Looking at the scattered fragments of the crystal on the floor, Chelse’s mouth hung open in shock. Despite all the buildup, this outcome was beyond anything he had imagined.

  Hudson, standing nearby, was equally frustrated. As soon as he began channeling his mental energy, the magic crystal was drained dry, leaving him no time to control the process.

  The only gain was that the compass in his mind seemed to solidify slightly, though the change was so subtle that it could easily be overlooked if not carefully observed.

  “Uncle Chelse, maybe the crystal wasn’t stored properly, and its magic had already dissipated. The st bit of magic might have just been absorbed by me?”

  Hudson tried to expin, grasping at straws.

  With his limited funds, even a single magic crystal was worth dozens of gold coins. If there was a chance to get it for free, he wasn’t going to miss it.

  Chelse, snapping out of his shock, nodded reluctantly. Though the expnation was a stretch, it was the most pusible one.

  He had never heard of anyone draining a magic crystal during a talent test. Normally, a single crystal could replenish a novice mage’s magic three times over.

  To drain a crystal in an instant would require the power of a legendary Archmage. But that was impossible—Archmages hadn’t been seen in thousands of years.

  What puzzled him was that the crystal had seemed perfectly fine moments ago, showing no signs of being nearly depleted. How could it have been drained so suddenly?

  Was it the work of someone from the Mage Association?

  But why would those research fanatics py such a prank for no reason?

  After racking his brain about the crystal’s origins and finding no clues, Chelse sighed in resignation.

  This was just bad luck, and there was no way to investigate further. Even if he suspected it was a prank by some high-ranking mage, he could only grit his teeth and accept it.

  The loss of the crystal was a heavy blow to Chelse, who was already struggling financially. Gncing at Hudson, who looked equally confused, he said helplessly:

  “I only had one neutral magic crystal, so I can’t test you again. But based on what just happened, it seems you do have some magical talent.

  As for your specific talent attributes, you’ll need to go to the Mage Association for a proper test.

  I do have the basic meditation techniques and spells here. If you want them, I can copy them for you, but it’ll cost you.

  The Mage Association charges a hundred gold coins for this. Given my friendship with your father, I can give you a 20% discount.”

  Hudson couldn’t help but feel that Chelse seemed a bit uneasy when discussing the price.

  Whether it was a rip-off or not, Hudson didn’t know. But to obtain magic crystals and cores legitimately, even if it was a trap, he had no choice but to jump in.

  “Thank you, Uncle Chelse. But could you also sell me a few magic cores and crystals? Different attributes would be even better.”

  Hudson feigned excitement.

  For a young man, the chance to become a mage was undoubtedly thrilling. To achieve his goal, Hudson decided to py the role of an eager youth to the fullest.

  Perhaps moved by Hudson’s determination, or perhaps eager to recoup his losses, Chelse reluctantly agreed. “Alright.

  But Hudson, you need to understand. Magic crystals and cores aren’t cheap, and I don’t have many good ones here.”

  With that, Chelse opened a chest and pulled out his collection, expining to Hudson:

  “I won’t cheat you. I’ll charge you market prices. A first-tier magic core costs 50 gold coins, a second-tier core costs 150, a low-grade magic crystal costs 20, and a mid-grade crystal costs 50. Special attributes cost extra.

  As for higher-grade items, I don’t have any, and you don’t need them yet. Once you become a mage, you can figure out how to get them.”

  There was a hint of envy in Chelse’s voice. As a magic enthusiast, cking magical talent was his greatest regret.

  To outsiders, this “regret” seemed like pure pretentiousness. Instead of being a talented knight, he had stubbornly pursued the path of a mage, which many saw as sheer folly.

  Many believed that if Chelse hadn’t fallen into the pit of magic research, he would have already become a Silver Knight, with the potential to reach Gold Knight status.

  Without hesitation, Hudson picked out twelve low-grade magic crystals and one first-tier magic core.

  As for the other items, tempting as they were, his limited funds forced him to prioritize value for money.

  A mid-grade magic crystal contained about twice the magic of a low-grade one, simir to a first-tier core. But its price was 250% higher, mainly because the magic it contained was more refined.

  For most mages, the purer the magic in a crystal, the easier it was to extract. Whether setting up magic arrays or powering magic cannons, the ease of extraction mattered.

  Hudson, however, was different. His golden finger wasn’t picky—it absorbed magic indiscriminately, so the purity of the magic didn’t matter.

  If there had been more low-grade crystals avaible, he would have bought more. The magic core, on the other hand, was purely out of curiosity.

  Unlike st time, when he had absorbed the core without realizing it, this time Hudson pnned to study it carefully.

  Coming from a technologically advanced society, Hudson found magic crystals easy to understand—they were essentially energy-rich minerals, somewhat more mystical than coal or oil.

  But magic cores were different. These grew inside magical beasts, naturally containing immense power without any artificial enhancements.

  Existence itself was reasonable. If something was beyond his understanding, it simply meant his knowledge was insufficient.

  “The meditation techniques and basic spells cost 80 gold coins, twelve low-grade crystals cost 240, and one first-tier core costs 50. That’s a total of 370 gold coins.

  Hudson, you need to think carefully. This isn’t a small sum. Once the deal is done, I won’t refund you.”

  Chelse warned seriously.

  As someone who had been down this path, he knew the allure of magic all too well. He was worried that Hudson might impulsively dip into the funds allocated for the military campaign.

  But as an outsider, he couldn’t say it outright. After all, nobles valued their pride, and directly questioning Hudson’s ability to pay—or his integrity—would be inappropriate.

  Hudson could only inwardly ment his situation. Being so young, any rge expenditure would raise eyebrows. If he were a few years older, spending this amount wouldn’t have drawn attention.

  “Don’t worry, Uncle Chelse. I know what I’m doing. I wouldn’t risk the thousand-year reputation of the Coslow family.”

  As he spoke, Hudson opened a pre-prepared box of gold coins, counted out the exact amount, and handed it over.