Chapter10-Mana Stone Vein

"Joad! Get up! The sun's already high in the sky!"

Early in the morning, Harvey's signature booming voice echoed like thunder outside Joad's dormitory.

Joad was startled awake from his dreams. Rubbing his sleepy eyes, he looked helpless.

"Brother, could you not do this?"

"I'm really not used to this kind of wake-up call. Why don't we wait for Father to come back and train me instead? After all, he's the real elite mage."

Harvey was momentarily stunned, then his expression turned serious. He lowered his voice and said,

"Joad, I was just about to tell you something."

"I have a secret to share—Father... has gone missing."

Joad was taken aback but soon felt it wasn't such a big deal.

With Father's strength, how could he disappear so easily?

Harvey's expression remained grave as he nodded lightly.

"I searched for him for a long time but couldn't find him. When I returned, I reported it to Grand Duke Ilan. Fearing potential unrest, the Grand Duke asked us to keep it confidential for now."

Joad listened, his face full of exasperation.

He knew his father's personality all too well.

His father was as slippery as an eel and incredibly powerful—getting into trouble on the battlefield? Impossible.

More likely, Father had gone off on his own for some leisurely escapade.

"Brother, aren't you overthinking this?"

"Father is so strong. How could he disappear just like that? Maybe he just went off somewhere to enjoy himself again."

But Harvey remained visibly worried, his brows furrowed with deep concern.

"You don't understand, Joad. You don't know about Father's past."

"Father was picked up by Grand Duke Ilan back in the day. He had lost his memory then, remembering nothing at all. Over the years, it seemed like he was starting to recall something, which is why he followed me to the frontier."

"But... I ended up losing him."

As he spoke, a trace of guilt crept into Harvey's voice.

Joad watched Harvey's anxious expression and knew he was genuinely worried about Father.

Even though Joad still believed their father had simply run off on his own.

"Alright, Brother, don't blame yourself too much."

"Father is a grown man. He'll take care of himself. What's most important for us right now is improving our own strength. Who knows? Maybe one day, we'll be able to help him."

Hearing Joad's words, a glimmer of determination flashed in Harvey's eyes.

"You're right, Joad. I need to get stronger!"

"Once I reach the elite rank, I'll personally go and find Father!"

Joad's mouth twitched slightly. Elite rank?

At this point, he was almost certain Father had done this on purpose.

Harvey was upright and principled, while their father was the kind to peek at women bathing for fun.

He probably found Harvey too annoying and decided to slip away on purpose.

As the two talked, they made their way out of the academy and soon arrived at a valley.

"Brother, why did you bring me to the freshmen trial grounds?"

Joad frowned, looking at the somewhat desolate valley ahead.

This place was meant for freshmen trials.

Harvey lowered his voice mysteriously, leaning in close to Joad's ear.

"I'll let you in on a secret, Joad. There's a hidden mana stone vein inside the freshmen trial grounds!"

Mana stone vein?

Joad was momentarily stunned before his expression turned exasperated.

This so-called mana stone vein… he had known about it three years ago.

And he had been absorbing it for three years—almost draining it dry.

The only reason he hadn't fully depleted it was that he wanted to leave some for Royal Academy.

After all, if freshmen couldn't gain any benefits from the trials, they would be quite disappointed.

That just proves how kind-hearted he was!

As Joad thought this, he found a quiet spot.

The valley was peaceful, allowing one to focus—indeed, a great place for meditation.

He had accumulated quite a few mana stones over time.

Since that was the case, he might as well take this opportunity to use them!

Half an hour later, twenty thousand mana stones were consumed.

Joad felt the surge of mana within him, yet his strength only advanced to high elite mage, still some distance from archmage.

"Hah…"

Joad let out a long breath,

opening his eyes, a trace of frustration flickering in them.

Twenty thousand mana stones… and all I got was an upgrade from mid elite mage to high elite mage?

Then how many would I need to reach archmage?

Clearly, it was going to be an astronomical figure!

Joad even started to suspect that the entire mana stone supply of Ilan Principality wouldn't be enough to make him a mage god.

His consumption was simply too outrageous!

What now? Would he have to start robbing people just to get enough mana stones?

Two thousand mana stones would be enough for a grand archmage to meditate for a long time—

He had burned through twenty thousand!

Joad was speechless. His bloodline was a bottomless pit.

But from a practical standpoint, the best choice now was to become an archmage first.

Because at that stage, his mana circuits would be reforged,

and he wouldn't have to suffer the pain of breaking through every rank.

However, the biggest downside of reaching archmage was the risk of mana rampages during each breakthrough—

a single misstep could cost him his life.

After much thought, Joad set his sights on Ivy.

After all, House Rima never lacked mana stones.

Perhaps he could get some more from Ivy.

After all, there weren't many merchants in Ilan Principality as skilled at tricking both the old and the young as he was!

Over the next few days, Joad split his time between meditating and guiding the freshmen at the academy.

Meanwhile, over at Royal Academy, Ivy had finally achieved her goal—she had become an array master.

Yet, despite this success, she sat outside her dorm, looking dejected.

In front of her lay a pile of notebooks and scrolls.

When Joad returned to Royal Academy and saw this scene, he walked over in surprise.

"Ivy, what's wrong?"

"Haven't you already become an array master? That shouldn't be an issue, right?"

Ivy shook her head, a hint of disappointment on her delicate face.

"I am an array master now."

"But… I still feel like I don't understand anything, like my knowledge is far too shallow."

"Leit just gave me some notes and insights, then ignored me completely."

"Joad, do you think I'm useless?"

Hearing this, Joad immediately understood.

It seemed Ivy had been discouraged by Leit!

That wasn't surprising.

A genius array master like Leit had an understanding far beyond ordinary people.

Even though Ivy had become an array master, she was probably still insignificant in Leit's eyes.

To him, her knowledge was no different from a child babbling—

there simply wasn't much room for discussion.

But… Ivy was his biggest client!

If she got discouraged, how would he get his mana stones?

Thinking of this, Joad immediately spoke up to console her.

"Ivy, don't be discouraged."

"Leit is a genius, so his understanding of magic arrays is naturally profound. The fact that you've become an array master is already impressive."

"And besides, you've only just advanced. You can take things one step at a time."

"But…"

Ivy bit her lip, her cheeks turning slightly pink.

"I still want to improve quickly so I can keep up with Leit."

"And you know… I want to earn Leit's recognition."

"Only by keeping pace with him can I get closer to him."

Joad nodded, his expression turning serious.

"If you're willing, I do have a way to help you."

Ivy's eyes lit up instantly. She looked up, her beautiful gaze fixed on Joad.

"Really? Joad, you really have a way?"

"Of course."

Joad nodded confidently, though a troubled look crossed his face.

"However… the price might be a bit high."

"You know, items that can boost someone's rank require quite a few rare potions."

Ivy immediately nodded, not caring about anything else.

Her eyes sparkled as she asked the one question she cared most about.

"Joad, just tell me—how many mana stones do you need?"

"I just want to get stronger… so I can get closer to Leit!"