Wizards: Starting with Synthetic Gems

Chapter 253 The Brigade Witch's Thanks

The dwarf scholar Orl's expression suddenly turned serious. He looked left and right, then whispered to Locke, "Potion Master Locke, don't talk about advancement potions so loudly. This knowledge is taboo for many first-class wizard apprentices, no, even for many of us general scholars."

"That is knowledge that absolutely cannot be widely known."

"Otherwise, it will definitely have a big impact. But we have a good relationship, so I can tell you privately that you need five thousand contribution points to exchange for a bottle of advancement potion."

Locke frowned; so many contribution points were required.

The dwarf scholar Or explained in a low voice, "The academy will ask you to sign a contract when your mental strength reaches 800, and will provide you with a bottle for free."

"Believe me, the academy will never betray us in this matter. Finding ways to prohibit the dissemination of related knowledge and restricting the channels and difficulty of exchange are definitely the greatest protection the academy can offer us."

The dwarf scholar Or seemed to know the key knowledge for advancing potions, for his pupils dilated slightly, as if he had thought of something terrible. "It would be awful if that kind of thing got out into the open."

Locke glanced curiously at the dwarf scholar, Or. 'Strange, what exactly is this Advancement Potion? Why is it being kept so closely guarded? The side effects of Abyss Potions are already severe enough, but the White Wizard Association hasn't seemed to be blocking this knowledge.'

Locke nodded to Orl. "I understand. I'll be going now."

After saying goodbye to Or, Locke headed to the Witch's Kitchen. A first-line witch from the Raven's Nest Brigade had previously informed him by carrier pigeon that she would be waiting for him there and would treat him to a meal.

When Locke entered the Witch's Kitchen, Uma Gardner, a first-ring witch, immediately waved to him from the number one booth.

"Locke, you've arrived." Uma Gardner, compared to her previous miserable appearance, now seemed like a completely different person. She was dressed in a magnificent and luxurious manner, with many precious metals adorning her wizard robes and several magical rings on her hands.

The seasoners in the Witch's Kitchen treated her with great respect, much more so than when Zack brought her to dinner. There were even several dedicated seasoners who came to serve Uma Gardner.

The other guests in the witch's kitchen also became a little nervous.

After all, it's rare to see a first-level wizard dining here.

They all looked at Locke, whispering among themselves as Locke's reputation within the academy gradually grew.

The scene of him activating his innate demonic eye at the academy gate and slaughtering a large number of dark wizards was witnessed by many wizards in the academy. Many people admired his actions at the time, and the dark wizards even began to call him the "Eye Demon Wizard".

Now, everyone sees that even a first-ring witch eats with Locke on a somewhat equal footing, which makes the other first-class wizard apprentices feel that Locke seems to be the new top first-class wizard apprentice in the academy, a new generation of wizard candidates for Lilith's Hut.

Uma Gardner's gaze towards Locke was filled with a complex mix of gratitude, embarrassment, observation, and admiration.

During this time, Uma Gardner learned more about Locke and realized that Locke was a super genius.

Although she was a first-ring witch, she was still a self-taught, wild first-ring witch, not as well-educated as the well-established Lilith Cottage. In addition, Locke had saved her before, so Uma Gardner treated Locke with some sense of equality.

Of course, if Locke cannot break through to become a formal wizard for a long time, this atmosphere of equality will definitely dissipate over time, and the attitude between the two sides will gradually become the normal way of getting along between an apprentice and a formal wizard.

But that's not now.

It will take at least a few more years.

After Locke entered the private room, Uma Gardner waved her hand, and the door immediately closed.

"Locke, the tricolor salt-coated steak at this restaurant is delicious, I especially love it. It's the first time I've ever had such good food."

“I’ve never tasted anything this delicious at the Crow’s Nest Brigade.”

Although Uma Gardner was a first-ring witch, she had never lived in such a complex environment with such a division of labor. At this moment, she was enjoying the superior living conditions of Lilith Hut. In fact, she was reluctant to leave.

Even if she returned to the original base of the Karasu Brigade, she would find it difficult to adapt to that place where there was nothing and life was inconvenient. In comparison, the Chimera Market seemed to be more suitable for the current survival of the Karasu Brigade.

Locke bowed to Uma Gardner before taking his seat at the table. "Lady Uma, what brings you here?" Uma Gardner smiled and said, "Mainly to express my gratitude for saving my life."

Locke said cautiously, "Lord Uma, it was my teacher, the witch Sophia, who saved you, not me."

Sometimes, a great favor can turn into a great enmity.

Since she wasn't a formal wizard, she couldn't very well mention that she was a first-ring witch who had saved her life; it would be quite irritating to others.

Uma Gardner laughed, "Sophia has already gone to the Starfield Sea. That's a huge place, a place that a wizard like me would never dare to imagine in my entire life."

"Therefore, I want to repay you for saving my life."

"Coincidentally, our group decided to rent a shop in the Chimera Market and then live here."

Locke nodded slightly; indeed, many small and medium-sized wizarding organizations in Chimera Market relied on this for survival.

The Chimera Market has become home to numerous wizarding organizations and is no longer entirely the private property of Lilith's Cottage.

Locke continued, "Lord Uma, what kind of shop do you want to open?"

Uma Gardner pondered, "Let's open a spell shop. I've looked around, and there aren't many spell shops or a wide variety of them in Chimera Market. It's lacking in this area."

“Our group can thrive here.”

"The wizards in the guild are all from the sub-school of sorcery, wizards who create magic from shadows."

"We can sell spell rune stones and rune wood made by wizards of our spellcasting school to some wizards in the market. This will be very useful in battle, as it can be used for combat and reconnaissance..."

Uma Gardner is seriously planning the future of her tour group.

"The Brigade has an apprentice-level magic that uses conjuration spells from the Shadow Dimension to summon a ball of shadow energy and then create one or more black raven conjuration lifeforms from it. It's a pretty good conjuration spell."

"It can be used for reconnaissance. If we use [Runestone] technology to create specific spell runes, they will definitely sell very well."

Uma Gardner said, "Back to the point, I'm mainly here to thank you, Locke."

"Is there anything I can help you with? I really have to thank you last time, otherwise our brigade would have been wiped out."

Locke pondered for a moment. In fact, he had already figured out how to make good use of this favor on his way here.

The gap in status between myself and Uma Gardner is currently huge. If I don't make good use of this favor, Uma Gardner will be unhappy, and I may not be able to monetize it in the future. It's better to monetize it now, and besides, I do lack resources at the moment.

Accumulating 800 mana requires a certain amount of resources, and advancing to become a formal wizard requires another amount of resources.

I certainly don't lack the resources to accumulate 800 mana right now, but I need to start collecting the resources required to advance to a formal wizard right now. I need more and more magical resources.

Locke said, "Lord Uma, there really is one."

"Can you create self-aware, conjuration-based magic? A cat's standard intelligence is sufficient..."

"I want some runestones that can give magical plants self-awareness."

"This way, I can use them in the future to create some magical plants that have simple consciousness and can fight automatically."

(End of this chapter)