CHAPTER 42: CHAPTER 41: CURRYING FAVOR AND THROWING ONESELF AT ANOTHER’S MERCY

Ron finished his work at the herb store. Lady Allen was as strict as always today, but surprisingly patient when teaching him how to make an antidote potion.

"Don’t be late tomorrow," the old witch instructed as he was leaving, "I have a few new formulas that need your help testing."

Walking back to the dorm, his mind was filled with thoughts.

It had been some time since he became an official elementary apprentice. Although it seemed no different from before on the surface, he could clearly feel the change in attitude from those around him.

"Apprentice Ron!" a familiar voice called from behind, interrupting his thoughts.

Turning around, he saw it was Gregory, the candidate apprentice who barely interacted with him.

This person came from a merchant family, always used to cozying up to those in power, and never sparing a glance at peers with mediocre or even poor aptitude.

However, at this moment, Gregory’s attitude was like night and day, smiling broadly as he jogged over:

"I heard you’ve passed the apprentice qualification certification? That’s truly admirable!"

"What do you want?" Ron asked coldly.

"I don’t have any urgent matters, of course," Gregory’s smile became even more obsequious:

"I just wanted to ask if you needed a capable assistant? I have a lot of experience in document organization and data research, and I’m proficient in bookkeeping and the ancient languages of the Three Kingdoms, if you need anything..."

Ron immediately understood Gregory’s intention—this was a bid for protection, hoping to become his servant.

In the Black Mist Jungle, becoming an apprentice’s servant could at least guarantee basic survival rights, which was already a decent outcome for candidate apprentices with no hope.

"I don’t need one, I’m used to working alone." Ron declined bluntly.

Gregory’s smile faded somewhat, but he kept holding it together:

"If you change your mind, you can find me anytime! I live in Room 34 in the west wing..."

Ron turned to leave, not waiting for him to finish.

But after just a few steps, he was stopped by another voice.

"Apprentice Ron~"

A sugary sweet female voice came from the side.

Ron saw a voluptuous female apprentice walking towards him, her steps light, her dress purposefully loose, revealing large swathes of fair skin.

Ron recognized her as Isabella, a candidate apprentice from a noble family in the South.

In his memory, this woman was usually close to Emily, often seen together at various apprentice gatherings.

"I heard you’re quite talented in Magic Potion Making." Isabella blinked her big eyes, her voice honeyed:

"I’m quite interested in this field as well, and I was wondering if you could give me some guidance?"

She deliberately leaned in close, trying to press her ample body against the arm of the person in front of her, a strong perfume smell mixed with some ambiguous scent wafting in.

Ron keenly noticed that behind her deliberately crafted adoration, there lay calculation and cunning in her eyes.

What made him even more uncomfortable was that, through the heightened perception gained from transitioning to a Wizard Apprentice, he could distinctly sense an indescribable "usage mark" on this noble lady—

She was clearly no longer a pure girl, but a seasoned veteran in the realm of love.

Just as Ron discreetly sidestepped her approach and prepared to refuse again, a few more female candidate apprentices gathered around.

Each one dressed extraordinarily seductively, their words filled with blatant implications:

"Apprentice Ron, I can do anything for you..."

"My family has some connections in the Faruk Kingdom, if you need..."

"I’ve been trained since childhood in all sorts of ways to please, I guarantee I can make you..."

These words made Ron feel a wave of nausea.

He was very clear about these people’s intentions—to latch onto a newly promoted elementary apprentice, exchanging their bodies for safety and security.

In their eyes, he was nothing more than a new dependency, a tool they could discard at will.

"Enough." Ron said coldly, simultaneously emitting a barely noticeable wave of spiritual energy.

This was his new ability after becoming an elementary apprentice—Spiritual Interference, though it only had interference effects in battles of the same level, it was more than enough to deal with these candidate apprentices.

[Spiritual Interference (Beginner) Experience Points +1]

Perhaps because the Spiritual Interference ability was registered as a skill, Ron felt that his control over it now was much stronger than when he first gained this power.

An invisible wave spread outward from him as the center, and the apprentices around him immediately felt a sense of dizziness.

Their thoughts became confused, some staggered back, and some even sat directly on the ground, looking bewildered.

"I have no interest in you, nor do I need any servants." Ron’s tone was calm yet permeated with deep coldness:

"Don’t bother me again, or I don’t mind leaving you with fewer parts."

After saying this, he turned and left, leaving behind a group of candidate apprentices still not fully recovered from the spiritual interference, looking at each other, seeing extreme jealousy and resentment in each other’s eyes.

Returning to his dorm, he had just locked the door when there was a knock.

"It’s me, Andre." A familiar voice came from outside the door.

Ron opened the door to find the blond Thirteenth Prince standing there.

"I heard you gave those candidate apprentices an unforgettable lesson in the corridor just now?" Andre smirked, but his smile seemed a bit forced.

"News travels fast..." Ron stepped aside to let Andre in: "Those guys were like dirt stuck to my shoes, they really did annoy me a bit."

"This sort of thing is quite normal." Andre shrugged: "In the Black Mist Jungle, every promoted apprentice experiences this kind of ’welcoming ceremony.’ Those candidate apprentices without hope always hope to cling to a new thigh."

Ron nodded, then noticed Andre’s expression was a bit off. The usual elegant confidence was still there, but there was a hint of worry and struggle in his eyes, as if he had something unspeakable on his mind.

"What’s wrong?" Ron put down the refining vessel he was organizing and seriously looked at Andre, "You seem troubled."

Andre sighed and sat down: "It’s nothing, just some annoying demands from the family again."

He forced a smile, then asked: "By the way, I heard you just passed the elementary apprentice qualification certification, that’s great news. How’s the school side treating you? They’re not shortchanging you on resource allocation, are they?"

Ron didn’t respond immediately, but poured two cups of herbal tea he had just received from Lady Allen, handing one of them to Andre.

"Thank you," Andre took the cup, sipping it: "What’s this? It tastes good."

"A mix of Calming Grass and Moonlight Root." Ron sat across from Andre: "Lady Allen said it can alleviate mental fatigue. It looks like you could use some right now."

Andre’s mouth twitched slightly, clearly Ron’s words hit the mark.

He stared into the liquid in the cup, seemingly pondering how to respond.