"... [Lightning Guidance] is temporarily out of stock."
"Out of stock?"
He Xi stood before the counter, looking at the bespectacled young clerk in front of him, somewhat surprised.
After finishing the rather interesting morning class, Introduction to Magical Material Processing, he had followed the address Lionel provided and found this shop called "Silver Scholar."
The storefront was small, with several scrolls and magical implements displayed in the window.
After circling through the display racks and glass cases, he found the section for Evocation School spells. The common cantrips and some first- to third-circle spells were all there, but [Lightning Guidance] alone was nowhere to be seen.
"Yes, out of stock." The clerk adjusted his glasses and looked He Xi up and down. "The shop originally had six in stock, but they all sold out over the weekend. Why did you wait until today to buy one?"
"Did... was there some kind of limited-time sale?" He Xi did not immediately grasp what he meant.
"Limited-time sale? What's that?" The clerk looked puzzled. "You should have come as soon as the course schedule came out. If you came late, you'll have to wait for the next restock."
The course schedule... so that was it.
He Xi understood.
It seemed that the third-year students about to take this course had bought up the scrolls in advance to prepare.
Instructor Mirabelle had also mentioned that mastering a lightning-element spell ahead of time would help with learning [Lightning Bolt].
Those upperclassmen had clearly gotten the news long ago.
He Xi nodded and turned to leave. After taking two steps, he looked back and asked, "By the way, how much does that scroll normally cost?"
"[Lightning Guidance]?" The clerk thought for a moment. "Normally, around twelve Gold Shields. The exact price depends on the quality