Olde was in his office when he saw Locke. He froze momentarily before breaking into a genuine smile, his expression carrying additional gratitude. "Locke, you're here."
Noticing Locke lingering at the office doorway without entering, Olde chuckled and addressed the three students copying historical documents for him inside: "Keep working."
"Come, Locke, let's go somewhere else."
"Somewhere more secure."
After the two left, the three students in the office exchanged puzzled glances—including Cohen Julian.
Pale-faced Cohen Julian stared at the retreating figures of Locke Augustine and Professor Olde, his fists clenched tightly.
Why was Professor Olde so restrained—even slightly deferential—toward Locke Augustine? Locke was just a destitute former noble without a country to his name.
What exactly was the difference between him and that Locke fellow?
Cohen Julian wanted to flee the office.
But remembering his father's furious letter two nights ago—berating him for refusing to contribute to the family and serve the empire and His Majesty the Frankish Emperor—he could only lower his head and continue copying historical documents.
He had already enjoyed far too many privileges bestowed by the Julian family. Every gift from fate comes with a price secretly marked in advance.
Now was the time for him to repay his family.
In a long-unused classroom at Aurelian Academy, Olde opened a case. Half the space inside was occupied by an exceptionally large, dissected crab—its shell not chitinous but made of gray stone.
The stone crab shell bore red patterns.
The crab's massive stone claws showed signs of damage.
Locke asked, "Is this the magical creature from across the sea—the Stone Crab?"
Olde replied excitedly: "Yes. The wilderness beyond the sea is far more dangerous than Cofu Island's. It's filled with perilous magical creatures."
"The Stone Crab is one of them."
"And one of the longer-lived varieties, with a lifespan approaching three hundred years. I've been studying this creature for years, believing that unraveling the secret of its longevity could significantly extend my own."
"Of course, my skills alone couldn't handle such complex research. But fortunately, Verdantia University had a full-fledged wizard conducting this experiment, and I joined as an assistant."
"The experiment never fully succeeded—until I came to Cofu Island."
"Still, it produced some byproducts, like the Stone Crab Bloodline Modification Potion. It can transform a wizard apprentice's skin and internal organs to harden like the Stone Crab's."
Olde reminisced: "I wouldn't have risked modifying myself with the Stone Crab Bloodline unless absolutely desperate."
The remaining half of the case contained nine flowers of three unknown varieties, three round mineral specimens, three bottles of alcohol, and three syringes of blood.
On the inner surface of the wooden box, an icy blue rune flashed briefly before quickly dimming, as if it had lost its mana.
Olde said regretfully, "This box can only be opened once. After opening, the magic inside loses its effect."
"The materials stored inside can no longer be preserved at low temperatures. If we don't proceed with refinement soon, these materials will become unusable. Locke, I'll still be the one guiding the refinement, but you'll be the one executing it."
"My mana is too crude now—I simply can't handle delicate work anymore."
Locke replied, "I'm ready to begin anytime."
He touched the Deep Blue Jewel ring on his right hand. The craftsmanship of the ring was quite intriguing—an ordinary blue gemstone and a Deep Blue Jewel were combined through inlay, so that outsiders would only see the outermost blue gemstone.
They wouldn't notice the Deep Blue Jewel embedded beneath.
The Deep Blue Jewel acted like a filter, forcibly reducing the amplitude of his mental fluctuations to half their original intensity. Locke had greatly benefited from this when constructing his first spell model.
At the same time, the illusory Synthetic Cube before Locke's eyes was rapidly spinning, emitting a spark of magical energy with each rotation.
The cube was synthesizing, using three level-4 Deep Blue Gems as materials to create a level-5 item.
After Locke became a third-class wizard apprentice, the Synthetic Cube's maximum synthesis level automatically increased by one.
However, the synthesis would still take 24 hours to complete.
There seemed to be a threshold between level-4 and level-5 items—synthesizing a level-4 item only took three hours, while a level-5 item required an entire day.
Olde adjusted his monocle and said, "The first step is to extract the special Bloodline of the Stone Crab, then combine it with the Bloodline Separation Essence Injection Potion my mentor created. This will allow us to precisely isolate the specific Stone Crab Bloodline we need."
Locke glanced at the three syringes inside the box, realizing these must be the so-called Bloodline Separation Essence Injection Potions.
Olde pulled out a set of dissection knives from his pocket and began carefully cutting and dismantling the Stone Crab's rocky shell with a slender blade.
His movements were practiced, and he handled each tool with ease. True to his promise, he explained each step as he worked, ensuring Locke understood the reasoning behind the material processing procedure.
According to their agreement, Locke would assist him in refining the potion, while Olde would provide knowledge and the Skull Explosion spell model as payment.
Soon, the Stone Crab's carapace, tail limbs, mouthparts, walking legs, and claws were separated and categorized for processing.
However, the main blood-storing areas of the crab's body—the gill cavity, joint cavities, and pericardial cavity—were carefully preserved from damage.
Olde explained, "A significant portion of a low-level magical creature's value lies in its blood. So while dissecting, we separate the bones, flesh, and shell, but we must avoid damaging the heart, blood vessels, or—in the case of creatures like the Stone Crab with open circulatory systems—the main blood storage areas."
"This prevents material waste and preserves the material's spiritual properties."
"Some experiments are like gambling. Even wizards can't always be certain which misstep might slightly affect the spiritual properties of materials, leading to vastly different results."
Professor Olde said calmly, "This is fundamental knowledge in Material Processing class, Locke. You'd do well to pay attention."
"All this is being taught to you for free."
(End of Chapter)