Chapter 12

"Oh? With your standards, Lady, you would actually let a candidate apprentice serve as an assistant?"

Holt heard Lady Ailan's reply and was instead piqued with interest, looking at Luo En with keen curiosity:

"It seems you have found another good seedling."

He took a small bottle from his bosom:

"This is some artificial Star Dew, consider it a welcoming gift for a newcomer. Although its effects are far inferior to true natural Star Dew, it is still somewhat helpful for enhancing mental power."

Luo En was about to express his thanks, but Lady Ailan had already taken the medicine bottle:

"Then I will thank Apprentice Holt on his behalf, but this child still needs to take things slowly; it is too early for him to use this now."

Seeing this, Holt just gave a faint smile and said nothing more. He placed all the medicinal herbs he had purchased into a special narrow-mouthed cloth bag at his waist and turned to leave.

The gray-blue robe vanished at the doorway in an instant, as if it had never appeared at all.

Not until that peculiar magical fluctuation had completely dissipated did Lady Ailan turn her head to look at him:

"You kid are quite lucky. Holt is a quasi-wizard about to be promoted; the things in his hands are never simple."

She carefully put away the crystal bottle:

"This bottle of 'artificial Star Dew' is refined from the essence of stars falling from the sky. Although it cannot compare to naturally condensed ones, at the apprentice level, you won't find a better magic potion than this."

"I will keep it for you for now; I will return it to you after you pass the apprentice assessment."

She glanced at Luo En: "With your current strength, having a magic potion of this grade in your hands is not a good thing."

Luo En nodded, having no objections. He understood the simple principle that an innocent man is guilty of his own treasure.

"By the way." Lady Ailan did not want to let him off so easily: "How did you activate the medicinal properties of that Star Herb just now?"

Luo En stopped his work and told her truthfully according to his own understanding:

"When I was organizing it, I discovered that the fluctuations it emitted were very similar to the mental power during meditation. So I tried to arrange it using a similar rhythm."

"So that's how it is." A rare trace of a smile appeared on the old witch's terrifying, deeply-lined face:

"It seems you truly have some talent in the perception of mental power; no wonder Holt would be interested in you."

"Help me sort and organize these Evening Primroses."

The idle chat ended, and Lady Ailan pointed to the medicinal herbs in the corner and began assigning him tasks again:

"Remember, they must be arranged according to the time they were picked."

Luo En nodded in agreement. In the process of organizing, he casually mentioned the person in the dark cloak he had seen leaving the dormitory area in a hurry this morning.

"Oh, that is the errand runner responsible for delivering letters and sundries to the apprentices. It is said that they have a connection to the royal family on your side."

Lady Ailan said without looking up: "They often travel back and forth between the mortal kingdom and here."

Luo En silently noted this information. Come to think of it, the number of magic stone fragments delivered at the beginning of each month was always different.

Last month it was seven pieces, but this month there were only six.

This was very strange. In his memory, his father was a man who was serious to the point of being rigid.

After he succeeded his grandfather as Count, there had never been an error of even a single silver coin in the manor's accounts.

If it were he who arranged for someone to send the magic stone fragments, it would be impossible for the numbers to be inconsistent.

………………

In the Faruk Kingdom, in Count Ralph's study, the firelight from the fireplace projected the man's shadow onto the wall, making it appear exceptionally tall.

"These are the ten magic stone fragments for this month."

He handed a carefully sealed leather bag to the butler: "The same old rules, have Mr. Hawkins take them to the Black Fog Forest."

The butler took the leather bag, feeling its heavy weight: "Master, did you mortgage the vineyard on the east side of the manor?"

Count Ralph did not deny it. Last year's plague led to a poor harvest on the farmland, and coupled with the expenses of his other children, the manor was already living beyond its means.

But he had to ensure that he could send enough resources to Luo En every month. In a place like the Black Fog Forest, one could not move an inch without magic stone fragments.

"I was lax in my discipline of that child back then." The Count stood by the window, looking at the withered wheat fields in the distance: "Now I can only do my best to help him overcome his difficulties."

The butler acknowledged and withdrew, putting the leather bag away and placing it in the highest-standard storage room in the manor.

And when this messenger—Mr. Hawkins—arrived as usual a few days later, a flash of greed quickly crossed his eyes as he tucked the leather bag into his bosom.

………………

Lady Ailan walked to the shelf in the corner and took out a cloth bag:

"Let's stop here for today. These are some ordinary refreshing medicinal herbs; consider them an extra reward for your work."

"Thank you, Lady Ailan."

"By the way..." Lady Ailan said as he prepared to leave: "Come a little earlier tomorrow; I plan to teach you some simple methods for refining potions."

When he walked out of the herb shop, the morning mist had already been dispersed by the sunlight.

Luo En recalled everything that had happened today, his heart filled with both surprise and a bit of worry.

The opportunities brought by this job far exceeded his expectations, but at the same time, it meant attracting more attention.

When he returned to the dormitory, Luo En found Andre waiting outside his door.

"How was it? Did the first day go smoothly?" Andre asked with a smile, but there was a hint of worry in his eyes.

Luo En did not answer immediately, but opened the door to confirm no one was around, and only then did he briefly recount what had happened today.

"Star Dew?!" Andre gasped, "Could that high-level apprentice be..."

He suddenly lowered his voice: "Lord Holt?"

Seeing Luo En's puzzled look, Andre explained:

"He is one of the few high-level apprentices in our school who has shown extremely high talent in magic potions. It is said that he also has great achievements in the research and application of star orbits."

"However..." He hesitated.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Andre shook his head, "Just reminding you to be careful. It's a good thing to get others' attention, but at the same time, it means..."

Luo En understood what he meant. In this world where wizards dominate everything, any peculiarity could bring danger.

"By the way," Andre changed the subject, "the second body-tempering session starts this afternoon. Are you ready?"

Luo En nodded and took out the medicinal herbs the shopkeeper had given him from the cloth bag: "These should be able to help."

As he organized the herbs, he recalled the day's gains and the increase in his skill experience points.

Whether it was the perception of the "rhythm" of the herbs or the conversations with Holt and Lady Ailan, it all gave him a deeper understanding of this world.

Asking why the accounts weren't checked when they were sent over; this foreshadowing will be fulfilled in Chapter 64.

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(End of this chapter)