GameDev Reincarnated into His Own Creation

Vol 2 - Chapter 35.1: Solution

"Rewrite?" Vel asked.

"What, are you going to throw them away after each use?"

"Right." Vel raised both hands in mock surrender. "Leave it to the professional."

Konomi stood abruptly, moving to a small chest beneath her bed. After rummaging for a moment, she pulled out a velvet pouch.

She extracted a small crystal the size of an egg. It caught the light, refracting mesmerizing patterns across the room.

"Resonant quartz," she explained, holding it up for Vel to examine.

"What does it do?"

"It relays mana. Say you want to make a magical door that needs mana channeled from a point far from the actual door itself. People use this to relay mana from one location to another."

"Oh... like wiring, but magical."

Konomi smiled at the analogy. "Essentially, yes."

Vel took the crystal carefully, feeling its smooth surface against his fingertips. It seemed to hum with potential, a subtle vibration that resonated with his own mana.

"Let me try the extraction portion of the spell," he said, focusing his concentration on the sigil he'd designed.

He channeled a small amount of mana into the crystal while reciting the partial incantation he'd developed: "Visona Revelum Essenti."

The crystal began to glow with a soft blue light, absorbing the magical energy. For a moment, it seemed to be working—the light pulsed in rhythm with Vel's heartbeat. Then, without warning, a hairline fracture appeared across its surface.

"Wait, I think it's—"

The crack spread rapidly, branching out like lightning across the crystal's surface before it shattered with a soft pop. Fragments scattered across the table, the magical energy dissipating in tiny sparks.

"Well, that didn't work," Konomi said matter-of-factly. She swept the broken pieces into her palm and dumped them unceremoniously into a nearby trash bin.

Vel stared at her in shock. "That seemed... valuable."

Konomi shrugged, already turning back to her notes. "The experiment I wanted to use it for didn't work. It was collecting dust anyway."

She turned back to the chest, tapping her finger against the wooden edge while peering at the contents inside.

"The quartz alone is too fragile," she murmured. "If the mana flows too fast, it'll shatter like that one did."

Her hand hovered over various vials and pouches. "We need to reinforce it somehow. An alchemical coating, maybe. Or find the right material to support its structure."

Her eyes lit up suddenly. "Let's head to the laboratory. I have access after hours for my research project. We could work on this properly there."

"Celia, you coming?" Vel asked, turning around.

To his surprise, Celia was already fast asleep on her bed, still in her uniform. Her breathing was deep and even, one arm draped over her face.

Vel glanced back at Celia's sleeping form. Her face was relaxed, peaceful in a way he rarely saw when she was awake. Dark lashes rested against her cheeks, and a strand of hair had fallen across her forehead.

Her uniform skirt had ridden up considerably, revealing most of her legs.

Vel's face heated. He quickly averted his eyes, focusing intently on gathering his notes instead. Don't look. Just don't look.

Something tightened in his chest—a feeling both warm and distinctly uncomfortable.

"We should let her rest," he whispered, moving toward the door.

Konomi nodded, retrieving a small satchel from her desk. "I'll leave her a note so she doesn't worry."

At the lab, Konomi began pulling various bottles from her shelf, explaining each component as she measured them. Vel watched closely, adapting his extraction sigil design on a spare parchment while Konomi worked.

"This essence of moonsilver will improve the reception," she explained, carefully adding three drops to a bubbling solution. "And the powdered stone prevents the reading from degrading too quickly."

For the next hour, the room filled with the scent of alchemical reagents and the soft glow of experimental sigils. Vel tested small elements of his spell while Konomi mixed compounds, occasionally asking him to channel a tiny amount of mana into the crystal to test its receptivity.

When a particular combination caused the crystal to glow with a steady blue light, they both leaned forward eagerly.

"That's it!" Konomi whispered excitedly. "It's holding!"

"This might actually work," Konomi said as she carefully applied a final layer to the crystal. "The binding agents need about a day to set properly, but then it should be able to hold a magical signature for several hours before fading."

"Thank you, Konomi. This is brilliant," Vel said, carefully placing the crystal into a small leather pouch. The weight of it felt reassuring in his palm—a physical manifestation of progress.

"It's not the most elegant solution," he admitted, patting the pouch. "But it's the perfect solution, no pun intended."

Konomi smiled at the joke, her blue hair catching the laboratory's amber light as she began tidying up her workstation. "Come back in a few days. I might even come up with something better." She took the crystal from him and stored it in a small wooden box lined with velvet. "The binding agents need time to properly set."

Vel glanced at the time on his interface, surprised to see how late it had grown.

"You participating too, Konomi?" Vel asked, helping her cork a few bottles of reagents.

"Doesn't everyone?" She replied with a small shrug, carefully labeling the mixture they'd created. "It's practically mandatory if you want to maintain decent grades. I'm with two other alchemists from my specialized class."

She glanced up at him. "We're in objective matches, though. So you don't have to worry about facing me."

"What's your strategy?" Vel asked.

Konomi adjusted her glasses with a mysterious smile. "Let's just say we have a few volatile surprises prepared. It's better if we all keep our tactics to ourselves until the matches begin, don't you think?"

Vel nodded, understanding the sentiment. "Fair enough. I should head back before curfew."