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墨書 Inktalez
The two of them drank, or rather, Norman drank while Newton sipped water, but they both consumed their drinks rather quickly until they could no longer continue.
"Shall we go?"
Norman said, clearly unable to drink any more. Newton felt the same way; sometimes drinking water could be more uncomfortable than alcohol. After all, if you overindulged in alcohol, throwing up would make you feel better, but vomiting water was simply not an option.
"Alright."
So even though Newton was not drinking alcohol, he felt as if he were on the verge of death. He even thought that if he continued drinking, he might suffer from water intoxication. Thus, he had no objections to Norman's suggestion.
The two quickly made their way toward what was referred to as the residential area. However, the buildings there were much like the taverns—just a few wooden planks haphazardly put together. Upon entering, Newton realized that this was not a place for potion-making; it resembled an ordinary residence. It made sense; although they had reached an agreement, Norman could not simply trust Newton so easily. Plus, being drunk, he couldn't take Newton to a potion-making facility—what if everything Newton said was a lie?
Newton did not sleep but instead began to survey the room. Although drinking so much water was uncomfortable, he found himself more curious about his surroundings. The place did not appear overly chaotic but was indeed quite dirty; stains on the walls emitted an unpleasant odor. Yet despite the disarray, Newton's keen eye detected what seemed like a hidden path amidst the chaos. He refrained from showing too much curiosity; after all, he was in someone else's territory. Who knew if Norman was truly asleep? What if he was merely testing him? Or what if he touched something he shouldn't have? Since Norman had gone to such lengths to conceal things, it must mean that whatever it was held significant importance. Nevertheless, Newton committed that hidden path to memory and continued examining other items.
Aside from that intriguing path, the only other thing that caught Newton's interest in the room was a few books on a shelf. Most of them were related to Alchemy; these should be the books that Norman promised to give him.
Newton casually picked one up and began flipping through its pages. To his surprise, despite being from different continents and countries, the language and script were identical—quite remarkable.
The knowledge contained in the book pertained mostly to basic or ordinary Alchemy principles. However, it differed significantly from Newton's understanding of Alchemy and bore many similarities to Ishgar's practices. It dawned on him that perhaps magic in these two worlds shared a common origin and had diverged over time into different forms. Thus, for Newton, these texts held little significance; while some ideas could be useful references, what truly attracted him were the formulas absent from his own continent.
Unfortunately, most of the content in this book consisted of rather mundane or beginner-level exercises—like toys that could move freely or potions for treating colds and fevers—nothing particularly groundbreaking. However, some sections introduced local plants or mineral specialties piqued Newton's interest for harvesting purposes; at least he wouldn't have to experiment with properties himself. Although there was no guarantee that everything written in the book was accurate, most foundational materials used for teaching should be reliable enough. If any peculiarities arose later on, he would only need minimal experimentation.
Despite having several books at his disposal, Newton read quickly since there wasn't much requiring deep analysis. However, one particular book took him quite some time—it was a Historical Records volume. This collection included not only information about Alchemy but also aspects related to magic and historical geography—seemingly akin to a student's foundational textbook.
Time slipped away unnoticed as Newton immersed himself in his reading.
"Do you really enjoy reading?"
Norman woke up, the effects of his hangover making him appear somewhat haggard. He rubbed his forehead, looking weak overall.
"Yes, I do."
Newton nodded. After such a long period of reading, even his mind felt a bit fatigued. Although he couldn't tell whether it was day or night in the underground setting, he was quite adept at keeping track of time due to the precision required for his experiments. He calculated that only two or three hours had passed.
"Why don't you sleep a little longer? It's barely been three hours."
"I want to sleep, but I'm a bit thirsty. I’ll get up and drink some water."
Norman's mind seemed still a bit foggy. Those who have drunk know that the taste of alcohol can be unpleasant, and the hangover that follows makes it even worse.
"By the way, if you feel tired later, just find a place to sleep. You don’t have much with you, right? If you do, I can put it away for you."
Newton shook his head.
"I'm all alone here. It's fine; you should go back to sleep."
Norman nodded, took a sip of water, and then went back to sleep.
Newton placed the book on his lap and learned from its pages that the magic in this country was highly developed. Not only was their strength superior to that of his homeland, but their education in magic was also far more systematic. In Ishgar, magic was primarily taught through apprenticeship or self-awakening, whereas here, even ordinary people received formal education in magic. This difference resulted in a significantly larger number of Mages compared to Ishgar.
Moreover, there were no Guilds or Magic Councils here; the strongest individual was the Emperor. The textbooks for students naturally did not contain detailed information about the Emperor, focusing instead on glorifying him. However, what caught Newton's attention was that this Emperor seemed to have never been replaced; it felt as though he had occupied the throne for several hundred years without any heirs.
“Jelf…”
The name immediately came to Newton's mind, but the Emperor's name was Splivien.
“Could he be another person like Jelf? If that's the case, this world is a bit too terrifying.”
The Twelve Shields under the Emperor changed frequently, but two individuals had remained constant: one named Oghast and the other Eileen Belsalion. These two had served alongside Splivien since he ascended to the throne and were known as the Empire's Twin Pillars. That was inconsequential, but one of their names made Newton feel uneasy—God's Selene. This name was all too familiar to those from Ishgar; he ranked first among the Ishgar Four Kings, standing leagues apart from the other three. The fact that he wasn't even the strongest among the remaining twelve was alarming.
Newton let out a long sigh; the upcoming battle would not be easy. If war truly broke out between both sides, his side would likely be crushed. Then he thought of something—Paradise Tower or Spirit Magic Power capable of destroying Paradise Tower, along with Fiss. These two were undoubtedly weapons capable of devastating the continent. Perhaps this was why his side dared to challenge them. Newton felt a sense of relief that they hadn't recklessly destroyed Fiss back then. After the Underworld Gate incident, Erza and others had asked whether they should destroy Fiss, but Vorged and several other kings disagreed with such an approach. At that time, Newton had been curious about their reasoning, but now it seemed they were considering the well-being of the continent.
“Looking at it this way, we do have some power to retaliate…”
Newton tossed the book aside, having gained a general understanding of the situation. Now he needed to consider how to approach the palace and investigate what had happened with Makarov and the robots he had sent over.
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