Although Lucia had not said it aloud, and she might not truly have thought that way, even if she had such doubts, they would have been perfectly normal on the Radiant Continent.
Unlike the Origin Civilization, the Radiant Continent had neither Rune Compilers nor foundations in Rune Studies. Everyone researching runes was a group of self-important amateur researchers working behind closed doors.
So here, being powerful did not mean understanding original spell formulas or being able to create them. The strong were more like bombers who could throw bombs quickly and accurately. They did not make bombs or understand how they worked; they simply knew how to use them.
In common understanding, developing original magic or combat arts took years, even decades. Even a combat art like the Red Lotus Combat Art, half original and half copied, was the result of over a decade of Emon Sterling's painstaking exploration. The time and effort involved were obvious.
That was why Lucia had been confused and suspicious when Ivette produced this improved version of the Red Lotus Combat Art. First, there had been far too little time. Second, from Sanglun Village to the Academy of Truth, Lucia had not seen Ivette do anything remotely related to researching magic. She had spent the entire journey eating, drinking, and sleeping.
And now she had suddenly tossed out an improved version, as if she had made it from thin air. Living together day and night, Lucia had not seen even the slightest process behind it—wasn't that suspicious?
It could not be that Ivette had secretly gotten up to work hard while Lucia slept, hoping to surprise her, right? That would not fit her character at all.
After thinking it over, Lucia decided to ask directly. "When did you make it? How come I never saw