Eragabalus sighed regretfully, "The only pity was that although the diagnosis was eventually confirmed—just as you mentioned, an elemental imbalance between body and soul—I couldn't afford a Formal Wizard to treat my wife. The Potionology Assistants were all helpless and refused me outright."
"Not even one of them offered a possible solution like you did. Had I met you back then, perhaps my wife might have had a chance."
"Though the [Volcanic Core], [Extreme Ice Heart], and [Storm Lung] were also expensive, at least they were items I could potentially afford by taking out loans."
"So, in the end, my first wife still passed away."
A trace of sorrow flickered across Eragabalus's face.
Then, his tone shifted abruptly. "However, I later remarried, and we live very happily now."
"My current wife is my fourth. My second wife divorced me, my third died during a mission, and now my fourth is a student of my Wizard Mentor..."
Locke glanced at him, feeling somewhat speechless.
Earlier, seeing how this man spoke of his first wife with such grief—how he spent over a year creating a Magic painting to preserve her most beautiful appearance forever—Locke had assumed he was a devoted romantic.
Turns out, the man was a player.
So, hanging that Magic painting portrait of his first wife in the most prominent spot of his gallery was just to maintain his image as a lovesick widower?
Locke frowned, hesitating before finally forcing out a response. "Well... the path of love is always full of hardships."
He quickly steered the conversation back on track. "So, Speed Painter, I'd like to hire you for a month to document my Magic Plant and Potion works through Magic paintings."
Eragabalus clearly had experience with such requests.
His eyes brightened. Running a shop in the expensive Chimera Market, far from his Wizard organization, and paying steep annual rent meant his costs were substantial.
Thus, Eragabalus was always in need of business.
And a project like Locke's—a month-long commission requiring a full set of Magic paintings—was undoubtedly a significant undertaking for his personal gallery.
Eragabalus's smile widened, the usual melancholic artistic air on his face giving way to something brighter.
"Of course, absolutely. I still have a few scattered orders to wrap up—should take about a week. Once those are done, I'll come to your place and paint everything you need."
Eragabalus grinned. "By the way, I don't believe I've caught your name yet. I'm Eragabalus—oh, but you probably saw my profile at the entrance. I'm a First Class Wizard Apprentice from the [Atlas Chroma Academy]."
"I have the official certification badge of a Speed Painter, along with 16 B-grade papers, 1 A-grade paper, and 45 C-grade papers from our academy. Additionally, I once had a Magic Painting that ranked within the top 100 in the White Wizard Association's Magic Painting Competition, earning me the corresponding certification badge."
Eragabalus quickly recited his credentials to Locke.
Locke indeed spotted a blue badge marked with the number 100 on his chest. The badge bore the emblem of the White Wizard Association, the insignia of the Speed Painter profession, and the competition's mark.
This confirmed that Eragabalus had indeed participated in the Magic Painting Competition across the entire Southeast Corner Domain and achieved a top 100 ranking.
Locke briefly introduced himself, "I am Locke Augustine, a student of Lilith's Cottage."
Eragabalus then explained his pricing structure: "The assistants of Speed Painters mainly sell simple sketches and watercolor hand paintings—those are mass-produced decorative or lifestyle pieces. I don't deal in those."
"I only sell proper Magic Paintings. The starting price for one is at least 30 Magic Stones."
He continued, "A basic Magic Painting that records a two-dimensional image costs 30 Magic Stones. For a three-dimensional depiction of scenery or a person, the price is 80 Magic Stones."
Locke gave a slight nod. The pricing seemed quite reasonable.
After all, the portrait of the wizard's wife required a 0.5-circle Illusion Projection spell, and the Speed Painter had to exert their full skill to perfectly replicate it in both two and three dimensions.
A mid-quality Enchanted Item typically ranged from 100 to 150 Magic Stones, while a mid-to-high-quality one cost around 500 Magic Stones.
In comparison, a Magic Painting by a First Class Wizard Apprentice-level Speed Painter only fetched 30 to 80 Magic Stones. It seemed Alchemists made more money.
However, Locke thought of Tyne, the Alchemist's assistant at Kentry Workshop, and how disheveled he looked every time they met. He shook his head slightly.
Alchemists did earn well, but they ended up looking like coal spirits fresh out of a soot pile every day.
Being a Breeder or Potionology Master was far more comfortable.
Potions from an assistant-level Potionology Master ranged from Memory Ointment at 15 Magic Stones per tube, to Tears of Stars Potion at 150 Magic Stones per bottle, and Eye Demon Potion at 300 Magic Stones per bottle.
There were potions at every price point.
Moreover, potions were essential consumables for Wizards, who purchased them frequently—and without the soot-covered ordeal Tyne endured.
Breeders had a similar advantage. Super Mandrake Vine sold for 30 Magic Stones per plant, Crystal Palmfire Lotus for 5 Magic Stones, and Perseus' Eye Lichen for 100 Magic Stones.
Though cultivating these crops was slightly more labor-intensive than brewing potions.
Eragabalus continued, "The most basic Magic Painting uses illusion magic to preserve the information you wish to keep within the painting, ensuring time cannot easily erase it."
"If you want more functional Magic Paintings, additional features can be added to the most basic Blank Magic Painting."
"For example, adding illusion attack capabilities costs an extra 50 Magic Stones. Adding illusion control abilities also requires an additional 50 Magic Stones."
"If you want to create a map-type Magic Painting, one that can even display your current location information on the map, that would cost an extra 100 Magic Stones."
"This is quite complex. Although it appears to be a simple function, implementing it requires embedding at least three different illusion spell models into the Magic Painting. The more illusion models used, the more difficult the painting becomes to create - it's an extremely complicated process."
Upon hearing this, Locke looked up at Eragabalus.
Eragabalus carefully considered the options. "Apart from this map function which costs 100 Magic Stones, most other additional features only require 50 Magic Stones."
"For instance, there's also trap-type functionality. If you want to create a trap-type Magic Painting that stores one of your Spells within my painting to attack when an enemy touches it, that's also possible. This feature would cost an extra 50 Magic Stones," Eragabalus explained. "This is much simpler than creating maps - it only requires using a 0.5-circle [Delayed Illusion] model."
"To create a proper Magic Painting map, you'd need to use the 0.8-circle illusion model [Animated Map]."
Eragabalus thought carefully before concluding, "That's essentially all the options. Magic Paintings have many uses - for example, you could have me use a basic Magic Painting to record the progression of an ecological disaster or a laboratory accident."
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