At the end of the Month of Scorching Wind (August), in the civilian district of Renstadt …
After his parents went to work in the seafood company and the workshop, Longman stayed at home and read the books that he had bought recently. In his heart, he thanked the God of Truth and the arcanists.
Ever since the evil Church of Radicals was banished by the Congress of Magic and replaced by the moderates, the previously expensive books became much cheaper. Even a child from a civilian family like himself could buy one or two books every few months with the support of his parents. It was an unimaginable luxury in the past. For someone who loved books as much as his life, he felt that the sunlight was both bright and warm.
From 'Arcana Voice', Longman learned that papermaking had been invented hundreds of years ago. After long-term improvements, the price of papermaking had dropped to the point that one could buy a stack of books with one copper Fer. The same applied to printing. However, in order to monopolize knowledge and communication with the Lord, the Church of Radicals blocked the printing technology and encouraged handwritten copies. As a result, the price of books could not be lowered at all. Except for nobles and big merchants, it was rather difficult for the common people to learn words and knowledge. Thankfully, the Congress of Magic secretly spread the knowledge, and the average knowledge level in Renstadt reached the qualified standard.
But now, times had changed. Although knowledge was precious, it was not beyond the limits of necessity, because the alchemical workshops and the grand nobles were in desperate need of laborers with basic knowledge.
Looking through the book, Longman found that it was a book about common creatures in the natural world, accompanied by vivid illustrations. Longman, who learned some words from his father, read it with great interest. His father climbed up from the bottom and became a middle-level manager of a seafood company. After that, he was taught how to read and learn about fishing.
"Gnolls, Kobolds, Goblins, Giants, Barbarians, Dudu Birds …" Reading the book, Longman felt as if he was in the midst of colorful nature. He saw different creatures with different appearances. They had similarities, but they also had different characteristics. It was fascinating. "The money I saved for months to buy this book is totally worth it!"
Dum, dum, dum. The knocking on the door woke Longman up from the ocean of knowledge.
"Who is it?" He asked aloud and stood straight. He suddenly felt nervous. He was a child at home. If it was a bandit, a thief, or a cruel 'night watcher' described by 'Arcana Voice' …
Knock, knock, knock. A man's voice rang out amidst the knocking. "Open the door. I'm a postman from the Royal Mail. There's a letter for you!"
Longman was immediately relieved. He secretly mocked himself for hearing too many horror stories in "Arcana Voice" and being scared even during the day. Didn't bandits, thieves, and night watchers only appear at night?
Opening the door, Longman saw a young man with a kind smile. He was wearing dark green clothes, carrying a heavy package and holding two letters in his hands.
"Your letter." The postman said with a smile.
Longman accepted the letter. The first thing he saw was the delicate stamps on the envelope. They were the first batch of stamps issued by the kingdom. The portraits of Her Majesty and Mr. Evans were printed on them respectively, representing different amounts of money.
"The stamps are so beautiful. I need to cut them for my collection …" Longman thought subconsciously. Then, he read the sender, only to discover that it was from his aunt who married him in the Paphos County. He was immediately overjoyed. His aunt loved him most before they got married. However, his uncle lived in the capital of the Paphos County. Although it was only a few hours away from Renstadt by magic steam train, communication was difficult. It was not easy to find reliable friends or merchants who were willing to deliver letters. Also, it was rather expensive. There was only one letter back and forth every year. They had almost lost contact with each other.
But now, everything was different. Longman looked at the denomination of the stamp on the cover and realized that he could afford one letter a month with his pocket money.
Thank God, thank Her Majesty, thank Mr. Evans, thank Prime Minister Russell, and thank the Royal Mail. He drew a cross on his chest and looked at the second letter. His eyes immediately widened. "An admission letter? The first generic school in Renstadt? "
Huh? Ah! I've been admitted!
Longman only felt a huge surge of joy in his heart, as if something had exploded inside. He kept thanking the postman, his eyes blurred.
Because the experiment had just begun, the royal family and the Congress of Magic had only established two generic schools in Renstadt, named after the first and the second. Therefore, when the civilians could afford the tuition, too many people wanted to enter the two schools. One in a hundred people might not be lucky enough to be admitted!
Fortunately, Her Majesty the Queen had set up a fair recruitment method — the "Unified Entrance Examination", which gave him room to perform.
"I can really learn and understand arcana and magic now …" Longman stood where he was in a daze. Too many thoughts were rolling in his head that he could not calm down at all.
"Please sign for verification. Leave your fingerprint if you don't know how to write." The postman had delivered a lot of such "admission letters" today and was already used to it.
Longman was finally back to himself. He took over the fountain pen in the postman's hand, which was said to be made available to the public. Then, he signed his name solemnly on the receipt.
"Thank you, uncle. You've brought me a great surprise." When he returned the fountain pen to the postman, Longman thanked him sincerely.
The postman chuckled. "I'm in a good mood, too, sensing your happiness. After I save enough money, I want to go to the generic school, too. Chances are that we'll be schoolmates in the future."
Blushing, Longman said, "May the Lord bless your wish. Uncle, is it tiring to be a postman? You carry a lot of letters and parcels every day. "
The postman smiled. "It is, but it won't take long. They say that they will give us something called a bicycle."
"A bicycle?" Longman frowned in confusion.
After seeing the postman off, he couldn't wait to open the admission letter. He took out his father's dictionary and read the content on it.
"Common Language, Basics of Mathematics, Overview of History, Introduction to Nature, Common Knowledge of Magic, Basics of Logic, Identification of Coats of Arms, Basic Arcana, Body Tempering … Those are the basic and compulsory courses. Music, Fencing, Painting, Writing, Electromagnetism, Elemental Outline, Psychological Knowledge, Basics of Medicine, Advanced Mathematics, Spells and Symbology, Ancient Magic Language, Politics, Economics … Those are all electives. After the third year of general education, you can choose different basic knowledge according to your situation." Reading the content of the courses and reading the introduction carefully, Longman couldn't help but dream about his future.
"Will I be a clerk, a politician, a musician, a painter, a Knight's squire, a doctor, an arcanist …" Longman knew that he was not very talented in magic and was no different from ordinary people. Therefore, he put arcanists at the bottom of his list.
Before he knew it, it was already dark. His parents returned home and saw the admission letter.
After reading the admission letter, Longman's father nodded. "It's still too early to consider. You won't know what you're good at until you really start learning. Of course, I suggest that you start learning noble etiquette, horsemanship, fencing, music, economics, and fishing in the fourth year. You will be able to become a manager with those knowledge after you enter the seafood company in the future. As for magic, you know very well how talented you are."
Naturally, he hoped that his son could grow up under his protection.
Longman's mother, however, disagreed. "The trend right now is the development of alchemical workshops. Even if Longman is not talented in magic, he should learn more about magic and alchemy. It will be much more awesome if he becomes a manager of an alchemical workshop in the future."
The two of them had a heated discussion on the issue until 'Arcana Voice' began.
Longman, who had been silent the whole time, sat in the square and listened to the content of 'Church of Unveiling'. His heart was in a mess. He was both excited and disappointed.
"… After the exploration of the World of Souls, several legendary sorcerers have confirmed the existence of Mountain Paradise. They also have reason to believe that the God of Truth has fallen asleep and that his power has been stolen by the pope!"
"… Speaking of the pope, I have to mention his real identity. He is actually Viken, the bloody and cruel legendary sorcerer of the ancient Magic Empire. He snuck into the Saint Truth's team and stole the power of the God of Truth when he was asleep …"
"… Viken once trapped a small town for a certain experiment and cut off the food supply, making the people inside brutalize each other. It is said that the cries and screams did not die down until more than half a month later. To this day, a lot of ghosts are still wandering in the town …"
Longman thought in a daze. "The pope is really an ancient sorcerer? There are similar theories before, but there are also other rumors … "
After the programs were broadcasted one after another, Longman gradually got rid of his worries and listened to his favorite program wholeheartedly.
"… The Holt Magic College held the first 'Flying Competition' today. There are competitions of speed, glamour, experts who rely on their own strength, and low-rank sorcerers who are adept at flying staffs …"
Flying Competition? Longman listened to the new program in great interest. It was a news program that introduced the interesting things that happened in the Congress of Magic.
After hearing the interesting things, Longman was suddenly stunned. A voice seemed to be roaring in his heart.
It's true that I'm not talented in magic, but it doesn't mean that I'm not talented in arcana. According to Mr. Evans, as long as one's spiritual power was enough to manipulate simplified alchemical items, they would be able to study arcana! The field of studying the truth of the world was the same as mathematics. The lack of talent in magic was not a barrier!
The voice in his heart gradually became clear and audible.
"My dream is to become an arcanist!"
… …
In the Kingdom of Electromagnetism, Brook had an extra paper next to his hand. It was the paper on electron spin that Sprint and Annick submitted. It gave him great inspiration. When he constructed the wave function of electrons, he didn't seem to have considered the problem.
The quill in his hand did not stop. He found the correct path to construct a new function.
The silver electric currents and the dark magnetic field outside seemed to be seething.
In the Theater of Destruction, the collapsing stars were suddenly frozen. Oliver, who was inside the magic tower, couldn't have been more excited. He seemed to have found the correct wave function of electrons mathematically.
The real world appeared, and his cognitive world began to change …
Lucien, on the other hand, was combining quantum mechanics and the special theory of relativity in his library.
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