Chapter 535 – Eberhard

Mo Lan was immersed in her book, completely unaware that a mage apprentice had passed by her three times in a row.

Eberhard was a Psychic Branch student who had enrolled several years ago. He had been sent directly to the Imperial Magic Academy before even completing his enlightenment, owing to his outstanding talent.

He majored in Psychic Magic with a secondary focus in wind Elemental Magic.

A few months ago, during his very first Psychic Branch apprentice Magic practicum class, the teacher had criticized him for severely lacking theoretical foundations and banned him from the practicum classroom for an entire year.

He needed to use that year to cram Psychic Magic theory so he could pass the assessment and re-enter the Psychic Branch’s apprentice Magic practicum class the following year.

Recently, he had been visiting Library Room 1 every so often to borrow theoretical texts to read back home.

He hadn’t signed an Elite Student contract — he was merely an outstanding student, so naturally he hadn’t been able to rent a dormitory near the main tower.

Each round trip not only cost him considerable time but also credits for the magic carriage.

But the environment in the apprentice-level library was truly unsuitable for reading. After sitting for just a short while, his back would ache all over.

He already found these books dry and tedious — otherwise his theoretical foundations wouldn’t have been poor enough to get him thrown out of class.

With an uncomfortable environment on top of that, he found it even harder to keep reading.

But today — just look at what he had discovered in Library Room 1!

A set of soft sofa chairs with a desk, and a young woman sitting on them reading a foundational Psychic Magic theory textbook.

The first time he passed by, he nearly thought he had forgotten to meditate after staying up late the night before and was seeing things.

He glanced back — still there!

He circled around the bookshelf and passed by again. This time, he got a clear look.

It was real!

Eberhard desperately wanted to ask how on earth she had managed to get such a full set of furniture into the Mage Tower.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t thought of doing the same, but the Mage Tower didn’t allow servants or guards without student cards to enter. There was no way he could carry all of that in and out by himself.

But the advanced mage badge on this young woman’s chest was too dazzling.

Eberhard hesitated, missing the optimal moment to ask.

Why would an advanced mage be here reading apprentice-level theory? Could she have also been thrown out of class by a teacher and told to brush up on the basics?

That speculation gave him a little courage, and he circled back a third time. “Senior! Excuse me, senior?”

At the Imperial Magic Academy, instructors of public courses were collectively called “teachers,” while those who provided private mentoring were called “Instructors.” Students of a higher rank than oneself — regardless of enrollment date or age — were addressed as “senior,” while those of a lower rank were called “junior.” Students of equal rank could also be addressed as senior, or simply called by name.

Mo Lan looked up at the apprentice with a trace of annoyance at being disturbed. “What is it?”

“Senior, could I ask — how did you get this sofa and desk in here?”

An advanced mage was certainly impressive. Go to any of those vassal kingdoms and you could easily apply for a noble title. But Eberhard didn’t believe an advanced mage could possess precious spatial equipment.

Mo Lan thought of the hard, rigid chairs and desks in the library and understood at once. “Want one?”

Eberhard nodded vigorously.

Mo Lan’s interest was piqued. “Perhaps… have you heard of the Dawn Society?”

“The what?” Eberhard’s face was full of confusion.

“You haven’t left Tower Forest in a while, have you!” Mo Lan wore an expression that said she completely understood. Mages were all grinding addicts, after all!

Eberhard — who had been tortured by theory textbooks for months without leaving Tower Forest, shuttling only between his dormitory, the dining hall, and the main tower — felt an arrow strike him right in the chest. “What happened? Did something big happen outside Tower Forest?”

“Recently, a new kind of special Magic has become popular across the Mage Empire — Dawn Society Magic. Using this Magic, you can obtain all sorts of amazing magic cards. Dawn Gourmet Street outside Tower Forest is an entire street of restaurants set up using Dawn Society food cards. It’s been very popular lately.

All of this furniture was materialized from Dawn Society Furniture Cards. I can dismiss them at any time and they revert to card form.”

As she spoke, Mo Lan reverted the magic desk lamp on the table back into a card.

Eberhard: “!!!”

“I have a Dawn Society Trial Invitation card right here. Take it and you’re guaranteed entry into the Dawn Society. I’ll sell it to you for a hundred credits — interested?” Mo Lan produced a card from thin air and waved it in front of Eberhard’s eyes.

Eberhard was very tempted.

But a hundred credits — that was so expensive!

He only received a thousand credits per month as a study stipend, and those credits had to cover dormitory fees, hiring servants, riding the public magic carriage, paying for classes, and borrowing magic books.

Granted, apprentice-level theory books only cost one credit for access to many volumes, but he still needed to save credits for more advanced Magic courses and borrowing higher-level magic books in the future!

Seeing him hesitate, Mo Lan sweetened the deal. “The Dawn Society also has channels to obtain Green Phantom Fruit! Plus, once you join the Dawn Society, you can exchange one-time active psychic power for food cards anytime, anywhere. No more wasting credits eating at the dining hall.”

She switched out a prepared Food Card to show him. “Look, this is my lunch.”

These words struck right at the core of Eberhard’s heart.

Green Phantom Fruit, being able to eat anytime without spending credits, and most crucially — no need to go back to the dormitory every day, which meant saving the credits for the public magic carriage too. If he was really ruthless about it, he could even save on housing fees.

Eberhard suddenly felt that a hundred credits was actually quite a bargain. “I’ll buy it!”

Mo Lan took out her student card.

“Gold? You’re an Elite Student?” Eberhard looked at her with a sympathetic glance.

Being an Elite Student looked like a good deal on the surface — free access to magic books, free enrollment in public Magic courses — but after reaching Beyond Peak level, five percent of every resource earned at the Well of the Sky had to be given to the Imperial Magic Academy.

And this was for life!

A Beyond Peak level mage’s lifespan was well over a century at minimum.

What a loss! What a terrible loss!

“What’s wrong?” Mo Lan asked, feigning ignorance.

“N-nothing.” Eberhard said.

He transferred 100 credits to Mo Lan, then took the Dawn Society Trial Invitation card.

When the invitation inside the card fell into his hands, it was his first time truly experiencing the wonder of card materialization. He examined it over and over for a long while but couldn’t find any trace of Alchemy runes. “Which senior master created this magical item? It’s incredible! I can’t detect any traces at all.”

“That, I wouldn’t know.” Having earned her credits, Mo Lan couldn’t be bothered to engage with him any further. She lowered her head and went back to reading her book.

Eberhard had the good sense to leave.

However, even though the contents of this trial invitation appeared quite proper and lenient, that couldn’t conceal the fact that it was, in essence, a contract.