16
Of course, I wasn’t crazy.
Heuk Yeom-ryong might have exaggerated, but he was sincere.
‘…How should I explain this? Isn’t it just natural?’
Fractal structure.
It wasn’t my first encounter with it.
I recalled the time when I learned magic knowledge from Hans.
– Master, you can consider a fractal structure as the ultimate complete form of a star.
It signifies a simple structure endlessly repeated to form the whole.
When you magnify a part of the structure, the overall form continues to repeat.
– It forms a strong combination of self-similarity and cyclical nature, possessing perfect defensiveness. In theory, no magic can penetrate a fractal star’s structure.
What’s noteworthy here is the word ‘theory.’
In reality, there is no magic that uses a fractal star’s structure.
Simply repeating the same structure cannot draw the necessary star for magic manifestation.
It exists only in theory.
Of course, that didn’t mean that research on fractal structures was irrelevant to magic studies.
“The more a star resembles a fractal structure, the stronger its magical stability becomes.”
In the competition of drawing one’s own star, beyond the 6th magnitude, victory or defeat could be determined by how closely one imitated the properties of a fractal structure.
So, here comes the puzzle.
-Is there a way to manifest a perfect fractal structure through pure magical artistry?
The answer so far had been “no.”
Until now, there had been no way to manifest a perfect fractal structure through pure magic, unless it was collapsed by an unbearable amount of energy.
So, “until now.”
“Rather than explaining, it would be better to show it directly first. Chairman Valic, would you please manifest the fractal structure model?”
Pa-ah!
In front of everyone, a magical circle of fractal structure appeared.
It didn’t carry any magical effects, but because it accurately represented the fractal structure, its combination of stars was more robust than any other magical circle in the world.
However.
“Please, take a good look, everyone.”
I decided to present the most effective lecture method in my opinion.
A shocking demonstration.
With a tone that seemed to imply teaching a lesson.
I raised my hand to the magical circle.
And a miracle happened.
-Wham!
Fractal magic circles crumbled into pieces!
“!!”
The entire hall froze.
For a moment, no one seemed to grasp what had just happened.
But soon, astonishment spread.
“W-What?!”
Especially those with profound magical knowledge quickly rose from their seats.
“There must have been an error in the fractal magic circle!”
“Could it really break the fractal structure?!”
It was a natural reaction.
“Why are you all so surprised? It’s not that difficult.”
“!!”
“Well, I guess it might be challenging by your standards. Let me show you again.”
I shrugged.
“Prepare a new fractal structural magic circle, Lord Valic.”
Valic nodded and brought a new model of magic circle.
Paah!
It was an even larger form of a fractal magic circle.
Big enough to fill the entire platform.
It promised both solidity and intensity.
However.
-Open wide!!
As I extended my hand, everything crumbled like glass.
“!!”
The eyes of everyone in the room widened as if about to tear apart.
A reaction of disbelief even though they all saw it with their own eyes.
“Wha, what sorcery is this?!”
“It’s not sorcery.”
“As if! There’s no way you could break down a fractal structure through normal means! And you, of all people!!”
The atmosphere was similar for everyone.
Now, it was crucial.
‘I need to handle this well here.’
I took a deep breath.
In reality.
What I just showed wasn’t some incredible technique.
‘I just did it.’
-Just.
It wasn’t a pretense; that was genuinely my technique.
‘Because I can clearly see the gaps in the fractal structure with my own eyes.’
People often say that fractal structures are perfect.
But, does ‘perfection’ truly exist in this world?
The fractal structure, while approaching perfection, was not entirely perfect.
Even within the repetition of the same structure, there were varying degrees of significance, and despite the strength of the connections, there existed relative differences in their robustness.
And the moment the weakest link was severed, the fractal structure collapsed like dominoes.
“The problem is explaining this convincingly to others.”
It wasn’t just a matter of saying, “I did it.” It had to be packaged beautifully.
In a way that no one could deny.
“Isn’t it unfortunate? Does anyone realize the method I used?”
The room fell silent.
I lifted my chin as if to say, “There you have it.”
The charisma of the Black Flame Dragon exuded a sense of arrogance.
“It’s the reverse calculation of the ‘cyclicity’ of the structure.”
“??”
“You must be aware that a fractal structure gains robustness by forming the cyclicity of the same structure. However, this is a magical effect, so every moment, there is a quantum difference in the strength of cyclicity, creating vulnerabilities.”
It might sound complicated, but it was simple.
Even with the same structure, the magical interaction between connections couldn’t uniformly occur, so finding the gap arising from that imbalance and exploiting it would bring it all down.
Of course, it was easy to say.
“Calculate vulnerabilities on the spot based on constantly changing subtle differences?!”
“Is that even possible?!”
The audience protested.
However.
“I don’t understand why you think it can’t be done. It’s possible. As you just witnessed with your own eyes. It would be unwise to confidently assert that if it can’t be done with one’s own abilities, it can’t be done by others.”
Those who had opposed fell silent once again, like bees that had tasted honey.
At that moment, an unexpected voice was heard.
“Can we truly say that a technique unusable in practical situations has any meaning?”
A sharp voice.
I wore a slightly surprised expression.
“Professor Bernstein, head of the ‘Magic Theory’ department in the ordinary world!”
He was the professor responsible for the ‘Magic Theory’ in the ordinary world that I was delving into.
‘Why did he come? It can’t be related to the Lafart faction.’
Bernstein was a renowned eccentric solely devoted to magical theory research, with no interest in politics within the academy.
A true ‘expert.’
‘What should I do? Professor Bernstein is not an easy opponent.’
I felt uneasy.
Valic exclaimed with a pale face.
“T-that’s right, Professor Bernstein! It’s… it’s hard to imagine such a thing being possible in practical situations…!”
From Noble mtl dot com
However.
“Silence.”
“!!”
“Someone who doesn’t even know the ‘F’ of Fractal is not qualified to join this conversation.”
Balik’s face turned pale.
It was only then that I sensed Bernstein’s true feelings.
“I’m not trying to be hostile. I’m purely asking as a scholar.”
He was always that kind of character.
A figure who dedicated his entire life to the theoretical study of magic.
Professor Bernstein was genuinely curious.
Whether my approach could be applied in actual combat.
“…Isn’t this a good situation? An opportunity to shock people even more.”
If I want to pass, I have to show an overwhelming presence that no one can deny.
Professor Bernstein would be the perfect opponent.
“Well, you can prove that yourself. Would you, Professor, unleash the ‘Ring of Fire’ spell for me?”
“!!”
It was an attack spell with a typical fractal structure.
Fire drawing a circle in the air.
“Ban, to you? You’ll die.”
Bernstein frowned.
But I shook my head.
“No, I can do it.”
As always, my reason for confidence was the same.
＜Probability of Unveiling the Tsundere Out-and-Out Professor’s Magic＞
– 100%
“I can do it!”
“The professor will gain a new understanding of magical theory today.”
Eventually, Burnstein ascended to the podium, furrowing his brows.
“…I hope your skills at least match half of your confidence.”
Swoosh.
As flames flickered, a circle was drawn.
A formidable momentum.
“…Huh? Professor, didn’t you unleash too much power?”
I flinched for a moment, glancing back at the success rate.
It was still 100%.
“…Is it really a genuine 100%?”
The majesty of the flames I faced directly was no joke.
However, for a successful operation, one must be willing to take risks.
I gathered courage.
Thanks to the charisma of the Black Flame Dragon, an overwhelmingly confident voice flowed.
“Come.”
Crack!!
The flames approached head-on, drawing a circle.
One fortunate thing was that the speed was slower than expected.
“It’s for my sake. To ensure that you won’t get hurt in case I fail.”
I looked at Professor Bernstein.
He had a scary expression on his face, but I could faintly sense his concern for me.
“Alright! I will grant your wish, Professor Bernstein!”
Unraveling the fractal structure was a topic that Professor Bernstein had been obsessed with for a long time.
Perhaps the reason he attended this conference was because the topic was the unraveling of fractal structures.
“The fractal structure of the Ring of Fire is a fan shape.”
Small fan shapes repeated countless times to form a larger fan shape.
But it wasn’t just that simple structure.
There were other devices to make the structure more robust, devices to avoid magical interference, and so on.
“The strength of the bond is lower than that of a pure fractal, but it is extremely difficult to approach magically.”
To put it metaphorically, earlier I had to break a solid rock standing still, but now I had to hit a fluttering sparrow.
“It’s possible.”
If it were a magic performed at full power, it would be different, but I intentionally slowed down the speed of the magic to protect myself.
I stepped forward towards the flames.
Professor Bernstein’s eyes widened.
“What?! It’s dangerous!”
As expected, he was a tsundere eccentric professor.
It was clear that he had been worried about me getting hurt.
I opened my mouth to withdraw the magic.
“It’s alright. Instead, please watch carefully. The long-cherished wish of the professor is about to be fulfilled.”
“!!”
I reached my hand towards the flames.
Towards the empty center of the circular ring.
Crackle!
The security spell began to reject my hand.
“Stop it! What are you trying to do in the subject of mana insensitivity?!”
Professor Bernstein shouted angrily.
He was right.
No matter how much I understood the gaps, it was impossible to break through this magic with just a speck of my mana.
However.
“Didn’t I say I can do it?”
Shadows rose from my hand.
Invisible to anyone’s eyes, sharper than anything else.
My secret weapon.
The mysterious magic ‘Shadow Sword (影劍)’ obtained after clearing the Cave of Lamentation.
Swish.
A sound of cutting through something was heard.
Once again, a miracle unfolded.
-Clang.
The ring of injustice crumbled into pieces.
Just like the fractal magic circle that had collapsed earlier.
The hall fell silent.
Professor Bernstein stared at me in astonishment.
It wasn’t just Professor Bernstein. Everyone in the hall directed a gaze of astonishment towards me.