Chapter 6: Airship Maintenance

After their conversation, Richard and Ellie's relationship grew considerably closer. Richard spent his days practicing Wizard language with Ellie and nights meditating. Although Richard had memorized the Wizard language through extraction, he still needed practice to use it fluently in real-world situations.

Thus, time passed until Richard's fifteenth day aboard the airship.

During the flight, the airship occasionally slowed down for the wizards to perform maintenance checks. During these times, apprentices were free to move around.

"Richard! I connected to the Sea of Souls last night."

Early in the morning, Ellie excitedly shared her progress with Richard, tapping on his bed.

Ellie's talent wasn't particularly exceptional, with a mental power of only twelve. While Richard had managed it quickly, it took her a full seven days to achieve the connection.

But it was still commendable.

According to the book, many prospective apprentices needed meditation incense and potion assistance to connect to the Sea of Souls for the first time. Ellie's seven-day achievement was considered average at the academy.

Richard, who managed it in a single meditation, was rated as excellent by the academy.

Above him was the category of those naturally connected to the Sea of Souls, with innate mental power of twenty. Such apprentices were rare in the academy's history, usually appearing among wizard offspring.

"Congratulations, congratulations. Boss Ellie has finally become a wizard apprentice."

Richard yawned as he sat up, rubbing his eyes to congratulate Ellie.

"Looks like I'll have to rely on Boss Ellie to protect me in this exam."

Hearing this, Ellie puffed up with pride.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of you in this exam."

Knock, knock, knock.

There was a knock at the door. Ellie opened it to find the breakfast-delivering puppet had arrived earlier than usual.

"Room 225, two servings of breakfast. Today, the airship will undergo maintenance, and apprentices are free to move around."

The puppet's voice was still strange, but the news it brought wiped the smile off Ellie's face.

"Free to move around?" Ellie asked.

The puppet didn't answer, mechanically pushing the cart to the next room.

Ellie closed the door, looking extremely distressed, as if she were about to cry.

"No, no, no. I just connected to the Sea of Souls, and my magic reflux isn't constructed yet. This, this, this..."

Ellie anxiously paced the room, and Richard was curious about her reaction.

"Isn't free movement a good thing? Don't you want to go out after being cooped up in the room for so many days?"

He had been on the airship for half a month, and staying in one room all day made his joints feel rusty.

"You don't understand. If we can move freely, those bastards can come out."

Ellie's expression was about to break into tears as she explained the events that happened on the airship before Richard boarded.

"I see," Richard said, rubbing his chin with a peculiar expression.

Did he really look that weak when he boarded the airship?

"Then you stay in the room. I'm going for a walk."

Richard got out of bed, quickly finishing his breakfast.

For some reason, Richard felt his body had become much stronger since connecting to the Sea of Souls. His once frail and malnourished body now had a bit of muscle.

Could it be that the wizard's food contained supplements?

"Hey! I did teach you Wizard language these days, can't you help me and not go out?"

Ellie, seeing Richard about to leave, reacted like a startled cat.

Richard waved dismissively, "Don't worry, I'm not going out shouting that I have a beautiful roommate. Just stay quiet, and those bastards can't break down the door."

...

The airship was spacious, and besides the passenger cabin where they stayed, there was a viewing cabin at the end of the airship, about a few dozen square meters in size.

This cabin was usually reserved for wizards, but since the airship was under maintenance, apprentices were allowed to enjoy the view.

Richard stood by the window, feeling a surge of emotion as he gazed at the boundless sea of clouds.

The walls of the viewing cabin were made of a glass-like material, offering an unobstructed view of the clouds outside.

The cabin quickly filled with apprentices, both nobles and commoners. The nobles formed a circle, and so did the commoners.

Although no one forcibly separated them, the division between the two groups was clear.

Except for Richard.

Nearby, a group of nobles was exchanging secretive information.

To prevent commoners from eavesdropping, they even spoke in the Wizard language.

"Are you sure, Emily? Did your brother really connect to the Sea of Souls?" a blond noble inquired.

"Of course, would my brother lie to me?" replied a freckled girl with the same blond hair, looking smug.

Emily's words caused a stir among the nobles. They were all learning "How to Become a Wizard Apprentice," but few had seen results.

For most, connecting to the Sea of Souls without incense and potions was nearly impossible.

"Didn't the Medici family hire a wizard to teach them? How are they doing? That cost ten magic stones."

"Ten magic stones?" some unaware nobles were shocked.

"The Medici family must be incredibly wealthy. Those stones could be worth a hundred thousand gold coins."

"The kingdom's annual tax revenue is only five hundred thousand gold coins. The Medici family is truly rich."

"But I heard they didn't succeed. Even though the wizard taught them, without incense and potions on the airship, they are in the same boat as us."

"That's great news," someone said gleefully.

The gap between knights and wizard apprentices was akin to being unarmed versus armed.

One less wizard apprentice was one less predator, which was a good thing.

Richard listened quietly, pretending not to understand.

These arrogant nobles thought it impossible for commoners like Richard to understand the Wizard language, speaking without reservation.

This was entertaining for Richard.

But suddenly, a scream echoed from the nearby cabin.

"Tsk tsk, the Black Bear Gang is at it again," a noble clicked his tongue.

"They must have played with all the pretty commoners on the ship by now," another noble remarked.

"These commoners are beasts, unable to control themselves."

The freckled girl named Emily wore a look of disgust, covering her nose as if she could smell the stench of the Black Bear Gang.

Despite their words, none of the nobles moved to intervene.

Dog-eat-dog among commoners was no concern of theirs.

"Ah!"

The woman's scream came again, but this time it sounded familiar.

Richard realized something was wrong and quickly left the viewing cabin.

It seemed to be Ellie's voice.

The viewing cabin wasn't far from room 225, so as soon as Richard stepped out, he saw a muscular man with a scar on his face trying to break down the door to room 225.

Beside him were a few lackeys cheering him on. Though not as strong as the scarred man, they were robust by commoner standards.

"Girl, you better open the door! Otherwise, you'll regret it."

"Yeah, open up now, and we might go easy on you. Wait till the boss breaks in, and you'll be begging for mercy."

The lackeys shouted outside, while Ellie used a table to block the door from inside.

The rooms on the airship only had simple latches, which a strong man could easily break with a few hits if not reinforced.

"You idiot, Ellie. Why did you peek out?" Ellie gritted her teeth as she blamed herself while holding the door.

Not long after Richard left, Ellie grew restless. Being young, she didn't want to stay cooped up in the room.

So she opened the door, poking her head out to see if the coast was clear before heading to the viewing cabin.

But as soon as she opened the door, she encountered the Black Bear Gang looking for trouble.

The gang had been searching for a woman to vent their frustrations on, and upon seeing a beauty peek out, their primal instincts took over, charging at Ellie.

Thus, the current situation unfolded.

Crack.

With a sound of splintering wood, the latch on room 225's door gave way.

"It's over." 

Ellie's heart sank as the sound reached her ears. Without a latch, she couldn't hold them off.

But strangely, after a while, no one entered.

Instead, she heard several cries of pain and groans.

Did a wizard intervene?

Ellie stepped out from behind the table, peering through the door crack.

She saw the Black Bear Gang members sprawled on the ground, while a slender figure stood over the gang leader, his foot planted firmly on the leader's face.

As he stomped, he cursed.

"Damn pervert! Bashing my door, bullying my roommate, and you dare mess with me!"