Money and Points

Seeing the expression on his face, Borne understood that he had likely recognized him.

Not bad, his mind turned quite quickly; he was indeed the person he was looking for.

The apprentice was shocked at first, then nodded and accepted the gold coins. The two went outside to a secluded spot. The apprentice looked left and right, and seeing that no one was around, he bowed to Borne and spoke.

"If I'm not mistaken, you must be Lord Borne Ioulaum, right?" the apprentice asked, though his tone was certain.

"Yes, that's me."

Borne nodded.

He probably hadn't expected Borne to admit it so readily, and for a moment, he didn't know how to respond.

Borne chuckled, "Tell me, how did you guess?"

The apprentice breathed a slight sigh of relief and said, "Let me introduce myself. My name is Lehman Yiwantuofu. You can just call me Lehman."

"Lehman, hmm."

Lehman smiled and said, "I am a third-year student at the academy. You should be able to see that I am a commoner; otherwise, you wouldn't have found me. There are thirty thousand students in this academy, the vast majority of whom are nobles like you. There are only eight thousand or so commoner students. I happen to know a bit about the famous nobles in both the lower and upper grades, just to avoid any unnecessary unpleasantness."

Although Lehman spoke very tactfully, Borne could still hear the helplessness in his words. He could sense that commoners still faced a certain degree of oppression at Giles Academy.

This was normal. As the beneficiaries, they would naturally want to maintain their class and suppress those below them. Borne was no "saint," and he wouldn't start championing a cause just because he heard a few words from Lehman.

"Although you were disguised, it is not hard to guess at this time, given the information that has been spreading like wildfire through the academy for the past few days!"

Borne pondered for a moment, then rubbed his chin, "Am I already that famous in the academy?"

"No! It's practically deafening, especially among the freshmen!"

"Heh..."

Borne raised an eyebrow and thought to himself, It seems keeping a low profile was the right move; my promotion has stimulated quite a few people!

In reality, upon entering the academy, Borne had discovered that most people were apprentices. Even the occasional professional he sensed felt much "weaker." Even without using magic, he was confident he could "take down" a few of them.

Of course, it was also possible that he was mostly seeing commoners and minor nobles, and the truly "powerful" ones wouldn't be wandering around outside!

However, being able to enter Giles Academy meant they were indeed smart; naturally, fools couldn't get in. At the same time, Borne secretly warned himself not to underestimate anyone.

Lehman was very familiar with Giles Academy, clearly not his first time showing someone around.

The Wizard Tower was the true core of the entire academy. Its existence kept the academy's magical elements in a state of long-term activity. Even for ordinary people without talent, their descendants born after living here for a long time had a high probability of possessing spellcasting talent.

For academy personnel, only the bottom three floors of the Wizard Tower were open; one needed special authorization to go higher.

Some high-ranking teachers could also have their own areas in the Wizard Tower. Besides the tower, the academy had a large number of auxiliary buildings. The library from before was just one of them; it was completely open-access and only stored basic artistic knowledge, historical materials, and biographies.

In reality, there were two other libraries. One was on the fourth floor of the Wizard Tower, storing a large amount of magic research data, which required a certain level of clearance to browse.

The other was rumored to be on the top floor—the Dean's office and private collection, which supposedly contained spells that transcended current ranks!

Lehman took Borne to see the entire academy, giving him a better understanding of the layout. It included public areas, residential zones where some ordinary people lived, and even places similar to food streets. There were teaching areas, arenas, training grounds, and the Mission Hall.

He also pointed out where the restricted areas and cultivation zones were, noting that anyone other than authorized personnel would be attacked by magical traps upon entry.

Afterward, he taught Borne how to apply for supplies, which areas to find the people he needed, and some general matters.

This guide was excellent; his introductions were concise and to the point. Even when Borne had questions, he could explain them in the shortest possible terms, ensuring Borne understood.

This was a smart person who was very good at communicating. Borne gave him double the pay, and Lehman did not decline. Perhaps it was a drop in the bucket for a noble, but for commoners like them, every copper had to be carefully calculated.

"Thank you very much for your generosity. If you have any questions later, I would be very happy to serve you again. I still have some connections regarding certain matters."

"Hmm, I believe that time will come soon."

Borne smiled.

Lehman was also stunned for a moment, then smiled slightly, performed a mage's salute, and turned to leave.

Watching Lehman's retreating back, Borne sighed inwardly. Being born was also a technical skill. If he hadn't been born into Ioulaum House, he might have needed to hustle and scheme for a living just like Lehman, perhaps even worse off, with no time to pursue the path of the extraordinary...

It seems I have to keep a low profile for a while! Borne sighed. He didn't believe the name Ioulaum could intimidate everyone. There wasn't just one vice-dean, and even Dean Concinnio couldn't do whatever he wanted in the academy, let alone a count.

Borne arrived at the logistics department and changed to a new single dormitory. This single room cost 100 gold coins per month, which really made his heart ache. However, when Borne saw the so-called single room, he felt it was worth the price: a detached three-story building with all kitchen facilities fully equipped.

Although the shared dorms were cheap, they were noisy and inconvenient for various actions. Moreover, due to his sensitive identity, every move would surely be watched by someone, which was something he didn't want.

Afterward, he applied some camouflage to himself, such as changing into an old, common-style robe, adding height-increasing insoles, and painting his face a bit so he wouldn't look too young...

In the following days, Borne slowly blended in. Under his deliberate "low profile," apart from Lehman who knew his identity, no one else noticed who Borne was. Even if someone noticed Borne, they just assumed he was some down-and-out minor noble.

Early this morning, Borne arrived at Teaching Hall No. 7. There happened to be a free public lecture this afternoon, and more than half of the classroom was already filled.

The academy's courses were fee-based, with different charges depending on the content and progress of the course. Borne was still wearing his old gray robe, and no one noticed him. He followed the flow of people inside and sat down in a seat in the middle toward the back.

Glancing around, one could tell from their clothes that most were commoners or the offspring of down-and-out nobles.

It seems free courses are still quite attractive to the majority of the commoner class.

After waiting for more than ten minutes, a middle-aged man walked in. From the hushed whispers around him, Borne learned that the man in front of him was named Rudinson, an instructor in geography and geology.

Rudinson didn't waste words and went straight to the point upon taking the stage.

"Precious gemstones are not only used to increase the beauty and function of a staff; they can also enhance its efficacy." Rudinson got straight to the point. After speaking, he took several gemstones of different colors from his pocket and placed them on the table.

"Fire opal, a bright orange-red gemstone. Fire opals usually only come in the same color or contain golden or golden-green particles. They are most commonly found near active hot springs and geyser activity. Fire opal is a necessary material for crafting the Helm of Radiance..."

Red zircon, also known as hyacinth or flame stone, is an orange-hued gemstone related to sapphire and other varieties of corundum. At the center of every red zircon, a tiny spark flickers and dances—not enough to illuminate the surroundings, but sufficient to be seen from a distance. This characteristic of the gemstone makes it a foundational material for the ornate cloaks and formal gowns worn by many nobles...

Borne sat below listening as Rudinson, up on the stage, held a few low-quality gems and lectured to himself. He paid no mind to the students below; even when some took advantage of him lowering his head to slip out, he acted as if he saw nothing.

Heh, "happy education"...

After auditing free classes for a few days and learning from the "mouths" of his fellow students, Borne had gained a rough understanding of the academy's teaching model. The teaching style at Giles Academy was quite similar to the universities in a certain country from his memories of Blue Star.

The majority of the academy consisted of Netherese people, while teachers of other races, such as halflings or half-elves, were more common.

Knowledge related to history, geography, local customs, or religion occupied the vast majority of the curriculum, and the quality of the instructors varied wildly. Swordsmanship and martial arts courses were the most popular among commoners, as the resources required for magic were far too expensive and truly unaffordable for average commoner families.

Martial arts were relatively simpler; after all, as long as one was willing to endure hardship, breaking through to become a combat professional was fairly easy. However, one thing was certain: the higher the level of the teacher, the more expensive the fees.

Among these, knowledge of the arcane side was the most expensive, and most nobles came to the academy specifically for this.

The arcane studies were diverse, with alchemy, material science, and magic theory being relatively more common, while other courses like runic incantations and potion-making were the most sought-after and, simultaneously, the rarest.

Instructors of arcane studies were at least mid-tier spellcasters, obsessed with magical research daily. Unless they ran out of money for experiments, they rarely held classes, and even when they did, the content of the lecture depended entirely on the teacher's whim.

Sometimes, when a teacher got carried away, they would jump straight from applied magic to the basics of cross-disciplinary magic application. There were even teachers who, while lecturing, would suddenly figure out a theory and dash off to the laboratory mid-class to verify it. Since a spellcaster's experiments often took ten days to half a month to conclude—sometimes even longer—the students' coursework could only resume once the teacher finished their experiment!

The library was where the vast majority of people obtained knowledge. The open library contained a massive collection of books, and while arcane knowledge wasn't entirely absent, most of it consisted of undeciphered texts or the most basic transcendental knowledge. However, relying on this information to successfully cast a spell was still far too difficult.

Another pathway was through points. With points, one could borrow arcane materials from the Wizard Tower library for self-study, or spend points to have a teacher provide explanations.

There were countless ways to spend money in the academy. Borne glanced at the courses he needed to enroll in; indeed, that one thousand gold coins was just enough, with a little left over. If he spent frugally, he could barely scrape by for a month.

Borne couldn't help but laugh bitterly; he really was being kept on a tight leash by his grandfather.

"Here."

Borne took the token from the man opposite him. It was a plaque made of an unknown material.

He channeled his mana into it, and his mental energy immediately received feedback.

1 point!

The man clearly didn't want to be recognized; he had disguised himself, altered his voice, and obscured his face. As soon as Borne confirmed there were no issues, the man turned and left immediately.

The academy did not encourage the trading of points, but it did not explicitly forbid it either, so students often conducted private transactions.

This was a commoner; clearly, nobles were rarely short on money, and this model helped a portion of the wealth flow into the hands of commoner students.

Borne had spent 100 gold coins to acquire this token. Only with this could he enter the Wizard Tower's library, and the point was merely the minimum requirement.

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