Duke almost fled from the area, and by the time he returned to the inn, he was covered in various perfume scents.

These were left by women he encountered on the streets who brazenly hooked his arm, insisting on taking Duke out for some fun.

On Duke's way back, while passing through some alleys, he could still hear the low panting sounds from within.

On the way back, he encountered this more than once, suggesting this was quite common here, with many people freely indulging their desires.

Duke took a bath once he got back, washing off all the inexplicable fragrances to avoid any lingering troubles.

He and Vivian had already agreed to meet at the entrance of the Magic Potion Association early tomorrow morning to attend the Magic Pharmacist Apprentice assessment together.

Vivian naturally had also studied Magic Potion, though not as specialized as Duke.

Magic Potion and Alchemy were mandatory courses at the Thorn Holy Tower, required learning for every Wizard Apprentice.

It was said that the assessment at the Magic Potion Association would take a few hours. After hearing that Duke was preparing for the assessment, Vivian decided to give it a try too.

She did not have much confidence in passing the assessment, only holding a try-it-out mentality.

...

In the morning, sunlight pierced through the sea's dark clouds, illuminating Harbor City as it woke from the night.

Duke stood at the entrance of the Magic Potion Association. He had just contacted Vivian via the Wizard's Mark and learned she had already arrived in Harbor City and was on her way.

"Duke!" Vivian's voice came from behind, still cool but full of joy.

When Duke turned around, he saw Vivian standing gracefully in a pale gold dress, her whole being radiating under the sunlight.

It was evident that Vivian had dressed meticulously, her makeup was extremely delicate yet not ostentatious, perfectly showcasing the youthful aura of a young girl.

"Long time no see," Duke couldn't help but smile.

This genuine happiness hadn't come to him in a long while; seeing Vivian relaxed his long-tense nerves a bit.

"You seem to have changed quite a bit," Vivian at a glance appraised Duke and even walked over to help tidy up his messy collar.

Duke had come early in the morning, neglecting such details.

"Not really, no major changes," Duke chuckled.

"Become more… mysterious?" Vivian pondered for a moment before using the word mysterious.

The two walked and chatted, seemingly having endless topics to discuss after not seeing each other for so long, both wanting to cram into each other's head all the experiences they had had during this period.

The registration for the Magic Pharmacist Apprentice assessment was completed quickly. Both held identities from the Thorn Holy Tower and Black Sail, allowing for a smooth registration process.

The Magic Pharmacist Apprentice assessment took a total of six hours, with each person undertaking the assessment in a separate room.

The assessment consisted of two parts: a written test and a magic potion experiment.

Duke entered a small room where hundreds of silver-white candles drifted from the ceiling, providing ample lighting without making the room feel dim.

Responsible for overseeing the test was a middle-aged man named Mod, who handed Duke a large parchment.

On the parchment were densely packed questions, all related to Magic Potion, and all of them were essay questions.

Many questions were long, with just the description of each question being over a thousand words, making Duke's scalp tingle.

Duke initially felt quite confident, but upon seeing the sheer volume and complexity of the exam, his confidence wavered.

This exam totaled one thousand points, and passing required a score of at least six hundred.

The assessment time was three hours, and Duke felt certain he wouldn't finish all the questions, but he would try his best.

The questions covered numerous aspects of Magic Potion, touching on various fields, with some requiring basic Alchemy knowledge.

Duke couldn't help but wonder whether this exam was really for Magic Pharmacist Apprentices, as the content seemed overly extensive.

He picked up his quill and began the test, with the quill constantly scratching quietly over the parchment.

Having a wealth of exam experience from his previous life, Duke knew his task wasn't to complete all the questions but to secure as many points as possible.

Once he began, he quickly regained that familiar feeling, his eyes continuously darting across the exam paper.

Whenever he saw familiar content, he wrote down the answers first, marking those he didn't understand, and indicating the time-consuming ones differently.

He quickly skimmed through the entire exam, answering the simple questions first to ensure he secured those possible points.

Finishing all these in three hours was an impossible task, so efficiently managing his time was paramount.

Duke then tackled the moderately challenging questions one by one, skipping those he was certain he couldn't complete.

As each second ticked by, his quill continued to write non-stop on the parchment.

Three hours later, the parchment was filled with many answers.

Mod retrieved Duke's exam, handing it over to another wizard at the door for scoring before proceeding to the assessment's second part, the magic potion experiment.

Mod then opened an envelope, pulled out a small card, placed it on Duke's table, and said: "Here are seven kinds of Secondary Potions. You can choose one as your next assessment topic."

Duke glanced at the card, which listed some common Secondary Potions.

If he couldn't find at least one potion he could make, then continuing with the assessment wouldn't be necessary.

Duke noticed the Basic Magic Recovery Potion and Starlight Meditation Potion listed, both of which he had mastered.

So he declared, "I choose the Basic Magic Recovery Potion."

The Starlight Meditation Potion he previously refined used Human-faced Snail as the main material, differing somewhat in process.

The Magic Potion Association here was sure to use Golden Grass as the main material, so to be on the safe side, Duke chose the Basic Magic Recovery Potion.

Mod then brought in two sets of materials for the Basic Magic Recovery Potion, meaning Duke had two attempts.

If both sets were used up unsuccessfully, it would signify failure in the assessment.

If Duke failed the magic potion experiment section, no matter how well he did on the written test, it would result in failing the assessment.

If failed, Duke would have to wait another three months to retake the assessment, unable to reapply immediately.

After all, the Magic Potion Association also needed to bear the costs of conducting the assessment.

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