At the reception, the apprentice behind the window asked, “Are you sure you want to take this task?”
Ivan nodded, “Is there any problem? I’m one of the new apprentices in the Enchantment Group, I’ve only been at school for two months, but I can make disposable runes.” He was puzzled by the attitude of several people, wishing they would just clarify any issues.
The apprentice glanced at the other two people, “This—-doesn’t seem to be a problem.”
The other two, one nodding and the other shaking their head, both appeared hesitant and clearly up to something.
Ivan turned back and glanced at the membrane of light, remembering something Gina had said, and suddenly understood a bit.
Just then, an apprentice in a frost-blue robe entered through the door, his eyes brightening upon seeing the people inside, “Ivan, you’re here too.”
“Carmel, long time no see.” Ivan was even more certain of his guess now, but his expression did not change much, “I’m short on credits recently, and just happened to see there’s an enchantment task here, so I came.”
“That’s great, I thought I was the only newcomer here,” Carmel muttered, his depression clearing up, as he quickly approached, “Shall we team up?”
“No problem.”
Ivan certainly wouldn’t refuse.
Carmel leaned out the window to the inside, “Hurry up, we want to take task number 11, oh, and this is my recently completed work. Ivan, yours? Let them check it out, I can hardly wait to get started.”
He turned his head and reminded him.
Ivan handed over his disposable rune that he had made.
“Everything’s alright, I’ll take you inside the workshop.” The apprentice inside handled their task assignment with surprisingly swift efficiency, quickly completing the verification and stepped out to lead them deeper into the workshop.
It seemed this task was indeed specially prepared for Carmel, only complicated by his own interference.
Ivan couldn’t quite articulate the taste in his mouth, he wouldn’t complain about the unfairness due to his lack of leverage.
The concentration of energy particles inside the enchantment workshop was higher than outside, the lights bright, revealing small rooms divided into individual units with various patterns and concealed rune lines on the walls.
The apprentice led them to a small workroom not far from the entrance, gave them several instructions, then left for other rooms to fetch raw materials.
“Ivan, weren’t you in apothecary?” Carmel asked curiously.
“You forgot, I switched to the Enchantment Group.” Ivan replied casually as he surveyed his surroundings, “In terms of study, I have a bit of talent, I just learned how to make disposable runes not long ago.”
“You’re really impressive, getting into enchantment so quickly.”
“You too.”
“It’s not the same.”
Carmel gently shook his head, he grew up among runes, his familiarity with enchantment, born from constant exposure, set him apart; knowing well the difficulty of mastering disposable runes in two months, he saw Ivan beyond any doubt as an enchantment prodigy.
The apprentice returned to the workroom with several boxes, handing over the three essentials for enchantments to each: a rune brush, elements ink, and rune scrolls.
He detailed the tasks requirements and rewards, the failure rate had to be below twenty percent, the reward being one credit for fifteen disposable runes completed, the task duration being one month, after which he left the space to them.
“Ivan, you’re earning credits to buy Bubbling Potion, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Me too, Bubbling Potion needs 100 credits, how about we see who ends up with more credits at the end of the task?”
Both men skillfully arranged their tools and raw materials, just as they were about to begin, Carmel suddenly issued an enthusiastic challenge.
This sounded somewhat familiar. Ivan had no interest in such meaningless contests and was thinking about refusing when Carmel’s next words piqued his interest.
“If you win, I’ll give you a set of blueprints for a low-level defensive magicalized item,”
Ivan looked at him in surprise. Unlike disposable runes, the creation of magicalized items required professional blueprints. A set of blueprints could cost as little as four or five magic stones or as much as thousands, especially for defensive magicalized items.
“If you lose, just give me some potions. It’s just a casual contest. We don’t have to take it too seriously,” Carmel thought he was concerned about the stakes and quickly added, eyeing him eagerly, “Come on, it’s just for fun.”
“Since you’re interested, I’ll oblige,” seeing his hopeful expression, Ivan thought for a moment and didn’t refuse.
“Alright, I’ll count down from three, and we start!”
Although Carmel said it was a casual contest, once he saw Ivan agree, his expression immediately turned solemn and serious, making it hard to believe his previous casual remark.
Like Apothary Skill, Enchantment is one of the main skills of a sorcerer, and neither is considered superior to the other.
A widely applied skill inevitably gives rise to many schools. Both being novice enchanters, Carmel’s writing was more fluid and deft, and his pen tip naturally exuded a unique rhythm.
In contrast, Ivan was more reserved and cautious, and his rune lines were meticulous and precise.
Soon, Carmel had finished making three disposable rune scrolls in one go and glanced over, seeing that Ivan had not yet finished his second scroll, and his spirits lifted.
Time flowed unsuspectingly, as both were immersed in creating disposable runes, and before they knew it, a day had passed.
The two looked at each other’s finished products without planning.
“65 scrolls.”
“42 scrolls.”
The former was Carmel’s, the latter was Ivan’s.
Carmel’s eye corners bore a smirk, unable to hide his emotions. Defeating Ivan, a talented enchanter he recognized, filled him with a sense of achievement.
Ivan’s eyes flickered, equally satisfied with the outcome.
[Enchantment Skill Experience Points +4]
[Enchantment Skill: lv3 (5/300)]
[Runes Skill Experience Points +2]
[Runes Skill: Lv3 (239/300)]
Over the course of the day, his Runes Skill experience points rose by several dozen, and his Enchantment Skill advanced directly to level 3, earning him a Small Light of Wisdom and a Light of Wisdom.
Such rapid growth in just one day left him extremely satisfied; the enchantment workshop seemed like a treasure trove designed for accruing experience points.
Leaving the workshop, they handed over their products to an apprentice at the workshop window and left the enchantment workshop together as the skies began to darken outside. Your next chapter awaits on empire
Seeing his sudden change in expression, Carmel said awkwardly, “Ivan, you’re already a great enchanter. Don’t get discouraged. I just had more exposure since I was young and had my sister to push me.”
Ivan laughed, “I know. And don’t be careless, or you might find yourself overtaken by me. I wouldn’t know how to console you then.”
“How could I lose…”
At this moment, his expression truly seemed sincere. Carmel felt slightly reassured, about to argue a few more words when a figure appeared in his view and seeing the person, Carmel’s face darkened.
Ivan followed his gaze and saw a male apprentice from the academy, a tall and burly man, approaching them quickly.