I was an apprentice in Ferren

Chapter 114 Receiving Money
Looking at the ten heavy money bags on the table, a hint of smugness flashed in DuPont's eyes.

Back then, I was tortured to the point of death by 1000 gold coins. I even had to kill pigs and wolves for a few points of experience to advance. It was a miserable and tense day.

In less than a month, he has already started accepting bribes. People are offering him 10,000 gold coins, and he can't refuse them.

You can receive this money again after two months, which is equivalent to getting 5000 gold coins for free every month.

This is a stipend that even high-level mages don't receive; it's practically free money.

If he had made this request before tonight, the other party would probably have just used the money to hire a highly skilled assassin to eliminate any future trouble.

So DuPont's initial idea was to take the remaining 1800 gold coins. If the other party dared to play dirty tricks, he didn't care to use the fireball scroll he had just bought to destroy the opponent.

Anyway, if he can't win, he can just leave; that teleportation staff has magic power.

But Veronica's appearance made him change his strategy instantly; the 4000 gold coins he asked for were just an appetizer to test the bottom line of these guys.

The reason DuPont dares to do this is simple: they have powerful backers!

I ask you, Grand Master, are you afraid?
Many factions in Faerûn despise the law of the jungle where might makes right, but these rules that contradict the law have long been ingrained in people's minds. Apart from the paladins, who would consider justice and the law to be the most important things all the time?
Even if Harua could truly be fair and just, the mages are the cornerstone of the regime here. Whether it's political power, the economy, productivity, or development, the mages have the final say. They naturally enjoy many privileges, and even the priests backed by the Magic Church cannot influence their actual decisions.

Even many church pastors were once magicians, so it can be said that all things are inferior, only arcane magic is superior.

Of course, the law must be obeyed on the surface, even for the highest-ranking sorcerers. But if a sorcerer's child suffers injustice and helps her vent her anger, then as long as the innocent are not implicated, no one can say anything.

The archmages are all incredibly wealthy and powerful. Even if they're not married, who wouldn't have friends, lovers, and children? How could they be bullied by a bunch of barbarians who don't even know arcane magic?
To put it mildly, it's a challenge to the authority of the judiciary; to put it more bluntly, it's a disregard for women!
When dealing with someone who has no self-awareness, you have to strike hard!

What's more, they were in the right in this matter; no one even died during the handling of the case, they just won some money while playing cards.

It could be said that his mentor's approach was gentle, and absolutely considerate of the local city hall and Lavoisier's reputation.

However, as the saying goes, it's easier to see the King of Hell than to deal with his underlings. Veronica's anger had subsided considerably, but DuPont didn't mind playing the underling and making those bastards who ambushed him bleed.

Although he, as an apprentice, could only receive a special allowance of 600 gold per year even after becoming a formal mage, it was different when he was a mentor. Receiving 10,000 gold in two months was definitely not much.

If something really goes wrong, they can just pack their bags and walk away; as for any responsibility, they shouldn't even think about it.

It's fair to say that as long as you put 2 gold coins into your spatial bag, it doesn't matter whether you receive them or not after two months.

It's all a risk-free business anyway; getting it is a guaranteed profit.

If they really want to hold someone accountable, they can just hand over the money to the national treasury and write a self-criticism. After all, they are minors and their minds are not fully developed, so it's understandable that a child would do anything.

I was just rambling on and on, and these idiots immediately started throwing money at me. Wouldn't it be stupid to refuse money?

As for these guys' testimonies and evidence, they were involved in illegal transactions, so can their words be trusted? And this little bit of money can bribe a high-ranking mage?

This judge probably can't tell who's on his side; it's time to find someone else to preside over the case.

He put the money into his spatial bag, but DuPont's face didn't show any extra smile; he was completely businesslike: "Don't worry, I'll inform you as much as possible if there's any bad news. You guys should also keep a low profile. Those who don't follow the rules won't have anyone to protect them if they capsize."

“Your words are wise,” the dwarf said, pointing to the ceiling. “Actually, the problems of White Stone City don’t need your concern, Master. If you are interested, we can help sell some magical items without charging taxes, as long as she needs them. Of course, you are also willing to meet this condition.”

DuPont casually replied, "We'll talk about that later. Masterpieces never have trouble selling."

“That’s natural.” The dwarf said, rubbing his hands together. “If that master could supply us with one ultra-rare, or even legendary, item every quarter for us to auction, our reputation would grow even greater. As our income increases, we could provide her with more money each month. I hope you can pass on this message.”

"Sure, I'll pass it on." Having already received the money, DuPont naturally wouldn't refuse a casual mention: "By the way, if you really make a big fuss, aren't you afraid of getting investigated?"

“We naturally have powerful backers in Whitestone City, and those competing products don’t conflict with most local magic shops. After all, foreign buyers don’t come here to purchase goods; only adventurers do business here.” The dwarf said, taking out a gem worth five hundred gold and handing it to DuPont. “Also, if that paladin lady wants to come back to work in Whitestone City, we will help her make arrangements. Becoming a formal captain by the end of the year is no problem, and we guarantee it will be reasonable and won’t make her feel awkward.”

DuPont put the gemstone in his bag, his expression immediately becoming much more amiable: "My opinion doesn't count in this matter. We'll see if she gets tired of staying here."

"Haha, you're quite the character, sir. By the way, I wonder if you have a girlfriend? My superiors think highly of a young talent like you. If you're interested, we can introduce you to some young and beautiful noble ladies. They're all of impeccable character and virtue, and if you're not satisfied, you can get a refund or exchange!"

"That's fine, some things depend on my advisor's arrangements." DuPont shook his head: "Alright, it's getting late, I'll come and bother you again later."

"Hey, come visit sometime!"

Back at the hotel, DuPont activated the communication stone and told him the truth. He was immediately laughed and scolded: "Oh, you're really audacious. I haven't even officially accepted you as my apprentice yet, and you dare to act like a bully?"

"Why not take their dirty money? Of course, if anything goes wrong, it's because I'm a young apprentice who's never seen money before and I was fooled by them. How could I possibly have anything to do with my master, the great mage?"

Upon hearing DuPont's words, the communication talisman emitted a series of silvery laughs, and after a while, it replied: "You're quite an interesting kid. Since you got this 10,000 gold yourself, you can use it as you see fit. I believe you'll use this money to improve your strength, rather than spending it on some unimportant and time-wasting pastimes."

This was an absolute surprise. DuPont, who was prepared for a 70/30 split, agreed repeatedly. Finally, Veronica told him she needed to get her beauty sleep and not to contact her again that night before hanging up.

The conversation ended, and as the gemstone finally dimmed, Deva looked curiously at Veronica, whose smile hadn't faded: "Mother, what's making you so happy?"

"Of course it's because you, my little fool, have finally figured it out." The female mage tapped her daughter's nose. "People should learn to go with the flow. If all else fails, they should accumulate strength and wait for the right opportunity. If you have to force yourself to do everything, you'll end up getting hurt and the results won't be very good. It's a waste of time and effort, isn't it?"

Deva nodded, somewhat bewildered, then asked with a hint of doubt, "But this seems to conflict with the doctrine."

"Doctrines are dead, but people are alive. The Lord of Dawn and the God of Justice hate evil and their churches often launch righteous expeditions, but they themselves don't fight the three evil gods to the death every day, do they?"

Veronica kissed her daughter's forehead as she spoke: "Sometimes a little bit of restraint can bring us greater results. And if you really feel awkward, you can ask your friends. It's always better to have many ideas than to be stuck in a rut by yourself, right?"

“Hmm.” Speaking of this, Deva remembered something: “By the way, Mother, I told you about DuPont before. It seems he has become a level 4 mage. Are you interested in taking him on as an apprentice? I feel he has a lot of potential and a lot of ideas. He gave me some suggestions in Beer Town this time, so he should be able to help you.”

"About this matter..." Veronica was about to tell the truth, but then she remembered that DuPont was really the main reason for Deva's resignation. If she agreed to meet more often in the future now, she might accidentally let it slip.

Although this young lady has recently experienced some setbacks and grown a bit, she is still inexperienced. With DuPont's audacious personality, if the two of them were together, they might easily fall into trouble, and one of them might break their vow if she couldn't understand.

Once Deva's personality becomes more composed, or DuPont becomes more skillful and meticulous in his work, their contrasting personalities will complement each other, making the sum of their parts greater than the sum of their parts. Whether governing a region or going on adventures, they will have each other as companions.

Conversely, if the two people have completely different ideas now, getting together too early might lead to many conflicts, and the outcome for them might not be good.

After all, DuPont is a capable and ambitious guy, not at all like someone who would be content to live off a woman.

It's better to take this matter into consideration in the long run.

"Now that you mention it, he seems like a talented person. I'll have a chat with Lavoisier later. Of course, you can contact him to do some contract work. Time will tell, and you'll know what kind of person he is after spending more time with him."

"Mmm." Deva was nodding when she suddenly realized something was wrong. She immediately said in a coquettish voice, "What do you mean by spending too much time together? This guy always talks to me like I'm a child. I don't want to be with him."

Veronica chuckled inwardly: "Really? Don't be in a hurry when I introduce him to my other apprentices."

"Who cares?" Deva puffed out her cheeks and snuggled into her mother's arms, then suddenly remembered something: "Mother, didn't you always find it troublesome and never take on any apprentices?"

“You can take on apprentices whenever you want. Besides, how would you know if I’ve taken one or not?” Veronica said, closing her eyes to hide the ambiguous look in them. “Alright, go to sleep. I have other things to do tomorrow. Your mother is very busy.”

"Ah."

(End of this chapter)