I was an apprentice in Ferren

Chapter 66 Right and Wrong
Due to the materials and craftsmanship involved, dimensional bags have always been in high demand. The materials for the Health Amulet itself cost approximately 1500 gold coins, the crafting value is about 1500 gold coins, and considering depreciation and the cost of selling it as a secondhand item, the estimated value is 2000 gold coins.

If users feel the price is not right, they can consider selling it themselves and exchanging it for gold coins.

Only a fool would sell something worth 4000 gold coins for half the price. But if this item were sold in a magic shop in the city, how much would be left?

The magic shop probably won't buy back the items at the original price. A 10% discount would result in 3600 gold, while an 80% discount would result in 3200 gold. That's still a bit of a loss.
Thinking about it this way, selling it to a private individual would definitely be the most cost-effective option, but the people I know either don't need this item, or they are apprentices like myself. Low-level adventurers like Thomas and his sister don't have the money to buy it.

Never mind, I'll go check it out after I finish what I'm doing.

While he was pondering, DuPont had been on the beach until dawn. He looked at the Book of Dexterity in his hand and waited for 5 minutes, but Lavoisier still did not appear. So he directly read the book and tried to feel the wisdom of thousands of years ago.

However, when the light on the legendary manual bound to him, he only felt the excruciating pain of his muscles and bones being stretched. The pain, which felt like torture, made DuPont break out in a sweat instantly.

He quickly severed the connection with the legendary manual, only to find that his body was unaffected, but the real pain was still affecting his nerves.

How come this feels the same as when he got injured while practicing moves with the mirror image in the system?
However, compared to the internal organ damage, the pain in his muscles and bones was far more intense. DuPont glanced at the legendary book that had lost its luster, put on the health charm, and continued reading.

The extra physical strength made him feel a little better when he activated the Legendary Manual this time, but the pain only turned his torture into a stone stuck in his tube. The intense pain made him unable to sit still any longer, so he started walking back and forth with the book, trying to slow down the pain of his muscles being forcibly stretched.

Half an hour later, DuPont cut off the connection again. He lay weakly on the beach, looking at the bright moon in the sky, not wanting to move a single finger.

[After reading for 47 hours and 30 minutes, your agility will increase by 2 points.]

DuPont sighed, and after a ten-minute break, he resumed connecting to the Dexterity Manual.
-
The journey from Lavoisier's office back to the church wasn't far, and as soon as she got to her bedroom, Angie turned on the hot water and soaked in the bathtub when the water was at a comfortable temperature, even setting aside the invaluable book of knowledge.

After a long while, the girl finally breathed a sigh of relief, looking at the ancient book with its gold foil stamping with a complicated expression.

"What's wrong? You look like you have something on your mind."

The speaker was Dorothy. As the highest-ranking female pastor in the church, she naturally had the responsibility of caring for this rising star. She keenly sensed that the girl's mental state was problematic: "Is she too tired?"

"Somewhat," Angie replied vaguely. She bent down and touched the soles of her feet, frowning. She tried to rub and scrape them harder, but apart from a slight soreness, she felt nothing. She didn't feel the strange sensation that bad guy had when he touched her before.

What exactly is going on?

After hesitating for a moment, Angie got up, dried herself, put on a white linen robe, and returned to the bedroom. Looking at Dorothy, who was resting there, she asked softly, "Priest, have you ever had someone you liked?"

"Someone you like? Of course." Dorothy was a little surprised; this was the first time this girl had said this to her. After a moment, she understood, her eyes sparkling: "You mean a lover?"

“Yes.” Angie nodded. “I’ve heard some bad news before.”

“My age? It is true, it’s rare for me to be 26 and still unmarried, but so what?” Dorothy said with a snort: “When I was a teenager, everyone told me to stay pure, to refuse the opposite sex and maintain my faith in women, and to become a high priest as soon as possible in the most perfect manner, because I have unlimited potential.”

"However, when I failed to become a high priest for the second time, they started saying that I was already over 20 years old, too old to get married, and that I should not waste all my time on meditation so as not to leave regrets. They said I should listen to the church's arrangements and marry a nobleman who is close to the church, so as to find a perfect home for myself, so that I would not be left with only regrets when I am old and my youth has faded."

"But they didn't care what I really thought. They just wanted to make personnel arrangements for me in the so-called most reasonable way. When I angrily refused, they thought I was unreasonable and a spoiled seed. But because of my achievements and strength, they couldn't do anything to me. So they had no choice but to exile me from the already desolate Northwest to this border region."

"But here I found myself much freer. There were no more competitors or as much pressure. Although there were some dim-witted fools in the other churches, at least no one pointed fingers or interfered with my private life. Otherwise, I would have smashed their heads with a mace. That's the advantage of this barbaric land. As for those rumors, I don't care. I can do whatever I want. Even the ladies haven't commented on my behavior, so what do they matter?"

After hearing this, Angie fell silent for a long time before saying, "Pastor, have you found someone you love yet?"

"It's a bit hard to say, or rather, I don't know if I should tell you." Dorothy reached out and patted Angie's shoulder. "Although I hate to admit it, as I get older, I do have a different understanding of love than the love that the church promotes, or rather, I don't value it as much."

“I once met Ireneville, known as the Crimson Rose, and asked this principal dancer of the Crimson Court in Waterdeep a similar question. Guess how she answered me?”

The young pastor blinked. "If I remember correctly, the Fire-Haired Lady's missionaries lead rather dissolute lives. They might fall in love with one person quickly, only to fall in love with another a few days later. They call this 'love transference,' and it's ridiculed by many."

“You’re right. These famous aestheticians are also hedonists, and it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call some of the pastors harlots. I raised this question with a hint of contempt, but this crimson rose just smiled at me and told me that before pursuing love, I should learn to love myself first.”

“I am my own lover, and everyone else is just a fleeting passerby in my life. Of course, it must be said that sometimes the heart changes, which can cloud reason and lead to irrational actions. But as long as you think carefully and protect yourself from being burned by that burning love, your heart won't be taken away by others, and you won't become someone else's possession. As for other romantic relationships, don't worry about them; they're just spice in life.” Angie listened in silence for a moment. Her intuition told her that Dorothy wasn't lying, but she was even more confused: “But many people don't see love this way. I remember some places don't even allow the publication of chivalrous novels like this…”

"Yes, maintaining self-love and being faithful in marriage are good qualities that deserve praise. Many places promote these noble qualities, but it's a bit boring to force yourself to do them just for the sake of praise, not to mention that very few people can actually do them."

"The three divine duties of the Fire-Haired Lady, the goddess of love, are beauty, love, and passion. As for marriage and fidelity, those are the duties of other gods and have nothing to do with her. This is why the Church of Love and Beauty has always struggled to grow and expand. But can you say that the goddess of love doesn't understand love? That would be a huge joke. However, secular and religious beliefs sometimes conflict. How to distinguish which is right and which is wrong is something you need to figure out for yourself. But my experience over the years tells me that learning to love yourself first is never wrong. If you can't learn to love yourself, how can you give the right love to others?"

Angie was a little confused after hearing this. After hesitating for a moment, she asked in a low voice, "Professor, I accidentally saw you and DuPont being quite intimate before. Is that...?"

Dorothy suddenly realized what was going on and said with a grin, "Oh, this is actually a bit like a prank. DuPont is young, handsome, and energetic, and his personality isn't unpleasant. A little teasing with this kind of young man will make him stand there awkwardly for a long time, too embarrassed to move. Isn't it fun to play a trick on him?"

"But don't follow my example. I've already decided to retire here and not go back. Even if I flirt with a handsome young man here and get caught, as long as he doesn't say anything, no one will care. But you don't belong here. You're just here to train and you'll still have to return to the capital in the future. Your reputation is still a very important asset. If you follow my bad example, those bishops might banish me to the Nas Desert."

There was some truth and some falsehood in what he said, but it was mostly sincere. After remembering this sentence, Angie asked in a low voice, "But what if I get tricked?"

"Huh?" Dorothy was startled by these words, and a murderous glint flashed in her eyes: "What did that kid DuPont do to you? Did he take your virginity?"

"No, it wasn't anything too outrageous..." Angie thought for a moment and whispered, "He took my socks off because they were a little dirty, but for some reason, I felt like I was hallucinating."

“That brat.” Dorothy felt a headache coming on after hearing this. After thinking for a long time, she said, “If you don’t like it, give him a stern warning next time. If he still does it, don’t hesitate to take out a mace and beat him up. If he dares to fight back, come back and tell me. I’ll beat him up with you.”

Angie was startled upon hearing this, and after a long pause, she hesitantly said, "It doesn't seem that bad, it just feels really strange, it's hard to describe."

"..." Although she had been single for a long time, Dorothy was still quite perceptive at her age and immediately understood what Angie was troubled about. After a few seconds, she replied, "Sometimes having too high a level of perception isn't a good thing, especially since you're still young and your cultivation is insufficient. You can't control your perception within a manageable range in normal times, which leads to your limited stamina and astonishing physical sensations. Of course, more importantly, that DuPont kid is too much of a jerk. This kind of thing is usually only done by couples. I'll warn him for you. If he dares to bully you like this again, you should beat him up. He's just a mage, he definitely can't beat you. I'll arrest him and lock him up."

"Hmm." Dorothy's support reassured Angie, but she still had a somewhat embarrassing question: "Um, I just tried it, and I didn't seem to experience that hallucination when I touched it myself. What's going on?"

"Oh, this?" Dorothy felt a little embarrassed after hearing this. This was someone that Yarakh had specifically instructed. If she led this person astray, who would be responsible?

However, considering that Angie was not young, he simply whispered, "Humans also have desires in addition to love. The former comes from the spirit, and the latter comes from the body. Humans have seven emotions and six desires, and what you are experiencing is just one of them."

The young pastor was horrified: "Lady, am I no longer pure?"

"No, this should be considered a fairly normal reaction. It's a feeling that everyone has. Happiness sometimes doesn't require love, otherwise, where would there be brothels everywhere in this world? Desire is also part of human needs, it's just that sometimes it can be restrained and sometimes it needs to be released. Of course, too much of a good thing is bad." Dorothy said, feeling a bit of a headache. Actually, her understanding in this area was also limited.

"In short, you don't need to worry too much. You should know that even women have some unpleasant rumors about them. If even gods are like that, what about mortals?"

The young pastor seemed to understand something and nodded, but a new question arose: "Does this mean that the ideas of temperance and abstinence that the adults in the church talk about are correct?"

"In some ways, this can indeed elevate a person's spirit, and there are precedents of people becoming saints as a result. However, such examples are far too few. More often, long-suppressed desires become rampant. Under extreme repression, even perverse hobbies may develop, and it is possible to turn to evil or even extremes."

"Like many mages, they study under high pressure for years and have no time to date. After graduation, they may continue to study and consider these issues until they are over 30 years old. By the time they have achieved mastery, they either secretly take advantage of young apprentices or summon otherworldly creatures to satisfy their twisted fetishes. There are quite a few people like Harua who have broken the rules and been arrested. They can be seen as products of this twisted nature."

The young pastor pondered, "DuPont, is that it?"

"It shouldn't be. At his age, how could he suppress his feelings for so long? But teenage boys do seem to be easily blinded by love and do irrational things. Some girls who are just beginning to experience love may also do irrational things. Each case needs to be analyzed individually. People's minds are changeable."

The young pastor pondered for a long time: "...You mean DuPont has fallen in love with me?"

Dorothy coughed several times after hearing that, and the young priest quickly patted her on the back to comfort her, saying, "But don't worry, I don't like him, it just feels a little strange."

"What does this have to do with me... If he harasses you again, just say this clearly. He's not stupid; he can tell the difference himself. If he really is stupid, then take a hammer and beat him up." Dorothy felt a little tired. Why are kids these days so troublesome? "As for the rest, you can figure it out slowly. After all, what I say may not be right. You still have to discern things for yourself."

Angie nodded, then looked at the legendary handbook and said softly, "Priest, don't you want to read that book? I can give you that opportunity."

“If I were five years younger, I would definitely fight you for it, but for now, forget it. There are many things that are not yours to fight for.” Dorothy said with a sigh, “May the lady protect you.”

(End of this chapter)