mutual Aid Tavern? Because of the Magic Prohibition Decree, the atmosphere among those low-tier mages has been a bit anxious these past few days. All sorts of rumors are flying around the city, so they've been asking me when I'm coming back."
"Oh..." Celia nodded, then gave a soft huff. "In my opinion, besides these official matters, the two of them probably just miss you and want you to hurry back from my place!"
Ansu thought to himself that Vera really had been asking that, urging him to come home every day... So he smiled. "They're just worried about me."
"As if I'd do anything to you..." Celia curled her lips. "Besides, even if we finish our work, what can they do if I don't give you back?"
She had wanted to keep Ansu all to herself from the start.
Thinking of this, she narrowed her eyes slightly, a smile playing on her lips.
"Ansu~ once this magic formula is completely finished, we have to have a little celebration!"
"Sure." Ansu nodded. Such a long period of high-intensity experimentation was all to overcome this difficult problem; it was indeed worth celebrating once successful.
"I want to eat delicious things, visit fun places, and I want you to spend a whole day happily playing with me~"
Celia rested her chin on her hands, lost in a happy daydream.
"It seems like we haven't properly explored Norvigel since we moved here! Because of the research needs, I've always been here at the treasure vault communicating with you all remotely. Even when we meet, it's always in a rush..."
"Oh, shopping? Sure!" Ansu readily agreed.
But in the next instant, he suddenly remembered that he seemed to have promised Freya as well...
Once he finished this busy period, for the sake of the little Holy Maiden's mental health, he was supposed to take her shopping to relax...
Ansu silently looked at the Miss Witch, who was smiling like a flower, and quickly began calculating in his head.
It's fine, not a big deal.
As long as the two of them don't end up on the same day...
...
After a warm meal, both their physical strength and mental energy were restored, and the two returned to the alchemy bench.
The experiment had finally reached the last step.
According to the three-level structure of magic rune—magic formula—magic emblem, as long as the two of them finished the thing in front of them, all their previous assumptions would become reality.
This layer of mental firewall, which could effectively block the "clamor" pollution, could be perfectly nested into almost any magic.
It was efficient, concise, and had extremely low mana consumption. Any low-tier mage would be capable of learning and using it.
Ansu could feel that Celia's clenched hands were trembling slightly with excitement at this moment.
He looked again at the mountain of experimental records piled on the alchemy bench. They were covered in countless failures and optimizations from this week. Throughout this entire time, everyone's efforts on this nearly impossible task were finally...
About to succeed!
Celia lifted her eyes, staring unblinkingly at the magic structure magnified in mid-air, which was as brilliant and complex as a star map.
She took a deep breath, gathered her mental strength, and with incredibly precise and stable control, connected the final set of runes.
The air seemed to freeze as Ansu waited with bated breath.
Finally.
A stable, ghostly blue light lit up.
With all the rune nodes connected, mana flowed smoothly through them, forming a perfectly natural and flawless structure.
An unprecedented magic formula was born at this moment.
"Ansu! It's finished!"
Celia turned her head abruptly, her voice carrying uncontrollable excitement, her eyes shining brilliantly.
Ansu was equally excited.
Almost at the exact moment this magic formula was created, a system prompt popped up.
【Making a change in reality significant enough to save the world grants an extra point reward.】
【Thank you for your efforts, Host. This is a giant leap for the mage community, and a significant step toward pulling the magic system back from the brink of self-destruction.】
【System reward generating...】
【Reward: 500 points】
【Remaining points: 525】
This was the first time Ansu had seen such a large point reward. He figured he would be "simulation" free for a while...
"Such a streamlined and efficient design... To think we were the ones who designed it." Celia couldn't wait to start testing. She cast a fireball toward an empty rock wall in the cave. As she constructed the spell model, the deep and mysterious circular structure flashed and vanished, quietly nesting within it.
"It can be almost perfectly... integrated into any magic!"
Ansu watched that incredibly stable fireball. Since Celia's magic level was already very high, he couldn't quite see the effect of the added magic formula.
"Perhaps we should find a mage with ordinary aptitude, or even one who has been troubled by mana backlash for a long time, to test it?" Ansu mused. "There should be plenty of suitable candidates in the magic mutual aid association."
The fireball exploded against the rock wall. With a boom, the ground beneath their feet shook.
Only the caster herself could clearly feel that fundamental difference. Celia fell into thought for a moment. "Truly, it's a completely different feeling... I have reason to believe that as long as this formula is nested, casters will never have to endure mental and spiritual pollution again."
She turned her head, her face filled with uncontrollable joy, and gave Ansu a fierce hug.
"Ansu, we did it! We really did it!"
Ansu was naturally just as happy and gently wrapped his arms around Celia's waist. However, after experiencing so many trial-and-error runs in the simulation, this success was within his expectations.
Instead, he thought of something else and said with a smile, "Miss Witch, what name do you plan to give this brand-new magic formula?"
"Mhm..." Celia rubbed her chin, showing a rare look of distress. "I'm not very good at naming things..."
She looked at Ansu again and said with a beaming smile, "Why don't you name it?"
"After all, the Spirit Amulet was the starting point of everything. This is a miracle brought by you; it's only fitting that you give it a name!"
"Alright, let me think." Ansu pondered for a moment. "Since we plan to promote it on a large scale so as many mages as possible can benefit, the name should ideally be simple and easy to understand..."
He looked at the magic formula. It presented a circular structure, and even if not combined with other magic, it was a very basic 1st Circle magic in its own right.
"A circular structure, the effect is purifying pollution and also protecting the mind..." Ansu said slowly. "Why don't we call it—the Ring of Pure Protection!"
Celia blinked, then nodded repeatedly, a bright smile spreading across her face.
"Ring of Pure Protection... Mhm! Concise and intuitive, I like it."
【Ring of Pure Protection】
This magic, which was like a miracle itself, was officially born at this moment.
Ansu gazed at the ghostly blue 【Ring of Pure Protection】, narrowing his eyes slightly as a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
He wanted to add a little bit of his own "personal touch."
His magic couldn't be designed for nothing. He wanted to promote not just "safe magic," but also take this opportunity to let the Echoes of Truth achieve an epic turnaround and whitewash their reputation.
So...
"Can we embed a little bit of extra information into this magic formula?" Ansu suddenly proposed.
"Information?" Celia was taken aback. "Technically, it's possible. Historically, many magic masters would leave a creator's mark or a brief explanation after creating a new spell. But the information can't be too long, otherwise it will compromise structural stability and add redundancy..."
"That's fine. I only need you to add a simple signature." Ansu already had an idea. "It won't be redundant because it doesn't need to be in a prominent position. But if someone curious wants to study it, they can still notice it through decoding."
"A signature? What name?"
Ansu thought about everyone in the lab, an ambitious light flashing in his eyes. He had long held great designs for the current magic world...
"Let's call it the Magic Safety Standardization Committee."
Celia blinked as she heard this name, which was full of a sense of system, order, and even a bit of a mysterious official aura. She suddenly understood something.
"This Magic Safety... Committee of yours, you wouldn't be referring to...?"
"Of course it's us," Ansu said with a smile.
Rate on N.U.
