[Geometric intuition for circuits has been activated.]
"...Oh."
Intuition. It was an effect that hit Park Ha-jun right in his sweet spot.
But at the same time, a question arose.
'Intuition is activating now?'
Did that mean his vision up until now had been devoid of any real intuition?
The doubt soon turned into certainty.
In truth, it didn't make sense for Park Ha-jun, a geometry professor, to fail to grasp the patterns of attribute 'shapes.'
Moreover, even with simple 2D shapes like the Neutral Magic Bullet circuit, he had felt a sense of beauty in their geometric arrangement.
'...But I couldn't intuitively understand why it was beautiful.'
So, what would change now that intuition had been added?
Park Ha-jun checked the familiar 0-circle—Neutral Magic Bullet circuit.
Suddenly, things he hadn't seen before came into focus.
The geometric arrangement, the meaning of the shapes, the effects that would emerge from tweaking the graphs...
It wasn't perfect yet, but the concepts and their functions were now intuitively understandable.
'...No wonder the arrangement felt beautiful. So that's what it meant.'
For example, the spiral shape responsible for the Magic Bullet's destructive power.
'If the distance between this spiral shape and its graph is off even slightly, it creates a flaw in the destructive power. The same goes for the other shapes...'
Feeling a rush of elation, Park Ha-jun examined the Fire Magic Bullet circuit again.
'...So, what will the attribute shapes look like?'
The moment he checked, tinged with slight apprehension.
His vision flushed blue.
As if a blurry focus had sharpened, a certain 'structure' emerged amid the tangled lines.
'This is...'
Park Ha-jun furrowed his brow.
It evoked knot theory from topology—the very topic he'd recently chosen as his research focus.
The 'overlaps that occur when projecting a knot onto a 2D plane,' which he'd noted and moved past earlier.
With intuition activated now, he pierced straight to its essence and arrived at a clear answer.
'It's a knot structure.'
The system had distorted it when rendering on a 2D plane, but at its core, it was a closed curve twisted and linked in 3D space.
In other words, a knot—a closed curve in space where both ends of a string connect without intersecting.
And specific topological invariants of that knot seemed to determine the 'fire' attribute.
The way the lines crossed, the number of intersection points, the connected forms...
Each guided mana flow in a specific direction and manifested particular properties.
"Whoa..."
The correlation between magic and geometry. It was implemented in a structure of breathtaking beauty.
Even if only visible in Park Ha-jun's vision, he felt an overwhelming urge to analyze it further.
But Park Ha-jun didn't rush in recklessly.
He focused on the current joy—what hunters called enlightenment.
Thus, Park Ha-jun delved deeper into the Fire Magic Bullet circuit.
'But there's a geometric error here too.'
Did that mean even perfectly following the system's circuit wouldn't achieve 100% completion?
'No wonder I was the first to hit destructive power 1. The knot shouldn't be drawn like that...'
Park Ha-jun analyzed the knot structure, immersing himself in building his own framework of understanding.
Time flew by unnoticed, and only when morning sunlight streamed through the window did he snap out of it.
"...I really didn't sleep a wink."
He closed the notebook recording his analysis of attribute shapes—knots—and opened [Mail].
Rubbing the back of his neck, he slowly read the request.
[...Calculations show that a high-output elemental magic scroll with 0.5 destructive power would allow us to take down the 'Elemental Golem.' Of course, if 0.5 or higher is possible, anything above that...]
'0.5, huh...'
After a moment's thought, he sent a [Reply].
The message was concise and clear.
[Possible. I'll provide detailed specs tomorrow afternoon.]
With that, Park Ha-jun left the workshop and hurriedly prepared for work.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Kim Ji-seok, upon checking the reply, gathered his team for a full strategy meeting.
"As you all know, this gate is a Grade 3 hazard management target."
Grade 3 hazard management target. It had been classified as such after the previous subjugation team was wiped out.
"The wiped-out subjugation team had enough firepower to take down the Elemental Golem, but they failed."
The dead tell no tales.
It meant they had to enter without knowing why they failed.
So Kim Ji-seok considered various possibilities. And he came up with the most likely one.
'The only reason a team with that firepower would fail against the Elemental Golem is its rampage.'
The elemental fusion reaction triggered by destroying the Elemental Golem's core—the rampage where the main body revives as pure element, doubling in strength.
They must have failed to suppress that rampage.
Probably because the output of one of the attributes—water, fire, wind, or earth—was insufficient to halt the fusion.
...Or perhaps a variable raised the required threshold.
Thus, Kim Ji-seok raised the projected specs needed for this subjugation.
"Wind and water attributes are covered by Ye-ji's output. But for earth and fire, we'll have to rely on scrolls. This morning, I got confirmation from asd123 that production is possible."
The team members nodded awkwardly.
asd123's scrolls. They'd seen the performance with their own eyes, but could they really stake their lives on scrolls...?
Kim Ji-seok wasn't free from that worry either.
"Don't worry too much. Call it my gut feeling, but asd123... he won't send some half-assed destructive power scroll. He's an oddball."
He had to trust asd123.
"No complaints about using scrolls, right? No second-guessing in the field—speak your minds now."
Shin Ye-ji, looking somewhat glum, muttered timidly.
"...If the attribute magic scrolls hit those specs, then sure."
It meant she'd gladly accept them.
A mage, accepting scrolls.
Kim Ji-seok swallowed a wry smile and asked.
"What about the rest? Speak freely."
The archer, Im Ji-hoon, glanced at Shin Ye-ji before cautiously replying.
"The specs are right there in black and white. No reason not to trust them."
With objective metrics, they were more trustworthy than a mage in some ways.
Kim Ji-seok nodded and looked at Lee Hyun-ho.
Lee Hyun-ho seemed to agree as well.
But.
"I looked it up out of curiosity, but 0-circle and 1-circle have worlds of difference in production difficulty. Plus, the scrolls Team Leader requested are high-output ones, right? 2-circle destructive power 0.5 or higher."
Why'd this guy go digging into that? Scared of dying, huh, Kim Ji-seok thought, then replied.
"That's right?"
In fact, the 'high-output attribute magic scrolls' he'd requested were for 2-circle destructive power 0.5 or higher.
He hadn't specified explicitly, but since he'd stated it was for suppressing the Elemental Golem's rampage.
He figured the expert asd123 would handle it perfectly.
But even with asd123's proven skill, it wouldn't be easy. Lee Hyun-ho raised a reasonable doubt for survival's sake.
"Can that guy really make them? If scrolls are key to subjugation, why not go with Kim Ah-hyun, the industry top dog...?"
"Hm... Hyun-ho's finally using his brain. Cough, actually, I have considered it. But..."
asd123's eccentric side.
The expectation that he'd deliver overwhelmingly superior specs again—or snag them at bargain prices like with the last ones—was too tempting to ignore.
"Above all, asd123 said he'd reply tomorrow afternoon. So even if we commission Kim Ah-hyun, it should be after that."
Only then did Lee Hyun-ho relent.
"Everyone agrees on using the scrolls? Alright, let's proceed with strategy based on that."
And so, assuming scroll use, they devised the optimal strategy for the B-rank gate—the Golem Temple.
'It's a gate with a wipeout history. Can't rely on a single plan.'
They prepared escape plans assuming the worst.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Park Ha-jun's lab.
After reviewing the final lesson materials submitted by TA Lee Soo-ji, Park Ha-jun murmured.
"...You did great."
Lee Soo-ji's face lit up as she fidgeted with her fingers.
"Really!?"
"Yeah. Really well done. Concise yet clear content, excellent links between concepts and examples. You worked hard, Soo-ji."
Park Ha-jun was always strict and serious during lesson prep, but today his smile was unusually soft and warm.
"Hehe... I pulled an all-nighter until yesterday, like I said!"
Lee Soo-ji grinned without restraint.
That expression pricked at Park Ha-jun's conscience.
'...I made my TA work overtime, while the professor pulled an all-nighter on his hobby.'
No, it wasn't just a hobby anymore.
He couldn't pin it down precisely yet, but it had evolved beyond mere pastime into something serious.
And later, the gold would greatly aid department operations. On the grand scale, maybe nothing to feel sorry about. Hm.
"Haha... You must be exhausted. Go rest up."
"Yes!"
Lee Soo-ji hopped out of the lab like a sparrow.
"..."
Park Ha-jun scratched his nose and turned his gaze. A stack of papers on the desk—materials requested from researchers.
Pattern analysis of magic formulas by attribute.
Geometric patterns and energy outcomes when specific attributes manifest.
Expected effects of applying knot theory to attribute magic.
...
'Coincidence? My research topic aligns perfectly with my current abilities.'
Integrating knot theory with attribute magic. Real mages had attempted it often.
Of course, with [Geometric Interpretation], Park Ha-jun wasn't integrating—it was the knot theory itself at play.
'Does this mean my ability doesn't show shapes unrelated to actual circuits?'
Thus, reading the researchers' materials greatly aided his understanding of 1-circle—attribute Magic Bullet circuits.
'...Should I sketch one?'
His burning curiosity demanded immediate action.
Besides, fully grasping attribute magic scroll circuits tied directly to his research.
"Ahem."
He pulled out a quill from his bag and bought low-grade parchment. No one would enter the lab for a while.
Park Ha-jun took a deep breath and began drawing the Fire Magic Bullet circuit.
A massive circle first, then the attribute shapes in sequence. The magic quill captured his intent.
Unlike the enigmatic drawings before, this one depicted a knot with spatial depth.
Seeing the completed knot, Park Ha-jun buzzed with excitement.
'Oh... This feels right.'
His understanding wasn't perfect yet.
But he now had a sense of how to resolve the system's geometric errors!
To verify, he needed to complete this scroll. Park Ha-jun drew faster.
The rest of the circuit finished in a flash.
Holding the parchment high, Park Ha-jun let out a manic laugh.
"Haha... This method works."
Regaining his senses, he infused it with mana immediately.
[Status: Parchment mana limit: Scroll efficiency capped at 40% | High circuit completion: +80% final efficiency! | Magic Scroll - Fire Magic Bullet | Baseline Destructive Power: 0.72 | Mana Cost: 55 | Attribute: Fire | Circuit Completion: 3.6-circle]
Confirming the completion, Park Ha-jun nodded.
'Plenty of time. With the approach set, a few more tries and I can hit destructive power 1.'
He'd figure out pricing separately and send an email.
Thus, he rolled up the scroll, tucked it in his bag, and enjoyed his ordinary day in high spirits.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The next day, afternoon.
A [Mail] arrived for Kim Ji-seok.
[asd123 here. Produced the requested scrolls. Destructive power meets your spec at '1.' Reply to confirm, and I'll list them at 800K gold in the Auction House. If buying both, 800K of the deposit refunded.]
"Destructive power 1...? 800K gold...?"
Kim Ji-seok's hands trembled with excitement.
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