This also meant that there were more wizards practicing this trade, which in turn meant greater competition and lower profits.
Why chase crowds on these busier tracks?
With Golden Paper in hand, practicing Limit Breaking Witchcraft and trading knowledge was the fastest path to earning Magic Stones. Moreover, it also enriched oneself—killing two birds with one stone.
After a moment of reflection, Colin picked up the Water Jet Skill and began to study it.
By noon, Colin waved his hand gently, and a clear water jet swiftly formed in his grasp, shooting out and shattering on a nearby target into a spray of droplets.
The Zeroth Rank Water Jet Skill, not only had he mastered the basics, but he had also achieved instant casting, touching the threshold of proficiency!
Colin smiled slightly and did not practice further, instead, as usual, he took out his lunch and began to eat.
Practicing Limit Breaking Witchcraft to earn Magic Stones was a long-term plan and not something to rush.
He planned to allocate three to five hours a day, or at most half a day, to practice these Zeroth Rank spells.
The rest of the time, he would spend practicing those two Disguise Magics.
At the rate he was currently mastering Lower Zeroth Rank spells, breaking through to Upper Zeroth Rank would not take too long.
After a while, Shelley arrived on time.
After exchanging knowledge for a while, Colin suddenly became curious and asked,
"Lady Shelley, I see you in the lab every time you come over. I'm curious, how early do you usually arrive here in the mornings?"
"I don't need to come over," Shelley shook her head calmly. "I live here all the time, not leaving the lab."
"Living here... you don't go home?"
Colin was slightly stunned. He thought that sleeping just over three hours a day already showed his diligence, but he never expected Shelley to be the true workaholic, not even going home?!
"In fact, I don't have a home in Neustadt City," Shelley shook her head again and continued, "Renting a lab here is much more economical than renting a house outside."
"...That does make sense," Colin agreed as he took a bite of his meal.
The best lab of the True Knowledge Society only cost 150 Magic Stones to rent for a month.
Compared to his current monthly rent of 2000 Magic Stones, it was indeed much cheaper.
However, for him to live like Shelley was clearly not feasible, not to mention how to accommodate Renee and the others, just to speak of living conditions—
The labs of the True Knowledge Society had no conditions for living; there were no kitchens, beds, or even toilets!
The entire castle of the True Knowledge Society lacked these facilities.
Colin knew that this was probably to save space since at least First Rank Wizards would be using the labs of the True Knowledge Society.
And for a First Rank Wizard, it was perfectly fine not to eat, drink, or use the toilet for several days.
Looking at Shelley's physique, which appeared to be strengthened by either a Bloodline Transformation or an Element Transformation, if it was an Element Transformation, it would be no issue to forego eating, drinking, or using the toilet for a month or two.
So, living here was tough, but not impossible.
As for bathing, if one wasn't chasing the luxury of soaking in a tub, a simple Cleaning Technique could solve the problem.
Colin unconsciously took a closer look at Shelley.
The Witch before him was dressed in a black Wizard Robe, with snow-white hair that fell smoothly to her chin like expensive satin. The skin that was exposed was equally pale, radiating a healthy luster like warm, exquisite jade, which clearly felt smooth without even touching.
He wondered what materials Shelley used to enhance her physique as, just based on appearance alone, it was comparable to his own, now that he was a First Rank Knight.
Many wizards that used Elf Bloodline to enhance themselves might not possess such aesthetic appeal.
Perhaps only his senior, Lillian, who carried the High Level Elf Bloodline, could compare in terms of looks.
Of course, that was when Lillian was in her young lady form.
Her usual childlike appearance was more doll-like and adorable, not quite the same for comparison.
But returning to the matter at hand, as a First Rank Knight Colin needed to ensure his food intake due to his daily exercises.
Even though he could now absorb most of his food, there would still be plenty of waste to be expelled...
Therefore, a kitchen and a toilet were essential for him, and he indeed could not live in the lab directly like Shelley.
However, Colin did not envy her too much, for whether it was Element Transformation or any other type of enhancement, they usually had some drawbacks.
Some of them did indeed have very low-frequency eating habits, but that did not mean they did not need to replenish energy; it was just not in the form of food.
The replenishment of such energy was, for the most part, usually more expensive than the food he needed.
...
The day after Lillian left, the blizzard showed no signs of stopping.
The entire Neustadt City was shrouded in boundless snow.
Even Renee, going out to buy vegetables, had to pick times when the wind and snow were less severe, rushing to and fro quickly.
But Colin still made his way to the True Knowledge Society every day, unswayed by the storm.
With the 'Wizard Level' column reaching its limit and no need for meditation, he spent almost eighty percent of his time practicing witchcraft, leaving only twenty percent for practicing the Knight Breathing Method.
Of that eighty percent, more than half of the time was spent on two First Rank Upper Disguise Magics, dividing the remaining time in half again, one for delving into Limit Breaking Zeroth Rank Magic and the other for reviewing previously mastered witchcraft.
Life was as regular as a machine.
This prolonged blizzard lasted an entire week.
In his previous life, this would have been considered a natural disaster, but the wizards of Neustadt had long since grown accustomed to it.
No significant incidents occurred.
Save for the freezing to death of a dozen or so new and disregarded wandering Wizard Apprentices.
Well, in truth, someone did care...
On the way to the True Knowledge Society for an experiment one day, Colin clearly saw several members wearing the Tin Saint School Badge carefully transporting these wizard corpses.
They were probably being collected for materials.
He didn't approach to ask, but he heard those School Wizards chatting and laughing about it; their voices reached his ears.
They said their School was lucky that these wandering wizards had died right in the Tin Saint School's jurisdiction, although they had to share some with the Yista School.
Even though the Yista School might not even consider a few apprentice corpses worth their attention, this was the rule.
And the benefit for themselves was only calculated from the remaining wandering wizard corpses they were left with after delivering the share, which felt somewhat frustrating.
Colin made no comment and did not linger, quickly proceeding to the True Knowledge Society's laboratory.
He continued to practice his witchcraft according to his plan, without being hasty or slack, same as always.
On December 15th, the blizzard finally ceased.
At dawn, the light of day was faint.
Colin had just woken up from his sleep and had not yet gotten out of bed when he saw a white orb, as if made of snow, suddenly shoot into his bedroom.
Whoosh!
He instinctively cast a Steel Temperature Resistance Field while retreating.
Simultaneously, as the white orb broke apart like gravel, two crystals fell onto the bed, followed by a familiar voice.
"Colin, the Supreme Council has issued your reward. I hope it didn't startle you; this was for the sake of protecting your identity."
Listening to Nois's words, Colin slightly relaxed his tense body, wiping the sweat beads off his forehead and feeling somewhat amused and bewildered.
After all, anyone would be startled awake to see an eerie white orb flying at them.
But as his tense body gradually relaxed, an irresistible anticipation began to surface in Colin's mind.
This was a reward from the Supreme Council!
Although a bit impatient, he still retained some caution, checking the crystals to ensure there were no issues before he slowly picked them up and began to inspect them.
Moments later, Colin's eyes opened with barely suppressed joy!
When Nois had previously asked what reward he desired, at that time, still not having interacted with the True Knowledge Society, he had mentioned either Second Rank witchcraft or at least a meditation method that could reach Second Rank.
He had thought the Supreme Council would only give him one of the two.
But unexpectedly, the Supreme Council had straightforwardly given him a set of three Second Rank witchcrafts, and a complete Meditation Method capable of reaching Third Rank!
Truly generous.
The only pity... he had forgotten to ask for some Magic Stone rewards as well.
Colin curled his lips into a smile, thinking somewhat greedily.
After steadying his spirits, he began to carefully examine the witchcraft and Meditation Method in his hands.