Chapter 85: Unifying the Cosmos

Three days after the debate concluded, a special issue of ‘The Discourse of Truth’ was released.

Its entire spread meticulously recounted the century-defining debate that had utterly overturned the Elemental School of thought.

From Balthazar’s initial exposition on the hierarchy of elements, to Lia’s devastating counterattack using common salt.

And finally, to the dazzling diamond, born from mere coal dust, so brilliant it seemed to scorch the eyes of all who beheld it.

Every single detail was laid bare, vividly presented before every reader.

Concluding the journal was the complete Periodic Table of Elements, accompanied by Lia’s stirring declaration.

“Go forth! I have placed the properties of every element in this world within this small table; go, seek, and find all that you desire!”

This report became the final straw that broke the back of the old era, simultaneously igniting the raging flames of a new one.

Across the entire kingdom, and even in several surrounding cities, an unprecedented wave of exploration surged.

Countless mages and alchemists, young and old, armed with the Periodic Table, ventured into secluded mountains and ancient mine shafts.

No longer were they driven by the pursuit of ethereal spirituality, but by the desire to inscribe their own names upon that magnificent table.

A ‘treasure hunt’ that would sweep across the entire continent had officially begun.

***

Adèle had been impossibly busy these past few days, with a flurry of letters arriving from all corners of the kingdom, each one inquiring about methods for discovering and identifying new elements.

Lia, in contrast, found a rare moment of peace.

That night, Lia awoke abruptly from a nightmare, her forehead slick with cold sweat.

‘In her dream, she had once again witnessed the wide, staring eyes of the mages in the auditorium, and the blood trickling from their orifices.’

She walked to the window, gazing out at the tranquil night, yet an unsettling tightness constricted her chest.

“Can’t sleep?”

Klein’s voice drifted from the doorway; he had appeared there at some unknown moment.

He held a cup of warm milk.

“Lia, did I do something wrong?”

Klein approached her, offering the milk.

“You merely uncovered the truth.”

Lia’s voice trembled slightly. “But they died.”

“Because of the truth I discovered.”

Klein’s voice remained calm and resolute.

“They died from their own arrogance and obstinacy, from the shackles of an old era. Lia, the path of truth is never devoid of martyrs, nor is it ever without the remains of the stubborn. All you have done is light a torch, allowing those who follow to see the way.”

To prevent them from repeating past mistakes in the darkness.

He paused, his deep blue eyes gleaming in the moonlight.

“If you were to falter now, then their deaths truly would become meaningless.”

Lia tightened her grip on the cup, its warmth dispelling some of the chill within her.

She remained silent for a long moment before finally nodding, her voice soft as she murmured, “I understand.”

***

That afternoon, a crisp, magically amplified birdsong drifted in from outside the window.

Lia looked up to see a paper bird, its wings fluttering, deftly slip through the partially open window and land gracefully on her desk, tilting its head to observe her.

Laplace’s booming voice, full of vigor, emanated from within the paper bird, laced with an irrepressible euphoria.

“Little one! Come quickly to my observatory! I’ve caught the brightest star!”

Lia sighed resignedly, rising to approach the teleportation array.

‘She knew precisely what the old mage meant by “star”.’

***

The Royal Academy, Observatory.

As the magnificent light of the teleportation faded, Lia saw Laplace standing proudly in the center of the room, chest puffed out, chin held high, like a statue commemorating a glorious trophy.

Behind him, the torsion balance apparatus, refined countless times, stood silently, every metal component polished to a brilliant sheen, radiating a clear luminescence.

“Look!” Laplace exclaimed, pointing to a massive blackboard beside the apparatus, his face beaming with pride.

The blackboard was covered in dense, meticulous calculations, from the measurement of the intrinsic period, to the period after gravity was applied, and then the calculation of the difference between the two; every step was clear and precise.

At the very bottom of these calculations, a final value was circled in red chalk, adorned with several childishly drawn large stars.

“I’ve succeeded! I’ve truly succeeded!” Laplace cried, excitedly rubbing his hands together.

“Your dynamic measurement method is nothing short of a stroke of genius! While that old stubborn Horace is still fretting over his vacuum chamber, I’ve already grasped the reins of the universe!”

He pointed to the number, his eyes alight with a fervent gleam.

“This number is the key that connects the heavens and the earth! With it, the laws of motion and the laws of stellar movement can be perfectly unified!”

However, he then shifted tack, a solemn expression settling upon his face. “Yet, this formula is not quite perfect; it lacks a crucial component.”

He picked up a piece of chalk and walked to the blackboard.

“Force, this concept, requires a definitive unit.”

He turned, his gaze burning intensely as he looked at Lia.

“I propose that this unit be named ‘Lia,’ represented by the initial ‘L’ from your name! This will commemorate the magnificent contributions you have brought to this world!”

As he spoke, he wrote it on the blackboard.

“What do you think? From this day forward, every mage, when calculating the effects of force, shall utter your name!” Laplace declared triumphantly.

Lia’s smile froze on her face.

‘She could almost envision a future where countless mage apprentices, gritting their teeth while calculating parabolas, would curse, “Oh, damn it! This object is experiencing a ‘Lia’ of force!”‘

‘This was surely a social death far more terrifying than cognitive restructuring!’

“Master,” she began, clearing her throat, her expression instantly becoming profoundly sincere and humble, “this honor is truly too immense; I cannot possibly bear it.”

“What’s there to bear? This is what you deserve!” Laplace huffed, stroking his beard.

“Actually…” Lia’s eyes darted about as a brilliant excuse struck her. “I mentioned before that the reason I was able to propose these theories was because I once saw some fragmented records in a very ancient tome.”

“Oh?” Laplace’s interest was immediately piqued.

“Yes,” Lia stated with a perfectly serious expression, spinning a wild tale. “That ancient text documented the earliest thoughts on motion, but the great pioneer described therein was only referred to by a single letter.”

“What letter? N.”

Lia’s expression was utterly earnest.

“Therefore, to honor this great man forgotten by history, I hope to use ‘N’ as the unit of force.”

Laplace stared at Lia for a long time, seemingly searching for any hint of deceit on her face.

Yet, Lia’s gaze remained clear and unwavering.

“N…” Laplace murmured, stroking his chin. “A pioneer referred to as ‘N’… interesting, truly interesting!”

Far from displaying any suspicion, he appeared to believe the story implicitly.

“Excellent!” Laplace slapped his thigh, gently erased the ‘L,’ and solemnly inscribed an ‘N’.

“It’s settled then! The unit shall be N! We must not only let the world know the truth but also ensure they understand that, in our pursuit of truth, we never forget the brilliance of those who came before us!”

Gazing at the familiar letter on the blackboard, Lia quietly let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

‘She had finally managed to pull it off.’

***

A week later, the latest issue of ‘Magical Theory’ once again caused a sensation.

Laplace’s paper, ‘On the Measurement Method and Value of the Universal Gravitational Constant,’ was officially published.

The paper meticulously detailed the ingenious design of the torsion balance experiment, presented an unimpeachable process of calculation, and ultimately revealed the world-altering value.

Furthermore, at the conclusion of the paper, Laplace gave prominent and heartfelt thanks to Lia for her ‘Original Theory on the Unification of Celestial and Terrestrial Motion,’ lavishly praising her pivotal, lighthouse-like role in this research.

The impact of this paper was no less significant than that of the Periodic Table of Elements.

If the Periodic Table had restructured the material world, then the determination of the gravitational constant had utterly breached the barrier between the macroscopic cosmos and the tangible world.

For the first time, people realized that the force driving the moon around the world was, in essence, the same force that caused them to fall from a chair.

The study of kinematics had ushered in a completely new epoch.

***

Inside the Mage Tower’s Study.

Lia gazed out the window, her thoughts drifting far away.

‘The Periodic Table, the gravitational constant, the unit of force…’

One by one, the foundational stones had been laid by her own hands.

She felt as though she stood on the threshold of an era, needing only to take one more step forward to push open an entirely new door.

Her gaze returned to the parchment spread open on her desk.

Upon it were the formulas she knew by heart.

And the several descriptive laws and formulas concerning motion that she had initially published.

Now, the world understood the magnitude of gravity, and how objects moved under its influence.

But between force, acceleration, and the mass of an object, what exact relationship did these three truly obey?

Lia picked up her quill and, on a fresh piece of parchment, penned an ultimate equation, one incredibly simple yet imbued with the formidable power to govern all macroscopic motion in the world.