Living in Hiding Until Tier 7 is Blissful

"Oh? Mason, you guys are here too?"

Ron walked into the courtyard behind the Barbecue Shop and found Mason, Harper, and Edith sitting around a table, eating skewers while "dueling with magic."

Before Mason could even say hello, Harper shouted from the side, "Yo, Ron! Your Elemental Cards are still too monotonous. There are only fifty-some spells, and I can't even pull off many of the combinations I want."

Mason felt a toothache coming on: "You've already come up with over a hundred combinations, and you're still complaining?"

Edith, meanwhile, was looking distressed, staring at the cards in her hand, unsure of how to respond. Finally, she slammed them onto the table in frustration: "Damn it! Lost again!"

The moment the young Elf lady's palm fell, the gazes of the three men nearby were instantly drawn to her.

That was a beautiful play!

Ron sat down next to them, waiting for his barbecue while watching them shuffle for the next round, smiling as he observed them immersed in the game.

The way Mason and the others were "dueling with magic" was actually more similar to games like San Guo Sha or Yu-Gi-Oh; using Elemental Cards to play it out always felt like it was missing a certain something.

However, since this was their first time encountering such a game, they were having a blast and didn't have the deep-seated expectations that Ron did.

Soon, Ron's barbecue was served.

The four of them ate, played cards, and chatted away.

Mason and the others talked about various trivial matters at the Magic Academy, eventually leading to the topic of the Meditation Potion that Harper had concocted.

"Oh? So Nether Orchid can be used as an ingredient?" Ron was curious about this, and he finally understood why Professor Hicks had sought him out for a partnership.

"Of course." Harper played a card and answered casually, "Using Nether Orchid as the main ingredient, combined with some common additives, you can easily brew a potent Meditation Potion. If we keep researching it, we should be able to create a potion three or four times as effective as the Nether Orchid itself."

Ron raised an eyebrow and asked, "Are you doing research in this area?"

"No, no, no." Harper shook his head, "I just followed Professor Hicks's instructions to make him one batch of Meditation Potion. Further research and improvements aren't my concern; I have other experiments to attend to."

"Yeah, some strange, explosive experiments." Edith chimed in from the side, "This afternoon alone, you've broken 11 test tubes, 23 beakers, and various other lab supplies, totaling 11 silver coins. My congratulations to you."

Ron felt a bit sheepish listening to this; he hadn't expected this gnome brother to be a demolition genius.

As for the matter of the Meditation Potion, Ron had no intention of getting involved.

He had no accumulated knowledge in alchemy, so naturally, he had no way to start.

Even though he was the supplier of the Nether Orchid, effectively holding the Magic Academy by the throat in this regard, that didn't mean he had to seek profit from it.

His positioning for himself was very clear.

Run his Flower Shop well, earn the money he was supposed to, complete the system's tasks honestly, plant flowers and slack off every day, and spend every day in peace and leisure.

Wouldn't that be wonderful?

Things that might offend people should be avoided as much as possible.

Once he hunkered down and reached the Seventh-Rank Legendary realm, wouldn't he be able to do whatever he wanted?

Why stir up trouble while he was still a noob?

So, as for the Meditation Potion, he just listened and let it pass, quickly changing the subject to his future plans to study at the Magic Academy.

"Advanced studies?" Mason was a bit surprised, "Is Lord Ron coming to the academy?"

"Yeah." Ron smiled, "I've already agreed with Professor Hicks to follow him and study Water and Earth magic."

"Truth be told, Professor Hicks's attainments in dual-element Water and Earth magic are quite impressive." Harper commented, "But his Fire magic is truly terrible."

"The professor has a natural affinity for Water and Earth elements; isn't it only natural that his Fire magic is a bit lacking?" Edith retorted.

"But he's a student of a Legendary Fire mage." Harper complained, "The Dean's own student, yet his Fire magic is abysmal. Can't I even say that?"

Edith let out a "Tch": "You're just jealous because the Dean didn't choose you as a student, so you're jealous of others. You're so petty."

"Hmph, for a Fire genius like me not to be taken as a student by the Dean is absolutely his huge loss." Harper said, lifting his chin.

Mason rolled his eyes: "I think you should be grateful. Otherwise, at the rate you wreck five laboratories a month, you'd probably have already been executed by the Dean with fire."

"Uh..." Harper was instantly choked, awkwardly rubbing his nose, but finally said righteously, "Those are just stumbling blocks on the road to truth. I believe the Dean will understand."

Everyone burst into laughter, and a cheerful atmosphere filled the air.

"The professor is usually very busy and might not have much time to tutor you. If the professor can't squeeze in the time, you can come find me." Edith smoothed her light green hair and said to Ron, "I am the professor's student, and I am also quite proficient in dual-element Water and Earth magic as well as Wood Magic. If you have any questions in these areas, you are welcome to ask me at any time."

"I will." Ron smiled, raising his glass to clink with the alluring Edith, "Thank you in advance."

"You're welcome." Edith gave a delicate smile and took a light sip of her ale.

"Edith, actually I also have many questions in this area I'd like to ask..." Harper immediately leaned in with a cheeky grin.

"I'm only a Third-Rank mage; I can't teach a Fire genius like you. You'd better go ask Professor Hicks or the Dean." Edith rolled her eyes and reached out to gently push Harper's head away.

Edith was only twenty-five this year. Compared to the long lifespan of the Elf Race, if converted to human age, she was probably only around fifteen or sixteen, or even younger.

Although she had a good relationship with Harper, sometimes she really couldn't stand his personality.

The reproduction of the Elf Race relied on the gestation of the Tree of Life, not through mating.

Although they had desires in that regard, they would not get pregnant, and compared to other races, they appeared much more reserved.

However, if an Elf were to mate with an outsider, there was a certain chance of conceiving offspring.

But the Elf Race was very repulsed by this behavior and basically did not allow such things to happen.

Of course, Harper's pursuit of beauties was usually just all talk, which was the reason Edith didn't particularly push him away.

Ron watched them banter from the side, continuing to chat while munching on skewers.

By six in the evening, everyone was full and satisfied, so they said their goodbyes to Lyle and went their separate ways.

Ron had Lyle prepare another portion of grilled meat, then carried the oil-paper-wrapped skewers to the nearby alley, where he soon waited for Nora, who had come there to forage for food.

The third chapter for today is here~ Why haven't you taken out your tickets to encourage me yet!