Night had fallen, and a clear starry sky blanketed the silent Paramel Highlands. The bitter midwinter wind howled in from afar, raising a low moan between the high concrete walls and metal support beams. The solemn, towering observatory stood upon these highlands, which had nearly become the flashpoint of war between humanity's two great empires, standing firm through the frigid winter night.
Under the adjustments of mechanical devices, the highly precise lens assemblies slowly returned to position. Several flickering runes could faintly be seen in the night sky above the observatory, and the stretch of sky outlined by those runes appeared far clearer than the surrounding heavens, as though a filter of color had been laid over the stars. Amid the low sounds carried by the cold wind, another set of lenses and a Crystal Array rose from the slowly opening dome atop the building, pointing toward the Frost Sky Constellation, now at the highest point in the night sky.
Inside the observatory, Morgan Hugo, white-haired and thin, handed the remaining observation and recording work over to his assistants. With slightly weary steps, he headed toward the rest area and saw his close friend Benjamin, the observatory's second-in-command, seated beside a round table. He held a journal in his hands, his brows knotted like a crumpled wad of cloth.
Perhaps having heard the approaching footsteps, Benjamin looked up from the journal he had been glaring at. Only after recognizing Morgan did the former Court Mage from Saint Suniel relax his brow slightly and force a smile onto his face. "Ah, looks like you've finally finished."
"Whenever the Frost Sky Constellation reaches its highest point, the lens assemblies here have to be recalibrated. I wouldn't trust that to those clumsy youngsters—if the main lens gets chipped even a little, it'll break