At the Royal Palace, before Paul had begun his journey.
While Paul was writing his national development plan, Lilith entered the room and glanced at his notes.
She casually read by saying, "How can I quickly raise the average IQ of people in my country?" her tone light, almost playful.
Paul was startled by her sudden appearance. Lilith, reading his notes with interest, chuckled and said,
"Heh… Prince, you're really something."
She smiled at him teasingly.
Paul, confused, looked up and asked,
"What do you mean?"
Lilith walked slowly around Paul's desk, her eyes still on his writings. With a curious tone and a slight tilt of her head, she said,
"Do you know, Prince, what transformed countries like the Walles Empire and the Thalmerin Empire from weak states into mighty empires?"
She paused, looking at him with interest, waiting for his response.
Hearing that, Paul replied confidently,
"People, right?"
Lilith giggled softly and said,
"No, Prince..."
Still smiling, she raised her hand to chest level, forming her fingers as if holding an invisible apple.
"Power," she said, releasing a wave of mana.
As the energy gathered in her palm, a dense black sphere began to form, surrounded by a swirling, ominous aura. The atmosphere in the room grew heavier, the air charged with her magical presence.
"Power," she repeated, her eyes glowing faintly.
"With power… they can control everything."
She turned her gaze back to Paul with a calm, almost playful smile.
"Do you understand?" she asked in a relaxed tone.
Paul nodded slowly.
"Yes, I understand… but," he said, locking eyes with her, "power alone is not enough."
Intrigued, Lilith dispelled the magic with a flick of her hand. The black aura vanished.
"Heh… then what is?" she asked, curious.
Paul turned his gaze toward the window.
"People."
Lilith raised an eyebrow, repeating,
"People?"
Paul nodded.
"Without loyal citizens and a well-educated populace, no nation—no matter how powerful—can sustain itself as an empire," he said firmly.
"Power may conquer, but only people can build."
Hearing that, Lilith sat casually on the edge of Paul's table and asked with a curious smile,
"So… what are you going to do?"
She leaned slightly forward, tilting her head.
"How do you plan to make ordinary people develop high IQs?"
Paul straightened his posture and replied with confidence,
"Of course—by building schools, starting from the elementary level."
He spread his arms slightly as if presenting the idea to the room.
"Every child, starting from the age of seven, will be enrolled in school and taught all the knowledge we've gathered. It will continue for nine years."
He turned to Lilith, eyes firm.
"With consistent learning, their minds will grow sharper, their thinking more complex."
Lilith listened intently, then glanced out the nearby window.
"Interesting… but do you have any idea how much money that would cost if you really tried to make it happen?"
Her voice was calm, but her words carried weight.
Paul was about to respond casually,
"That's easy. We just rent—"
But mid-sentence, a realization hit him. His confident expression froze.
This wasn't a modern kingdom. Infrastructure was lacking. The average intelligence level among his people was low. The concept of structured learning didn't even exist yet.
"Damn it…!" Paul exclaimed, clutching his head with one hand.
"We'd have to build everything from the ground up…!"
Realizing that everything would have to be built from scratch, Paul muttered to himself,
"If only I could transfer my mind with magic..."
He let out a long sigh.
But as soon as he mentioned magic, a spark of inspiration lit up in his eyes.
"Magic… YES! MAGIC!"
He turned sharply toward Lilith, who was still gazing out the window.
"Sis..." Paul called out.
"Is it possible to transfer memory fragments to someone else?"
His voice was serious, driven by sudden urgency.
Hearing the question, Lilith slowly turned to face him, her expression thoughtful.
"You know," she began, closer to Paul,
"in general, that kind of magic is forbidden... because—"
She leaned in slightly, her tone softer but more intense.
"Memory fragments aren't stored here."
She gently tapped her head.
"They're here."
This time, she pointed to her chest—where the heart and soul reside.
Paul furrowed his brows, visibly confused.
Lilith smiled faintly.
"They're not part of your body, Prince. They're part of your soul. And you know what happens if part of a soul is separated, right?"
Her voice held a quiet weight, as if speaking from painful experience.
Hearing that, Paul's expression darkened. He turned his gaze to the window, sorrow creeping into his features.
"Is there… another way?"
His voice was quiet, almost pleading.
While still deep in thought, Paul suddenly remembered the two intruders—how Lilith had incapacitated them with her magic without leaving a single wound. Curious, he turned to her and asked,
"Sis… when those two intruders were hit by your magic, what exactly did you use? I saw them in the interrogation room. They looked fine..."
He paused, then muttered with a raised eyebrow,
"...although they did seem a little crazy when they woke up."
Hearing that, Lilith let out a soft chuckle and casually said,
"Oh, that? It was just a simple illusion."
She stood up and slowly walked toward the window again.
Paul's shoulders dropped in disappointment.
"Oh... just an illusion—"
But then, his eyes widened as a realization struck him.
"OH… ILLUSION! YES! ILLUSION MAGIC!!"
He jumped to his feet, throwing both arms up in excitement like a child discovering a hidden treasure.
After a moment, he calmed himself, turned to Lilith, and asked eagerly,
"Sis, can you teach me that magic?"
His eyes gleamed with determination and hope.
Lilith smiled warmly and replied,
"Sure."
She began walking back toward him.
(Back to the present time)
While looking at his tool, Paul muttered to himself,
"Illusions are just illusions… but,"
his voice low and thoughtful.
He reached into the spartial bag at his waist and took out a High-Level Magic Core — Low Quality. Holding it up to the light, he examined the dim light within and said,
"…with enough mana capacity, even low-quality cores might be able to support a layered illusion."
His eyes narrowed in growing interest.
"If I can bind illusion rune magic into the magic core... then trigger it as mana flows in..."
He tapped the edge of the device thoughtfully.
"This could work. A decentralized learning system—no instructors, no lectures... just direct experience."
Placing the core into the device's slot and locking it in place with a soft click, Paul muttered,
"If they can't memorize books, maybe they can experience the knowledge firsthand. Simulations... mental tracings... emotional anchors—"
He smiled faintly, the gears in his mind already spinning.
"I don't need perfect memories... I just need them to learn within the world of illusion for a certain amount of time."
Seeing Paul like that, Renya, still confused, asked, "So… what is this thing?" in a puzzled tone.
Paul looked at her and replied, "This is actually a magic illusion trap… but what if this trap stores a civilization with technology and science far more advanced than ours? And they can study it inside the illusion…" He spoke in a relaxed tone.
Renya was shocked and nodded, saying, "Of course, that would be a national treasure… but how can that be possible?" she asked, still confused.
Paul held the Magic Core firmly and said, "Of course, I will make it." Then, looking directly at Renya, he said in a firm tone, "Renya…"
Though still puzzled by Paul's words, Renya immediately answered, "YES!!" in surprise.
Paul continued firmly, "No one touches me. Anyone. Understand?"
Renya tried to ask, "But, Prince—" but Paul cut her off with a sharp "Start," as he released mana from his body into the magic core.