Chapter 3 On the Flying Airship

"Junior brothers and sisters?"

Richard looked at the black-robed Wizard, his heart stirring with tumultuous waves.

Was a Wizard like this also an apprentice like them?

But before he could ponder further, a hole appeared at the bottom of the Floating Airship.

The black-robed Wizard led them inside, and as soon as Richard landed, he heard a robust female voice.

"Seven apprentices! Taylor, you're quite lucky."

Richard focused his gaze and saw a fierce woman as tall as two meters and built like a bear standing inside the cabin, holding a nearly two-meter-long door panel-sized Great Sword, its blade engraved with dense, mysterious symbols, looking very fantastical.

Beside her, Richard also noticed a black-robed skeleton with blue flames flickering in its eye sockets. Upon seeing all of them enter, the skeleton waved its hand and the hole in the bottom of the cabin closed automatically.

"Seven apprentices, you'll all have to treat me to a meal when we get back; nothing less than a hundred Magic Stones will do."

The black-robed Wizard's tone, once brutal towards the Nobles, was now filled with joyful banter as he joked with the other Wizards inside the cabin.

"Go to hell, fifty Magic Stones, take it or leave it."

The skeleton Wizard came up to the apprentices with a Crystal Ball, starting to tally their names along with their spiritual power.

After the count was done, the skeleton Wizard seemed to perform magic as he pulled out bags one after another from under his cloak, each containing a quill pen, a bottle of ink, a roll of white paper, a number plate, and three books.

Without explanation, without conversation, the skeleton Wizard's actions were entirely different from the other two Wizards who were chatting leisurely.

He had abandoned the emotions of the living, embracing both tranquility and rationality with his body and soul.

"These are your entrance materials, inside you'll find the introductory courses of the Wizard Academy, and the enrolment regulations. That number plate is your room number, stay in your rooms unless necessary during the time the Airship is flying."

Seeing the skeleton Wizard say nothing at all, the Wizard Taylor who had led them aboard felt he had to explain.

"Now hurry up and find your own rooms. A bit of roughhousing is fine during the flight of the Airship, but don't kill anyone."

...

The passenger cabin of the Airship had only one corridor with neatly arranged rooms on both sides, each room meant for four people.

Richard counted, and if the Airship had fifty rooms, it could, at full capacity, carry around two hundred people if need be.

Fifty rooms, two hundred people.

"The fantasy world really is fantastic; even an Airship is so impressive."

Following the corridor to the end, Richard opened the door to room number 225, which temporarily belonged to him.

"Hey, friend, I'm Ali from Golden Banner."

Upon entering, Richard saw a girl greeting him.

The girl had light golden hair and pale blue eyes, and although her face had some freckles, they only added a youthful charm to her appearance.

"Huh? Is this room allocated incorrectly?"

Richard was a bit bewildered and turned to go back to ask the skeleton Wizard.

"Don't bother asking, friend, someone already did. Wizard Aisen said there was no mistake."

Richard stopped in his tracks, "Wizard Aisen? Is that the one who looks like... a skeleton?"

Ali nodded, "Yes, him. He said the room numbers are completely random, and not to bother him for exchanges. Many people have been trying to swap rooms these past few days, annoying him to the point where he almost threw those apprentices off the ship."

Hearing this, Richard massaged his temples with a bit of a headache.

This was going to be troublesome, living with a woman was always bound to have many inconveniences.

But since the Wizard had already said room exchanges weren't allowed, he would have to comply.

"Alright then." Richard sighed, "Nice to meet you, Ali. I'm Richard from Heisen Territory."

...

In fact, Ali had lied.

Room swapping on the Airship was possible, just that the means of swapping rooms was somewhat rough.

As long as you could convince someone to agree to switch rooms without causing a fatality, the recruiting Wizards wouldn't intervene in your actions.

During the days Ali had been aboard the Airship, there had been several violent conflicts already.

And these violent conflicts often accompanied a particular occurrence...

That was rape.

The Wizards would not stop these crimes; in their eyes, it was just minor trouble. A Wizard who bore a striking resemblance to an ape even watched with great interest.

This only fueled the malevolent thoughts of some aboard the Airship.

Fortunately, for most of the time, the Airship was in high-speed flight, during which nobody was allowed out of their rooms.

This is what allowed Ali to avoid those beasts in this corner room.

But Richard's arrival brought her danger.

If those beasts knew there was still such tempting prey in a corner of the Airship, the next time the Airship slowed down, it would be Ali's day of suffering.

Therefore, she had to prevent Richard from changing rooms.

Moreover, Richard was good-looking, very handsome, and also very weak.

Chronic malnutrition caused Richard's complexion to appear extremely frail, and even clothed, his thin figure seemed as if a gust of wind could blow him down.

Ali was confident she could resist any assault from Richard.

...

Time returned to the present, and after entering the room, Richard casually shut the door.

The room was not large, just about eleven or twelve square meters, with a small compartment that was probably a restroom.

The furnishings were simple: two bunk beds, a table about two meters long, a couple of chairs, and a Magic Light on the ceiling made up all the room's decorations.

In the small room, there were now just the two of them, Richard and Ali.

A young boy and a young girl at the ages when hearts begin to stir, confined to a small room.

The young boy was clear-eyed and handsome; the young girl was petite and cute. Their eyes met, then immediately averted.

It seems this scene should be somewhat ambiguous... Bullshit.

Richard may look like a teenager, but inside, he's an adult.

His XP is that of a gentle and intelligent big sister!

"I'll sleep on the top bunk, just let me know if you're changing clothes, so I can look away."

After saying this indifferently, Richard turned and climbed up to the upper bunk without his shoes.

Flirting with a young girl was far less important to him; he had more significant things to handle.

Sitting on the top bunk, Richard opened each of the three books from the bag.

He couldn't understand any of them; as a farmer, being able to write one's name was considered well-educated.

However, Richard was able to guess that one of the thicker books must be a dictionary.

[Material: "Wizard Language Dictionary"]

[Possible Information Extraction: Wizard Language]

[Extraction Cost: 10 Spiritual Power]

[Extract?]

Richard put the dictionary into his pocket and then made a decision.

"Extract."

In an instant, Richard felt as though his head had been struck by a sledgehammer, his vision going dark.

After an unknown period, Richard woke from his deep slumber.

The room was pitch-dark, seemingly late into the night.

"Ugh, can't be so reckless next time with the extraction."

Richard rubbed his head, thankful that this time he was on an airship, surrounded by safety. If he had been anywhere else, he would have been putting himself in grave danger.

Entering the Soul Space, a floating white light had been waiting for quite some time above the Miracle Furnace.

As he blended with the white light, Richard didn't experience the illusions that accompanied the Wind Crow Sword Skill. He simply felt as if he had memorized a lot of things.

Richard tried it out and found that he had indeed learned Wizard Language, but it was more like he had memorized the dictionary.

If Richard were to read Wizard Language, he would sound just like a beginner, with inaccurate intonation.

"It seems there's a big difference between 'skill' and 'information'. Absorbing information is more like having knowledge poured directly into the brain, where practical application still requires plenty of practice. On the other hand, with skills, there's no issue with the application; however, it's difficult to condense the skills into text."

Gurgle!

A tremendous hunger pulled Richard back from his thoughts.

He had gone nearly two days without food.

"Ali, Ali," Richard called out softly.

"Hmm? You're awake?"

From the darkness below, Ali's voice reached him, seeming as though she hadn't slept.

"Ali, what time is it now?"

"It's 4:32 in the morning."

Hearing the time, Richard simply estimated the duration of his stupor.

He had been unconscious for about fourteen hours.

"Did anyone bring food during this time?"

"Your food is on the table. Come down and eat if you want."

Richard sensed something off in Ali's tone. Although he had just met her, it wasn't common for someone to be so awake at four in the morning.

"Have you been awake all night?" Richard asked softly.

"Yeah."

"Missing home?"

"A little."

It seemed she was a girl not accustomed to being far from home.

Gurgle!

Richard wanted to comfort her a bit more, but the loud rumblings of his stomach convinced him to eat first.

Turning out of the bed, his dinner was laid out on the room's table.

Two palm-sized pieces of black bread, some burnt beef, and a bowl of beet porridge.

Although the meal couldn't compare to the Chinese food in Richard's memory, it was far better than the sawdust-blackened bread he ate in the Heisen Territory.

"Phew, that's a bit better now."

After eating, Richard sat back in his chair and breathed a sigh of relief.

While the meal hadn't filled him up, at least there was something in his stomach.

"Richard, are you a knight?"

Ali was lying in her bed, looking at Richard from her side.

Richard could sense something was amiss in her voice. Was Ali... crying?

"I'm not, why do you suddenly ask?"

"Then we're doomed."

Richard's brow furrowed, "What do you mean?"

"Richard," Ali's voice was choked with sobs, "do you know what our entrance examination for the academy is, according to the handbook?"

"What is it?"

"It's killing!"