Mentor Eve

After reflecting on himself, Li Ang began examining the two potions he had brewed. The first was a standard pale gold, giving off a gentle fragrance. Extremely faint specks of magical light drifted slowly within the liquid. According to the book, this was a standard, qualified Calming Potion.

But the second bottle... Li Ang's pupils widened slightly.

This potion was a deeper, purer color, almost pure gold. Its fragrance was richer as well, and there were far more specks of magical light floating within it than in the previous bottle.

According to Fundamentals of Potioncraft, this was the mark of a potion reaching excellent quality.

The pure water created by Water Creation Spell... coupled with the stability of the Lv1 cauldron, the two combined had allowed Li Ang, a novice, to brew an excellent-quality potion on his very first attempt.

Without the slightest hesitation, he picked up the two potions and strode out of the dormitory, heading for the supply distribution office.

When he stepped once more into the distribution office, thick with the dry scent of medicinal herbs, Old Mori was still bent over his thick ledger.

"Wizard Mori," Li Ang called calmly.

Old Mori did not even raise his head, replying vaguely, "Hm? New kid, didn't collect everything?"

"No. I came to submit the results of my potion brewing."

Li Ang gently placed the two bottles on the table before Old Mori.

"Submit results?"

Old Mori finally looked up. He pushed up his slipping reading glasses, his cloudy gaze carrying a trace of confusion as it swept over the crystal bottles on the table.

The instant he clearly saw that golden potion, his entire body froze as though someone had pressed a pause button.

"This... this is..." After a brief moment of stiffness, he snatched up the golden potion, moving so quickly he scarcely seemed like an old man.

He held the bottle before his eyes and, using the magical lamp embedded in the distribution office wall, carefully examined the swirling specks of magical light within through his lenses.

"An excellent-quality Calming Potion! You brewed this?"

He cried out in disbelief.

"Impossible. How long have you had the materials? Half a day? Not even half a day!"

He abruptly lifted his head. His gaze was no longer cloudy as he scrutinized Li Ang's face with piercing eyes, as though trying to see through his skin and uncover the secret hidden in his mind.

"Kid, have you studied potioncraft before? Or do you come from some wizarding family? But I've never heard the name Carlson before."

"The basic herb packs distributed to everyone simply couldn't support the brewing of a potion of this quality."

Meeting Old Mori's scrutinizing gaze, Li Ang answered openly,

"Wizard Mori, this truly is my first time coming into contact with potion brewing, and I do not come from any wizarding family. The materials were naturally the ones you gave me."

"As for this bottle of potion, perhaps it was because I used the pure water condensed by Water Creation Spell," Li Ang answered truthfully.

The cauldron's binding upgrade, however, was a secret that could never be mentioned.

"Elemental Purified Water?"

Old Mori froze for a moment, then suddenly understood. Water-element affinity... Water Creation Spell... within the Potion School, the two most compatible attributes were fire and water.

He lowered his head again and looked at the golden potion in his hand, muttering to himself,

"Two sets of materials... both succeeded. One qualified, one excellent. Half a day... no foundation at all..."

He suddenly raised his head. The way he looked at Li Ang had completely changed. Astonishing light burst from those old, cloudy eyes, as though he had discovered a priceless treasure.

"Good, good, good!"

Old Mori said "good" three times in a row, so excited that even the wrinkles on his face trembled.

"Good boy, you are the most talented apprentice I have seen in nearly ten years—no, nearly twenty years."

He carefully placed the excellent-quality Calming Potion into a box, as though it were a work of art.

Then he took a deep breath, trying to calm his overly excited emotions, though the fervor in his eyes did not diminish in the slightest.

"Li Ang Carlson," Old Mori said, his voice more solemn than ever before.

"I will immediately submit this excellent Calming Potion of yours to Mentor Eve. As for the other bottle... you may choose to consume it yourself, or exchange it here for school contributions or more practical coin."

He paused, then continued, "If you do not have much money on you, I would recommend choosing coin."

Li Ang still had some money his family had given him, but Kavi had taken it all after he boarded the ship. Now, he only had the sixty copper coins he had just received.

So he accepted Old Mori's suggestion and exchanged it for coin. One qualified Calming Potion earned him a gleaming silver coin.

One silver coin was worth one hundred copper coins. This single bottle of potion had sold for almost the equivalent of two months of his monthly allowance.

After Li Ang left with the money, Old Mori adjusted his glasses and muttered to himself,

"The Potion School has been silent for far too long. But perhaps this boy's arrival will make the Potion School great once more."

With that, he picked up the small box containing the Calming Potion, locked the distribution office's heavy wooden door ahead of schedule, and hurried off with faster steps than usual. His figure soon vanished into the depths of the corridor. Clearly, he was in a rush to find Wizard Eve.

Li Ang slipped the silver coin into his pocket, and the hunger in his belly became clearer.

Following the general direction Ellie had pointed out earlier, he found the cafeteria on the first floor of the school.

The dining hall was rather spacious, with rough black-stone tables and benches arranged neatly throughout. It was mealtime, and the noisy chatter of people mingled with the smell of food.

All sorts of scents mingled in the air: the fragrant grease of fried and grilled food, along with the burnt smell of scorched bread.

A wooden sign hung on one wall, listing the three meal sets available today and their prices in white paint:

[Simple Meal]: One piece of brown bread, one cup of water — 1 copper coin
[Standard]: One piece of white bread, one serving of pan-fried tender chicken steak, one cup of water — 5 copper coins
[Selected]: One serving of pasta stewed with meat sauce, one pan-fried veal steak, one cup of low-alcohol fruit wine — 10 copper coins

Li Ang's gaze swept across the price board, and his heart suddenly sank. Prices here were far higher than in Carter Village, the original owner's hometown. In Carter Village, one copper coin could buy nearly five pieces of brown bread.

He instantly understood why Old Mori had advised him to exchange it for money. Even if he ate only the cheapest simple meal for every meal, he would need ninety copper coins a month. His monthly allowance of sixty copper coins was nowhere near enough.

Not to mention buying other daily necessities or wizarding supplies. The wizard's path had been filled with the cruelty of reality from the very beginning.

He was already a formal apprentice, yet even with sixty copper coins, he felt it was nowhere near enough. Those reserve apprentices only had thirty copper coins. Did that mean they could only eat one piece of brown bread a day?

On the ship, they had at least received three free pieces of brown bread a day. How had things gotten worse after arriving at the Wizard Tower?

He squeezed the cool silver coin and his original sixty copper coins in his pocket. A fierce battle unfolded in his heart. Reason told him to order the cheapest meal set and save the rest of the money for other needs.

But desire urged him to order the most expensive set. A fragrant steak paired with chilled fruit wine—just thinking about it made his mouth water.