Pendragon's Infinity Gauntlet

Page 184

Tsuchimikado put his hand into his shorts pocket and said. He took out a red pen... or so he thought.

According to her explanation, the so-called magic is something similar to gasoline, refined from the crude oil of life using oil refineries of sects or religions.

"If Tyr, who uses runes, cultivates magic according to the Aztec style, the quality of the magic he produces will be greatly altered. It's like using crude oil, but instead of making gasoline, you make heavy oil or light oil, meow," Tsuchimikado explained. People like Amakusa-style Saint Kanzaki Mizuori possess the essence of Buddhism and Shinto in addition to Christianity, so they can freely use the quality and techniques of magic according to the situation.

Tsuchimikado's opinion is that for Orianna to truly confront Tyr alone, she must master all the types of magic Tyr might possess. It's hard to imagine Orianna being truly at ease simply sealing away one of Tyr's meticulously crafted magical forms at the maintenance depot. Orianna likely doesn't fully grasp Tyr's power; regardless of her actual strength, she would usually consider this.

"Then... what exactly did Oriana do?"

“Well… I think it should be like this.” Tyr said unsteadily, “Magic exists in multiple forms. But the initial stage is different. The method of refining it varies depending on the sect, the spell, and the individual’s vitality. After that, it’s like a math problem. As long as you work backward, the answer will come out.”

Suppose we have 20 pounds of magic power A, and magic power refining method B. If we compare the two, how many pounds of this kind of life force are needed to refine a 20-pound magic-powered person using magic power refining method B? It's done in a way like this—this way we can calculate the original "life force".

Tyr impatiently pulled a new cigarette from the pack and glanced at Tsuchimikado. Tsuchimikado was making marks on a piece of colored paper in his hand with something that looked like a red pen. "I'm making a new array to break through this situation," Tsuchimikado said to Jōjin, looking at the colored paper.

Tyr's gaze returned to the God of Purification.

“Magic has no personality, but life force certainly does. In other words, my life force has been read by Oriana. Damn it, I shouldn’t have configured the rune card so easily… No, it might have been possible if the other party had used the execution tower or the underground of Windsor Castle, which are large-scale restraint facilities for containing mages. I never thought that a sorcerer could accomplish all the procedures of detecting, analyzing, reversing, applying, and countering life force all by himself—no wonder he is known as ‘Tracking and Blocking’ Oriana Townsend.”

After uttering these words with displeasure, Tyr unusually took out a match and struck it on the shoulder of the goddess, lighting it. She was probably wary of using magic to start a fire. There was no immediate chance to retaliate; they had to wait for Tsuchimikado to prepare. The fact that this proud woman was "warned" showed just how unfathomable Orianna was.

Hearing her say that, it seems that Tyr was the only one who clearly used "magic" during the battle at the preparation field.

"If it were a counterattack using the reverse arithmetic method, Tsuchimikado, who drew the 'Four Formations of Reason' circle on the ground, should have been damaged. Since that didn't happen, we can conclude that it was reacting to my life force."

Tyr continued. Tsuchimikado was engrossed in his strange task, so only Jōjin and Tyr spoke.

"So that means Oriana was able to analyze Tyr's magic while escaping?"

The Goddess of Purity tilted her head, seemingly confused. Seeing this, Tyr couldn't help but exhale a puff of smoke in frustration. Whether it was the recent injury that had clouded her judgment, or the sheer trouble of explaining what was taken for granted by magicians, was unclear.

“If he knows this move, it should be even more powerful than your right hand…” She took a deep drag of her cigarette. “Oriana’s counterattack tactics… are essentially execution tower-level magic, requiring a magic circle, no, it should be a facility above that. Oriana didn’t just use the spell, he created the entire system. It’s like preparing a super-fast computer and then letting it do all the analysis. That’s how Oriana could focus on escaping. But…”

"But what?"

When the Cleansing God asked this question, Tyr replied in a bitter voice:

"...No, I'm just overthinking it. This inhumane 'automatic processing' feels familiar... I've seen it somewhere before... No way. Even if he is Oriana, he shouldn't be capable of that..."

It was almost like talking to oneself.

The bewildered Jōjin frowned, while Tsuchimikado, who was working on the shikishi and pen, stopped and grinned.

“No, Tyr. I think the same way you do.”

"Really?... If that's the case, it explains why Oriana can still activate automatically even though it's set up elsewhere. But in that case, that guy isn't a magician, he's a mage."

"Oh dear, is that really so, meow? I've always felt that there's something unstable about Orianna. If he were truly a full-fledged mage, there should be mages she taught following him like subordinates. That must be the role Lidovia plays, meow."

Chapter 326 Recipe

Chapter 326

As Tsuchimikado spoke, he continued to make marks on his shikishi (a type of colored paper), as if he were adding marks on top of marks.

"What is that?"

The two magicians talked amongst themselves, leaving the novice Jōjin completely bewildered. Seeing Jōjin's state, Tsuchimikado chuckled softly:

"Right, right, the Pure God probably hasn't seen the actual situation, meow. But, in terms of knowledge, he should understand it, right? As long as relevant knowledge about magic is inserted, that knowledge can be activated into a magic circle without the caster's will. Even if the caster doesn't apply magic power, it can amplify the little bit of 'power' leaking from the ley lines or dragon veins, making it semi-permanently active."

Tsuchimikado's smile deepened.

The blue lenses of the sunglasses reflected a bright light.

"Don't you understand? The Pure God is the closest person to that, meow. The Forbidden Book Index, with its 103,000 memories of 'that,' is right beside you, isn't it?"

One hundred and three thousand kinds.

List of banned books.

Even if she didn't understand all of Tsuchimikado's meaning, she knew what he meant.

"No way?"

“That’s right, Purify the Spirit.”

Seeing the incessant murmurs of the spirit, Tsuchimikado gently shook the shikishi in his hand and said casually:

"It is the original text of the grimoire."

Original code.

A book that records magical techniques. At first glance, it may not seem like anything special, but a normal person would have a mental breakdown just by reading its contents. Moreover, the articles, verses, and words of the grimoire will activate as a magic circle, providing a semi-permanent and automatic counterattack against anyone who tries to destroy it.

No one can destroy the powerful magical grimoire "Original Text," so the only emergency measure is to temporarily seal it away. The monk, who has memorized the Forbidden Book Index of over 103,000 magical grimoires in his head and wants to analyze the "Book of Law," is doing all this to combat the dangerous magical grimoires.

Jingshen was a complete novice when it came to magic. She had never even seen a real "magical book." Despite this, there was an unexpected abundance of information about magic or magical books around her, and she absorbed quite a bit of knowledge in this area.

Tsuchimikado let out a heavy sigh and made marks on the four corners of the shikishi (colored paper) with his pen.

"Magic circles and grimoires originally share the same properties, meow. The secondary effects of the original grimoire are derived from the effects of magic circles."

Jōjin frowned. She couldn't understand what Tsuchimikado was trying to say.

"How are magic books and magic circles similar? Magic books are just ancient books, while magic circles are symbols with stars drawn inside circles that often appear in RPGs?"

After the Cleansing God asked this question, Tyr narrowed his eyes somewhat impatiently.

“…You’re using such a boring analogy again. That’s the mark of the King of the Streets. It’s not a single item, but a mid-stage magic circle used as part of a circular array.” She looked at Tsuchimikado’s hand. “Let’s start by explaining the ‘array’… The earliest magic circle was just a simple circle. Like this.”

As she spoke, she picked up a stone from the ground, squatted down, and drew a circle about fifty centimeters in diameter on the asphalt. Although it was hand-drawn, the circle was remarkably precise. Jingshen was astonished. "Are you a math teacher?" he asked. Tsuchimikado, busy scribbling on colored paper, didn't even glance at her. It seemed that magicians who made their own magic circles or rune cards were quite dexterous.

"The pentagram or hexagram that even a layman like you could think of is used for additional effects. The seals of King Solomon or King David are added to enhance the circular effect of the basic part."

Tyr, puffing out cigarette smoke, continued adding pentagrams inside the circle. The five vertices of the stars perfectly divided the circle into five equal parts, with the straight lines remaining completely straight without any deviation.

But what does this have to do with the Book of Demonic Arts? Jing Shen tilted his head and thought.

Seeing Jing Shen's expression, Tyr clicked her tongue slightly. The reason she was so anxious was not only because of her feelings for Jing Shen and her own injuries, but also because Tuquemen's (I think) preparations to break through the current situation were taking a long time.

“Next is the later magic circle… It’s too troublesome to explain it several times, so pay close attention.” Tyr moved the small stone and said, “The later magic circle requires additional writing. It’s basically text. In most cases, it’s written on the outer circumference of the circle, indicating the angel whose power you wish to borrow…”

As she spoke, she wrote something along the circle. Because it was a terrifying magic circle, it was initially thought to be some kind of unknown ancient script, but what she wrote was just ordinary English.

Tyr carved words into the asphalt road with a rattling sound.

"Like this, first write down the name of the angel whose power you want to borrow. Just like 'fire' or 'wind,' specify the type of power you want. Then clearly write down what kind of 'angelic power' you need, and how much. The quality of the power is certainly important, but the quantity is even more important. If there is too little, you obviously cannot activate the spell, and if there is too much, the remaining part will get out of control. Finding the right amount is quite difficult."

In no time, the letters had completed a full circle. Tyr's hand did not stop; he wrote a second column of text on the outside of another line.

"If we obtain the appropriate quality and necessary quantity of 'angelic power' from another world, the next step is to write down how to use it. For example, how to imbue a sorcerer's wand with special effects, or how to place it around a magic circle to gain defensive power, and so on. In that case—"

The second, third, and fourth lines increase in text volume like a Swiss roll cake.

Rather than a magic circle with constantly added marks,

"—Doesn't it look like pages from a book?"

Tyr blew a puff of smoke towards the magic circle on the ground.

Indeed, it's just as Tyr said. The way the text is written is unconventional, unlike ordinary books which specify horizontal or vertical writing. But what if the text written along a circle were changed to a normal horizontal script? What if it contained information like "what kind of quality and quantity of power is needed, how to assemble the magic circle, and what effect will it produce"—wouldn't that be like a spell formula?

The formula for the technique.

This is practically the very essence of a grimoire.

"But this kind of magic circle still has weaknesses. The more complex the diagram, the more difficult it is to manipulate the circle. For example, the word 'front' can mean 'walking path' in addition to 'forward'. If the spellcaster misinterprets the meaning of the magic circle, the spell can easily go out of control and get the spellcaster into trouble... However, if a spellcaster misunderstands the meaning of the magic circle he or she drew, he or she can be considered a rather eccentric spellcaster."

After Tyr finished speaking, he slowly stood up.

She tossed the small stone in her hand aside. Seeing this, Tsuchimikado spoke up:

Chapter 327 Original Text

Chapter 327

She tossed the small stone in her hand aside. Seeing this, Tsuchimikado spoke up:

"The result is that the amount of information a magic circle contains is directly related to its power. The complex appearance and the added text are all details added for this purpose. The reason why the 'Four Arrays of Reason' just now used four colored papers was to match the decoration of four-colored information in each direction. In this way, how much information would a grimoire filled with a whole book of magical knowledge contain? — Simply put, the original grimoire is an ultra-high-density magic circle. Even specialized magicians find it troublesome."

Tsuchimikado drew his conclusion. The colored paper in his hand, which had become slightly damp and sticky from repeatedly marking it with a red pen, was now wet and sticky.

Jing Shen remained silent for a while.

"So, in that case, Oriana specifically prepared a magical tome just to create an automatically controlled counterattack technique in conjunction with the Great Star Festival?"

This is something that sends chills down your spine.

The God of Purification himself had previously been drawn into a battle between three magical organizations because of a grimoire called the "Book of Law." Of course, grimoires vary in value and level, but this one still felt unusual. Rather than being excessively large, it felt almost wasteful in its sheer size.

Tyre disagreed with the God of Purification's opinion.

"...Is such a thing really possible? The alchemist Aureolus Isaard was also an author of grimoires. Even if the fastest writer in the Hidden Records Palace worked day and night, it would take at least three days to complete a thin book, and perhaps a month for a thick one. I don't think he could have compiled the 'original text' of a grimoire while on the run. Or perhaps the other party prepared the 'original text' beforehand..."

“I don’t think so. It might indeed take that much time to make a complete book. But that’s not Oriana’s goal,” Tsuchimikado said in a relaxed tone. “For that guy, what he wants is the magic circle effect of the grimoire. He doesn’t care about the book’s style at all. It’s probably like some kind of cursive notebook that no one else can read, right?”

Tsuchimikado said, holding a whole sheet of bright red colored paper in one hand.

“…You mean the ‘shorthand classics’? I still think that’s impossible…No, okay. Now we have to consider all possibilities.”

Jing Shen lowered his head, the words of these magicians echoing in his mind.

Finally, she raised her head and said:

"Shouldn't the original texts be magical books that no one can destroy? If we keep creating original texts for every battle, wouldn't the world be full of them?"

“That’s right, meow—the Church of Necessary Evil didn’t receive such a report either. This was entirely my prediction; Oriana’s ‘Shorthand Text’ must not be perfect. A true text can convert pages into semi-permanently active magic circles. But because Oriana is a half-baked one, it should break down very quickly.”

Tsuchimikado answered fluently, continuing to write on the already damp stained paper. It wasn't just the surface; the order in which he added the markings was crucial. Tsuchimikado smiled wryly, "Many magicians in the past died while writing these flawed original texts, getting caught up in the chaos. Oriana might have taken advantage of this, freely destroying 'shorthand texts.' If that's the case, it's easier to treat him as a sorcerer. A hybrid of original text and magician's technique—that is to say… not for passing on knowledge and technology to future generations, but for instantly tearing off and discarding the original text, meow."

En—the spirit is cleansed, arms crossed over the chest.

"I still don't quite understand that original text or magic circle."

"...Explaining things to someone like you is like casting pearls before swine."

Tyr's face, which was bluish from his injury, had a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth.

"If there's a counterattack, does that mean Tyr can't use magic on Oriana?"

“Yes. Without resolving the counterattack formula, we can't use any magic. That formula should be ‘activate counterattack when it senses I'm about to use magic.’ It doesn't recognize ‘why it's being used,’ so there's no point in adding such a complicated command.”

Tyr's words sounded like a confession of her weakness; though her tone revealed her apprehension, there was no sign of weakness. She seemed to be implying that this matter wouldn't end there. "Then what should we do? Tyr can't use magic anymore, right? That 'Four Arrays of Reason'... right? Wouldn't that make it even harder to pinpoint Oriana's location? Because Tsuchimikado isn't very good at using magic to begin with."

"Do not."

Tsuchimikado shook her head. The red ink-soaked paper in her hand contained so much moisture that one couldn't help but wonder why it hadn't torn yet.

The God of Purity and Tyr looked at her face.

“I told you so. This is an automatic counter-attack spell generated by the ‘Shorthand Codex,’ so we only need to deal with this. If things go smoothly, we can also make a counter-strategy amulet, but no matter what, the ‘Codex’ will destroy it first, so it’s safer for Tyr to be able to use magic, meow—”

Jing Shen looked at her right hand. The "Original Text" was indeed an indestructible grimoire, but her Imagine Breaker might have a way to deal with it.

Tyr said, puffing out smoke:

"Destroying the 'Shorthand Manual' is fine, but what if Oriana escapes outside the 'Four Arrays of Reason's' exploration range during this time?"

"Possibly. But don't you think that if the opponent is confident they can attack and escape quickly, they wouldn't specifically use a counterattack technique, meow? Preparing that takes a lot of time, doesn't it? In an already tense situation, adding extra work on top of that is usually not something they would do."

Yes, Tyr also crossed his arms.

Jing Shen frowned, thinking that if this was the real purpose...

"Then... where exactly is that 'original text of shorthand' that we just talked about?"

"I think it should be set up somewhere."

"Could it be that Oriana took it with him?"

"If I don't know the detailed usage conditions of the 'Shorthand Manual,' I can't be sure, meow. But, in order to explore the form of Tyr's life force, Oriana set up traps in this preparation area and prepared an automatic magic circle that could send the life force he had obtained to Oriana's side. To carry out such a plan, a series of spells must be consistent with the same system's traps from beginning to end... It's possible that you're right, meow?"

"Where did he set up the 'stenography manual'?"

If we don't know where he escaped to, we certainly can't determine where he set up the antidote book.

Chapter 328 That Woman

Chapter 328

"The next step is to investigate this cat."