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"George, for you to join New Zaun is truly the greatest honor for us!"
Looking at the transformed lower city, Vander clasped George's hand, his face brimming with excitement.
George, however, only smiled and replied:
"As a member of New Zaun, this is simply what I should do."
For him, such a matter was trivial. What truly mattered was stabilizing New Zaun as quickly as possible. Once the city grew strong and attracted more trade, he would gain access to a vast supply of magical books and arcane artifacts for his research.
"Professor Heimerdinger, do you still believe magic is nothing but dangerous?"
After speaking with Vander, George approached Heimerdinger.
Today's demonstration had a second purpose: to gain the trust of this legendary inventor.
When it came to invention, Heimerdinger, as a Yordle, was without doubt one of the foremost geniuses in the entire world of Runeterra.
Winning his cooperation would not only hasten the development of Hextech but also accelerate George's understanding of this world's magic.
Although Heimerdinger's focus was science, he was by no means unfamiliar with magic. After all, Yordles themselves had a natural affinity for it.
"Perhaps you are right. Magic is not always a force of destruction."
Heimerdinger gazed at the now-beautiful lower city, recalling how George had healed Viktor's incurable disease with magic, and sighed in admiration.
"Maybe Jayce wasn't wrong after all. If perfected, Hextech could indeed help ordinary people live better lives. Very well—I'll help them."
While Vander and his ministers busied themselves with the aftermath, George accompanied Heimerdinger back to the Academy.
Inside, Jayce and Viktor had already completed the preliminary construction of the Hextech rune device. Only the final step remained before fusion.
"Boom!"
Just as George and Heimerdinger reached the Academy gates, a massive surge of energy erupted from the laboratory.
"Oh? Looks like they succeeded."
George raised an eyebrow and instantly teleported himself and Heimerdinger into the building.
"So these are the runes of this world… quite comprehensive indeed."
Inside the lab, George saw the Hextech core surrounded by mysterious runes inscribed with the very laws of magic.
Jayce and Viktor were suspended in mid-air, held aloft by the rune's power as though they floated in a zero-gravity void.
Through his studies of the magical texts gathered from the upper city, George had discovered that magic in Runeterra could be classified into four major categories:
Astral Magic – The power of the Dragon King and starborn beings, drawn from starlight, stellar fire, and cosmic energy. Not native to Runeterra but carried from the stars beyond, its potency far exceeded ordinary magic.
Elemental Magic – Exemplified by the True Ice of Freljord, the primal axioms of Ixtal, and the demigods of the elements. These magics relied on controlling specific substances.
Spiritual Magic – The unique powers of Vastaya, Yordle sorcery, psychic domains, the Black Mist of the Shadow Isles, necromancy, and demonic energies—all linked to will, emotion, and soul.
Composite Magic – Rune Magic, a fusion of astral forces and Runeterra's material elements. It combined both the principles of elemental and spiritual magic, making it a synthesis of all schools.
Thus, by mastering Rune Magic, one essentially grasped the fundamentals of nearly every magical system in this world.
Now, the runes activated through Hextech revealed these principles in their most direct form.
An immense torrent of mental power burst from George's eyes, wrapping around the runes. Countless magical laws poured into his mind, absorbed and comprehended at incredible speed.
Meanwhile, within his nascent inner world, structures began to take shape, enriched by these newfound insights.
"What terrifying power… what kind of being is he?"
Professor Heimerdinger trembled, horrified by the sheer scale of George's spiritual strength.
Not even during the ancient Rune Wars had he witnessed many wielding such overwhelming mental force.
"Still not enough. If I could collect one of the World Runes and study its principles, it would help me immensely. Or perhaps… I should investigate the Sun Disc, that relic which drained the Dragon King's power and granted mortals ascension."
Ten minutes later, George finally withdrew his spiritual power.
The Hextech rune was but a shadow—a fragment of the power Viktor would one day use for his mechanical ascension. Compared to the true World Runes, it was negligible.
History recorded that a single World Rune's eruption had split the sky, shattered the Void, and caused the earth to collapse while the seas flooded the land.
An entire eastern continent of Valoran had been destroyed, swallowed forever by the ocean.
This was Runeterra—a world reinforced by immense energies, far tougher than ordinary planets.
Even if George unleashed his full might, he could never sink an entire continent here. The sheer magnitude of a World Rune's power was unfathomable.
If he could truly comprehend one, not only would the growth of his inner world accelerate dramatically, but the world he created would surpass ordinary realms in strength.
As for the Sun Disc, it was a divine construct forged by starborn beings, using the Dragon King's stolen power to create Ascended mortals—what commoners called "gods," and later, the Darkin.
The scope of its power was still unclear, but it certainly rivaled the World Runes.
"Well done. Keep working hard. If you run into trouble, consult Professor Heimerdinger—he has agreed to help safeguard and guide your Hextech research."
George encouraged the elated Jayce and Viktor, gave them a few final instructions, and then departed.
The runic knowledge he had just acquired would require time to settle and be absorbed.
At the same time, within Academy City, George—now in seclusion—received another invitation from Aleister.
"Perfect. It's about time I collected those one hundred and three thousand grimoires."
Previously, he had been unable to seize them because of Index's mind—the strongest anti-theft magical defense system in this world.
Thus, he struck a deal with Aleister: in exchange for aiding him, Aleister would gradually teach him the world's magic.
But now, after the efforts of his true self and his avatars across multiple worlds, George's power had multiplied many times over. He had even formed the beginnings of his own inner world.
As long as he brought Index into his inner world and suppressed her defensive system with its laws, he could easily claim the one hundred and three thousand grimoires.
(End of Chapter)