Blood Ring Knight

Borrow?

Though Loran had not given them to him directly, anyone who could lend Charles resources these days was a good person.

Charles was tempted.

Besides, angering Loran now might not be a wise decision.

After living in Isata for over a year, Charles had already adapted to this place.

This was practically a distorted society, where only wizards truly possessed human rights.

Loran could speak politely to Charles now, but if he truly refused to show her any respect, she might turn hostile at any moment.

Charles asked, "Teacher Loran, why did you take an interest in me?"

"After all, I'm only a second-rank wizard apprentice."

Loran chuckled softly. "To me, whether you are first-rank or second-rank, you are all merely apprentices."

"The difference in strength is not great. Whoever can help me solve my troubles is the one I will favor."

"You have mastered quite a few zero-ring spells, and you have plenty of combat experience. That is why I favor you."

What Loran needed were ready-to-use thugs with fighting strength who could share her tasks, not rookies who still required her instruction.

Charles pondered for a moment and understood that he really had no other choice.

Even if Loran gave him nothing and demanded that he go with her, would he not still have to follow obediently?

Thus, Charles nodded. "Teacher Loran, I am willing to go with you."

Loran smiled lightly. "Very good! Go back and pack your things. We leave in five days."

Charles did not have much to pack.

He was so poor he could spit blood. From head to toe, he did not own any valuable wizard artifacts.

Whenever he had Magic Stones, he used them to buy spells. He had nothing worth carrying.

He briefly explained things to Erika, but did not tell her the true purpose of this trip.

Five days later, Charles arrived at Loran's office and waited.

As expected, Loran had not put all her eggs in one basket.

Besides Charles, there were four other apprentices here.

One of them was someone Charles knew: Jody, his classmate.

Charles did not recognize the other three. They were presumably apprentices from Loran's other classes.

Charles and Jody had only ever been nodding acquaintances, but in this environment full of strangers, they unconsciously gravitated toward each other.

However, they were both clever people and did not take the initiative to speak.

The other three apprentices examined Charles with appraising looks.

One of them took the initiative to speak. "We are all serving Teacher Loran. The few of us have already introduced ourselves to one another."

"I am Quake, a first-rank wizard apprentice specializing in evocation spells."

Quake pointed at a gaunt apprentice beside him. "This is Sal, a first-rank wizard apprentice specializing in curse spells."

He then pointed at another person. "This is Golder, a first-rank wizard apprentice with no spell specialization."

"Jody, a second-rank wizard apprentice with no spell specialization."

Quake introduced the four people present, then looked at Charles.

Charles had no intention of putting on airs. "I am Charles, a second-rank wizard apprentice. I have no spell specialization either."

Quake nodded, then pointed at Charles's light armor and asked, "Are you also a knight?"

Charles nodded. "Yes, but my strength is not particularly great. I have not practiced the Knight Breathing Technique in a long time."

Quake nodded.

Since entering the room, Sal had not so much as spared Charles a proper glance. When he heard that Charles was a second-rank wizard apprentice and that his knight rank was not high either, he snorted coldly.

Sal said in a low voice, "What was Teacher Loran thinking? Out of five apprentices, two are second-rank apprentices."

"What use are apprentices with such strength once they leave the tower?"

Faced with such mockery, Charles felt as if a breeze had brushed across his face. He felt nothing.

Jody, on the other hand, bristled. After all, she too was only a second-rank wizard apprentice.

However, Jody was wealthier than Charles. She wore several pieces of equipment with varying effects.

They were all zero-ring wizard artifacts. Though their effects were not strong, they were still far better than Charles simply putting on a suit of armor and heading out.

Jody snorted coldly. "You have lived so many more years, yet you are still only a first-rank apprentice. What is there to be proud of?"

"Do you think all the wizard artifacts on me cannot kill you!?"

Sal's face turned as ugly as if he had eaten pig liver.

He snorted. "Hmph!"

"I hope your mouth is still this hard when you meet an enemy!"

Charles said nothing, but it was clear that he did not think much of Sal.

Just as the atmosphere in the room turned stiff, Loran entered.

She was dressed as before, in a black wizard robe.

The moment Loran entered, she had clearly sensed the atmosphere here.

She said coldly, "You are all assistants I found. I do not wish to see you start fighting among yourselves before even encountering an enemy, otherwise... hmph!"

As Loran spoke, a powerful pressure descended upon the five of them.

Charles felt as though death was right at his doorstep.

Once Loran withdrew her pressure, Charles finally gasped for air, feeling as though he had come back to life.

"Move out!"

Loran said coldly, then took the lead out of the room.

The five apprentices in the room did not dare hesitate and hurried after her.

When they descended the tower, several carriages were waiting outside.

Around the carriages stood a troop of roughly twenty to thirty knights.

The knight at their head gave Charles an overwhelming sense of pressure.

He wore a suit of heavy blood-red armor, its plates thick, his helmet possessing only a single narrow slit.

Wisps of blood mist seemed to coil around him, unable to be scattered even by the wind.

The armor was covered in runes that seemed to breathe, giving off a faint glow.

The knight's blood aura was also being drawn in and expelled little by little by the armor.

At that moment, the knight stood silently beside a tall black warhorse.

This knight was no ordinary man, and neither was the warhorse.

The warhorse wore a layer of horse armor. In the places not covered by it, scales could be seen growing across its skin.

Neigh!

Sensing the people coming and going, the warhorse bared its mouth and let out a long cry.

Within its open mouth, Charles saw a mouthful of unusually sharp teeth.

At the sight of the knight and warhorse, Quake cried out in a low voice, "It is actually a Blood Ring Knight!"

Blood Ring Knight?

Charles felt somewhat puzzled when he heard the term.

This was another knight rank he had never heard of before.

He had originally thought that Great Knight was already the highest level humans could reach through practicing the Knight Breathing Technique.

But now, it seemed to Charles that the Great Knights around them were inferior to this Blood Ring Knight in every respect.

This aroused Charles's curiosity.