Colin stepped out of the Confinement Room into the blue sky and white clouds.
The gentle sea breeze brushed past his face, lightly stirring his shoulder-length golden hair.
He stretched his neck and shoulders, feeling exhilarated.
But soon, he wiped the smile off his face.
Charlie and his group from the confinement room on the left had just walked out.
Charlie's face was gloomy and worn, and with a fierce glare at Colin, he said nothing else, quickly gesturing for Haywood and Owen to leave with him.
It seemed they were heading down the mountain.
Colin stood back and watched the three of them walk away, a sense of puzzlement rising in his heart.
During the ten days in the Confinement Room, he had pondered more than once why Charlie had suddenly turned against him.
He repeated Charlie's words over and over in his mind, always sensing something was amiss.
Although the general idea seemed plausible, there were details that couldn't be explained, even outright inconsistencies.
For example, if what Charlie said was true, that a certain power enslaved Lap School's rejected Apprentices in the settlement below, it must be a highly secretive matter. How did he come to know of it?
So Colin had always felt there was something strange about it.
Moreover, the way Charlie used violence to coerce him into joining the Mutual Assistance Association only increased this strange feeling.
But in truth, if he hadn't been confident about advancing, he really didn't need to join the Association.
The day Charlie invited him to see the evidence, he should have gone to check it out.
Even ten days prior, when Charlie brought a group of people to extend the invitation again, he had actually believed Charlie's words, considering so many people were there to testify for him.
He simply didn't need to join the Mutual Assistance Association, so he had no choice but to refuse.
Yet, he always maintained a gentle tone.
He thought that by refusing this time, Charlie might be angry, but that would be all.
After all, Charlie could simply wait until three months later when Colin lost hope of advancing and had no reason to refuse, having experienced the harshness of the outside settlements himself, and then come to recruit him.
Perhaps by then, he would even come forward on his own initiative... if the outside situation was really as dire as Charlie claimed.
Yet, Charlie suddenly acted forcefully, as if he had to recruit him before the three-month deadline.
'To practice group witchcraft ahead of time, the more people, the more strength...' Colin shook his head; this explanation from Charlie felt rather contrived.
But all of that was none of his concern now.
He walked back to his stone house with light steps.
'Just five more days until I advance. Whatever plot Charlie and his people have, by then I'll be in a different world from them.'
***
***
***
Inside a wooden house in Blackstone City.
Charlie and his two companions knelt on the floor, their expressions filled with panic.
"My lord, I never thought that despite so many testimonies, he still wouldn't want to join us... so I thought to forcibly take him to you. But I didn't expect the Patrol Team to show up."
Though he said this, Charlie had come to understand afterward.
The Patrol Team had probably come to check because they saw so many Apprentices gathered together.
But he didn't feel that his method was the problem, only that Colin was a haughty and arrogant aberration, always looking down on others, foolishly dreaming of advancing.
He had already tried persuading, yet to be rejected still—that was simply incomprehensible!
And... he had not expected Colin to possess such profound strength.
The cabin was eerily silent; you could hear a pin drop, and Charlie and others couldn't help but break out in a fine sweat on their foreheads.
The middle-aged man, dressed in a black wizard robe, leaned quietly on a recliner, his black hood casting a shadow over his pale face, obscuring his expression.
It was after a long while that he finally spoke slowly,
"Do you think his claim that he can advance is true or false?"
"Of course it's false. No one from our group can advance in these three months!" Charlie replied subconsciously.
"Then why... doesn't he join you?"
Charlie felt a sinking feeling in his heart, and his complexion gradually turned pale.
He had never considered such a possibility... but if Colin was truly confident in advancing successfully, then everything would make sense.
Colin had been refusing him all this time, not even coming to see the evidence, and even when being invited with so many people in tow, he still refused...
It was all because he believed he could advance within three months!
Charlie's face grew increasingly unsightly.
Such an event had occurred before; in the previous group, there was an apprentice who just happened to advance to the Intermediate level in ten years and just managed to stay at the school...
"How much do you think he can guess?" the wizard in the black robe continued to ask.
Tiny beads of sweat gathered on Charlie's face and began to fall in large droplets, splashing faintly on the floor.
The wizard in the black robe sighed.
"Put off your advancement for now... you may go," he waved his hand, then seemed to remember something, and continued to instruct Charlie,
"By the way, bring the apprentice from last time... I think her name was... Mia, over here."
If things were as he thought, that apprentice would be able to continue staying at the Lap School.
Allowing Charlie to advance now would clearly be inappropriate and too risky.
He had to come up with an alternative plan.
He hoped it was just his overthinking... forcefully advancing a Basic Level apprentice to the Middle Level wouldn't be easy.
Among this batch of students, only Charlie and Mia from the previous group met the criteria.
If Charlie didn't cut it, they'd have to invest resources again to cultivate Mia.
'Perhaps dealing with that apprentice is the best solution,' thought the wizard in the black robe.
But it wasn't easy to carry out; as long as that student remained in the Wizard Territory for the coming period, he would be powerless and would have to rely on Charlie and the others to act.
Based on Charlie's description... the Great Knight's physique plus the steel armor made it impossible for them to handle the apprentice without causing a significant commotion.
And to be cautious, he could not give Charlie any tools for assistance.
...In that case, it's better not to bother with that apprentice now; there are already more than thirty of them—enough to suffice.
He couldn't help but rub his furrowed brow and looked up to see Charlie still standing there; he hesitated for a moment before urging,
"You may leave if there's nothing else. Hurry up and bring Mia here, Charlie."
"...Yes, sir," Charlie's lips moved as if he wanted to say more, but he ultimately bowed his head and left.
On the way back, Charlie's face was expressionless, but his mind was churning with thoughts.
He had figured out the wizard in the black robe's intentions and also sensed that he didn't want him to continue to approach Colin, to avoid revealing more information.
'But how could I agree to that? It's going to be me who advances to the Intermediate level and stays at the school!' he roared silently in his heart.
Then he glanced at Hayward and Owen, who were following beside him, showing no emotion on his face.
Although these two completely followed his commands, their true master was always the wizard in the black robe.