The cramped room had bare walls on all four sides.
The bedding was thin, and the iron bed was ice-cold, digging painfully into his bones.
Roy woke clutching his head. With a hiss, he sucked in a breath of cold air.
"It hurts...
What exactly happened?"
In his daze, the many scenes from his past and present lives intertwined and overlapped in his mind like illusions.
It turned out that this was the Wizarding World, ruled by the Seven Towers Alliance.
His new identity was also Roy, and he was an apprentice at Oakmi Witch Tower, one of the Seven Ancestor Towers.
Roy rubbed his temples, trying to ease the headache.
Instead, even more memories from his predecessor surged forth.
At the age of twelve, he had boarded a ship with dreams of becoming a wizard and crossed the seas to reach this place.
He had risen early and worked late every day in exchange for three meals and the knowledge needed to improve himself. Six years had passed since then.
The hardships and suffering of more than two thousand days and nights still lingered before his eyes.
But in just over a month, the annual Tower Clearance period would arrive.
His predecessor would face the miserable fate of being expelled from the tower and sent back to his homeland.
Whether it was because of utter despair or some other unforeseen change, he had suddenly and inexplicably died in the night.
Then Roy had taken his place.
"Expelled from the tower..."
Roy furrowed his brows tightly.
The Old Continent was no pleasant place.
It was backward, ignorant, and undeveloped. The commoners at the bottom were treated worse than cattle and horses, while famines, plagues, and wars ran rampant.
And the education received by Low-level Apprentices amounted, at most, to basic literacy and various common-sense lessons about the mystical arts.
They had not yet reached the Spellcaster stage.
Being sent back before becoming an Intermediate Apprentice was practically equivalent to being exiled to the wilderness.
Not only would they face all kinds of hardships and dangers, but they would have no personal rights and could only be controlled by the Bloodline Nobles there.
Coming back to himself, Roy surveyed the room.
The interior of the Witch Tower was as magnificent as a city, with numerous portals to Small Worlds hidden within it. Yet the residences of the Low-level Apprentices at the bottom were as simple as the inside of a medieval stone castle.
The ceiling, however, held a chandelier made from magic crystals, radiating a pure white glow.
Several general-knowledge books borrowed from the library sat on the table beneath the chandelier. One lay open, filled with basic knowledge that his predecessor had read many times.
"Books containing wizard knowledge are collectively known as the 'Book of Wizards.' They usually contain Will Runes...
"Using Spiritual Power to sketch and manifest rune images in the mind is the process of meditation training..."
Roy pondered this thoughtfully.
"Book of Wizards, Will Runes, meditation training...
"An ordinary person's Spiritual Power can only continuously sketch and manifest one or two Will Runes.
"Reaching three or more is the entry requirement for a Low-level Apprentice.
"This usually requires exceptional talent or deliberate training.
"His predecessor was chosen to board the ship because of this.
"But as a six-year veteran apprentice, he had to undergo specialized meditation and persist over the long term until he could manifest at least eight runes. Only then could he advance to Intermediate Apprentice and stay behind!"
Roy silently checked his current progress.
"Fei Fu()!
"Wu Lu Zi()!
"Tu Li Sa Zi()!
"An Si Zi()!
"Lai De He()!
"Ka Na Zi()!
"Gai... Gai Bo..."
As he meditated, the outlines of six Will Runes successively emerged in the darkness of his mind, lighting up like torches.
When he reached the seventh, his Mental Strength began to fail. The rune image, originally clear, suddenly seemed to lose its source of illumination and gradually dimmed.
"The requirement is eight runes, but after all these years, I've only made progress on a little more than six...
"At this rate, I'll never make it in time!"
Roy fell into thought.
Burying his head in hard work probably would not be enough to catch up. Perhaps he needed to rely on some external aid.
The good news was that the Wizarding World had never lacked such external aids.
Spirit Strengthening Potions, Bloodline Modification Potions, Blood Soul Stones, Corpse Soul Flowers...
There was no shortage of anything.
The bad news was that every one of them cost magic stones, with prices starting at no fewer than a hundred.
For him, this was undoubtedly a fortune that would take years of hard work to save.
"How can I earn this money as quickly as possible?"
Roy felt troubled.
His predecessor had been an ordinary Low-level Apprentice, ordinary in every way. His only minor talent was that, over the years, he had diligently studied a little about potions and perfume refinement.
Now Roy had inherited that knowledge and those memories.
But he had only a superficial grasp of them.
It was impossible for him to earn enough magic stones to change his fate in a short time.
Just as he was at his wits' end, Roy suddenly felt a warm current surge through his body. It was like soaking in warm water, spreading throughout him with extraordinary comfort.
Afterward, the current faded, but a translucent Phantom Panel inexplicably appeared in his vision, its words gradually manifesting.
Alchemy Talent Acquisition in Progress (100%) Skilled Worker (Black Iron Rank) When performing Apprentice-level Alchemy Operations, gain a proficiency boost equivalent to a skilled level, and double the success rate.
"What is this?"
A look of astonishment appeared on Roy's face.
Amid his surprise, he quickly understood the function of this Black Iron Rank Talent as if by instinct.
The proficiency boost at a "skilled" level meant that he could skip the two stages of beginner and entry-level learning. Most operations would come naturally to him, and practice would make perfect!
And doubling the success rate was an even more direct and tremendous enhancement!
This could not surpass common sense.
For example, proficiency...
He still had to learn first. Only after studying something could he quickly master and become proficient in it.
Likewise, deliberately knocking over the Alchemy Platform, placing materials randomly, acting carelessly, and similar actions would still reduce the success rate and lead to failure.
"But... no matter how you look at it, this Talent Ability is incredibly useful.
"Perhaps I can try refining something called 'Fragrant Cattail Water' from my memories and use it to make money!"
He paced around the room while searching through his memories, gradually forming a plan.
His predecessor's abilities were mediocre at best. At most, he could work as an assistant for others and earn a little money through hard labor.
But after the Black Iron Rank Talent Skilled Worker appeared, his mind suddenly became clear, and every detail surfaced vividly.
It made him feel as though he had been tempered through countless trials, becoming highly skilled and experienced in an instant. His confidence soared.
As expected, the Talent Ability was beginning to manifest...
The improvement was truly immediate!
Alchemy Talent Acquisition in Progress (0%)
Just then, the words on the panel changed, and Roy suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"Is it possible to obtain more in the future?"
A hint of delight entered his expression. He slammed his palm onto the table, making the books, paper, and writing implements tremble.
Although he did not yet understand the nature of this thing, this Alchemy Talent resembling Skilled Worker was clearly not an isolated occurrence.
It was merely the tip of the iceberg.
Perhaps he could continue uncovering more of them in the future, helping him go very, very far along the extraordinary path of wizardry.
But everything depended on his being able to stay here instead of being sent back and reduced to the fate of an exile.
Before you continue