Old Men Are Very Bad

Hearing this, Du Pont couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion, pretending to be an inquisitive child: "So Dean, you have such a glorious past. I wish I had that ability too. Then I could go anywhere in Faerûn and do whatever I wanted?"

"That's not necessarily true. Sometimes, having too much power also has its limitations, especially for someone like Lavoisier, who has family ties. Now, he can only stay here obediently. Without an imperial edict, he can basically only stay in this Mage Academy. What's the difference between that and being in prison?" The Butcher was about to say more, but the Halfling coughed: "Alright, if he hears you, be careful he docks your pay."

Hearing this, the Butcher knew he had spoken out of turn, laughed a few times, and stopped talking. He just patted Du Pont's shoulder with his greasy hand: "Alright, come with me to the mountains later. You want to go on an adventure so badly, I'll let you experience some real combat first, so you don't die on your first mission and we can't even find a complete corpse."

Hearing this, Du Pont nodded, feeling a little excited inside.

Wasn't he waiting for these words after busying himself for so long? It wasn't a waste of his time.

When the pig trotters were brought up, none of the three wasted any words and started gnawing directly. The Butcher finished eating and was about to finish off the last pig trotter, but the Halfling stopped him: "I'm saving this one for Lavoisier."

The Butcher snorted: "He said he doesn't eat this stuff, it's beneath him."

"That's because he doesn't know how delicious it is. Besides, whether he eats it or not is his business. It's a bit too unkind of us to not leave him any."

After hearing this, the Butcher muttered a Northlands dialect, but still obediently didn't touch the pig trotter. He took out a white towel with a magical glow and wiped the grease off his hands: "When he eats it, don't forget to tease him, he has a lot of bad habits."

Du Pont, of course, didn't care about this. If this pig trotter could leave an impression on the Dean, that would be a real pleasant surprise.

What future is there in fighting with the little kids in the academy all day? Getting to know a real big shot is the fastest way to cross classes. If he could really get some reward from Lavoisier, even a little something that slipped through his fingers would be enough to satisfy his prerequisite of 1000 Gold Coins.

However, Du Pont didn't put all his hopes on this, because it was somewhat unrealistic.

With his current abilities, even if he was highly regarded, he would only become a cook in the academy like Judy. It would be almost impossible to get more.

If he wanted to be valued, he had to have the ability. How could creatures like Archmages, who absolutely respect rationality and don't know how much emotion they have left, be as inseparable from flattering sycophants as those fatuous emperors?

If there was really no way, then he could only become a salted fish and live a plain life.

But if there was still a possibility, who wouldn't want to take a chance?

He could just lie down again if he really wasn't cut out for it, but before that, he always had to try to fight once.

Before leaving, Boulderstone swiped a few loaves of bread from the kitchen and stuffed some meat patties into his pockets. The other cooks turned a blind eye to this. He saw that Du Pont was too embarrassed to take any, so he took an extra portion and threw it into his hands: "Just take it, the cafeteria always has leftovers every day anyway. The leftovers are sold to taverns in nearby towns at low prices or simply donated. No one will say anything if we take some."

Du Pont shook his head. It was one thing for the cooks to taste the food, but taking it was another: "It normally costs 30 Copper Coins to buy a portion."

"That's right, who would care about something that's less than half a Silver?" The Butcher didn't understand Du Pont's words, or rather, he didn't care about such trivial matters at all: "Let's go, don't delay the trip, otherwise there will be fewer prey coming out when it gets hot."

Du Pont shook his head, threw down 3 Copper Coin pillars tied with 10 Copper Coins each, and left with the meal.

The Butcher could ignore the rules, but he couldn't. After all, even if he was familiar with them, he was still an apprentice in this academy.

Even if Lavoisier didn't care, it wouldn't be worth it if some apprentices or mentors found out and made fun of him.

This was Du Pont's first time leaving the Mage Academy, whether in his previous life or this one.

Although there was almost no danger around the academy, wandering around was undoubtedly a waste of time, not to mention that it was very likely to cost money.

But for Du Pont, a modern person, there were many strange things here.

The four-meter-wide road was compacted by golems, and the smooth surface had not a single weed. Elm trees on both sides of the road were sprouting new buds, and birds were hiding in the treetops, quietly watching pedestrians. Once they made eye contact, they would spread their wings and leave, changing trees to continue observing quietly.

When crossing the bridge, the streams between the rivers flowed freely, and beautiful pebbles reflected a gentle light in the sun. The stream was so clear that you could see the gold flecks on the sand grains at the bottom, and several finger-length small fish swam slowly in it.

Walking in this natural and pure wilderness, Du Pont only felt that the pressure was much less.

Although the air in the academy was also good, the fast-paced life and tense atmosphere inevitably made people feel depressed after a long time. The ubiquitous competition also made people unknowingly enter into internal friction. It could be said that competition was everywhere.

And in this wilderness path, the haze originally buried above his head instantly dissipated. Whether it was the rustling sound of the wind blowing through the wheat seedlings or the occasional unknown bird calls, it made him feel very pleasant, as if he had awakened the dependence on nature in his ancestral bloodline, and he didn't want to return to the cold academy built with cement and stone at all.

The only shortcoming was that Boulderstone didn't give him much time to appreciate the scenery. Although he would take out a bottle of Alevale from his waist from time to time and drink it heartily, and then throw it away casually without any morality, even if Du Pont quietly used the spell Expeditious Retreat, which made his body more flexible and his steps easier, keeping up with the other party's pace still made him sweat profusely.

Barbarians were originally known for their strength and endurance. Boulderstone was tall and had long legs, and he was also an adventurer. The speed at which he walked forward was almost as fast as Du Pont's trot.

However, the joy of regaining freedom made him ignore the physical fatigue and just persevere silently.

Although he hadn't done physical exercise for a long time, he had also supervised the team to pour concrete overnight when necessary. How could he not have this perseverance?

Half an hour later, the two climbed over a low hill and finally arrived at a small village surrounded by wooden fences.

"Barley Village, relying on the cold river water of Mount Tarras and Gelaraga, this area is the most suitable place in Haluar to grow barley, although it tastes just like that." Boulderstone simply pointed to the village in front of him: "This Barley Village has a total of more than 300 people. Although it's not poor, it's too small after all. The taverns inside don't even have decent barmaids. They're all too old for you. Basically, only country bumpkins can see them, and you can only get some of the lowest-level contract tasks. If you're interested, you can go to the towns further away. That's where you'll find young and beautiful girls."

Du Pont was a little ashamed after hearing this: "Don't mess around. If I really wanted to find a girl, I might as well find one from the academy. Why bother coming out to buy happiness?"

"It's definitely different. Finding a barmaid is just for entertainment to satisfy the needs of the body. Dating takes time and energy, and if you're not careful, you'll get angry and find someone else. Then you'll have to fight. It's far better to spend a little money to play a game directly and save yourself the trouble. Most adventurers do this, otherwise a team with feelings is often very cumbersome, and many teams break up because of this."

After Boulderstone finished speaking, he looked at Du Pont shaking his head and smiled: "What's wrong, you don't have that so-called. aristocratic moral cleanliness, do you? Could it be that you're still a virgin?"

Du Pont's waist was straightened: "I call this keeping myself pure, okay? Not to mention that I'm a new youth with ideals. I'm different from an old man like you who even feels that dating is troublesome. Don't use your dirty view of interests to corrupt me."

"You're a man and you're still keeping yourself pure?" The Barbarian couldn't help laughing when he heard this: "Then you have to be careful. This world is not peaceful. Maybe one day Drow will pop out from underground or some Harpies will come and kidnap you. When your virginity is taken away, will you have to cry while hugging your quilt?"

Du Pont: "..."

When I become an Archmage one day, you just watch if I hire a group of Barbarian old women to ruin you.