Clutching the *Arcane Magic* journal, Lucian froze on the spot.
If anyone grew curious about how this "Lucian Evans"—who had not yet obtained an official Archanist rank—could produce such an Archanist-minded experimental paper, and went to the "Magician Management Division" to pull his records, they would discover that he hailed from a continental nation, was an inherited tradition magician, and shared a name identical to that of the great musician.
That much would be tolerable. The "Lucian Evans" from across the sea might be a musician, or he might be a reclusive magician of ugly, sinister appearance—but the higher-ups in the Magic Parliament might well know his face. After all, they had once dispatched magicians to Altor who had actually seen him, and given the whole Duchy of Djibouti affair, in Felipe's eyes he was probably deeply connected to the "Professor."
If the Hand of Paleness ever confirmed his identity, he would be caught in a maelstrom!
At the thought, a flicker of danger stirred in Lucian's chest. Though discovery would require a string of coincidences, things had a way of trending toward the worst outcome.
"I originally assumed the *Journal of Ordinary Archanists* catered to lower-rank Archanists, and that my experimental paper on ultrasonic positioning and detection wasn't important enough for it to catch the attention of Parliament's leadership. That's why I used my real name without worry, confident no one would see through me. And once I published more significant papers in the future—by then I'd have an official Archanist rank—people would naturally assume I was a local magician similar to 'k,' and never connect me to the musician. If my strength grew quickly enough, perhaps even the 'Professor' identity wouldn't matter if it came out."
"Who could have guessed that my greed for the magic school's free laboratory and cheap materials would lead the Storm Lord's own student to see my application, spark his curiosity, and result in a Grand Archanist naming me in his paper—like being hung on the city walls for public display!"
"Although this outcome was caused by accidents and coincidences, the real root cause was that once I arrived at the Magic Parliament—a place where I could freely study and use magic—I grew too relaxed, too lacking in vigilance and a sense of danger. Even if I insisted on using my real name, I should have waited until I obtained an official Archanist rank and integrated into Allendia's magician community."
"This is yet another hard-won lesson and experience."
In the span of a dozen or so seconds, Lucian had cycled through a great deal of thought, once again reflecting on himself. If his earlier habit of using risky methods had been one extreme, his current relaxed carelessness was the other.
"Lucian, did you zone out from happiness?" Rock noticed Lucian staring at the *Arcane Magic* journal with unfocused eyes and assumed he was struck speechless with joy.
The last lower-rank magician whose arcanic paper had been cited by a Grand Archanist was Ulysses, back when he was in his early twenties. And even Felipe—whose treatise on cellular memory and its relationship with healing Divine Arts had earned him the "Immortal Throne Award," jointly established by the Colet Royal Academy of Magic and the Hand of Paleness in imitation of the "Holm Crown Award"—had already been a second-rank Archanist and a third-circle magician at the time. Let alone Lucian, who was still a first-circle magician without any official Archanist rank whatsoever.
Startled back to awareness by Rock's voice, Lucian looked up at him with a somewhat dazed expression, then forced a smile: "Yes. To think His Excellency the 'Storm Lord' actually cited me."
He then hurriedly skimmed through the Storm Lord's paper, and the more he read, the more alarmed he became.
"Summarizing all the magical experiments and data, we can see that electromagnetic waves do indeed possess the capacity for positioning and detection, and at speeds far surpassing high-frequency sound waves. However, their feedback is too vague—special spell structures would need to be designed to filter and amplify the signal. Combined with the auxiliary computational spell structures, the entire spell model would be highly demanding. I estimate it will be a fourth- or fifth-circle spell, and I shall provisionally name it the 'Eye of Lightning.'"
"At the same time, we can observe that when electromagnetic waves reach a specific high frequency, given sufficient power and energy, they can directly cause violent molecular collisions within a target, generating extreme heat and fusing it from within—a spell of tremendous power, exceptionally effective against specific fortified opponents. However, the requirements for positioning, power, energy, transmission, and maintaining a high-frequency electromagnetic wave are all exceedingly stringent, and the spell's construction will be correspondingly complex. I expect it will be a fifth- or sixth-circle spell, and following convention, I shall name it 'Fernando's Lightning Furnace.'"
"When the electromagnetic wave frequency is raised further, we see it retains the ability to rapidly generate extreme heat in water and other substances, and can directly penetrate certain materials or energy barriers while being reflected by metal. This is a wondrous and formidable spell—certain specialized defenses will prove utterly useless against it. It too will be a fifth- or sixth-circle spell, and I shall provisionally name it the 'Invisible Crematorium.'"
"Raising the frequency still further enters the domain of light."
Lucian was thoroughly impressed by the Storm Lord. The man had essentially summarized several principal applications of electromagnetic waves at different frequencies. Had he not concluded that the higher frequencies belonged to the domain of light, he might well have created even more spells—and he had even genuinely explored the possibility of transmitting sound or information via electromagnetic waves.
Those who became Grand Archanists were no ordinary people. More often than not, it was not that they lacked brilliance, but rather that their past experiences had blinded and constrained them. Once inspiration was sparked, they possessed the ability to reshape the era!
"Tch, there go several of my electromagnetic applications for scamming Arcane Points and arcanic contributions." Lucian sighed as he handed the *Arcane Magic* journal to Rock, k, and the others. Regardless of whether they favored electromagnetic magic or not, the discussion of that final electromagnetic application was not to be missed. If it could be made widely available, it would transform the daily lives of magicians.
The *Arcane Magic* journal began to circulate among the group, while Lucian quietly dwelled on the possibility of his identity being exposed. Though the odds were slim, it was still unsettling.
"It seems I need to accelerate the experimental progress. The best way to ensure safety is to shelter beneath a great tree!"
"As long as I can earn the attention of the Elemental Will, even the Hand of Paleness wouldn't dare act against me rashly."
After his thoughts had churned for some time, Lucian returned to his senses—only to find Rock, Jerome, Wernier, and the others staring at him with peculiar expressions. Only k was still reading the paper carefully.
"What's wrong?" Lucian asked, puzzled.
Wernier wrinkled her small, straight nose and smiled bitterly: "I can already picture Beat and the others' expressions and words. They'll proudly declare that electromagnetic magic is the primary direction for future magical research, that electromagnetic waves are the true foundation upon which the entire world is built. And that such an extraordinarily important arcanic paper demonstrating the various applications of electromagnetic waves actually drew its inspiration from your little experimental paper, Lucian…"