Magic Artifact Crafting District

Two hours later.

A microscope with lenses crafted by Lohr and all other components made by Kateya was assembled.

Lohr pinched off a leftover piece of vegetable leaf, brought it before the microscope, made a few minor adjustments, then turned and pointed at the eyepiece above it.

"Kateya, come take a look at the results. Just look down through here."

"Alright." Kateya stepped forward and placed her eye to the eyepiece, looking downward.

"What are these bugs?"

With just one glance, Kateya spotted tiny worms wriggling among the veins of the leaf, along with several irregular spheres.

"These are colonies of bacteria," Lohr explained. "Normally, we can't see them with the naked eye, but under a microscope, they're all plainly visible."

"I happened to find a few lenses while wandering by the seaside. On a whim, I stacked them together and discovered this fascinating phenomenon."

"Ever since coming to the Wizard Tower, I'd been wondering whether there was a spell with a similar effect. Unfortunately, I couldn't find one in the Central Archive."

Without batting an eye, he had fabricated a reason for inventing the thing.

"How amazing."

Kateya exclaimed in wonder, then seemed to recall something. Her expression shifted slightly.

"Wait, Lord Lohr, the other food we usually eat..."

"You caught on quickly. This stuff is on practically every kind of food." Lohr smiled. "But there's no need to worry. Once it's eaten, it all turns into eggs... ah, it turns into substances that sustain our lives."

This time, Kateya did not feel pleased by Lohr's praise. Instead, her stomach churned a little.

She wasn't one of those freakish Bloodline Wizards who dared to eat anything, raw or otherwise.

"Kateya, do you think we could contribute this thing to the Wizard Tower and earn some Contribution Points?" Lohr continued, failing to notice her discomfort.

There were actually two purposes behind his question.

On the surface, he simply wanted to see whether he could get some Contribution Points out of it.

But secretly, he also wanted to prevent certain muddleheaded First-Circle Wizards from turning their attention toward him.

The precision of an apprentice-level Microscope Spell could at most help wizards optimize spells more accurately and save them some time.

It could not reach any deeper level at all, let alone touch the strings. That was utter nonsense.

So, with the protection of a Second-Circle Wizard mentor, taking a few precautions was enough. There was no need to be overly cautious.

"We'll need to take it to the Magic Artifact Crafting District for an evaluation. If nothing unexpected happens, it should earn some Contribution Points."

Kateya suppressed the discomfort in her stomach as she explained, then suddenly realized something and hurriedly asked,

"Lord Lohr, do you intend to turn this thing into a spell model and place it in your Sea of Consciousness?"

"Mm." Lohr nodded and asked in return, "If I complete this spell, I should be able to obtain a personal laboratory, right?"

"Of course!"

Kateya replied with certainty, "If this spell model is completed, it will absolutely help the wizard lords optimize their models. Receiving a personal laboratory would be completely justified!"

"Alright, then let's make a trip to the Magic Artifact Crafting District. When we get back, we'll build this spell model together, my assistant." Lohr smiled as he extended the invitation.

If the microscope had not been tied to another purpose, he would have preferred to simply send Kateya off to handle the matter herself.

Finishing the Microscope Spell Model as quickly as possible was his most urgent priority now.

"Alright, Lord Lohr." Kateya nodded repeatedly.

At that moment, she was bursting with excitement and had long since forgotten the discomfort she had felt upon hearing that food was full of bugs.

She had imagined becoming Lohr's laboratory assistant someday, but she had never expected that day to come so quickly.

More than ten minutes later, Kateya led Lohr to the Magic Artifact Crafting District.

The Magic Artifact Crafting District was a complex of buildings spanning roughly two li. Unlike the quiet Spell Model Optimization Testing District, it was rather lively.

One First-Level Wizard Apprentice after another from the Earth-Fire School entered carrying strange and unusual objects, then emerged empty-handed.

Their faces could not hide their exhaustion, yet they also showed traces of joy.

"These apprentices usually take on Magic Item crafting commissions to earn Contribution Points, then exchange them for magic stones and spiritual power Potions to speed up their spiritual power training."

Seeing Lohr's gaze linger on the apprentices, Kateya immediately explained,

"But most tasks offer very few Contribution Points. It generally takes ten days just to scrape together one Contribution Point."

"But they have no choice but to take on tasks. Their meditation talent is poor, and their innate spiritual power is weak. Training normally is far too slow; they would almost never reach Third-Level Apprentice in their entire lives."

"Second-Level and Third-Level Apprentices with even a little combat ability would rather go out to defend towns, facing Temple Knights and mutated beasts head-on, than do this kind of drudge work."

Lohr merely nodded in silence without offering any opinion.

There was nothing new under the sun. Had he not raised his aptitude to Fifth-Level Meditation Talent through the Game Panel, he would have been no different from these apprentices during the beginning.

Some apprentices who could not endure such hardship would register at laboratories and voluntarily offer up their spell slots in exchange for a sum of Contribution Points to improve their spiritual power.

This was one source of experimental materials for wizards. And compared to Bloodline Wizards, Elemental Wizards were already quite gentle.

Seeing that Lohr was not particularly interested, Kateya said no more and led him into the entrance of the Magic Artifact Crafting District.

When the surrounding First-Level Apprentices noticed the Third-Level Apprentice insignia on Kateya's collar, they immediately stepped aside to clear a path, while secretly studying Lohr behind her with curious looks.

These people don't think I'm living off a woman, do they?

Feeling the gazes directed at him, Lohr grumbled inwardly.

Still, he did not take it too seriously. Time would prove everything.

After following Kateya for another five minutes or so and turning several corners, the two arrived at a room with only three or four people waiting in line.

Kateya glanced at the people ahead and saw that the highest among them was only a Second-Level Apprentice. She immediately said, "Make way, everyone."

The few First-Level and Second-Level Apprentices, along with the Third-Level female apprentice seated behind the desk handling registrations, all looked back.

Upon seeing Kateya, everyone—including the Second-Level Apprentice who was in the middle of registering a creation—moved aside with the items in their hands and cleared the way.

The red-haired female apprentice handling the registrations smiled. "Kateya, I heard from Lus that you've latched onto some super genius?"

"His mouth is still as loose as ever."

Kateya shook her head helplessly and emphasized,

"Tia, I merely became Lord Lohr's assistant. Saying I latched onto him is going too far."

After observing him over the past two days, she had gained a general understanding of Lohr's personality.

This man could be said to devote himself wholeheartedly to spells, with not the slightest interest in matters between men and women.

Therefore, she would never acknowledge such rumors that might provoke Lohr's displeasure.

"Is this Lord Lohr?" Tia shifted her gaze to Lohr at her side and smiled. "As expected of a genius—even his looks are so handsome."

"You flatter me." Lohr shook his head slightly, truly unable to understand what being handsome had to do with being a genius.

Without trying to make sense of the female apprentice's train of thought, he stepped forward, placed the microscope on the table, and said,

"I happened to create this device. It can reveal extremely tiny things on objects. Take a look and see how many Contribution Points it's worth."