âTeacher, you guys are too much. How could you leave me there?â
In the library, Herman was still talking about what happened yesterday, but when scholar Clement looked at him calmly, he stopped.
His ârespectâ for his teacher had almost become a habit.
âYouâre scolding me again, â Herman mumbled in a low voice as if he was looking at Eli not far away for help.
âYouâd better not provoke teacher anymore,â Eli said with a smile.
It was as if Herman was always the injured one.
Today was the second day after the banquet, and they came to visit the teacher according to the daily routine.
Clement sat on the chair as if that was the only thing he had the strength left to do. He looked at the disappointing Herman, then at Eli, and took out a bag from the table.
âEli, this is the reward the library is giving you.â
âOh? â curious, Eli took the bag.
In the bag, there were three shiny gold tarls.
âWhat is this?â In fact, he had already guessed what it was.
âThis is the reward you snatched from the Knight Academy and the mystic academy. Itâs not much, but you know that itâs hard for the library now.â Count Clement said as he looked at Eli.
âThank you, teacher.â Why would Eli mind that it was too little? This was an unexpected fortune!
He could start his potion simplification work early.
âyes, and the Count. If itâs possible, try to maintain a friendly relationship and get to know more important people. Itâll always be helpful to you.â He saw Eli pick up the gold tarls, and then he reminded.
âI know, teacher.â Eli smiled, then took out two gold tarls and placed the bag back on the table.
âWhat is this?â Scholar Clement did not seem to understand.
âteacher, if it werenât for you, I wouldnât have had the chance. Just take it that Iâm contributing this golden tars to buy you some new research materials.â Eli replied with a smile.
âThis wonât do!â Clement shook his head. He was a scholar, so how could he accept gold coins from students?
âTeacher, itâs not much. If you hadnât accepted me as your student, I would be an ordinary librarian.â Eli said again.
He was a person who knew how to repay someoneâs kindness.
âAlright, then.â This time, scholar Clement did not refuse, but his gaze on Eli became more kinder.
âŠ
In the blink of an eye, another month had passed.
Eli went to Moore Manor a total of three times to help the count train his horses. He tamed about twenty horses, and the process went smoothly without any accidents. Eli also received two gold tarls.
The main reason was that the Countâs wild horses were not transported to the horse track together but in batches.
After all, the horse track was only so big. In addition, there were already some horses raised there. It was impossible to keep nearly a hundred horses. They could only be transported in batches, tamed, and then transported away.
Regarding this, Eli didnât have much of an opinion. Anyway, the manor wasnât far from the city, and he could also make a trip to his secret base along the way. It was just a few more trips, no big deal.
âItâs time to find Roland.â
He already had four gold tarls in his hand, enough for him to carry out the first round of experiments.
He had not seen Roland for a long time.
âŠ
Three days later in the Rose Chamber of Commerce.
In a simple room on the second floor that was not considered luxurious, Eli was sitting on the sofa, and opposite him was a friend he had known for a long time, Roland.
However, compared to more than three years ago, Roland was more mature now. He had black hair and blue eyes that were less translucent and more shrewd than before. He sat opposite Eli and said with a smile, âEli, Iâve found all the materials you wanted.â
âThanks.â Eli nodded.
Two days ago, he told Roland what he needed, and then Roland helped him gather the materials with the power of the Chamber of Commerce. In just two days, he had collected all the materials.
It could only be said that Roland really had the connection. If Eli were to collect them, he might not even be able to collect them in a few months. This also reflected the importance of networking.
âHey, by the way, what do you need so many materials for?â Roland was a little confused.
âIâve been doing some research on Herbology recently, and I think itâs very interesting.â Eli found an excuse.
âI see.â Roland nodded. He had now taken over his familyâs business and was getting to know more and more people, but he had fewer and fewer close friends. Eli was a very special one among them.
Eli was very special in the sense that he didnât care about anything.
It made him feel like Eli was looking at the world from a higher level, but it was contradictory. How could an ordinary person give him such a feeling? He could only attribute it to his reverence for scholars like Eli.
âHowever, I canât give you these materials for free.â Roland already had the self-awareness of a businessman.
âThatâs for sure,â Smiling, Eli took out four golden tars, which was all he had.
The experiment would definitely take a long time, and he did not know how long it would last.
âWell, I didnât expect you to be a rich man.â Roland laughed when he saw the gold tarls and then put them away.
âIâll arrange for someone to send these materials to your house.â Roland stood up, but the next second, he added, âoh, by the way, I heard that thereâs a high-end place in Liuying Street, and there are even down-and-out noble women there. Do you want to go together? â
Eli cast a strange glance at Roland. âGreat, am I that kind of person?â
âYou can go on without me.â
âWhen the time comes, Iâll call you.â
âYouâve changed a lot.â
âYou havenât changed at all!â
âŠ
Eliâs experiment began.
Because the money had been gathered in advance, it allowed him to start the work of potion-making, but this work was much more difficult and complicated than Eli had imagined.
Due to the lack of notes on potion-making, Eli had to explore many things on his own, and the progress of his experiment had been stuck at the first stage.
He divided the potion work into three stages, which were the preliminary screening of the materials, the specific replacement of the materials, and the configuration of the potion.
The first stage was the most time-consuming and money-consuming one because he had to spend a lot of time collecting the herbs that had the effect of the original potion. This could only be done through repeated experiments.
However, this was nothing much for Eli. After all, he could learn a lot from it.
As for when the magic potion would be refined, that was completely up to fate. He wasnât that anxious.
Three months later, the first stage of Eliâs work stopped again.
It wasnât because he had succeeded but because he had run out of money.
The high-intensity experiments consumed materials at a rapid rate. In just three months, all the materials he bought were depleted. However, for some unknown reason, the horses did not arrive in the past three months, which meant that he did not have new money for the experiments.
Of course, he could earn a salary from the library, but he was not even a scholar. His salary was limited, and it was completely inadequate.
âI canât just steal or rob.â On this day, Eli had just finished tidying up the books in the library and was on his way to visit his teacher.
He pushed the door open.
Scholar Clement was cursing and waving his hands, and Herman was standing in the corner with his head lowered.