Stephen discovered the trick of comprehending magical characters. Of course, only he could use such a trick.
Although spells and programs seem to be two completely different things, there are some similarities between them. At least from the perspective of Stephen, the peak hacker, setting aside the meaning of the magic characters, the logical relationships between those characters are no different from those of programs and viruses that he has dealt with all his life in the previous life.
He mastered five of the thirty-two magic characters. With these five characters, he could create many spells, but all of them were basic spells. To write more advanced spells, he needed more advanced magic characters. Without the supplementation of advanced magic characters, problems would arise with the spells. Through logical reasoning based on these problems, he could understand the meanings of the magic characters. This is to obtain true knowledge from practice.
Surely, the premise of practice is waste.
Fortunately, Stephen is not afraid of waste now.
Stephen can use as many sheets of parchment as he wants. Under the premise that it can bring great benefits overall, Bouska surely won't mind Stephen scrapping a few more sheets of parchment.
Have any objections? Anyway, I'm your prisoner. If you can't bear to part with these few copper coins, just tear up the tickets.
Of course, Buska couldn't bear to tear up the tickets. The daily output of thirty magic scrolls was already a very precious income. So even when one morning Queen told him that while cleaning the toilet in the warehouse where Stephen was held, she found several pieces of parchment that were obviously used as toilet paper inside, Buska simply chose to remain silent. Then the next time I came again, I brought Stephen several rolls of top-quality toilet paper bought from a big trading house...
After being imprisoned for a week, Buska had a talk with Stephen once.
It seems that your little junior Debbie really cares about you. She has caused trouble in my magic shop three times these days. If this continues, I might not be able to resist doing something to her. You know, she has disrupted the business of the shop a lot. Buska's words were filled with a threatening tone. Through the vent of the iron door, he looked at Stephen insidiously, "So I hope you know how bad my mood is now."
Stephen silently looked at the chubby face on the other side of the iron gate. After a moment, he thought of something and turned back to the desk beside him. He wrote a passage on a piece of parchment with magic ink and then handed the parchment to Buska through the vent: "Give this to her. I think after she reads it, she won't cause you any trouble anymore."
Buska was stunned for a moment, carefully took the piece of paper, and then carefully opened it again, only to find the letter he had written to Debbie on it.
Debbie, a few days ago, I suddenly met a beggar. I kindly gave him a copper coin, only to find out that he was actually a super magician traveling around the world. He said my bones were amazing and one in a million, so he took me as his apprentice and asked me to carry on his legacy so that I could maintain world peace in the future. Because time was very urgent, he insisted that I leave with him immediately. I didn't even have time to tell you. I can only find time to write this letter to you. Believe me, I'll be fine. Soon I'll be back as a super magician - your unmarried husband, Hammerhead.
Buska read the short letter over and over again, which was full of some kind of incomprehension and humor, and was sure that there was no information Stephen had hidden on it. Only then did he fold the parchment and put it back in his pocket. He sneered, "You're sensible. Don't worry. As long as that girl doesn't come to cause me trouble, I'll let her live well." Saying this, he turned around, and a somewhat greedy and reluctant complaining voice followed in again: "Just write a letter. Why use parchment? Do you think parchment is free..."
With a clang, the vent hole on the iron door was closed.
Stephen clenched his fists tightly and walked back and forth in the small dark room somewhat irritably. He seemed to be able to imagine how furious Debbie was when she found out she was gone. Then, in a fit of rage, she carried the hundred-pound huge sword to look for trouble with Bouska but found nothing. Old George had left and he was gone too. Debbie was left alone. Although the way she held the huge sword often left Stephen speechless, deeply feeling the shock of what it means for a tomboy to be self-reliant, in the end, she was just a lonely little girl. He wondered if she had cried because of her disappearance these days and had gone crazy a few times because of it. Without him cooking noodles for her, would she often go hungry?
She was the only family member Stephen had after being reborn in this world. The deep bond of blood thicker than water might have been the memory left by the hammer at first, but in the following period of time spent together, Stephen had truly regarded her as his sister.
So, Stephen is very angry.
These days, he often wondered what would happen to Debbie, but today when he heard about her from Buska, it undoubtedly pushed Stephen's anger to its peak. Then, those flames were forcibly suppressed by Stephen because he knew that what he needed most at this moment was composure.
These days, I have already grasped three more magic characters, but that's still far from enough. Even if I could save some parchment and make it into an intermediate or advanced magic scroll, I might not be able to deal with Quinn and Loki, these two second-order swordsmen, in such a small space. And... I have only one chance.
Stephen began to think about the predicament he was facing and seek hope for relief from it. He simply sat up on the ground and engaged in a brainstorming session.
It was probably the letter he had just written to Debbie that gave him some breakthroughs, shifting his thoughts to the movies he had watched in his previous life. Of course, the movies were fake, but no one could deny the wisdom in them. What would the protagonist in the movies do if he were imprisoned like him?
Following this train of thought, a series of chaotic movies flashed through Stephen's mind.
Just at that moment, a flash of inspiration suddenly illuminated Stephen's eyes like a firefly in the dark night, and his gaze then turned to the pile of junk piled up in this dilapidated warehouse: porcelain vases, broken boxes, and a rusty suit of armor. A few days ago, he rummaged through those boxes and found that they were filled with animal skins already covered with wormholes... At this moment, what came to his mind was a very cool movie he had watched in his previous life.
The name of that film is Iron Man.
The protagonist in the film is imprisoned by terrorists and then uses a pile of scrap metal to develop a set of super battle armor to escape and ascend to heaven. This plot is very exciting and thrilling, and it also inspires Stephen: Of course, the Iron Man suit could never be developed in the real world. Even if it were feasible, for Stephen of the previous life, it was just an interesting and unrealistic idea. His expertise lies in programming, and the Iron Man suit requires the coordinated operation of computer control and mechanical power. No matter how well his program is written, it will be of no use without the assistance of machinery.
In this magical world, there is a certain commonality between spells and programs, and spells can act on everything.
Then, this interesting idea may become a reality.
Stephen's eyes were fixed on the pile of junk in the corner of the warehouse, and a wild smile curled up at the corner of his mouth.
"Iron Man, let's see if you're scared."