Chapter 66

Gret stared at the priests.

The priests stared back at him.

Dozens of people stood below, chattering noisily; one person stood above, clenching his fists and waving his arms. Without considering the numbers, the scene was like a leopard climbing a tree, with a pack of wolves bellowing below, eager to tear it apart.

...Sigh, it’s still just a young leopard.

He can’t possibly win.

Gret compared his own combat skills with theirs and sadly came to a conclusion.

"Cough, everyone, calm down." Elder Elwin, who had been watching the farce, finally paused his oak staff and spoke to stop them. Being both old and of the highest priest level, everyone gave him face and quieted down, stepping aside. Elder Elwin beckoned to Gret and said kindly,

"Little Gret, I only taught you for a few days, and there were some details I didn’t get to tell you. — We are the servants of the God of Nature, revering nature, protecting nature, and being friends with nature, plants, and animals. Hurting innocent animals goes against our faith."

Huh?

There’s that rule too?

The God of Nature didn’t tell me that?

...Oh, right, I’m a fake divine inspiration recipient...

Gret wiped a cold sweat. He thought hard and carefully raised a finger to suggest,

"Then... if we don’t catch wild rabbits, will you raise them yourselves?"

"Gret!!!"

Elder Elwin barked. This kid is relentless! If you want to dissect rabbits so badly, go to a necromancer!

He tried to look fierce, but Gret was unfazed, spreading his hands,

"Can’t catch wild ones, can’t raise them... then there’s only one way. Elder, bring a few hundred corpses over, and I’ll dissect a few dozen by myself, and I’ll probably get the hang of it..."

"G·R·E·T!"

Why did I take him as a disciple in the first place! He loves dissecting corpses, clearly a perfect necromancer!

Elder Elwin gritted his teeth. But by this time, Gret had already thought through the whole theory and looked at him fearlessly,

"You protect nature, right? The natural ecosystem, correct? — On the grassland, when there are too many sheep, they eat all the grass, and there are more sheep for the wolves to eat. When the sheep decrease and the wolves starve, new grass grows, and more sheep are raised, creating a balance, right?"

This logic... isn’t wrong. The ecological balance, simple and clear, indeed summarizes what they revere and want to protect. But it feels like there’s a trap... Elder Elwin frowned,

"What are you trying to say?"

"Domesticated sheep and rabbits raised by humans rarely affect the natural ecosystem!" Gret argued confidently,

"Even if we raise a few more or kill a few more, the impact on nature is much less than that of wild animals. To study healing techniques, killing a few for practice, how does that violate the principle of protecting nature, or your faith?"

"But..."

Most people still looked hesitant. The priest named William, who had asked about practicing bone-setting, spoke up loudly,

"Even so, can we just harm animals at will?"

"Of course not!" Gret answered confidently. Before William could object, he asked first,

"Can the servants of the God of Nature kill animals?"

"Yes." Elder Elwin took over. He stepped forward with his oak staff, his silver beard gleaming in the firelight,

"For our own consumption, for hunting fur, for protecting the people and removing threats, we can kill animals, and such actions are justified.

— But, for the sake of showing off, for fun, or for any unnecessary reason, killing animals, cutting down trees or shrubs, and destroying nature will result in the loss of the God of Nature’s power."

He paused lightly. Gret immediately followed up,

"Do you think that harming animals to practice healing skills is necessary?"

The elder hesitated. Gret didn’t give him a chance to respond,

"I think it is necessary. First, healers must go through such practice to hone their skills; second, we are not doing it for personal gain; finally, the harm we inflict on these animals is not uncontrolled but follows strict guidelines—"

He took a step forward, standing on the edge of a stone, and raised a hand. Spreading his fingers, he bent the first one under everyone’s gaze,

"The first guideline is substitution. Use rabbit legs instead of live rabbits, rabbits instead of sheep, sheep instead of monkeys—simply put, use non-sentient materials instead of live animals, and smaller animals instead of larger ones."

Under the firelight, Gret was animated and radiant. He bent the second finger and continued,

"The second guideline is reduction. Use fewer animals to get the same number of practice sessions, or use the same number of animals to get more practice sessions. This way, even if we can’t reduce the total number of injuries, we can at least harm fewer animals."

"It sounds reasonable..." the servants of the God of Nature murmured. A few wanted to object, but faced with such a rigorous and systematic set of principles, they couldn’t find the words. Gret, with a serious expression, bent the last finger,

"The third principle is optimization. Treat them as well as possible, avoid or minimize their pain, for example, by administering anesthesia before breaking bones—or, provide suitable living conditions to make their lives as comfortable as possible."

"In the end, you still want to harm them!" Priest Joanna stepped forward, loudly objecting. An eagle’s cry echoed, and she raised her arm as an eagle landed on it. Joanna stroked the eagle’s feathers, her face softening for a moment before becoming stern again,

"So many reasons, so many rules, just to make yourself feel better!"

"You’re right." Gret nodded solemnly. He looked directly into Joanna’s fiery eyes and admitted slowly,

"We break their bones, cut open their bellies, and extract their spines—not to torture or kill. We know that these animals are suffering in our place, in the place of the patients we will treat. We are grateful for their sacrifice and remember their kindness..."

Joanna’s expression gradually softened. The eagle on her arm chirped softly, gently brushing her cheek with its beak.

Gret lowered his arm. He stood firmly, facing the audience below and the animals they would dissect, and bowed deeply,

"Finally, to avoid waste. After dissection, we can eat them, leaving nothing behind."

Joanna was taken aback. A ripple of laughter spread through the crowd, and even the eagle on her arm flapped its wings as if amused. The young man straightened up and raised his voice,

"You’re asking too many complicated questions! It’s late, let’s talk about something simple, some life-saving tips!"

Best to finish in an hour!

I don’t want to be stuck here for seven years, teaching you every day!