Lilith's Cottage, Harun Vera's office.
Harun Vera appeared to be a shrewd and capable middle-aged man. He addressed the three Breeder students in his office: "Your performance in this competition is acceptable—you've all made it to the finals. However, I'm somewhat dissatisfied with your rankings. Even though it's just the preliminary round, you shouldn't let your guard down."
"Competitions are about momentum. If you lack drive from the start, it could affect your performance later."
"Over the next three months, I'll arrange a seven-day intensive training session for you three to temporarily enhance your breeding experience and familiarity with the competition rules. This will maximize your chances of improving your rankings in the finals."
Behind his plain glasses, Harun Vera's eyes gleamed shrewdly. "I hope you won't disappoint me."
The three First Class Wizard Apprentices bowed gratefully to Harun Vera.
"Thank you, Professor."
"With your guidance, our rankings in the finals should improve significantly."
Harun Vera tapped his fingers on the desk. "The results of the Breeder Competition significantly influence the evaluation of you by the academy's higher-ups, which in turn affects your future allocation of magical resources."
"This isn't just a competition—it's also an opportunity to showcase your talent and overall capabilities."
Harun Vera continued, "Naturally, I hope you can achieve higher rankings. Although the field of breeding isn't my primary focus, I still expect your performance to be the best in the academy."
He then gave them a goal: "Here's a target for you—catch up to Mary on the rankings. She's one of the academy's Wizard Seeds, but you might be able to surpass or at least closely follow her in the field of breeding. Even just trailing behind her would provide additional benefits to your reputation among the academy's leadership."
The three First Class Wizard Apprentices looked at Harun Vera with immense gratitude.
A single piece of advice from Harun Vera often saved them from many detours.
For instance, if they could undergo his pre-competition special training, their rankings might improve by an entire tier.
This would greatly benefit their future development.
Of course, the trade-off was Harun Vera's extremely high expectations.
These demands had driven some students to the brink—those who couldn't keep up with the pace or meet the targets. Rumor had it that a First Class Wizard Apprentice named Yuli Burns once conducted dangerous self-experimentation in an attempt to meet Harun Vera's expectations, only to end up in a terrible state.
Harun Vera then asked casually, "By the way, does anyone know who this wizard apprentice named Locke Augustine is?"
"Does anyone have a personal connection with him?"
The three First Class Wizard Apprentices exchanged glances, but none spoke up.
Harun Vera frowned in displeasure, his tone turning slightly stern. "As Breeders, do you not pay any attention to your competitors at all?"
A First Class Wizard Apprentice hesitated for a moment before speaking up, "Teacher, I think I've heard of him. He was only promoted to First Class Wizard Apprentice this year."
"I once saw him at the public plantation before."
"Hughes Kaufman even invited him to join his club. He must be a student of Lady Sophia the Witch."
"Teacher, do you want to meet him? Should I notify him for you?"
Harun Vera's eyes lit up with amusement at the mention of Sophia's name. "Ah, Sophia. That child advanced so quickly—she already has her own students now."
"Sophia and her Wizard Mentor don't get along well, do they? If only she had joined my tutelage back then. I never liked her mentor much either."
Harun Vera waved his hand dismissively. "I was just asking casually. The preliminary results don't mean much."
His gaze then fell on the fifth name on the ranking list. "Still, if he's a newly promoted First Class Wizard Apprentice this year, that's quite impressive."
"This must be his first competition. To achieve such results right away... Let's see how he performs in the finals." Harun Vera glanced at the three students before him and said, "Alright, that's enough for today. You may go and rest."
"There's an exchange event at Verdantia University the afternoon after tomorrow. Daryl, go inform Danny to prepare a Potionology speech draft for me."
...
On the third day after the preliminary results were announced.
Locke was at his plantation, directing over a hundred Minotaur slaves to till the land and irrigate it with Nutrient Soil and Nutrient Solution.
He needed to complete the plantation expansion quickly and fulfill the bulk procurement order from the academy. But just then, Locke also received a letter from the academy's higher-ups.
"Hmm? After dragging on for months, the approval for medium and small-scale plantations has suddenly come through now—and my application for a Personal Pharmaceutical Room was approved at the same time."
A strange expression crossed Locke's face. "Since when did the academy become so prompt and accommodating? Well, this only benefits me."
"It must be because I passed the preliminaries."
"Now that the Personal Pharmaceutical Room is approved, I can accelerate my experiments with the Memory Ointment. It'd be best to complete the report within three months and then seek partnerships with Potion Shops." Locke pondered further, "As for the fourth Magic Plant, I should decide on it soon too."
The fourth Magic Plant would be needed for the Breeder Association's finals. Moreover, after delivering the current batch of Crystal Palmfire Lotus orders, he needed to find a new Magic Plant that could generate quick profits.
Although he had temporarily resolved the financial challenges of the one-month beginner's grace period, it would be ideal to maximize the resources for his Meditation Method training every month going forward.
That meant he needed much, much more income.
There were also plenty of items at the Chimera Market that he wanted but couldn't yet afford.
Previously, he had only purchased the magical resources he urgently needed.
Back at the plantation.
Ten Minotaur Noble Slaves were carrying the Weather Control Device into the plantation, placing it right at the center of the Magical Field.
Under Locke's command, a massive machine was positioned at the center of the plantation. Magical radiance swirled around the Weather Control Device as it began establishing a Mana connection with the plantation's sky, gradually influencing the local weather.
By manipulating the Weather Control Device, Locke steadily maintained the temperature of this enclosed space at forty degrees. After confirming everything was temporarily stable, he immediately headed to the designated site of his Personal Pharmaceutical Room to oversee its construction progress.
Though the Personal Pharmaceutical Room wasn't fully completed yet, since it had already passed the academy's review, this meant it was officially registered in the academy's records as a functional pharmaceutical facility. Therefore, human experimentation procedures could commence directly.
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