Boarding the Ship

Ten minutes later, the fleet slowly pulled alongside the shore. Most of the ships docked elsewhere along the pier, lowered their gangplanks, and began unloading cargo. Workers who had long been waiting surged forward, carrying sturdy wooden crates down from the ships one after another. Some finely dressed merchants also disembarked, gathering with the dockside receivers to chat idly as they waited for the unloading and loading to finish.

The last ship in the fleet slowly docked by the waterway where Anglie and the others stood. At the rail, several half-grown boys and girls poked their heads out to look over. They spoke sideways to their companions and occasionally burst into laughter. Most of them were dressed luxuriously, their faces carrying faint arrogance and a sense of distance.

With a clang, the gangplank was lowered and laid across the waterway. The red-and-black wooden board seemed soaked through with oil. It was over half a meter thick and seven or eight meters wide, like a city gate, with steps carved into its surface for people to board.

At the ship's rail, several burly sailors surrounded a middle-aged man and escorted him to the entrance of the gangplank. He called down, "Begin boarding!"

The crowd on the waterway immediately grew packed. One after another, they walked up the gangplank. Anglie nodded to his mentor, Adolf, then blended into the crowd and started upward, stepping onto the gangplank.

"Don't forget to find Nancy," Adolf added quietly at the end, just loud enough for Anglie to hear. "She'll look after you a little."

Pressed amid the crowd, Anglie turned back and nodded vigorously at his mentor. Then he followed the stream of people onto the merchant ship. He noticed that there were quite a few young people around his age among the crowd. Of the several dozen people boarding, he spotted seven or eight. Most looked composed, exceptionally calm even amid the crowd around them. At the same time, their eyes flicked about, occasionally lingering for an instant on youths their own age.

These were most likely Wizard Apprentices like me, Anglie guessed inwardly.

After boarding, most of the people serving as cover consciously dispersed. They would disembark after the cargo loading was complete. Only a dozen or so youths remained where they were, sizing one another up. Once the cover dispersed, they became exceptionally conspicuous.

To Anglie's left stood a handsome red-haired boy of about seventeen or eighteen. He stood beside a blond boy, looking around at the people nearby.

To the right, near the rail, was a girl in a white princess-style lace dress. She looked only fourteen or fifteen. Though she was dressed beautifully, the acne on her face gave the impression that she did not suit the clothes at all. The girl surveyed the surroundings with an arrogant expression.

Among the dozen or so people, two stood out the most. One was a youth dressed in white noble attire trimmed with gold, his golden hair tied into a ponytail. At his waist hung a gleaming gold decorative rapier, fitted not with a crossguard but a hemispherical guard. The youth was handsome, his chin slightly raised, looking like someone accustomed to always being the center of a crowd.

The other was a girl with delicate yet stern features. Her long golden hair was tied into a ponytail behind her head, giving her an extremely serious air. She wore a strip of white cloth across her chest, exposing her snow-white, slender waist, while her long, rounded legs were tightly wrapped in polished white trousers. Most eye-catching were the silver-white metal bracers on her forearms. The girl seemed utterly unaware of how provocative her attire was, so much so that the gazes of many boys around her drifted over her again and again.

Anglie recognized the girl. Nancy—the companion Mentor Adolf had mentioned, who would look after him a little. She was also one of the academy's well-known figures. It was said that her father was a Grand Duke of the Andes Alliance, while her mother was a princess from some small country. Her family background was so illustrious that it could make anyone feel ashamed of their own inferiority. Since she had studied Angmarian under Adolf when she was young, she had formed a good friendship with the mentor and held him in considerable respect. She had agreed to look after Anglie aboard the ship this time.

While Anglie was observing her, Nancy noticed him as well. Her gaze swept over Anglie from head to toe, then she strode toward him. "You are Anglie Leo?" she asked in a cool voice.

"Yes. You are Nancy? I had already heard your name at the academy," Anglie said with a trace of respect. The instant Nancy drew closer, the Chip in his mind immediately sounded an alarm, warning that she possessed a powerful radiation energy source. According to its analysis, there was over a 79% chance it was a Magical Item.

This made his heart tighten, and he hurriedly lowered his stance. Having used the Magical Ring, he knew very well how powerful Magical Items could be. Even with the strength of a Peak Knight Level, he could very likely be killed in a single exchange. Against the power of spells, he had no means of resistance at all.

"So it is Nancy. I have heard your name before." The blond, ponytailed youth approached with a smile. "I am Eli von Neumann. I assume you have heard of me."

Nancy turned her face and nodded. "So you are Lord Eli, son of Prince Anm." A slight trace of respect appeared on her face. Even with her status, she had no choice but to show respect to the person before her.

"The second son of Prince Anm..." "No wonder he looked so familiar." The boys and girls who had boarded together could not help whispering among themselves.

Yet the instant Eli approached, Anglie received another warning from the Chip. There was now one more person possessing a powerful radiation energy source—Eli. Clearly, both of them possessed Magical Items.

Moreover, unlike Anglie's damaged ring, their Magical Items seemed intact and usable. This meant that the two of them far surpassed Anglie and the others without Magical Items. Anglie had witnessed the deterrent power of Magical Items before. The two Knight Level enemies he had encountered back then had immediately turned and fled upon seeing the ring, yet they still failed to escape death's misfortune. Under that kind of power, perhaps only a Grand Knight could possess some ability to resist. But even that possibility was vanishingly slim. The power of spells was simply too great.

Eli and Nancy began chatting casually. Then several more boys and girls from prominent families came over to join the conversation, though most treated the two with respect. These youths, ordinarily arrogant and outstanding, all seemed somewhat dimmed before them.

After the group had roughly introduced themselves to one another, the finely dressed boys and girls who had appeared at the rail earlier also came over from the nearby deck under the lead of a man in black robes. The black-robed man had gloomy eyes, and his entire body was wrapped in black cloth. Other than his face, not a scrap of exposed skin could be seen.

"Those boarding at Maruya, do you know the rules?" the man asked flatly.

The youths exchanged glances. Eli stepped forward of his own accord and bowed to the man. "We know, sir. First, aptitude testing. Then we wait quietly to disembark."

The black-robed man nodded. "The rules may be simple, but there are always some restless ones among you. There are no hostile nations here, nor are there any hostile Lineages. So watch yourselves when you see others."

"Fine. The fifteen of you, go to the fourth-floor hall first." He pointed to the cabin entrance beside him.

Nancy glanced at Anglie. "Follow me," she said blandly.

Anglie also knew that at a time like this, Nancy, who possessed a Magical Item, truly had the qualifications to look after him. He nodded and followed behind her.

The group entered the cabin one after another. The boys and girls who had already been aboard stood on the deck watching their movements, chatting and laughing quietly from time to time. Among them, a pair of beautiful twin sisters was especially eye-catching. Several arrogant-looking youths also caused the Zero Chip to sound alarms. They clearly possessed Magical Items as well.

This ship had likely passed through an unknown number of countries. Those gathered here were probably the talented elites of every nation. Anglie also noticed that most of the youths boarding the ship wore luxurious clothing. Clearly, their family backgrounds were not poor. This was likely another means by which knowledge was monopolized by commoners. Even if ordinary children possessed talent, they probably would not have the qualifications to board the ship.

If not for Adolf's recommendation, he likely would not have been qualified to board either.

After entering the cabin and following the stairs downward, the fifteen youths from Maruya Port soon arrived at the fourth-floor hall under the black-robed man's lead.

Exquisite oil paintings hung on all four redwood walls. Above was a huge crystal chandelier, its candles packed densely together, though none had been lit. Apart from that, the entire hall was empty. There was not even a single chair or table. Their footsteps rang clearly across the floor.

The black-robed man walked to the center of the hall and turned around. "Are there any Third-level Apprentices under eighteen? If so, please stand behind me." His latter words were unexpectedly a little gentler. Clearly, even he did not wish to offend such apprentices too deeply.

Four people immediately stepped out from among the fifteen and stood behind the black-robed man. Eli and Nancy were among them, along with two others. One was the girl in the acne-covered princess dress from earlier. The other was a cold-faced black-haired boy, ordinary and inconspicuous in appearance, dressed very plainly. Yet unexpectedly, he had already reached Third-level Apprentice.

"State your ages," the black-robed man said, his tone much gentler.

"Eli, seventeen."

"Nancy, sixteen."

"Gamen, sixteen."

"Jia De, fourteen."

Hiss...

A wave of sharp intakes of breath immediately rose around them. Every gaze focused on the ordinary black-haired boy.

Even the black-robed man was no exception. Only after a long while did he rein in the shock on his face and stare at the black-haired boy, Jia De. "Are you really only fourteen?"

"Yes. I only turned fourteen last month. What, is there a problem?" Jia De replied calmly.