Apprentice Market

"The first time…Are you joking…"

Glenn's eyes were filled with disbelief and doubt, but when he looked at Dave's face, he couldn't help but open his mouth.

"Damn it, could it be true?"

After Dave nodded, Glenn held his head dejectedly as if he had suffered a huge blow.

"I thought that I was already very talented. Compared to you…"

He had even come over to give Dave some pointers in high spirits…

Now, it seemed that his actions were simply…

It was too embarrassing!

The difference between people was too great!

He went back to his seat silently.

Lying on the table, Glenn kept muttering words that no one could understand.

".."

Dave was speechless.

The words that were originally stuck in his mouth could no longer be said.

He had never seen the method that Glenn had mentioned in the book, Basic Potionology.

He had wanted to ask him where he had found out about it, but now he felt embarrassed.

Knowledge was valuable, not to mention the knowledge that Mages possessed.

He was not related to Glenn, so he had wanted to ask him a few questions, but seeing that Glenn had been dealt a blow, he had no choice but to give up.

It was quite gratifying that he had succeeded in refining the spirit water on his first try.

However, that didn't mean that Dave completely understood how to make spirit water.

The second time, when he reached the step of condensing, he failed as expected.

The boiling spirit leaf water was like an erupting volcano, at least half of it gushing out of the small pot.

The remaining portion did not contain enough elements to refine another portion of spirit water.

Dave had no choice but to clean the table.

The waste had no value. The cost of treating it was far higher than the cost of the material itself.

Recalling the mistakes he made during the refinement process, he gained some insight and continued to try the next refinement.

Time passed quickly in the laboratory.

Dave finished the last set of materials and wiped the sweat off his forehead. He looked at the clock on the wall and realized that several hours had passed.

He even meditated to recover his mana. Otherwise, his mana would have been exhausted.

Fortunately, the final result was not bad.

Out of the 20 sets of materials, he had succeeded in eight sets and obtained eight tubes of spirit water. His success rate was 40%.

Eight tubes of spirit water, after deducting the cost, he should have earned two tubes, which was one-fifth of a magic stone.

This profit was actually not high. After all, it did not include the cost of renting the laboratory and equipment.

According to the standard fee, even the most basic laboratory would cost several magic stones a day.

If one were to really calculate it, the success rate of an ordinary apprentice would not be very high if they were to refine spirit water.

But Dave was still satisfied.

As everyone knew, Potionology was a subject that burned a lot of money.

He didn't know when he chose this path, but it was too late to regret it now.

He could only study it earnestly. After gaining Mrs. Izu's favor, he found a job in the laboratory.

He had thought that he would have to be poor for a long time.

In the end, things took a turn for the better.

His weekly salary was one magic stone.

Today's harvest was already comparable to his weekly salary!

Of course, the only chance to practice making potions and earn money like this would not come often. Even Mrs. Izu would not be so kind as to continue lending him the laboratory for free.

If he wanted to continue refining magic potions, he would have to wait until he was an apprentice. He would have to wait and see if he could become an official apprentice under Mrs. Izu.

Otherwise, he would have to find his own equipment.

For others, that was not something that could be settled in a short period of time.

But Dave had an idea.

Get a set of refining equipment…It really wasn't impossible!

If it were just the refinement of spirit leaves, his new "experiment set" would definitely be enough with a slight modification.

However, he still needed to purchase some simple tools…

..

The apprentice market was located on the 31st floor. It was a market for apprentices to trade.

Other than ordinary bakeries, wine shops, clothing shops, and other lifestyle shops, there were also many shops related to mage supplies.

Of course, the things here were basically limited to the apprentice level.

In a shop called Griffin's Hut.

"Looks like you've succeeded quite a bit?"

The white-bearded old man at the counter looked at the row of spirit water in his hand. He took out a bottle and carefully observed it.

He was Griffin, the owner of Griffin's Cabin.

Although he was old, he was not an official Mage. He was an apprentice who had lost the possibility of advancement and stayed in the academy.

"It's alright. It's mainly because of the teacher's guidance."

Dave didn't comment further.

"Being able to gain the favor of an official Mage while still a level 3 acolyte, you're really lucky."

Griffin sighed enviously and placed the spirit water on the counter.

"The quality of your batch of finished products is considered qualified. According to the market price, four-fifths of the magic stones. Do you want the stones now?"

"There's no hurry."

Dave smiled.

"Give me forty Spirit Leaves and these materials. I'll give you more stone if it's not enough."

He took out a list with many things written on it. Of course, the prices were basically not high. Otherwise, he would not be able to afford it.

Griffin took a closer look at it and nodded.

"Sure, but in that case, you have to give me another half a magic stone."

"No problem."

"Huh. I see an oil lamp here. Did you blow up the animal oil lamp in the laboratory?"

".."

..

After leaving the apprentice market, Dave's wallet was even more empty.

There was only one standard magic stone and a few broken magic stones left.

He took the magic stones to the bakery and exchanged them for a few pieces of bread. He had officially entered the poor class with only one magic stone in his assets.

He returned to his residence.

Dave was a little tired today, but he didn't rush to sleep.

Feeling poor, he decided to start his money-making plan quickly.

After making sure that he had locked the door, he took out the box under the bed that had the words " High School Chemistry Experiment Set " written on it.

There were dozens of experimental equipment inside, especially things like beakers.

Dave took out a beaker and flicked it with his finger. Hearing the clear sound, he smiled in satisfaction.

Glass gadgets weren't expensive, but glass-made appliances that were resistant to fire and didn't explode were expensive.

Compared to the special metal pot, this kind of glassware had better conductivity for the input of mana. Of course, it was also more expensive.

In the apprentice market, the price of such a glass bottle was at least ten magic stones.

Dave planned to use these tools as the core to assemble a set of refining equipment that he could use.