Noble Recruitment

The Black Bear Gang's beatdown quickly spread across the airship.

The apprentices buzzed with gossip, most were thrilled to see Ramsay finally get what he deserved. The girls he'd harassed outright cheered when they heard the news.

But none of that concerned Edwyn.

Right now, he was sitting calmly in Room 225, recovering his mana while casually eyeing the group of nobles in front of him.

"Aren't you going to introduce yourselves?"

Edwyn sat on a chair, Elia nervously standing by his side. He didn't know these nobles, but Elia did, and she recognized every one of them.

These weren't just any aristocrats, they were heirs to the most powerful noble houses in the Goldengrove Kingdom. Her own father would have paid dearly for the chance to meet them.

"I'll go first."

A tall, handsome blond man took the seat across from Edwyn.

"I'm Kevan Medici. I'm here to invite you to join our alliance."

"The House of Medici?!" Elia blurted.

The Medicis were the kingdom's most prestigious noble house, controlling a quarter of the kingdom's lands between their direct fiefs and vassals.

Their rise from small merchants to great nobles was a legendary tale among traders.

Edwyn rested his chin on his hand, calm and unimpressed. "Sounds like a big deal."

No matter how mighty the Medicis were in the kingdom, on this airship, there were no titles, only strength and survival.

Pass the exam and live. Fail, and die.

Kevan wasn't surprised by Elia's reaction. What did surprise him was Edwyn's complete lack of awe.

Clearly, his family name meant nothing to this peasant. It was frustrating… but oddly admirable.

Few people could shake off a lifetime of indoctrination so quickly.

Kevan decided to lower himself a little more.

"But compared to wizards," he said with a faint smile, "House Medici is just a group of well-dressed mortals."

Edwyn chuckled. This one gets it.

"So then, Kevan," he said, voice steady, "what's your alliance's strength? What role would I play? And what benefits do I get?"

No posturing. No banter. Just straight to the point.

Kevan was caught off guard. Nobles were used to dancing around negotiations, not cutting straight to the deal.

"Uh…" He hesitated, mentally scrambling to assemble a tidy answer.

But before he could respond, someone behind him cut in.

"You peas-, Edwyn, you should think long-term."

The speaker was a fat red-haired noble, greasy and smug. He tried to sound polite, but the disdain in his eyes said it all, he looked down on Edwyn.

"Joining us is a great opportunity," the man sneered. "Our alliance is all nobles. Once you're with us, you'll be as good as one of us."

Kevan winced. Here comes disaster.

He knew Edwyn didn't care about nobility. Hell, even the Medici name hadn't impressed him. Offering him noble status was laughable.

Sure enough, Edwyn burst into laughter.

"Ha! Kevan, did you hear that? What a generous offer your grunt made!"

He gave the group a scathing look. They tried to act civil, but their disdain toward him seeped through like rot.

Ironically, Kevan was the only one really trying.

"I must correct you," the red-haired man said, face serious. "I am from House Bracken, and not even House Medici can make me a mere follower."

He clearly thought his words carried weight. Didn't he realize how ridiculous he sounded?

To him, this was a gift. To Edwyn, it was an insult.

He truly couldn't understand why this peasant wasn't groveling with gratitude.

Kevan clenched his teeth. You can fight a worthy enemy. But an idiot teammate? That's worse.

This fat fool had just tanked the entire negotiation.

Still, Kevan tried to salvage it.

"I swear on my family name, Balian, if you say another word, I'll throw you out myself."

Balian's fat face turned red. He looked like he wanted to argue but shut his mouth under Kevan's icy glare.

Kevan turned back to Edwyn with a diplomatic smile.

"Don't mind him. Balian's a newly made noble. He's overly proud of his status. But not everyone in our group is like that."

"Our alliance includes a knight, two soul-linked apprentice candidates, and five knight squires. I don't know how other airships are doing, but we're confident we'll pass the exam."

He leaned in conspiratorially.

"We even have a descendant of a legendary knight."

Edwyn raised an eyebrow. He'd heard those legends, how seven legendary knights descended from the realm of gods to found the Seven Kingdoms in the age of monsters.

Each one had powers: immense strength, fire breath, beast forms, invulnerability…

"Let me guess," Edwyn said, "those legendary knights were actually descended from mages?"

"Not quite, but close," Kevan said with a wink. "It's… classified. You'd have to join to learn more."

Edwyn tilted his head, scanning Kevan, then the nobles behind him, then back to Kevan.

"I've got one question. Answer it right, and I'll join you."

Kevan leaned forward. "Ask."

"That knight, and the two pre-apprentices. Why are they in your alliance?"

To Edwyn, the group made no sense.

In a good alliance, everyone should offer value. Here, it seemed like only the knight and the apprentice candidates were assets. The rest were dead weight.

There had to be something Edwyn didn't know.

He guessed it had to do with the magic items the nobles had mentioned before.

"That's easy," Kevan smiled in relief. "Most of us own-"

"Kevan!" a sharp voice cut him off.

A noblewoman in purple had spoken. In the Goldengrove Kingdom, purple was reserved for the highest-ranking nobles, her family had to include at least one duke.

Edwyn sighed and shook his head.

Should've known better than to expect anything useful from nobles.

"Well, I guess that's that. You can all leave now."

He stood, clearly ending the meeting.

If more of them had shown Kevan's level of respect, hell, even one-third, Edwyn might've considered it.

But he couldn't entrust his back to a bunch of spoiled self-absorbed bluebloods.

And now that Elia had become a pre-apprentice, teaming up with her was a far better option.

Kevan recognized the finality in Edwyn's tone and didn't push. He offered a polite handshake and left with the others.

After they were gone, Edwyn opened his palm.

A slip of paper covered in wizard script was sitting in it.

"Kevan's smarter than the rest," Edwyn smirked and tucked it into his pocket.

Thirty minutes later, the airship maintenance was complete, and it resumed high-speed flight. All apprentices returned to their cramped rooms.

Sitting on his bed, Edwyn reviewed the earlier battle in his mind.

He had cast eight Mana Missiles, using up about half his mana. That meant he could fire about fifteen total.

Though the spell was described in the book as weak and wasteful, something no proper mage would rely on, it hit like a handgun bullet.

Fifteen missiles equalled to fifteen bullets.

With that firepower, Edwyn was confident. As long as he wasn't ambushed or mobbed, he could pass the exam.

Battle review complete, he pulled out the note Kevan had slipped him.

Its contents were simple: Kevan was offering one mana stone in exchange for Edwyn not killing him during the entrance exam. Payment to be made after enrollment.

"Merchants really do have better brains than those noble clowns."

A fair deal, Edwyn didn't need to do anything except not attack Kevan.

And Kevan? He'd bought himself a little safety from a predator.

A win-win.

After that maintenance stop, the airship did not slow again.

Ten days of uninterrupted flight later, it finally reached its destination.

At the front of the ship, the musclebound mage Belwas, wielder of the giant slab-like sword, looked toward a towering black spire in the distance and gave the command:

"Prepare for landing!"

The Black Tower Magus Academy… had arrived.