Allen put down his Feather Pen.
On the parchment, the blast furnace design he had poured his heart and soul into was finally down to the last few details.
In his mind, DSeek's text interface was still running its final optimizations.
「Plan A: Introduce regenerative checker bricks. Estimated thermal efficiency increase: 18%.」
「Plan B: Utilize a metal heat exchanger. Estimated efficiency increase: 22%, but requires solving the refractory material issue.」
"Give me the optimal solution, factoring in feasibility, cost, and current technological levels."
Allen added, "And none of that theoretically perfect stuff that requires hand-crafting superalloys to actually build."
「Understood. Downgrading and adapting based on the host's late-medieval technological level... Recommending a simplified version of Plan A. Estimated efficiency increase: 12%.」
A slight wave of dizziness washed over him.
「Warning: Today's information processing quota is nearly depleted.」
He rubbed the bridge of his nose, a bit frustrated. He'd transmigrated with an AI but had no supercomputer to host it.
DSeek, an artificial intelligence, was his greatest secret and his biggest advantage.
In the days since he'd become a Transmigrator, he had been adapting to his identity as the seventh-in-line Prince of the Rhine Kingdom while exploring this unexpected companion.
It had been an assistance tool for writing documents in his past life, and for some reason, it had followed his consciousness to this world.
DSeek was like a treasure trove of knowledge sealed deep within his consciousness, holding all the memories and learning from his previous life.
He could access this information at any time, from encyclopedias to barefoot doctor handbooks, from an introduction to relativity to postpartum care for sows. It had everything.
But DSeek couldn't perceive the outside world directly; it relied entirely on his eyes as its camera.
What was worse, this fifteen-year-old brain had limited processing power. The daily quota for DSeek's deep computations was finite.
And if he exceeded it? A mild case meant dizziness and blurred vision. A severe case meant a nosebleed and fainting.
This forced him to use every calculation where it counted most.
The text in his mind was still slowly refreshing.
New air preheating pipes were added to the design, and the estimated efficiency increase data appeared beside them.
The feeling of planning the future was just so intoxicating.
Cement, steel, gunpowder...
He planned to use this technology, far beyond its time, to blast apart Knight armor and feudal castles.
To personally forge a ladder to the pinnacle of power and liberate the oppressed poor—just thinking about it made his heart pound.
「Forcing high-load computation may trigger a neurological headache.」DSeek's warning popped up again.
'Alright, alright. I'm pretty much done with today's "homework" anyway.'
Allen reluctantly closed the blueprint in his mind.
He leaned back in his chair, his gaze sweeping unconsciously across the study.
The embers in the fireplace gradually dimmed, and shadows spread in the corners.
Only the silver desk lamp continued to emit a soft, steady light.
It produced no smoke, required no oil, and didn't even feel warm. It just shone quietly, as if it would never go out.
This lamp... he had used it for several years. In the original owner's memories, it was standard issue for the royal family.
He'd always assumed it was some kind of fluorite, or perhaps a little trick of this world's "Magic."
As for the latter, he had always maintained the arrogance of a Transmigrator, believing it was likely just some misunderstood physical or chemical phenomenon, or just smoke and mirrors.
But it was too stable—so stable it defied logic.
A thought suddenly surfaced. "DSeek, analyze the light source in front of me."
「Warning: No direct match for this light source in the database. Initiating multi-hypothesis deduction...」
'Huh?'
DSeek rarely used the word "Warning."
Allen sat up straight, his eyes fixed on the lamp.
「Hypothesis A (Bioluminescence): Ruled out. Spectral analysis based on host's visual perception shows the wavelength is too uniform and stable, lacking the radiation characteristics of a living organism.」
「Hypothesis B (Chemiluminescence): Ruled out. Brightness is constant with no decay, far exceeding the limits of known chemiluminescent materials.」
「Hypothesis C (Electroluminescence): Low probability. No conventional circuit structure detected.」
One by one, the deductions based on Earth's sciences were ruthlessly struck down.
Allen's breath hitched.
DSeek wasn't an omniscient god, but it was an absolutely rational logic engine.
And now, it was telling him: this lamp violated every law of physics he knew!
「Hypothesis D (Unknown Energy Drive): High probability. A crystalline object has been detected as the luminous core. Its energy release pattern is precisely regulated by micro-structured striations on the lamp's housing.」
「Conclusion: The target is an illumination device powered by an unknown high-density energy source, achieving high-efficiency energy conversion via an unknown microstructure. Its technological principles far exceed the host's current era!」
「Recommendation: Designate the unknown high-density energy source and unknown microstructure as priority research subjects. They may represent a completely new and mature paradigm of energy application.」
'An unknown high-density energy source? An unknown microstructure? A completely new paradigm of energy application?!'
The words exploded in his mind, and Allen's fingers clenched tight.
He picked up the lamp, his fingertips touching the crystal at the center of its base.
'This isn't a decoration! This is clearly some kind of... circuit board! Some kind of hyper-precise engineered object!'
He stared intently at the lamp in his hand. The crystal seemed to gaze back at him with a hint of mockery.
This thing he had used for months, and the original owner for over a decade, had now become the most terrifying proof.
A highly advanced technology he couldn't possibly comprehend had long since permeated the daily life of this world, as common as air!
And he, like every other mortal, had been blind to it, taking it for granted.
His entire understanding of the world shattered in his mind.
He had always thought he was the puppet master, holding the script for the Industrial Revolution, ready to completely overwhelm this feudal world.
Only now did he realize that he himself might be just a piece on a much higher-dimensional chessboard.
"Fuck..." he cursed under his breath.
'I fucking thought I was playing Civilization VI, but it turns out this damned place is the set for StarCraft, and I'm still trying to figure out how to craft spears?'
The blast furnace design on his desk now seemed incredibly jarring.
To achieve a smelting temperature of 1200 degrees, he'd had DSeek calculating for three whole days.
But the lamp in his hand remained at room temperature, yet it glowed continuously. What about the conservation of energy? What about the laws of thermodynamics?
If this world really had this kind of black-box technology... what damn use was the 19th-century stuff he'd brought from Earth?
No, wait. Calm down. Allen forced himself to take a deep breath.
'Maybe this is just a rare resource? Something only the royal family can use?'
'Maybe... I've been looking at this world all wrong from the very beginning!'
He immediately shouted:
"Someone, attend me."
When the attendant entered in response, Allen's voice had suppressed all turmoil, leaving only unquestionable resolve:
"Go and fetch Advisor Merlin. Immediately! Right now!" He stared into the attendant's eyes, emphasizing each word. "Tell him I have a question for him regarding 'light'."
Merlin.
The court advisor he had always dismissed as a charlatan.
Now, perhaps he was the only one who could provide an answer.