Chapter 20: Bernie and the Fifth Magic Workshop

Chapter 20: Bernie and the Fifth Magic Workshop

"William, why are you so slow to arrive?"

Upon hearing the voice, William immediately knew who it was.

Out of the workshop's open door stepped a handsome young man with a mild expression, his brown, slightly curly hair framing his face.

"Long time no see, Bernie. Had some things to deal with on the way, just resolved them," William shrugged.

"Who dared to bother you?" Bernie frowned, puzzled. In his view, William, being so low-key and holding a noble title, why would anyone be so foolish?

"It's nothing, but since you're here waiting for me, does that mean the invitation I received is related to you?" William didn't mention Camus and the others, waiting to see their next move.

Seeing William's reluctance to talk, Bernie didn't press further, just keeping it in mind.

"Guessed it?" Bernie smiled. "I've been studying under Master Dahr lately, and he finally managed to secure the usage rights for the Fifth Magic Workshop of the academy. They needed someone, so I mentioned it to him."

Bernie made it sound easy, but the opportunity to study at the Fifth Magic Workshop was extremely rare, especially for ordinary students. It might be their only chance to access top-tier magic instruction.

Ranked among the top five in the Fis Royal Academy of Magic, the Fifth Magic Workshop was, in a sense, among the top five in the entire kingdom. Just knowing that the Royal Mage Corps usually stationed at the academy, led by the legendary mage "Flames of Judgment" Franz Stefins, showed how strong the academy was.

So Bernie did indeed secure a precious opportunity for himself, but William wasn't too sentimental about it. While it might be very valuable to others, it wasn't such a big deal for Bernie.

If Camus, who had previously caused trouble for him, ranked in the top ten among his peers, then Bernie was a genius who ranked in the top three among all students in the academy over the past ten years.

As the proud disciple of the runemaster Josef Dahr, Bernie had long since advanced to become an intermediate mage. His talent in runecraft had amazed everyone, and at a young age, he had already become an intermediate runemaster.

Despite being born into a commoner family, Bernie showed no self-pity or envy towards others upon entering the academy. Instead, he achieved promotion and progress through his own efforts, all the way to where he was now.

What puzzled others in the academy was the close relationship between Bernie Bevan, a commoner, Morra Carl, the second son of the Golden Vine Flower Guild, and William Cain, a viscount with a royal title. From the time they entered the academy, the three of them had become like long-lost brothers reunited, their bond unbreakable.

If it weren't for Morra's desire to pursue business rather than continue studying magic, Bernie probably would have fought for him to have a chance to study at the Fifth Magic Workshop too.

William was naturally the same. In his memory, he had provided Bernie with various precious resources in the past, and even Bernie could freely enter and use his underground laboratory, which was off-limits to outsiders.

So naturally, William wouldn't say any words of thanks this time either.

"Where's Master Dahr?" William followed Bernie into the magic workshop, and the walls closed behind him, making it impossible to tell that this was the entrance and exit of the workshop.

"After all, the Fifth Magic Workshop has just been secured by the master, and there's a lot of preparation work to be done," Bernie pointed to the various large and small boxes placed around the walls nearby.

"The master has just finished debugging the workshop's magic intelligent life form. I reckon he's now applying for various resources from the academy."

"Oh right." Bernie's magic light flashed, and a slightly cold female voice sounded.

"Mr. Bernie, is there anything I can assist you with?"

"This is William Cain. He's a new assistant. Record his information."

"Yes, Mr. Bernie." With the voice gone, a white light scanned William's entire body from an unknown location.

"Personnel information recorded. Welcome, Mr. William. You have level-three access to the Fifth Magic Workshop."

"In my previous life, although William had encountered many magical intelligent beings in the game, this is still the first time in this world, and it's quite intriguing," William thought to himself.

"This is the magical intelligent being of the Fifth Magic Workshop. The teacher hasn't had a chance to name it yet. With your access, you'll be able to come and go freely, but there are still some important areas like the teacher's lab and storage rooms that you won't be able to enter," Bernie explained as he led William around the workshop.

The interior of the workshop was even more bustling than the exterior. While there weren't many decorations, the floor was adorned with elegant Fis carpets. The dark grey walls were adorned with magical runes that emitted a dreamy glow, giving the space a simple yet majestic atmosphere.

With the intelligent being in place, Bernie didn't have to worry about cleaning and maintenance tasks. They could be easily accomplished with pre-set cleaning spells.

The first and second floors consisted of public rest areas and some ordinary labs, while the third floor housed large labs with precious equipment already installed.

"The third floor is intended to be a runecraft research lab. The fourth floor and above are reserved for the teacher's exclusive labs and lounges. Normally, I don't go up there casually," Bernie pointed to the ceiling. "But I'm mainly responsible for this third-floor lab. If you're interested, you can join me in researching magic here."

As William carefully surveyed the area, he noticed that even the second-floor labs were comparable to the ones he had set up with most of the Cain family's savings in their mansion. And the third-floor lab, with its clearly more advanced equipment, was even more impressive.

For example, the elemental stabilizer on William's left was two sizes larger than his own and should be capable of stabilizing elemental effects for advanced spells.

As for the runic engraver on the other side, William couldn't help but feel something was off. The silver-white material on the accompanying engraving pen... could it be mithril?

Seeing William's curiosity about the runic engraver equipment, Bernie explained, "This set of engravers isn't from the lab. It was previously used by Master Dahr himself, but he's planning to get a better one from the academy, so he gave this one to me."

William was a bit speechless. "Why is Dahr so good to you? He's willing to let you use such expensive equipment?"

After all, Josef Dahr was one of the top three advanced runemasters in the Fis Kingdom. The runic engraving equipment he had used before must have been extremely valuable, yet he just gave it to Bernie. It seemed like he truly regarded Bernie as his successor.

"That's just how the teacher looks after me," Bernie nodded, feeling grateful. "Recently, I've been helping the teacher organize the workshop and pack things up. I even missed Morra's birthday party, which is a shame."

"Don't worry about it. Morra wouldn't mind," William reassured him.

"I see your lab here is almost ready. What are you currently researching? Is there anything I can help with?"

"Oh, I've been studying and researching enchantment solidification work. There's been some progress."