Blood Sail Alliance

"Lafi, you're the only one missing. Sit next to me."

Lafi had only just arrived when a male wizard apprentice dressed like a wizard, in a broad robe, greeted her warmly, pointing to an empty spot beside him for Lafi to sit.

The deep look in his handsome face, his warm smile, could almost melt the heart of the other young girl beside him.

Judging by appearance alone, this male wizard apprentice was just like Lafi—someone who drew the eye at once.

But Lafi paid him no mind at all. Without the slightest concern for her image, she casually sat down on the other side, her exquisite face seeming as if it were forever covered in a layer of frost. She glanced at this male wizard apprentice who was offering favors for no reason and said coldly, "Am I that close to you?"

"You..."

The wizard apprentice choked, the warm smile on his face vanishing at once. He said coldly, "Just like the rumors say. A filthy mouth."

"Courting death!"

She was almost about to fly into a rage and attack, but Green, beside her, hurriedly stopped her.

Green toyed with a sharp dagger, his expression unfriendly as he looked toward the male wizard apprentice who had spoken earlier.

"Bron the Caster?"

"Hmph. Anyone who's survived on this ocean liner until now is smart, so put away that hypocritical smile of yours. It makes us feel like you're insulting our squad, treating us like those fellows who got thrown into the sea."

"What you think is your business."

With a cold snort, he turned his head aside and stopped speaking, taking on an indifferent look.

Yorkris picked his teeth with a longsword, the firm muscles of his chest exposed, and likewise gave a cold snort. "That's more like it. No need to play those empty games."

"Haha, I've long heard that Lafi has two fierce generals under her. This one goes without saying—Yorkris, renowned for his bravery and martial strength. And I imagine this one must be Green, renowned for his ferocity?"

At that moment, a male wizard apprentice who looked very refined laughed as he spoke to Green and the others.

This male wizard apprentice was dressed in the most standard noble attire. Aside from his exquisite formal clothes and top hat, every kind of accessory was present.

The most eye-catching of them were the two exquisite gemstone rings on his left hand, one blue and one purple. Even a mud-legged fellow like Green knew that these two rings were definitely priceless treasures, not something an ordinary noble could afford to wear.

This person was Amlund, whose reputation among all the wizard apprentices on the ocean liner was still fairly good. In private, some people called him the Light Sword Caster. He could unleash a magical sword wreathed in golden energy to attack his enemies, and its power was quite terrifying.

And over this past month, Green had also made something of a name for himself aboard the ship.

Firstly, because he followed at the side of Lafi, the Vine Caster; secondly, because Green himself was cautious and vicious, and had already used the dagger in his hand to slit the throats of a full six people who had designs on him.

Green gave Amlund a polite nod, but he had no intention of getting close. On the ocean liner now, only strength was needed, not friendship, because such things were utterly useless.

"Amlund, tell us why you called us here this time."

A girl spoke, one whose appearance was that of a loli, though her voice deliberately imitated a wizard's hoarse way of speaking.

Though this Doll Caster looked pure and childish, she was the most vicious of everyone present. One day, Green had personally witnessed this "Doll Caster" controlling a terrifying white doll, brutally killing an entire squad of wizard apprentices in the space of a few moments.

The final caster remained silent, his face dark the entire time.

What was worth noting was his empty sleeve. This wizard apprentice, called the Control Heavenly King or the Spirit Caster, had lost an arm on the day the sea monster attacked.

The Control Caster's sorcery was somewhat marvelous.

Lafi guessed that it should be using mental illusions to influence others' actions for a short time. She even guessed that among the five casters, this Control Heavenly King was the only one who did not rely on an enchanted wizard tool to cast sorcery.

Lafi the Vine Caster, Bron the Fireball Caster, Amlund the Sacred Sword Caster, Imis the Doll Caster, and Weibermod the Control Caster—these were the five strongest people on the ocean liner beneath those few supreme existences, called the Five Heavenly Kings of the ocean liner by the wizard apprentices in despair and terror.

The deck fell quiet.

After Amlund swept his gaze around the crowd, he suddenly burst into laughter. The laugh came very abruptly, making everyone feel extremely uncomfortable, and they frowned as they stared at the Sacred Sword Caster.

"Fellow casters, I imagine that although everyone on the ship jokingly calls us Heavenly Kings, you all know very clearly just how strong your abilities truly are, yes? Hmph. Aside from Weibermod the Control Caster, we merely rely on enchanted wizard tools to cast those so-called sorceries. Perhaps to those ignorant fellows, we are so powerful they cannot resist us, but to true wizard apprentices..."

Amlund shook his head with a mocking laugh.

"Amlund, we know all that even if you don't say it. Tell us why you gathered us here."

The Doll Caster had no patience at all and directly cut off Amlund's words.

"The reason? Hmph, very simple. For the sake of our future!"

After sweeping his gaze around them, Amlund said coldly, "Not just for the time we have left on this ocean liner, but also for the time after we reach Black Isotta Wizard Academy! Since this ocean liner has already become like this, everyone can guess with their toes that Black Isotta Wizard Academy is absolutely no kind and gentle place!"

Amlund looked around.

"And when small groups like ours reach the academy, I'm afraid we'll only end up like those fellows who were thrown into the sea before."

Everyone sucked in a cold breath, and even Green could not help but be slightly startled.

Amlund was actually a far-sighted fellow. He had awakened everyone!

That was right. In the future, they still had to study at Black Isotta Wizard Academy. Who knew whether that place would be even crueler than the ocean liner!

"So, I propose that all the surviving wizard apprentices on the ocean liner form a new alliance, so that after we reach the wizard academy, we advance and retreat together."

Amlund's words moved the heart of every person present.

Lafi frowned. "The proposal is good, but how is the alliance to be formed? You should know that our rules here are mutual slaughter. In that case, other than the people closest to us, who around us isn't an enemy?"

Lafi's words likewise represented everyone's question, and the crowd all looked toward Amlund.

Amlund looked at Lafi with appreciation. He had been paying attention to this beautiful female wizard apprentice for a long time.

Although the rumors outside said she was a fool with a pretty face, Amlund had a different view. This fellow was a bit arrogant, but that did not mean she had no brains, and she got along very well with her two subordinates.

"Not bad. There are indeed all sorts of irreconcilable conflicts within the alliance, but all of us understand that this is not the alliance's own fault, but comes from that wiza—"

Halfway through, the Sacred Sword Heavenly King glanced at the distant tent of the Faceless Mask Wizard, then changed his words. "Mm, the will of the great Faceless Mask Wizard. So, the prerequisite for our alliance's establishment still exists."

The controlling caster, who had remained silent until now, suddenly let out a cold laugh. "If we still have to slaughter one another after joining the alliance, then what meaning is there in joining it?"

Amlund looked intently at the controlling caster and said, word by word, "At the very least, we can kill the people outside the alliance first!"

The controlling caster started, then said in disbelief, "You mean..."

"Hmph, that's right. Those guys! A full seventeen sailors—enough to ensure that seventeen fewer people in the alliance die, which means three and a half days of safety. How about it? Whether for establishing authority or offering temptation, this condition is more than enough, isn't it?"

Amlund paused, then continued, "And everyone seated here will be the first batch of elders within the alliance. As for later, naturally, those with strength inside the alliance will occupy the high positions!"

"If we really can beat those sailors, then it isn't bad. But if we lose, this so-called alliance will be nothing but a farce. Still, I support it!"

"Good, not bad! I support it too!"

"I support it!"

"Agreed..."

The next day, the Faceless Mask Wizard counted the people as usual. After confirming that five really were missing, he gave another round of grating encouragement, then walked into his tent.

Solam, Yun Li, Bibilionna, and the boatswain likewise said not a single irrelevant word and left one after another.

At this moment, the vast deck no longer had the former shoulder-to-shoulder crowding. Almost everyone had kept a considerable distance from everyone else, their gazes cold and grim as they stared at any existence that might approach them, the weapons in their hands moving nimbly to show their strength.

Anyone who could survive on the ship until now, even if they looked like a weak girl who could not stand against the wind, definitely had something extraordinary about them. Otherwise, they would have been thrown into the sea long ago.

It could be said that the many wizard apprentices currently on the ship were true elites who had undergone selection and tempering.

At this moment, the many wizard apprentice squads were the same as usual, constantly probing the other squads.

These days, as the members of the many wizard squads grew more experienced and more cunning, making five people die had already become a difficult activity. It often even took an entire morning before a few unlucky bastards were thrown into the sea.

No one was willing to die themselves. Therefore, while everyone desperately protected themselves, they searched for chances to kill others.

This "others" was preferably people without any power behind them. For example, the people in that terrifying "Five Great Heavenly Kings" group were absolutely not to be touched. This had practically become a consensus.

"Everyone, listen to me..."

Amlund suddenly stepped out from among the many tense wizard apprentices and shouted loudly, instantly drawing everyone's gazes.

At the same time, the other four great casters also walked out one by one and looked around at the crowd.

The five great casters, whom the wizard apprentices secretly called the Five Great Heavenly Kings, had gathered together. The impact this caused among the wizard apprentices instantly reached its peak, and everyone could not help looking toward these five people.

"Today, I will announce here that the Blood Sail Alliance, jointly organized and simultaneously supported by the five casters, is established today! Within the alliance, the policy will be that those with strength occupy the high positions. We will unite as one and face the outside as one! At the same time, the alliance's initial members will only accept wizard apprentices on the sea ship. Anyone who wants to join in the future must have a recommendation from an old member."

A moment later, an organization called the "Blood Sail Alliance" was known to every wizard apprentice on the sea ship.