"Ron, long time no see." Trishâs voice was much lighter: "Didnât expect to run into you here."
"Trish, congratulations on winning the duel." Ron was slightly surprised, but he sincerely congratulated her: "Your leopardess is incredibly strong."
The scene immediately triggered murmurs of surprise and envy among the surrounding apprentices.
"Isnât that..."
"Ron? Isnât he that..."
"Lady Allenâs new assistant! Iâve seen him in the herb store..."
"Trish actually knows him, no wonder her leopardess is so strong, she must have used a special advancement magic potion!"
"Oh my, look at Cynthiaâs expression, she looks like she wants to kill someone..."
Trishâs easy victory and her familiarity with Ron undoubtedly elevated her status in the eyes of the crowd.
Those who might have initially looked at her with a bit of scrutiny now showed her respect.
Cynthia stood in the distance, her eyes filled with jealousy and rage.
She glared at the leopardess beside Trish, her gaze dark and gloomy.
"Trishâs leopardess surely used an advanced potion, and itâs not the regular kind..." she guessed in her heart:
"A regular potion wouldnât have such an effect, where exactly did she get such a high-quality magic potion?"
She frowned, her gaze shifting to Ron who was talking with Trish, a slight unease rising in her heart.
"Allen, that old witchâs student..." Cynthia squinted: "Could this be the secret behind Trishâs sudden rise?"
"What a coincidence." On the other side, Trish smiled at Ron and said: "I was planning to find you in a few days to commission the next batch of magic potions, I didnât expect to meet you here."
She gently stroked the leopardessâs shoulder, her eyes filled with obvious pride:
"The bloodline activation agent you helped me refine last time worked wonders, Li Yueâs combat power increased by at least thirty percent, and the recovery ability during combat and the suppression of pain were especially noticeable."
Hearing this, Ron smiled slightly, feeling a sense of relief, but then he hesitated and said: "Iâm sorry, Trish, Iâm afraid I wonât be able to prepare magic potions for you in the near future."
Upon hearing this, Trish immediately asked with some urgency: "Why? Are you encountering any trouble? If thereâs anything I can help with..."
"Uh, donât worry, actually, I need to prepare for the alchemist certification examination recently," Ron explained slightly upon seeing her concern:
"It requires a lot of time to prepare and practice, so I might not have the energy to take on new orders."
"Alchemist certification?" The brown-haired girlâs eyes widened slightly, but then she returned to normal, with a flash of admiration in her eyes:
"Well, with your magic potion skills, itâs only natural to apply for certification. At such a level, you are probably already an absolute standout among us apprentices."
The two stood in the plaza chatting casually as if no one else was around.
For most of the mediocre elementary apprentices, having a genius from the candidate wizard sequence actively engage in conversation with them was already a great honor.
Ron and Trishâs almost equal mode of communication made many apprentices extremely envious.
"When is the assessment scheduled?" Trish asked with concern.
"In a week." Ron replied: "I intend to go purchase some materials to practice recipes that may be involved in the examination in advance."
"I understand." Trish nodded: "Speaking of which, if it werenât for the special magic potions you provided today, my Li Yue wouldnât have been able to defeat that half-beastman."
She glanced at the half-beastman lying on the ground, barely alive, with a flash of pity in her eyes:
"That Frenzy Crystal is a banned item, but such things are common among the sequence members, and no one would report it."
Not far away, Cynthia had been ignored for quite some time, and her face was twisted to an extreme.
Not only had she lost the duel, but she was also completely ignored by the victor, which for her, with her pride, was a huge humiliation.
"Cynthia, since entering the candidate wizard sequence, has been trying to accumulate points and resources." Trish whispered to Ron:
"But her performance has never been great, if not for Marsalaâs support, her ranking might be even lower. This time she probably saw me as an easy target since I just entered the sequence. If not for the magic potion support you provided, I might have been in danger this time."
Just as Cynthia was about to erupt with anger, a silhouette quietly appeared behind her.
"Cynthia." A deep and calm voice spoke in her ear: "I donât suggest you act out now."
Cynthia turned her head and saw Oliver standing there, with his usual perfect smile on his face.
His gaze was gentle but carried an undeniable authority, and Cynthiaâs impending eruption of anger was instantly cooled.
"Get out of my way! Oliver." She said in a low voice, with extreme resentment in her tone:
"I lost an important combat slave, and I was humiliated by that lowly daughter of the hunter!"
"A temporary setback is not worth dwelling on." Oliver said softly, his gaze glancing unobtrusively at Ron in the distance:
"Besides, I have more important matters to discuss with you."
He whispered a few words in Cynthiaâs ear, and her expression gradually shifted from anger to shock, finally turning into an abnormal excitement.
"Itâs unbelievable." She said in a low voice: "Youâve really decided..."
"Of course." Oliver nodded: "But now is not the time, letâs go back and talk about it slowly."
He turned to leave, and after hesitating for a moment, Cynthia gave Trish a fierce glare, then followed in Oliverâs footsteps.
Ron noticed this scene, and a warning bell went off in his heart.
After the two left, he noticed two servants quietly appeared, deftly putting a large sack over the barely alive half-beastman, then efficiently dragged him away.
Nobody spoke up to stop them throughout the entire process, and even the surrounding apprentices didnât bother to look in that direction, as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
"What will happen to this half-beastman warrior?" Ron asked Norris nonchalantly.
Norris slotted the Witness Gold into his own pocket and shrugged when he heard the question:
"A defeated slave? Usually, things donât end well. If the injuries are minor, they might be sold off; if the injuries are severe like this half-beastman, theyâll probably be sent to the schoolâs resource recycling division."
"The resource recycling division?" Ron guessed what this meant in his heart.
"Itâs where they extract the usable parts from them, and the resulting Magic Stone Fragment would be split with Cynthia, the owner, fifty-fifty."
Norrisâs tone was unusually calm, as if he was talking about the weather:
"The half-beastmanâs skin is very tough, their heart and other organs are quite decent magic potion materials, and as for their bonesâthey can be ground into powder for various rituals."
Ron nodded, refraining from further questions.
The rules here were brutal, and to him, it was no longer news.
After Norris left, Ron cast an assessing glance at the leopardess, Li Yue.
As the effects of the bloodline activation potion gradually faded, the various abnormalities induced in her seem to have returned to normal, yet her inherent grace and danger remained.
"Your leopardess is truly impressive..."
He sincerely praised, his gaze lingering on Li Yueâs graceful yet dangerous form:
"Although Iâve refined quite a few bloodline activation potions, Iâve never seen such a pure activation effect."
At these words, Trish raised an eyebrow, a slight smirk on her lips.
The previously maintained air of distance seemed to have melted somewhat, and she gently stroked Li Yueâs shoulder, showing a seldom-seen softness in her eyes.
"Li Yue is indeed... very special." She lowered her voice, with an involuntary pride in her tone:
"I guess youâre curious about her origins, right?"
Ron nodded, not hiding the curiosity flickering in his eyes: "If youâre willing to share, Iâm all ears."