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"These days are really unbearable."
With a long sigh, Rocky tried to calm his mind and avoid thinking about the affairs of Thunderhawk City.
Currently, Thunderhawk City was practically lacking clothes and food, far too challenging. Being the City Lord of such a city, Rocky truly felt no joy in his role.
And it was evident that there was only one way to change the plight of Thunderhawk City, which was through Mana Runes! As long as Rocky learned the Mana Runes and used them well, Thunderhawk City would transform.
The greatest use of Mana Runes was to provide limitless mana to equipment, allowing the power of mana equipment to be greatly enhanced. This fact had been clearly mentioned in Wensel's research notes. He had hoped that through this method, people would gain the power to fight demons.
But there was one thing Wensel had not anticipated, that the flying armor plan he had mentioned in his last words would be successfully developed shortly after his death. Moreover, the Void Magic Armor, far more powerful than mana equipment, was also created!
If Wensel had known about this, he would have been extremely excited and would have immediately realized that the Mana Runes he invented were the perfect match for the Void Magic Armor!
Once the Magic Stones inside the Void Magic Armor were replaced with Mana Runes, which had fewer restrictions yet provided more energy, the combat capability of the Void Magic Armor would instantly break through existing limits, reaching an unimaginable height, and might even open a new door, allowing the Void Magic Armor to evolve again!
All of the above represents the future of Mana Runes, and Rocky's future as well. Once he mastered all this, would there still be a worry about having no food for Thunderhawk City's winter? Would he still worry about the Guard Corps having no equipment?
Certainly not!
By then, he would have long become one of the most impressive figures in these skies! Rocky was convinced of this.
To be impressive in the future, he had to work hard now. The first step was to learn how to draw runes.
He quickly set his worries aside, putting all his focus into studying.
Calming his emotions, Rocky retrieved an item from the pile of equipment boxes, a bracer, and then picked up a pen.
This pen he held was not an ordinary pen; it was an essential tool for drawing Mana Runes, a specially modified Magic Energy Pen.
The role of the Magic Energy Pen was to convert magic power into marks on items, to put it plainly, using magic power as ink. Only with such a Magic Energy Pen could one draw Runes, and the drawn Runes could be called Mana Runes.
Holding the Magic Energy Pen properly, Rocky directed his magic power and slowly drew a peculiar symbol on the bracer.
This peculiar symbol was a Mana Rune. More precisely, it was a First Level Mana Rune.
The principle of Mana Runes was to use symbols drawn with magic power to maintain energy, and the key point was that the Rune had to be drawn with precision to have an effect; otherwise, it was just a useless symbol.
According to the research notes, the First Level Mana Rune was not particularly complex. Yet even so, Rocky still drew it very slowly. Not only was this because it was his first time putting pen to paper, but also because he knew well that he must not rush this task, as even a slight deviation would result in failure.
However, the more he reminded himself to be careful, the less cooperative his hand became. Unintentionally, it shook slightly, causing the nearly completed Rune to vanish into nothingness.
"Phew..."
Watching half of the Rune on the bracer disappear, Rocky took a deep breath and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
In a short time, he was already drenched in sweat, both from the tension of drawing a Rune for the first time and because drawing a Rune was far more difficult than he had imagined, not as simple as the notes had suggested.
As for the failure, it was expected; Rocky wasn't discouraged in the least. It would have been strange if he succeeded on his first attempt.
Taking a deep breath to steady his hand, he picked up the pen again and drew the Rune on the bracer once more...
As time passed by the minute, Rocky's second attempt failed quickly too, followed by a third attempt, then a fourth, fifth, and sixth. He continually re-attempted and continually failed, as if trapped in a vicious cycle.
Through these repeated failures, Rocky gradually realized the difficulty of drawing a Rune. It was at least a hundred times harder than he had imagined!
The research notes detailed the method for drawing a First Level Rune thoroughly and didn't seem very difficult. Rocky memorized it all in a short time, but when he personally started, he found that the difficulty was entirely different from what he imagined.
The continuous failures even made him reopen the research notes to check if he had remembered the method incorrectly? The results proved that his memory wasn't the issue. It was simply because successfully drawing a Mana Rune was genuinely difficult.
And it wasn't until late evening that he finally stopped, not because he was tired or frustrated, but because he had exhausted his magic power.
The magic power required to draw a First Level Rune was minimal, as the mana a First Level Rune could carry was also very limited. Yet, even so, his magic power was depleted by repeated failures, leaving him no choice but to stop.
However, despite the entire process being filled with repeated failures, Rocky did not feel discouraged when he stopped. Instead, he was quite happy.
Because when he had exhausted all his magic power, although he still hadn't succeeded in drawing a Rune, he had at least been able to draw the Rune in one go. Perhaps the flaws in the details rendered his drawn Rune ineffective, but it was much better than his first attempt, and that was progress!
Progress meant there was hope!
So, after stopping, Rocky was quite pleased with his performance today, feeling that at this rate, perhaps he would soon draw a successful Rune.
This expectation filled him with confidence. He then decided to get a good night's sleep that night, to restore his magic power and recuperate, and then continue the next day.
"Liliya?"
Upon leaving the laboratory, Rocky saw Liliya standing at the door, which surprised him: "Have you been waiting for me here all along?"
"Not waiting for you, protecting you."
Glancing at him, Liliya replied meticulously: "Although I now also serve as the captain of the Guard Corps, I am still your guardian."
"You've... worked hard..."
Liliya's words warmed Rocky's heart. Clearly, he was not the only one busy and working tirelessly in Thunderhawk City; others were as well.
"Your complexion... doesn't look good."
As Rocky pondered this, Liliya looked at him with some concern.
In response, Rocky just waved his hand casually, assuring her that there was no need to worry, that his magic power was just depleted. However, upon hearing this, Liliya nodded: "It might be a good thing. Continually using magic power can greatly enhance your control over it. If this continues, you'll soon become a Level Two Mage."
"Spare me, I just want to eat now."
Rocky couldn't handle Liliya's habit of being overly serious, so he quickly stopped her.
However, he was indeed somewhat hungry. When entirely focused on drawing Runes, he hadn't noticed, but now that he had stopped, he found himself incredibly hungry, having not eaten all day.
"Dinner has already been prepared for you. I had someone place it in your bedroom."
"That's great! You're always the most considerate!"
Giving Liliya a thumbs-up, Rocky rushed back to his room.
Watching him run off as if famished, Liliya sighed.
"Considerate..."
"It's only because you need someone to take care of you..."
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