Luck

A few weeks passed, and by exchanging the broken magical artefact Ourin had stolen from Leylin, he had been able to enlist in the academy free of charge. 

His family had given him 11 magical crystals, a fortune that had been amassed at the costs of hundreds of soldiers and commoners. From his memories, it seemed like his father had personally raided a family with mysterious powers, or a record of using such powers. Though nothing went amiss, it seemed like there was some sort of runic formation that caused many deaths. As for the looting, they did it for 11 magic crystals.

Still, it was a small fortune to possess as a level 1 acolyte. Most level 2 acolytes would never possess more than a hundred magic crystals, the costs of experiments rising as your level grew. As for level 3 acolytes, they could be counted on one's hands in the academy, as they represented the pinnacle of the magical world.

Mastering a spell as a level 1 acolyte was very tough, and it was better to use this time to solidify one's spirit and amass funds. After some investigation, Ourin quickly understood that he had been indeed lucky to become Magus Nocturne's apprentice. The man was fair and respected the law of equivalent exchange. Though he could bring him little value, and thus received little, he was not taken advantage of, and more importantly, he did not fear for his life as his apprentice. The twins had disappeared, however, or more precisely, had entered a state of paralysis inside an opaque liquid filled with negative energy. 

According to Magus Nocturne, they would become much stronger after their transformation, but the fluctuations of mana from the container in his laboratory showed that they suffered immensely. Just looking at them was a kind reminder for Kaliweir, Julia, Harry and Ourin to never accept a contract that was too favourable.

With 11 magic crystals, Ourin could not afford much resources, so he decided to invest it all into something that would make him stronger. Knowing his limits and the difficulty of alchemy, Ourin decided to dwell into this field for now. He was too weak and unable to support such expenses at the moment. As for purchasing potions, they were all too expensive. Even low-grade elixir like the Murloc Essence Elixir were sold at fifteen magic crystals minimum, or even twenty magic crystals in the auction floor of the Mercifura Academy Tower.

Julia, however, was being nurtured by Magus Nocturne and received plenty of benefits. She already possessed a strange grimoire allowing her to amplify her spells, and she spent days in Magus Nocturne's laboratory. Sometimes, she would be completely disfigured from wounds, but the next day, she would heal up. 

As a grade 4 talent, she was likely to become a magus in the future, and she was nurtured accordingly. Julia was close enough to Ourin to tell him a few secrets, such as the existence of a contract which would turn her into Magus Nocturne's subordinate after breaking through for a duration of one hundred years.

Although one hundred years may seem a lot for regular humans, more than a lifetime actually, it was only a third of the lifespan of a regular magus. Plus, as a magus, there were plenty of ways to expend your lifespan, be it through elixirs or unconventional means. Some lessons were free in the Magus Tower, and one of the professors was literally a wraith, devoid of physical form. According to the rumours, he had already lived 500 years.

Harry, who possessed fire magical affinity and only recently broke through the level 1 acolyte realm, continued to study in his chamber, alone. Ever since the incident of the twins picking on him, he had grown much more reclusive, and decided to fuel his studies with the frustration he experienced. Knowing him, Ourin was not worried about the man. 

Kaliweir had already started to take on patrolling missions, hoping to earn Magus Nocturne's favour by providing him with materials. Unlike the market floor where he would be ripped off, the youthful Magus Nocturne would always compensate him with a fair price. 

Ourin, however, decided to take one step at a time, and look for opportunities. He eventually spent his 11 magical crystals on food, but not any kind of food. These were basilik eggs, known for their poisonous nature and their overall toxicity. Most people would die instantly upon taking one bite, but Magus Nocturne had shown him in his weekly exchange how to ingest them. 

Strength, agility and vitality would rise slightly after consuming one, though it came with extreme pain and several days of weakness. Plus, your body would grow slightly immune to toxins in general, which was an incredible perk to have in the Island of Bones.

At first, he could only ingest one egg at a time, but after three weeks, he managed to eat three of them, suffering from minor issues. The last egg also marked the end of his amassed fortune, meaning that to grow stronger, he would have to engage in a mission.

[Scan Complete! Ourin | Strength: 3.6 → 3.9, Agility: 2.8 → 3.1, Vitality: 3.8 → 4.3, Spirit: 3.0, Status: Healthy]

Now as strong as a veteran knight, Ourin was confident he could probably take on anyone who had yet to learn a spell, including his rival Kaliweir, who did not miss an opportunity to taunt him. Despite going out on missions and risking his life, his growth rate in physical attributes was slower. On the other hand, his spirit and spiritual force was nearing the 4-point mark, which was the basic requirement to become a level 2 acolyte. Ourin, on the other hand, found it very difficult to advance, feeling the strain of having grade 1 talent grade already.

Julia came to him with a proposition: "I am learning how to brew the Murloc Essence Elixir, but Magus Nocturne challenged me to master the recipe in the span of two years. I made a proposition to Kaliweir, and I will make the same to you, as you seem to both walk the path of body refinement. Murlocs blessed with magical affinity possess a gland in their heart. If processed right, it will allow you to extract a couple of drops of pure murloc essence, the core ingredient. I will give you the product of my attempt if you bring me the ingredient I want"

Ourin looked at her, knowing she had made a terrible mistake.

Julia was kind-hearted, but she lacked the maturity of acolytes. Now that Ourin knew what was the core ingredient of the rare recipe, he could easily go to a reputed alchemist and ask for his service in exchange for monetary rewards. If he supported Julia's attempts at brewing a Murloc Essence Elixir, he would have to make a bet on her talents. However, by going to a reputed alchemist, he was pretty much sure to eventually receive Murloc Essence Elixirs. The one thing that prevented him from doing that was the lack of knowledge about the recipe, and alchemists were secretive enough to make it impossible to find in the free library floor.

Smiling, Ourin smiled and did not betray his cold blood. Thanking her for the opportunity, he looked at his armour set hanging on his small chamber with a hint of nostalgy.

"It is time to use you again, I guess", Ourin muttered to himself.

He had been lucky, lucky to have an inexperienced co-apprentice who gave him the one piece of information he lacked. The plan was simple: he would kill murlocs, target those with magical affinity, and gather the necessary materials. As for the rest, he had learned enough in the past days from scanning the books of the free library floor to know the body parts of murlocs that were worth anything. Although it was rare, some of them would collect elemental ore, which could be sold for magical crystals. If he was lucky enough to find a nature elemental ore, he could even absorb the elemental particles to grow his spiritual force!