This is the Future of the School
This is the Future of the School
'...Let's think positively. At least they properly set the completion goal, right? I just need to figure out how to make it technically possible.'
It's better than a client who speaks vaguely without knowing what they want and just says to make it work anyway—even if not a hundred times better.
Flora forces herself to think that way.
'And if we really manage to create this... it'll be something incredible, I think.'
Honestly, after hearing what Noel said, she felt like this could rewrite the history of the School of Illusion Magic.
There's constant talk about what illusions are even good for.
And it's true.
Back in the day, powerful illusions were used in war, or crazy mages used them to set traps in their dungeons.
But now?
After gradually losing its place, the current School of Illusion Magic survives by researching the Mist Disease or other things instead of illusion magic itself.
But if they succeed in what Noel requested, illusion magic would finally regain a main role after a long time.
'Even elemental magic, once called the flower of war and pursued solely for lethality, has started to change with the times.'
Adapting to the flow of the era, alchemy sparked a magical revolution and became the School of Artifacts, and elemental magic, once called battle magic, is now used for farming.
In that era of upheaval, illusion magic still had no idea how to change to keep up with the shifting times.
It was clear that its lineage would be cut off, and they were worried about when that would happen.
Illusion magic majors had been agonizing over finding an answer, and now, unexpectedly, Flora had found it.
The answer is this.
This is the answer.
She never imagined she'd discover the vision for illusion magic's future in a place like this.
'So when Teacher said Lady Grace would be a great help to the School, it wasn't just empty words...'
To be precise, Arthur Higgins intended to use Noel's fame and influence—he didn't think Noel would help with the vision of illusion magic itself, not just School management.
After all, Arthur only knew that Noel planned to integrate magic into games; he didn't know she had ideas like this.
Flora, unaware of those details, really, really hated to admit it, but this time she conceded that her teacher was right.
In the spirit of testing the possibility, Flora braced herself for some hard work during the tight schedule.
"There are materials needed to produce the game board that will serve as the catalyst for magic activation. First, amethyst powder for drawing the magic circle, and the highest-grade universal solvent to liquefy that powder—"
Like Noel earlier, Flora wasn't keen on it at first, but upon reconsideration, she realized this was an incredible stroke of luck and changed her mind.
Even though she grumbles about not wanting to lead the School, the fact that she rolls up her sleeves when something like this comes along is proof that she's inevitably the pillar of the School of Illusion Magic.
"And the cards that will serve as the startup keys for magic activation also need special processing. To ensure the designated illusion outputs properly, each card must have a specific unique pattern—"
Flora actively presents ideas and requests.
While jotting that down, Noel speaks from a business perspective.
"The test unit made as a gift for this VIP is fine as long as it works without issues... but if we go this far for mass-produced magic tools, that's a problem. Especially since the card manufacturing cost skyrockets—can't we resolve it just with the board—I mean, the game board magic tool?"
"Hmm... then maybe we should change the approach a bit. After all, what matters is that the illusion appears in the player's eyes, right? So instead of projecting the illusion externally, we could just cast an illusion spell on the player so each sees their own personal illusion...."
"Pokémon GO...! Excuse me. That's not bad, but then when we hold tournaments later, the spectators would be a problem. Still, a prototype is supposed to be rough by nature. Let's go with that direction for now. Then we can gradually develop the technology and compensate later."
And so Noel and Flora engaged in a heated conversation, discussing the creation of a magic-based game machine in the reception room until dinnertime.
"But if we make it in the direction Noel-ssi requested, we'll need a mage nearby to activate it."
"Wouldn't that be fine for the gift test unit? The recipients will be royalty or high nobles—they'll have mages on hand to operate magic tools."
"Ah, that's true."
"Well, if we're taking the attitude that a hastily made test unit just needs to work, then maybe we could further—"
The discussion didn't stop even during dinner.
The princess, saintess, and count's daughter—who had come to greet the mage guest and have a meal together—blinked as they watched the two, absorbed in their own world, talking endlessly about making a "game machine" at the dinner table.
They knew Noel was busy preparing a gift at the request of Crown Prince Cassian, but they had no idea what Noel was trying to make.
No matter how hard they listened, they couldn't understand what on earth they were talking about.
Finally, unable to overcome her curiosity, Princess Lydia peeked at them and, timing it right, broke into the conversation: "Is it my turn now?"
"Lady Noel, what exactly are you preparing as a gift?"
Honestly, watching Noel and Flora drift off into their own world was almost enough to make her feel left out.
Even the saintess couldn't follow the conversation, looking regretful.
"Before that—I won't say anything about table manners—but shouldn't you at least introduce us?"
As if backing up Princess Lydia's well-chosen words, Clara added a remark.
"Ah..."
At that, Noel realized she had been so distracted that she'd even skipped introducing Flora.
Truth be told, Noel was absolutely giddy with excitement right now.
She was completely absorbed in the idea of making a "game machine" using magic.
『Let us play too!』
At the reaction of the three, which seemed to shout that, Noel realized her mistake and cleared her throat.
"Let me introduce you. This is Flora Kent. She's a mage dispatched from the School of Illusion Magic at my request."
"F-Flora, Flora Kent, it's an honor to meet you..."
Flora, too, suddenly realized how incredible the people she was dining with were, and grew nervous.
If someone saw her reaction, they'd think she was about to be eaten. Instead, the three being introduced were taken aback.
Just moments ago, she was passionately talking with Noel—why was she suddenly like this?
"I—sorry, I'm a bit shy with strangers..."
Flora introduces herself in a voice tinged with tension and shyness.
Clara looks at her with narrowed eyes.
'She talked with Noel so excitedly though?'
It was Noel's first time meeting her too, yet she chatted with her so warmly—something about that seemed to bother Clara.
It's just that they got carried away talking about work, with no other reason. But it's a very Clara-like response, as she's becoming quite the Noel fan.
On the other hand, the saintess admires: "As expected, Sister Noel is so kind. She even takes good care of introverts, so they become close so quickly. I need to work hard too..."
Noel, unaware of their feelings, says this as if inviting them to get along since they'll be seeing each other for a while:
"Actually, I'd like to ask the three of you to do some testing..."
The more people who test-play, the better.
Thanks to testing 「Magic & Servant」 and 「Life Game」 on the household staff beforehand, they obtained quality data and improved the completion.
Now, for making the "game machine" as well, Noel wanted their help, so she made the request. The three, who didn't want to be left out of Noel's projects, eagerly agreed.
In Princess Lydia's case, she decided to take this opportunity to ask a real mage about things she was curious about while seeing Noel's work.
"You said you researched the Mist Disease at the Magic Tower? How is it? Will the day come when we conquer the Mist Disease?"
The saintess also pricked up her ears, wanting to know this as well.
"U-uh, well... there's no major breakthrough right now, but... as people's awareness changes, we've come across various research cases. Also, more places are researching it, so even if not me, I'm sure someone will find the answer... I, I think...."
Flora answers bravely to the esteemed people's questions.
Nodding in satisfaction, Lydia then throws another question.
"Do you happen to know the rumors circulating these days? About the special letters with power from 「Letter Expedition」, or that ancient languages disappeared because of the Demon King... There are wild rumors that it's all true. What's the reality?"
While Flora thinks of an answer to this question, Noel makes a subtle expression.
One might wonder why she looks like that while eating the delicious meal the chef worked hard on, but she can't help it.
These days, as much as 「Letter Expedition」 is popular, strange rumors are spreading among the public.
Because some people think that Letter Expedition, written based on unrecorded history—"Is this real?" "Yes! It's real!"
To Noel, it's just laughable.
It reminds her of how manga or mass media were witch-hunted in her past life.
Ancient languages became dead languages because only a small elite class used letters as a privilege, and language simply evolved over time into the current language.
What nonsense about the Demon King stealing letters.
According to actual historical records, the Demon King doesn't have that kind of power.
A manga is just a manga—she hammered in that people should only watch it for fun, but strange talk keeps popping up.
Saying that we can write like this now thanks to the unrecorded sacrifices of 「Letter Expedition」 or something....
Of course, it hasn't reached the stage of people saying it seriously yet, but she's worried the kids might actually believe it.
Noel thinks she should clearly hammer in at the beginning: "This story is a work of fiction──."
Through this, Noel once again realizes how much cultural content affects people's historical perspective and perceptions.
'This is worse than confusing the Romance of the Three Kingdoms novel with actual history.'
It means 「Letter Expedition」 is that popular, so she should be happy, but Noel can't help but let out a hollow laugh.
Meanwhile,
"Well... actually, there are magical letters with special power. It's called rune magic..."
"Wow...! So it's true...!"
At Flora's words and Lydia's exclamation, Noel ended up choking on her food.