"Oh? With your discerning eye, Madam, you actually appointed a prospective apprentice as your assistant?"
Holt's interest was piqued by Mrs. Allen's reply, and he began to scrutinize Ron with great interest:
"It seems you've found another promising talent."
He took a small bottle from his pocket:
"These are artificial star dews, a kind of gift for newlyweds. While their effects are far inferior to real natural star dews, they can still help improve mental strength."
Ron was about to thank her when Mrs. Allen took the medicine bottle:
"Then I'll thank Holt the apprentice on his behalf, but the boy needs to take it slow; it's too early to use this now."
Holt simply smiled faintly upon seeing this, and without saying anything more, he put all the purchased medicinal herbs into a special narrow-mouthed cloth bag at his waist, and then turned and left.
The grey-blue robe vanished in an instant at the doorway, as if it had never been there at all.
Only after that peculiar magical fluctuation completely dissipated did Mrs. Allen turn to look at him:
"You're lucky, kid. Holt is about to become a wizard, and the things he has are no ordinary items."
She carefully put the crystal bottle away:
"This bottle of 'artificial stardew' is made from the essence of stars that have fallen from the sky. Although it cannot compare to naturally condensed stardew, there is no better potion at the apprentice level."
"I'll keep it for now and return it to you after you pass the apprenticeship assessment."
She glanced at Ron: "With your current strength, having a potion of this level in your hands is not a good thing."
Ron nodded, offering no objection. He understood the simple truth that "a common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime."
"By the way," Mrs. Allen said, not wanting to let him off so easily, "how did you activate the properties of that Star Herb just now?"
Ron stopped what he was doing and told him truthfully according to his understanding:
"When I was organizing it, I noticed that the energy it emitted was very similar to the mental energy I experience during meditation. So I tried to use a similar rhythm to set it up."
"I see." A rare smile appeared on the old witch's terrifyingly wrinkled face.
"It seems you do have some talent in mental perception; no wonder Holt is interested in you."
"Help me sort and organize these evening primroses."
After the casual conversation ended, Mrs. Allen pointed to the medicinal herbs in the corner and began assigning him tasks again:
"Remember to arrange them according to the picking time."
Ron nodded in agreement, and while tidying up, he casually mentioned the dark-cloaked figure he had seen hurriedly leaving the dormitory area that morning.
"Oh, that's the errand boy who delivers letters and errands for the apprentices. I heard he has connections with your royal family."
Without looking up, Mrs. Allen said, "I frequently travel between the mortal realm and here."
Ron silently noted this information. Come to think of it, the number of magic stone fragments delivered at the beginning of each month was always slightly different.
Last month it was seven yuan, but this month it's only six yuan.
This is strange, because the father I remember was a serious person, to the point of being rigid.
After he succeeded his grandfather as earl, the manor's accounts never again contained a single silver coin's error.
If he arranged for someone to deliver the magic stone fragments, there wouldn't be a discrepancy in the number.
......
In the study of Count Ralph in the Kingdom of Farouk, the firelight from the fireplace casts the man's shadow on the wall, making him appear exceptionally tall.
"These are the ten magic stone fragments for this month."
He handed a carefully sealed leather bag to the butler: "The usual procedure applies; have Mr. Hawkins take this to the Black Mist Jungle."
The butler took the leather bag, feeling its heavy weight: "Master, you've mortgaged the vineyard on the east side of the estate?"
Count Ralph did not deny that last year's plague had caused a poor harvest, and coupled with the expenses of his other sons, the estate was already running a deficit.
But he had to ensure that he could send Ron enough resources every month, because in a place like the Black Mist Forest, it was impossible to make any progress without magic stone fragments.
"I neglected to discipline that child back then," the count said, standing by the window and gazing at the withered wheat fields in the distance. "Now I can only do my best to help him through this difficult time."
The butler acknowledged and withdrew, carefully storing the leather bag in the highest-grade storage room of the manor.
A few days later, when the messenger, Mr. Hawkins, arrived as usual, a glint of greed flashed in his eyes as he put the leather bag into his pocket.
......
Mrs. Allen walked to the shelf in the corner and took out a cloth bag:
"That's enough for today. These are some common stimulant herbs; consider it extra pay for your work."
"Thank you, Mrs. Allen."
"Oh, right..." Mrs. Allen said as he was about to leave, "Come a little earlier tomorrow, I'm going to teach you some simple methods of making potions."
When I stepped out of the herbal medicine shop, the morning mist had already been dispelled by the sunlight.
Ron reflected on everything that had happened that day, feeling both surprised and somewhat worried.
The opportunities this job brought far exceeded his expectations, but it also meant attracting more attention.
When Ron returned to the dormitory, he found Andrei waiting outside his door.
"How was it? Did the first day go smoothly?" Andrei asked with a smile, but there was a hint of worry in his eyes.
Ron didn't answer immediately. Instead, he opened the door to make sure no one was around before briefly recounting what had happened that day.
"Stardew?!" Andrei gasped. "That advanced apprentice couldn't possibly be..."
He suddenly lowered his voice: "Lord Holt?"
Seeing Ron's puzzled look, Andrei explained:
"He is one of the few advanced apprentices in our school who has shown extremely high talent in potions, and it is said that he has also made great achievements in the research and application of star orbits."
"However," he hesitated, then stopped himself.
"What's wrong?"
"It's nothing," Andrei shook his head. "Just a reminder to be careful. Getting attention is a good thing, but it also means..."
Ron understood what he meant: in this wizard-dominated world, anything special could be dangerous.
"By the way," Andrei changed the subject, "the second physical training session is starting this afternoon, are you ready?"
Ron nodded and took out the medicinal herbs the shopkeeper had given him from his bag: "These should be of help."
As he sorted through the medicinal herbs, he reflected on his gains and the improvement in his skill experience points that day.
His perception of the "rhythm" of medicinal herbs and his conversations with Holt and Mrs. Allen gave him a deeper understanding of the world.