Many people couldn't even draw their first rune by the time class ended.
But Durin wasn't overly proud.
He knew perfectly well that this was just the initial stage; sketching all the basic runes was already so difficult, and if he wanted to cast a standard spell in the future, he didn't know how many more difficulties he would encounter.
Moreover, he still needed to buy exclusive rune pens and fountain pens, a large amount of potion ink and household black ink, as well as blank notebooks.
Durin rushed out the door, heading straight for the library within the Magic Academy.
There are many places in Piltover that sell paper and ink, and the cheapest is naturally what is sold within the university. Following the stream within the academy, he crossed a small bridge to reach the Magic Academy's exclusive library.
This place is a bit smaller than the Technology Academy's library, but it is more geared towards Mage Apprentices, instructors, and professors.
"I'd like to buy some ordinary black ink and a fountain pen," Durin asked at the librarian's counter. "And a notebook, please. How much is that rune pen now?"
The librarian took out a bottle of ink from behind him.
"For ordinary quality paper, a cowhide-bound notebook is 12 copper circle coins, a regular fountain pen is 18 copper circle coins, and ink is 10 copper circle coins per bottle. Do you have student credits? If you spend 3 points, you can get an 85% discount."
Durin was still processing the outrageous prices; this whole set would cost him 40 copper circle coins, which was equivalent to four days' wages as a butcher in Zaun just to earn enough for this set of study supplies.
No wonder there are so many illiterates in Zaun; basic education simply can't be spread.
But this money, he couldn't save it anymore.
He was now a Mage Apprentice, studying at Piltover University, and many important knowledge points in the upcoming courses needed to be written down by hand.
"Hmm... I'll take a bottle of ink first, and then I'll take both the notebook and the fountain pen," Durin asked again, "How much are the rune pens and the two types of purple and blue potion inks?"
The librarian pointed to a small blackboard nearby and casually said, "The purple and blue potion inks exclusive for sketching runes, 50ml per bottle, you pour black ink into it for use. A set of two bottles sells for 1.2 silver lun coins."
The small blackboard clearly stated: 1. Apprentice-specific rune pen, 12 silver lun coins per pen. 2. Fir wood material, with a Thunder Lizard nerve core, comes with lightning effects when sketching runes, 3 gold cogwheels and 12 silver lun coins per pen. 3. Holly wood material, with a Unicorn hair core, comes with a calming effect, 5 gold cogwheels and 18 silver lun coins per pen.... Durin was stunned; these prices were a bit too expensive!
Suddenly, he noticed the last line: Rental Service, an apprentice-specific rune pen, 10 copper circle coins per day, but if damaged or lost, the original price must be compensated.
There's also an ongoing promotion: rent for ten consecutive days and get one day free, only one silver lun coin is needed.
Over a month, it would only cost 3 silver lun coins, and at most 12 silver lun coins for a semester.
Durin figured that if he couldn't advance to a Mage within a semester, he probably wouldn't have money to continue studying at Piltover University next semester.
Furthermore, he quickly calculated in his mind that his monthly expenses on studies would be at least 5 silver lun coins.
Therefore, the rental service was the most suitable option for him right now.
Indeed, the path to becoming a Mage involves not only academic hardship but also financial difficulties.
"I'll rent an apprentice-specific rune pen for ten days, and then one bottle each of the purple and blue potion inks," Durin said.
With that, he took out 3 silver lun coins from his inner pocket, received a bag of study supplies and 40 copper circle coins in change from the library administrator.
He wrote his name, class, and student ID number from his student card on the rental ledger.
After getting all that done, Durin rushed back to the classroom; he was going to attend other free public courses next.
He would first make use of these free courses, and as for the ink, he planned to save it by mixing it with a bit of water and writing densely, as long as it was legible.
In the following days, Durin entered a state of frantic studying.
Home, studying.
Classroom, studying.
Cafeteria, studying.
Basically, two points and one line every day,
He had never felt so fulfilled!
Durin selectively attended the free public courses. Primarily, he didn't miss a single one of Instructor Ashley's Rune Magic classes, afraid of falling behind.
A whole week passed like this. During this time, Durin also managed to visit Seraphine's house, provided spiritual guidance to the beautiful young girl, and received a reward of 50 copper circle coins.
[Favorability with Seraphine +3, Charm +1, Current Charm Proficiency: 17/25]
At the same time, Durin did not rush during these seven days. Instead, he repeatedly constructed several identical runes, reducing the dissipation of magic power, allowing him to construct more runes with the same amount of magic power.
Instead of constructing a single rune, the magic power fluctuations within his body would surge like a tidal wave.
Many new Mage Apprentices, just like Durin, were driven to distraction by his intensity.
Durin now wished he could sleep only two hours a day, but if he didn't rest well, it would reduce his learning efficiency in the long run.
Fortunately, the Darkin possession process greatly enhanced Durin's mental power, which is why he was able to become a Mage Apprentice with no hope, according to Kreslin, until he became a Mage Apprentice highly attuned to fire elements.
His powerful mental strength allowed Durin to recover the abundant energy needed for a full day by sleeping just 5 hours.
At last, he had the capital to compete internally.
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