I Pioneered Scientific Magic - Chapter 585 (Patreon)

Chapter 585: Premiere of the Magic Movie

Upon hearing the good news that the Moon God was about to awaken, and having obtained the design plans for muskets, the group of nobles and priests, who had been in disarray since the collapse of the Church and the fall of the Empire, saw a glimmer of hope.

"Next, we need to continue to expand the 'Moonwatchers', selecting from among the officials, merchants, and even commoners those who still worship the great Moon God... Only more and more devout prayers will let our Lord see our repentance!" Bishop Sedek solemnly declared.

This was not an easy task, as for over five years, those cunning wizards had been buying the loyalty of the Empire's citizens with money, materials, and land, attempting to corrupt their faith.

Fortunately, the millennia-long rule of the Empire and the Church was still deeply rooted in people's hearts. Many commoners, despite receiving abundant materials, felt a profound spiritual emptiness, longing for redemption from the great Lord!

The wizards had conquered these people's bodies, but not their hearts; everyone longed for the glorious days when nobles and the Church ruled the land together!

Thus, inside the Empire, there were still many citizens who secretly worshipped the Moon God, but due to the brutal persecution by the wizards, they dared not pray openly!

Tirral and other nobles also echoed Sedek's words, discussing how to set up a large musket factory and mobilize the citizens to oppose the wizards' rule.

Listening to everyone seriously discussing how to counterattack the Magic Kingdom, a young Imperial Viscount in the corner nearly burst out laughing due to the absurdity.

Pim was an Imperial Viscount, but also a member of the shadow guards, responsible for eliminating all threats within the kingdom.

Of course, his noble identity was not fake; otherwise, he would not have been able to infiltrate the 'Moonwatchers' so easily. However, Pim had long seen that the Empire and the Church were doomed to fail, so he had bet early and decisively switched sides.

As a result, his hereditary title and lands were all confiscated, but his family's wealth was preserved. More importantly, the council did not restrict anyone from becoming a wizard and learning magic. With his far superior knowledge and the power of the magic network, Pim had smoothly become a formal wizard.

Powerful magic and various novel alchemical creations were experiences that were previously unattainable.

Whether traveling or living, life was a hundred times more comfortable than when he was a noble! But human greed is endless, and Pim naturally hoped to advance further and become a great wizard!

This meant greater power and a longer life, as well as the possibility of entering the core of the council! However, Pim knew that his knowledge was not outstanding; the only thing he could hope for was to achieve high enough merits, which was why he had given up a respectable and comfortable life to become a shadow guard.

The 'Moonwatchers' was his target; Pim infiltrated them to find out what astonishing plot this gathering of Imperial remnants was planning.

The result was hugely disappointing. Just this...just this?!

Pim was sure that if these people had seen how the council had captured the Holy City, they would never have entertained the ridiculous idea of using muskets to mobilize civilians to counterattack the Magic Kingdom.

Even so, due to the need for military training and the lack of opponents, they used conventional weapons when attacking the major cities of the Empire, namely muskets and cannons!

Even so, without the support of the Church, the so-called elite of the Empire were no match for firearms.

The so-called capital had only held out for three days before falling, and that was only because they had refrained from bombing to avoid harming civilians.

It seemed that such conservatism had given some people some unrealistic ideas, thinking that relying on outdated firearm technology could threaten the kingdom, which was simply a fool's dream! Realizing that this organization was just a group of idiots still immersed in past fantasies, Pim was utterly disappointed. It looked like the significant achievements he had anticipated might just fly away.

However, regarding the 'awakening' of the Moon God and the clergy's reacquisition of divine arts, it was indeed necessary to report this as soon as possible.

While a group of nobles and priests were loudly discussing, completely unaware that there was a traitor among them.

A tall and thin young nobleman suddenly seemed to remember something and hurriedly spoke up. "Bishop, I heard that the wizards have recently created something called a 'recording stone' that's being played throughout the kingdom, defiling the great Lord and promoting the rule of the council and wizards!"

"Recording stone? What is that?" Sedek frowned, wary of the wizards' new inventions.

"It seems to be similar to the opera, and it's even being shown in the village tonight," the young nobleman said

 hesitantly.

Hearing that it was similar to the opera, Sedek's face showed a trace of disdain.

He knew about the opera, which originated from stories sung by minstrels, all about heroes slaying dragons or destitute nobles gaining the favor of great figures and thus reaching the pinnacle of life.

Many poor people, merchants, and minor nobles were very enthusiastic about it, but in Sedek's view, it was nothing more than a script concocted by minstrels to satisfy the fantasies of the lower classes, fundamentally not worthy of attention!

However, considering that the wizards were making such a big deal about it, Sedek still turned to the others and instructed them to check out what exactly the council was up to if they had time tonight.

...

As evening approached, the old nobles left the farmhouse one by one through various secret passages. Such a large-scale gathering of people, if discovered, could easily raise suspicions.

After all, the council had offered a very high bounty for capturing these remnants of the Empire and the Church.

Many people who had completely forsaken the faith of the gods were extremely eager to report, submitting any suspicious individuals to the local officials. Even though the entire area around the farmhouse was leased, they still had to act cautiously and split up.

Tirral was one of the last to leave the manor. As he stepped out the door, he still felt a bit reluctant because here he was the grand earl of the Empire, the future king of Hadralata, but once he stepped out, he became just another ordinary worker.

Tirral only hoped that the great Moon God would awaken soon and restore the glory of the Empire.

Secretly returning to the small town, the vigilant Tirral immediately noticed something different. A huge poster was plastered at the town's main gate, instantly attracting his attention.

The poster depicted a white-robed, fierce-looking priest raising a scepter against a wizard surrounded by flames, storms, and ice. Behind them, under a shield made of elements, two poorly dressed but determined-looking peasants could be seen.

Tirral recognized at a glance that this was a duel between a church bishop and a wizard... and it seemed to involve the lower-class commoners as well, leading to all sorts of speculations.

The quality of the poster was also very high, showing not only the powerful divine arts and dazzling magic but even the wrinkles and expressions on their faces, as if the duel was happening right in front of him.

Tirral knew this was called optical photography by the wizards, a magic that could record events.

The cover of the Magic Daily used the same magic, and some ignorant commoners even believed that the wizards had captured a moment in time and put it inside the photograph.

Of course, Tirral did not believe such absurd claims. Moreover, every major city sold an alchemical device called a camera, which could take lifelike photos just by pressing a switch.

However, buying a camera required a full 50 gold coins, not something ordinary commoners could afford! The poster was like a super-sized photo, and even though Tirral was not very interested in movies before, he couldn't help but feel a bit curious now. After hesitating for a moment, he headed in the direction indicated by the poster.

The movie was to be shown in the most spacious and conspicuous square, and the ticket price was not high, just one silver coin, equivalent to several days' wages for the kingdom's citizens. It was affordable enough for a whole family to watch, meaning the number of viewers was unimaginably large.

Almost the entire town's citizens had arrived, and the 5,000 chairs prepared in advance were not enough, nor was there enough space to place more chairs. The rest of the people had to stand to watch the movie.

Those on the outskirts who were blocked from the view desperately pushed forward, but some smart ones brought their own mats, standing taller than others. About a hundred children even climbed onto the roofs, finding the best viewing spots!

With his excellent physical condition, Tirral forcefully made his way to the front row amidst the cursing crowd. Although there was no seat, he could clearly see the scene in front.

The center of the square was a large area deliberately left empty, with no opera performers or even a stage visible. The only thing visible was nine floating projection stones.

As the time approached, the person in charge of the screening, Shaun, asked someone to stop selling tickets and then cleared his throat, casting an amplification spell, and shouted loudly.

"Silence!"

His voice, as loud as a bell, instantly overpowered the chatter of tens of thousands of people, gradually quieting the noisy square.

Although there was no strict class hierarchy in the kingdom now, it still existed unofficially, especially since wizards held great power.

Once the square fell silent, Shaun announced the start of the movie screening. With a flick of his fingers, the nine floating projection stones immediately dispersed, flying to different corners

 of the square.

A dazzlingly bright light then burst forth, enveloping the entire square. Tirral instinctively squinted his eyes, and when he reopened them, he was astounded, as were the commoners around him.

In just a short moment, they had gone from the bustling square to a piece of farmland. Beneath their feet was green grass, and in front of them was a golden wheat field.

Tirral couldn't help but crouch down to try and pluck a blade of grass to verify its reality, but his hand passed right through the grass leaves.

Clearly, this was not something that truly existed, but rather a projection of magic and light, jointly creating this convincingly real visual effect!

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