Chapter 86
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 86
Chapter Title: Aiming for the Highest Score Among First-Years
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[Is this seriously a historic discovery?!]
[Holy shit, that antique bracelet is pushing dimensional magic research this far?]
[So does that mean we can cross dimensions with it?]
[I'm not a researcher, but is that what I think it means?]
[Gooooone!!!]
The Archmage Gallery exploded with posts as if out of nowhere.
The posting speed was the fastest I'd seen since joining the Archmage Gallery.
I could only guess the content from the sporadic keywords popping up.
I couldn't even tell which posts to pick and read first.
By the time I finished one, dozens more had piled up in seconds.
"No seminal posts... are appearing."
A seminal post would have everything neatly summarized.
But none of the new threads had generated one yet.
In a posting frenzy like this, it was unheard of for the gallery.
It meant everyone was just dumping their own posts without even checking others'.
Thankfully, the chaos died down a bit, and seminal posts started appearing.
Well, it had happened before. Gallery users lose their minds with excitement over massive discoveries.
Anyway, let's check out the one that seems to interpret the paper best among the seminal posts...
Title: If this is really possible, it could mark the dawn of dimensional magic's advancement.
Author: ExtremeEfficiencyFanatic
Thanks to Dragonfly who met Kim Muggle in person and got the info directly.
Gratitude for that.
Looking at the paper, page 71...
But even reading the interpretations didn't reveal much.
Interpreting the paper itself was too academic—I needed to understand it first.
Instead, I gleaned info from discussions about the results and the paper's implications.
That part confused me, but it's thinking in terms of mana tunneling, huh.
Yeah, that solves the gallery's structure to some extent.
It's not confirmed; that's just a hypothesis.
Sob sob, explain it to me too.
I get the gist, but the theory's over my head; anyway, does that mean Kim Muggle can use the orb now?
So what's the direction then?
Need to examine the orb directly for that.
Sob sob.
Holy shit, instead of talking, make Kim Muggle try it and see what happens.
This is exciting!
Please work, this could be huge.
This would go down in dimensional history.
Sob sob, fuck, just tell me what it is, you bastards!
Title: Teaming up was a mistake, never speak to me again.
Author: Kim Muggle
Fuck, no one's explaining shit? You all smartasses or what?
Trying to spy and figure it out, but I get nothing. Fine, I'm leaving the gallery, bye.
Dimensional magic, orb, whatever—handle it yourselves. Don't contact me ㅃ2
Oh right, this guy's Muggle lol.
Nick screams muggle lol.
Hey, it's not hard. I'll explain, just wait ^^;
Normally we'd say GTFO, but we need you now lol.
Goooone... no don't gooooo!
Oh, we forgot to explain to this guy.
I'll explain, hang on.
Seriously huge shit might happen lol. Be grateful a muggle like you is involved lol.
Hmm, intriguing research.
Don't get mad, meditate first.
No, just tell me what it is!! Don't hoard the knowledge, you fucks!!!!
Still not telling him lol.
Now we'll tell him lol.
No seriously fuck, say it! Stop laughing and just say it or I'm out ㅃ2
Just finished summarizing the paper, wait.
Here's the rundown: Possibility of inter-dimensional transfer, and similarity between the bracelet's blue orb mediation magic and the gallery's magic structure—that's the paper's content.
"...Huh?"
I'd been pissed at the gallery users for trolling and was about to quit,
but then SubsidyRiceEater's late summary hit, and I let out a deflated sound.
Inter-dimensional transfer?
Dimension transfer?
As I said before, gallery magic is ultra-high-tier dimensional magic even we can't fully decode.
Can't interpret the whole thing, so we're piecing it together bit by bit. Found common points between the construct handling 'inter-dimensional message transfer' and the blue orb.
So the blue orb has built-in inter-dimensional transfer magic?
Need to check, but evidence suggests the hypothesis: gallery could activate the blue orb's mediation.
TL;DR: Mess with blue orb + gallery magic, orb activates, maybe inter-dim transfer?
What? So you guys can use dimensional magic now?
That's far off; direct computation still impossible.
But we might be able to 'use' the pre-built dimensional magic in the blue orb.
Even after all that research, our limit is just 'using' existing dimensional magic artifacts, not casting it ourselves.
Wonder who created these dimensional magics anyway ㅇㅇ;
Dimensional magic was apparently that insanely difficult.
Even archmages couldn't cast it themselves.
Some superior being created incredible dimensional magic and embedded it in the gallery, blue orb, etc.
The gallery users' limit was using those creations.
And they'd just figured out a new way to use them.
So, insanely hard, got it.
Got it roughly. So what do I do with the blue orb? Do something with the gallery?
Dunno, paper concludes some part of gallery magic reacts with your blue orb.
What part?
We don't know that either.
What? So no practical method?
We know the theory now, time to apply it.
What the hell, these guys. No results, but the paper's awesome anyway?
This is why scholars suck. Always cloudy bullshit.
So what's actually practical here!
"Sigh..."
Ultimately, gallery magic and the blue orb would react somehow.
But no clue how. What am I supposed to do? Just theory-crafting?
"Can't I just shove it in?"
I detached a blue orb from the bracelet and swiped it across the gallery screen.
But it just whooshed through empty air—nothing special.
"Ugh, you rice-eating fuck. Freezing the gallery for hours over this?"
I almost messaged SubsidyRiceEater in frustration.
Thought he was red-tagging for aggro, but it really seemed like a huge discovery.
Anyway, blue orb interacts with gallery.
Maybe something in his other research would spark an idea. Worth a look even if I won't get it.
I dove into SubsidyRiceEater's post log for inspiration.
The moment I was scanning his posts for ideas—
Whoosh—
The blue orb, inert on other screens,
got sucked right into SubsidyRiceEater's log screen and vanished into thin air.
"?"
Did I drop it? But nothing hit the ground nearby.
No dropping sound either.
No way? I rushed to post as the thought hit,
but SubsidyRiceEater beat me to it.
Title: Wtfm,;?
Author: SubsidyRiceEater
(Blue orb photo)
This orb just dropped into my gallery outta nowhere.
Held the orb to your gal log screen and it whooshed away. Nothing on other screens.
O?
Blue orb transferred via gal log?
Confirms the hypothesis: blue orb's mediation reacts with gallery's transfer construct.
Whoa what the fuck, so blue orb reacts with gal logs specifically.
Does that mean dimension travel via gal log?
Nah, seems only this orb transfers via gal log.
Anyway, I can examine it directly now, more research incoming. Will post results.
Hold up, isn't this the first inter-dimensional object transfer ever?
Just one orb, but massive progress. Historic moment.
Holy shit, are we finally conquering dimensional magic?
Something big's coming for sure. RiceEater researching the orb hands-on will blow photo-analysis away.
The news of the blue orb transferring set the gallery ablaze.
Dimensional magic was one of the few uncharted frontiers for the users. Massive hype over this breakthrough.
They spout nonsense daily, but damn if they weren't scholars at heart. Way more fired up than their usual tit-for-tat.
A moment that truly showed these guys were great archmages.
But I was still dumbfounded.
I didn't know exactly what full-on dimensional magic research would bring.
Thinking about stuff like time and space being linked...
Its development might propel archmages beyond their current realm again.
"Ian? You're early today."
Hisenna arrived in class while I was lost in thought.
The empty seats were filling up now.
Class starting soon.
Not my field anyway.
Leave it to the gallery users.
I shoved the complicated stuff aside and focused on class.
"Let's do our best!"
After class, I registered our subjugation festival team with Hisenna and Elrim.
Politely turned down Harisha and Yuuna.
Said I'd rather build experience steadily from first-year level than flounder among seniors.
They didn't push further.
"I'll be the star of this subjugation festival!"
"Aim for at least one award, even if not first place."
I checked the award details I'd skimmed before.
Overall win, plus various categories.
A few we could target.
Like the Highest Score by Grade Award—for teams all from the same year.
Chayuri's team probably couldn't snag that.
And Elrim's target: 'Redlight Stitch'.
A tiny creature zipping across the field. Catch it, and you get the Stitch itself as prize.
But only one per team, so irrelevant to group benefit.
Hoped Elrim wouldn't screw the team chasing it.
Also 'Best Wanderer Award'.
For the longest distance traveled during the festival.
'Strongest Beast Subjugation Award'. For downing the field's strongest beast.
There was one Grade 2 super-strong beast.
Award for killing it.
But cadets couldn't handle it—no winners yet.
Most avoided its habitat.
And 'Sole Survivor Award'.
If your team outlasts all others to the end.
Rare, no winners.
Lots of quirky award conditions.
Prizes were solid, so folks aimed for one each.
"Let's go for first-year highest score."
"Can we?"
"Of course, Hisenna. Among all-first-year teams, who else but us for first?"
"True."
My target: first-year highest score.
Overall win? No chance.
But top among first-years? Plausible.
Another reason: the prize.
Highest-scoring first-year team gets 'Rampaging Wyvern's Jaw Oil'.
Sounds scary, but safe—like 'Changeling's Spinal Fluid'.
Drink it: all factors skyrocket for ~10 minutes.
Sounds iffy, but I'd done similar.
Just 10 minutes of Super Saiyan—handle magic beyond my level.
One-use, but popular elixir.
Temporary limit-break experience.
Factors revert, but the heightened sensation lingers.
Train recalling it, magic surges.
Great for plateaus.
But my reason was different.
FlapFlap's 6th-circle magic—I hadn't grasped it yet.
With the oil, I could get a feel.
Plenty other awards too.
Aim casually.
"Less time than expected. 5 days left."
Took time settling the team.
4-man hesitation delayed it.
"Practice the remaining time anyway."
"Sounds good!"
"Just follow me!"
Sync up at least.
Field's variable—roles and teamwork key.
We drilled hard for 5 days.
Subjugation festival day arrived fast.