Through several experiments, I was able to create volcanic stones imbued with more magical power than before.

When I installed one into K01 and fired it, I could shoot three consecutive shots.

For now, it could be considered to hold the same amount of magical power as conventional magic stones.

At the moment, I only had volcanic stones charged with fire magic, but given time and effort, I was confident I could create a wider variety of magic stones.

If I researched ancient words imbued with mysterious powers—like [Flame], which I learned through Ascan—then utilizing various attributes such as water, wind, or earth would not be far off.

Just then, Dekain sent word that he had to leave the laboratory.

I went outside, both to see him off and to showcase the volcanic stones I had been researching.

When we signed the distribution contract with Igtheon Trading Company, they had stipulated one condition:

[5. Any weapon developed by the creator must be shown first to Igtheon Trading Company.]

I hadn’t yet decided how to use the new magic stone, but I was eager to show everyone what I had created.

Thus, Barnen, Matela, Ascan, and Dekain all gathered in the open field in front of the laboratory.

Dekain, wearing his mask, looked at me with what seemed like a pouty expression and spoke in a sweet, coquettish voice.

“You’ve been buried in research all this time without even showing your face. I’m hurt, Tanashia.”

“Sorry, I’ve been overwhelmed.”

“Still, even so? Have you become careless because you think we’ve already seen everything there is to see?”

His words reminded me of that midnight encounter with Dekain in the valley.

His choice of words carried obvious potential for misunderstanding, so I rolled my eyes—but strangely, Ascan, standing beside me, looked even more grim-faced than I did.

Barnen asked indifferently,

“What’s the reason you’ve summoned us all? Surely you didn’t gather us just to see this guy off?”

“No, not at all. I wanted to show you something new I’ve developed before Dekain leaves, and I thought it’d be best to present it while everyone’s here.”

“Something new? What did you develop?”

Barnen’s eyes lit up—he was clearly curious about what I had created.

Before answering, I pulled out the K01 and volcanic stones I had prepared.

Since there was already an iron target set up in the field for weapon testing, I silently loaded K01 with a conventional magic stone and fired.

Click. As I pulled the trigger, a pillar of flame shot from K01’s barrel, riding the wind.

Whooshhhhh—

It was tremendous firepower.

After firing all three shots, the iron target was charred black.

Only Matela, who had quietly observed the entire scene, clapped her hands and said,

“So this is the legendary power of K01 I’ve only heard about. Truly amazing.”

But the others, who had already witnessed K01’s power before, reacted indifferently. They looked puzzled, wondering why I was showing them something they already knew.

Unable to hold back, Barnen asked again,

“You said you developed something new? Then why did you bring out the old K01 again?”

“It just so happens that K01 uses fire magic stones, so it’s convenient for comparison.”

“Comparison? Comparison with what?”

Barnen stared at me, clearly not understanding.

Ascan and Dekain weren’t much different—they hadn’t voiced their confusion, but they still hadn’t grasped the meaning of my actions.

I smiled confidently, removed the fire magic stone from K01, and inserted a pre-charged volcanic stone instead.

Those who hadn’t been paying close attention seemed not to notice what I was doing.

I aimed K01 once more at the iron target.

Whooshhhhh—

After firing three more shots, Barnen exploded in frustration.

“What in the world? Even if you’re getting support, this is ridiculous! Don’t you know how precious magic stones are?”

“Compared to earlier, how does the firepower look to you?”

“It’s the same weapon—of course it’s identical!”

“Good to hear.”

I removed the volcanic stone from K01 and held it up for everyone to see.

“This is the new magic stone I’ve created.”

“…What?”

Barnen stared blankly at the volcanic stone. Its crimson surface was intricately engraved with complex magical formulas and geometric magical patterns.

A moment of silence passed. Everyone stood frozen, unable to speak.

Dekain was the first to break the silence, his expression one of disbelief.

“You’re telling me this is the same magic stone you just loaded into K01?”

“Yes. See for yourself.”

Since I had already pre-charged several volcanic stones, I tossed one toward Dekain for him to catch.

Dekain snatched it from midair and examined it with incredulous eyes.

It wasn’t just him. Barnen and Matela also stared at the volcanic stone as if bewitched, filled with awe.

“This is impossible. How could this happen…?”

At Barnen’s muttered words, Matela beside him spoke up.

“Miss, just how extraordinary are you?”

Amid everyone’s stunned reactions, only one person remained expressionless—Ascan.

Rather than being amazed by the magic-charged volcanic stone, Ascan seemed more concerned about me, who had labored to create it, and offered gentle scolding.

“If you’re done with your research, please rest now. You haven’t slept properly or eaten well for a while.”

“Got it. I’ll rest once I set off on my journey.”

Dekain, now recovered from his shock, fixed his serpentine gaze on me.

At first, he had been purely astonished by the volcanic stone—but now he seemed to have fully accepted and understood the situation.

“I said it before—if you could reduce K01’s production cost or increase its firing capacity, an incredible weapon would be born. But I never imagined you’d create an entirely new magic stone.”

I shrugged playfully and replied,

“Am I not cool?”

“This isn’t just ‘cool.’ You’re truly incredible, Tanashia.”

Dekain, who always wore a relaxed smile, now looked grave. In an uncharacteristically serious tone, he continued,

“This is monumental. If weapons are produced using the magic stones you’ve created, costs will plummet dramatically—or rather, countless people may line up to buy magic stones from you.”

Magic stones were extremely expensive.

That was precisely why magical engineering research was known as one of the most costly fields.

Yet, since they were indispensable during national crises, every empire invested heavily and competed to support this field.

Now, a new magic stone had been created—one capable of overturning all existing paradigms.

“I had high expectations for you, but honestly, this exceeds even my imagination.”

Dekain’s effusive praise right in front of me made me slightly embarrassed.

Though I had developed it myself, I couldn’t deny it was a stunning discovery—and for that reason, I wasn’t yet ready to reveal it to the world.

“Just consider this a preview. I’m not interested in trading it yet.”

“What? You created something like this and plan to keep it all to yourself?”

Dekain stared at me with the most shocked expression he’d shown so far. But no matter what, my decision remained unchanged.

I had anticipated such a scenario and thus added a special clause to the contract with Igtheon Trading Company.

[4. Any weapon the developer does not wish to be used shall never be used.]

My reason for developing magical engineering weapons was to prevent war with the Calua Empire.

While more money was always better, I already possessed wealth far beyond what I could spend in a lifetime—even without profiting from magical engineering.

If my weapons were ever used somewhere against my will, they might bring disaster to someone—so I had no choice but to proceed cautiously.

“Tanashia…!”

As Dekain stepped forward with a frustrated expression, Ascan moved to block his path.

“The lady said she has no intention of trading.”

Ascan’s expressionless face radiated a lethal aura—as if he were ready to unleash his hidden abilities if Dekain dared take one more step.

─No one, not even a single strand of your hair, will be harmed. I will protect you.

For some reason, I recalled words Ascan had spoken before.

Back then, I had simply felt grateful that he’d said such a thing—but perhaps it hadn’t been just empty words after all.

Gently, I placed my hand on Ascan’s shoulder, signaling him to stop.

“Dekain, my decision won’t change. Let’s discuss this again later.”

Dekain looked as if he had much more to say, but reluctantly nodded. Then, pointing to the magic stone in his hand, he asked,

“Can I take this with me? I need to report back to the company.”

“Of course.”

Matela, belatedly overcome with emotion, approached and said,

“Miss, how did you come up with such a brilliant idea? How?”

Barnen shouted, hauling over a pile of magical engineering weapons other than K01,

“I simply can’t believe it! Let’s test it on other weapons right now!”

Dekain exited Tanashia’s laboratory and boarded his carriage.

He had planned to return to Lazent Empire today after staying here for several days—but he never expected to obtain such a breakthrough.

‘Tanashia says she doesn’t intend to reveal this to the world, but that’s simply not acceptable.’

Many distributors invested heavily in magical engineering geniuses for good reason.

Whenever an ingenious weapon was created, even crude imitations could generate profit.

This was a common occurrence in this field.

Orland and Barnen already knew that whenever a new weapon appeared, similar knockoffs were quietly traded.

Even now, countless weapons resembling Tanashia’s K01 were being mass-produced.

Of course, fakes could never surpass the original. Since they lacked K01’s precision and power, Orland, Barnen, and even Tanashia herself paid them little mind.

But from a distributor’s perspective, this meant new ideas in magical engineering weapons equaled money.

[5. Any weapon developed by the creator must be shown first to Igtheon Trading Company.]

Thus, the sole condition Igtheon Trading Company stipulated in their contract was clear.

This rule applied even if Tanashia chose to deal with any other company besides Igtheon.

Orland and Barnen accepted that similar weapons would inevitably be produced, and Igtheon had already calculated their risks—hence the contract was finalized.

It was true they had invested heavily in Tanashia based on her potential—but she was still just a 15-year-old girl.

They had expected her to develop unusual weapons through unconventional ideas, but never imagined she would create something as revolutionary as an entirely new magic stone.

She had truly exceeded all expectations.

If this were sold, it would accumulate immense wealth—and any nation signing a contract with her could gain tremendous national power.

Yet, in this situation, Tanashia’s own condition became an obstacle.

[4. Any weapon the developer does not wish to be used shall never be used.]

Originally, they had assumed that even if Tanashia created weapons with brilliant ideas, simple imitations would suffice.

But a new magic stone? This was an opportunity they absolutely could not afford to lose.

If she had developed an ordinary weapon, there would have been no issue—but Tanashia had proven far more exceptional than anticipated, creating complications.

Dekain’s crimson eyes darkened and gleamed.

‘For the sake of my ambition, I cannot let this new magic stone remain buried.’

It was, after all, a magic stone.

He cherished Tanashia, who saw him for who he truly was—but that didn’t mean he could abandon the ambition he had pursued his entire life.

He had to devise a way to obtain the new magic stone without harming Tanashia.

‘If I analyze this, could I figure out how it was made?’

Dekain pondered as he examined the volcanic stone Tanashia had handed him.

After a moment, he briefly jotted down information about the new magic stone on paper, tied the note to the leg of a pigeon prepared inside the carriage, and released it.

Thus, the news swiftly reached Igtheon Trading Company.

Reiana was using back-alley informants to investigate Ascan.

[15-year-old boy, slave, possesses fire-controlling ability.]

Typically, those with special abilities were nobles or held high status.

In Reiana’s case, though born as an illegitimate child to a hostess mother, she became a noble after manifesting wind-controlling ability.

That Ascan, possessing fire ability, was a slave raised multiple suspicious points—so she assumed someone must know something about him.

But fearing Tanashia might discover her actions, she couldn’t hire professionals—instead, she discreetly gathered information through back-alley contacts.

Under normal circumstances, she would have uncovered nothing about Ascan’s veiled identity.

But others were also digging into Ascan’s whereabouts—namely, the pursuers dispatched by the Calua Empire.

Andro, a long-time mercenary skilled in tracking, was lying in wait inside a tavern.

Even with only fragmented information about Ascan, he immediately realized this matched the profile of their target, Subject 13.

“You heard that too?”

Andro grinned deeply, as if he had finally caught a crucial lead. Tendai, whose face bore a large scar, nodded.

“Seems certain he’s hiding in Arwen Empire.”

“Now we just need to find which noble household he’s hiding in.”

“His capture day isn’t far off.”

Tendai clenched his fist habitually, recalling the escaped Ascan.

No matter how well hidden, no one could escape pursuers dispatched by the Calua Empire.

Whether Ascan was alive or dead, buried in a grave, they would dig him up and capture him—no matter how long it took.

Andro stood up first and said,

“Let’s go. We need to trace the source of this information.”

Tendai gave a slight nod and rose to follow him.

In an instant, the two vanished completely from the tavern—as if ghosts, unnoticed by anyone.