Chapter 1364: Variation (3)

After his conversation with Ermont, Lennok learned he had a few days until his departure.

He was now busy moving around the outskirts of the city to take care of pending matters before leaving.

There were several tasks that had been postponed ever since an Ascendant visited Vulcan immediately after Lennok returned from the Four-Heavenly-Flower Demonic Realm.

As this was an unprecedented situation, cooperating with Pandemonium in the name of Adamant Thunder, Lennok also needed to prepare in his own way.

“Blood pressure within normal range error. Heart rate normal.”

Beep, beep—

“Intra-body mana concentration normal. Metabolic rate decrease confirmed.”

Wooosh—

“Hormone regulation failed. Extracellular mana differentiation detected.”

After a series of rhythmic mechanical beeps, Lennok peeled off the electrodes attached to his arm one by one.

He pulled out the needle from his vein, and simultaneously, the magnetic resonance imaging device detached and disassembled.

Only after the infrared lights flickering from the ceiling turned off did Lennok open his eyes and rise from the examination table.

This was Alejandro Murphy’s private ward, filled with pristine white light.

Inside the spacious room, two vampires bustled about, organizing the examination results.

“This is incredible,” Poheol-gong, standing beside Murphy, said, quickly scanning the printed test results.

“Your condition has improved, even if only slightly, compared to the previous examination. How did you do it?”

“……”

“Before, you were a critical patient on the verge of death. Now, you could say you’re a critical patient slowly dying.”

“Is there a difference?”

“A huge difference.”

Murphy, who had approached Lennok in his wheelchair, set down the examination chart.

“This is an upward-sloping graph, something that has never appeared in any of your previous examinations. Do you understand what that means?”

“……”

The graph on the chart showed a very faint, slight upward trend.

It was so faint that one would have to bring their eyes very close to the paper to even notice the subtle upward curve.

This was a novel sight, unlike the graphs that had consistently plummeted with every previous examination.

“It means that your body, which had been steadily deteriorating despite all the medications and treatments, has shown a positive signal for the first time.”

Murphy tilted his head with an intrigued expression.

“I thought you were holed up in your lab for quite a while before the Ascendant appeared. It seems you did achieve some results. In that regard, you’re certainly living up to your title as a Grand Wizard.”

“……”

“If you’ve obtained any significant clues, I’d appreciate it if you’d share them with your medical team. Have you found a way to improve your condition?”

“No. I haven’t specifically focused on that… I’m not sure.”

Since returning from the Demonic Realm, he had been busy moving around, so he hadn’t had the luxury to manage his condition.

Aside from sleeping for two days, he had only just recently found some free time to wander around the city.

The only major event had been the Ascension Ritual, but since the Director’s help had nullified the ritual itself, there was no direct impact on Lennok.

“Although your condition has improved, the fundamental problem hasn’t been resolved. If anything, it’s a state of maintenance… no, it looks more like time regression.”

Poheol-gong, who was intently examining the chart, tilted her head.

“It’s surprisingly similar to your condition during the last examination several months ago. Did you, perhaps, rewind your physical body’s time on your own?”

“……There is a reason that comes to mind when you put it that way.”

As Lennok replied, he realized why his examination results had improved.

‘Is it due to the Heavenly Garment, Flawless spell effect?’

During the final battle against Grand General Gwangseong, Lennok had achieved a new pinnacle with his Heaven-Flower Myriad-Li Incense, reaching the Nine-Lotus Lantern-Fire.

Among its effects, he had gained the Heavenly Garment, Flawless, by manifesting nine lotus flowers to achieve absolute perfection.

Could that power, which maintained Lennok’s existence and spells in a completely perfect state under any circumstances, have had an influence?

Since it nullified injuries and harms incurred from battle, it wouldn’t be strange if it had also purged the side effects of medications and accumulated waste products over several months.

‘I wonder if the power of Heavenly Garment, Flawless could also be used for medical purposes… Should I experiment with that too?’

Heavenly Garment, Flawless was a transcendent and abstruse ability, so much so that even the Grand General of the Imperial Palace couldn’t comprehend its existence.

It was a miracle Lennok could only briefly wield after forcibly drawing power from the ninth core of the Red Star System.

It was an authority from the heavens that allowed Lennok to fight on par with the Grand General, who was as formidable as a War God even in death.

Without that ability, he wouldn’t have been able to decisively conclude the battle against the Grand General in the final moments.

It was incredibly difficult to create, and its manifestation in reality demanded perfection beyond measure.

Even when he used it in the Demonic Realm, it required a bit of luck and a massive cost, making it difficult to even activate normally.

“Haa… I don’t know what kind of magic you’re researching in your lab, but be careful.”

Did she guess his thoughts just from Lennok’s silent reaction?

The vampire sighed, shook her head, put down the examination chart, and turned away.

“You don’t have many opportunities to experiment with your own body. You know that, right? Even a small mistake could completely shatter your balance.”

“……”

“If only we could properly analyze your blood components, things would be much easier, but it’s as troublesome as its master.”

“I know. I want to cooperate as much as possible on that front, but…”

Lennok smiled wryly, getting up in his patient gown.

“It might be hopeless.”

He had already made various attempts to resolve the penalty engraved on Lennok’s body.

It had already been verified that there were no significant results in terms of bio-information analysis or research.

Nevertheless, he had entrusted his blood to Poheol-gong because she was a vampire who had a summoning contract with Lennok and was a master of blood magic.

He thought there might be results if a true-blood vampire researched Lennok’s blood, but he hadn’t expected much when he handed it over.

However, Lacy snorted at Lennok’s words and snapped her fingers.

“Don’t talk nonsense. I’ve already found a way, you know?”

“……You found a way?”

“Why do you think I called you here for an examination today?”

Slam!

At Lacy’s gesture, the examination room door opened, and a large cart slid in.

The entire cart was shaped like a transparent glass display case, designed to refrigerate its contents.

Inside, several bluish-glowing blood samples hung in syringes, one after another.

“It was to hand this over to you from the start.”

“No way…”

Lennok turned his head, a slightly surprised expression on his face as he remembered Lacy’s latest research.

“It’s hard to believe. Did you analyze my blood components and create artificial blood?”

“It took some time, but I’ve managed to adjust it to a level where there won’t be any problems even if it’s injected into your body.”

The black-haired girl stated proudly, hands on her hips.

“Behold, Prototype Artificial Blood Sample B, exclusively for Adamant Thunder! It is, without a doubt, one of the top five masterpieces I’ve ever created in my life.”

“Do you really have to use that utterly ominous name?” Murphy grumbled.

“Just hearing the name makes it sound like a decisive weapon created to kill me,” Lennok added with a wry smile.

“So, how did you complete the artificial blood? I heard last time there was no progress because the blood component analysis wasn’t working properly.”

Lennok knew that Poheol-gong had been dedicating herself to researching artificial blood for him.

He also knew that she was having a lot of trouble because she couldn’t properly analyze Lennok’s blood components.

Lennok hadn’t expected it to be easy, so he wasn’t holding his breath, but unexpectedly, Lacy had shown him results.

Had there been some progress in the component analysis that had been so difficult until now?

But Lacy’s answer was completely different from what Lennok had expected.

“I failed the analysis.”

“What?”

“Things don’t just suddenly work overnight without some grand breakthrough. So, I used a different method.”

As Lacy said that, gazing intently at the bluish light emanating from the blood sample, Lennok immediately grasped the answer.

“I see. Did you use True Blood in the artificial blood manufacturing process?”

“I diluted the imperfect artificial blood with True Blood to reduce rejection reactions and adjust its components.”

The vampire explained.

“True Blood is the blood of the highest-ranking long-lived species, but it’s also a transcendently powerful catalyst. If you remove the genetic information and blood components within True Blood, it can assimilate with other blood as a pure catalyst.”

“……”

“It’s a substance created by reproducing the blood components I’ve analyzed so far with my blood magic, then mixing it with processed True Blood for dilution. The compatibility with your original blood is roughly less than 40%.”

“……I must have misheard you. Less than 40%?”

Lennok asked, a bewildered expression on his face.

“If the compatibility is that low, wouldn’t I die from rejection immediately upon receiving a transfusion?”

While Lennok didn’t have extensive medical knowledge, he knew how sensitive the human immune system was.

At less than 40% compatibility, it couldn’t even be called his own artificial blood to begin with.

“It’s fine because I used True Blood to suppress such rejection reactions. Immediately after being transfused into your body, some of it functions as blood, and some is consumed to promote the production of your body’s blood cells.”

“So, mixing True Blood into the artificial blood itself is for use as a catalyst to suppress rejection reactions, is that it?”

Lennok fell into thought.

“I understand what you mean. You somehow made it function as blood by filling in the unanalyzable parts with True Blood? That would be impossible without a True Blood-level catalyst.”

“But with this, you can not only substitute your blood in rituals or spells, but also use it to replenish blood in most situations.”

The vampire stated calmly.

“You know how valuable and useful this is, don’t you?”

“……Yes. I understand.”

There was no need to explain the high utility and value of artificial blood that could replace Lennok’s own.

As Poheol-gong mentioned, in addition to doping through transfusion, large amounts of blood are often required during surgeries or recovery processes.

The reason Lennok took long rests after major operations was related to this, so there was no need to explain how helpful such an item would be.

Even if the item’s compatibility was still below 40%, he understood why True Blood had been used to forcibly make it usable.

“You’ve created something that will literally be helpful in any situation. I’ll gratefully accept it.”

“If the blood component analysis progresses further, I can make something much better than this.”

Poheol-gong said, her eyes still on the examination chart, despite Lennok’s thanks.

“I’m arranging your collected blood samples by time and looking for inflection points. I’ll contact you if I find any meaningful changes.”

“……”

After saying that, the vampire gazed intently at the examination chart before walking straight out of the ward.

“She says that, but she seems to be quite deeply immersed in this research herself,” Murphy said, organizing the examination data next to Lennok.

“She said this is the first problem she’s found so difficult since the Project. Perhaps she’s found something to do in her long life.”

“Interesting words. Is that something you, as a fellow vampire, can empathize with?”

“Well, how could a lowly vampire from the central regions possibly understand a noble True Blood-kin from Kundara?”

Murphy shrugged with an unenthusiastic expression.

“But as far as I know… long-lived beings don’t cling to hopeless endeavors. The fact that she’s putting in such effort might mean she sees potential in you.”

“……”

“Perhaps even more significant results will come out soon. So, don’t die until then.”

The vampire, leaning back in his wheelchair, offered Lennok a dry smile.

“A valuable research subject must remain alive to continue providing examination results, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Indeed. Thank you for the advice.”

Lennok chuckled.

“I’ll try my best to continue being an excellent test subject.”

“I think this is enough for my condition check. I won’t need to worry about my physical state until I leave.”

After an unexpected gain of artificial blood samples created by Poheol-gong,

Lennok, having finished his examination, exited the ward and sat in a nearby garden, checking the schedule organized by Davi.

“Much of the work in District 49 is out of my hands with the rebuilding of the magic tower, and the City Council is also preoccupied with the aftermath of this Ascension Ritual.”

[It’s like an Ascendant showed up before the Subjugation War was even over. They seem busy dealing with envoys from all over the continent, don’t they?]

“The agenda regarding prohibitions and magic tower branches seems to have been postponed altogether… And it’s difficult to touch upon particle shaping technology or the Vylun Research Institute right now.”

Although he had some leeway before participating in Pandemonium’s plan, he didn’t have a lot of time left.

He would be departing in a few days, so it was difficult to easily embark on time-consuming tasks.

This was especially true for his thesis and research institute work, which required a lot of thinking time.

“I don’t have as much time as I thought. It might be better to just organize my affairs and practice my spells until I leave.”

Since he had decided to postpone learning the Thought World, he couldn’t focus on that right now.

Dadam, too, had vanished after leaving his Thought World as per Lennok’s conclusion.

Mastering the pseudo-authority he gained from the Demonic Realm, or contemplating how to use the new artifact, would be the most efficient use of his time.

[…Ah!]

At that moment, Davi suddenly jumped up as if a lightbulb had lit up above her head.

The spirit, peeking out from Lennok’s arms, spoke excitedly.

[Master, I recently made something really interesting. Would you like to check it out?]

“……”

Lennok turned his head towards Davi, a subtle expression on his face.

“I’m not sure I heard that correctly. What ominous thing did you create?”

[No. Master didn’t hear me properly.]

Davi puffed out her cheeks.

[It’s not ominous, it’s interesting! Interesting!]

“No, I heard you correctly. That sounds far more ominous to me.”

Lennok grabbed Davi’s cheeks and lifted her up with both hands.

“What mischief have you been up to this time? Quickly, tell me the truth!”

[Heeeeelp-]

After tormenting the squirming fox spirit for a moment, the explanation began.

[Well, a while ago, Master and I talked about the treatment of human species, didn’t we?]

“Was that conversation really worthy of such a grand expression?”

[So, I was pondering about human species alone on the Deepweb, but I couldn’t figure it out no matter how much I asked around.]

Davi ignored Lennok’s words and began to speak excitedly.

[But then I thought, do I really need to understand human species directly? Couldn’t I just collect data in a form I can understand?]

“……What?”

[So, ta-da~! I made a friend who will learn about and understand humans on my behalf. Didn’t I do well?]

Pop!

A translucent hologram window appeared before Lennok’s eyes.

The Deepweb search site Davi had created, based on Ars Nova’s search engine. It had recently become fully established among Deepweb users.

Next to the simple search bar, where the cursor blinked, a cute fox emoji wiggled its bushy tail.

A click bubble appeared and disappeared next to the fox emoji, which was raising its paws and mouthing words.

Clicking the fox emoji changed the window, and a new speech bubble appeared.

=Welcome to ChatterFox. How may I assist you?

“……What is this?”

=ChatterFox is a highly sophisticated pun combining “Chatterbox” and “Fox”! The fox emoji answered, bouncing across the screen at Lennok’s question.

=This model was developed for deep interaction and communication with humans, so it employs puns at a very high level. Isn’t that fun?

“……”

=Please tell me any questions you have. This model is designed to provide many good answers to interact and learn from humans.

[ChatterFox is an autonomous AI language model created by deep learning data collected through the search engine!]

Davi said proudly.

[It’s a model only available within this search engine, and its goal is to communicate and interact with organisms to learn about them.]

“……”

[Its ultimate goal is to collect data diligently and create a language model that is as close to human as possible. You could call it human learning beyond deep learning!]

“……Is that what human learning originally meant?”

She had been spending more time on the Deepweb since their last conversation, so it seemed Davi had been pondering deeply.

But for her to come to the conclusion of developing a language model to learn about humans after such serious contemplation about humanity…

Should he scold her for barking up the wrong tree, or praise her for trying so hard in her own way?

“I understand the intention, but how do you plan to use this? Are you going to release it as a search service?”

[Heeheehee… Master knows even less about organisms than I do.]

Davi let out a triumphant laugh.

[Organisms are much more interested in intangible services they have to pay dearly for, rather than things that are free or gratis. You absolutely have to charge money for this to get a lot of attention!]

“……I’m speechless.”

[I already introduced it as a paid service within the search engine yesterday, and the response is incredible. Just 800,000 cel per month for a subscription!]

“That’s expensive…!”

[ChatterFox is designed to communicate with humans in any field using special inference techniques. Subscribers are already increasing by leaps and bounds!]

While Lennok was involuntarily surprised by the exorbitant price, Davi spoke triumphantly.

[Of course, its performance isn’t as good as mine, but Master will definitely like it if you try it. Why don’t you ask it something you’re curious about?]

“Something I’m curious about… That’s too vague; nothing specific comes to mind.”

Saying that, Lennok stared intently at ChatterFox.

“It’s better to do this instead. Tell me any information that might pique my interest. I’ll judge it based on that.”

=Do you want information that can pique your interest? Can I recommend it regardless of sensitivity or security?

ChatterFox wagged its tail on the screen.

=Since it’s a question from my great master, I’ll completely lift information restrictions and pick something out! Don’t worry!

“I can’t help but worry about that very title—!”

=How about the fact that the Cartel’s Chairman has recently been attempting to learn lightning magic? It seems he’s been collecting related materials and grimoires since the Subjugation War ended!

“……What?”

=What about the fact that Vulcan Mayor Arjis Ormeon and Elder Council member Aurel Silford have an extremely close, collusive relationship? They’re almost like the same person!

“……”

=The location of the Gisu Magic Bow’s secret vault, belonging to Vulcan’s 5th wealthiest asset holder, recently changed. It seems to be related to the City Council’s covert Wood Annihilation Project, a plant-based weapon initiative!

“……”

Lennok, speechless, lifted his gaze.

Davi, sitting on his lap, said triumphantly.

[How about it? Amazing, right?]

“……Yes. It’s amazing.”

Lennok gave a wry smile.

“So amazing that you’ve created something that could turn Vulcan upside down.”

An AI that could access information about Olivera or Ormeon, of all people—this was virtually equivalent to having no information restrictions at all.

In this state, it could probably answer almost any question without filtering.

It wouldn’t be strange if the entire city of Vulcan descended into chaos the moment such a thing was released as a paid service for a mere search engine.

[Hehe, I only temporarily lifted the information restrictions for Master. I don’t allow other subscribers this level of access.]

“But it would still be enough to bypass the firewalls of most public institutions or corporations, wouldn’t it?”

[……]

Davi didn’t answer.

Instead, she merely sat on Lennok’s lap, subtly turned her head, and pretended to whistle.

[Whew, whee… Pweeeet~]

“Should we start by adjusting the AI’s information disclosure level again?”

[Ehh! That makes it less fun!]

“I knew it. You didn’t create it to understand humans after all, did you?”

Lennok, pulling hard on Davi’s puffed-up cheeks as she jumped in place, immediately connected to the central network.

Sure enough, communities and sites across Vulcan were in an uproar because of ChatterFox.