I was an apprentice in Ferren

Chapter 44 Lottery
Upon hearing DuPont's voice, Angie subtly shifted her gaze.

Because of attending services and participating in the choir, Angie knows quite a few apprentices. However, since there is no affiliation between the church and the college, and there is a certain professional gap between the priest and the pastor, she doesn't have any friends here, and they are basically just nodding acquaintances.

She wasn't exactly close to DuPont, but the impression that handsome young man with a filthy mind had left on her last Sunday was so profound that it would be hard to forget him in a short time.

"The second-circle spell Mechanize Mind will cause the recipient's brain to function like a machine during its casting. They will no longer experience any fear, and any action will only consider the optimal solution, resulting in purely rational thinking. However, this can very likely lead to accidental injury or disability. It is only recommended to use this spell in extremely critical situations. Otherwise, it is better to use other control spells to buy time."

"Sixth-circle transformation magic also includes a spell called Battle Mage Conversion. In this state, your body will possess melee skills comparable to those of a warrior. Both your attack and parry probabilities will increase significantly. However, most mages do not possess the abilities of warriors, nor do they have the hundreds of melee experiences of high-level warriors. Trying to compete with warriors in melee combat using this spell is a foolish act. Whether you are a normal academic mage or a battle mage, our most important combat strategy is always to use our brains, find the enemy's weakest point, and break through the enemy in one fell swoop."

"Alright, that's enough for today. Would any student like to demonstrate some apprentice-level melee skills and set an example for the others?"

The instructor didn't have high hopes when he said this. For many apprentices, this combat class was basically an extracurricular activity. It was better to relax and unwind than to hone their close combat skills. Some of them would just show up, register, and then sneak back to their dorms to rest.

For most apprentices, becoming a level 5 mage and learning Fireball as soon as possible is the most correct path for their growth. If they really have to go on an adventure and the situation becomes dangerous, they can use Invisibility to run away and ignore their teammates.

Survival is the only real thing.

To the instructor's surprise, someone actually came up on his own initiative. He was quite large, about six feet tall, and wearing a white shirt and green pants, his exaggerated waist was at least three and a half feet. Among the third-year students, he was definitely outstanding in both height and weight.

He scratched his face, which was covered in red dragon scales, and said in a deep voice, "Instructor, I'm Pete from the Energy Shaping Department. We had some conflicts with the Architecture Department before, but fighting is prohibited in the academy. I'd like to take this opportunity to talk to the Architecture students and resolve the conflict. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, the apprentices immediately shifted their gaze from the fat ball to the architecture department. The dozen or so people in the architecture department were well aware of the conflict that had occurred last week, and all looked at DuPont and his companion.

Charles was stunned when he saw that the people coming up were Pete's descendants. He obviously did not expect these guys to be so shameless. Even DuPont looked ugly and could not speak for a long time.

There's a saying that a strong body is never a disadvantage. This Pete looks to be at least 300 pounds, and he even has dragon scales on his skin, so he must be a dragon vein sorcerer. His muscles and bones are much stronger than those of humans.

The mage's armor increases basic armor, but it's similar to chainmail in that it protects against cuts but not blunt force. If he were to hit you with a stick, a bone fracture would be the least of your worries.

“Isn’t this a bit inappropriate?” DuPont and Charles exchanged a glance, and the latter immediately exclaimed, “We are all third-year apprentices, but Pete has been stuck in the third year because of his poor academic performance. He’s almost 20 now, and the oldest of us is only 14. Isn’t this like adults hitting children?”

DuPont didn't speak, but a familiar-looking classmate next to him shouted, "We all saw the conflict. It was that skinny monkey who started it. Why is he not fighting now but finding someone else to fight for him? Isn't this just a coward being bullied and then seeking help from adults? He doesn't even have any shame!" Hearing him say this, the other civil engineering mages immediately objected. Pete was at a loss when he saw this scene, his mouth opening and closing but not knowing what to say.

The instructor looked towards the Evoking Department and saw that Connor's small group looked grim, exchanging glances as if they were communicating with each other. He immediately felt impatient: "Let's have that student come up here."

Skinny Monkey had no confidence in this situation and regretted that he should have sent a normal person instead. He hesitated and refused to go on stage. But the instructor was displeased when he saw this and angrily shouted, "This is not a place for you to play house. Either come and fight or admit defeat and get lost. Go find a secluded place to practice!"

Connor and Bran exchanged a glance, and the latter stepped forward: "Instructor, we do have a conflict with these two, so it's reasonable for us to send Mount and Pete, right? They can let those two go too, it's best two out of three."

Mount's face was still grim after hearing this, but since Bran's words must have been approved by Connor, he quickly walked to the middle, stood next to the instructor, glared at DuPont and Bran, and said provocatively, "I'm here, you two better not back down!"

Now the classmates who had originally voiced their support were hesitant to say anything. DuPont and Charles exchanged a glance and were about to speak when Annie interjected, "Since the other side has already sent two people, then this is fair. However, since it's an exchange, we must be careful with our strength. It would be too hurtful to cause any problems."

DuPont and the other man were about to discuss a strategy when they heard this and both looked at Annie. The girl didn't dare to meet his gaze and looked to the side. Mount laughed and said, "Since your class monitor thinks it's fair, then come up here. How come I dare to go up on stage and you guys are going to be cowards? You don't even have the guts to have a friendly spar?"

"Heh, enough with the nonsense. Why not just fight?" DuPont said, pointing to his feet. "The Elf Boots, a rare item that increases stealth and makes you walk silently. They're worth around 600 gold coins on the market. I'll use these boots as a wager against your little team. If you dare, then put up the corresponding amount of gold coins. If you don't dare, then get lost. I really have no interest in wasting my time with you."

Many onlookers were surprised to see the genuine magic boots.

Although there are many wealthy people in the academy, 600 gold coins is still not a small amount. It would be enough to collect scrolls and complete tasks for three months. However, apart from extremely wealthy families, even top students, who doesn't need to copy scrolls unless they become a tutor's private apprentice?

If someone truly has that kind of ability, why would they bother coming here to study and eat at the same communal kitchen? They could just pay a little more each year and become a private apprentice to their professor.

Upon hearing this, Connor and the others immediately hesitated.

They could scrape together the money, but was it really necessary to do this?

(End of this chapter)