NOVPUB"Professor Landry, what do you think?"
Red Falcon Nikola narrowed his eyes as he sized up Lanci.
He remembered clearly that Professor Landry, while walking with him earlier at the station, had looked up at the dome.
If he truly were an authentic expert, he would have recognized its meaning at a glance.
Nara’s Secretary, who was waiting nearby, glanced at Nikola and Lanci.
She probably understood Red Falcon Nikola’s suspicion.
It seemed this agent was doubting whether the Professor Landry before him was the real one, pondering the possibility of a switch during the accident.
Although such a possibility was close to zero, upon closer consideration, it was not zero; one could only say that Red Falcon Nikola, as the head of the agents, was not only suspicious but also possessed meticulous thinking.
The young man with black hair and blue eyes hesitated briefly, which seemed to deepen Nikola’s suspicions, his pupils gradually locking onto the young professor’s face.
After all, if this guy was a counterfeit, he definitely wouldn’t understand the Demon Magic Text that should have been his specialty.
"Captain Nikola flatters me. I do understand some knowledge of the Demon Race, but I hardly qualify as an expert. To truly grasp the limitless origins of the Demon Race’s magic text requires centuries of study."
Lanci replied unhurriedly,
"The text on the dome actually has no practical meaning; it’s a ’meaningless text’ unique to Demon Script. Due to the grammatical differences between Demon Script and human languages, many words in Demon Script are used only to adjust syllables, thus preventing ordinary communication from triggering spells."
"I see."
Red Falcon Nikola nodded slightly, appearing enlightened.
Of course, he knew the answer before asking the question.
It seemed that this black-haired, blue-eyed young man did truly understand Demon Race Script.
Of course, this alone couldn’t confirm that he was an expert, but it could basically rule out the possibility that Landry had been replaced by a lot, as such a strange and hesitant response would be something any student from Saint Kray Temple who had studied Demon Magic Text could give.
"However, Mr. Nikola, do you know a story about the Demon Race?"
Lanci seemed to have more to say and continued.
"Oh?"
Red Falcon Nikola looked up, giving Lanci his attention.
"The writing on the wall, irrespective of the text itself, carries a metaphor."
Lanci began to explain, a hint of depth in his eyes, as if he was also explaining why he had hesitated earlier.
"Please, do tell."
Nikola invited him to continue.
He had not heard of this interpretation before.
"This actually comes from ’The Codex of Demons, Ancient Volume’, the story of Daniel from Chapter 15, in which a human King, Behir, during the Divine Era, once held a great feast. Lacking enough utensils, he used sacred golden and silver vessels to drink. Suddenly, a human hand appeared on the wall and starting writing."
Lanci started his explanation.
"And then?"
Nikola didn’t see how this story was related to the Demon Script atop the dome of Brilda’s First Station. He stared thoughtfully at Professor Landry’s profile, as if trying to discern some clue.
Regardless of whether the story was true or false, he could check it out.
After all, "The Magic Book" was similar to the "Genesis Record," both indestructible legacies and treasures of the Demon Race, handed down through generations, with translations available in every country.
"But, none of the scholars, wizards, or seers in the kingdom could read the text or explain its significance to the king. Therefore, Daniel, who was Half-Demon, was summoned to explain to the king. Daniel said that the text was written by the gods, and it read, ’Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin.` Unable to be interpreted with human grammar, its meaning could only be intuited: ’The gods are displeased with your desecration of sacred objects, your kingdom’s days are now numbered, you shall be weighed on the scales and your deficits revealed.’ That very night, King Behir was slain, and thus began the downfall of his kingdom."
Lanci finished recounting the story to Red Falcon Nikola.
"..."
After hearing Lanci’s words, Red Falcon Nikola’s brow furrowed deeply.
He understood why Professor Landry had not responded immediately earlier.
Brilda’s first station encountered problems during its construction due to the Holy War of the Demon Race a century ago. Thus, the design proposal by the half-demon empire craftsman faced great opposition and resistance, but fortunately, in the end, it was still built, not letting such an excellent plan come to naught.
There were indeed some places that could be matched with the anecdote mentioned by Professor Landry.
The allegory of that Divine Era story could be interpreted in many ways, one of the most obvious being—if the proud ruler acts recklessly, they will inevitably invite destruction.
But such words were absolute taboos in the Cerryti Empire.
It might have been the dissatisfaction of that imperial craftsman a century ago with the Cerryti Empire or the rulers at that time.
Perhaps it was only today that someone, through a unique understanding, discerned the allegory implied by the craftsman.
"Of course, it might also be that I’m overthinking—after all, only a small part of the ancient Demon Race would interpret the writings on the wall as an ominous sign or a harbinger of catastrophe."
Lanci called out to the Red Falcon Nikola, who was frowning and lost in thought beside him.
The fact that a Holy War had been waged meant that the Demon Race had already forgotten the warning of this fable.
Of course, this interpretation was told to him by a deputy professor of history at the Protoss Royal Magic Academy back on the Northern Continent, where scholars studied "The Magic Book" more deeply as that region had experienced a heavier toll from the Holy Wars.
"Fine, then I won’t take up any more of Professor Landry’s time. We can talk another day."
Red Falcon Nikola quickly recovered his wits, lightly adjusted his cap, and bid farewell to Lanci.
Nara’s Secretary also looked at the professor with a somewhat unusual gaze.
It wasn’t without reason that the Headmaster had taken an interest in him. 𝑛𝘰𝑣𝘱𝑢𝑏.𝘤𝑜𝘮
"No problem,"
replied Lanci to Nikola.
In a short amount of time, Nara’s Secretary had already moved the silver magic guided vehicle to the road, waiting for Professor Landry to get in.
Lanci glanced at the side, noting the luxurious interior lined with leather seats, which seemed far superior to the magic energy-powered vehicles of the Hutton Kingdom judging by their performance.
Nikola, with one hand behind his back, used the other to open the door for Lanci and watched him sit inside.
It was only when Nara’s Secretary silently started the engine,
that with a slight humming, the vehicle left Brilda’s grand first station, heading toward the remote southern location of the Saint Kray Monastery.
In the back seat,
the warm yellow afternoon sunlight streamed through the window onto Lanci’s somewhat weary face, adding a touch of languor to Landry’s handsome feature.
"You, my boy, deliberately gave Nikola something to doubt you about, only to dispel it afterwards. If you do this a few more times, he won’t be able to suspect you, will he?"
Talia’s voice whispered in his ear.
"It’s not as complicated as you think. I really didn’t know how to explain it at the time. After all, such words are ill-omened, and having just arrived in the capital, Brilda, I’m supposed to be cheerful."
Lanci replied with a light laugh in his mind.
After that, he looked out the window at the Empire’s tall buildings flying by.
Everything seemed novel to him; this most developed city on the South Continent had countless landmarks waiting for him to explore.
Going with the flow was indeed the best mindset, no matter what he was going to do in the Cerryti Empire.
"Professor Landry, if that man called Red Falcon has set his sights on you, you might encounter quite a bit of trouble in the capital. He’s like a hawk that constantly watches his prey, which is why I wanted you to reduce your interaction with him earlier,"
Nara’s Secretary said from the driver’s seat in front, her mechanical eyepatch over her pale blue eyes fixed on the road ahead while talking to Lanci.
"It’s fine. I’m not doing anything wrong so I’m not afraid of being haunted."
Lanci replied, sending a grateful smile to Nara’s Secretary in the front seat, believing she could see him through the rearview mirror.
Seeing Professor Landry so confident, Nara’s Secretary said no more.
The task given to her by Headmaster Violet was to keep an eye on this Professor Landry, for the Saint Kray Monastery was currently in a delicate situation. Anyone wanting to come in or go out might not be simple, and the Headmaster would be especially suspicious.
Now, it seemed that at least the abilities of this Professor Landry were genuine, so she could report his entire conversation with Captain Nikola to the Headmaster.
