Chapter 474 - 40 - 48

Chapter 40: Book of the Wizard (1)

Translator: Leo Editor: DarkGem/Frappe

Angele left the house with the book Adolf gave him and got on a carriage that took him back to the school. A staff member by the entrance of the dorm stopped Angele before he entered the building.

"Young Master Angele, here's a letter for you. Also, a worker left something here for you. Please take all of those with you," the staff member who looked drunk said. The staff member was a middle-aged man who was a heavy drinker. Angele could barely understand what the man was saying.

"Thanks, House." Angele smiled as he nodded. He headed into a small room by the entrance and took a black bag along with a letter.

Angele quickly returned to his room and carefully closed the door. Angele put down the bag and letter. He sat in front of his desk and placed the book he had just gotten on it. He inhaled once and tried to calm himself before he'd start checking the book. Brown was the color of its cover and an earmark was sealed on it. This mark was quite large and was made out of black silk. There was a small line of words written on the bottom-right side that said, "By Buckwill". The book was thick and heavy, such that it even looked like a large dictionary. It was about 2 to 3 kilograms. Angele collected himself and sat straight before opening the book.

'Zero, start recording the information,' he thought.

'Recording started.' The chip started working quickly.

There was only one line on the first page: "I am listening…"

The words were written in a special manner, which made it slightly hard to read. They looked like special runes, but they were actually just regular Anmag words. It looked like the page had a bunch of tadpoles lined up in the middle. Angele stared at those words and started thinking. He scrunched his eyebrows, remaining at this page for a long time. Dusk was nearly upon him and darkness had begun creeping everywhere. Moonlight poured into the room, dyeing and reflecting light upon everything inside with its pale white hue. The oil lamp on the desk reflected yellow light over Angele's face. Shadows under his eyes and nose began flickering.

Angele finally moved to page 2 after thinking for a long time, but he still scrunched his eyebrows. There was a colorful painting on the second page. It was a noble lady wearing a white one piece and a red round hat. She was sitting in front of a mirror quietly with a gentle demeanor. Her face was fair and beautiful, and it looked like she was staring into Angele's eyes. The painting itself was vibrant and it made it seem as if the lady was alive. Angele felt something strange about it, so he moved the book closer. He scrutinized the painting such that he could even see the pores on her face.

The wind was blowing into the room from outside.

DONG! The window made a loud noise as it was blown open. Angele stood up and closed it. He returned and sat down again, looking at the painting. He was surprised because the mouth of the lady in the painting was now slightly opened. He was certain that it was closed before. She stared at Angele, seemingly trying to say something.

"I am listening…" Angele was suddenly reminded of the words on page 1 and felt slightly scared. The room was silent and people who were talking outside couldn't be heard. Even the insects outside had gone silent. The atmosphere in the room felt heavy and constrained.

Angele felt goosebumps and instantly put his right hand over the crossguard sword by the side. He sensed danger and thought something was closing in on him.

'Zero, analyze the situation around. Report to me immediately if you find anything wrong,' Angele ordered.

'Mission established. Analyzing…' Zero reported. However, the chip didn't report back to him, so Angele felt relieved. He looked back at the painting, once again becoming surprised. The lady's mouth was slightly more opened compared before as though she was in pain. She now had a hopeless expression on her face, not staring at Angele anymore. Angele couldn't see anything in her eyes. Angele felt more goosebumps and also a chill coming from his back.

He quickly moved on to the next page.

"I am listening…" He saw the words again where it was still in the middle of the page.

'Warning! Strange magnetic field discovered! Please move away from the source! At least 50 meters!' Suddenly, the chip started giving out warnings.

'You will see a different world from this book if you are qualified to become a Wizard.' A strange message somehow appeared in Angele's mind. It wasn't written in the book, only going straight into Angele's consciousness.

Angele was paralyzed; sweat was all over his face.

GA!

A black bird that looked like a crow flew by his window and made a strange noise. Angele was still feeling shocked, but he was alerted by the sound. He quickly stood up and wiped off the sweat on his face with his hands. Angele saw his own reflection on the glass of the window. His reflection had white pupils and the mouth was opened as though his reflection was trying to say something. The facial expression of his reflection perfectly depicted that of the lady in the painting.

"Damn!" Angele screamed as he pushed the chair down. He bumped the door open and ran out to the hallway. The whole world outside looked strange. Angele felt the loss of balance, and the hallway itself seemed distorted. No one was around, not even any student in the dorm could be seen.

'Your body is currently experiencing an abnormal condition. Your blood flow rate is 3x greater than normal, and your blood vessels are rupturing,' Zero kept warning.

HU!

Angele inhaled once, trying to suck air into his lungs. The warning of the chip woke him up. Angele opened his eyes where he found himself sleeping on the book. The window was still open, the wind coming from outside could still be felt by him. Angele was covered in sweat, and he found the wind to be soothing.

"I fell asleep?" Angele said as he looked at the book below his chest. He was still on page 1 of the book, the words still quietly lying in the middle of the page.

I am listening…

"Everything was an illusion?" Angele wondered, so he decided to check the record on the chip.

'Your body is currently experiencing an abnormal condition. Your blood flow rate is 3x greater than normal, and your blood vessels are rupturing.

'Magnetic field has weakened. You are now waking up.

'Radiation energy has disappeared. Magnetic field has disappeared.

'You are having trouble understanding space and time.'

"Nope, not a dream," Angele said.

Angele looked at the crystal clock he had bought not too long ago and seen that it was already 9 o'clock in the evening. The words on the book suddenly disappeared and words suddenly appeared in the air. They were blurry in the beginning, but now, Angele could easily read them.

'Congratulations, love. You passed the mental examination of the book,' it said. The book suddenly started shining with a light akin to a silver water flowing around. Angele could barely see anything from the brightness. The light stayed for about 5 seconds before disappearing.

Angele opened his eyes once again and looked at the book on his desk. The cover of the book change, though the color did not. Many strange runes appeared in the middle of the cover and the earmark was no longer there. Under the runes was a black door shaking slightly. Angele could even hear the noise it created; it felt like watching a 3D movie on Earth.

The color of the cover was still brown, but the material seemed to have changed. Angele had mixed feelings about this and was hesitant. The illusion he had experienced warned him on how dangerous the book was. However, the book was the only clue he had about the Wizards, so he didn't want to give it up. Angele could now hear the noises of people talking and doors opening and closing from the hallway. He slowly calmed down as he sought solace in such an environment. It was the dorm he was familiar with.

'Zero, check the book and tell me if it's still dangerous,' Angele thought.

'Analysis beginning… Item unknown. Danger unknown. Please proceed with caution.' Hearing Zero's report made Angele hesitate again. He turned the book to its second page. Nothing happened, but the painting of the lady had disappeared. Instead, Angele saw a page full of words. There was a title on top of the page, which told Angele of what the book actually was.

'This is just a starter meditation handbook.'

Following the title, it said:

'This book will help you lay the foundation. If you want more, head to Marilodan. I heard that the market there would open every 50 years. I just don't want to write down high-level skills in this one as I'm still researching. For your own safety, I suggest you do not attempt to touch the high-level meditation handbooks.'

The words were written in Anmag language, which made it surprisingly easy for Angele to understand.

Chapter 41: Book of the Wizard (2)

Translator: Leo Editor: DarkGem/Frappe

Angele became relieved as he calmed down. It seemed that he had survived the dangerous part of the book. Zero had also stopped giving out warnings. Angele read the next several lines where it all referred to the method how the meditation worked. The actual method was nearly identical to the one being used for training Qi back on Earth. However, the meditation in this world needed some special objects to support the process. It was also mentioned that before reaching the Wizard level, there were three different stages.

The stages were labeled using simple numbers: stage 1, stage 2, and stage 3. According to the book, the Wizardry practices were all about accuracy even when the targets could only be vaguely explained. All wizards were great scholars and their accuracy in evaluation could help them determine the stage they were at. Wizards were serious on their research endeavors that they would attempt to make everything proper and stable, including the book Angele had.

The author listed possible encounters during each stage and possible misunderstandings that might happen in the information on the book. Also, it had even a list of the possible reactions of people of differing mental states after reading the book. Every word in the book was helpful, not a single space was wasted. Angele spent about half an hour storing all the information on the chip in order for it to help him focus on the information he needed.

'Analyze and find the information I need.' Angele ordered as Zero started working on it right away.

'92.15% of unnecessary information was removed. Start transferring the rest?' Zero asked.

'Yes,' Angele thought. He sat in front of the desk and closed his eyes. His temples were slowly throbbing like a beating heart; it looked very strange. The words on the book started evanescing like an ink dropped into a vast expanse of clean water. It continued to evanesce on the paper until nothing was left. It took about 10 seconds to wipe out everything on the book. Lines of words started appearing on the pages again. Everything was written in Anmag language, and the content had been changed into the biography of the scholar named Buckwill.

'So this is meditation. I can sense special elements in nature and I can approach them myself. Those special elements could bring people different sensations. People who could feel them and even lead them must be gifted. The number of elements they could feel and the speed of being able to adapt to them determined how gifted people were. That was…' Angele opened his eyes after a while and thought. He shook his head from being unable to find a proper word to describe it. However, he obtained the method of meditation, a chance he had to grasp.

Angele found the part pertaining as to how to start basic meditation. It said that there was one necessary supporting medicine called Dead Soul Grass. This plant grew upon graves and was something too difficult to find. It looked like a four-leaf clover, but it had a black color instead of green. Angele needed the leaves of the grass and put one into his mouth before initiating the meditation. Without the leaves, one couldn't sense the special elements even if it were the most gifted ones.

"The Dead Soul Grass?" Angele muttered. He closed the book and began thinking.

The book was now useless to Angele, so he placed it back inside the bag. Without the grass, he wouldn't be able to start the meditation. It seemed that there wasn't much that he could do for now. Angele checked the time; it was already 3 o'clock in the morning. He never thought that it was already this late, so he took the black bag he got earlier from the bed. It was from his father, and there was a letter. Angele opened it and saw that it was pretty much about the recent situation of his family.

During the past half-year, the baron had bought a small manor outside the city with the assistance of Maria. However, he wasn't a 'baron' anymore due to the situation in Rudin Empire. His territory was gone, and there was no more income being generated there. The baron had funded a mercenary corporation with the guards that he had brought here. They took orders from the mercenary guild, harbor guild, and the governor's office. They were actually doing well and were even famous among the mercenary groups. The baron still had the skills of a mid-level knight. As a knight, he would be welcomed in any lord's territory and get a decent amount of territory. The baron was at the mid-level and could easily help post knights to obtain Life Energy Seeds. More post knights meant greater strength for a territory, so all the lords would appreciate that.

However, when a knight helped others get Life Energy Seeds, he would lose a small amount of stamina himself. The children would get higher base stamina if the one helping them was at a higher level. It was possible for the post knights to have similar attributes as a real knight, so the lords wanted as many knights as possible in their territories. The baron's pride didn't allow him to serve others, so he decided not to join under anyone's wing. Instead, he had funded a mercenary corporation to take orders such that he even made a decent amount of money with it. It was nearly the same to the income he had been earning back in the castle. The baron had mentioned the recent changes in the manor and also the new mission he had gotten. He would be escorting an influential character to the Anser Plain along with more than ten other mercenary groups. Only one of the groups was weaker than the baron's, while the rest was as strong as they were. The baron said they might encounter mounted bandits from Saladin Empire during this mission, so the governor was paying them with a considerable amount.

The situations of Maggie and Celia were also mentioned in the letter. It was said that Celia was showing her talent in music, so the baron sent her to a good teacher to learn. There was nothing wrong with learning more anyway. However, Maggie showed absolutely no talent in the different fields that she had tried. If it were not for her having an intimate relationship with Angele, the baron would've just treated her like a normal worker. The only reason why she was living a decent life was due to Angele.

The rest of the letter was just greetings from his aunt and uncle. As he reached the end, written on the last line was: 'To my dearest son, Angele. 1541. 12. 11. 2 am'. The letter had been written last night. After Angele finished reading it, he returned it inside his pouch. He thought of how time quickly flew past by. It had now been three years since he reincarnated into this body. Angele opened the black bag and saw some daily necessities, some white blankets, some papers, new ink bottles, pens, and also a dagger with a brown leather sheath. With a small black diamond-like gem embedded into the handle, it looked strangely beautiful.

Angele didn't spend too much money, so he still had more than 800 gold coins. He became renowned in the school due to his close relationship with Master Adolf such that it caused many students to pay for his tutoring services in Language. He charged students about 100 gold coins each time, which was enough for him to pay for the classes. He spent most of his money on other objects, such as strange trinkets from the market. The crystal clock on his desk was one of the strange trinkets he had bought. Marua Harbor was, after all, the largest harbor by the country's border, so countless merchants parked their ships here. They brought various goods to the city that you could buy anything you want, even slaves. As long as you had enough money, that is.

Angele played with the dagger that was a trophy the baron received from a mission for a while. He sent it to Angele as a birthday gift. Angele sometimes returned to the manor to meet with his father and some other people, but he only stayed for a brief duration. Most of his time was spent in the school and in Adolf's residence. He studied in school and practiced his skills whenever he had a spare time. Life there was definitely not fun, but at least, he didn't waste any time.

His attributes didn't increase during the half-year that had passed, everything staying the same. Angele still was a mid-level knight. He would've been weaker if he didn't have all the strong sword skills. His skill in archery had also improved a lot, gaining the capability of simultaneously firing two arrows without losing accuracy. At school, most of the students weren't interested in fighting skills such as archery and horse riding. They only used those skills to show off during classes. No one would even practice after. The training ground was always nearly empty, and only the poor students sometimes trained there. Though, most of their time was spent on working, so they could pay for the fees in school. Barely anyone was like Angele, who went to the training ground every single day to train his fighting skills using the free weapons the school provided. After the countless of times Angele trained, he improved his sword skills again. Even his skill in archery was getting better as well.

Angele put back everything and went to wash his face and brush his teeth. He put out the oil lamp and lied down on his bed. According to the information on the book, the Dead Soul Grass was considerably rare and would only grow in a graveyard with a lot of graves. Angele was thinking of the things needed to be done tomorrow as he slowly fell into slumber shortly after.

Chapter 42: Dead Soul Grass (1)

Translator: Leo Editor: DarkGem/Frappe

At the second day, Angele was asleep until it was 10 o'clock in the morning. He stayed up too late last night, so it took him 7 hours to recover. Angele finished his breakfast quickly. He greeted the guard at the entrance when he was writing his leave notice. He then hired a coachman and traveled to Red Rock Hill Graveyard.

It was already afternoon when Angele arrived at his destination. The sunlight made everything look as if it was dyed in red that even the clouds passing over him had a golden orange hue. The hill was outside the vicinity of Marua City. A huge sloping ground was made atop it. Many graves were on the ground surrounded by thriving trees. If you looked at the hill from a far side, the entirety of the graveyard would be on a slope.

There were many people visiting the graveyard right now, and one of them was a young man from a noble family. He was looking through the grass around the graveyard instead of the tombstones, sometimes walking from one stone to another as though he didn't come to mourn. Following him around was a middle-aged man who seemed to be his coachman.

"Master Angele, it's pretty late. Shall we head back?" the coachman spoke with a light voice. For about two hours, he had been following him around. Angele paid him two gold coins, equivalent to the amount he would get for transporting 20 people. The coachman knew that Angele paid him quite well, but it was taking way too long.

"Getting dark already?" Angele finally noticed the situation. With scrunched eyebrows, he took one final look around only to feel disappointed.

"Fine, let's head back," Angele said. They started walking back to the entrance of the graveyard.

"Do you know how Rudin Empire is holding up? Is Saladin Empire still invading?" Angele threw out several random questions.

"In a tavern, I met several people who escaped from Rudin Empire. They said the only city left intact was the capital. Other places were pretty much conquered by neighboring countries. There aren't too many Saladins here, so I'm not quite sure what events had unfolded. I'm just a low-class coachman anyway. People like me have no right to ask such questions," the coachman said before laughing.

"Yea, but I think many Rudins have come to the harbor? Any big name you've heard of?" Angele asked. He knew coachmen were a great source of information as they dealt and talked a lot with their customers. The coachman didn't answer, only keeping a smile on his face. Angele took out a gold coin and threw it to the man.

"Well, I might have the information you need actually. I've heard two passengers saying that there weren't many people from Rudin Empire. Most of them were small noble families. The larger ones were hindered by the Saladins along their way, and the royal members were attacked by forces of several different countries. I can't even imagine…" The coachman grabbed the coin, and he said.

"Yea?" Angele nodded. It seemed that Marquis Syrias didn't make it. However, he wasn't going to completely trust the coachman because the source itself was suspicious. If it was true, he wouldn't need to worry about Philip anymore.

"Wait, ever heard of the Dead Soul Grass?" Suddenly, Angele asked as he took out several more gold coins.

"Dead Soul Grass? Could you describe its appearance? I might have seen it somewhere before, but with a different name." The coachman looked at the coins with a greedy expression such that Angele could see it clearly.

"It looks similar to a clover, but it has a black color," Angele said.

"A clover that is black? Do you mean Black Clovers? It only grows upon graveyards. You're here for those things?" the coachman said.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I've only heard of it being sold in pharmacies. It's very expensive. I'm afraid you wouldn't find any at this place since people wouldn't leave something so valuable on the ground," he continued.

"Pharmacy?" Angele nodded, "Drive me there." Angele threw another two gold coins to the coachman who happily grabbed them.

"No problem," the coachman said.

"As fast as you can," Angele said.

"We'll be there in half an hour!" The coachman laughed.

About 20 minutes later, Angele arrived at a pharmacy by the harbor. Around the place was bustling with noises from carriages and people minding their own matters. A banner with words written in Rudin language was placed outside of the pharmacy that said: Mass's Small Pharmacy. There were some herbs drawn on the side.

The pharmacy was located between two other stores on the first floor of a white building, its appearance furnished with simplicity. Many people dressed up in some strange suits were walking in and out of the pharmacy. All of them were different people of different statures. The pharmacy looked popular as it was recommended by the coachman, saying that the price here was fair.

Angele had his black-red noble hunting suit worn, which made him stick out in the midst of people like a sore thumb. People would glance at him for a second before entering the store. Angele stood outside for a while before entering. The owner was handing herbs over to two mercenaries that looked like a couple. The owner was a kind-looking old man with white beard on his chin. Angele knew that the old was an experienced pharmacist with just the initial impression. Several clerks were handling customers by the side, and one of them walked to Angele after he entered the store.

"Welcome, Young Master. Not feeling well? What do you need?" The young man had his business smile on.

"I want some Black Clovers. You have them here?" Angele asked.

"Black Clovers? You must be jesting. They're so rare that even the largest pharmacy in the city doesn't have them in stock," the young man answered.

"Really?" Angele asked with scrunched eyebrows.

"Yes, one Black Clover would cost you thousands of gold coins. It isn't something you see every day. People only auction them, and some of them are in the hands of some collectors. This herb has been restricted by the alliance more than ten years ago. Low-class citizens would be hanged just for purchasing it." The young man nodded as he said with a serious tone.

"Yea?" Angele felt a bit speechless. He was only at the 1st Stage, but he's already having difficulties. He didn't know what to expect after. He couldn't afford even just a single Black Clover as it would cost thousands of gold coins. It was already dark outside when Angele left the store. He asked the coachman to get him to Master Adolf's house.

The only thing he could do now was to seek help from the Master because Adolf was the one who had given the book to him, thus he must know something about it. The Dead Soul Grass, or Black Clover, wasn't something Angele would be able to obtain at present. Judging by the bell at the harbor, it was already 7 o'clock in the evening when Angele arrived at the house. The street lights by the roadside were already lit.

Angele got off the carriage and saw Sophia watering the garden. Four oil lamps hung around the entrance of the house. The visibility for a normal person was low, but Angele could see things clearly.

"Angele, you're early today." Sophia looked surprised when she saw Angele arriving, but it seemed as though she had already expected this.

"Let's go. Father's inside the study on the second floor." Sophia opened the entrance for Angele as she said. Angele nodded, going straight into the house. He need not Sophia to lead the way because he was already completely familiar with the place.

Angele lightly knocked on the door.

"Come in, it's open," Adolf said with a deep tone. Angele carefully opened the door and saw Adolf lying down on a reclined chair made of bamboo. He was wearing a white robe and had a book placed on his stomach.

"Have a seat," Adolf said. Angele bowed before sitting on a sofa by the side.

"Master, it looks like you already know I would come to seek help?" Angele asked.

"You didn't disappoint me. Did the book scare you?" Adolf opened his eyes and smiled.

"It actually caught me off guard." Angele stopped for a second before laughing.

"It means you have the potential to become a wizard if you can see its true form. I have lent the book to many young students, but you're the only one who passed the challenge. You would indeed come to me the next day if you know what you're looking for. People don't usually finish the book in such a short duration if they were to read it as a normal biography." Adolf laughed as he said this.

"You know I passed the trial?" Angele was still wondering.

"You just went to the Red Rock Hill Graveyard, am I right?" Adolf laughed.

"I'm not just a mere scholar in Marua," he continued.

Angele felt relived. It seemed that his master knew everything about him.

"Master, please tell me how I can get my hands on the Dead Soul Grass, or Black Clover. I heard that it's quite difficult to find," Angele said.

"I obtained one several years ago. You can use it," Adolf said while smiling.

"Well, how can I pay for it then?" Angele calmly asked. Though Adolf liked him a lot, it was still something of great value. Angele didn't expect to get it for free.

"I'm not expecting you to pay me anything right now. Though thousands of gold coins are not a small amount, I can still afford it. You have the potential to become one of the greatest, so I'm looking forward to it." Adolf stopped smiling as he spoke in a serious tone.

"Marry, get Sophia in my room," Adolf yelled toward the door. Within a few minutes, Sophia walked in without any idea of what was going on. She looked at Angele and Adolf before closing the door carefully.

"Angele, you think she's attractive?" Adolf asked.

Sophia, who had a pretty face, was just about 20 years of age. She wore a red one piece and had her hazelnut, curly hair over her shoulders; her arms and neck along with her well-proportioned body were attractive to one's eyes. Angele looked at Sophia without saying anything. When Angele first saw her, he already knew she was kind and clever.

Chapter 43: Dead Soul Grass (2)

Translator:_Leo_

Editor:DarkGem, VirtualFrappe

"She's indeed beautiful and… very attractive." Angele nodded.

"Well then…" Adolf laughed.

"Wait, Father! You can't be serious!" Sophia stopped her father from continuing.

"What? You don't like him?" Adolf stopped smiling and instead had a serious expression on his face.

"Angele is nice, but he's just not my type. Father, please let me at least make my own decisions." Sophia seemed adamant on this, so she insisted.

"Your type? You mean that bard from Westwind? The only thing he has is a pretty face!" Adolf spoke in a reprimanding tone, but Sophia kept looking at him, showing how serious she was about this.

"Since Sophia already has someone in her mind, how about just letting me treat you like my own father?" Angele quickly stood up and interrupted their conversation. Adolf still looked angry, but he stopped glaring at his own daughter.

"Well then… I'll just treat you like my own son," Adolf said. It looked like he now felt slightly better.

"Master, my father and aunt could use some help sometimes. Would you mind?" Angele said, trying to ease the anger of Adolf and make him feel comfortable. If he asked Adolf to help his family, Adolf would know someday that Angele would repay him well. Adolf looked much better after hearing the request.

"Get out of here, you're making me mad," Adolf yelled as he turned to his daughter. Sophia didn't say anything, only slamming the door close. Angele could hear her going down the stairs furiously.

"I'll keep an eye out for your father, and if he needs any help, I'll try my best. I think that will help deepen our relationship," Adolf said as he began smiling again. He stood up and opened the drawer on the desk. Adolf then took out a tiny, well-decorated box. There was a ruby embedded in the black box. Angele thought the box alone would nearly be as valuable as the grass.

"This box is made of Agilawood. It prevents the herb from losing its efficacy. I'm giving this to you as well." Adolf smiled, not caring whether Angele was his son or not. If Angele's family was in his reach, Angele wouldn't do anything stupid. Even if Angele gave up his whole family, the only thing Adolf would waste was time and money.

Adolf had wanted to make Sophia marry Angele since the union in matrimony would help them develop a close relationship, but his daughter was just unhappy with the decision. Adolf loved his daughter quite dearly, so he didn't want to disappoint her too much. He was just faking his anger to make sure that Angele understood the situation.

"I'm still just a low-level wizard apprentice. It's probably too late for me to pursue my own dream. However, I found you, Angele. I hope you will walk a bit further on this path." Adolf handed over the box to Angele and said in a serious tone.

"I'll try my best," Angele said after accepting the box.

Both of them knew it was an investment. Adolf was betting on Angele, thinking that he had a huge potential. Even if Angele were to die during the process, Adolf would just stop giving help to the former's family. However, if Angele were to succeed, he would never forget Adolf who had greatly helped him. It was a chance Adolf had to take.

Angele held the box that was the size of a fist in his hand. He carefully opened it, and lying inside it was a Black Clover. It looked exactly as the book described, and Angele could even see its roots. Angele closed the box, unable to wait in beginning the formal meditation.

"Wait, is there something important hanging around your neck?" Adolf suddenly asked, his sight falling on Angele's neck.

"Can't hide anything under your eyes, eh?" Angele smiled. He wasn't trying to hide it anyway. They had the same goal right now, which was to help Angele become a wizard, but Angele was afraid of laying bare everything he had to Adolf. He took the emerald ring carefully and handed it over to Adolf. The latter rubbed the ring several times, beginning to scrutinize it.

"The energy in this enchanted ring is gone, and the emerald is already cracked. It comes from… Ramsoda College? I've never heard of it. An ancient wizard organization, perhaps? This ring is going to help you get on the ship. With this, you'll be taken into consideration by whichever this wizard organization is. Lucky guy." Adolf laughed, looking quite jubilant.

"I think the luckiest thing that happened to me was meeting you, Master." Angele politely said, both of them laughing for a while.

"Wait, which ship are we talking about?" Angele asked.

"Half a month later, there will be a boat coming by. It will be full of wizard apprentices. Our harbor has been given the chance to recommend several students to them, so I can recommend one too. The boat will take you to the place where numerous wizard organizations are established. If you get into one of them, you will obtain the chance to read the books about the higher stages. It's a chance for you. I was planning on begging someone I knew, but I didn't know you have an enchanted ring. It'll save me much time and money," Adolf said.

"Sounds like those organizations are far away from here?" Angele asked.

"Yea, you will be traveling for a while. The ship will only take you to another land, and then you need to travel for another two months. However, this is a chance you cannot pass if you want to become a wizard," Adolf said with a deep tone.

"I understand. I'll talk to my family and finish other matters before I leave," Angele said as he nodded.

"Good." Adolf smiled. "If you want to become a great person, you must keep going forward. You'll be staying there for a very long time. Spend more time with you family before you go," he continued.

"Also, there will be about 100 other people from our harbor on the boat. There are also some things I must let you know before you go. I'll inform you of those later," Adolf added.

"Alright, I got it. Thank you, Master." Angele nodded.

It was already 10 o'clock in the evening when Angele left Adolf's house. He hired a carriage and returned straight to the school. It was still early, but he wanted to try meditating. Angele rushed back to his room after getting off the carriage, instantly closing the door. He double-checked if he locked the door and the window before taking out the box which contained Black Clover inside it. He went to wash and took off his boots and socks. He sat on the bed and began preparing for the meditation as the book had said.

He crossed his legs and opened the small box. He took out the clover and grabbed one of its black leaves. Angele put the leaf that tasted very bitter inside his mouth. Angele couldn't help but scrunch his eyebrows because it stank. He put the rest back inside the box and put it on the side. He finally started following the steps mentioned in the book, constantly imagining the runes in his mind. Those runes were called the 'Runes of Will' as recorded in the book.

Ordinary human beings could keep 3 to 7 runes in their mind, while the gifted ones could keep 8 to 12. People could train their mentality by imagining those runes constantly. When a person reached the 1st stage, he would gain the ability to sense various types of energy in the space. He would be capable of discovering the energy he should be focusing on by separating the one he could sense the most from the other energies. The number of runes one could keep in their mind determined which stage one was at.

Angele remained on his bed with his eyes closed. He could feel the passing of time, the noise outside subsiding as the students went to their beds. It was already 2 o'clock in the morning. Angele's eyes suddenly started shining with a green light. His eyelids were shaking as though he was currently having a nightmare. His eyes shone for about half an hour with Angele's face slowly becoming gray-colored. Another half an hour later, Angele's face turned black, even having an awful stench on him.

Angele started sweating black fluid. It was very sticky, and his clothes were soaked wet by this. Suddenly, Angele opened his eyes and spat out a considerable amount of black blood onto the ground. The blood stank, but Angele's face had an expression of relief after discharging everything.

"The combination of Black Clover and meditation somehow increased my attributes. I can feel it. After spitting out all those blood, I felt very comfortable," Angele said. He was clearly in good spirits and not even tired at all. The clover had already dissolved in his mouth, most likely flowing into his blood vessels.

'Zero, did you record my brain activity?' Angele asked.

'Everything was recorded and stored in the database,' Zero reported.

'Show me my body condition,' Angele asked.

'Angele Rio: Strength 2.9. Agility 4.1. Stamina 2.8. Status: Healthy. Genetic limit reached,' Zero reported.

'My stamina has increased by 0.3!' Angele was simultaneously flabbergasted and exultant. His stamina was formerly 2.5 when he checked several days ago. Meditating caused it to increase it by 0.3, a huge amount to consider. He had already reached his gene limit some time ago, yet the meditation was changing his body on a genetic level.

'I can't believe wizards developed such a training method!' Angele was absolutely elated, even feeling more expectant from it. He thought that not only was he training but was also evolving. Angele felt curious about the things he could do in the future.

Chapter 44: Departure (1)

Translator: Leo Editor: DarkGem/Frappe

After meditating, Angele changed his clothes and opened the window to let the air circulate. Whatever that was left on his body didn't smell pleasant. He grabbed his blanket and opened the door. There was no light in the hallway, and all the rooms were quiet. Angele could only hear the snoring of people and the noises made by the beds. There was a chilling wind blowing through the hallways, making Angele feel much better after walking out of his room.

Angele went straight to the bathroom at the end of the hallway and took a shower. He then returned to his room and wiped off the black blood on his clothes. Angele felt refreshed, then putting all his dirty clothes at the corner.

'As a wizard apprentice, I can only meditate for a certain duration each day. Otherwise, my body wouldn't be able to handle the pressure. There are still three leaves on the Dead Soul Grass, and when I finish all three, my body will change. By then, I won't need to find new grass anymore,' Angele recalled the information from the book. The maximum number of hours he could now do was 5 hours per day. He carefully put the box containing the grass beneath his pillow and fell asleep right after.

The second morning.

Angele awoke at 5 o'clock in the morning, brimming with strength and energy. He got off the bed and looked at the Wizard's book on the desk.

'The dorm isn't safe enough a place for this. I should ask Master to keep them for me,' Angele thought. He placed the book and the box inside a black bag and left the room with it.

It was still early in the morning, and no carriage for hire was there yet. He didn't return to his bed and instead walked toward the sword training ground. He passed by the dorm and dining hall before heading toward a hill west of the building. Built upon it was a platform, the place clearly being the sword training ground. Batches of equipment were stored in a gray stone house behind the platform, and more than 30 wooden training dummies stood on the ground, green grass surrounding the ground all over. It was still a bit dark, making the place seemed eerie. Insects cried and sang in the forest nearby.

Angele tied the bag around an arm of a dummy before grabbing a wooden sword from the stone house. He heard noises in the air as he did several basic slashes. Angele felt satisfied. He walked toward the dummy that had his bag tied on it and decided to start practicing.

'Unknown human beings approaching. Distance: 103 meters. Numbers: 3,' Zero suddenly reported. Angele didn't know that people would come so early just to hone their sword skills, but he wasn't too concerned about them. He knew several students who occasionally practiced very early. There were three males chatting while walking, slowly drawing near to Angele. With Angele's excellent hearing, he could easily hear their conversation.

" … I heard that several new faces joined the school's grand tournament, each of which was very strong," one of them said.

"Whatever, those people are always the champions. Asma's Storm Sword skill is way too strong. I heard he was selected to be the future leader of the harbor's police department, and Geline was working at the patrol already. There are some people who have exceptional sword skills such as Allen, Albert, Nancy, and Alger. They won't be easily defeated by newcomers," someone else said.

"They may be strong, but no one can stand a chance against Asma. He won the sword skill competition at Westwind, making the other contestants look like a joke. I choose to be a swordsman because I admire him. Also, I heard that Alger has been practicing at the training ground very early recently. We might meet him there," another one said.

As the footsteps were getting close, Angele shook his head after hearing their conversation. He laughed because he had seen Asma using a sword before. He was very strong and his skill set was refined. It might even be stronger than Angele's basic sword skill set. Angele met him once at this training ground, and he must be from a high-class family. Angele used his chip to collect data on Asma's Storm Sword skills, concluding after that those skills required the Life Energy Seed to unlock the full potential. The set was at the level of a grand knight, but it was useless to Angele.

Compared to the storm set's burst potential, Angele's basic skills were focused on technique and precision. If Angele tried to practice the set, he would just get a backlash as he didn't meet the requirement for it. After all, he didn't have the Life Energy Seed. The Grand Sword Tournament was a tradition of the Andes Alliance, which was held every other year. The school would become raucous during the tournament. Some high-class nobles would be invited to be the judges. Not only were the contestants the students in the school, even the alumni participated since the prize itself was tempting.

Angele never cared about it as his goal was reaching stage one as a wizard apprentice and awaiting the boat of the Wizard organizations. Angele stopped listening to their conversation, deciding to focus on practicing instead. He raised his wooden sword and initiated a front slash on the dummy — something which he kept repeating. As the three students arrived at the training ground, they became surprised when they saw Angele.

"It's Angele, the language genius! I heard he's Master Adolf's favorite student, and he even taught Angele privately," one of them said with a faint voice.

"Shall we greet him?" he continued.

"Nope, let's not disturb him. I heard he's also an impressive archer such that many students said that he has a 90% accuracy rate even when the targets are 100 meters away! If we have a tournament for archery, he'll be at the top 3 for sure! Also, I heard he doesn't like other students, very self-centered, and even has a bad temper. Some students once said in public that they don't like him, but after a while, they suddenly stopped saying things like that. They probably had a 'great time' with Angele," the other one said.

"Alright, let's just stay away from him. Just don't anger him," the one who was at the front said.

The three talked for a while, though they tried avoiding any eye contact with Angele. They picked a place far from him, and then began training with wooden swords they had taken. Angele found it funny when he heard their gossip while practicing. He thought he didn't attract any attention in school, but apparently, he was well-known. The students who didn't like Angele were just random small fry who knew a little bit about fighting skills trying to fight him. Angele taught them a lesson within several seconds. They left him alone after learning that he was Adolf's student. After that incident, rumors spread saying that Angele wasn't one to be trifled with.

Angele didn't too deeply about it. However, people were saying how he was self-centered and had a bad temper, making Angele speechless. He shook his head and decided to continue training.

In the next several days, the school became very busy as many activities organized by students were ongoing. Angele saw many students walking to and fro with swords tied to their waists. Many timbers were being carried to the training ground. It seemed that the tournament would be held there wherein the school was building the audience area.

Angele heard students talking about the champion candidates in the dorm many times, but he never cared about it. He continued his daily routine, but he now meditated instead of sleeping. He couldn't go to the sword training ground due to the recent event, so he instead went to the archery training ground. His meditation wasn't progressing quite well after his first experience. Angele's attributes didn't increase the same amount as the former 0.3 increment in stamina, but he could feel his body becoming stronger. The chip wasn't giving him exact numbers, but he could feel it was slowly but constantly increasing. Angele felt great as he could keep 8 runes in his mind now. His mind was clearer than before even without sleep.

*****************************

The 3rd dorm building in the school. Inside a random room.

Several students were chatting together.

"Hey! Caesar, I didn't know Angele was in this school too!" one guy said.

"Angele? Angele Rio? That dumb playboy?" The young man named Caesar seemed surprised.

"Yea, him." The guys laughed.

"Lucky guy. He didn't get killed while running away? He was weak as a snail," a girl with short hair said, and laughed. She was eating something that looked like sunflower seeds, which looked tasty.

"Caitlyn, what courses will you and your brother choose? The fees here are really expensive, so I'll just stick with painting," she asked as she turned to a girl behind her. A beautiful girl with blonde hair draped all over the shoulders was sitting beside her, drinking some tea slowly.

"Angele Rio? I heard there's a talented student named Angele. Is that him?" The blonde girl didn't answer the question. She was more concerned about the previous topic.

"Yep, that's him." The first guy laughed.

"That prick is doing well. I hear he's studying under Master Adolf. He's a mere one lucky bastard. Who the hell does he think he is? Damn!" he continued. It was as though he didn't care, but people who knew him knew he was just jealous.

"Yea, Angele was never a smart guy," Caitlyn said as she laughed.

*****************************

Five days later…

"Angele, do you know a girl named Caitlyn?" Roger, who lived alongside Angele in the dorm, suddenly asked. He was currently having dinner with Angele.

Angele didn't know Roger too well, but they occasionally had dinner together and would chat for a while. Roger was most likely the only person who would talk to Angele aside from Sophia in school. He was also the same person who told Angele about the course schedule at the dorm.

"Caitlyn? Why do you ask?" Angele thought for a second before answering. He remembered that the viscount's daughter was also named Caitlyn. The original Angele died when he fell off the horse during the competition, which was indirectly caused by her. Roger spread butter over his bread and grabbed the strawberry jam by the side.

"She just registered, but I heard that she and her brother got entangled in some trouble. They messed with Vivak, thus the latter surrounded them with his gang. They had no way out, so Caitlyn said you were her fiancé in front of everyone. Vivak was unwilling to fight you, so he left them alone after," Roger said before he laughed.

"Now it seems like you don't know her at all. Things will become hilarious, I suppose," Roger continued. He wasn't from a very large family, but he was certainly better than the typical Rudin nobles who fled from their own country.

"Yea?" Angele didn't want to say too much, so he just laughed. He grabbed an apple-like fruit and took a bite on it. The Candia family didn't prepare for the Saladin invasion, so their main forces were killed on their way to escape. They now had lost territory. Angele once saw one of the corpses of their dead men on the way, but he couldn't even remember the person's name. Viscount Candia was lucky enough to reach Marua alive.

"What's the girl's full name?" Angele asked.

"Caitlyn Candia," Roger said, then took a big bite on his toast.

'That's her,' Angele thought. He smiled at Roger, but he didn't say anything.

Chapter 45: Departure (2)

Translator: Leo Editor: DarkGem/Frappe

Two days later…

The ship from the Wizard's organization was still on the way, more than five days away from here. Angele returned to his family's manor once, planning on talking to his father. However, the baron was already out on the mission on the Anser Plain, so he instead had some fun time with Maggie and Celia. He also left a letter addressed to his father. He decided to stay in the school awaiting the ship while continuing to train his sword and archery skills. As he also meditated every day, he felt as though he was living a quality life.

After lunch, Angele went to the archery skill training ground. The training platform was grassy and many targets were built under a large tent. Each person had an individual line in front with the bows hanging at the side. The grass shone as it reflected the light under the sun. A breeze blew over Angele, but the only thing he could feel was the heat from the sun.

There were already some people practicing in the archery training ground when Angele entered. He selected the line by the right far end like he used to. He took the brown wooden bow on the side and pulled the bowstring several times.

"Nice, someone is taking good care of these bows," Angele said and nodded. Several girls walked into the training ground, but they stayed at the lines at the left side. Angle could still hear their conversation.

"Mary, would you like to try it?" one of the girls asked.

"Sure," the girl name Mary answered. Angele heard the sound a bowstring would make when it was fully drawn. Angele felt slightly curious and looked over to their line. He saw a wooden arrow flying across the line, but it didn't even pass the 20-meter mark before dropping down to the ground.

"Nice shot!"

"Such skills!"

"Mary, you're so good!"

The girls around Mary looked surprised, an expression unable to be faked. They clearly thought the result was great.

"20 meters is most likely the best result I can get, yet Mary made it look so easy!"

"Me too!"

"Mary Sauron, you are such an archer!" The girls kept praising Mary.

"You guys are making fun of me, right?" Mary asked jokingly.

"We're not. Haha." The girls started laughing.

"If my brother was here, he would at least hit the target. 100 meters is nothing to him," Mary said.

"Yea? My sister can do it too. She can easily hit the 5th ring." The targets they used in school were the standard 9-ring ones with the bullseye located right in the middle. An average student could barely hit the target. If one were to hit the 5th ring, however, he would get a high mark in the archery course.

"Talking about archery skills, I hear Angele's impressive at it. He could hit the 9th ring 9 out of 10 times. Some even said he was one of the best in the school. Is that true, Caitlyn?" one of the girls asked.

"Angele could easily do that. He brought me to the shooting range several times when we were dating. Hitting the 9th ring at a 100-meter distance didn't pose any problem to him," a girl said with a calm voice, but she sounded prideful.

Angele felt a bit awkward after having recognized the voice right away. That was the girl whom the original Angele fell in love with, thus he decided not to listen to her nonsense. He grabbed an arrow from his quiver and nocked it onto his bow. Angele didn't ask the chip to assist in aiming; only shooting the arrow by relying on his intuition and muscle memory. Before, he could only shoot countless arrows accurately and precisely by relying on the chip. But now, he could aim targets precisely without requiring its assistance any longer. The wooden arrow he shot struck the bullseye from 100 meters away, an outstanding feat compared to other students'. Some of them began cheering as they barely had any chance to see someone with such accuracy and precision.

Angele didn't cease continuing to shoot arrows, but he stopped aiming for the bullseye and only choosing to hit the 3rd or 4th ring. He still landed every shot, but people stopped watching him. Angele didn't want to attract too much attention since he merely wanted to do some basic training. After about 15 minutes, he grabbed the blanket to wipe off his sweat after emptying three quivers. Angele didn't use the protective thumb ring because his finger was as strong as a knight's.

Angele put down the bow and walked along the hallway. He decided to greet the girls when he passed by them. It was the girl the original Angele liked, so he thought he should at least make things clear. Angele turned back, walking toward them. Five pretty girls were still happily chatting.

"Anything we could help you with?" one of the girls asked.

"You're Caitlyn, right? Long time no see. How are you doing?" Angele walked toward a blonde girl and asked with a gentle smile on his face. They stopped talking for a while, looking at each other confusedly.

"I… I'm not Caitlyn. She is…" the blonde girl said, pointing to another blonde girl on her right while having a strange expression.

"Well…" Angele showed a speechless face before he started smiling again.

"I'm Angele. Caitlyn, long time no see," Angele said as he turned to the girl on his left. Caitlyn was blushing, unable to maintain eye contact with Angele. She knew her lie had been unraveled and could feel her 'friends' looking at her disdainfully.

Angele's mission had been accomplished, so he became satisfied. He wanted to show to these girls that he wasn't familiar with Caitlyn. They would spread the rumor for him after. Angele died for this girl during the challenge, but she didn't even come to visit after. A worker placed him on a carriage and brought him back to the castle alone. Though Angele was a completely different person now, he didn't want her using his name to avoid troubles. Angele had been angered when he first heard what Caitlyn said when she was dealing with Vivak. The situation became awkward and in the end, Caitlyn ran away from the scene without looking back.

"Angele, Caitlyn said that you were her fiancé. Is that true?" the blonde girl asked.

"No way." Angele shook his head, "We were just classmates learning from the same teacher back in Rudin. I have no idea why she would say something like that," Angele continued before laughing.

"I knew it. Angele, you're quite famous in our school and we all know you're proficient in archery and language," Mary, the girl with short black hair, said. Angele talked with the girls for a while and returned to the dorm after. He had reached his goal, so he didn't want to waste time on them anymore.

Angele knew what Caitlyn was thinking and knew how much of a phony she was. Caitlyn most likely thought that Angele would be more than happy to come back to her if she said something like 'Angele is my fiancé' and try to make it seem as if Angele couldn't live without her. Dating Angele would increase her reputation and incur the admiration of other students since many students admired Angele at present. She thought Angele still dearly loved her, never giving up the chance to be with her. However, Angele wasn't the same weak playboy anymore and knew exactly what he ought to do.

After the rumor spread out, nothing much changed. However, people started treating the Candias' and their friends like a joke. No one treated them seriously any longer such that they would gossip about them during dinner. Vivak didn't try to teach them a lesson after hearing the truth, only warning them several times. He said it was because they used to know Angele. But no matter what, Angele didn't want to entangle himself into this anymore.

A week's time quickly passed, and Angele's stamina increased to 2.9. The galleon from the Wizard organizations finally arrived at the harbor.

Somewhere at Marua Harbor was a small path made of stone that led toward the sea. A thick layer of black stones was upon it with the ocean right beside the path. The waves ceaselessly crashed against the docks. Angele was waiting there along with ten other people. He had his white swordsman suit worn, a black backpack on his back and the silver crossguard sword by his waist. Angele's body was well-toned and robust, which somehow contributed to his charm. Adolf and two bodyguards were standing beside him. They were here because only they knew which galleon was of the Wizard organizations. Adolf wanted to ensure everything goes as he planned.

Noontime it was, with the sun pouring rays of light constantly as though it was about to scorch the ground. Heat came like the waves of the sea, making the people unable to stop wiping the sweat off their faces. Finally, a fleet of merchant galleons appeared on the horizon as it headed slowly toward the docks. All had the 'whale and trident' insignia on their flags and most of the galleons carried a lot of cargos.

"Those are the merchant galleons of Sea View Trading Company. Make sure you board the last one, don't screw up," Adolf whispered by Angele's ear with a serious tone.

"Understood," Angele said as he nodded in understanding.

Angele slightly raised his head and looked at the arriving galleons. The sky and the ocean were akin to sapphire, identical in color as though they had converged as one. The galleons that were adorned in blue and white were slowly drawing near to the docks. The wind was very strong, carrying Angele's hair with its every whim. Angele could also hear the constant noise of the waves hitting the docks.

Two white seabirds chirped and flew over the crowd. People around were talking. It seemed that they came here to board the trading company's galleons. There were about a hundred people on this 100-meter-long path lined up on the dock.

"Stop looking, those people are just here as a façade. Not many of them will actually board the galleon," Adolf said as he patted Angele's shoulders.

"The truth? How many are people here like me? Do you know, Master?" Angele understood what Adolf was trying to say, so he asked.

"I'm not sure, but the young ones who board the last galleon probably have the same purpose as you. You'll know once you board it. Someone will explain everything to you," Adolf shook his head as he said. The galleons were drawing near. From afar the horizon, they seemed like dots in their perspective, but as they drew nearer, they looked humongous. The merchant galleons were of the same size as the cruisers of Earth.

"Wow… What do they use to power those things…?" Angele was surprised at the size.

"They use something special. No way the sails are making them move. The sails are probably just for saving 'energy'." Adolf looked at the incoming merchant galleons and said.

Chapter 46: On the Ship (1)

Translator: Leo Editor: DarkGem/Frappe

Ten minutes later, the fleet of merchant galleons had already set ashore. Workers began unloading wooden cargo boxes from nearly all the galleons and piled everything on the docks. Despite the weather condition, the workers were still doing their utmost to fulfill their tasks. Several merchants wearing luxurious clothes disembarked as well, and they started conversing with the people who were responsible for the clearance procedures of the newly-arrived goods. They were waiting to make sure everything was going well.

The last galleon in the fleet stopped by the dock where Angele was waiting. Several teenagers whom of which were mostly rich were looking at him and the dock itself through the windows of the galleon. Their faces were brimming with curiosity and at the same time, traces of arrogance were noticeable on their faces, something that Angele could clearly see. Large wooden planks had been oiled and secured at the dock as a catwalk for the people. These wooden planks were of black and red color, about 50 cm thick and had a width of about 7 to 8 meters.

A middle-aged man standing on the deck alongside several sailors yelled toward the crowd on the dock, "Get aboard the galleon!" With that as the signal, people started boarding the galleon one by one. Angele expressed his farewell by nodding to Master Adolf before boarding.

"Don't forget to talk to Nancy. She'll take care of you," Adolf said with a voice that only Angele could hear. Angele was already on the wooden catwalk when he heard this. He kept nodding to let his master know he got the message. There were about 40 people with him in total, partly having teenagers among of which 7 to 8 of them looked extremely young. They all looked calm and collected, trying to search for people of similar age among the crowd as well. Angele thought of the probability of them being a wizard apprentice just like him, while the rest were only façades to prevent the leakage of the galleon's true form and purpose.

Most of the people went to unload the cargos; only about 10 teenagers remained on deck. There was a handsome red-haired boy about 18 years of age standing beside Angele. He stood with a blonde boy, both carefully looking at others. On the right side of the deck was a girl wearing a white one piece a lace at its bottom. She was about 14 to 15 years old, and though her dress was beautiful, she didn't blend quite well with the people on the galleon and was also checking on others.

Angele had his sights on two of the teenagers because they had auras different to others. One of them was a ponytailed, blonde young man wearing a gold-white noble suit. His chin raised slightly in a proud fashion as though he was enjoying becoming the center of attention. The saber by his waist was supposedly used for fencing, yet he was merely carrying it as a decoration.

The other one was a girl who had a serious expression on her face. She looked like someone who wasn't fond of smiling a lot. Angele thought that she must be a hardworking student. Same as the young man, the girl also had a long, blonde ponytail. She had a slim but well-proportioned body and was wearing white clothes. What caught people's attention were her arm guards. The young men around the ship deck couldn't help but look at her. However, the girl didn't know how attractive she was to these men, thus it was clear how dense she was.

Angele obviously knew who the girl was. It was Nancy, the girl that Master Adolf had spoken of and the same person who would take care of him. Her father was a duke in Andes Alliance while her mother was a princess of a smaller country. Nancy was famous in the school and respected by nearly everyone there. She once studied the Anmag language under Adolf when she was young, and she respected him a lot. That was the main reason why she decided to help.

Nancy noticed Angele's gaze, then she walked toward Angele right away.

"You're Angele Rio?" Nancy asked in a cold tone.

"Yes, you're Nancy, aren't you? I've heard about you many times in school," Angele politely answered. When Nancy drew close to him, Zero sent out a warning as it sensed strong radiation energy from her and reported that the probability of her possessing an enchanted item was 79%. Angele knew the power of enchanted items. At present, he currently had no methods of dealing with such power even with his knight level strength since it meant nothing against anyone who possessed such items.

"Nancy? I've heard your name before." The young man with a ponytail walked toward them while smiling.

"My name is Ali Van Norman. I assume you know who I am," he continued.

"Yes. Ali, the son of Prince Amn," Nancy said politely as she turned to him. No one dared to ignore a son of the Prince.

"So he's the second son of the Prince…"

"I knew it was him." People around began buzzing around in discussions about Ali. When Ali approached, Zero warned Angele again in the same manner as what had happened when Nancy neared him. Apparently, he possessed an enchanted item as well.

Zero could sense strong radiation energy emanating from them, which meant that their items could be wielded anytime. The enchanted items alone would place their strength levels at the top, far stronger than anyone else on deck at this point. Angele knew the real of such items, able to change the tides of a battle in but a mere moment. The two knights he had encountered before began to flee as soon as they saw Angele take out the ring. Nonetheless, they were still slain. A grand knight most likely could stand a chance of surviving such ordeal, but the possibility of that to occur was close to nil.

Ali and Nancy started having a small conversation. Soon after, other students from high-class families also joined in the conversation. But because of the two's ranking in the hierarchy, they were quite reserved and barely had the chance to speak. After talking for a while, a man in a black robe appeared on deck along with the teenagers Angele saw before following the man from behind. The man had his body completely concealed by his robe such that Angele could only see his face.

"Students of Marua, I assume you know about the rules," the man said in a light tone.

"Yes, Master. Take the test and quietly wait before getting off the boat," Ali stepped forward as he bowed before speaking. The others seemed like they had no idea of what to do.

"The rule is simple. I know some of you hate each other, but on this boat, no one shall be your enemy. Don't do anything stupid just because you see someone you dislike," the man nodded as he said.

"You guys, head to the hall of the 4th floor," the man said while pointing at the entrance by the side.

"Follow me," Nancy looked at Angele and said.

Angele knew Nancy would help him out, and it was wise to stay with someone who had enchanted items. He nodded and followed her from behind. They went inside the cabin through the entrance. Without doing anything else, the ones who came with the man merely spectated as they stood there. Some of them were laughing and talking, and two girls who looked like twins caught Angele's attention as they were very cute. Zero warned him about enchanted items several times while he was being watched. It seemed that they possessed enchanted items, too.

The galleon traveled across many countries, picking up all the elites on the way. They most likely came from famous families as most of them were wearing luxurious clothes. From a perspective, it was as though the Wizard organizations were isolating normal people from their world. Even if the children of average families had the talent in becoming a wizard, they would never make it through this recruitment process. It was quite likely that Angele wouldn't have been able to get on the galleon if not for Adolf's recommendation.

Inside the cabin, they went down the stairs as the man in black robe led the way, quickly reaching the hall of the 4th floor. The walls were made of redwood and many beautiful paintings hung on them. There was also a large crystal chandelier at the ceiling; many unlit candles sat upon it. The hall was completely empty, not even a chair or a desk. After the man walked right into the middle of the hall, he turned around facing them.

"Is there any stage 3 apprentice below 18 years of age here? If there is, please stand behind me," he said in a gentle manner as though he was quite careful to not offend apprentices with such talent. Four people stepped forward and stood behind the man. Ali and Nancy were part of the four. Angele had already seen the other two before; one was the girl wearing a white one piece and the other was a black-haired boy. However, he was wearing clothes befitting of an average noble, so he barely caught anyone's attention. Never would Angele have expected him to be a stage 3 apprentice.

"Name and age?" the man in black robe asked.

"Ali, 17."

"Nance, 16."

"Gaben, 16."

"Jared, 14."

"Wow…" People around were all surprised, and they inspected on the black-haired boy. Even the man in a black robe was completely shocked, unable to prevent himself from examining the boy more closely.

"Are you really 14?" he asked.

"Yep, my birthday was last month. Is there any problem?" Jared calmly asked.

Chapter 47: On the Ship (2)

Translator: Leo Editor: DarkGem/Frappe

Everyone looked at Jared with mixed feelings. Angele was surprised, too. After all, Jared was nearly a year younger than him, but Jared already reached stage 3. Angele realized that he really had no idea just how vast this mysterious world was.

"No, impressive actually. Jared, right? Can you spare some time after the test, so we could talk?" the man asked with an excited look on his face.

"Sure." Jared nodded, still having a calm demeanor.

"Stage 2 wizard apprentices under the age of 18, please stand by my left side." The man nodded before he turned back to the rest. Seven more people stepped forward while four people remained uncalled, not including Angele.

"Good, stage 3 wizard apprentices won't be tested. The rest of you, come with me," the man said before nodding.

"Come in here one by one. Stage 2 wizard apprentices first." He walked through a wooden door at the end of the hall. Angele attempted to peek, but he couldn't see anything but darkness inside. The stage 2 wizard apprentices went inside first. Within 20 seconds, they went out with different expressions on their faces. Some of them looked happy, while some looked despondent.

Angele didn't need to wait for long before it was their turn. He hadn't even reached stage 1 yet, but the man didn't seem to care. There were four apprentices who were at stage 1. The first one who went inside was a black-haired girl with a ponytail. She went in and after just a few seconds, she got out with a disappointed expression and tears in her eyes. Only a few who went in got out with happy expressions while the rest all looked disappointed. As they knew of this fact, Angele and the other two became nervous, merely looking at each other without doing anything. It was clear that no one wanted to go in first.

"Hurry up! Next!" the man yelled. He was speaking in Rudin, but he had a strange accent whenever he got nervous. Angele looked at the other two before deciding to head in first. He hesitated for a second when he was right in front of the wooden door, and then he went into the darkness. He inhaled once and smelled something fishy. It was the volcano grass, something that Angele had on his way to Marua.

"Can you sense my location?" The man's voice was coming from all directions. Angele listened carefully and used the chip to enhance his sensation.

'Analyzing… The sound waves are coming from all directions. The number of sources is 4. No actual location detected…' Zero reported. Angele scrunched his eyebrows as there was nothing else he could do.

"Yea, you can't." The man stopped for a moment before he started writing down something.

"Which directions does my voice come from?" he asked.

"All directions," Angele answered.

"How about up and down?" the man asked.

"Nope," Angele said.

"Good, you're being honest. Your name?" he asked again.

"Angele Rio," Angele said.

"There are five different levels of talent. You're at level 2, slightly better compared to level 1. You may leave now," the man said.

Angele felt a bit disappointed. Before leaving the room, he bowed toward the darkness.

The two outside the room saw Angele's expression, causing their anxiety levels to escalate. Nonetheless, they still went inside and took the test, but they had a lachrymose expression. After the test was finished, the man in black robe walked out of the room and locked the door. He then turned around and looked at all the apprentices.

"Stage 3 wizard apprentices, your rooms are on the 1st floor. Stage 2 wizard apprentices' rooms will be on the 2nd floor. The rest, just go to the 5th floor and pick any room you want. Dining room and bathrooms will be on this floor. The rooms above the deck are all full, and people there are from other countries. Don't go upstairs if you don't have any reason to do so. You do not want to mess with some of the terrible ones. As long as you don't go up there yourself, they won't come down here. I shall oversee the deck, and if you have any questions, you can talk to me there. You may leave now. I'll post the list later. You can come and check if you want," the man in black robe said before leaving the hall.

"Well, shall we go find ourselves some rooms?" Others all agreed when someone said this. The wizard apprentices of Marua Harbor were already divided into three groups: stage 3 wizard apprentices, stage 2 wizard apprentices, and stage 1 wizard apprentices. They didn't live on the same floors, and Angele needed to go to the lowest floor. They bade farewell to each other before going to their respective floors.

The passage here was very narrow and wet. Angele kept hearing footsteps coming from above, but he didn't see anyone other than his fellow wizard apprentices. Angele was behind the group of people. The one in front of him was a handsome-looking red-haired boy, and second in the line was a blonde boy. These two were the ones who were beside Angele back on the docks. The one leading their group was the girl who had her black hair tied pony tail and was wearing swordsman armor. She didn't let her emotions become apparent on her face, but she looked cool and beautiful. She wore tight shirt and pants under her armor, making Angele think that she looked like a European fencing player.

The tight clothes she wore made her look very sexy, especially the tight pants. She had a different style of beauty compared to Nancy. If Angele were to see her from a distance, he would've just thought she was wearing normal swordsman suit. However, the girl��s body turned a normal suit into something charming such that the boys who were following her from behind couldn't help but stare at her butt. The four kept walking down in silence, but then, the talkative blonde boy finally decided to say something.

"Well, since we're all stage 1 wizard apprentice, we're all in the same boat now. How about introducing ourselves?" he smiled.

"My name is Lando Luc, 15 years old. Let's not talk about family though, they don't care how big a background you have there anyway," he continued.

"I'm Yuri, 15 years old. Talent level 2. I think we're the weakest in this ship," the red-haired boy spoke after his best friend. When he spoke, he had a bitter smile on his face.

"Angele, 14 years old. Talent level 2. I don't think talent matters that much. We're young so we still have a chance," Angele smiled while trying to uplift the atmosphere.

"Don't talk if you have no idea about what you're saying!" the girl turned around and spoke coldly.

"Do you know how long it takes for a stage 1 wizard apprentice to reach stage 2? We need to spend at least two years because we're not too talented! Compared to those who are already at stage 2 or 3, they're way ahead of us. Two years' time can help them become real wizards already. The school and organizations will allocate more resources to them. We really can't do anything!" The girl was almost yelling.

"You know how to become a real wizard?" Angele scrunched his eyebrows as he became a bit mad.

"At least they're more talented, and they'll get there faster than us." The girl calmed down.

"I apologize for my attitude. I was just feeling a bit sad," she said.

"No worries. As of now, we're in the same boat, and we might need to help out each other in the future. Don't get too upset." Angele nodded.

"Calm down guys. Girl, could you introduce yourself to us? We still don't know your name," Yuri said while smiling. The girl turned around and stopped looking at them.

"Velvet, 16 years old. Talent level… 1," the girl hesitated for a second before she spoke. Yuri and Lando Luc ceased talking. They now felt pity toward the girl.

"Talent level 1… No wonder she was so upset," Lando turned to face Angele and spoke with a light voice.

"Can you tell me how much of a difference is between each talent level? I really have no idea about it," Angele asked.

"According to some of the Wizardry books, the level is decided by your rate of progress in meditation. The best ones have level 5 talents, and they can become a stage 3 wizard apprentice within a year. They're quite likely to become real wizards, even barely failing the promotion tests. Only half of talent level 4 apprentices can become real wizards. Anything below level 4 is tragic. 4% chance for the ones who have talent level 3 and 1% chance for the ones who have talent level 2. For the ones who have talent level 1… maybe one out of a thousand or ten thousand chance and they progress very slowly. A month's time for some with talent level 1 is equivalent to one day for the ones with talent levels 2 and 3. That is definitely a huge difference," Lando smiled as he explained.

Angele nodded, feeling a bit sad.

"Actually, wizards don't really care about the ones with talent level 1, so they just place those who aren't too talented altogether. It's not a surprise," Lando continued.

"So, Velvet is hopeless now?" Yuri joined the conversation.

"Pretty much," Lando said. Angele stopped talking. He looked at the girl in front of him and saw her shaking shoulders. She must have heard what they were saying.

"She probably spent five years meditating to reach stage 1. Such a pity," Lando said as he looked at the girl. It wasn't that he was looking down on her; it was just because he really felt sorry for her.

Chapter 48: Nancy (1)

Translator: Leo Editor: DarkGem/Frappe

They didn't say anything else after their last conversation because the topic about talent levels only made everyone upset. They went down the stairs quickly and reached the 5th floor. There wasn't even a single candle lit on the 5th floor and the passage itself was completely dark. Velvet didn't hesitate to keep walking forward. She had two small black stones in her hands. After she struck the black stone against the other, both started to shine as though both were shining gems. Finally, the four could see things clearly.

"What are those?" Lando Luc asked while staring at the stones curiously.

"Light stones. Basic wizard item," Velvet answered in a light voice. Angele looked at the stones and asked Zero to analyze it. The result showed that both contained a certain amount of radiation energy that would make them shine after impact, but the amount of energy was too small for it to do anything other than lighting the way.

They reached the living quarters quickly. Neither light nor other people were around. Angele opened the door to one of the rooms, immediately inhaling the stench of mold inside. The room was also very wet, and nothing was visible. No one was afraid of darkness, so they picked their rooms right away. It seemed that there were only four people on this 5th floor, so they decided to live opposite each others' room in case something happened.

Lando Luc chose the room opposite to Angele and Velvet chose the room opposite to Yuri's that was beside Angele's. Angele lit the oil lamp on the desk and put the cover back on it. He took a quick look around the room. It was a very normal room: one single bed, two chairs, and a small wooden desk. Molds were all over the desk, walls, and on the ground.

"Just because we don't have much talent?" Angele shook his head and left the room with his nose squeezed. He saw others leaving their rooms too, doing the same as him.

"Let's clean our rooms first," Yuri said.

"Sure." Everyone agreed. Except for Yuri, all of them knew how to do the cleaning, and they quickly cleaned up their rooms after finding the tools from the washroom. Lando Luc ended up doing the cleaning for Yuri. Their rooms now looked a bit better. At least there were no more molds everywhere. After that, they returned to their respective rooms to meditate, and slowly, the ship left the shore.

In the following days, Angele barely communicated with other apprentices because they pretty much stayed in their rooms meditating and reading the books they had brought. He could only see others when it was mealtime and when he went up the deck to get some natural light and fresh air. Angele didn't do anything else apart from reading books and meditating. Every day, he saw Velvet, who always seemed to be in pain, on deck. Lando Luc once told him that some wizard apprentices with talent level 1 would experience strange pains during the meditation process. It seemed that Velvet was one of those wizard apprentices. Angele would never know how painful that could be since he had a talent level of 2.

Angele felt sorry for her, but he didn't care about others. Recently, his meditation was progressing well. He also found out that the method of meditation had to be obtained either by reading a Wizardry book or feeling a specific spell's effect. It was impossible for him to teach someone the meditation procedures through talking. Also, the runes were stored in the minds of wizard apprentices, and they had no idea how to describe them by words.

Also, Yuri told Angele that there was an age restriction in studying the runes. Anyone below the age of 12 wouldn't qualify to read and memorize the runes. If they were to try to read and memorize the runes, it was highly likely for them to lose their own minds. After five days of meditation, Angele could finally keep 10 runes in his mind, but the speed was average due to his talent level. The man in a black robe didn't even ask anything about the stage 1 apprentices because they were nearly close to normal people, just with a stronger mentality.

Another half-month passed. The galleon only stopped once on a dock and took in more than 10 new wizard apprentices. Only one girl was added to the 5th floor after the test. For the others, Angele didn't have any information on them. The new girl was green-haired and a bit dark-skinned and had a longbow on her back. She didn't look like she was in the mood to talk, so the four left her alone, and she just found herself a room at the end of the passage.

********************

"Damn… 12 finally." Angele crossed his legs and sat on the bed with a face that looked slightly pale. He had stayed on the cold, wet floor for too long. His skin had also become paler and whiter than before due to the absence of sunlight. For some reason, however, he did look as healthy as before.

"I reached stage 1, so now I need to sense the unknown energies in the space. If I can lead them into my body, I'll reach stage 2," Angele excitedly muttered as he was searching for the information stored on the chip.

'It took me about one month to get here. According to Yuri, becoming a stage 1 wizard apprentice in a month is the average speed. Progressing after that is going to become hard. The youngest stage 3 apprentice, Jared, spent two years to reach stage 3. I probably need a lot more time than that,' Angele thought as he prepared himself for the future. Angele had once taken a peek at the list on the ship deck. He saw Jared having a talent level of 4 while Nancy and Ali having a talent level of 3. He stopped thinking and looked at the crystal clock he had brought. It was already 4 o'clock in the morning, so he could meditate for just one more hour. Angele closed his eyes and began meditating again.

Angele wasn't thinking about the runes anymore, and instead, he was trying to sense any special energy in the air. The energy should be mysterious and difficult to find. The type of energy Angele could sense would determine his future. Within the darkness, Angele had his legs crossed, sitting on the bed. His eyes were closed and his eyes weren't shining like when he was trying to memorize the runes. It looked like he was just sleeping.

'Zero, catch energy signals in the air and use any information you need,' Angele asked.

'Commencing mission… Now searching…' Zero started consuming Angele's stamina, trying to do the analysis as quick as possible. Yet, nothing happened in the next 10 minutes. Angele could no longer wait, so he opened his eyes.

'I should be more patient, I guess,' Angele rubbed his chin and started to think.

'Even the chip couldn't catch any energy signal in the air. This is going to take a while, I guess. Wait, I have the enchanted ring. The chip can absorb and store the radiation energy. If I have another enchanted item, I can probably release its energy around me and I'll become a stage 2 apprentice,' Angele kept thinking.

'However, the process of searching for the energy is probably the whole purpose of this training. My foundation in the basics will not be solid if I try this gimmick. Well, I guess I'll stick with the proper method.' Angele felt a bit disappointed, so he sighed. He closed his eyes and started to meditate again.

Anyway, Angele could still utilize enchanted items even without reaching stage 2, so he was happy about it. If he had an enchanted item, he would be safer in any environment. There were just too many things he had no idea about

The next day, Angele was woken up by frantic footsteps. He heard people speaking of Nancy and Ali fighting on the ship deck.

'Nancy?' Angele knew it was the girl whom Adolf had talked about and the person who would help him out on the galleon. She was the daughter of a duke.

"What happened?" Angele got up quickly and put on his clothes. He locked the door and followed the others to the stairs. He saw everyone running to the deck on the way. It looked like all of them heard about the fight.

"What's going on?" Angele asked Yuri while running.

"Nancy and Ali are fighting. I heard that Ali had his eyes set on a girl and approached her in a… bad way. Nancy saw it unfold and they started to fight after trading remarks," Yuri answered while running as well.

"They all have enchanted items, so we have to watch the fight," Lando Luc turned his head behind and said with an excited expression. Angele followed the crowd to the deck and saw Nancy's hands placed on her crossguard sword. Ali was standing opposite to her. Many wizard apprentices were watching the fight. Nancy, who still had her white suit and tight pants donned, stood on the ship deck with a serious expression with the wind blowing her ponytail up in the air.

"Ali, take back what you just said, and I'll treat it like nothing happened," Nancy said.

"Take back my words? Ha," Ali said before laughing fearlessly. He looked fierce as he had a pair of long black daggers in his hands and was in his gold-white swordsman suit. Each had an eye-shaped ruby embedded in the blade and many complex patterns engraved on it. The daggers looked exceptional.

"Nancy, we're on the sea. Duke Rocky won't be here for you. We're here because we're strong, but if you don't agree with the way of dealing with this girl, you must convince me using your power," Ali said with a loud voice, his pretty face having a tinge of arrogance on it.

"With my power, huh?" Nancy held her sword tight.

"As you wish! ELVIN!" After the utterance of the word, the bronze ring around her right hand's middle finger started shining. The light was white and too bright that Angele could barely open his eyes. Ali moved his hands and aimed the rubies on his daggers at Nancy.

"MAKASA!" The rubies started to shine and began to look as though there were two bloody eyeballs. Nancy lowered her body and rushed toward Ali. Ali raised his daggers and rushed to meet with Nancy's offense head-on. When they collided, they began trading countless strikes. Angele could only hear a light metal hitting noise and saw red and white lights flashing in front of his sight.

After a second, Angele saw Nancy's sword placed right beside Ali's neck. A barely visible thin barrier around Ali's neck was hindering the blade from advancing, but Nancy's left shoulder was injured. Angele could see blood flowing out of the part stabbed by the daggers.

"You win." Ali smiled before he pushed the sword away from his neck.

"I take back my words. That girl is yours," he said while pointing at a girl who was sitting on the ground at the side. She looked beautiful with her short hair.