The Firefly Prince, Part 6
Ever since I began my research on the smallpox vaccine, my entire mind had been consumed by a single pursuit: using "black magic" to create it.
"So... you want me to help you modify a plague curse so that it is neither too strong nor harmful?"
"Yes, that is correct, Master."
"Hmm... Very well. I, too, am curious to see what you will create."
In theory, the basic principle of making a vaccine is relatively simple, but the time and effort required to actually produce one are anything but.
Analyzing the pathogen and designing how to weaken it to a stable state takes years. Testing the safety of the created vaccine on animals takes more years. Finally, conducting clinical trials on humans takes even more years. All in all, fifteen years could easily slip away.
Even with the aid of magic, there was a limit to how much this timeline could be compressed. Fifteen years was more than enough time for my youth to completely vanish.
It was during this daunting bottleneck that a Great Sage who had lived for a thousand years suddenly offered to take me as his disciple. Though this relationship might eventually become a leash around my neck, I simply couldn't afford to pass up the opportunity.
"Master, what do you think? Is such a curse possible?"
"Julian, as you well know, this is no easy task, even for me. Your request is akin to asking me to create a fire that does not burn."
As expected, even the Great Sage found it a difficult order to fill. A curse of disease that does not cause illness, yet makes the body react as if it has experienced the disease. A curse that would allow an egg to remain unspoilable. This was the kind of curse I had requested.
It was virtually no different from asking for a sword that cuts nothing, a fire that does not burn, or ice that is not cold.
"Do you happen to have any theories or symbols in mind to construct this spell?"
"Yes. I have prepared a few things."
But I wasn't so irresponsible as to dump the entire burden on him. I had already organized the necessary concepts to help him construct the curse. Of course, trying to explain pathogens and immunology all at once would have been impossible, so I adapted my explanations to fit the existing magical paradigms of this world as much as possible.
"'The longer a person is exposed to a weakened version of a curse, the more resistant they become to it...' Hmm. Yes, that is a highly plausible theory."
"Will this concept be of use in crafting the magic, Master?"
"Julian, there is no such thing as useless knowledge in this world. I laid the very foundation of my earth magic simply by watching a roadside pebble crumble into dust."
He wasn't the only one gaining insights during our collaboration. I, too, was inheriting a vast wealth of magical knowledge from him. Along the way, we shared many deep discussions.
"Julian, it is truly bizarre. The hypotheses you present contain brilliant insights that pierce the very nature of disease, yet you are as ignorant as a blank sheet of paper when it comes to the formulas needed to manifest them through magic."
"I am still but a child who hasn't even reached the level of an apprentice when it comes to magic, after all."
"Yet, ordinary alchemists or scholars would be ashamed of their ignorance, pretending to know what they do not or trying to hide it. You, however, readily admit your ignorance and eagerly absorb new knowledge."
"Because that is the very nature of knowledge."
"Since we are on the subject, let me ask you, Julian. What do you believe knowledge truly is?"
I pondered his question for a moment. What would be the most fitting, cool protagonist-like response here? After some thought, I decided to recite the modern 21st-century definition of an expert.
"True knowledge does not come merely from knowing things. It is knowing what you do not know, and knowing where to find the answers to those gaps. I believe that is what true knowledge is."
Modern medicine is so vast that not even a genius doctor can master every single specialty. That is why hospitals have multidisciplinary consultation systems, and why countless medical journals and search databases exist. Sometimes, patients look down on a doctor who searches things up, but in reality, the ability to search effectively and accurately is the hallmark of a true professional.
Of course, I wasn't sure if this definition fit an era where romanticism still breathed and search engines didn't exist. Still, I thought it was a rather decent answer to my master's question.
"My word..."
My master blinked blankly, a soft sigh of admiration escaping his lips. I offered him a gentle smile.
"I know nothing of curses or magic. However, I know exactly whom to ask for that knowledge. In that sense, does that not make me an excellent mage as well?"
"Pfft."
A chuckle escaped his lips. Soon, he burst into hearty laughter, unable to contain himself.
"Yes! Indeed! Bahahaha!"
He slapped his knee repeatedly, laughing uproariously.
After laughing for a good while, he wiped a tear from the corner of his eye and spoke.
"If those arrogant fools holed up in the Magic Tower heard this, they would clutch their necks and foam at the mouth! When a disciple asks them something for the first time, they never think to teach them; they only blame the disciple's laziness! Why even call themselves masters if that is how they behave? I truly wish I could make them hear your words!"
"I... I did not mean it in that way."
"I know, Julian. You are not the type to badmouth others behind their backs. Do not mind me; it is just an old man's rambling."
With a warm smile, he gathered the notes I had organized.
"Very well. Since my disciple is trying so hard to make use of me, I cannot afford to disappoint. I shall complete this curse you desire."
From then on, we spent our days modifying the plague curse. Just like that, three years passed.
"Julian."
"Yes, Master."
"When it comes to black magic, you have now reached a level nearly equal to mine."
"...No, Master. I still have a long way to go."
Before I knew it, I had accumulated a level of knowledge in black magic that rivaled the Father of Magic himself.
Black magic. The more I studied it, the more it felt exactly like medicine.
By definition, black magic is an umbrella term for spells that desecrate life. Necromancy desecrates the dead body. Hypnotism desecrates the mind. Curses desecrate the living. These disciplines collectively make up black magic.
Yet, the ultimate evolution of this knowledge was none other than medicine.
No wonder it was so easy to understand.
Mapping necromancy to surgery and curses to internal medicine made everything incredibly intuitive. For the record, I couldn't master hypnotism. Psychiatry was never my strong suit.
I shouldn't feel disappointed, but...
Maybe it was just a guy thing, but I felt a tiny pang of regret. Well, whatever. I'm the protagonist. Let's just roll with it.
Shaking off the shady temptations of hypnotism, the knowledge of black magic I had acquired had truly grown to rival my master's.
"There is no need for modesty, Julian. Though I founded black magic a thousand years ago, I rarely researched it after its creation. It is only natural that you have caught up."
He spoke lightly, but the Great Sage's grasp of black magic was by no means shallow. In terms of experience, his mastery was easily on par with a black mage of forty years. There was no way I, with a mere three years of study, could have caught up to that naturally.
"I still have much to learn, Master."
"Hmm... You still refuse to drop that attitude. They say arrogance is the archenemy of truth, but I feel you lean a bit too far in the opposite direction."
Regardless, according to my master, my knowledge of black magic was now deep enough to hold a seamless, high-level discussion with him. In other words, I had reached the level of an associate professor. Thanks to that, our long, tedious research was finally nearing its end.
"Let us change the catalyst from lead to silver."
"Shall we swap the symbol of death for a shed snake skin, Master?"
"Let us also insert this conditional statement: vestigium = verus, inscriptio = falsus. Though I suspect it might misfire."
In the end, we succeeded. We had created a curse that did not cause disease.
"...We finally succeeded, Master."
To maintain my composure as Julian, I couldn't bring myself to cheer aloud. However, I couldn't hide the tremor in my voice. Fortunately, my master was too swept up in his own emotion to notice.
"I-Is it truly a success?"
"Yes."
With trembling hands, I carefully lifted an egg. In the past, when we injected the failed curses, the inside of the eggs had been a horrific sight. They were filled with dark red blood clots, or the entire contents had rotted into a murky, black fluid. The tiny embryo inside had been unable to withstand the toxicity of the curse and died.
But what was revealed under the mana lamp now was entirely different.
Through the thin chorioallantoic membrane lining the shell, blood vessels stretched as clearly as a spider's web. Within it, the embryo pulsed faintly, still brimming with life. And scattered across the membrane were tiny, white, opaque spots. Those spots were the proof of our success.
"Finally..."
"Does this mean the medicine you spoke of is complete?"
I shook my head. We had only just taken our very first step. Now, we had to culture the attenuated virus from this egg, and then run countless trials to ensure its safety. However...
"Master, we no longer have to fear the plague."
If starting is half the battle, and this was half of the remaining half, then we were practically at the finish line.
My joy was brief. Remembering the very first thing I needed to do, I carefully set the egg down.
"Master."
I bowed deeply to him.
"Thank you."
"..."
"Without you, this achievement would have been impossible. Had I been alone, I wouldn't have succeeded even if I spent twenty years."
I had to keep my ego in check. I had merely piggybacked on a thousand years of the Great Sage's accumulated wisdom over the course of three years to craft this magic. Even the spell itself hadn't been cast by me alone. I could never forget to give credit where credit was due.
"This is entirely thanks to you."
"Haha. There is no need for you to thank me, Julian."
My master waved his hand.
"I merely translated your ideas into magic. The concept of this medicine was entirely yours."
"But it was you who brought it to life, Master."
"And it was you who conceived it. Let us end this debate here. It is a shared achievement, so it would be foolish to argue over who contributed more."
I nodded. I, too, understood the immense weight of a single spark of inspiration.
"I understand."
"Now, shouldn't we prepare for the next step? You mentioned animal testing, yes?"
"Yes. I will have to ask Wangcho... I mean, Hex."
"Very well. Go and prepare. I shall clean up the laboratory today."
"Thank you, Master."
Bowing once more, I stepped out of the laboratory. As I made my way to Wangcho, my steps felt lighter than ever.