The Wizard Has A Biochip

Chapter 28: A sincere compliment from a wizard is really rewarding... hehee, I know! I’m too much.

When I finally reached the familiar metal door adorned with two golden gears, I took a deep breath.

I knocked lightly.

There was no response.

I pushed the door open.

The laboratory was exactly as I remembered it.

However, in the center of the laboratory...

Master Totil was holding an object that resembled a pair of glasses.

Standing beside him was Lina.

She remained upright, waiting for the master’s judgment.

Totil rotated the artifact between his fingers.

He examined every detail.

Then he raised the glasses to eye level.

He remained silent for several seconds.

Finally, he spoke.

—The frame is good.

—The weight distribution is good as well.

He ran a finger over a small rune engraved on the side.

—But here...

He pointed with his fingernail.

—You engraved the amplification rune two-tenths of a millimeter off.

Lina stepped closer.

—Two-tenths...

Totil nodded.

—Very little.

—But enough to increase the user’s magical energy consumption by nearly fifteen percent.

—This connection between the two runes is also a bit too long.

—That creates a slight loss in efficiency.

Lina lowered her head slightly.

—I understand, Master.

Totil handed the glasses back to her.

—Even so... It’s approved.

She looked up.

The dwarf crossed his arms.

—This is already the second functional device you’ve brought me this year.

—The flaws are there.

—But both can be corrected.

—Keep it up.

A subtle smile appeared on Lina’s face.

—Thank you, Master.

I remained silent throughout the entire evaluation.

There was no point in interrupting.

Only after Totil finished speaking did he finally pretend to notice my presence.

He slowly turned his head.

His eyes met mine.

One eyebrow rose.

—Hmm?

He set a small tool down on the workbench.

Then he walked toward me.

He stopped directly in front of me.

—George.

—You finally decided to show up.

—So...

—Did you build anything useful?

—While you were off disappearing...

—Lina has already brought me two different devices.

I looked at Lina.

She was smiling.

It wasn’t an arrogant smile.

But there was a clear air of victory about it.

As if she were saying:

"I got here first."

I smiled back.

At the same time, I noticed something different.

My perception of magical energy had improved tremendously over those months.

I discreetly observed the flow of magical energy surrounding her body.

It was visibly weaker than mine.

Not because Lina was less talented.

Quite the opposite.

She possessed more natural talent than I did.

The difference lay elsewhere.

She had spent almost all of her time building devices.

She had sacrificed part of her meditation practice.

That was why the magical energy she had accumulated was so low.

It made perfect sense.

Building artifacts required time.

Training magic did too.

It was difficult to progress rapidly in both areas at the same time.

I turned my attention back to Master Totil.

I bowed respectfully.

—Master.

—After many tests...

—I finally managed to build a device.

I carefully took the small crystal hidden inside my sleeve.

Before handing it over...

I looked at Lina once again.

I smiled.

As boldly as possible.

Then...

I winked at her.

She immediately narrowed her eyes.

Her smile vanished.

I instantly returned to a serious expression.

Then I handed the crystal to Totil.

—Besides...

—I believe I’m very close to completing all the codes necessary to reach the Second Level of Acolyte.

Totil accepted the crystal.

But before he even began examining it...

His gaze quickly shifted between Lina and me.

For several seconds, he remained completely still.

As though he were comparing something.

Then his eyes returned to me.

He had noticed.

The difference in magical energy between the two of us.

His cold, distant expression subtly changed.

The corners of his mouth lifted.

It was a small smile.

But a genuine one.

—I see...

Without saying another word, he began evaluating the crystal.

He rotated the artifact.

He examined the engravings.

He brought it closer to his eyes with the aid of a small magnifying lens.

He remained completely focused for several minutes.

Finally, he spoke.

—The engraving of the Rupture Rune is a bit uneven.

He pointed to a tiny line.

—Here.

—The depth varies slightly.

—This connection between the Compression Runes could be better aligned.

—The stabilization could also be a little more uniform.

I nodded silently.

Every flaw he pointed out matched exactly the minor imperfections I had deliberately introduced.

Totil continued observing the crystal for a few more moments.

Then...

—Very good.

—The flaws are there.

—But they’re all minor.

—The design is functional.

—Safe.

—And it demonstrates that you’ve properly understood the fundamentals.

He looked directly at me.

—Congratulations, George.

His voice carried a sincerity I had never heard from him before.

—I’m truly pleased.

He cast a brief glance at Lina.

Then looked back at me.

—After Lucas graduated...

—I thought it would take several years before I found another good apprentice.

—In the end...

—I ended up finding two.

Lina quietly let out a relieved sigh upon hearing that.

Totil continued.

—Lina possesses four-star natural talent.

She lowered her head in gratitude.

Then the dwarf turned his eyes to me.

—You...

—Possess only three-star talent.

—Even so...

—You’re one of the best three-star apprentices I’ve ever seen.

—If you’d been born with just a little more luck...

—You probably would have been a full four-star talent.

—What you should do now...

—Is remember exactly how you felt when you successfully created this crystal.

—Engineering isn’t just knowledge.

—It’s also experience.

—The more times you repeat the same process...

—The more natural it will become.

He slid the crystal back toward me.

—Besides...

—This Explosive Fire Crystal can be sold.

—Exchange it for resources.

—Buy more materials.

—Produce more.

—Repeat that cycle.

I took the crystal once more.

—But remember one thing.

—Every device presents different challenges.

—Today, you managed to craft an Explosive Fire Crystal.

—Excellent.

—But if tomorrow you pick up the blueprint for a much more complex mechanism...

—You’ll probably go right back to being a complete novice.

That was true.

Knowing one design didn’t mean mastering all of engineering, fortunately, that logic didn’t apply to me.

—Therefore...

—Don’t become arrogant.

—From now on...

—Focus on perfecting your Explosive Fire Crystals.

—Earn resources from them.

—Then move on to larger projects.

—Yes, Master.

—That’s exactly what I’ll do.

Totil nodded in satisfaction.

Immediately afterward, he clapped his hands once.

The sound echoed throughout the laboratory.

—Very well.

He gestured toward the door.

—Now leave.

He cast a quick glance toward a workbench covered with metal components.

—I still need to finish a project Professor Lucius commissioned a few days ago.

I followed his gaze.

On the workbench rested an incredibly complex sphere, partially disassembled.

Hundreds of tiny gears.

Runes engraved into metal plates.

Crystals fitted into articulated mounts.

Lina and I bowed at the same time.

—See you later, Master.

Totil merely waved absentmindedly.

His attention had already returned entirely to the mechanism.

We left the laboratory.

The door closed behind us.

The corridor fell silent once again.

We walked side by side for several meters.

It was Lina who broke the silence.

She smiled provocatively.

—Even so...

—I finished first.

—It took you six months to bring a single device.

—Meanwhile, I brought two.

—And one more thing...

She lifted her chin proudly.

—You may be a little ahead of me in meditation right now...

—But that won’t last.

She rested one hand on her hip.

—My talent is four stars.

—As soon as I start focusing on meditation again...

—I’ll catch up to you in no time.

I listened until she finished.

Then...

I smiled.

She was probably expecting some sort of competitive response.

Perhaps a taunt.

Perhaps I’d tell her I would surpass her.

Or that she’d never catch up to me.

Instead, I simply stopped walking.

She stopped as well.

I slowly raised my right hand.

Lina blinked several times.

Confused.

I smiled sincerely.

—Congratulations.

She stared at me, completely bewildered.

—You worked hard.

—You managed to build two devices.

—That deserves recognition.

She remained completely motionless.

The victorious expression on her face vanished.

Replaced by pure surprise.

I kept my hand extended.

—Instead of continuing this competition...

—How about we become friends...

—Instead of rivals?

Of course... if someone had been watching me and knew me well, they might have understood that this unexpectedly mature attitude wasn’t entirely genuine.

All I want most right now is to completely fill this damn girl’s uterus. I want to fuck her so hard that she will have trouble walking down the halls.

...

1440 Words