I was an apprentice in Ferren

Chapter 110 discusses this in detail.
Upon hearing DuPont's words, the dwarf's expression instantly became quite interesting. After a long pause, the black market manager said with a friendly tone, "What are you joking about? Since you are acquainted with this master, you are obviously a respectable person. How could we not trust your credibility? I will go and prepare the money right now."

"Not all of it costs money. Two gems worth 1000 gold coins each will cost 2,000 gold coins."

The dwarf's face contorted slightly upon hearing this, but he still repeatedly agreed, "Right away, right away."

About three minutes later, the dwarf arrived at the private room with gold coins and gems, jumped onto a chair, and pushed it onto the table as if presenting a treasure: "Sir, take a look, isn't this it?"

"What time does this gentleman usually rest?"

The dwarf took out his pocket watch and glanced at it: "Around midnight, about 40 minutes from now."

“I’ll go find him around 11:55.” DuPont didn’t take the gold coins from the table, but sat there with his eyes closed, pretending to doze off.

The dwarf was dumbfounded when he saw this.

What does it mean? ?

So you're waiting for that grand mage to have his fun before you go?

Thinking about this, the dwarf felt like he had been scammed. But then he thought that even if the archmage left today and didn't come back tomorrow, the 4000 gold coins wouldn't have been wasted, and he would have fulfilled the great man's request.

If this kid is really a fraudster, then it means this person isn't his backer, and he shouldn't blame me for being ruthless then.

Time passed by, and the closer he got to the dwarf, the more restless he became. He would go out to check on the business and then come back, only to find DuPont seemingly asleep with his eyes closed, resting. When it was really 11:55, he was just about to call him when he saw the other man open his eyes.

"Time's up." DuPont put the gold coins and gems into his spatial bag. "Lead the way."

Upon hearing this, the dwarf, known as "Old Man" by everyone in the black market, jumped off the chair with the agility of a monkey: "Alright!"

The journey wasn't long, but when they arrived at the casino, it was incredibly lively. The place was bustling with people, and many had tears in their eyes. Just as DuPont was passing by, someone screamed: his finger was snapped off by a security guard with pliers. Then, a rag was stuffed into his mouth, and two security guards carried him out with the severed finger.

DuPont glanced at it and laughed: "Oh, it's getting lively here?"

“Normally we don’t accept these kinds of bets, but there are always some people who make trouble. These are just desperate gamblers who have run out of money. When they’re broke, they’ll bet not only their fingers, but even their daughters and wives on the table.”

DuPont asked curiously, "How much money could this be worth?"

"A finger costs 2 copper coins. A woman's price can range from 3 to a million copper coins, depending on her age and looks. If she's pretty, she can work part-time at the brothel next door, while the older, uglier ones can work as general laborers. Once the money is paid off, they'll be released," the dwarf said with some emotion.

"I have to say, Harua is far too civilized. In my homeland, the Underdark, the dark elves simply capture those who default on their debts and enslave them. From then on, not only do they not receive wages, but their lives belong to their masters. If they're in a bad mood, they can kill them at will and offer them as sacrifices to the Spider Goddess. Here, they still have to talk about laws and human rights. Only these mage masters have the leisure to play with these things."

DuPont shook his head after hearing this: "Completely abandoning civilization and morality, then naturally there will be no friends and no height. So even if those dark elves are stronger than ordinary elves, they can only play in the mud underground. Perspective is something that needs to be cultivated."

"Haha, it seems you are quite refined. If I hadn't met you once, I would have thought you were a mage." The dwarf said, leading DuPont through the hall and through a gate guarded by several security guards to the back alley: "Hall number one in here is where that lord is. This is not my area of ​​responsibility, so it is not convenient for me to go in. I hope you will remember what you promised us."

“No problem.” After entering, DuPont didn’t rush to Hall One. Instead, he took out a communication gem and entered his mental energy: “Mentor, is that you?”

"Huh? I was wondering why this gem reacted earlier. I thought these guys had connections and could find someone to dissuade them, but it turns out it was you." The somewhat languid female voice rang out again, and suddenly she seemed to have thought of something: "Could it be that you really did commit that murder before? According to the information, you were only a level 3 apprentice at most back then. How could you deal with a level 5 assassin and five level 3 combatants?"

"Hehe, you jest, Master. I was just lucky." DuPont said softly, then asked, "I heard from the manager here that you're in Hall One. Is it convenient for me to go in now?" "Come on in if you want. If I hadn't discovered these fat sheep, I should have gone to the academy to inspect you on Wednesday. This is convenient." As he spoke, the innermost room opened, and a scantily clad half-elf female dealer saw DuPont holding the runestone and quickly stepped forward, bowing respectfully: "Are you a guest from Hall One?"

DuPont, without glancing to the side, said coldly, "Lead the way."

The female dealer breathed a sigh of relief, a practiced, alluring smile on her face: "Please~"

It must be said that the female croupier in this luxurious living room is a level above Tiflin of the Enchantress House. Her smile is also much more professional. Apart from her slightly less-than-ideal figure, her looks are definitely top-notch, which made DuPont, who was following behind, unable to resist taking a second look.

However, when DuPont entered the VIP room and saw the veiled mentor, he was still stunned.

There was only one alluring woman in the private room. She wore a light purple, tight-fitting robe, which accentuated her mature figure, making her look like a beautiful statue from the Church of Shuni. Her peach-shaped buttocks, almost as wide as her shoulders, were incredibly pert. When she sat there, her slender yet slightly fleshy waistline formed a near 90° angle with her hips. Even the slightest sway of her waist made his eyes tremble.

"You're here?" The woman turned around, her pale purple eyes beneath the veil shining brightly as if illuminated by a magic lamp. The moment she turned, her full, milky, alluring breasts were enough to tempt Eve to fall. "Sit down. You can leave after you open that bottle of wine."

The croupier, relieved, opened the wine bottle, poured it to one-third full, and left. DuPont, on the other hand, stood there as if he had been punished, head bowed, at a loss. He tentatively asked, "Mentor?"

“Kid, I haven’t taken you on as an apprentice yet.” Veronica looked at the reserved young man in front of her and sized him up carefully.

Yes, she is good-looking. My daughter has good taste.

But why is he so cowardly? It doesn't seem to match the results of my investigation over the past few days.

Am I just putting on an act?

"Hey, you killed those people, didn't you? Why are you suddenly so reserved now?" Veronica said, covering her mouth and yawning. Her free, slender hand gently swirled the wine in her glass, the bright red wine spinning rapidly within the crystal. "Tell me," she said, "I don't want to hear lies."

"I was rewarded with a health amulet, but I didn't really need it for my stats, so I came here to sell it. It turns out the people here probably thought I was young and wanted to steal my things. When I realized something was wrong, I used a fireball scroll to cripple them, and the rest was easy."

“That’s right. As a mage, you should act decisively when you notice something is wrong. People who try to reason with you are usually the ones who die faster.” Veronica nodded, but she didn’t expect that DuPont would lower his head again and not dare to look at her when he saw this scene.

Thinking of this, Veronica lowered her head, her face instantly turning crimson. She took out a shawl and draped it over her shoulders to cover the exposed skin.

I've gotten to know these female dealers pretty well these past few days, so when the weather got hot, I changed into something cooler. I never expected to run into this guy.

As long as you don't care, there won't be any awkwardness. Veronica took a sip of her drink, looking nonchalant: "By the way, what's your name?"

For a great mage, photographic memory should be a basic skill, but since the other party was pretending to be confused, he didn't mind playing along: "DuPont."

"Hmm, this doesn't seem like a particularly remarkable surname. To jump from 14 to 18 in less than three years is beyond the realm of common sense. After all, this isn't something you can achieve by simply working out like a muscle. You'd be more believable if you said you were 12 with an 18 in intelligence." The female mage's eyes gleamed with curiosity as she spoke. "Usually, only evil gods and demon lords are so generous; they'd overdraw a person's potential and lifespan to enhance their strength. What are your thoughts on this?"

DuPont looked bewildered: "I don't know, maybe it's some kind of lady's blessing?"

To DuPont's surprise, Veronica actually looked him over seriously after hearing this and agreed, saying, "Ladies like handsome young men, so it's possible that there really is such a possibility."

DuPont is sweating now.

(End of this chapter)