—A 4,000-word mega-chapter, which is why it's a bit late. Many thanks to friend Vampire Knight for the reward, and congratulations on becoming this book's twelfth Alliance Lord.
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Morris leaned back instinctively, half-worried that Ravendy's spittle would wash his face, and managed a sheepish smile. "Ravendy, calm down, calm down—that's not what I meant. What I'm saying is that the discovery of the Periodic Law better reflects Evans's thinking and inspiration rather than his arcanist abilities being sufficient to stand at the apex of Elemental Magic. That doesn't quite align with the Holme Crown Award being the highest honor in Elemental Magic."
Had Morris not been born into the Holme royal family and not been an Elemental Magician himself—making him the most suitable person to head the Holme Royal Arcane Academy—then the other visible leader of the Will of the Elements would have been Ravendy. After all, Ravendy's arcanist rank was a full level above his own.
As a Ninth-Level Archanist, Ninth-Circle Magician, and leading authority in the field of Elemental Magic, Ravendy would have long since been admitted to the Supreme Council if not for his hot-tempered, blunt nature and the fact that he lacked the overwhelming power of the Storm Dominator to crush all doubt. That was why Morris always felt somewhat lacking in confidence when facing him.
Whether or not they supported Morris's position, seeing him cowered by Ravendy's furious bellowing, the other senior magicians all wore knowing smiles. They had all experienced that particular privilege of having their faces washed with spittle while being unable to get angry.
Once Ravendy set his mind on something or came to accept a piece of arcanist knowledge, he didn't care whether his debate opponent was on good or bad terms with him or what their status might be. It was said that he had once gone face-to-face with the Storm Dominator, both of them roaring at each other over a mathematical proof—though being slightly less capable, he'd had the flaws in his proof pointed out by the Storm Dominator, who then proceeded to ridicule him mercilessly.
"Morris, stop being such a miser! The Holme Crown Award was established to honor magicians who have made 'breakthrough contributions to the field of Elemental Magic and who will leave their mark on its history.' Tell me—wasn't the Periodic Table a breakthrough achievement in Elemental Magic? Can Evans not leave his mark on the history of Elemental Magic with it? Did Lady Meredith not win the award when her arcanist abilities were insufficient to stand at the apex of Elemental Magic?" Ravendy paid no heed to Morris's attempt to back down and continued to bellow without pause.
Having been exposed by Ravendy—his real reason was stinginess, unwillingness to part with high-grade materials to forge a seventh-level Holme Crown Ring—Morris found himself unable to mount an effective defense against the questioning. He raised a hand to shield his face. "Yes, yes, yes. But the previous twenty-five Holme Crown Award recipients all won for opening an entirely new field or discovering a new method, a new theorem. The Periodic Table seems to merely be a summary of patterns, doesn't it?"
He still couldn't let go of the ring. He absolutely refused to concede.
Gaston, seeing that the "battle" had roughly reached its conclusion, cleared his throat before Ravendy could resume his bellowing. "President Morris. I trust you cannot fail to see the enormous significance of the Periodic Table. As for whether it is merely a summary of patterns—let us look at some past winners. Lady Meredith won for introducing the electrolysis method to discover new elements. President Donald, who is not currently in Allentown, won for introducing spectral analysis to discover new elements. The reason they won, as President Morris yourself noted, was not for discovering new elements, but for discovering new methods—the new elements were merely incidental proof that those methods worked."
"Now consider the Periodic Table. Guided by the laws of the periodic pattern, we too have discovered two new elements. So what is wrong with awarding the Holme Crown to Evans for discovering the Periodic Law? His arcanist rank was identical to Lady Meredith's when she won."
Snap—a critical blow that struck exactly at the weak point in Morris's argument. He was immediately left speechless and could only look around at his allies.
His allies, led by Florenza of the Affairs Committee, glanced at Ravendy's slightly reddened face from all that bellowing. They firmly shook their heads, refusing Morris's plea for support.
Morris raised his right hand and pressed it down. "Very well. I agree to award the Holme Crown Award to Mr. Evans. Does anyone object?"
Ravendy swept his gaze around the room. Every high-ranking member of the Will of the Elements with voting rights kept their hands quietly in place. A few senior figures of the Holme Royal Arcane Academy shifted in their seats, but none dared raise a hand.
"I hereby declare that the Will of the Elements and the Holme Royal Arcane Academy have unanimously approved the decision to award the Holme Crown Award to Mr. Evans." Morris delivered this with a grave expression, then allowed his features to twist slightly. "Now we ought to discuss the unique name for the Holme Crown Ring and the Magic that needs to be permanently inscribed upon it—preferably something that connects to Evans's Periodic Table achievement. As for the ring's design, I'll leave that to Florenza, since she enjoys designing jewelry."
The mature, strikingly beautiful blonde Florenza shot Morris a glance. "While I do indeed enjoy designing jewelry and am more than happy to accept this task, my dear teacher—are you perhaps just trying to save on the design fees?"
Florenza was a Sixth-Level Archanist but possessed extraordinary magical talent and had already reached the Eighth Circle. She was proficient in Elemental, Summoning, Electromagnetic, and Force Field magic, and was rumored to have achieved notable success in the niche field of Curse Magic as well. Moreover, she was under seventy years old—Morris had taken her as a disciple only after becoming a Ninth-Circle Magician, and in just thirty short years she had broken through to the senior ranks, becoming a member of the Arcane Council's Affairs Committee and a director of the Holme Royal Arcane Academy.
Having been seen through by his own student, Morris kept his expression stern. "As Director of the Will of the Elements and President of the Holme Royal Arcane Academy, I cannot frivolously squander the organization's finances the way you all do."
"Teacher, you have it backwards—you are President of the Will of the Elements and Director of the Holme Royal Arcane Academy," Florenza reminded him with a giggle behind her hand.
The muscles in Morris's face twitched. "That's not the point. The point is—what word should be used as the name for Evans's ring?"
Every Holme Crown Ring was named with a single word, never repeated, and ideally reflecting the recipient's achievement.
"The Periodic Table… how about just the word 'Period'?" Florenza was quite enthusiastic about the naming.
Gaston stroked his graying hair and regarded Florenza with his peculiar amber eyes. "The concept of 'Period' could easily be confused with periodic phenomena studied by the Force Field, Electromagnetic, Light-Dark, and Astrological factions, as well as in Mathematical Foundations. It's not unique enough."
"What about 'Foresee'?" Rocklini of the Archanist Review Committee asked, idly running a hand through her loose black hair as she surveyed the others with her pale blue eyes. As a woman, she too had an interest in naming things.
Another female member of the Archanist Review Committee, Lydia, was stunningly beautiful and appeared to carry succubus blood. She turned her deep crimson, gem-like eyes and smiled. "Roni, that sounds more like a name for the 'Archanist's Staff' or the 'Silver Moon Medal.' I think it should be called 'Law'—symbolizing the hidden laws that govern the elements."
"No—that fails to capture the distinctive character of the Elemental domain," Florenza opposed without hesitation.
And so these five or six women fell into argument, proposing name after name only to have each one shot down by someone else. The sound of it made Morris, Gaston, Overi, and the other men furrow their brows, but not one dared interrupt their discussion. Instead, they turned their gazes toward Ravendy, hoping he would step in and settle the matter with a single pronouncement. Ah, if only Evans had happened to discover a new element alongside the Periodic Table—they could have named the ring after that element directly, the way Woods had named his "Gallium."
Ravendy sat with his eyes half-closed as though asleep. Hot-tempered and blunt though he was, he never interfered with the ladies' discussions.