C223: Presentation (2)
Contrary to what the wizards expected, the first presentation was not Rudger's.
Since it was not a presentation given for individuals, of course, several wizards were supposed to take turns and show their discoveries but there was a problem because this presentation was receiving much more attention than usual.
"Well, I mean……."
The wizard, who was the first to reach the podium, stuttered because he could not continue his words properly at the gazes pouring on him like arrows.
Even though they had prepared a lot, the number of people was higher than expected.
The voice shrank and the explanation slowed but the more that happened, the more cold the eyes that touched the skin became.
'Why are so many people here at the time of my presentation?'
There are as many as 5,000 seats in the Arcane Chamber and on the day of the regular thesis presentation, it was fortunate if 1,000 seats were filled, let alone half of the total seats.
On bad days, there will barely be more than 500 people. However, today, there were people standing and there watching because the 5,000 seats were full.
If they could show more people what they have achieved, that would be the best opportunity but this was too much.
It was not even a problem of numbers.
Along with the Old Tower, the New Tower, and the School Association, a seventh-rank wizard, called the best wizard of the time, were present.
The wizard felt like his soul was shrinking and his hands and feet were trembling. His fear was much greater than the desire to do better.
In the end, the wizard, who took the podium as the first presenter, was forced to come down without properly taking out half of what he had prepared.
His back was pitiful as he left with his head down but no wizards in the audience expressed sympathy for him.
It is true that it was a sudden situation similar to a natural disaster, but breaking through it was also a matter of individual ability. In the end, those who failed to do so lacked skills, and only met a suitable end.
[Next person. Please come up.]
The second presenter came up after the first one left. He knew what the previous person looked like, so he started the presentation with a firm determination that he would never be like that.
"This one isn't bad."
"But it's not particularly special."
Like that, one at a time presentations followed, and sometimes there were people who succeeded in eliciting their own repercussions, but that was all in the end.
As time passed, the final presentation was just around the corner.
A man appeared on the platform.
"That person."
"Is today's star finally coming out?"'
The relaxed atmosphere changed and the spectators' gazes were stronger than when it first started.
No matter how courageous a person was, he had no choice but to be intimidated by more than 5000 stares but Rudger Chelici wasn't.
Rather, as if he was taking a walk, his steps to the platform were relaxed.
The VIPs at the top of the table were quietly amazed by his confident attitude.
"He's definitely different from the ones from before."
"I don't think he's pretending to be strong on purpose. Is this his natural disposition?"
The audience's response was also enthusiastic, in particular from the female wizards.
'Oh, no. Everyone's going crazy.'
Casey Selmore clapped her tongue at the sight.
'What if the wizards are misled by his appearance? Of course, he's handsome, but this.'
She didn't expect this much reaction and Casey was annoyed for no reason.
'But isn't that person nervous?'
She felt like her hands were sweating just imagining herself standing on the stage but Rudger's appearance was truly peaceful.
She knew that there have been several such occasions in the Kingdom of Delica. However, the size of the Arcane Chamber was simply incomparable to that time.
Rudger, standing on the platform, paused for a moment and looked around. As it was a platform under the spotlight, the appearance of the people in the audience was dark and blurred but it was evident that they were all watching him.
Rudger raised his head and looked up at the top seats floating in the air.
The faces of the people sitting there were certainly extraordinary at first glance.
'Those who have the greatest influence on the continent.'
Will Leslie, one of the first orders, be there? Maybe she didn't attend because she was busy preparing to act during the Mysterious Night.
Whatever it may be, there was only one purpose for him to be here today.
"Nice to meet you. My name is Rudger Chelici, and I'm currently a teacher at Theon."
The beginning was a light greeting. However, he firmly established his position by nailing his affiliation to Theon.
A low-pitched voice spread throughout the wide hall of the Arcane Chamber through acoustic amplification magic installed on the platform and the people waited for his next words.
"Then I'll start the presentation right away."
Unlike the conventional conversation, "Thank you for coming here" Rudger cut to the chase and the wizards in the audience who were rather embarrassed.
Even VIPs came to see him, but his attitude of saying what he had to say rather than bowing to them was not common.
In a good way, he didn't care about pretentious manners but in a bad way, he may seem rude. However, rather than being angry at his attitude, the idea that it was his natural disposition became a popular opinion.
There's been a saying since ancient times. Handsome men and beautiful women look good no matter what they say or do.
"The reason I'm here today is to announce the results of the increase in mana emissions, as you all know."
The main point was finally coming.
At the same time, Rudger showed the data he had prepared. A research result table prepared on a magic board appeared on the platform. The contents were greatly enlarged and reflected so that the wizards could see them.
"Everyone gathered here is a wizard, so I think you've all measured your mana emissions and you know what this means."
The duration of the experiment was a week and the data showed that the amount of mana emission jumped three times in that short period of time.
"We conducted a study with six students and found that the amount of mana emissions nearly tripled. It was not just a short-term effect and by conducting additional tests over a total of three days, we found that the figure remained unchanged."
The wizards fretted when the successful result was deeply embedded in their minds from the start.
So what's the way?
How the hell did he increase mana emissions?
"And the key to the success of this study lies in the mana inhibitors."
"I have a question."
One of the wizards in the upper seats opened his mouth. It was Auguste, one of the Old Tower's elders.
"Yes, go ahead."
"I've never heard of a mana inhibitor, but does it really exist?"
It was an issue that the other wizards were also curious about.
A wizard needs to amplify his mana but why suppress it and for what?
Of course, similar drugs and tools existed. Magic handcuffs used to capture magical criminals are a typical example but this was more like a deterrent, forcing the flow of mana to be cut.
The same is true of diffusion scents that interfere with magic activation. The diffusion scent was closer to preventing concentration of mana by spreading it more strongly rather than suppressing mana.
In other words a mana inhibitor didn't really exist.
"Yes, it exists."
"Did you make it yourself?"
"I didn't make it myself. It's a restoration of an ancient recipe that was lost."
"What do you mean by ancient recipe?"
"I was actually going to explain it. Please look over here."
New data emerged on the magic board.
Unlike the previous data, which seemed easy to understand at a glance, this one was something the spectators wondered about at the first time they saw it.
For wizards who were not well versed in ancient languages, it was just a complicated, winding language, but the people with knowledge in this field seemed to not believe what they saw.
"That's Larsilian."
"Larsilian? Did it say anything about mana inhibitors?"
"How on earth did he…from what we haven't interpreted so far.….Did he succeed in interpreting it?"
The spectators quickly became perplexed and even the wizards who didn't know about Larsil realized that big things were happening.
Clinton, the seventh rank wizard, opened his mouth.
"Mr. Rudger Chelici, may I ask you a question?"
He was the highest rank wizard here and even though he spoke politely and like an ordinary grandfather next door, the buzzing noise suddenly stopped.
In the still silence Clinton stroked his beard with an interesting expression.
"I think what you've shown us now is Larsil, but does that mean that Mr. Rudger has interpreted an ancient language that no one has ever been able to?"
"You can treat me comfortably."
"Ha-ha. I am comfortable like this."
"I understand and to answer that question, I'll say yes. I finished my interpretation of Larsil, and based on that, I figured out the recipe for a mana inhibitor, and found out how to increase mana emissions."
Everyone opened their eyes wide at Rudger's shocking reply.
The issue related to the amount of mana emission was bigger than they thought and the news that he has fully figured out the ancient language heated up the hall.
"If that's true, it's a great discovery."
"Yes, so I'll continue with the explanation."
Rudger did not show any fear or polite attitude, even if his opponent was a seventh-ranked wizard.
Clinton was interested after seeing his actions since most wizards freeze when they face him and can't even speak properly.
Hierarchy among wizards is a measure of power and a class that measures the level of the opponents. In particular, his 7th rank was the highest rank on the continent.
Anyone can't help but freeze when they face him, and when they mix the conversation, they feel sorry but Rudger was different.
'Theon's teacher, I heard he's a fourth-ranked wizard.'
From Rudger's appearance, he may have respect for him, but there was no fear at all. As he got older, he had a clear eye for this.
On the contrary, Clinton liked the way Rudger spoke confidently without avoiding his eyes.
'Yes, that's the way wizards are.'
They should not be intimidated by the fact that their opponent is of a higher rank than them, but rather be prepared to go up far.
That mindset is the most basic virtue to have as a wizard and only those people had a chance to reach his position.
"As you know, the existing Larsil language has unknown characters that have not been fully interpreted. There may be many reasons why the form is complex and similar, but there is only one reason why it is not fully interpreted. We misunderstood the fundamentals of the language."
He came out to announce the results of the mana emission, but before they knew it, the presentation flowed to the interpretation of ancient languages but none of the wizards in the audience pointed that out.
Unless they're fools, they can't not know that it's related to that and the subject that he's talking about now must have been a great discovery.
Rudger went on to explain.
It was the same explanation he gave the observers and students on the first day of the trials but he showed more neatly organized data and told more people what he said that day.
Larsil is not actually made up of one character, but it uses a total of three characters and even the fact that the remaining two characters can be interpreted completely.
'Huh. They used three characters in one language?'
'Furthermore, all three look similar, so it must have been natural that we couldn't tell the difference.'
'How did he find out about it?'
When everyone was wondering, again someone raised their hand for a question.
The man who couldn't sit in the top seat, but took the front seat of the audience and it was a familiar face for Rudger, too.
"I have a question."
"Yes, go ahead."
Altego Dantes, one of the Old Tower elders and an old man who was insulted by Rudger at the banquet held for new teachers.
Altego sighed and cleared his throat. It was a moment, but Rudger did not miss the disturbing light in his gaze.
"The research data. Are you sure you discovered it?"