Nullstone? Rune Stone!

Jiawen III and his advisors and generals finally reached a consensus on the question of the war in Ionia.

Meanwhile, Lux and Sona continued their studies as usual.

Studying— even for top students like Lux and Sona—had never been easy or enjoyable.

Especially now that Karya had realized what happened when he took control of Lux's body and had stopped giving "demonstrations."

It was thanks to Lux and Sona supporting each other that they managed to maintain a decent enthusiasm for learning under such tremendous pressure.

When the new year arrived, and Lux and Sona successfully entered their tenth year, Karya announced some news that filled them both with excitement.

"Considering your learning abilities are at least passable, I can finally teach you something practical this year. But don't get complacent. You're still the worst class I've ever taught."

Something practical!

Hearing those words, Lux and Sona ignored the second half of his statement and grew excited in unison. After half a year of study, they were already showing signs of becoming "the Wang Yuyan of magic": their theoretical knowledge had been steadily expanding, but their ability to cast spells was still practically nonexistent.

In this situation, even Lux, who remained wary of magic, felt a faint sense of finally getting through the hard times when she heard they might learn something practical.

It had been a long time coming!

Then, the next day, when the two eagerly gathered together, ready to get their hands on something real, Karya finally revealed this year's study topic.

"This year, the main focus of your studies will be Nullstone."

Nullstone?!

Hearing Karya say this, Lux and Sona were both dumbfounded. The two girls looked at each other, wondering if they'd imagined it.

Nullstone... wasn't it a device that restrained mages from casting spells and sealed their magic?

What did it mean to study Nullstone?

Were they going to learn how to counter its antimagic effects?

What was the point of learning that?

Fortunately, Karya didn't keep them in suspense. As they looked on in confusion, he got straight to the point and immediately explained Nullstone's unknown nature.

"Lux, you've read the legend of the Winged Sisters. Does it say anything about the origin of Nullstone?"

"...No." Lux thought for a moment, then quietly shook her head. "But why would the legend of the Winged Sisters talk about the origin of Nullstone?"

"Because the legend of the Winged Sisters and the discovery and use of Nullstone date back to the same era. Since the legend doesn't mention it, Demacia must have deliberately suppressed that part of the story." Karya nodded knowingly. "Then let me tell you about it. First of all, Nullstone isn't a naturally occurring rock."

"I know that." Lux nodded and added, "Nullstone seems to be a composite material. I heard it's made by firing limestone mixed with some mysterious material. Demacian steel is made the same way, with that material added to the iron."

"Very good." Karya affirmed Lux's explanation. "Nullstone comes from the fossilized remains of Nullwood trees. The people who fled the disaster of the Rune Wars and came here before Demacia was founded discovered them. Those people were the thirteen noble families you know about, Lux."

"Nullwood tree?" Lux blinked in surprise. "You mean that mysterious material is actually the fossil of a tree?"

"That's right. Demacians call it a Nullwood tree." Karya confirmed again. "But I'd rather call it a Rune tree. And Nullstone should really be called Rune Stone."

"Rune Stone?" Lux and Sona's eyes widened in unison. "How is that possible?"

Lux and Sona both knew about runes. They were the marks that represented magical energy, and, as Karya had once explained, the origin of the name Runeterra. They embodied highly concentrated magic.

But Nullstone clearly suppressed magic. The two things weren't even remotely similar—they were completely opposite!

"It sounds strange, doesn't it?" Karya seemed quite pleased by their surprise, and his tone grew more cheerful. "But that's the truth. What you perceive as suppression is actually absorption!"

Absorption?

The explanation took Lux and Sona by surprise. They couldn't believe that Nullstone, which had safeguarded Demacia's birth and rise, didn't suppress magic at all, but merely absorbed it.

"Isn't that conclusion hard to believe?" Karya continued his explanation. "But unfortunately, it's the truth. What's more, Demacia has been diligently charging its Rune Stones all these years. Honestly, I don't know when they'll be fully charged, but one thing's certain: once they are, the kingdom that has no magic will become a kingdom of magic overnight."

Lux was completely stunned. She'd been happily looking forward to learning something practical, only to hear such explosive news right away. For a moment, she felt dazed.

Even so, she did her best to calm down, then asked hopefully, "Is that just your guess? Or do you have proof?"

"Of course I have proof." Karya's answer crushed her last hope. "And what you'll be learning this year is how to draw out and control the power within Nullstone."

"I'm more concerned with how to deal with this enormous problem!" Lux sprang to her feet. "No, I have to tell Father—"

"Tell him what?" Karya countered. "That Nullstone is Rune Stone? And then tell him everything you and I have discussed?"

"This concerns all of Demacia!"

Unfortunately, before Lux could take a step, her whole body went rigid.

"And then what? How did you learn all this?" Karya casually held Lux in place as he continued with his soul-searching questions. "Would you tell Mr. Peter that his sweet daughter heard these shocking revelations from a scoundrel?"

"No, that's not it, Karya... Please, let me tell Father!" Unable to break free, Lux's eyes reddened. "Please—I won't tell him anything about you. I'm grateful for everything you've taught me, but I can't just sit by while my country believes it's safe, living on top of a volcano that's about to erupt!"

"So you're going to tell your father that you happened to discover that Nullstone absorbs magic instead of suppressing it?" Karya hardened his heart. "But use your head, Lux. Would that really help? I can prove all this, but can you?"

"I..." Lux was at a loss for words. After a long pause, she answered dejectedly, "I can't."

"I can understand a child of around ten learning a world-shaking secret and wanting to save everyone." Karya released Lux from his hold. "But unfortunately, you have no proof. And the truth is, someone in Demacia already knows."

"Who knows about this?!" Lux gripped the hilt of her sword in disbelief. "Why hasn't he said anything?"

"Maybe he did, but no one paid attention?" Karya gave a snort that sounded either disdainful or helpless. "Sona, if I remember correctly, your mother is a member of the Illuminators, right?"

"That's right."

"I think the Illuminators' secret records should contain some research on Nullstone." Karya casually dropped another bombshell. "It's a shame that magical knowledge has no systematic tradition in Demacia. Even if they've been researching it, it's hard for them to learn anything of significance."

After being hit with one shocking revelation after another, Lux was already growing numb. At last, she shook her head and obediently sat back down. "Karya, I won't act impulsively again. You're right. There's nothing I can do right now."

"Good, Lux." Karya's voice held a little more admiration. "Calmness is very important for a spellcaster. You're finally starting to look a little like a proper mage. Now, let me tell you both about Rune Stones..."

Though Lux had calmed down, her heart was still full of worry. Even so, she quietly listened to Karya's explanation to the end.

Apart from some concealed history, his explanation could broadly be summed up in two points: one good and one bad.

The good news was that, although Demacia had been founded more than a thousand years ago, its Nullstone was still a long way from being fully charged and completely transformed into Rune Stone. By Karya's estimate, even the city walls of the Demacian Imperial Capital were probably less than thirty percent transformed.

The bad news was that the rate at which Demacia's Nullstone was being charged was increasing rapidly. Aside from mages who naturally awakened to magic, a more powerful Source of Magic Power was charging Demacia's Nullstone somewhere!

The two pieces of news left Lux in a complicated state of mind. She remained silent for a long time before gripping her sword again. "So, Karya, what do you want to teach us?"

"I want to teach you how to use the magic stored inside Nullstone." Karya answered directly. "This magic will be part of my trial for you, accelerating your growth. If you're truly worried about Nullstone's safety, I promise you'll be capable of handling everything before anything goes wrong."

Hearing Karya say this, Lux finally relaxed. She leaned against Sona as if all the strength had been drained from her, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Then, just as Sona was quietly comforting Lux, Karya spoke again:

"As for you, Sona... if you can learn to control this power, perhaps one day you'll be able to return to your homeland and use your own strength to put an end to the Noxians' expansion."

This time, Sona's body stiffened, too. Someone as gentle as her found it hard to make up her mind to face a war. In a sense, she needed an extra push, and while Lux was in a state of confusion, Karya happily took on the role of tempter.

Sona hesitated.

She didn't like fighting with others, and she didn't want to join a war.

But at that moment, she couldn't help recalling the promise she'd made to Lux. They had sealed it with a pinky swear: they would support each other on the path of magic and the future.

Lux had her own ideals. What about her?

Would she quietly follow Lux?

Or would she boldly do as Lux did and strive to help her homeland?

Sona didn't have an answer yet. But that didn't stop her from resolving to study this knowledge as hard as she could.

Even if it was only to help Lux and protect her parents!

With that thought, gentle Sona finally clenched her fist. Sona, you can do this!

Because of the secrets surrounding Nullstone, Karya didn't continue teaching that day. With their minds in turmoil, Lux and Sona both chose to turn in early.

However, when night had grown quiet, Lux carefully climbed out of bed.

This time, she didn't bring the sword she'd kept by her side for the past six months. She changed clothes by herself and left the bedroom.

The garden didn't look as lovely at night as it did during the day. Lux leaned against the Nullstone wall around it, then tried to control the flow of her magic and make a little light.

But the moment a faint arc of light appeared at her fingertips, the magic she'd tried so hard to channel scattered, unstable. The arc flashed and vanished, and an indescribable emptiness made Lux's legs give way. She collapsed onto the cold dirt.

The chill beneath her helped her regain her composure. She got up awkwardly and looked at the dirt covering her hands, suddenly wanting to laugh.

Karya hadn't deceived her.

Or rather, Karya had never deceived her, and had no need to.

He was going to teach her how to use Nullstone's power. If everything he'd said was a lie, just alarmist nonsense, then what would he teach her?

Why was she suddenly acting like her brother, like a total idiot?

Lux found the thought amusing, yet somehow reassuring. The fact that Nullstone was Rune Stone was truly awful, but at least Teacher Karya could be trusted. He'd never deceived her, and she could always rely on him!

Lux let out a long breath. Whistling, she walked back to her bedroom with a light step, utterly unladylike. She plunged into the washroom, enjoyed a hot bath, then returned to bed.

Her sword still lay quietly by the head of the bed.

Lux turned and flopped onto the soft mattress, bouncing twice before finally grabbing her sword and hugging it to her chest.

"Sorry, Teacher. I was too willful today," Lux murmured. "I promise I won't do that again!"

Then, before Karya could react, she tossed the sword aside and stretched out in the most comfortable position she could find.

Soon, a soft snore filled the room. While Karya remained utterly baffled, Lux, exhausted after a long day, finally drifted off to sleep.

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Lux had finally truly accepted magic and was about to begin learning how to use the magic within Nullstone. She was about to take off!

It's two chapters and eight thousand words again today. Happy Lantern Festival, dear readers!