Within a shuttle that zipped silently through the sky sat four people. Of course, these were Caelum, Erta, Ceres and Reynor who was driving the shuttle himself.
The shuttle was a prototype of Halo that worked on the concept of cars. With the help of mana and many experimental technology, they managed to create a vehicle that could fly across the skies while being as comfortable as a car yet as silent and fast as an airplane.
Its main source of power was naturally mana so it was very environment friendly as well. The only downside was the fact that it drained a little too much mana from both the driver and the mana stones they excavated from dungeons.
Mana stones were a new mineral that only grows in dungeons, the normal ones rather than the unique ones that Caelum and Erta had entered. They naturally contain a dense amount of mana, albeit with some impurities that make it not exactly suitable for growing one's power. Instead, it is used to craft items and to power devices made from magic engineering.
But this was only the case for now as the shuttle was still only a prototype. Through many more advancements and experiments, they would be able to make it a lot more convenient and cheaper to use.
This was the first time Caelum was seeing it himself and he was quite impressed. Anyone who has lived long enough before the Emergence would know that flying cars were always a staple of science fiction. The very fact that it exists now has given Caelum a bit of inspiration.
"Ciel, scan the shuttle. I need materials and schematics. There's something I've been wanting to make, but I haven't found the right concept yet. This should give me a hint."
Ceres and Reynor were a little surprised. Since their little meeting earlier, this was the first time Caelum had spoken. And considering his change in personality, his light tone was just as much of a shock.
Erta could only smile bitterly at their reactions. At this point, no one really knows and understands Caelum as much as she does. And even for her, it was difficult to fully understand this new personality of his. However, she was certain that this light mood of his was genuine.
If there was one thing Caelum would always be, it was sincere. That was why when she saw Caelum creating a blueprint of something she could only describe as floating weapons, she silently added her input in the form of enchantments. He wanted to help him realise his ideas which he seemed invested in.
Seeing the enchantments that Erta added, Caelum's eyes lit up. He did not know much about spells, but as Ciel detailed the effects of the enchantments, he began incorporating them into more parts.
And with more of Erta's enchantments appearing, the larger the library of such spells Caelum and Ciel had to work with.
This gave him the opportunity to break down these enchantments and piece them back together, mixing and matching them like puzzles to fit his need and simulating them through his Wing of Reason. Erta looked at Caelum's face with shock and a bit of frustration before speaking.
"You know it took me a decade to learn all of those enchantments I gave you, right? How could you have learned it all in minutes? I thought you didn't know magic?"
"It's not about knowing magic. It's all about learning the basic theory and functions of each one, piecing together context clues from the similarities of each enchantment, then working around them to make new ones. Even Ciel could do it on her own."
"No, I know you can do that. In fact, many of the ones I gave you were my own derivative enchantments. What I'm asking is how are you able to do that in just a few minutes when it took me a decade?"
"My mind works fast. And after unsealing Reason, it's become even faster. Ciel is just as fast if not faster."
After a couple more minutes, a complete model of the weapon had been created and simulated. The bulk of the work was shared between Caelum and Ciel, but the finishing touches like minor adjustments to design and materials and the calibration of the system and enchantments were left to Ciel as she was better at such things.
Soon, Caelum's Wing of Reason appeared and sent a shard of crystal in front of him. From there, a thin metallic object slowly materialised.
It was about a foot long with its body being split into three blades, meeting on one end while a gap extended to the other end in the middle of them. It whirred to life as it began absorbing mana in the atmosphere.
Seeing that the activation was a success, Caelum proceeded with testing its functions. From movement to cloaking and creating barriers, it worked perfectly. Even its attack, which he tested against his Wing of Serenity, worked well.
"How many can we make with the materials available?"
[We have enough to produce 83 units, Father.]
"83? Cal, where in the world did you get all those materials?"
"From Fafnir and Halo. Where else? Ciel, make another nine. We'll have to get used to fighting with these things first before we can decide to go all out with them."
As soon as he gave the order, nine more of the same weapon appeared in the air. They each floated calmly within the shuttle, but they easily made the space crowded. Once he checked that they were all fine, Caelum quickly stored them away.
He would find time later to train in their use. Erta, seeing that he was done with working, asked a question she had been wanting to ask since he began making the weapons.
"What are they called?"
"Oh…"
"Don't tell me you made them without thinking of what to call them. What am I supposed to say when I want to borrow them?"
"You want to borrow them? Erta, I made these things because I was jealous of how you can make swords from fire."
"So? You borrowed my swords too, remember?"
"Fine, you can borrow them. But you need to practise using them first. They're very different from swords."
"Just like the spear and the whip then. I saw all the things it can do already so it'll be fine. Besides, I can easily check the blueprint you made to learn more about it. So what's it called?"
"Hmm… Ciel, help me out here."
[How about calling them Funnels? They're most basic function is to funnel in mana to fuel all their other functions.]
"Funnels… I see. So you used the Mana Gathering Enchantment as the core. I'll help you upgrade it later. I have some better ideas about the core that might make it more efficient while still being able to output more power."
Reynor was not really knowledgeable about magic engineering so he was not paying much attention to their conversation. Ceres, however, was someone who often went to inspect the progress of the R&D Division as it was their main line of work. As such, she had quite a bit of knowledge when it came to magic engineering.
But what she was hearing now was entirely novel to her. The very concept of magic engineering relies on materials rich in mana or are able to conduct and amplify mana that run through them.
From there, the core of the work involved creating a system that allowed the flow of mana to circulate throughout the materials that would make up the new technology. This was called a magic circuit, not unlike electric circuits.
Even the mana beacons that they had recently created with Erta's help was no different. Although it did use the Mana Gathering Enchantment, it was only for the purpose of releasing it again in the surroundings as a form of sonar. The actual power supply that maintained the beacons' activation was a miniature Mana Grid that were all centred around Halo, not unlike an Electrical Grid.
However, from what she could understand of Erta and Caelum's conversation, the process by which they invented this new weapon was not by using magic circuits at all, but by using mainly enchantments inscribed upon materials that contain mana or are capable of conducting mana by themselves.
It was such a novel idea that she had the urge to ask them for a blueprint to give to Halo for study until she remembered Erta's words.
It took a decade just to learn all the enchantments they used on this small weapon.
How long would it take for Halo's scientists, who did not have Erta's knowledge on magic nor Caelum's monstrous mind, to learn everything they would need for a simple prototype. In the end, she could only sigh in defeat. Caelum smiled slightly at this.
"Ciel, make six more. Match them to Ceres' mana signature."
"Brother?"
"From what I could tell, your ability is more supportive than offensive. You're going to need weapons to protect yourself."
"Ciel, can you make some for Mom too?"
"Erta? I thought you were going to borrow mine?"
"Why borrow when I can just have my daughter make me some? And weren't you the one who didn't want to lend them to me in the first place?"
Caelum sighed as he watched ten funnels appear in front of him. Six went to Ceres while the remaining four went to Erta. He did not really want Erta to use the funnels, at least not yet, because he had plans on their improvement as well.
He wanted to present to her a more finished product than these prototypes, but his wife probably just wanted not to be left out by the siblings. In the end, he relented.
Her learning how to use them early on will be better in the long run. While watching the two play around with the funnels, Caelum decided to talk to Reynor.
"So, do you think you can tell me why I have to return to the estate?"
"You may not remember, my lord, but you promised to return after graduating from university. Although things did not go as planned, it is about time you returned."
"That doesn't answer the question."
"My lord, there has always only been one reason. The Pillar of Grace must return home."
The words seemed to resound in Caelum's mind.
All this time, he had been called the Pillar of Grace. All this time, he had accepted it as though it was the most natural thing in the world. But this time, he could not help but wonder.
What does it mean to be the Pillar of Grace?
He looked out the window, watching the scenery pass him by. The land below seemed to be crawling slowly through the frames despite the shuttle moving as fast as a bullet train. His mind was already wandering to a question he found himself asking, albeit unconsciously, since he saw that silhouette of dread.
Who is Caelum Grace?