Mage? Magic Engineer!

Chapter 413: Chapter 410: The Possibility of Symbiosis

While everyone else was staggering and leaning against the walls, completely disoriented by the device, only Martin stood straight. He helped Hanna up. "Are you alright?"

Rorschach was the first to recover. He gave his orders, "Teacher Caroline and Miss Hanna, please rest up and then continue the tests. Andre, you’re in charge of recording the experiment data. I’m taking Martin for a physical examination."

Before anyone could react, Rorschach dragged Martin out of the Isolation Room and into another chamber.

"This is..."

"Look familiar?" Rorschach had brought him to the old biology lab. It still had the same sterilization procedure, and inside were the same assorted jars and tanks full of small, captive animals.

A Mechanical Body with multiple hose-like arms was feeding the small animals that had been sacrificed for the sake of Magic. It opened a cage, and a sharp popping sound came from inside. The Mechanical Body shoved the food inside and immediately shut the door, silencing the noise. It was a good container, capable of sealing off odors and sounds when necessary.

Martin noticed, however, that the wall directly opposite the door had been replaced with a transparent glass greenhouse. It was lush and green inside, but a closer look revealed that the selection of plants was somewhat limited.

The light source in the greenhouse was clearly artificial. In the short time since they had entered, it had already shifted from a midday-like glare to a dim twilight.

Rorschach followed Martin’s gaze and offered a brief explanation. "Ever since the war started, the supply of raw materials for Energy Potions has been cut off, so we’re cultivating new ones now. Whatever you do, don’t go through that door."

Martin didn’t press for a reason and simply did as he was told. Rorschach ran him through the Magic Power assessment process again, clucking his tongue in amazement.

"When Andre tested you, he just hastily wrote down ’no Magic Power.’ But looking at you now, Martin, you’re far more special than that. Even the plants in the greenhouse have a richer Spiritual Light in them than you do."

Martin had heard similar assessments before, so he wasn’t particularly fazed. He shrugged. "Yeah, I know. I don’t have any talent."

"No, no, no. As long as you’re special enough, that uniqueness can definitely be developed into some kind of advantage. For instance, right now, you’re the best person to take over for Andre and record the experiment—inside the Isolation Room, you’re the only one unaffected by the Forbidden Magic Device."

Martin felt a bit better after the reassurance. Rorschach took the vial of Living Aquatic Microorganisms from the pendant on Martin’s chest. "Let’s see the results of your feeding."

He opened it and saw that the biological activity inside wasn’t very good. Rorschach could see the gel slowly squirming inside the vial, but the bacterial colony exuded an aura of "giving up," looking listless and weak.

’Is it because Martin’s Magic Power is too low?’ Rorschach poured out half of the contents, then added a small amount of white sugar to the vial to "nourish" the little guys before resealing it and handing it back to Martin.

The extracted sample, however, had another purpose.

Rorschach opened a metal case, and Martin was immediately hit by a blast of cold air. The Mage took out the slime mold that had been discovered in the Black Forest.

In the petri dish, the slime mold was white and fleshy. It was a sample cultivated by the Tower of Forest and had even been used to replace the tattered respiratory organs of some poor soul with consumption. That recovered fellow was now living under a new name as Mr. Haase’s assistant.

Rorschach drizzled the microorganisms cultivated by Martin evenly over the slime mold, exactly like pouring berry jam over cream. But the combination of the two was no delightful dessert. The two substances began to writhe and entangle each other.

Rorschach added a few drops of nutrient solution, resealed the petri dish, and put it back in the "refrigerator." Before the heavy, thick door of the case swung shut, the newly active mass of bacteria inside was already pushing against the glass lid, making it crackle.

"As you can see, I’ve mixed two... collections of organisms together. At first, they don’t merge; they fight. So, by putting them in a low-temperature environment, I’m giving them a ring to fight in where survival is difficult. Ideally, they won’t fight to the death, but will eventually back off and form a symbiosis."

When the Elf creation in the Black Forest was first discovered, its body was formed from a symbiosis of white mycelium, plant-like matter, and other microorganisms. The Tower of Forest extracted and cultivated this mycelium separately.

Since Rorschach was involved in the discovery of both the mycelium and the Living Aquatic Microorganisms, he still received immediate updates on the Tower of Forest’s subsequent research and even got samples from time to time.

The specialized research is handled by professional Mages. Rorschach is just conducting a bold experiment based on the Tower of Forest’s theories, "playing matchmaker," so to speak, for two promising microorganisms based on the mycelium’s symbiotic tendencies and the Living Water Body Bacteria’s colonial properties.

"The white tissue you saw earlier can even be used to repair or replace certain human organs, though it requires many generations of special cultivation.

"As you can see, if these two little guys can form a symbiosis with each other after being mixed, it’s highly likely they can also establish a symbiotic relationship with a human."

Rorschach’s words made Martin swallow involuntarily. "Are you saying, if I can..."

Rorschach cut him off. "But this mixture is just an experiment; there’s no guarantee of success. So you must continue cultivating the microorganisms in your vial to provide material for subsequent tests."

"Yes, sir!" Seeing a glimmer of hope, Martin’s reply was filled with renewed vigor.

’If everything goes smoothly, Martin could form a symbiotic relationship with both microorganisms and gain a postnatal Casting Ability. But there’s a risk. It wouldn’t be very fun if Martin turned into a monster.’

Rorschach’s gaze swept over several now-empty cages.

’Hopefully, Martin’s unique constitution will bring us some hope. And I’ll need to add a few more safeguards to reduce the risk...’

The two of them went out just as the experiment in the Isolation Room was concluding. As planned, Caroline and Hanna had tested every Magic spell logged in the "Spell Cloud," with Andre recording the anti-interference effects.

"BLECH... URP..." The moment Hanna stepped out, she vomited.

The Obsidian Silver Thread Wall of the Isolation Room normally had a powerful shielding effect. However, this also meant that the displaced Magic Power didn’t create a null-magic Death Magic Area. Instead, it was reflected back by the walls, creating a "super-multiplied" backlash.

At some point, the Mechanical Body had followed Rorschach and Martin out. One of its hose-like hands extended, precisely catching the vomit, and then offered Hanna a glass of water.

Without a second thought, Hanna drank the water that was originally meant for the animals.

"Teacher Rorschach, I’ll organize the results and data when I get back and give them to you tomorrow. I still have things to take care of at the factory, so I’ll be leaving now."

"Good work, everyone." Rorschach gestured that the others could leave as well. He watched Martin help Hanna out of the Mage Tower’s main hall.

Caroline didn’t leave. She still needed to check the stability of the Teleportation Gate, especially after the Isolation Room had triggered a continuous surge of Magic Power.

She also had another purpose. "What is this?"

"It’s a Mechanical Body to manage my Arcane Garden, so its codename is ’Gardener.’ It can also handle the cleaning chores inside the tower."

The Mechanical Body’s legs were short, but all of its hose-like arms were long, making it look perfect for manual labor.

Caroline stared seriously into Rorschach’s eyes. "This Mechanical Body isn’t being controlled by the Tower Spirit."