Chapter 28: Endless Studies and Work
If a composite rune was merely the overlapping projections of two different runes, then there would be an infinite number of solutions. Fortunately, when Saul revisited Introduction to Rune Construction, he discovered some fundamental constraints he had previously overlooked.
With these constraints in place, he was finally able to determine the three-dimensional structure of the composite rune.
The planes on which the two runes existed intersected in three-dimensional space. Since they were of equal size, the distribution of magical energy should also be equal.
If he simply allocated magical energy based on their perceived size proportions, failure was inevitable.
Holding up his freshly drawn three-dimensional diagram, Saul closed his eyes and began constructing it within his mental space.
An hour later, his eyes snapped open, filled with excitement.
"Yes! I did it!"
But then, a wave of exhaustion nearly sent him collapsing to the ground.
Had constructing a single composite rune drained all his magical energy?
How was he supposed to cast even a Tier-0 spell now?
Panic surged within him. Was his magical talent so poor that it couldn’t even support the simplest of spells?
"Calm down, calm down. This was my first time constructing a composite rune—it's likely that I wasted a lot of energy on unnecessary steps."
Unfortunately, with his magic depleted, he couldn’t attempt a second construction immediately. Instead, he pulled out his crystal ball and began meditating.
The bright candlelight startled Saul from his meditation.
He turned his head and sighed. "Time to work."
Getting interrupted while studying was always painful, but this job was the foundation of his efforts to change his fate.
The conveyor belt hummed as a new corpse emerged through the beaded curtain before him.
To ease his fear and stress, Saul had taken to referring to the bodies as "guests"—much like someone humming a tune when walking home alone at night.
"Hmm, this guest died rather miserably."
Calling it a corpse was generous—it was more of a pile of mangled flesh, with bone fragments mixed in with shredded meat and organs.
A large, four-cornered piece of leather had been placed underneath to prevent it from spilling everywhere.
Saul selected a pair of forceps from the array of tools behind him.
Looking closely, he noticed countless tiny glimmers scattered throughout the flesh. The glow was faint, indicating the materials weren’t of high value—discarding them wouldn’t be a big deal.
Suppressing his discomfort, he carefully sifted through the remains.
To his surprise, the shimmering particles weren’t fragments of the body but rather tiny specks of dust.
Switching to a smaller pair of tweezers, he extracted a few slightly larger white granules.
Despite being buried in blood and flesh, these granules remained pure white, unstained.
After a long while of painstaking collection—his back aching from bending over—Saul managed to gather a small handful. He set aside a few and carefully wrapped the rest in parchment, storing them in a small box on the long table behind him.
As for the remaining body parts, Saul grabbed the leather underneath and dumped everything into the large container below, sealing the lid.
The container seemed to have an odor-isolating function, as the room's bloody stench instantly diminished.
The candle at the transport portal remained bright.
More work to do.
Saul pulled the lever, watching as the conveyor belt delivered the next guest.
This time, it was a little girl, no older than five or six.
Saul hesitated, feeling an unease in his heart.
How could there be such a young child in the wizard’s tower?
He had never heard of wizards getting married and having children here.
But death was always impartial—it wouldn’t spare anyone just because of sentiment.
Taking a deep breath, Saul steadied his mind and posture. Using a semi-immersive meditation technique, he continued examining the body.
"Something’s off. She’s not a little girl."
Upon closer inspection, Saul made a new discovery.
"Her teeth and bones aren’t those of a child."
Thanks to the knowledge from The Body, Saul had learned to differentiate such things.
"She’s probably an apprentice whose appearance was altered by some magic. But her internal organs and bones are still those of an adult."
Though the realization felt somewhat unfair to the deceased, Saul couldn’t deny a small sense of relief.
He swiftly processed the body, disposing of the remains in the large container.
The candle at the transport portal remained bright.
"Sigh… more work."
The third guest had clearly endured a battle, with numerous sword slashes and axe wounds covering their body. Their skull had even been pierced clean through, allowing Saul to see the black conveyor belt beneath.
Once he was finished, Saul glanced up.
The candle was still lit.
More?
He checked the time—it was already 6:30.
Half an hour wasn’t enough for a thorough examination of an entire corpse.
But he had already submitted enough materials for the day. He could afford to rush this last one.
With a rumbling sound, the final guest appeared on the conveyor belt.
A plump woman.
She had likely died from a curse, as her body was covered in countless cracks.
Yet, not a single drop of blood seeped from them.
Using his meditation technique, Saul examined the cracks closely and noticed countless translucent tongues protruding from within.
Like baby birds awaiting food, the tongues turned toward him, quivering eagerly.
Saul cautiously extended his tweezers, and the tongues shifted toward them, seemingly expecting to be fed.
Goosebumps prickled his skin.
Whatever these tongues were, he had no intention of touching them with his bare hands.
The body was mostly intact—evidently, the apprentices handling the first two processing steps had avoided tampering with it.
Saul turned to grab a longer pair of forceps but then noticed the small pile of white crystals he had collected earlier.
Pinching a tiny crystal with his tweezers, he moved it near the cracks.
This time, the translucent tongues recoiled, retreating into the cracks as if frightened by the crystal.
Moreover, once the tongues withdrew, small flashes of light appeared within the cracks.
"These crystals… do they have the power to repel strange entities?"
Saul pulled back the tweezers, and the tongues reemerged.
Curious, he dropped a grain of crystal into one of the cracks.
"Sss!"
A faint sizzling sound accompanied a wisp of green smoke.
Saul immediately stepped back, holding his breath.
Fortunately, the smoke dissipated quickly, and his hardbook didn’t react.
After waiting a moment, he returned to the body and cut open the crack where the tongues had vanished. Searching inside, he found the crystal had disintegrated into powder—completely used up.
However, within the flickering glow, he managed to extract a small lump of flesh.
"Using crystals to eliminate the tongues yields these lumps of flesh… Well, in that case, I choose—crystals!"
Saul turned back and opened the box where he had stored the crystals.
When he closed the lid again, the small pile of crystals had been replaced by a single, lonely lump of flesh.
At last, the candle at the transport portal dimmed.
Saul tidied up, then looked at the time—7:30.
He couldn’t stay in the East Tower after 8:00.
Quickly grabbing his books and notes, he rushed out of the morgue.
"Huh?"
A shadow loomed in his path, nearly colliding with him.
But the figure stepped back just in time, causing Saul to stumble forward instead.
"Sorry!" Saul apologized and tried to leave, but after a few steps, he hesitated and turned around.
"Are you the senior apprentice in charge of the first morgue?"
The man had grayish-white hair, though his skin showed no wrinkles.
His drooping eyelids gave him a drowsy, indifferent expression.
"Mm." The senior apprentice seemed to have little interest in conversation, simply grunting before attempting to walk past Saul.
"Hm?"
As he passed, his half-lidded eyes flicked toward Saul’s hand.
"Hmm…"
He lifted a finger and pointed at the diagram in Saul’s grasp.
Saul looked down—he was still clutching his three-dimensional composite rune blueprint.
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