The basic plans for the Aurelian Commission were split into five different categories. Lucille had chosen to do it that way due to how the Counties had very strict divides between what they controlled and hated others encroaching on their authority. Four of the categories were for each County to do separately, while the fifth contained the plans she would directly oversee and be responsible for implementing.

For the Evisenhardts, they ran the Empire’s Silver Bank, the largest bank in the Mystical Realm. Her plan for them was to change the structure slightly so they could be responsible for the Commission’s ‘shares’ in businesses, and organise the Commission into more of a union of merchants. She wanted the Evisenhardts to begin using their financial administration capability to properly categorise and reform the financial distribution of their vassals and main businesses, beginning to isolate fiefdom and business profit.

When the structure has been reformed enough, then they could begin following the concept of the international global corporations, owning hundreds upon thousands of smaller businesses. She wanted the other Counties’ businesses to start following this structure at that stage too.

But for Evisenhardt only, she was planning on revealing the concept of ‘insurance’. Maybe she was evil.

Ravimoux was a slight issue. Mainly because 40% of their income was from illegal ventures, while the rest was because of their casinos and entertainment districts. But her plan for them didn’t necessarily involve illegal business and was instead allowing the black market to become a place for people of all realms to gather, which also granted complete privacy to those within.

For that, she was going to pursue more ‘neutrality’ for the Commission, by opening up trade with Tartarus and the Demonic Sects of the Heavenly Realm. Trading with them wasn’t illegal, and there was a market for their specialities in the Mystical Realm and a demand on their end for the Mystical Realm’s specialities. It was for political reasons only that they were disliked, so if she managed to ensure anonymity within the VIP black market, it should work.

Chavaret were simpler. They had a long history of being excellent blacksmiths and warriors due to their strong fire affinity and also had two mana-arts that their side bloodlines could choose from to take either path. The main family had one mana-art that did it all. They manufactured high-quality weapons and armour for Glory Pantheon and owned private mercenary armies that they hired out to lower-plane kings or nobles who wanted to win a Battlefield Event, gain a higher title of nobility, or even land.

She wanted to get them to expand into fighting in the Beast Realm so they would have a steady stream of high-rarity materials to craft good items. The magical beasts obeyed strength, after all, so they would be happy to work with them if they showed their might and helped them defeat rival beast enclaves. Plus, the many monsters would help the warriors level up.

And then was Alichanteu. They were a noble clan that owned land and managed cities, while also owning many large hotel chains and auction houses. She would need their cooperation when re-constructing districts in Gilded Seat and would use them to help build up better supply lines and more cohesive logistical routes. She also intended to test out a more modern city design plan on some of their newer cities in preparation for the reconstruction of Gilded Seat.

If she managed to make Gilded Seat a demonstration of what a modern city was and managed to get it functioning, then other places in the Mystical Realm would follow. Then, when the new structure of the Commission allowed more commoner and noble merchants to join more easily, the Gilded Dome plane would become a massive centre for trade, even more so than the 7 Eternal Duchies.

Which left the fifth category of plans. One part of it was easy to explain. She needed to create an internal affairs division that would enable her to root out corruption and keep the members of the Commission in check. But as for the rest of her responsibilities… There was a niche that the four founding Counties hadn’t covered. While they all had vassals with businesses that covered the more normal and daily items, they didn’t yet have businesses fully devoted to developing technology for the Commission.

Which was normal, as corporate-owned research institutes were very much an Earth thing and not an idea that had come to the Tower realms yet. But by building off the competition she was hosting, she would use her resources as the Commission Head to fund the development of new technology and then implement it in the Commission or sell it to other forces.

That was a very big part of the reason why she wanted to transfer the management of the airship development to herself. Partially because she could accelerate their development of them, and partially because the airship development facilities had some of the highest-quality magic engineering and magitech within the Tower. She wanted to win over the engineers, and therefore their technological expertise, to her side.

As for the airships…. airships themselves were a rather risky thing to be developing for any force. That was because they held a certain meaning among the people of the Mystical Realm. There was evidence and lost relics from the ancient past of the Mystical Realm that pointed to wondrous civilisations that had managed to conquer planes using massive floating fortresses built in the shape of ships, and the Imperial family’s origin plane was rumoured to contain one derelict one.

The All-Aeon Athenaeum and their expeditions regularly unearthed old technology of the past that functioned in strange and incomprehensible ways. Some signs indicated these ancient empires were even larger than the Eternal Empire, which contained one Superior plane almost five times the size of Earth, several Great planes a quarter the size of the Aeternus plane each, 24 Major planes, and 108 Minor planes. Not to mention the thousands of unranked outer planes slowly joining under the Aeternus plane's domain of influence each year.

It was a race to determine which ancient faction could resurrect the glory of the past first. Every Supreme Institution, to Lucille’s knowledge, had development plans and facilities for it, each using a different method. Of course, sometimes other Factions also tried to build airships, but none would have the resources to support it, and most of their ambitions fizzled out after a few years. Except in the Aurelian Commission. It wasn’t a Supreme Institution, but wasn’t technically just a large Faction either, as they owned several Guilds and forces equivalent to a large Faction in their own right. They had managed to keep their research going for several centuries.

She didn’t want to reveal the airships before the Supreme Institutions did theirs’ though. It would paint a target on their backs they didn’t need, and apart from showing the royal family and Duchies that the Commission was a larger threat than they thought, it would only give them the slightest boost to the number of craftsmen aiming to join them. It wasn’t necessary. But she did want to ensure the research into airship crafting proceeded because it would be incredibly useful for the Commission and her plans to increase the level of transportation technology they had. Now she just needed to find some way to get Alichanteu to hand the management responsibility over without a fuss.

Vincent was currently explaining her plans for the nobility below, standing next to his grandfather. Count Ravimoux and Count Chavaret had also moved over to stand at the front in a show of support, while the two Alichanteu heirs had not, just standing in the first row of nobles as they weren’t Counts. From what she could see, it didn’t seem to be going… badly, but all the people who weren’t part of the County main lines were understandably of mixed emotions about the whole thing.

After all, their lords had just revealed that these plans of ‘theirs’ had been created without their knowledge and were now going to be forced upon the Commission, with no regard for the wants and desires of the vassals. Yet if they complained, they wouldn’t be able to participate and gain power during the next few years, which was sure to be highly important for resetting the status quo.

She was sure that for the rest of the week when attending the ball nights wasn’t mandatory, they would be organising smaller social events in their estates to discuss the intentions of the four Counties. She had no doubts that eventually the origin of the plans would slowly leak to the vassal families, and then to their vassals, as so on until everyone in the Commission knew she was responsible for suggesting them, but she hoped five years was a short enough period that it would take some time before anything substantial leaked out to the wider realms. Those in power would know, and the forces with spies in the Commission, but outside of that, she would still be known as the useless ‘puppet leader’.

Another reason why she had arranged for Vincent to essentially be her ‘minder’ was so the nobles wouldn’t come up with stupid schemes like the one Arwen Alichanteu’s subordinate suggested, such as putting her in real power or other rot. She didn’t want to be in charge of the Commission at all times. She had other things to do, such as interrupting brewing conflicts between some forces that later cascaded into terrible results, or inciting different ones that suited her purpose.

She also needed to ensure the Dawn Dissenters wouldn’t try to use her to further their agenda. Her goals may appear to align with theirs on the surface, but she had lived long enough to know that every society had a caste system. It just took on different forms, and she wasn’t about to change up the Empire’s structure. No, if the Dissenters tried to bring trouble to her, she had no qualms about giving them a little trouble back. Especially when she knew what the true purpose behind the Dawn Dissenters was.

She knew Vincent wouldn’t start having any trouble with nobility until the next day though. That was when they’d start trying to suggest their opinions or try to find a way to get involved, blatantly ignoring the fact the four Counties had told them that they were only informing them of a decision, and not that they would be willing to accept complaints. So, as the nobility clapped below after his finished announcement, she considered what her next steps would be. She had two and a half months before the end of the year, and she needed to continue planning.

She would try to be more open with Vincent about her plans, but it wouldn’t be easy. Some of them would be straight-up detrimental to the Empire, and some could embroil her in political conflicts that had been going on for more than twenty chapters if she wasn’t careful. She also had to be cautious about how she explained her Status issues when she started asking for resources. If knowledge of that spread, the Counties might not be happy to have her as their leader.

She’d just have to wait and see how things play out. If there was one thing she could be, it was patient. After all, she was prepared to stay beside the Hero with her old identity for as many years as it took, just so he would meet his end in the worst way possible. She could wait.

----------------------------------------

A man with long, brown hair in a low ponytail frowned as he leaned against a windowsill, gazing down at the brightly lit Pavilion many stories below outside. He huffed, scowling a bit, and then turned to sit down on the couch in his room, crossing his arms.

Sedric still didn’t know what to think about the Commission’s new Head. He had managed to hear a bit about what she was planning from the staff and the few conversations he had overheard between her and her aide, but all it did was make him even more confused. Why did she even need to act like a puppet Head? It wasn’t like she was incapable. The conversations he had heard made it obvious that the Evisenhardt noble treated her as an equal. Well, politics was never something he understood anyway. He was more confused about other things.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Like what she did before becoming the Commission Head. She clearly had an in-depth understanding of mana theory, and the books he had bought using her money had proved all she said was correct, if in many more fanciful words than she had explained it with. He was beginning to understand she did know what she was talking about and adequately explained the links between mana theory and his work so he could understand why it applied to him. It was just very annoying having a girl younger than him explain it all.

Although it seemed there was something else going on related to that, because the one time he had asked about her and why she acted the way she did to her aide, he had very awkwardly deflected the topic and changed it, in a way that was obvious to even him, and Sedric could admit he wasn’t socially adept in the slightest. And then when he asked about her to her annoying bond, the snake said something like her soul being different from other people. Which explained nothing.

He grimaced and rubbed his face, before checking the time on the clock in his room. He wasn’t quite ready to head to bed, but he didn’t want to head back to his workshop. Lucille had also mentioned she would break all his equipment if he didn’t spend an hour a day outside his workshop, so there was that too. The memory of her breaking all his binder pens made him scowl. Who was she, to force him to leave his workshop like that?

Then he made a face.

....well, except the person with control over his budget.

He sighed and stood up. He began pacing, thinking about what to do, before he had an idea. Going to a chest of drawers in his room, he retrieved a notebook and normal pens, and then a second folder, and sat back down on his couch.

Lucille had given him a folder containing all the possible different types of variations for each component of a low-ranked arcane mana-circle. She had said that she knew the runic components for each of the elements too, but non-elemental mana didn’t often explode, so it was the safest version for him to freely experiment with at his current stage, especially as his class was the Runestarred Arcane Inaugurator. Not that he couldn’t make items that contained elemental spells, but any spells with fire mana were more dangerous than non-reactive arcane mana, and his class made using arcane spells easier.

He flipped through the folder, which was divided into three sections for the three separate components of a mana-circle: Nodes, Frames, and Runes. In each section, she had drawn and written a description for each of the variations, explaining their function, and what other components they link to using a small key below them. She had made the folder during his time with her on Saturdays, and begun it when Annaliese-

I need to call her the Prophetess now, don’t I….

When the Prophetess was with them. The level of detail and the clarity of the drawings had surprised him then, and he was even more surprised to hear that what she had made was technically called an ‘inheritance journal’ by the crafters. He had heard of them, compilations of notes that contained all the known component variations of a lineage of crafters, and were jealously guarded by them. She explained that hers wasn’t so valuable though, because it only contained the most basic component variations, and because arcane mana didn’t have a fusion element version nor was it part of a mid-level element, most of the basic variations were already known by those who used arcane mana.

It also didn’t contain any diagrams for the next stage of spells, which layered a second mana-circle onto the first and linked it 3 dimensionally, but she said he should be able to make his own journal when he got familiar enough with the basic foundational variations to design his own second stage of spells. But if he wanted to do that, he needed to start memorising the different functions of the component variations. Not the actual diagrams though, because she explained that was what the folder was for, a reference so he didn’t need to memorise how to draw them. That would come with time.

So he flipped to the first section, Runes. The most basic, basic component of a spell. Nodes and frames were just arrangements of three or more runes that formed a specific purpose shared by all nodes or frames, but runes were still responsible for ensuring they had a function. How Lucille had described a rune was that it was a ‘command term’. They each did something, all with slight differences, and when linked, could form a more complicated output. However, there were over 100,000 different types of runes, and new ones were discovered each year by the mages of All-Aeon Athenaeum, so she said she would put what was known as 3rd-grade runes in the folder. Because runes were also composed of smaller runes themselves.

1st-grade runes were a thing, but they were used in ancient times by the first wizards to essentially write what were full sentences, paragraphs, and epics, and that was when a wizard had to read out their spells. The ‘compound rune model’ as it was called was the modernised version that all wizards, and especially mages, used. It was what enabled the first mages to create runic models in their mana pools.

3rd grade runes were the staple for all item crafters when they used low-ranked spells in their items. Categorised as a ‘lesser’ rune, a rune containing only multiple 1st-grade runes, they had a structure large enough to contain enough energy to last for a minute when activated. When multiple were put together, they could last longer, and form a more powerful final result.

It was explained to him that arcane magic had slightly more than 200 3rd-grade runes that were considered ‘mainstream’ runes. Technically there were more, but 3rd grade runes outside of those then began having the same function as the original 202, just with minor differences. The 202 arcane 3rd-grade runes were the standard, known to work with the most variations of other components, and were used most often in those variations. They had the simplest structures for the most power, refined over millennia.

Knowing what the runes did was helpful, but only if you wanted to fine-tune your mana-circle and fill in the gaps. He was interested in making one from the other structures, where all he had to do was fit them together. He flipped to the next section.

Frames were the linkages between the runes, the runic function within, and the dividing lines. They were strings of runes, or sometimes seemingly solid lined borders that contained one ‘function’ of a spell. That could be the section responsible for the distribution of mana throughout the mana-circle, or the section that gives the arcane mana its shape. Frames could be several shapes or sizes, but depending on the placement in the mana-circle, they might have a curved outer edge or be circular. It was the frames he would pick and choose from to give his spell a purpose, turning mana into something. But before he could start assembling a spell with frames, he needed something else.

Nodes were the centre point for a mana-circle. They were the first thing to be formed when a mage or wizard cast a spell and then frames built off from there. The node of a mana-circle was where a magic user injected their mana for the spell to consume, and the most basic real spell contained at least one 4th-grade lesser rune, a rune containing 4 1st-grade runes. The more runes a node contained, the more frames could be connected, which also meant the larger the node, the more frames there were. A basic true spell could have 4 frames, one matching each 1st-grade rune in the node.

He had heard that the semi-permanent magic arrays could have nodes with over 50 runes inside, which made magic arrays truly enormous when all the frames were added. A spell could have more than one node, layering mana-circles on top of mana-circles. Magic arrays were known to be, on average, the size of a house when cast. There was a reason only wizards had the computational power to cast them. Mages sacrificed the utility of magic arrays to slowly construct a 3-dimensional ‘superior’ rune within their mana pool, their runic model becoming a rune itself that was composed of thousands of smaller runes. They built in the runes so their very mana could activate any function from their runic model as they pleased.

He flipped through the folder, wondering what he should try to use as the node. There were around thirty variations of ‘core’ nodes, the nodes that made up the first spell layer of an arcane spell. He was only going to try to assemble a first-layer spell for that night, but for a second-layer spell, he would have to use one of the ‘modular’ sub-nodes to add additional mana-circles to it. He first considered how many frames he wanted.

And then he realised he needed to know what he wanted his spell to do.

Ideally, it would be one he could engrave on a magic item. That would be easier to do as a first-layer low-ranked spell, as he didn’t know how to add spells with multiple layers to an item yet, due to the way two 2-dimensional overlapping mana-circles translated into a spell engraving. He knew it had something to do with imbuing spell properties directly into the materials, but he wasn’t there yet.

He also couldn’t physically cast the spell himself, as he lacked the heart circles or runic models to do so. As he had mana, he could manifest runes, but it was mentally taxing as he had no internal mana structure to support his spell casting. Most people who weren’t magic users but talented with mana manipulation could cast small low-ranked spells, but that wasn’t him. He didn’t need to anyway. The spell also had to be an arcane spell, so he considered what type of spells arcane mana created and….

He realised he finally had a proper question for Lucille. What purpose did arcane mana serve?

He frowned as he tapped a pen against his chin. Sure, he knew of some arcane spells like Wizard’s Eye, Arcane Hand, and Mana Shield, but as for the fundamental properties of the translucent dark-blue mana….. he didn’t have a clue. He frowned deeper as he flipped through the folder, trying to see the purpose of the runes and frames within. From what he could see, most of the frames and runes were responsible for the distribution of energy and the isolation of elemental mana within a spell of more than one element and added stability to the spell structure. He knew it was non-reactive, so that made sense, but he also knew at least one person in the distant past had made an arcane Grand spell. It couldn’t have a purely support purpose.

He sighed, scratching the back of his neck. He couldn’t exactly begin designing some sort of spell without a goal. It was pretty much impossible to link random frames together and hope they worked, as what part of the frame was connected to what rune determined the order of the spell’s component activation, and therefore its purpose. He rubbed his head as he considered how to progress.

He did have some experience with spells. As an item crafter, he had learnt how to engrave a few basic enchantments, which were spells that activated over a long period, and knew how to attach an attack spell or two to an item. But he hadn’t taken the time to properly look at what he was engraving.

Thinking about one of the few arcane spells he knew how to engrave, he got out his notebook and flipped to an empty page. Then he began drawing the spell so he had a visual aid. If he used mana ink then the spell could even activate temporarily as a cantrip, but he was using normal ink.

The spell he picked was Arcane Barrier. It was a version of Mana Shield that was stronger, but it formed a hard barrier as opposed to the permeable barrier of Mana Shield that allowed the user to cast other spells, and reduced physical damage rather than magical. When activated, it formed a multi-faceted clear blue barrier out of runes, the size of an umbrella, and was capable of protecting the User from physical attack.

The amount of protection scaled off of WIS when cast, but in the case of a magical item, it would continually absorb mana from the energy supply, reforming the shield until it had no energy to support its structure. It was a common enough spell, but it was used as a last resort because unless it was attached to an item, you couldn’t move while casting it.

He analysed the structure of the mana-circle. The node itself was composed of eight 3rd-grade runes, allowing it to have eight frames. He supposed the eight frames had something to do with the actual structure of the barrier because it was partially made up of flat octagons. He matched the frames to the ones in his folder, and found that apart from enabling the mana to turn solid and link together, it also seemed to distribute… energy? Force? Or something else across its surface when interacted with.

But that was very vague. Elemental mana could easily pass through it, the non-elemental mana being non-reactive and permeable, but somehow it blocked physical damage, so what kind of energy? He tried looking at the runes themselves within each frame, but they were too complex for him currently. He was still stumped.

He blinked when he heard a familiar ding.

[Gained Tertiary Skill: Magic Disseminating Eyes]

Huh…. I haven’t had that kind of notification in months.

Because of his Legendary class, skills were harder for him to gain. Not because of the class rarity itself, but rather because his class was built upon many skills before he had gained it, all included within the class, so most skills were redundant to regain. And as he inherited it from his grandfather, most of the primary skills had also retained their tiers as well, although his grandfather hadn’t managed to tier them up to the max. The fact he got a new skill now was…. Well, it was a bit insulting. It meant he hadn’t been doing anything with enough motivation behind it before this to obtain a skill related to it. Although it was true he hadn’t really been focused on the magic aspect of his work.

He activated the skill page to see what the passive effect was.

[Tertiary Skill: Magic Disseminating Eyes | Type: Magic/Visual ]

Rarity: Uncommon

Desc: An ability gained by those who actively try to pierce the veil of mystery behind magic.

Effects:

* +10% effectiveness to mana sensing and mana sight skills.

* Slight increase in visual clarity when observing spell lines and runes. Mentally distinguishes overlapping mana lines of magic.

[ ]

It was…. surprisingly useful. He hadn’t considered how magic users and craftsmen could tell which mana-circle was which when they were projected, as they were technically 2-dimensional even if spaced apart by the caster, at least for all low-ranked spells. The fact he obtained an eye skill meant his class didn’t cover that in its primary skills, so it also indicated a path for growth if he became confident enough to tier up his primary skills. His Legendary class was made of three separate main classes, so when he became Rank-2, he would obtain his third and final main skill for the class. However, he needed a secondary skill to be able to use it on a primary skill, so he wasn’t able to try anything with the new skill he gained.

He rubbed his chin and opened up his Status which he hadn’t checked for some time, not bothering with the skill section.

[Status: ]

Name: Sedric Ferin (Lvl. 43)

Class: Runestarred Arcane Inaugurator – Legendary (Tier: VII)

Age: 21y

Race: Human

HP: 2700/2700 {+519.62/5m}

MP: 5350/5350 {+880/1m}

Stats:

Free Stat Points: 15

STR: 9

CON: 54

AGI: 21

DEX: 190

INT: 107

WIS: 88

[Origin Skill: Continuous Crafter’s Mind | Type: Crafting/Realm

Desc: [Collapsed]

Subskills: [Collapsed]

Awakening: 36% ]

He was kind of annoyed whenever he saw it, to some extent. He had originally been Level 104, and if he had just evolved his class, it would’ve lost only 30% of its level. Yet because he inherited the class, he had to start completely from scratch. At least he didn’t have to do the stages again. Those sucked.

His old class had only been Rare level, which gave him 8 stats each level up, but his Legendary class gave him 11. And as a crafter, he was unlikely to die and go down a rank, losing 100 levels, so he was pretty okay with his Status.

It was just so slow to level up. A crafter couldn’t just kill things and gain a level. Their levelling was dependent on the quantity and quality of the items they crafted. The System wouldn’t cheat them if they did kill something, but the times that happened, it was usually when the User was a dual classer, having both a combat and non-combat class.

He saw the 15 free stat points floating there for him to use and considered adding them. Then he realised he couldn’t be bothered, and decided to dismiss his Status. Stats weren’t very important for a crafter in the first place, besides having the capability to manipulate some types of tools, so he could leave it.

He got up, prepared to get some sleep. But he made sure to mentally note down his question about arcane mana for Lucille. She said she would only be at the Pavilion for a few hours each day and would be less busy as the week drew on, so he should be able to find her in one or two days. Then he wanted to try to see what real magic items he could make.