Arrival

Holding the scroll Mentor Lilian had given him, Green eagerly returned to his room. He opened the door and sat cross-legged on the bed.

He took the scroll from his robes. It was earthy yellow and cylindrical, wrapped in parchment with emerald-green gems set into both ends. Green could clearly sense energy radiation coming from the green gems.

Following Mentor Lilian's instructions, Green closed his eyes and slowly released his mental force, guiding it deep into the scroll.

What a peculiar perspective. Within the scroll, Green felt as though he were reading an e-book.

"Chip, scan the contents. Record them, then instill them into me."

[Recording in progress]

After using the Chip to rapidly instill the knowledge into his brain, Green immediately realized that the scroll Mentor Lilian had given him contained some extra material. Besides the basic knowledge of potion-making, it included many of her own insights and practical tricks for brewing potions. Clearly, as the only apprentice the Extreme School had accepted in recent years, Green had received special favor from Mentor Lilian.

Only after going through all the knowledge did Green understand why Mentor Lilian had been so shocked by the Life Potion he had made!

According to the introduction at the start of the scroll, potion-making, wizard array studies, and wizard artifact crafting were known as the three great money pits of the wizarding world. Those who entered these fields would generally end up choosing to study other subordinate professions. Potion-making was the most extreme of all. Because the raw effects of medicinal ingredients differed, there would be subtle variations every time a potion was brewed. These differences could only be noticed through accumulated experience, causing the cost of training a potion-maker to rise geometrically.

Even a skilled potion-maker had only around a fifty percent success rate when brewing potions they knew very well. More often, a potion-maker's success rate was around thirty percent. If they were brewing a new potion, they would be thanking the heavens for a five percent success rate. More often than not, they would fail dozens of times in a row. For advanced and special potions, the success rate was even lower.

Potion-making was entirely a profession built upon enormous quantities of resources. Every brewing attempt required a potion-maker's mental force fluctuations to align perfectly, extreme fine-tuning of elemental energy, control over the trace elements in ingredients, and constant monitoring of changes in medicinal properties and external energy. As a result, advanced potion-makers were exceedingly rare, and advanced potions were almost impossible to obtain.

The experience required of potion-makers was so abstract that it was difficult even to teach. Everyone's perceptive abilities differed, and the gap in talent between wizards was immense. Even hands-on instruction was extraordinarily difficult. This was why potions were so expensive in the wizarding world.

Of course, high difficulty and high risk also meant high rewards. A single advanced potion could even allow a wizard to break through their current stage. Every bottle of advanced potion could trigger a bloody struggle. Even low-grade potions cost more than a dozen Magic Stones in the wizarding world.

Thinking of Magic Stones gave Green a headache. Among wizards, currency was no longer something like gold coins, but Magic Stones mined from underground veins. These Magic Stones emitted a peculiar kind of radiation energy and could serve as energy sources, provide power, or be used as experimental materials. Magic Stones were aggregates of elemental energy, the ultimate hard currency, and had always served as the currency among wizards.

"But if I can learn potion-making and master potion formulas, Magic Stones won't be a problem for me. With the Chip, I can perform incredibly precise operations. Combined with its simulation function, as long as I eliminate outside interference as much as possible while brewing, my success rate should be very high." A faint smile returned to Green's face.

"Even if that doesn't work, I can use the old method to make Life Potions—no, they should be called Lesser Life Potions—and solve my Magic Stone problem that way." Green's heart settled, and he devoted himself fully to potion-making.

Over the following days, aside from eating, washing up, and occasionally going onto the deck to bask in the sun, Green spent nearly all his time in his room studying potion-making and meditating. No one saw much of him otherwise. Yet whenever he appeared on deck, he caused a small stir. Still, everyone only dared to watch him from afar; no fool came looking for trouble.

Green was happy with that arrangement. It was perfect as long as no one disturbed him. Once on the deck, he saw Robert. His left arm was wrapped in a thick cast, while his right hand held an iron hook he had obtained from somewhere. However, after Green's beating, Robert had matured greatly. He no longer carried himself as though heaven came first, earth came second, and he came third. His gaze was calm. When he encountered Green, he even bowed to apologize. It was not an apology forced out of him by strength, but one that seemed heartfelt. Green could even sense gratitude in his tone.

Time passed without notice.

During his time aboard the ship, Green had already completely mastered all the contents of basic potion-making. However, he did not show it. He planned to wait until they reached the academy before seeking Mentor Lilian's guidance. Green knew he could act like a genius, but being too much of a genius could invite trouble.

Bang!!! A slight tremor ran through the ship, the sensation that only came when it docked.

"Pale Woods is here! All White House Academy apprentices, pay attention! Bring your belongings and prepare to disembark!" Bru's voice echoed throughout the ship and reached every apprentice's ears.

"Have we finally arrived?" Green packed up his belongings and left the room where he had spent the past three months.

"Ante, Robert, Gala, you three count the people!" Bru stood on the deck, holding a massive staff as he spoke to the leaders of the three factions.

"Yes, Lord Bru." The three nodded and began counting heads.

Over the past three months, the apprentice factions aboard the ship had constantly shifted, eventually forming three major groups: Ante's Three-Eye Alliance, Robert's Guardians Alliance, and Gala's Marauders Alliance.

The Three-Eye Alliance and the Marauders Alliance were hostile to one another, while the Guardians Alliance had been organized by Robert. Its main members were those unwilling to join either of the two alliances and become caught up in their conflicts.

The academy was willing to see this sort of competition and naturally would not stop it. Although the White Wizard Organization did not advocate cruel competition, it still supported healthy competition to a certain degree.

After the count was complete, Bru led the group down from the deck. Green was among them. Lilian had already left, telling Green to follow Bru through the new student registration procedures before going to find her.