Under the guise of studying art and practicing painting, Lux and Sona began hands-on practice in drawing magic circuits.
And once they truly started, the two young girls finally understood why Klein had set aside a full six months specifically for their specialized training in drawing magic circuits.
Magic circuits… were too difficult to draw.
Although these patterns and shapes were mostly composed of the simplest geometric forms, and individual functional circuit units could be drawn quite standardly with a bit of practice, once they were combined, the difficulty increased exponentially.
Magic circuits were continuous, and a complete magic circuit had at least a dozen units, and sometimes dozens or even hundreds of units. These units had specific connection methods, and sometimes an additional parallel or series circuit was needed to satisfy these connections—compared to drawing magic circuits, drawing circuit diagrams was child's play.
At least the wires in circuit diagrams were straight lines, but in magic circuits, even the simplest connections were a bunch of geometric shapes that had to be connected head to tail, following a pattern and twisting and turning.
What was even more ridiculous was that to ensure smooth magic flow, the entire process had to be drawn in one continuous stroke, with no interruptions allowed. Forget about correcting mistakes; even stopping was forbidden!
Under such astonishing difficulty, Lux and Sona exhausted all their efforts, slowly progressing from "generally knowing how to draw" to "knowing specifically how to draw but unable to complete it in one go."
And the progress of this process was exactly consistent with Klein's estimation—the two of them spent a full six months.
It wasn't until summer arrived, on a cool morning, that Sona drew a complete, one-time circuit for extracting and amplifying magic for the first time.
The two young girls were filled with Inspire.
Then, they were informed that it wasn't over yet.
"You are using the easiest charcoal pencils to draw with, and suitable white paper," Klein poured another bucket of cold water on them after they finished their excited celebration. "To truly draw magic circuits that can assist in spellcasting and guide magic, you need to use more professional materials."
Lux and Sona couldn't help but have an ominous premonition.
Then… that premonition came true.
"Considering that in Demacia, most magic materials are hard to find and too conspicuous, your best choice is actually carving—and you guessed it, carving with Petricite."
Hearing Klein's words, Lux really wanted to throw her sword into the mud at the bottom of the pond—even Sona, who was always gentle, wondered if this sword was too cold in the summer and if she should throw it into the furnace to warm it up.
After glaring fiercely at Klein, the two of them simultaneously looked at the one-foot-square drawing they had just completed, then automatically imagined it replaced with a Petricite block of the same size.
The painstakingly drawn magic circuit on it was replaced with an intaglio relief.
Drawing magic circuits required one continuous stroke, and carving Petricite would probably also require a single, unbroken effort.
In other words…
"Next, we're going to learn carving, right?" Lux's tone was devoid of emotion, as if she had seen through the world and had no worldly desires. "And you just happen to know a bit about relief carving."
"Congratulations, you've learned to answer quickly!" Klein's tone was full of the satisfaction of a father pleased with his child. "Relax, Petricite is much softer than ordinary stone, carving an entire magic circuit in one go shouldn't be too big of a problem for you—at least in terms of strength."
"Oh, that's just great." Lux deadpanned, looking at her best friend. "Sona, what do you think?"
"I think so too." Sona also nodded expressionlessly. "This is truly wonderful."
"Mhm!"
"Indeed."
Then, amidst their back-and-forth, Lux's sword was "accidentally" unhooked from her waist, and both sword and scabbard "coincidentally" fell into the small pond in the Crownguard Family garden, sinking to the bottom.
"Klein, where are you?" Lux feigned concern, immediately taking off her shoes and wading into the water. "Sona, come help!"
And Sona, after a moment of hesitation, finally chose to join Lux in the knee-deep pond.
Thus, amidst the two students' "enthusiastic searching," Klein was stomped into the mud at the bottom of the pond, foot after foot—until Garen also tried to join the water play, only to be "finally found" by Lux.
…
Regardless of the process, Lux and Sona began their third art project after studying music and painting.
However, unlike the previous two times, Augatha, who had always been very supportive of Lux, unusually expressed her opposition this time.
"Honey, Mother has always supported you." Augatha looked helplessly at her daughter. "Music and painting can cultivate one's temperament and artistic sensibility, so I'm happy for you to learn about them—but sculpture is fine to just look at; there's really no need to do it yourself."
"Only by doing it yourself can you truly experience the charm of art." Lux, repeating what Klein had taught her, said her chuunibyou declaration, enduring the embarrassment, "What does a pear truly taste like? Only by tasting it will you know. This is my path of art!"
"But you don't need to plant a pear tree yourself." Augatha reached out and rubbed her temples. "Honey, carving is not something a lady should do. Being covered in dust and looking disheveled is not in line with etiquette."
"So I hope to carve with Petricite—I specifically researched the material, Petricite generally doesn't produce a lot of dust when carved!"
…"But wielding a hammer is also too inelegant."
"That's also a kind of exercise—Mother, I know I can't go into battle like my brother and Kahina, but sometimes I also long to do something with my own strength, and carving is one of the best ways I can think of."
…
Looking at the persistent Lux, Augatha finally sighed helplessly.
In her opinion, her daughter was also going through a rebellious phase, and her little cotton jacket seemed to be developing a tendency towards eccentric clothing—however, the Crownguard Family tradition was such that her daughter wasn't like her aunt Tiana, who had dressed as a man to fight in the Dauntless Vanguard, so she could already be grateful.
Carving… carving was at least better than clamoring to join the army, wasn't it?
If you like carving, then let her carve!
"As long as you don't neglect what you should be doing." Augatha gritted her teeth, trying not to imagine her little princess looking disheveled among piles of broken stone. "I will instruct the butler to clear out a carving room for you!"
"Mother is the best!" Lux lifted her face and immediately imprinted a kiss on her mother's cheek. "I love you, Mother!"
"Hmph, you only say nice things now!" Augatha's words were dismissive, but the corners of her mouth still couldn't help but curl upwards. "Oh well, who told me I'm your mother…"
And so, having appeased her mother, Lux officially began practicing Petricite carving.
…
Half a month later.
Lux's "Petricite carving art" had yet to see any breakthroughs.
But at the aristocratic banquet, the number of people who proactively spoke to her had broken through—one after another, unfamiliar individuals found Lux through various connections.
These people came from different backgrounds and had strange and varied histories, but most of them were struggling artists.
They appeared uneasy in front of Lux's perfect aristocratic etiquette, even speaking somewhat hesitantly. Even though Lux listened carefully, and even though she now understood the convoluted language of the nobility, the result was still confusing—until Klein translated it for her in plain language.
"They are all artists who hope to get some sponsorship."
"But why are they looking for me?" Lux was completely bewildered. "This is the Gu Fu family's engagement banquet, and I'm not the host of this banquet!"
"But you're the most artistic person in Demacia's aristocratic circle." Klein suppressed a smile. "And to be honest, although these people are more disheveled than the last, they generally have some skill… Remember that guy who just praised you as a 'true artist'?"
"You mean that awkward little man with a mustache?"
"Exactly, him—I heard from Sona that last year, when he faced the young master of the De Ke family, he even explicitly rebuked the other party as an 'art-ignorant scoundrel'!" Klein finally couldn't hold back and burst out laughing. "And even an artist with such artistic integrity still holds you in high regard. Clearly, our Miss Luxanna Crownguard has now become Demacia's last great savior of art!"
"Why is this happening?" Lux maintained her polite expression, though her face was slightly stiff, but inwardly she was speechless. "I'm studying magic?!"
"A great mage who doesn't want to be an artist is not a good swordsman." Klein cheerfully whistled. "Too bad, I'm not very good at dealing with these art people, and even if your etiquette has some flaws, they won't notice, so, let me rest for a while…"
"Don't!" Lux was dumbfounded. "If you do that… if you do that, I'll be exposed. I don't have any artistic talent; these are all quick, unconventional tricks. I can't handle communicating with these people!"
"Everyone has things they're not good at." Klein looked very understanding. "Like me, I have no hands or feet right now, so I'm not very good at pulling myself out of the mud…"
Klein's grudge stunned Lux.
"My dear, great, knowledgeable, omnipotent teacher, I was wrong!" Lux, realizing the problem, decisively conceded. "I shouldn't have vented my frustration due to my laziness in studying, and I certainly shouldn't have offended you—"
"When did you ever offend me?"
"Oh, yes, yes, yes, I never dared to offend you, and I never will!" Lux was flexible. "This time, for the sake of my youthful ignorance, please help me no matter what, help me deal with these artists… I really can't talk to them!"
"Hmph—" Klein drew out her words with reserved. "Oh well, I really am a kind person… Next, I'll say a sentence, and you just repeat it—and, pay attention to your expression management. An artist should be elegant, not like a gloomy simpleton!"