Greetings, Mister Principal

Chapter 167: Stanzoya

Morale Support: Scherzo

Patreon: /ScherzoTranslations

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In the north, at the junction of the Brünnhilde Plain and the Kovar Mountains, lies the city of Stanzoya. This city, built on the mountainside with a rich history, stretches from the foot of the mountain to the mountainside, with gray and white buildings forming a vast urban landscape.

To the north of the city is the Brünnhilde Greater Icefield, a large glacier that has not melted for centuries. Legend has it that this was not always the case, and it was the result of the deaths of several high-level mages during a magical war. The truth, however, can only be answered by those who witnessed it at the time.

The Greater Icefield rises like mountains, forming the Kovar Mountains. Below the mountains is another fertile plain, belonging to the Kingdom of Lesario, a country known for its developed forestry.

In ancient times, during the Ancient Magic Empire, this was the center of the northern territories, known as the “Indestructible Fortress.” Historically, it was besieged several times during magical wars but was never captured.

The most recent change of hands in Stanzoya occurred three hundred years ago during the modern magical revolution. At that time, the commander stationed in the city was Charles Preston, who was not yet a legendary figure. Despite his strength as a member of the Ancient Magic Empire, Preston chose to open the city gates and handed over the city to Herman Braggs.

Due to this act of righteousness, Preston was able to enter the High Council after the war and eventually broke free from constraints, advancing to become a legendary mage.

Even in summer, the sunlight in Stanzoya still seemed to be shrouded in a layer of mist, faint and ambiguous. Flowing clouds cast large shadows on the ground, creating distinct patterns of light and shadow.

Built in the year 366 of the Blue Moon calendar, Stanzoya follows the rules of the Ancient Magic Empire and is divided into three districts.

The Lower District is the area where ordinary people reside, with markets, shops, and stacks of bungalows creating an endless landscape.

The Middle District was originally the territory of nobles, but now it has long been opened to the general population. However, housing prices are higher than in the Lower District, and the buyers are mostly wealthy merchants, affluent nobles, and mages.

The Upper District, which had been exclusively occupied by mages for centuries, lost its original mystery and dignity after the modern magical revolution.

Nowadays, it is filled with numerous research institutions, mainly related to necromancy, as it is the headquarters of the Immortal Throne—an authentic city of academia.

In a corner of the Upper District of Stanzoya, inside a three-storey hexagonal building, a laboratory echoed with a calm and steady speech.

“It is now 13:05 pm, the thirty-sixth experiment begins.”

The speaker, a man wearing a mask and a white robe with seven gold borders on his sleeve, signifying his status as a seventh-level high-ranking mage.

The man stared at the petri dish on the table, where a small mass of blood-red substance lay quietly, showing no signs of abnormality.

Above the petri dish was a massive microscope, projecting images of countless circular objects in motion onto a nearby whiteboard. These countless squirming round objects had a more common name—cells.

It could be seen that the cells in the petri dish were continuously dividing and proliferating, gradually filling the field of view of the microscope. On the other side, the lighter-colored cells were dividing slowly, almost imperceptible to the naked eye.

“Dose is twice that of the previous dose, other parameters remain the same.”

The man instructed his assistant to make some simple records, then used Mage Hand to place the petri dish into another black box beside the table.

The box had complex patterns, and with a gentle touch from the man, the patterns emitted a faint light, indicating changes invisible to the naked eye were happening inside.

After about ten seconds, the light quickly dimmed. The man confirmed the reading on the outside of the box before opening it and retrieving the petri dish with Mage Hand, placing it back under the microscope.

It could be seen that the proliferation rate of the cells, which were originally dividing continuously, significantly slowed down. Many cells had died, showing a dull color.

However, at the same time, most of the lighter-colored cells on the other side had also died, causing the man to frown.

“Record, 13:08 pm, the thirty-sixth experiment. After twelve units of the third-category radioactive rays were irradiated for ten seconds under normal parameters, most normal cells died, and mutated cells continued to proliferate. The experiment failed.”

With the man’s words, the feathers of the quill pen floating next to his assistant began to write automatically on several sheets of parchment.

“Sir, Mister Lockfield, the thesis review committee has sent a thesis for you to review.”

The assistant glanced at the automatic quill on his right side and informed him.

“Thesis review committee?”

The man, Harvey Rockfield, took off his mask, washed his hands, and dried them with a towel.

“Which Excellency does it belong to?”

As a high-level mage, Lockfield usually had to review papers from other high-level mages. In a few cases, breakthrough papers from intermediate mages were also submitted. Therefore, Lockfield subconsciously asked.

“Uh… Not from a high-level mage, but from a low-level mage… It’s a paper from Reiner Ian Gray.”

Seeing that name, the assistant hesitated for a moment before saying it with trepidation.

“Him?”

Lockfield felt even more puzzled. He knew that Reiner Ian Gray was a promising figure in the Mercury Balance. In fact, the current research he was conducting, assigned by his teacher Preston, was based on Reiner Ian Gray’s discoveries.

However, he always thought that this young and promising mage should focus on alchemy. Why would there be a paper on necromancy?

Moreover, the incident of the unfortunate person from the Francois family suffering cognitive collapse due to Reiner Ian Gray’s paper was well-known among high-level mages. Now, with another paper, could it have the same innovative impact?

For three hundred years, there had not been a case of cognitive collapse among high-level mages. Lockfield was confident in his knowledge, but rumors surrounding Reiner still left traces in his subconscious mind.

Putting aside these thoughts, Lockfield instructed.

“Bring the paper over. I’ll review it here.”

The assistant nodded, quickly leaving the laboratory. About ten minutes later, he returned with a hastily bound paper.

“Peas?”

But when Lockfield saw the title of the paper, he almost burst into laughter.