In the blink of an eye,
More than a dozen magical messages flooded Sakeer's attribute panel.
His gaze lifted slightly as he scanned the notifications.
This was the first time he had encountered so much magic at once.
However—
He quickly noticed a pattern.
All of the newly discovered spells were first-tier magic, completely non-offensive in nature.
Some were even zero-tier life magic, designed for everyday use rather than combat.
"Teacher."
"Teacher."
"Teacher."
One after another, voices filled the air.
The dozen or so spellcasters stationed in the hall had finally taken notice of Belori's arrival—
And of Sakeer, the unfamiliar face at his side.
Curious gazes lingered on him, scrutinizing the newcomer.
Sakeer felt the weight of their stares.
With a composed expression, he bowed slightly, doing his best to maintain a polite and approachable demeanor.
Belori descended the stairs, casually waving a hand to dismiss their attention.
"Get back to work."
The spellcasters obediently resumed their tasks.
"How much do you know about crafting magic scrolls?" Master Belori asked, his tone unreadable.
Sakeer's mind went blank.
Not at all.
He remained silent.
A moment later—
"Hah."
The old man let out a dry chuckle, his voice laced with a strange, inexplicable amusement.
"Many people have spent years struggling to learn the second-tier spell, 'Papermaking'—and failed."
"Yet, some can grasp it effortlessly and even perfect it."
"The difference?"
Master Belori's voice lowered, as if muttering to himself—
"Talent."
Sakeer's eyes flickered with realization.
"So 'Papermaking' really is connected to crafting magic scrolls?"
The thought had crossed his mind earlier—
But now, having it confirmed still left him slightly surprised.
More importantly—
Why was Master Belori so willing to share this information?
Not only had he explained it so plainly, but he had also personally brought Sakeer into the heart of the Magician's Guild, where scrolls were made.
There had to be more to this than simple generosity.
"It seems you really don't know a thing."
Master Belori's voice pulled him from his thoughts.
"To be precise, it's second-tier 'Papermaking' that plays a role in scroll crafting."
Turning his head slightly, he cast a glance at Sakeer before continuing:
"There's no need to act so surprised."
"The methods for crafting first-tier and second-tier magic scrolls aren't exactly state secrets—most nations already know them."
Their footsteps echoed as they descended further into the hall.
Master Belori gestured ahead, pointing toward the spellcasters at work.
"The magic scroll you purchased before?"
"It was crafted by these very people."
"How did you find its quality?"
Sakeer carefully considered his response.
While he absorbed the newfound information, he answered truthfully:
"It was quite good."
Master Belori let out a sharp scoff.
"You don't need to spare their feelings."
His voice carried an edge of mockery as he continued:
"They're producing nothing but mediocre goods—and that's being generous."
"First-tier magic scrolls are already weak, and yet their failure rate is still ridiculously high."
The words had barely left his lips when—
BOOM!
A sharp explosion rang out, shaking the air.
Sakeer instinctively tensed.
The distinct smell of burning parchment and magical residue quickly filled the room.
"Ahhh!"
A cry of pain followed.
Not far from where Sakeer stood, a young spellcaster was thrown off his feet, landing hard on the ground.
The force of the blast sent scattered embers into the air, fizzling out before they could spread.
A hushed silence fell over the hall.
Sakeer narrowed his eyes.
"So this is the 'high failure rate' he was talking about?"
The spellcaster didn't seem to be injured.
He quickly scrambled to his feet—likely having cast some form of protective magic beforehand.
Still, his appearance was thoroughly disheveled, his robes singed at the edges, and a look of embarrassment evident on his face.
At that moment—
He became painfully aware of the many eyes now fixed on him.
His face flushed bright red.
Lowering his head, he avoided Master Belori's gaze entirely, shame weighing down on him like a leaden cloak.
"All you're doing is wasting materials."
"Why are you standing around like an idiot? Get back to work!"
Master Belori's tone remained eerily calm, yet his words were utterly merciless.
A heavy silence fell over the hall.
Then—
Every spellcaster present immediately lowered their heads, scrambling to resume their tasks.
Sakeer finally understood.
No wonder the air had carried that strange, acrid scent—a mixture of burnt parchment and residual magic.
His expression shifted slightly.
The explosion just now had been anything but minor, yet the front hall remained eerily quiet, as though the blast had been completely absorbed.
There must be a silencing spell in place.
"Since you know little about scroll-making, surely you've at least heard of apothecaries?"
Master Belori's voice cut through the silence, drawing Sakeer's attention back.
"A skilled potion maker must understand an immense body of knowledge—herbs, their properties, secret recipes, and how to combine ingredients correctly."
"Even an ordinary pharmacist, through sheer dedication, can produce potions."
"But scroll-making? That's different. It has an innate threshold that cannot be overcome with mere effort alone."
He paused for a moment, then continued in a matter-of-fact tone:
"If the difficulty of becoming a pharmacist is one, then the difficulty of creating a magic scroll is ten."
"This isn't an exaggeration."
"First, you must be a Magic Caster—that's a fundamental requirement."
"Second, to craft magic scrolls, you must personally master the magic you wish to inscribe. But a Magic Caster's time and energy are limited."
"To create a second-tier scroll, you must have second-tier magic. And so on. At a certain point, it's no longer about effort—it's about talent."
"Finally, you must master a variety of scroll-making techniques—otherwise, you'll end up like that fool just now."
Sakeer's brows furrowed slightly.
'Is magic scroll-making really that complicated?'
In the world of YGGDRASIL, he had never delved into the scroll-crafting mechanics in detail.
But now, witnessing the struggles of human spellcasters firsthand—
He realized just how difficult the process must be.
Even level restrictions alone were enough to severely limit the creation of high-tier magic scrolls.
"Thank you for explaining." Sakeer nodded.
Master Belori simply turned and gestured forward.
"Follow me."
Without hesitation, Sakeer stepped in line behind him.
A short walk later—
Master Belori came to a halt before a middle-aged magician, a man appearing to be in his mid-forties.
Beside him lay several pristine sheets of white paper, shimmering faintly with a soft magical glow.
Sakeer immediately recognized it—
Second-tier magic 'Papermaking' had been used to create it, enhancing the parchment's magical properties and durability.
With practiced efficiency, the magician carefully selected ten sheets and placed them into a container filled with pale golden liquid.
As the paper soaked, absorbing the fluid—
He reached for a piece of sheepskin, swiftly submerging it into the same liquid.
"Scroll production!"
In an instant—
A flash of white light erupted.
Before their eyes, the sheepskin and enchanted paper fused together, transforming into a thick, gray parchment scroll.
The middle-aged magician exhaled lightly, then turned to face Master Belori.
"Teacher."
His voice carried both respect and confidence.
Then, noticing Sakeer, he offered a polite, friendly smile.
At that moment—
Sakeer's status panel flashed with new information.
"New skill discovered: 'Scroll Crafting'."
"Requires the 'Magic Caster' class. Current conditions met."
"Would you like to spend 1 skill point to learn?"
Sakeer's eyes narrowed slightly.
"So, the only requirement is the Magic Caster class? No need for a dedicated production class?"
In YGGDRASIL, scroll crafting fell under the production category, requiring specialized professions like Alchemist or Blacksmith.
Yet here—
It was entirely different.
This meant that the scroll-making technique these humans used had either been created or significantly modified over time.
Without hesitation, Sakeer mentally confirmed the selection.
"Skill acquired: Scroll Crafting."
(End of Chapter)