"Aiwass, only at this moment can I truly feel the vastness and elusiveness of knowledge, as well as my own insignificance and ignorance..."
The villa in Rome, Italy, had become the de facto ruling center of Europe. All because Roy Crowley, the Campione, had slain Marquis Voban, who once ruled Eastern Europe, and with a few clever maneuvers, made the Southern European leader Salvatore abandon his territory. Under such circumstances, the entire European continent naturally bowed at Roy's feet.
The villa was brightly lit. Roy leaned wearily against the soft backrest of his chair, massaging his temples. Before him lay stacks of thick papers covered in indescribable symbols—not belonging to any known script, but manifestations of Roy's own knowledge. With his current wisdom and intellect, Roy was already capable of compiling his own exclusive 'Grimoire of the Arcane.'
Yet even so, completing this Grand Ritual was proving agonizing.
Not physical pain, but a mental sting—prolonged immersion in the ocean of knowledge and arcane arts had strained his soul and mind to their limits, as if poisoned by some toxic substance.
Roy exhaled and took a sip of his now-cold coffee. The stimulant had no real effect on him, but it provided some psychological comfort.
"I thought this was Solomon's 'Human Wisdom,' distinct from his divinely inspired 'Divine Wisdom,' and that I could easily decipher and reconstruct it. But it seems I was overconfident. Even Solomon's Human Wisdom is proving difficult to unravel."
"...Still, once I complete this ritual, I can fully make 'Solomon's Wisdom' my own."
Roy seemed to be talking to himself, but in truth, he was venting his mental exhaustion—his only audience being Aiwass, who had crossed worlds with him and knew nearly all his secrets.
"If you're tired, rest. The transmission of knowledge isn't instantaneous. Even if I were the one teaching you, it wouldn't be as simple as reciting from a book. Besides, this time it's not me imparting knowledge to you, but you yourself reshaping it."
Aiwass appeared behind Roy, clad in a pristine linen robe. Her bare feet tensed at the toes, as if floating on ripples of an ethereal sea. Noticing Roy's fatigue, she reached out, mimicking a human gesture to gently massage his temples—but her hand passed through him like a phantom.
The Holy Guardian Angel let out an almost imperceptible sigh and withdrew her hand, letting it hover at her side as if she had done nothing at all.
"Time is running out, Aiwass! I can't afford to waste it. I've finally completed the first two steps of this ritual—only the crucial final step remains. If I fail now, I'll never forgive myself... Besides, this ritual is vital to me. Once completed, I'll have absolute confidence in laying the foundation for my own arcane system."
Roy closed his eyes, his right hand clenched tightly into a fist as he swung it down forcefully. If the Roy of the past had merely been an ordinary man who had gained power—much like how he hadn't gotten into a particularly prestigious university in high school—his perseverance had been limited. But after enduring Scáthach's merciless training in the Land of Shadows, Roy's willpower had become as unyielding as steel, and he would never give up easily.
It could be said that three things had influenced Roy the most: the mysterious space that allowed him to traverse worlds, the Holy Guardian Angel Aiwass who had attached itself to him, and finally, Scáthach, who had forged within him the heart of a true warrior.
"Hmm… But you're right, Aiwass. Proper rest is necessary… Aiwass, how exactly do those Magic Gods manage to grasp the laws of the universe? Just mastering this one spell feels beyond my reach."
Roy, resting with his eyes closed, asked with genuine curiosity. He hadn't actually expected an answer from Aiwass—after all, the gap between him and the Magic Gods was too vast. Even if Aiwass tried to explain, Roy likely wouldn't understand the terms from another dimension.
But to Roy's surprise, after a moment of contemplation, Aiwass actually explained—in a way humans could comprehend—how the Magic Gods achieved their mastery over all things.
"Among humans, there is a principle known as the Law of Accelerating Returns. Roughly speaking, it means that the more advanced a society becomes, the greater its capacity for further development, and the faster that development progresses, creating a positive feedback loop."
"If someone from 1750 were brought to the modern era, they would be stunned by today's technology. But if someone from 5000 BC were taken to 1750, they wouldn't be nearly as shocked—because the way of life in ancient times wasn't fundamentally different from that of the 18th century. In other words, the scientific progress humanity has made in the last two hundred years surpasses that of the previous ten thousand years combined."
"…There is an interesting theory among humans called 'Artificial Superintelligence.' The gist of it is that when such an intelligence emerges, it will undergo explosive, infinite evolution, pushing the Law of Accelerating Returns to its absolute limit."
"It will combine all known human theories to deduce ones that come closer to the truths of the universe—that is the first evolution. Then, it will take those new theories and combine them again, evolving further, until one day it completely masters all the laws of the cosmos. At that point, humanity may either achieve immortality or be eradicated by this superintelligence. And the time from its birth to its total comprehension of universal truths might take only a few short years."
At this point, Aiwass fell silent.
But from these few words, Roy had glimpsed the secret to reaching the realm of the Magic Gods.
"I roughly understand. Just as all the laws of the universe studied by science aim to give birth to 'super artificial intelligence,' the same principle applies to magic. On their path to becoming Magic Gods, they strive to gather all knowledge to transform these arcane teachings into the 'super artificial intelligence' of magic. Once this threshold is crossed, a magician will attain infinite evolution, comprehending the laws of the universe in an extremely short time—like the Big Bang—and mastering them perfectly. Thus, they become Magic Gods!"
This is 'hearing the will of heaven with a mortal body.' This is why the gap between Magic Gods and the pinnacle of humanity is so vast. Because once a Magic God crosses that threshold and creates their own 'super artificial intelligence,' their power will expand from a mere solar system to the entire universe in an instant.
This is the 'law of accelerating returns' for magic!
And Roy could roughly guess what that threshold was—'crossing the abyss'!
Those who cross the abyss will undergo a sublimation of life, transforming from mortals into 'super artificial intelligence,' gaining the potential for infinite evolution.
Aiwass smiled without speaking. She didn't discourage Roy by telling him this wasn't something he needed to think about now. On the contrary, she believed that letting Roy glimpse the infinite possibilities of the future would motivate him further.
She had faith that this youth, who sought all knowledge and wielded the 'unique,' would one day become a Magic God—or even something greater.
"Hmm? Someone's coming."
Aiwass suddenly revealed a suggestive smile, blinking at Roy with a voice inexplicably tinged with allure. "...It seems someone has come to offer you her wisdom and knowledge."
With that, the holy guardian angel vanished from behind Roy.
At that moment, Roy also sensed who the visitor was—Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom!
***
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