And so, he waited. And waited. Twenty minutes had passed and they’d nearly finished the entire walk, but that bastard was still acting like a corpse—head down, hands behind his back, ambling along at his own pace. All the while, he wore this look of deep contemplation. Damn it, what could you possibly be pondering? You’re just a mage apprentice—what, are you suddenly going to solve some profound mystery?
Raymond kept waiting, but his patience was wearing thin. He must've cursed that bastard a hundred times in his heart. Can't you stop pretending and come ask me for advice already? Can't you see how hard I'm trying to make myself available here? If you keep dawdling, we'll reach the Gilded Rose soon—there won’t be any onlookers, and what’s the point of mocking you if no one’s around to see it?
No, I need to come up with a way to give him a hint...
“By the way, Young Master Merlin, did your teacher ever tell you which formulas you should master before attempting to form your Mana Vortex?” Raymond felt rather pleased with himself after asking—what a perfect hint, both subtly guiding him and showing off a bit of superiority. I get to look helpful and condescending at the same time.
Then, Raymond waited some more...
Raymond glanced back. The guy beside him still had his head down, hands behind his back, wearing that same thoughtful expression.
Damn it, this is getting ridiculous!
Raymond’s veins were practically bulging on his forehead. I’m a proper mage, and I’m the one starting a conversation with a mere mage apprentice—if you’re not at least a little flattered, fine, but ignoring me? Are you trying to get yourself killed?
“Hey, Young Master Merlin!” Raymond had to bite back the urge to curse out loud; refusing to give up, he raised his voice and called again.
“Hm? What is it?” Leon finally snapped out of his thoughts, looking a bit lost at first, then quickly catching on. “Oh, you mean the formulas you need before forming a Mana Vortex? That’s easy. The Norsen Formula is used to construct the initial shape of the Mana Vortex, the Kidd Formula calculates the flow of mana, and if you can, it’s best to master the Figaro Formula too. That way, when you’re building the Mana Vortex, you’ll save a lot of mana.”
After saying that, Leon shot Raymond a strange look. “Isn’t this just basic knowledge for mage apprentices?”
“I…” Raymond nearly lost his composure. What the hell was that supposed to mean? Are you saying I, a proper mage, need to ask you about things even a mage apprentice should know?
No way, I have to come up with another way to properly humiliate this bastard!
Raymond was gnashing his teeth at the thought, but before he could figure out a new plan, they’d already arrived at the Gilded Rose…
The Gilded Rose was located on Triumph Avenue—the most bustling stretch in Seaview City, packed with people and the priciest goods. Only a company as powerful as the Goldspark Trading Company could, on a whim from Roger Merlin, set up the Gilded Rose on such coveted real estate.
But as the Goldspark Trading Company declined, the Gilded Rose—once the talk of half of Seaview City when it opened—had become just as deserted. The city’s top three alchemists had long since left, taking with them a trove of expensive alchemical goods. Their excuse? Goldspark Trading Company couldn’t pay their salaries, so they took the goods as compensation.
In reality, the value of those alchemical goods was at least ten times what they were owed.
But what could Goldspark Trading Company do? They really couldn’t pay. If they couldn’t even settle Felix’s eight-thousand-gold debt, there was no way they could afford the tens of thousands owed to alchemists.
Then the staff started leaving, one after another—some took this, some took that. The Gilded Rose, once flush with gold, was now nothing but an empty shell. Honestly, if Perry hadn’t sensed trouble and rushed to lock up the warehouse, even the cheap magic materials left inside would’ve been carted off by someone.
When Leon pushed open the door and stepped into the Gilded Rose, there was nothing left to see. The shelves that used to be packed with goods were now bare—so empty that even a fly would sneer in disgust. The floor was covered in dust, and the air reeked of mildew.
“This is just too much…” Raymond shook his head and sighed as soon as he stepped inside, his face full of regret.
But inside, he was secretly delighted. Disappointed, aren't you? Shocked, right? Still think you're that pampered young master? Still think this is the thriving Gilded Rose of old? Give me a break—the Goldspark Trading Company is finished, the Gilded Rose is gone, and now you’re just a ninth-level mage apprentice, stuck at that rank for years!
Raymond was ready. The moment that bastard showed disappointment, he’d let loose and mock him thoroughly.
But after a while, Raymond realized something was off. That bastard walked in and didn’t react at all—no shock, no disappointment. He didn’t even respond to Raymond’s dramatic sighs. It was like he hadn’t seen anything, just walked straight through the empty hall toward the back door of the Gilded Rose.
“Hey…” Raymond opened his mouth, wanting to make one last effort, but quickly gave up—the guy was moving too fast. By the time Raymond reacted, all he could see was the guy’s back.
Damn it, just wait till I get my chance—you’ll be sorry. Raymond cursed quietly, gripping his wand and hurrying after him, looking thoroughly disgruntled.
Out the back door, a left turn, and across a short street—that’s where the Gilded Rose’s warehouse was.
By the time Raymond caught up, Leon had already unlocked the warehouse door and was standing in front of the rows of cheap magic materials, staring blankly.
“You know, you ran pretty fast…” Raymond had meant to complain when he walked in, but seeing Leon’s expression, he swallowed his words. There was no point in complaining—he was too busy enjoying Leon’s misfortune to bother.
This chapter isn’t over yet~.~ Click next page to continue reading the rest!
Seeing that bastard looking so dazed, Raymond felt absolutely elated—finally disappointed, huh? Shocked now? Just look at all these cheap magic materials; together, they’re probably not worth a thousand gold coins. Planning to pay off your debt with this stuff? What, do you think your fat uncle is running a charity?
Raymond had to work really, really hard to keep himself from bursting out in schadenfreude.
But Raymond would never have guessed that the dazed guy was actually thinking the exact same thing…
Leon, too, had to work really, really hard not to laugh out loud.
Thanks to the memories left by Matthew Merlin, Leon already knew this was an era overflowing with resources—but he’d never imagined things were this outrageously abundant. Just look at the piles of magic materials on the floor…
Forget everything else—just the scarlet coral alone filled three whole crates. What did that mean? In the apocalypse, a handful would be enough to spark a riot in the dead city of Heather. And then there’s that full sack of moonlight sand; you could dig in the desert for centuries and never find this much.
Wait a minute, what’s that over there…
It took effort to tear his gaze away from the moonlight sand, but soon Leon was drawn to a glimmer of light.
Could that be… magisteel, the stuff of legends?
Leon instinctively swallowed, his eyes locked onto the faint glow in the corner of the warehouse. Dark, deep, and pulsing with powerful magic—what else could it be but magisteel?
This was Leon’s first time seeing real magisteel. In the post-apocalyptic world, this rare magical metal simply didn’t exist. Thousands of years before Leon’s rebirth, the last piece of magic metal in Northend had already been mined. From then on, people could only read about magical metals in books…
Every magical metal is a gift from the earth, each one born with unique magical properties. With a little work, they can be turned into powerful alchemical items. And if you find a truly skilled alchemist, you might even create a magic artifact. Take the great tower in the center of Heather City, for example—it’s the greatest magic artifact in Northend’s history. It held back the end of the world for ten thousand years, delaying the apocalypse itself. That kind of power is beyond miraculous.
After circling the warehouse, Leon couldn’t help but want to curse. This really was an era so overflowing with resources it was almost criminal—magisteel dumped in a corner, scarlet coral packed in three crates, moonlight sand in whole sacks. And they all shared the same name: cheap magic materials…
It’s too extravagant, too wasteful!
Leon had to swallow hard several times before forcing himself to look away from all those tempting treasures. He felt like a starving man suddenly faced with a feast—just not throwing himself at it was already impressive. Still, even with that restraint, Leon stood there dazed for quite a while before he finally snapped out of his shock.
Then Leon got to work. He emptied all three crates of scarlet coral, then the entire sack of moonlight sand. Of course, he didn’t forget the magisteel pieces abandoned in the corner. Four or five trips later, Leon had hauled everything into the Gilded Rose’s alchemy lab.
Raymond was stunned just watching. What on earth had gotten into Young Master Merlin—had he finally snapped? Was he suffering some kind of breakdown from all the disappointment?
Didn’t he realize that after all those sweaty trips, the stuff he’d hauled out wasn’t even worth five hundred gold coins? Forget paying off Felix’s debt—he’d barely be able to help two families in trouble. Sure, three crates of scarlet coral and a whole sack of moonlight sand looked impressive, but these were the most common magic materials in Northend. Toss a few coins and you could buy a pile. Those magisteel pieces were worth something, but without an alchemist, what was Matthew Merlin going to do—chew them into magic items?
That’s it, he’s definitely lost his mind.
Raymond felt a headache coming on. It was one thing for that bastard to lose his mind, but did he have to drag me down with him? My old man’s worked for the Merlin family for decades—he practically treats that bastard like a son. If he finds out I took him out and he lost his mind, my life’s going to be hell.
Seriously, I’m completely innocent here…
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After yesterday’s update, people complained that the chapters were posted too close together, which hurt the click rate. As a diligent, early-rising author who listens to feedback, I posted a new chapter at six in the morning. So, how about it—doesn’t this perfect, shocking timing deserve a vote?