Chapter 661: Unbridled
This ancient yet youthful nation had just endured a trial by fire, emerging reborn from the ashes. Though the road ahead remained shrouded in uncertainty, a single ray of sunlight pierced through the heavy clouds, casting its warm glow upon this land now brimming with new life.
Within the city of Cecil, the atmosphere on the eve of the grand celebration grew increasingly vibrant. Brightly colored banners fluttered along the main avenues, municipal workers busily draped red and green ribbons from street lamps and storefronts. Children waved scraps of ribbon they’d found by the roadside, laughing as they dashed across the wide concrete streets. Citizens dressed in fresh new clothes gathered in clusters, chatting about the latest news—some beaming with joy, others wearing solemn expressions.
A newsboy, sling bag slung over his shoulder, darted through the alleys, loudly hawking the newest issue of the Cecil Weekly and other papers. The scent of fresh ink wafted from the bundles in his bag, and the bold headlines caught every passerby’s eye:
“The Ansu Monarchy Ends in Peace; Saint Suniel’s Provisional Council Announces: The Great Cecil Empire Is About to Be Established.”
On the third floor of the main building at the Arcane Technology Institute, Koenbell watched the newsboy sprint past outside, then turned away from the window with a smile and a shake of his head. “Those newsboys have been having a good time lately—one big story after another.”
A tall man with a slight bald spot shrugged. “The taverns and game rooms are happy too. Every day, countless ‘newspaper clerks’ and ‘broadcast officials’ gather there to debate the future. I can’t find a quiet place to unwind after work anymore.”
“You’re looking for peace in taverns and game rooms? That’s the problem,” Koenbell shot him a glance. “I’d suggest you try that new café on Golden Spindle Street. It’s run by a northerner, nice atmosphere, and the drinks are… quite novel.”
The two researchers chatted idly, but their conversation was abruptly cut short when the lab door swung open. A lively voice called out from the entrance, “Yo! Good… morning, everyone! Are we all set for today’s tests?”
Rebecca, her hair braided neatly, strode into the lab, her cheerful braid swaying behind her with each step. She radiated an infectious, festive energy—an aura she’d carried for quite some time now.
Those who knew her well understood the source of her exuberance: with her ancestors leading the charge on the front lines and her aunt managing the provisional council, the young marquise—still officially a marquise—had taken sole charge of the Arcane Technology Department’s myriad affairs. Thanks to wartime priorities favoring research and military industry, the department’s funding had been plentiful. For Rebecca, whose mind was always brimming with bold ideas, this was nothing short of a dream come true.
She’d been running wild for nearly two months—and it looked like she wasn’t about to slow down anytime soon.
Lady Heddy, the Grand Regent, might have found Rebecca’s boundless energy a headache, but those working in the research division welcomed it. When Rebecca was in this unrestrained state, her sharp intellect soared beyond ordinary limits. Several projects had made remarkable progress recently—not just because of the team’s efforts, but thanks in no small part to Rebecca’s leadership.
“Miss Rebecca,” Koenbell greeted her with a bow and a smile, “everything’s ready. We can start whenever you say.”
“Excellent, excellent!” Rebecca beamed, her festive smile unwavering as she made her way to the large platform at the center of the lab. Surrounding it were countless magical devices, and atop the platform sat a metal ring roughly two meters in diameter, about a hand’s width thick, its surface inlaid with numerous runes and crystals.
The team gathered around, each taking their stations. The tall man with the receding hairline adjusted the platform’s power supply and casually asked, “Miss Rebecca, you’ve seen today’s papers… or I suppose you already knew the news before they hit the press?”
At his words, the arcane technicians nearby paused their work, leaning in with interest. But Rebecca blinked in surprise. “Huh? I haven’t read them… Mr. Marlin, what news?”
Koenbell gave a knowing sigh and rubbed his forehead. “About the Cecil Empire… you do know the Ansu monarchy has ended.”
“Oh!” Rebecca’s reaction was delayed by a couple of seconds before she clapped her hands. “Right! Aunt Heddy mentioned it at dinner last night… She said something else too, but I was buried in formulas and didn’t catch it all.”
Marlin, the slightly balding technician, opened his mouth to speak but found himself at a loss. This should have been a perfect break-time topic, but Rebecca’s unexpected response made the conversation awkward. He tried to hint delicately, “We might soon be addressing you as Her Highness, Princess…”
Rebecca thought for a moment, then took a couple of seconds to process.
“Ah, that sounds about right…” She finally recalled Aunt Heddy’s long lecture about relearning etiquette, grammar, history, and the like. Her expression grew more animated.
“No… no one said princesses have to retake etiquette classes, right?” Rebecca’s eyes widened like a frightened rabbit as she nervously asked Marlin, “You’re the nephew of Viscount Leslie—you know how this works, don’t you?”
“Well… I honestly don’t,” Marlin replied with a helpless smile. He was the only one in the lab besides Rebecca with noble blood—though only because his uncle was a viscount. How could he possibly answer questions from the future princess? Still, considering the rumors surrounding the Cecil heir and her past reputation as a laughingstock among southern nobles, it wasn’t entirely surprising she’d turn to him for advice. “Probably not. The nobility system’s been completely reformed. The empire’s institutions will be new, so the old noble etiquette probably won’t matter much.”
Rebecca visibly relaxed. “That’s a relief…”
Marlin thought for a moment and added, “But while you won’t have to relearn the old ways, you’ll definitely have to learn the new ones.”
Rebecca: “…”
To be honest, she nearly let out a fireball right then and there. It was only the expensive equipment and Aunt Heddy’s iron will that kept her calm.
“Let’s… not talk about this anymore…” The future imperial princess abruptly cut off the topic, like an ostrich burying her head in the sand. “Let’s start… the experiment.”
The technicians, sensing her mood, wisely dropped the subject and began preparing for the test with practiced efficiency.
Though immersion chamber technology had become increasingly common—allowing more elite researchers to conduct experiments in the virtual “Origin Laboratory”—virtual labs still had their limits. Real-world testing remained essential, especially for complex projects involving intricate rune patterns or black-box spell recombination. Such tests were crucial for later stages, as these projects showed the greatest “reality deviation” in the virtual space.
Under the team’s coordinated efforts, faint glimmers of runes began to appear on the platform’s surface. Detection, control, and recording devices around the platform powered up. The metal ring on the platform trembled slightly as magical energy filled it, emitting a soft, pleasant hum.
“All right, prototype anti-gravity ring, total test count: 627, real-world test number twelve,” Rebecca announced, standing beside the platform. Her expression had turned serious, her voice steady as she gave instructions. “Maintain the mana field. Check the ring’s integrity.”
“The anti-gravity ring is operational. Current load is normal. Rune interference within safe limits,” Koenbell reported quickly, eyes scanning the monitoring device—a crystal panel beside the platform enchanted to detect distortions and mana feedback. It displayed the mana distribution on the platform and warned of any signs of instability. “Lift is beginning… very stable.”
Rebecca’s gaze never wavered. “Slowly release the restriction locks.”
An operator responded immediately. “Understood. Releasing locks.”
A faint clicking sound came from beneath the platform as several locking mechanisms holding the metal ring in place gradually disengaged. The rune-etched ring began to rise, still tethered by sturdy steel cables to ensure safety.
The ring ascended to about half a meter above the platform and stabilized there.
No one in the lab relaxed; if anything, their expressions grew more tense and focused.
“Levitation spell active. Anti-gravity field stable,” Koenbell continued. “Rune interference remains within safe parameters.”
“Apply test load.”
The steel cables tightened slowly. The ring bobbed slightly but quickly steadied.
“Load increased to 220 kilograms. Still stable.”
“Maintain this load for now,” Rebecca said, checking the equipment’s status. “Next… let’s try moving it. Marlin, lateral movement—keep the amplitude small.”
Marlin Leslie nodded, took a deep breath, and cautiously began manipulating the runes on the ring through a non-contact mana field. He adjusted the anti-gravity field’s direction and redistributed the load to shift the ring sideways.
The ring emitted a soft hum as the runes rippled like flowing water. It trembled lightly, then began to move to one side.
Rebecca’s eyes widened, her breath nearly caught in her throat as she watched.
Suddenly, the ring’s surface flashed with intense light. The entire metal structure vibrated violently, emitting a piercing screech before shooting upward—
“Crack! Crack! Crack!”
Several hooks connecting the steel cables to the ring snapped one after another. The anti-gravity ring surged toward the ceiling in a blaze of blinding light. With a thunderous crash, it slammed solidly into the ceiling.
Rebecca reacted instantly, slapping the emergency stop button beside the platform to cut the ring’s mana supply. But it all happened too fast—the ring had already struck the ceiling. Even as the runes dimmed with the loss of power, the ring didn’t fall.
It was embedded.
A cloud of dust and debris fell from the ceiling of the lab, sending a group of mage technicians scrambling in a mess to dodge the falling fragments. Only after the dust finally settled did the soot-covered team cautiously return to their workstations, staring blankly up at the anti-gravity ring embedded in the ceiling.
The atmosphere grew awkward.
After a long pause, Koenbell quietly broke the silence. “At least… now we know that when this thing overloads, its lift capacity spikes dramatically, even if only for a moment…”
“Maybe we should switch to sturdier hooks and steel cables,” Marlin added from the side.
“This kind of flying device that only goes straight up and down is basically useless,” a junior researcher muttered under her breath. The lab was so quiet that everyone heard her.
“Maybe we should try my original idea,” Rebecca mused, stroking her chin. “Flying while shooting big fireballs backward. It’s slower and uses more energy, but—”
Koen immediately broke out in a cold sweat, rushing to object. “Your plan is even more dangerous than the anti-gravity ring going haywire, and I doubt Lady Hetty would approve…”
“Auntie’s not in the tech department anyway… Fine,” Rebecca trailed off, lowering her head with a sigh. “Let’s clean this up, organize the data, and figure out exactly what went wrong. Also, everyone should think about safer alternatives once you’re back.”
She looked up again, glancing at the metal ring embedded in the ceiling.
“Koen, see if you can… pry it down later. And who’s coming with me upstairs? I need to tell Master Kamail that there wasn’t an explosion this time… No one? Fine, I’ll go alone.”
(End of chapter)