Second Bucket of Gold

Roy and Renion watched with envy.

But when they learned they had to pay the entry fee first, they were immediately disappointed.

After becoming Intermediate Apprentices, the pressure of their studies increased, and so did their shortage of magic stones.

They could not afford that money.

There were not many Advanced Apprentices here this time. After waiting patiently for a while, it was finally their turn.

Roy asked, "I need magic stones and materials...

Is anyone willing to trade for some gold coins or Alchemical Products?"

Several eliminated apprentices who had not yet finished exchanging their things came over in response. "How do you want to trade? At market prices?"

Roy said, "What market price is there at a time like this? Gold coins for magic stones, one for one."

The eliminated apprentices looked helpless, but after a brief discussion, they still decided to sell cheaply.

Under normal circumstances, no one would be willing to exchange magic stones for gold coins, especially at such a low one-to-one ratio.

But they were all leaving the Witch Tower. Nothing could be judged by common sense anymore.

Roy decisively Took Out all the gold and Silver Coins he had saved over the years, along with small alchemical trinkets such as glass beads and perfume bottles.

He even shamelessly borrowed fifty gold coins from Renion and began trading with them.

He vaguely sensed that Renion wanted to socialize, build a small circle, and become its leader.

He did not mind sticking together with them for warmth, provided it benefited him.

Although Renion had a somewhat pained expression On His Face, he still pretended to be generous and displayed the financial strength of a leader.

Roy also knew when to stop. He promised on the spot, "Thank you for lending me the money. I'll do my best to repay you in magic stones at a one-to-one rate as soon as possible. If it takes too long, I'll pay interest as well."

The other man's expression immediately improved somewhat.

This time, Roy had truly emptied his savings.

But the results were gratifying. He once again had a full hundred magic stones in hand.

Although this was not much money, perhaps he could use it to try A Large Pile of Alchemy Recipes and find his own way to make money.

A few days later, in his residence.

Roy rose while rubbing his temples with a slight headache, then headed to the washroom to freshen up.

*I really have been overthinking things...

Wizard knowledge is too obscure and difficult to learn!

Meditation is terribly inefficient too.

It seems this body's aptitude is truly awful...*

Over the past few days, he had begun encountering and learning the things an Intermediate Apprentice should know, greatly broadening his horizons.

But his subsequent studies had clearly become more strenuous as well.

Even as a transmigrator, with the memories inherited from the original owner of this body, he was struggling to keep up.

If this continues, I'm afraid I won't be able to escape the many upcoming assessments and elimination trials!

Looking at the bloodshot eyes and pale face in the mirror, Roy frowned to himself.

This time, he could not wait until the last minute to cram again.

He had to prepare in advance!

After going to the cafeteria outside and having a simple breakfast, Roy headed to the teaching district, preparing to attend more advanced intermediate courses.

As a member of the Seven Towers Alliance in the Wizarding World, Oakmi Witch Tower's curriculum encompassed the seven tower inheritances of curse marks, bloodlines, necromancy, elements, alchemy, astrology, and summoning. It even included some knowledge from other worlds.

In other words, the Apprentice Stage education of the seven ancestral towers was actually interconnected.

However, wizards were fundamentally too impatient to lecture, so they still used the old system of secret art inheritance.

Even the classroom teaching model originated from the university system of the Arcane World, not from this world itself.

Not long afterward, Renion, Nia, Andov, and the others arrived one after another.

They exchanged greetings and began chatting.

"Have you heard? Intermediate Apprentices can freely choose electives based on their interests and actual circumstances..."

"Really? That free?"

"Of course. All public knowledge provided by the Witch Tower is free!

Once you reach a certain stage, you'll be granted Spell Inheritance, along with enhancements from Mage Body Modification.

But at the end of every month, your progress in manifesting Will Runes will be tested.

Two years later, there will still be a graduation Tower Clearance.

From intermediate to advanced, two years, eight runes, an average of one every three months...

In other words, if you fail to manifest a new rune in three consecutive monthly tests, you'll be judged unqualified and forced to accept a Mandatory Task as punishment!"

"Fine, I knew it wouldn't be that cheap!"

Mandatory Tasks were work assigned by the tower's stewards. The rewards were often pitifully low, yet they consumed a great deal of time and energy.

They were quite worried about that.

"You can only officially begin studying spells and various recipes after successfully manifesting sixteen runes..."

"I hope we can last until that day and push for Advanced Apprentice..."

Renion said with a trace of fervor.

The others echoed him. "Yeah. Becoming an Intermediate Apprentice doesn't mean we can relax. This is a new beginning, and Advanced Apprentices are still waiting ahead..."

By then, Roy already knew that this young man with conspicuous golden hair was the youngest son of a viscount's family from somewhere in the Old Continent.

Like Roy, he had been sent here as an apprentice after his talent for Spiritual Power was detected.

Renion's background was far more noble than that of the original owner of Roy's body, but he had no family estate to inherit either. His only path was to desperately strive to become a wizard.

Nia, Andov, and the others nodded in wholehearted agreement.

Nia came from a merchant family and was a girl from the relatively affluent urban class.

But after witnessing the vastness and grandeur of the Mysterious World here, she no longer wanted to return and follow the usual path of getting married.

Andov, meanwhile, was the descendant of a fallen noble family. He hoped to become a wizard and revive his family.

The kings, princes, and nobles of the Old Continent were all descendants of wizards. His own ancestor had likewise been a Wizard Lord.

In the Wizarding World ruled by the Seven Towers Alliance, such people were called Bloodline Nobles.

"Everyone has their own reason to work hard. Everyone hopes to become a true wizard.

But this road is not easy. Advanced Apprentices alone will eliminate many more people, just like the earlier Tower Clearance.

A few years from now, how many of us will still remain?"

Roy could not help but ponder the road ahead.

While they were chatting, the Apprentice Leader responsible for classroom discipline arrived.

He placed a head-sized Crystal Ball, a witch artifact, on the platform and announced the start of class.

Everyone Turned Their Gaze To the Crystal Ball.

Lights drifted across its surface, and an illusion emerged, quickly condensing into an elderly wizard.

He paced across the lectern like a ghost and began speaking.

Roy found this method of teaching dull, tedious, and inefficient.

But in the Wizarding World, where knowledge was precious, having an opportunity to study was already quite good.

So he listened with rapt attention, copied down A Large Pile of notes, and did not dare relax in the slightest.

Not long afterward, the phantom finally reached the part Roy had been longing for—the content related to alchemy!

"Alchemy Originating From attempts to transform base metals into precious metals, especially gold, later developed into different fields of research...

Remember well: the foremost principle of alchemy is Equivalent Exchange!

This is absolutely true and beyond all doubt!"

As the wizard's phantom within the Crystal Ball spoke, it lifted the Mysterious Veil from this field for Roy.