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I possessed the body of a villainess locked away in a desolate tower.
Chapter 89
Seeing my words had piqued the Tower Master's interest, he drew closer to me and gestured to the Mages who had accompanied him.
"Go on ‌‌‌‌inside for now. It seems I have some matters left to discuss with the Young Lady."
"Thank you so much!"
I signaled Bonita with ‌‌‌my eyes, and together we ‌‌made our way toward the garden.
Sitting in the lush garden bathed in warm sunlight and conversing—there was something about it that naturally thawed even the most frozen of hearts.
Seated across from the Tower ‌‌Master, whose eyes gleamed with curiosity, at a small table between us, I decided not to waste any more time and broached the subject.
As the saying goes, strike while the iron is hot. These things needed to be done the moment they came to mind.
"Tower Master, I'd like to create something called a beam projector."
"...A beam projector? What might that be?"
"It's a device that outputs recorded imagery."
"Heh heh heh, ‌‌‌‌couldn't such a function be easily handled with image stones?"
Right, as expected.
When the anticipated response came, ‌‌I quickly shook my head.
"Well, it's somewhat different. Current image stones have far too short an effective duration. From what I understand, the ‌‌‌‌limit is around one to two minutes... am I correct?"
"...That is indeed the case."
The Tower Master conceded the point, yet his expression remained unconvinced.
I understood his hesitation well enough. In this world's sensibilities, the very notion of preserving 'imagery' for extended periods and revisiting it was fundamentally foreign.
That's why ancient records were kept as books, and youthful appearances were preserved as portraits.
This was a prime example of how magic could implement cutting-edge technology, yet people's awareness failed to keep pace.
But when the technological foundation exists, changing people's perception shouldn't be terribly difficult, should it? ‌‌‌‌‌
"What if we shifted our perspective?"
"Shifted our perspective, ‌you say?"
"Record an entire three-hour theatrical performance from a renowned ‌‌‌‌troupe, and watch it whenever you wish—again and again."
"...Recording a theatrical performance to watch it."
The Tower Master's eyebrows rose sharply.
Noticing he was becoming intrigued, I quickly added more.
"Suppose you had a particular play you desperately wanted to see, but you missed it because you were absorbed in your research. But what if one of your disciples had recorded it for you?"
"...."
"Then you could watch and hear it as clearly as if you were there in person—wouldn't that be something?" ‌‌‌
In that moment.
In that very moment, the Tower Master's face lit ‌‌up as though ‌he were shouting "Eureka!"
"Now that you mention it, I missed an opera performance by a singer I quite enjoyed while I was busy writing my treatise on dark magic tracking ‌‌‌theory...."
"Yes, exactly. You could watch such things without having to go to some uncomfortable public venue—you could simply lie ‌‌‌comfortably at home."
He seemed completely hooked now. ‌‌‌
Confident in my success, I didn't hesitate to continue.
"Consider the circus—many people want to see circuses, but when you account for the traveling time of circus troupes, performances are extremely limited. What if you could enjoy such performances as 'live broadcasts' right from your chamber?"
In that instant, the Tower Master's gaze ‌‌fixed directly upon me.
Seeing ‌‌‌‌the peculiar light that kindled in his weathered face, I couldn't help but smile with profound satisfaction.
"If we adjust the recording time and output conditions of the spirit stone even slightly, we could create something truly ‌‌revolutionary."
"Then, Young Lady, you mean to say..."
"Yes, ‌‌I've named it a beam projector. Don't you think the Mages of the Magic Tower could create it?" ‌‌
A brief silence followed—one brimming with unmistakable positivity.
And finally, the Tower Master nodded with a soft murmur of admiration.
"With this, every Mage in the Magic Tower ‌‌‌‌will want to ‌throw themselves into the project."
"Exactly, but..."
Having raised his expectations to ‌‌‌such heights, I let my words trail off ‌‌deliberately.
"I've run out of wish tokens."
"What? That's absurd! You don't need wish tokens at all!"
"...Pardon?"
Wish tokens weren't necessary?
All my efforts to persuade him with honeyed words suddenly felt utterly meaningless.
Seeing my bewildered expression, the Tower Master belatedly cleared his throat and continued his explanation.
"Foolish as it may be, but ‌‌‌‌upon hearing your description, I too became eager to participate in developing this 'beam projector.'"
"Truly?"
"Moreover, this concept of 'real-time ‌live ‌‌‌‌broadcast'... it seems genuinely groundbreaking."
The Tower Master wore the dazed expression of ‌‌someone utterly enchanted, muttering to himself.
"To think I never conceived of creating a communication stone that broadcasts one-way to many while using bidirectional communication stones as its foundation..." ‌‌‌
"Oh, no, no. It was only possible because the Magic Tower has already produced ‌such excellent research results."
"Hmm."
He nodded at my ‌‌‌words before asking further.
"Is there anything else you wish to implement?"
His words sounded as ‌‌though he were offering to establish some sort of universal workshop for me, and I fell silent for a moment.
Of course, if there were a broadcasting station where I could systematically produce programs, I would want far more.
But given the current circumstances, ‌‌such a thing was difficult to achieve. ‌
Wait, hold on.
'No, why don't I just create a broadcasting station myself?'
To do that, I would need...
'Insane. No, what am I even thinking? I'm already stretched thin as it is.'
I hastily suppressed the imagination threatening to spiral and shook my head vigorously.
What on earth was I ‌‌‌thinking?
This would only multiply my workload astronomically. ‌‌
'Don't lose sight ‌‌‌‌of who you are... I'm a homebody, a homebody, a homebody.'
After repeating this to myself several times, I smiled brightly and belatedly waved my hand in dismissal.
"N-nothing in particular comes to ‌‌‌‌mind. Ahahaha."
"What a shame. Should you think of anything else you desire, please contact me anytime. The Magic Tower will cover all expenses."
What?
I stared at the Tower Master in shock.
Separate from his goodwill toward me, the Magic Tower's ability to independently occupy territory vast enough to dwarf an entire kingdom was thanks entirely to their extraordinarily miserly nature. ‌‌
Yet the fact that the Magic Tower would cover all expenses meant the Tower Master truly was impressed by my idea.
"I'll share any good ideas I can come up with. But wait—you want me to keep in contact?"
As I spoke, a sense of discord nagged at me, so I asked for clarification. The Tower Master responded ‌with an excited expression.
"We'll discuss the details next time. We don't have time for that now. First, I need to return and discuss this 'beam projector' ‌‌‌‌concept with my colleagues."
"Ah... you're leaving? A dinner banquet has been prepared at the Grand Duke's Residence for you and the Mages. The Grand Duke will be attending as well."
At my words, the Tower Master tilted his head in confusion.
"Hmm? That's not what I heard, but regardless... ‌‌‌‌the true nature of a Mage is that of a scholar! What could ‌‌‌be more important than research?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"Then I shall take my leave."
A brilliant flash erupted.
In an instant, the surroundings fell silent.
"...Oh, um."
Of course, the ‌‌Tower Master had only come to pay his respects—the Mages handling the actual work would remain. I had wanted to show my gratitude for their cooperation through this dinner.
So this meant I'd end up dining alone with the Grand Duke again?
Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't have bothered me, but...
'Will it really ‌‌be fine?'
In truth, there had been much to resolve even after ‌‌‌‌learning of his past, so we'd inevitably crossed paths frequently.
Yet for some ‌‌‌reason, seeing the Grand Duke felt different than it usually did.
Until now, I'd been able to act unbothered because I was always with Bonita, Ashley, Liam, or the ‌‌‌‌Aides when meeting him. But ‌‌‌without the Tower Master, I'd ‌‌have to ‌‌‌‌face him alone.
'No, there's nothing to worry about.'
Even if the Grand Duke was rather handsome.
Even if he had ‌‌‌an impressive physique.
Even if ‌‌he possessed an extraordinary story of overcoming his past that made one see him in a new light...!
"It'll be fine."
Turning my back on the empty Garden, I made my way toward the Grand Duke's Residence with deliberately brisk steps.

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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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