The scene felt like a whirlwind, surrounded by darkness, with about a dozen shadowy figures forming a circle in front of Lynn. Faint traces of magic shimmered on their bodies.
Lynn scanned the surroundings. All of them appeared ephemeral, like unstable water ripples, making it hard to discern their exact features. Lynn could only make out their height, weight, and subtle changes in their facial expressions.
[A virtual environment has been detected. Would you like to analyze it and search for the signal source?] A prompt suddenly echoed in Lynn's mind, almost startling him. Lynn realized that the voice of the AI wasn't transmitted through magic into this space, as everyone around him remained oblivious.
"Yes..." Lynn whispered his response in his mind. Lynn was curious about this peculiar space. Who would have thought that attending the gathering in the guise of Radak would lead to such an unexpected discovery?
However, when Lynn checked the progress of the analysis, Lynn couldn't help but twitch his lips. The analysis was progressing at a frustratingly slow pace.
After about two minutes, the phantasmal figures in this peculiar space stopped increasing, and Lynn counted a total of fifteen people, including myself.
"Is everyone here?" The witch in front of Lynn asked.
"Hasn't Number 4 been missing for a while?" Another person beside her shook his head.
"Maybe he died somewhere? Who knows? Stop the pointless chatter and let's get started." A tall and thin figure impatiently interrupted their discussion and then addressed the rest of us.
"Let me begin. I'll talk about the human body. If you're not interested, you can leave..."
With that statement, five of the phantoms immediately disappeared.
Lynn observed silently, not moving a muscle.
The tall, thin figure soon started speaking again. "According to my research, the human body contains over two hundred bones and more than six hundred muscles. Muscles are composed of long, thin threads, and if we break it down further, it's a unique structure made up of four basic elements..."
As the thin figure rambled on, those in attendance either contemplated deeply, chuckled, or interjected with questions. The male witch patiently answered their inquiries.
When the explanation concluded, eight of the attendees, excluding Lynn, extended their hands and flicked a transparent coin in his direction.
Do you have to pay for this knowledge? That thought crossed Lynn's mind. Moreover, it was brought here through magic, so it couldn't be a regular currency.
"Number 7, do you have any objections to what I've said?" The opening speaker, looking displeased, turned to Lynn. His phantom body kept trembling with anger.
According to the rules, if you didn't want to listen, you could simply skip and leave. However, Lynn had listened but wasn't willing to pay.
Under the scrutiny of more than a dozen pairs of eyes, Lynn remained silent for a moment, then continued with a smile, "You can think that way... In fact, I already knew everything you talked about. It's nothing new, and it doesn't help me at all..."
However, Lynn's words infuriated the male witch. Before he could retort, Lynn continued, "Coincidentally, I have some knowledge about the human body too. For example, I the muscle thread you mentioned, I call them muscle fibers. There are approximately six billion of them in the human body, composed of seventy-three percent water and twenty-seven percent protein. As for the bones, they are formed from collagen, calcium, phosphorus, and other components..."
Lynn spoke confidently, expanding on the witch's previous speech, providing more details and even explaining the elemental composition of these substances.
The tall and thin phantom figure continued to shift and change, his face growing darker. Although terms like "protein" and "collagen" were entirely foreign to him, he did have some knowledge he chose to withhold intentionally.
This meant that the other party wasn't bluffing but genuinely had a deeper understanding of the human body.
"It looks like these coins should go to Number 7," the witch sneered, noting the silence of the tall and thin male witch. However, as she looked at Lynn, she couldn't help but shiver with a hint of fear. How many bodies had he dissected and studied to acquire such profound knowledge? How did he even count those six billion muscle fibers?
"This time, you win." The tall and thin male witch, with an unpleasant expression, tossed the transparent coins he'd received in Lynn's direction.
Lynn used a bit of magic to collect the coins into his hand, and the AI's prompt tone chimed again.
[Unidentified energy detected. There are similar records in the database. Would you like to convert it into energy?]
This time, Lynn quietly chose "no." Given the scrutiny of the people around, he had no immediate intention to research this further.
"Since you've taken the money, how about explaining what these so-called proteins and calcium are?" The tall and thin male witch asked with a scowl.
He was naturally very annoyed about Lynn stealing his thunder, but those strange terms piqued his curiosity.
"Protein is an essential component of all cells and tissues in the human body, composed of elements such as carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen..." Lynn provided a vague answer, brushing off the more intricate details by claiming he hadn't fully researched them yet.
No one in the room raised any objections. The study of magic was a complex and ongoing process, and they were already amazed by how in-depth Lynn's knowledge went.
Despite some minor hiccups, the first lecture soon concluded, and the figures who had disappeared earlier reappeared in this chaotic space.
Next, another wizard stepped up to talk about psychic magic.
The meeting continued for several hours, with each person sharing knowledge that was not easily discussed openly. But here, everyone could speak freely, even sharing the gruesome details of their experiments on human bodies.
The progress of Lynn's analysis also reached three percent, and he listened attentively, sending out three coins he had received.
When the meeting finally concluded, the faceless figures agreed on the time for the next gathering and then adjourned.
Upon hearing this, Lynn's expression turned somewhat peculiar. Was it really ending just like this? He thought someone might question why the new members he'd recruited hadn't shown up, but there wasn't a single mention of it.
From the conversations among these people, it seemed like the Faceless Society was loosely organized, more like a place for exchanging knowledge.
Just as Lynn was about to leave this illusory space, a male witch next to him suddenly spoke.
"Numbers 3, 7, 11, and 15, would you please stay?"