Book of Curses

“I came back mainly to research an idea, so I didn't waste any time.”

...

Wasting time...

That phrase sounded a bit harsh.

But since it was for research, there was nothing to be done about it.

Although she was an administrator in a management position, she was still a witch at heart, and she had no resistance to the word ‘research.’

“What were you researching?”

Diana, who was equally interested in research, asked with her eyes shining.

Previously, so much research material, basic theory, and new magic had been sent over.

After returning, she had immediately dived into her shelter to conduct research.

This process seemed like the behavior of someone who had gained a new realization.

So, nothing else mattered; what was important was that Lan Qingyou's research project was successful.

“It's this. It's very interesting; you can try it when you're free.”

Saying so, Lan Qingyou placed a hardbound book that looked a bit old on the other's desk.

A book?

Diana looked at the book and fell into thought.

Was this something interesting? No, the contents recorded inside must be what's interesting.

Thinking this, Diana reached out, picked up the book, and flipped to the first page.

Upon opening the hardbound cover, a single line of text was written on the first page.

However, it was a sentence she was very familiar with.

It was the phrase Lan Qingyou often said, one that all the witches were very familiar with—‘Alchemy is omnipotent.’

Following that were a series of alchemy knowledge and some spells she had never seen before.

“Is the research project these new spells?”

Diana looked up at Lan Qingyou uncertainly.

“Of course not. Those are just added bonuses; this book itself is the core.”

Lan Qingyou pointed proudly at the book in Diana's hand.

“Hmm... I don't quite understand.”

Diana frowned slightly. No matter how she looked at it, this was just a book. At most, the cover had been aged, but she hadn't even bothered to age the paper inside.

“Magic book—you must have heard the term before.”

Lan Qingyou smiled nonchalantly.

“You mean this book is a magic book?”

“What else? You can totally take it to be identified. Compared to my eyes, the identification on the small screen should be more suitable for the public.”

Makes sense!

Without another word, Diana couldn't wait and rushed out of the office to research it.

About a minute later, the woman rushed back like a whirlwind.

She stared wide-eyed at Lan Qingyou, who was already sitting on the sofa enjoying the black tea brought by a golem.

It was real!

And...

“What does this curse magic mean?”

The moment she returned, Diana asked Lan Qingyou the most central question.

It was also the most important component of this magic book.

In fact, the name of this book is the ‘Book of Curses,’ a magic book specifically for cursing.

“Curse magic is just curse magic. What else could it be?”

Lan Qingyou shrugged while holding her teacup.

“No, I've never even seen this kind of magic. This couldn't be the result of your recent research, could it?”

It wasn't surprising that Diana thought this way.

After all, she had never seen curse magic, or rather, curse-type magic, even once.

There was no such thing even among the rewards from the world consciousness on the small screen.

In other words, this curse magic was something Lan Qingyou had come up with herself.

“You're quite sharp. That's right, I constructed it. Or rather, the concept of the magic book was born specifically to construct this curse-type magic.”

Lan Qingyou said very proudly.

After all, it was an entire system. Although it wasn't yet very refined, the initial basic theory had been constructed.

She had even developed several relatively basic curses along the way.

But because curse-type magic has a certain backlash effect, after several days of researching without eating or sleeping, Lan Qingyou finally found a solution.

The solution was this magic book.

Or rather, using a ‘book’ as a carrier.

In this way, not only would the slight backlash effect be transferred from the caster to the magic book, but it could also be purged through the magic circles on the book.

Most importantly, after that bit of curse power from the backlash was purged, the remaining curse mana could be stored within the magic book to constantly nurture it, allowing it to gradually develop resistance to the curse's backlash.

Until in the future, even someone who knows nothing could use this book without any issues.

In this way, a virtuous cycle was formed.

Not only did the caster benefit, but the magic book would also become stronger and stronger through repeated cleansing and feedback.

It could be said to be a very representative growth-type magic tool.

Of course, the system of the magic book was not only applicable to curse-type magic; it was equally effective for other types of magic.

However, spells from multiple types could not appear in the same book.

After all, there was a storage aspect involved; one mistake could cause a systemic crisis, leading to the possibility of the entire book being ruined.

“Then how do you activate it?”

Diana flipped through the entire book again and finally found several basic curses recorded on the last few pages.

It could be said that only these few pages in the entire magic book were useful.

The rest of the basic knowledge recorded was child's play for a witch.

They were things used as the ‘basic structure’ of this magic book.

Diana could still understand this point; she just didn't know how to use the book.

“Magic circles are engraved on both the front and back covers of the magic book. These circles are the strongest catalysts for triggering the curses.”

“Now that you mention it, there are indeed magic circles engraved on them.”

Diana, having been reminded by Lan Qingyou, finally had the spare time to carefully observe the two magic circles on the hard covers while flipping through the book.

The magic circle on the front was inscribed with waves representing mana fluctuations and other symbols used to amplify mana and strengthen attacks.

While the magic circle on the back was mostly inscribed with symbols representing stability.

According to Lan Qingyou's introduction, this should be for storage plus conversion.

Although Diana didn't often take action herself.

But that didn't mean she didn't know magic circles.

Although her talent might be slightly lower compared to the members of the Witch Group, she could still manage to look at and analyze a magic circle.

To put it simply, she was a theorist who rarely fought.

“So, what does the Clan Leader want to do by researching these two things? Don't tell me you just researched them for fun; I don't think a line like that will fool me.”

Diana knew Lan Qingyou's personality.

She wouldn't do useless work, much less come here to joke with her at a time like this.