Chapter 15
The host concisely explained the rules of the competition to the audience.
[ Contestants may look at the magic beast blueprints we provide and modify them, or they may create an entirely new structure better than these from scratch. However, the time limit is only 180 minutes. Even if you fail to finish within the time limit, you must still submit your work. ]
Depending on the difficulty, design—a process that could take several weeks—was being given only three short hours.
Of course, the design provided by the organizers used a D-Rank core, so it wasn't particularly difficult compared to the contestants' level.
But even so, the time limit was undeniably short.
What this design competition required was the ability to grasp the essence of a design in an instant and create a better magic beast design through appropriate optimization.
Although the competition could seem somewhat static, a system had been established that allowed the audience to view the contestants' designs in real time, and commentators explained what was happening accordingly, making it possible to watch it much like a game of baduk or janggi.
On top of that, the judges were outstanding talents invited from all over the world.
With them adding their own comments in real time, the competition became quite exciting in its own way.
“...But what on earth is that Korean doing? Setting aside the fact that he's designing from scratch... What is that horrifying structure supposed to be? Does he have no intention of doing this properly?”
“Hmm... We already don't have enough time, and that has no hope. It's rotten from the foundations. With a structure like that, I doubt it could even be cultivated properly, let alone function.”
“By the looks of it, he decided to make a big show of things just so he could try to place, didn't he? He clearly has no idea what we're looking for in this competition. Tsk, tsk....”
Even those participating as teams rather than individuals rarely chose to design from zero. Creation could earn a higher score than modification, but it was that much more difficult.
And in truth, completely creating something from scratch was practically a ‘trap’ set by the organizers.
For one thing, contestants could not afford to miss the essence of the design provided by the organizers.
Even if someone presented a highly polished design they had prepared in advance, they could not receive a good score if it differed from the purpose of the design they had been given.
In other words, this competition was not a place to show off a design prepared beforehand. It was a place to demonstrate the ability to see through the essence of the design provided and infuse it with one's own unique character.
That was why the designs presented by the organizers were provided to the contestants in an ‘unfinished’ state, with multiple possibilities still open.
The reason the organizers allowed contestants to create something from zero in a design competition was simply to provide ‘freedom.’
“That's why most people choose the reliable route of modification, but that Korean is being foolish.”
“Hey, Victor, shut up and move your hands already.”
The other contestants also glanced at Yoo Hyun, decided that he was hopeless, and continued with their own work.
Only two people in the venue watched Yoo Hyun's design with interest....
One was Louise, who was acquainted with Yoo Hyun... and the other was the alchemist who had provided the design for this competition: Maximilian Karlstein.
Now in his sixties, he was known as one of Germany's leading magic beast alchemists, just like Louise, and was a major figure who led Germany's massive magic beast brand, Adrels Kraft.
He watched the design floating on Yoo Hyun's screen with sunken eyes.
“……”
And then 180 minutes passed. At last....
[ Yes, that's time...! Those who haven't finished, press the submit button as well! ]
“Ah...!”
“Just a little more time!!”
Sighs erupted from several contestants who apparently hadn't finished their work.
But the work period ended without mercy, and the judges went around evaluating the contestants' designs.
“Hmm... What exactly is this supposed to depict? With an arrangement like this, there would be a collision around the spine.”
“Uh, no, that's... I didn't notice it....”
“Haa... This doesn't even seem like a difficult modification. Are you joking? You added a single wing and gave it lower-body paralysis!? Congratulations! You've just created a magic beast with a disability!”
Along with the merciless critique, a large X appeared on his screen.
It was a grim situation in which the contestants were executed one by one.
“Hey, Korean... What exactly did you make here?”
A group of judges surrounded Yoo Hyun.
It felt as though they wanted to execute him immediately, but had decided to hear his excuse first.
Even under that pressure, Yoo Hyun calmly explained his design.
“I completed the magic beast that the original designer wanted to make. No matter what I did, the existing design could only remain ‘unfinished.’”
“Ha... You call that an excuse? The organizers must not have realized they were providing an unfinished magic beast in the first place?!”
“No? Of course they knew, and I made it exactly as the competition intended. The provided design had been twisted from its foundations, contrary to the original designer's intention, so I redesigned it from scratch. You could never reach the direction the original designer wanted with that blueprint.”
“What nonsense... Hey, Korean. This is a design competition, not an oratory contest! No matter how eloquently you try to persuade us, you can't make a proper magic beast with that kindergarten scribble of yours!!!”
Just as the judge flew into a rage and was about to disqualify Yoo Hyun, Maximilian, the original designer, stopped him.
“Wait a moment. Hey, Korean. Why did you create a magic beast in that form? I'm the original designer who submitted the blueprint used in this competition, and what you're saying sounds very interesting.”
The other judges remained silent because Maximilian's words made it seem as though he intended to tear Yoo Hyun apart properly.
Even in that grim atmosphere, Yoo Hyun spoke without the slightest hesitation.
“Hmm... First of all, the magic beast in the original design is definitely intended for combat. More precisely....”
“Haa... Hey, an Eastern D-Rank magic beast isn't suitable for combat....”
Maximilian stopped the judge, who was looking at Yoo Hyun with disgust and trying to interrupt him.
“Enough. I want to hear more, so continue.”
“...More precisely, you wanted to create a magic beast that surpassed the rank of its Magic Core. Since it would be difficult to create an S-Rank magic beast through conventional means, your goal was probably to raise an A-Rank Magic Core to the level of an S-Rank one. You intended to use this prototype to raise a D-Rank magic beast to the level of a C-Rank one.”
“Ha....”
He had seen through it completely.
Because magic beasts became increasingly unstable as their rank rose, S-Rank magic beasts were a realm even China could not reach no matter how much manpower and capital it invested.
That was why Maximilian had changed his perspective, attempting to enhance the performance of an A-Rank magic beast through every available means until it reached the level of an S-Rank one.
That was why the blueprint Maximilian had submitted for the competition left possibilities open in every direction. I could see the traces of his struggles scattered throughout it.
“...What incredible insight. You could figure all that out from that blueprint alone...?”
“...What? What does that mean, Maximilian? Is what he said true?”
“Ha... Even I can't believe it as I listen to him.... He laid bare the magic beast I was trying to create. Perhaps the reason he submitted such an absurd design was to tell me that it was impossible. It's a rather witty answer. But it doesn't fit the purpose of this competition.... You and I should have a meal together sometime.”
Maximilian looked somewhat relieved as he moved to press the disqualification button....
“But I haven't submitted all of my designs yet.”
He stopped short—
“Hey, Korean... No, Yoo Hyun... We were trying to end this on a pleasant note. Do you really want to ruin it?”
“No. My answer to your contemplation isn't the whole of it....”
Ding—!
At that moment, another blueprint appeared on Yoo Hyun's screen.
Two magic beast designs were floating side by side.
The judges began to stir.
“Huh... He managed to make two designs in that short amount of time.”
“No... But how is this different from the earlier one? Both of them are horribly unstable....”
“I can't discern the intent.”
However, these were all authoritative magic beast alchemists.
Their instincts were telling them something.
It looked like a completely ruined design, but there was definitely something there. They simply couldn't determine what that something was with their current knowledge.
Louise and Maximilian both stared at the blueprints for a long time, but all they felt was a faint, ticklish sensation. They couldn't grasp what it meant.
And so the competition hall fell silent.
The host also needed to continue the proceedings, but seemed to feel that he shouldn't interrupt, so he merely watched the situation in silence.
There, only Yoo Hyun leisurely opened his mouth....
“Shall I give you a little hint? These two are one.”
He tossed it out lightly, like a professor offering students a hint to a problem, and the judges seriously tried to determine what the hint meant.
It was a bizarre sight in which the roles of judge and contestant had been reversed.
Maximilian gulped down water, feeling as though his throat were burning.
‘They’re one...? It’s not a riddle, so what on earth could that mean?’
He slowly swallowed the water as he stared at the designs. He pictured the two magic beasts in his mind, and....
He soon realized.
‘Wait a moment...!!! This... Could it be...? This isn't a riddle. Are the two of them literally one?’
These two extremely unstable magic beasts became perfectly complementary when they were together!!!
“Pfoooph—!!”
Maximilian eventually spat out the water he had been drinking.
“E-Eureka!! Eureka!!!”
“Whoa, you scared me!!! Did Maximilian figure something out!!?”
“Th-This is an impossible production method!! I can't believe it!!! I just can't believe it!!!!”
Maximilian told the judges what he had discovered, and after hearing his explanation and looking at the designs again, they finally saw it, too.
The two beings, each unstable to the extreme, fit together perfectly and formed harmony like the Eastern taiji, meaning that their instability had instead created perfection...!
It was quite literally enough to open a new frontier in magic beast production.
“Haaah!!! Inspiration is flooding in!!!!”
“This is impossible!!! I can't find a single flaw in the designs...!! Their output is definitely at least C-Rank!?”
“He made this in only three hours?”
“Can't we cultivate this right now!? I need to verify it, damn it...!!”
“Jesus!!! A talent like this is running nothing more than a pet shop in Korea? This is a crime!!! What is the Korean government doing!? Hey, why don't you escape that wretched place and come to America? It's unbelievable that they're letting talent rot in a cesspit!!!”
The host cautiously opened his mouth, trying to calm the excited judges.
[ Um... Everyone, please calm down, and we do need to continue the competition.... ]
“Shut up! The competition isn't the issue right now!! A new school of thought has been born here!!!”
[ Ah, yes.... ]
With a refreshed expression, Maximilian approached Yoo Hyun and spoke.
“Hey, Yoo Hyun. You heard me, right? You showed the world a new possibility for magic beasts. I'd like you to give this new magic beast production method a name.”
From my perspective, this was still a technique that fell far short. It wasn't even developed enough to deserve a name. If this were a game, it would be nothing more than a basic attack, but....
It was nevertheless true that it had breathed new life into the magic beast production techniques of the present day.
‘A name... A name, huh....’
...This design possessed a dual-pole complementary structure in which two extreme and unstable magic beasts, like yin and yang, made up for each other's defects....
“I’ll call it Duality.”
*
Korean YouTuber Ppetti Kkeurim had come to visit the Magitech Technology Expo.
He made a living from videos about Hunter equipment, and when he happened to pass by the competition hall and saw a Korean participating, he had planned to watch for a moment before leaving—but then he witnessed an utterly unbelievable scene.
Unlike his nickname, he was a sturdy-built man, and he couldn't close his mouth as he stared at what was happening.
“M-Madness... This is huge...!!”
[ Chat Window ]
- Kkeurim-hyung, what's wrong? Did the Korean win?
- What is it? Please translate it for us.
- I'm asking for the second time: did the Korean contestant win?
- No... Winning isn't the issue.... If I understood what I saw correctly... it looks like a new school of magic beast production has been born.
- ??????????????????????
- Is this for real?
【 Magic Beast Pet Minor Gallery 】
- [ Free ] The Jellykko boss has opened a new frontier in magic beast production LOLLLLLLLLL
- [ Free ] What's this Duality School rumor about? LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
- [ Free ] Fuck, is this for real? LOL I'm seriously looking forward to the news reaction tomorrow LOLLLLLLL
- [ Free ] Holy shit LOLLLLLLLLL The politicians who pushed magic beast regulations are all fucked now LOLLLLLLLLL
- [ Free ] A legendary situation has occurred!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- [ Free ] So don't give me that bullshit about a first-rate talent like that living in Korea while making Jellykkos...!!!! I'm about to lose my mind!!!!!!!!!!