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Join the Server“Something to reason with them?” Klein raised an eyebrow.
“Yes.”
Lia pulled him into the laboratory and pointed to a very inconspicuous box in the corner.
“Something to reason with them on a grand scale.”
Klein opened the box.
Inside, several fist-sized metal spheres lay quietly.
Their surfaces were smooth and covered with extremely complex runes.
“This is…” Klein picked one up, feeling the terrifying magic contained within.
“A spatial compression bomb?”
“An improved version.” Lia dusted off her hands.
“You can call it ‘The Persuader No. 3’.”
“The standard version, upon detonation, creates a spatial collapse singularity with a radius of fifty meters, sucking in everything within range and then annihilating it.”
“But these are different.” A pure, innocent smile appeared on Lia’s face.
“I’ve added delayed-trigger and chain-resonance runes.”
“In other words, as long as I detonate one of them, the rest, no matter where they are, will detonate together three seconds later.”
Klein fell silent.
He looked at the small metal sphere in his hand.
“Are you planning to wipe the Royal Capital off the map?”
“I said, this is for reasoning with people,” Lia corrected.
“When the other party doesn’t want to listen to you reason, you pull this out.”
“He will then sit down and listen to you finish your reasoning peacefully.”
“He might even make you a cup of tea.”
Klein put the metal sphere back in the box and closed the lid.
“I’m beginning to think that the king’s invitation to us might not be a bad idea.”
“Why?”
“Because if he hadn’t invited us, I might never have known that the person sleeping next to me is a dangerous individual who is prepared to flatten the Royal Capital at any moment.”
“That’s for self-preservation!” Lia defended.
“Mmm, self-preservation.” Klein walked up to her and reached out to straighten her slightly messy collar.
“So, the next time you have such a ‘self-preservation’ plan, could you notify me in advance?”
“Why?”
“So I can help you calculate the optimal angle and time difference for the chain explosion to ensure there are no survivors.”
Lia: …
She felt that Klein was the most dangerous one of all.
***
Three days later, the Royal Palace.
The word “magnificent” was insufficient to describe this building.
Every colonnade was carved from a single piece of magic crystal, and the ceilings were inlaid with luminous pearls that mimicked the starry sky.
The very air smelled of gold coins and power.
Lia held Klein’s arm as they walked on the soft red carpet.
The surrounding attendants and guards all had their heads bowed, not daring to look directly at them.
The aftershocks of “Collapse Day” still lingered.
In their eyes, this young man and woman were now synonymous with “walking taboos.”
The banquet was held in the king’s private reception hall, not in a grand banquet hall that could accommodate hundreds.
This indicated that it was a highly private meeting.
When Lia and Klein walked into the reception hall, there was already one person inside.
The man stood with his back to them, in front of a huge star chart.
He was wearing a purple long robe that seemed simple, but in fact, every inch of the fabric flowed with a magical luster.
His long silver hair was tied back with a simple ribbon.
He quietly looked at the star chart.
But Lia could feel a vast and restrained spiritual power enveloping the room.
This was a powerful individual.
“Lord Klein, Professor Lia, welcome.”
The man slowly turned around.
Lia was taken aback for a moment.
She had imagined the king in many ways—majestic, fat, old.
But she had never expected him to look like this.
It was a face that was almost too young.
He looked no more than thirty years old.
His features were handsome, carrying an elegance and composure that came from being in a high position for a long time.
His eyes were a rare golden color, like molten gold, deep and sharp.
“I am Augustus Heinrich.”
He nodded slightly, as a form of greeting. “The current ruler of this country.”
“Your Majesty,” Klein returned the greeting, neither servile nor overbearing.
“Please, sit.” Augustus gestured to the sofa beside them.
On a luxurious dining table, exquisite dishes were already laid out.
But everyone knew that these were not the main course tonight.
Augustus personally poured them two glasses of wine. The wine was a pure golden color.
“This is brewed from the dew of the Fountain of Life. It has a calming and tranquilizing effect.”
Lia took the wine glass but did not drink.
“Your Majesty invited us here not just for a wine tasting, I presume?”
She got straight to the point.
Augustus smiled, a hint of appreciation flashing in his golden eyes.
“I like talking to smart people.”
“Frankly, I admire you both very much.”
He swirled his wine glass, watching the golden liquid leave beautiful trails on the side of the glass.
“With a single debate, you’ve managed to silence a group of the most brilliant minds in the entire kingdom.”
“Even… driving one of them mad,” he mentioned his teacher casually.
There was not a trace of sadness in his tone.
“He brought it upon himself,” Klein said coldly.
“That’s right.” Augustus actually nodded in agreement. “Losers should have the self-awareness of a loser.”
“Laurent’s biggest mistake was not that his theory was wrong.”
“But that he lost.”
“In this world, losing is the original sin.”
Lia frowned.
This king’s values seemed even colder and more realistic than she had imagined.
“So, why has Your Majesty invited us here today?”
Lia asked. “Is it to celebrate our victory, or to judge our crimes?”
“Neither.” Augustus put down his wine glass and leaned forward slightly.
In that instant, the lazy aura around him disappeared.
A mountainous, heavy pressure swept over them.
“I just want to ask a question.”
“What do you think… your theories will bring to this world?”
“Progress,” Lia answered.
“Progress?” Augustus scoffed. “What kind of progress?”
“A progress that makes all mages question their own beliefs?”
“A progress that shakes the magical system to its very foundations?”
“Or a progress that makes everyone realize that the world beneath our feet could collapse into nothingness at any moment?”
His voice wasn’t loud, but it carried a power that struck straight to the heart.
“Professor Lia, you may have brought the truth.”
“But have you ever considered that sometimes, a false peace is more beneficial to a country than a cruel truth.”
“The people don’t need to know what the world is made of.”
“They just need a stable life and a clear order.”
“And you are destroying all of that.”
Lia looked at him and finally understood.
This was a warning.
“So, Your Majesty wants us to shut up?” Klein spoke, his voice carrying a dangerous chill.
“No.” Augustus shook his head. “I never ask geniuses to shut up.”
“That would be too much of a waste.”
He stood up and walked in front of Lia.
His golden eyes looked down at her.
“I just want to make a deal with you.”
“I, in the name of the king, will fully support your research.”
“I will give you the highest honors, the most resources, and the freest environment.”
“I can even build a brand new, top-tier mage tower just for you.”
“In return…”
He paused, his voice full of temptation.
“…I need your research results to belong exclusively to the royal family.”
“All papers must be reviewed by me before publication.”
“All theories that could cause social unrest must be sealed away in my treasury.”
“You can continue to explore the mysteries of the universe.”
“But the truth of this world will be defined by me.”
“I will decide what, when, and in what way to tell my subjects.”
Lia instantly understood.
He wanted to monopolize the truth.
He wanted to turn science into a tool to consolidate his royal power.
“It sounds like a very tempting offer,” Lia said slowly.
“For a true scholar, this is worse than death,” Klein directly exposed the other’s hypocrisy.
The smile on Augustus’s face did not change.
“It seems we have nothing to discuss?”
“There was nothing to discuss from the beginning.” Klein sat motionless, but the temperature in the entire room seemed to have dropped by several degrees.
“What a pity.” Augustus sighed and took two steps back.
“I really do admire you both.”
“Especially you, Professor Lia.”
“Your brain is the most precious treasure of this era.”
“I was even thinking, if I were to take it out and place it in my collection, would it come up with some interesting ideas every day?”
Before his words had faded, countless golden runes on the walls of the reception hall instantly lit up.
A visible energy shield completely sealed off the entire space.
The kingdom’s strongest restriction—the Absolute Royal Authority Domain.
In this domain, the king’s will was law.
“Don’t be nervous.” Augustus sat back down on his throne and picked up his wine glass.
“I said, I won’t harm geniuses.”
“I just want to invite you two to stay here for a while longer.”
“Until you’ve thought it through.”
“Or…” He looked at Klein, a cold killing intent flashing in his golden eyes.
“…until you, this knight, disappear from this world.”
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