Chapter 1583: Sunset

During the roughly three-hour synchronized observation window, Noy and Loren conducted four deep-space scans in the same direction at the same time. Throughout this period, technicians tried everything—from system resets to hard line switches on the sensor arrays atop the Sacred Mountain—but all attempts led to the same result: that ghostly “extra shadow” remained. Two completely different sets of observational data overlapped, and even with synchronized observations from two planets, the error couldn’t be corrected.

By the end of the tests, even Noy’s technical staff began to question whether the “extra shadow” was merely an error—or if it was, in fact, another real magical tide.

After repeated futile attempts, the observation window inevitably came to a close. The synchronized scans between Loren and Noy were forced to pause.

The printer clicked steadily as a strip of pure white paper slowly fed out, bearing a message from the “Witch” Nova: “Observation window has ended. Before the second window opens, we still have time to address the current issues through other means.

“The sages have received the system operation data sent from Loren. We will conduct a comprehensive analysis over the next few days to identify the cause of the abnormal readings in the observation device. Additionally, our faster-than-light communication will remain active to ensure we can exchange progress updates immediately.”

Gawain exhaled softly as he read the message, then spoke in a low voice, “Received. Loren’s communication system will also remain active. Meanwhile, we will continue single-planet baseline tests before the second window. Although parameters from a single planet can’t be used to construct the barrier frequency, we might find clues to the fault during these tests. All data will be shared in real time. If you have any suggestions during this process, please contact us at any time.”

The printer was silent for several minutes before clicking again, slowly feeding out a new strip with clear, sharp characters: “Noy received—wishing all goes well.”

“Wishing all goes well.”

Once the printer and the magical network terminal fell silent again, Gawain let out a deep sigh. Rising from his desk, he slowly walked to the wide floor-to-ceiling window, his mind heavy as he gazed out at the still-thriving city.

The giant sun had long passed its zenith and was now slowly sinking westward. Its enormous, slightly orange disk shimmered with faint woodgrain-like patterns, forming a magnificent corona just above the horizon. Against the sun’s backdrop, the city’s western towers and walls were cast into stark black silhouettes, layered and overlapping, their details obscured beneath the cold, fading light.

Suddenly, the magical network terminal on the desk hummed to life. Heddy, who remained in the study, stepped forward and connected to the terminal. Rebecca’s holographic image appeared, set against the backdrop of a busy, tense laboratory.

“Ancestor!” Rebecca’s voice echoed in the room. “I’ve briefly reviewed the data from the last observation. Neither Jenny nor I can pinpoint where the problem lies…”

“Wait for us in the Arcane Technology Department,” Gawain said, turning to face Rebecca’s projection with a serious expression. “I’ll come over personally. We’ll discuss this together.”

He then looked at Heddy. “Keep an eye on any messages from the ‘Observer’s Chamber.’ If there’s any change with the observation device, contact me immediately.”

With that, he left the Cecil Palace and headed straight to the Arcane Technology Department building near the central administrative district. Soon, he arrived at Rebecca’s office, where Rebecca and Jenny were already waiting.

“No need for formalities—there are no outsiders here,” Gawain said as he entered, waving off Jenny, who was about to rise from her chair. He grabbed a chair and sat opposite Rebecca’s desk, his gaze falling on the spread-out documents—covered in symbols, numbers, and diagrams, nearly filling the entire surface. Some were freshly printed observation data; others appeared to be original blueprints of the magical tide observation device, taken from the archives.

“Jenny and I just reviewed the original blueprints sent by the Noyans,” Rebecca said quickly. “As you know, to adapt to Loren’s environment and to build the ‘excitation focal point’ using the Deep Blue Network, we made quite a few adjustments to the Noyan blueprints—especially in how the sensor arrays connect to the excitation focal point. These changes might be causing the current anomalies…”

Gawain frowned deeply. He knew about these adjustments but didn’t believe they could cause such a major problem. “The Noyans confirmed every change we made. All adjustments were thoroughly reviewed by experts from both planets to ensure they wouldn’t affect the device’s operation or observation accuracy. In theory, this shouldn’t have happened.”

“In theory… yes,” Jenny interjected, her expression showing signs of fatigue from intense mental work. “But with a device this large and a work cycle this short, it’s normal for experts to miss something. Perhaps the adjusted blueprints contain hidden flaws we didn’t catch at first…”

Gawain stroked his chin, pondering briefly. “Have you found anything yet?”

“Not yet. We’re just getting started,” Rebecca shook her head. “There are so many original blueprints to review—it’s not something we can finish in a few days. We just wanted to let you know we’re pursuing this line of thought. Besides blueprint issues, we’re also discussing whether the Deep Blue magic used as the excitation focal point’s energy source has defects, or if some local environmental factors on the Ancestor Peak are interfering with the sensor arrays…”

Gawain frowned again. There were too many possible factors, and even experts like Rebecca and Jenny seemed at a loss. But soon he shook his head, his voice steady and reassuring as always. “Don’t rush. We still have time to find the problem. Today, let’s just identify a few suspicious directions. Then experts from both planets can verify them.”

Over the next half hour, Gawain, Jenny, and Rebecca listed every possible cause that might explain the significant deviations in the observation results. Jenny carefully recorded everything in a memo.

Among all the possibilities, “blueprint defects” and “Deep Blue magic properties” were considered the two most likely causes—and also the most time-consuming to verify and hardest to fix once confirmed.

Time slipped by as they discussed. Twilight gradually descended, and the intense mental exertion began to wear on Gawain. Rubbing his temples, he tapped the desk absently, then said thoughtfully, “Think again—what else might we have missed?”

Jenny looked over the notes she’d compiled, her hair slightly disheveled, a few strands of gray falling over her temples, which she ignored. After a moment, she shook her head gently. “We’ve covered all the likely directions… but I think there’s one factor we haven’t given enough attention.”

Gawain looked up. “Which factor?”

“Interference—some kind of external interference,” Jenny said, thinking aloud. “Maybe there’s a source of interference strong enough to cover the entire Sacred Mountain area, affecting our observation results. And it’s powerful enough to cause two shadows to appear in the sensor array…”

“We discussed interference earlier,” Rebecca scratched her head. “But what kind of interference could cause such a huge system deviation? We guessed it might be disturbances in the Deep Blue magic itself. Since the energy is drawn directly from the planet’s interior, it might need extra processing to reduce interference. But theoretically, the energy reaching the sensor arrays has already been processed by the ‘Lady of the Tower’… If even her treatment can’t meet the requirements, then we have no better options.”

“No,” Jenny shook her head slowly. “I still feel something’s off. There’s an interference source we’ve overlooked. Deep Blue magic is still an internal system factor, but I’m talking about interference from outside the system…”

Rebecca blinked, then looked to Gawain, as if seeking his opinion. But Gawain was lost in thought and gave no response.

The sun sank lower, the magnificent corona shrinking to less than a quarter of its former glory. Golden-red rays cascaded like a waterfall over the city, spreading from the western district. The office grew dimmer in the fading light. Rebecca shook her head and stood, reaching for the switch on the magical crystal lamp. “The sun’s almost down. I’ll turn on the lights…”

Before she could finish, Gawain suddenly snapped out of his reverie. He looked up sharply, interrupting her. “Wait.”

Rebecca was puzzled. “Huh?”

Gawain didn’t explain. Instead, as if a sudden realization had struck him, he slowly stood and, under the confused gazes of Jenny and Rebecca, paced around the large desk to the wide window.

The last golden rays of the sunset shimmered over the city. The corona’s outline near the horizon was now just a faint glowing edge. Vast beams of light illuminated the clouds, creating a dreamy glow that filled the view. Gawain squinted slightly, watching the giant sun sink slowly, then spoke softly: “…It’s the sun.”

“The sun?” Rebecca heard his murmur but didn’t immediately understand. “What about the sun?”

Gawain’s voice was low and heavy, each word weighted with immense gravity. Jenny and Rebecca’s eyes widened as he spoke: “We use the term ‘virtual celestial bodies’ to describe those massive objects containing high-energy reactions that continuously emit magic outward. They are natural magic focal points in the universe and the source of magic for many planets or moons orbiting them. The magical tide leaves traces around these ‘cosmic magic focal points.’ Our magical tide observation devices detect these traces to predict fluctuations in the tides…”

As he spoke, Gawain turned, the golden sunset light pouring through the window behind him like a magnificent cloak. But as the sun sank, the cloak dimmed, and darkness crept closer.

“Jenny, Rebecca, within our planetary system, there are two such ‘virtual celestial bodies.’”

“You mean…” Rebecca finally grasped Gawain’s meaning, but the answer made it hard for her to breathe. “You mean the sun we depend on for life is the greatest source of interference…”

“We’re too close to our ‘sun,’” Gawain said quietly, her gaze fixed on Rebecca and Jenny. “Because it’s not a true star, but a gas giant in a ‘lit’ state. That means if any life is to emerge on its moons, those moons have to orbit close enough to receive an amount of energy comparable to what planets get from a real star. But that proximity… it also means our entire world is completely ‘immersed’ in the sun’s overwhelming power.

“And within this system orbiting that sun, there’s actually a real star—‘Ao.’ Scholars think it’s far away, but on an astronomical scale, the distance between us and Ao isn’t really that great. The magic tide observation device measures disturbances in the magic tide by detecting ‘interference waves’ emitted by deep-space and nearby stars under its influence, calculated over light years… Rebecca, Jenny, do you understand?

“On our planet, the magic tide observation device’s ‘neighboring positions’ include two massive lenses, which, on an astronomical scale, are almost overlapping. At the same time, our planet is almost entirely ‘submerged’ within the radiation range of one of these lenses. So when the device activates, the sensor array picks up two overlapping but completely distinct ‘waveforms’ from the depths of space…”

The room fell silent. Rebecca and Jenny stood frozen in the fading sunset light, as if caught in a trance. After a long pause, Jenny finally hesitated and broke the silence. “But… why don’t the Noyans experience this at all?”

“They live on a planet orbiting a true star,” Gawain said, her voice low as she met Jenny’s eyes. “They simply don’t have the conditions to verify what problems the observation device might encounter under the influence of a gas giant.”

Some things—no matter how sound the theory, no matter how rigorous the reasoning, no matter how brilliant the mind—can never fully predict how reality will unfold.

The Noyans knew gas giants existed, and that Loren was actually a ‘moon’ orbiting a gas giant. But even they couldn’t foresee how vastly different the environment of this ‘Loren Moon’ was from their home world. In fact, even if they had, it wouldn’t have mattered—

The development of the magic tide observation device began long before Loren and Noya ever made contact.

“…The sun has set.”

Jenny stared out the window, whispering to herself.

The last glow of dusk faded away. The giant sun slipped below the horizon. Outside the wide floor-to-ceiling window, night fell.

Yet the world beneath their feet continued to orbit that giant sun—just as it had for billions of years past, and just as it would for billions to come.

(End of chapter)