I was an apprentice in Ferren

Chapter 140 Division of Loot and Land Deeds (Third Update)

The spell chosen by his mentor was so powerful that DuPont couldn't contain his excitement and began to study it on his own. Half an hour later, he couldn't help but scratch his head.

Damn, no wonder the old spell system was phased out. The spell model for just the first level has half as many modules as he normally learns. Although he had sorted out his thinking and originally knew Mage Armor, relearning his previous experience was actually misleading. Many spell details were completely different, making it even more troublesome than learning a new spell.

However, being no beginner, DuPont quickly managed to arrange the spell modules successfully thanks to his extensive experience. As the sun set, he finally cast the spell again. The new robes given to him by the church shone brightly, looking almost identical to the armor he was wearing.

Hmm, this might be useful for tricking people.
He chuckled somewhat wickedly, but before he could rest for a while, adjust his mindset, and continue tackling the challenge, a sound suddenly came from the door.

"DuPont, let's go out for dinner, it's a church victory celebration!"

It was Deva's voice.

"So efficient?" The paladin girl opened the door and changed into a beige dress, looking exceptionally fresh. "It's alright. The church's knights use teleportation arrays to capture people. As long as they have accurate information and are still in the city, the arcane knights and inquisitors can appear in all the towns of Harua within half an hour. According to the information you submitted about the mansions, the church has already cleared them all out and captured quite a few blood slaves and bewitched mortals."

"The Church's glory is truly everywhere..." DuPont said, but a chill ran through him. It seemed that if he crossed a line, he wouldn't have anywhere to run. "By the way, what about those who were arrested?"

“Blood slaves will most likely be locked up and interrogated to confess their crimes. If they haven’t committed any capital crimes, there’s still a need to save them. The church will also take in some blood slaves, but I’m not sure whether they’ll be reformed, imprisoned, or used for something else.” Deva said, taking out a mask. “I heard that your Northwest Academy’s High Priest is also here. He even specially arranged a Hero’s Banquet to entertain all the main participants in this matter. We were also involved.”

"This food probably isn't very appetizing," DuPont thought instinctively, sensing something was amiss. "These vampires have lived for decades, even centuries; they're deeply entrenched. And we've even involved a powerful sorcerer. We've offended quite a few people this time; it wouldn't look good if someone saw us like this."

“Look, I knew you were worried, so I gave you these anti-spy masks.” Deva placed the Zorro-like mask on the table: “It prevents spying and hides your face. Each one is worth about 2000 gold, and it’s even better looking than the mask we captured. But we have to return it later.”

"Alright." DuPont put on the mask, looked in the mirror, and found that his face was completely hidden in the darkness: "This is too ugly. And what's the point of just hiding the face? If you really cared, couldn't you at least memorize the rest of the face?"

“So most people don’t bring one. After all, we’re all partners of justice, so what’s there to worry about? Only you mages are so suspicious. Of course, you can bring your own cloak to cover yourself up.” Deva poked Dupont’s waist as she spoke: “You haven’t seen the equipment of the Lord of Waterdeep City and the others. They look all dark and wear big bucket-like helmets on their faces. They’re absolutely hideous.”

"Alright, then we won't bring it. Anyway, it won't be difficult for anyone to find our information this time." DuPont said, tossing the mask into his spatial bag. "By the way, we haven't divided the spoils yet."

“Pah, what do you mean by dividing the spoils? These are the spoils of war!” Deva said, taking out gems and gold coins, which DuPont had given her before: “The curses on them have now been completely purified by the church. It’s about 13,000 in total.”

The girl, somewhat embarrassed, withdrew her right foot and tapped the floor with her toe. "I wasn't much help this time. You practically killed that vampire all by yourself. You should keep the money." "What are you saying? Without your item that countered his regenerative abilities, I could only have forced him back at most. Besides, your magical item was damaged. According to the adventure team, you should be compensated." DuPont said, taking out the spatial bag and the items from the vampire. "The small stuff is fine, but these valuables should normally be split equally among us."

"Forget about these things. I don't want to use vampire magic items. Besides, this sword is heavier than a greatsword, so it's not very useful against agile enemies." Deva looked at the two items with disdain. "The magic items were given to me by my mother. Things I made myself don't cost money. The cost was only about a hundred gold, so it's nothing."

“Making magical items takes time too.” DuPont pushed 10 gems in front of the other person: “Here, you take more of the gems, I’ll use the rest. Next time, you can take the loot first.”

"Alright then." The paladin accepted it nonchalantly. "By the way, the church said the property tax inside would be about five thousand gold. Do you consider yourself well-off?"

"So many?" DuPont was somewhat tempted. "Could I sell these properties to the church?"

“It might not be worth that much money even if it were sold. The main issue is who would buy a villa or manor that a vampire once lived in? Who knows how many people have died in those places?” Deva said, a hint of indignation flashing in her eyes. “Like that vampire in Aleville, a sacrificial ritual was found in his temporary residence. Just removing the blood and purifying it would probably cost hundreds of gold. And his 300-acre manor has been found with hundreds of skeletons. The church is still searching for information about the dead to move their remains to the church’s cemetery to prevent them from being controlled by necromancers in the future.”

Upon hearing this news, DuPont felt a pang of unease. Not only did the other party look down on it, but he himself would also find this place unappealing, especially since this world was truly haunted: "I remember six large land deeds. How much could one of them sell for at the very least?"

"The lowest would be from Mead Town, but normally it would be donated instead of sold, since no one except the church would want such a place."

Upon hearing this, DuPont felt like he'd been plunged into a nightmare: "No way, donating the houses in the city is one thing, but donating the estate with the land? I could make several hundred gold coins just by renting it out for a year."

"The income from renting land is not that high. As far as I know, the church usually rents out land to farmers for about 4 to 6 taels of silver. Two acres are worth one tael of gold, so three hundred acres would only be 150 taels of gold. If you grow grapes or other commodities, you can earn a little more, but usually you have to hire people to manage it yourself, and you also have to hire a steward or something. Anyway, it's very troublesome."

"What are the benefits of donating to the church?"

"Ah, what are the benefits?" Deva blinked her clear eyes. "Isn't it normal to donate supplies to the church? But there are benefits too. I can usually find Ms. Baiye's Friendly Church to stay and eat wherever I go. If I get injured, the priests there will treat me. They won't say anything if I use some medicine, supplies, or repair items. They basically don't charge me!"

"Never mind, I'll go talk to the church pastor later." He couldn't understand talking to this paladin. How could a great mage like Veronica raise such an innocent daughter? DuPont patted the man on the shoulder: "By the way, could you tell me what your mental attributes were when the church tested your physical attributes?"

(End of this chapter)