Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage

CH738 Dark Scholar Star II

***

Alex’s eyes flashed.

’Indeed... the resemblance is there.’

The Duke paused, seemingly reconsidering whatever he had intended to say next. In the end, he simply shook his head.

Then he looked at Alex with a solemn expression.

"Can you truly help him?"

"Yes and no," Alex replied.

The Duke frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"I assume you are already aware of the curse afflicting him?" Alex asked.

"I am," the Duke nodded. "The Curse of the Twilight Adjudicators. It is something he inherited from his mother."

"Well, I can remove that curse," Alex said. "However, it appears to me that he suffers from another affliction as well—the Curse of the Dark Scholar Star."

"Dark Scholar Star?" the Duke repeated.

"Rather than a curse in the conventional sense, it is more accurate to describe it as a form of destiny," Alex explained. "Those born beneath this star are blessed with unparalleled intellect, yet they often suffer from tragically short lifespans.

"Because it is a destiny rather than a curse, it cannot simply be removed."

Alex’s gaze drifted towards the study door.

"The universe itself seems unwilling to allow someone possessing your son’s level of intellect to remain within it for too long."

The Duke’s expression darkened.

"There is truly nothing that can be done?" he asked quietly.

"The best thing you—or anyone—can do for your son is allow him to fully express his intellect," Alex replied. "That way, when his time comes, he will at least leave behind a legacy worthy of remembrance."

Duke Cyrindale remained silent for several moments as he struggled to process and accept Alex’s words.

Eventually, he spoke again.

"How long does he have?"

"I do not know," Alex admitted, shaking his head.

In truth, Alex was not speaking from any concrete evidence or direct observation.

It was merely a feeling—a powerful intuition born from the striking similarities between Olyver and the polymath friend Alex had unfortunately only come to know near the end of that person’s life.

Alex turned towards the Duke and spoke sincerely.

"Although I cannot remove the burden of the Dark Scholar Star, I can at least ease some of its weight."

The Duke immediately looked up.

"How?" he asked.

"One of the greatest burdens of such a destiny is that there is almost no one capable of keeping pace with those born beneath it. As a result, they often grow up isolated and alone. I imagine Olyver suffers from the same problem." Alex said.

Duke Cyrindale nodded quietly.

"Well, while I am not a once-in-an-era genius like your son, I can still be considered a genius in my own right. I can keep up with him to a certain extent—certainly far more than most people." Alex replied.

"I cannot change his destiny, but I can ease his loneliness and perhaps make life a little more interesting for him." He smiled faintly. "For that, however, I will need to remain here for a while—both to remove the Curse of the Twilight Adjudicators and to discuss his current research with him.

"That is, of course, if you do not mind."

Duke Cyrindale was caught off guard by the proposal, but after a moment’s consideration, he nodded.

Although he knew his son’s work was likely groundbreaking, and part of him wished to preserve its secrecy, he also understood a simple truth.

What use was safeguarding research that nobody else could comprehend in the first place?

If there truly existed someone capable of understanding Olyver’s thoughts—and perhaps even becoming his friend—then it was an opportunity worth taking.

"I will leave him in your hands." Duke Cyrindale nodded.

Alex returned the gesture.

"So be it."

Privately, however, Alex finally felt that he had gained a clearer understanding of the Duke’s character.

’So that’s the kind of person you are.’

Levin Cyrindale was both a Duke and a father.

The two roles often stood in conflict with one another, yet somehow the man had found a way to fulfil both without completely sacrificing either.

Alex turned and made his way back towards Olyver’s study.

The moment he stepped through the door, Olyver spoke without looking up.

"I told you not to disturb me."

"Is that so?" Alex replied casually. "And here I was, intending to point out the mistake in your spacetime energy transference calculations—the one preventing you from achieving your breakthrough."

The scratching of a quill abruptly stopped.

Alex pretended not to notice.

"Well, since you do not wish to be disturbed, I’ll take my leave."

He turned around as though preparing to leave.

"Wait!"

The chair screeched violently across the floor.

Olyver nearly stumbled over himself in his haste as he rushed forward to stop Alex.

"You can understand my work?" Olyver asked as he grabbed Alex by the shoulders.

"Of course." Alex shrugged. "This is merely the basics of planar geometry. I could do calculations at this level when I was eleven."

"Impossible!" Olyver retorted immediately.

He rushed back to his desk, grabbed a small stack of papers, then practically shoved them into Alex’s hands.

"Explain these." He challenged.

Alex deliberately allowed a faint sneer to appear on his face.

He casually flipped through the papers before beginning his explanation.

Not only did he accurately identify the purpose behind Olyver’s calculations, but he also pointed out several flaws in the man’s assumptions and mathematical approach.

As Alex continued speaking, Olyver’s eyes widened further and further.

Soon, he found himself nodding repeatedly.

Before either of them realised it, they were once again gathered around the desk, discussing calculations and theories together.

Any suspicion or wariness Olyver had previously harboured vanished completely.

Instead, he began addressing Alex with the utmost respect—sometimes as an equal, other times as a teacher.

Outside the discussion, Duke Cyrindale and Saul watched the scene with stunned expressions.

It was the first time they had ever witnessed someone capable of conversing with Olyver as a genuine peer regarding his research.

Most people struggled merely to understand fragments of his explanations, let alone engage in meaningful discussion with him.

A warm smile tugged at the Duke’s lips.

At the same time, a firm determination quietly took root within his heart.

Eventually, Duke Cyrindale, Saul, and Udara grew bored listening to a conversation they could not even begin to comprehend.

Quietly, they left the two researchers to their work.

—

Time passed peacefully within the subterranean courtyard.

Days blurred together.

Meals arrived and disappeared.

Neither Alex nor Olyver paid much attention.

"We did it!"

The two men celebrated simultaneously.

Being the pragmatist that he was, Alex naturally took advantage of the free brain he had unexpectedly acquired in the form of Olyver.

After all, there was still one problem that had continued to plague him for months.

A problem he had been unable to solve on his own.

After teaching Olyver the necessary principles behind planar geometry, Alex redirected the younger man’s genius towards deriving the final missing coordinate required for his return to Pangea.

Now, after an entire week of relentless work, countless calculations, discarded theories, and several fresh perspectives, they had finally succeeded.

The final missing piece had fallen into place.

Alex looked down at the completed calculations before him.

A smile slowly spread across his face.

With this, he finally possessed all the coordinate data necessary to reconstruct the Interplanar Formation leading back to Pangea.

***