Chapter 145: The Light of Evernight
Arcane Legion Laboratory.
At this moment, Skele-Avarice and Skele-Lust—the two pinnacle Liches of the Undead Empire—were staring dead-eyed at a magic array that had just flickered out on the floor.
"Failed. Again," Avarice muttered. His voice was saturated with soul-deep exhaustion. He used his finger bones to rub his empty eye sockets, despite there being nothing there to rub.
"No! That was not a failure!" Lust countered, currently maintaining her form as a human girl. She stood with her hands on her hips, her tone defiant. "We successfully teleported Beaker No. 3 from the lab bench into the exact center of Beaker No. 5!"
"And we did it without shattering either glass! That is a monumental breakthrough in spatial precision!"
"But our research topic is Parallel World Interference!" Avarice's voice rose an octave in frustration. "Not 'Matryoshka-style' beaker nesting!"
"Why?!" Avarice groaned, his skull rattling. "Why is it that every single one of our high-level research projects eventually devolves into a Teleportation Array?!"
Ever since that one uncontrolled array had accidentally vaporized the Master's limited-edition statue, they had shifted their strategy. Since reversing time was a universal impossibility, they had set their sights on parallel dimensions.
However, while the theory was full-bodied, reality was skeletal.
In their first attempt, they tried to open a microscopic observation window into another world. Instead, they punched a hole through a wall that precisely linked the lab to a public lavatory in Iron Fortress.
In their second attempt, they tried to use the Soul Link to locate a world with a similar energy signature. Instead, they accidentally synchronized the Soul Fire frequencies of every Skeleton Mage in the valley. For the next twenty-four hours, every single mage in the unit walked with "same-side" arms and legs, unable to coordinate their movement.
And the third time—just now—they had attempted to fold space with a more stable geometry. The result: one beaker perfectly encased within another.
Avarice slumped over, his head hanging low as he began a rhythmic, depressed chanting. "Where did the formula break... the logic was sound... the variables were static... how did it become a damn transport spell again?"
Lust walked over and gave Avarice's skull a comforting pat. "Don't be so gloomy, Avarice. Research is a journey paved with 'happy accidents.' Perhaps we simply need a change of pace."
Avarice lifted his head, the Soul Fire in his eyes flickering with a clear "No."
"General, we cannot afford to rest. The Master entrusted us with a mission of cosmic importance. We cannot fail—"
Lust wagged a finger, cutting him off. "We are undead, Avarice. We have all the time in the world. Besides, That Personage has never actually given us a hard deadline, has he? Come on. Let's go see what the 'little ones' are cooking up in their exploration booths."
"Perhaps we'll find a spark of inspiration in their madness."
Avarice didn't harbor much hope, but he gave a reluctant nod. "Very well, General. It has... been some time since we provided 'guidance' to the junior researchers."
The two Liches moved through the primary lab area, past rows of precision arrays and "failed" spatial anomalies, entering the sprawling Free Exploration Zone.
The moment they stepped through the threshold, Avarice felt a phantom pain throb in his skull. The scene before them could only be described as a carnival of magical idiocy.
One Skeleton Mage was staring at a rock with such intensity that its Od was visibly vibrating. It was attempting to lift the stone through sheer willpower. Suddenly, the skeleton let out a thunderous "GAH!" at the rock, only to exert so much force that its own jaw dislocated. The mandible hit the floor with a sharp clack. The skeleton stooped, retrieved its jaw, snapped it back into place with an expressionless face, and resumed glaring at the rock.
Elsewhere, a group of skeletons was huddled around a cauldron, pouring various liquids of questionable colors into the mix. The concoction bubbled and hissed, releasing multi-colored vapors. One skeleton curiously poked a bubble; it detonated with a sharp POP, coating the skeleton's head in black soot and causing its Soul Fire to dim significantly.
Avarice covered his face. Is this the future of the Empire? Is this the hope of the Arcane Legion? It's over. We're doomed.
Suddenly, Lust tugged at Avarice's robes, pointing toward a secluded corner. "Look there."
In a quiet patch of the exploration zone, a few skeletons were sitting in a circle. Their behavior appeared remarkably normal compared to the others. They sat in silence before a small pile of dull, grey, ordinary stones.
Avarice walked over, assuming his "Inquisitor" tone. "State your activity. Are you meditating? Or perhaps analyzing the elemental composition of silicate?"
One of the skeletons turned its head, holding up a stone. "It is eating the light."
"Eating the light?"
Avarice and Lust exchanged a confused glance. "Explain," Lust prompted, her curiosity piqued. She knelt and picked up a stone. It was cool to the touch, rough-textured, and looked like a common pebble from the riverbank. There was zero Mana detectible within it.
The skeleton didn't answer with words. It raised a bony finger toward the ceiling.
[Tier 3 Spell: Nightfall]
Instantly, the area within a twenty-meter radius went dark.
In the artificial twilight, a soft, radiant glow erupted in front of the two Generals. They looked down to find that the pile of unremarkable stones was now glowing like a cluster of miniature suns, emitting a stable, brilliant white light.
Avarice snatched up a glowing stone, bringing it to his eye sockets. "How... how is this possible?"
The stone's surface was smooth, engraved with a set of runes that were so simple they looked like accidental scratches.
"What did you do to it?" Avarice demanded.
Another skeleton stood up, picked up a fresh stone, and began scratching at it with a piece of scrap metal right before the Liches. "I discovered a new geometry," it explained as it worked.
The Valley Base.
Kaito was currently lying in his coffin, contemplating his newest Authority unlocked at Tier 6: [Faith Collection].
In layman's terms, he could harvest the Od generated by the worship of sapient beings and use it to permanently buff his subordinates. The "receiver" for this energy was a statue of his likeness. He was currently debating whether to launch a "Pray to the Master, Get a Free Egg" promotional event to jumpstart the process.
Just then, a request for a Soul Link connection arrived from Avarice.
"Master," Avarice's voice sounded drained, carrying a hint of uncharacteristic shame.
Kaito sat up in his coffin. "What is it? Did you find a parallel world?"
There was a pause. "Master... the Arcane Legion has achieved a breakthrough in a... tangential field. I believe you should see this for yourself."
Minutes later, Avarice appeared before Kaito, holding a glowing rock in his palms. Kaito took the stone, squinting at it. It was warm, and the light it emitted wasn't a harsh magical glare, but a soft, steady glow.
"What is this?"
Avarice searched for a description. "A... brand-new illumination device. It absorbs light during the day, storing the energy, and automatically discharges it as a glow once the ambient light levels drop."
Kaito turned the stone over and over. "Does it consume Mana?"
"None."
"Production cost?"
"A single rock and ten seconds of manual labor."
"Mass production?"
"As long as there are stones on the ground, we can produce millions."
Kaito's eyes lit up. He looked at the stone, then at Avarice.
"This is just a solar-powered LED," Kaito whispered.
He slapped his thigh-bone and hopped out of the coffin, his excitement palpable. "Avarice!"
"I am here!"
"Immediately! Assign every idle skeleton in the territory to mass-produce these! I've already got the name: The Light of Evernight!"
Kaito walked to a map on the wall, drawing a bold line through the city of Iron Fortress.
"Phase One: Every main thoroughfare in the capital. Install one every five meters. I want this city visible from the moon!"
"Phase Two: Every residential block. One light for every single household entrance. Installed for free!"
"And!" Kaito added, a devious grin touching his jaw. "Effective immediately, issue a new Imperial Decree!"
"Every Citizen and Resident receiving these Imperial benefits is required to perform one act of prayer at the Evernight Cathedral daily. No fixed time required, but they must visit the Sovereign's statue once a day!"
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