Wizard: I can refine all things.

Chapter 3 On the Airship

"Junior students?"

As Li looked at the black-robed wizard, a tremendous wave of emotion surged within him.

Are these wizards also apprentices like them?

But before he could think any further, a hole appeared at the bottom of the airship.

The black-robed wizard led them inside, and as soon as they landed, Richard heard a deep female voice.

"Seven apprentices! Taylor, you're in luck."

Richard looked closely and saw a fierce woman, two meters tall and as strong as a bear, standing in the cabin, holding a large sword that was nearly two meters long. The sword was covered with dense symbols, making it look quite fantastical.

Beside her, Richard also saw a black-robed skeleton with eerie blue flames emanating from its eye sockets. As they all entered, the skeleton waved its hand, and the opening in the hold closed automatically.

"Seven apprentices, you all have to treat me to a meal when you go back this time. It can't be less than a hundred magic stones."

The black-robed wizard, unlike his fierce treatment of nobles on the ground, chatted and joked with the wizard inside the cabin in a very cheerful tone.

"Screw you, fifty magic stones, come if you want, don't come if you don't."

The skeleton wizard approached the apprentices with a crystal ball and began to tally their names and mental strength.

After the statistics were completed, the skeleton wizard, as if by magic, pulled out bag after bag from under his black robe. Each bag contained a quill pen, a bottle of ink, a roll of white paper, a number plate, and three books.

Without explanation or dialogue, the skeleton wizard acted completely differently from the other two wizards who were chatting idly.

He seemed to have abandoned human emotions, embracing peace and rationality in both body and mind.

"These are your introductory materials, which record the wizarding academy's introductory courses and admission rules. That number plate is your room number; do not leave your room during the airship's flight unless absolutely necessary."

Seeing that the skeleton wizard remained silent, the wizard Taylor, who had led them up, had no choice but to offer an explanation.

"Now everyone quickly find your own rooms. You can have some fun during the flight, but don't cause any deaths."

……

The airship's passenger cabin has only one aisle, with neatly arranged rooms on both sides, each for four people.

Richard counted and concluded that if the airship had fifty rooms, it could carry at least two hundred passengers if fully loaded.

Fifty rooms, two hundred people.

"The fantasy world is indeed fantastic; even an airship is this amazing."

Following the corridor to the end, Richard opened room number 225, which was temporarily his.

"Hey friend, I'm Ellie from the Golden Collar."

As soon as Richard entered, he saw a girl greeting him.

The girl had long, light blonde hair and light blue eyes. Although she had some freckles on her face, they only added to her youthful charm.

"Huh? Did they assign the wrong room?"

Richard was somewhat bewildered and turned to go back and ask the skeleton wizard.

"Friend, don't bother asking anymore. Someone has already asked, and Wizard Eisen said there was no mistake."

Richard stopped in his tracks. "Wizard Eisen? That wizard who looks like... a skeleton?"

Ellie nodded: "It's him. He said the room numbers are completely random, and we shouldn't ask him to change them. So many people have tried to change rooms these past few days, it's gotten so annoying he almost threw one of the apprentices off the building."

Upon hearing this, Richard rubbed his temples, feeling a bit of a headache.

This is a bit of a problem; living with a woman always presents many inconveniences.

But since the wizard had said that the rooms could not be changed, he had no choice but to comply.

"Alright then." Richard sighed. "Hello, Ellie. I'm Richard from the Blackwood Territory."

……

In fact, Ellie lied.

The rooms on the airship can actually be changed, but the way the rooms are changed is rather crude.

As long as you can get someone to agree to switch rooms without causing any death, the wizard recruiting students will not interfere with your actions.

In the few days since Ellie boarded the airship, several violent clashes have occurred one after another.

And these violent conflicts are often accompanied by one thing...

That was rape.

Wizards do not stop these crimes; they consider them minor offenses. One wizard, who looks like an ape, even watches with great interest.

This further fueled the evil intentions of some people on the airship.

Fortunately, the airship spends most of its time flying at high speed, during which time no one can leave the room.

This allowed Ellie to escape those beasts in the corner of the room.

Richard's arrival, however, brought her danger.

If those beasts find out there's a delicious prey lurking in the corner of the airship, then the next time the airship slows down will be Ellie's day of suffering.

Therefore, she had to stop Richard from changing rooms.

Moreover, Richard was very good-looking, handsome, and also weak.

Years of malnutrition had left Richard with an extremely weak complexion, and his thin body looked as if a gust of wind could blow him over, even when he was dressed.

Ellie was confident that she could resist Richard's advances.

……

Back to the present, Richard entered the room and casually closed the door.

The room was small, only eleven or twelve square meters, and there was also a small cubicle that was probably a toilet.

The furnishings are very simple: two bunk beds, a table about two meters long, two chairs, and a magic lamp on the ceiling are all that decorates the room.

The small room now only contained him and Ellie.

Young boys and girls, at the age when their hearts begin to flutter with romantic feelings, are confined to a small room.

The boy was handsome and the girl was petite and cute. Their eyes met, then they immediately looked away.

This scene looks like it should be a little ambiguous... my ass.

Richard may look like a teenager, but he's a grown man inside.

His ideal partner is a gentle and intellectual older sister!

"I sleep on the top bunk. If you need to change clothes, just let me know and I'll avoid you."

With a casual remark, Richard turned around, took off his shoes, and climbed onto the upper bunk.

He had more important things to do now than flirting with girls.

Sitting on the upper bunk, Richard opened the three books in the bag one by one.

Richard couldn't understand any of these three books. As a farmer, being able to write his own name was considered quite learned.

However, Richard determined that one of the thicker books was a dictionary.

[Source: Wizarding Dictionary]

[Extractable Information: Wizarding Text]

[Refinement Cost: 10 Spirit Points]

[Whether to extract]

Richard put the dictionary in his pocket and then made his decision.

"refining."

In an instant, Richard felt as if he had been hit on the head with a heavy hammer, and everything went black before his eyes.

After an unknown amount of time, Richard awoke from his deep sleep.

The room was pitch black, and it seemed to be nighttime.

"Hiss, we can't be so reckless with the refining next time."

Richard rubbed his head, thankful that he was on an airship and the surroundings were perfectly safe. If he were anywhere else, Richard would have practically put himself in danger.

Upon entering the soul space, a ball of white light, leaping up and down, had been waiting above the Miracle Forge for some time.

When Richard merged with the white light, he did not experience the illusions he had when merging with the Wind Raven Sword Technique. He just felt as if he had memorized a lot of things.

Richard tried it out and found that he had indeed learned wizarding, but it was more like he had memorized a dictionary.

If Richard were to read wizarding texts, he would, like a beginner, mispronounce words.

"It seems that there is a big difference between 'skill' and 'information.' Absorbing information is more like directly pouring knowledge into the brain, and you still need to practice more where you need to put it into practice. Skill, on the other hand, is easy to put into practice, but it is very difficult to summarize the skill into words."

Glug!

An overwhelming hunger jolted Richard out of his thoughts.

He hadn't eaten for almost two days.

"Ellie, Ellie," Richard called softly.

"Hmm? You're awake."

In the darkness, Ellie's voice came from the lower bunk; it sounded like she wasn't asleep yet.

"Ellie, what time is it?"

"4:32 AM."

Upon hearing this time, Richard quickly estimated how long he had been unconscious.

He was probably unconscious for about fourteen hours.

"Has anyone brought you food along the way?"

"Your food is on the table. Come down and eat if you want."

Richard sensed something was wrong with Ellie. Although he and Ellie had just met, most people wouldn't be so awake at four in the morning.

"Didn't you sleep all night?" Richard asked softly.

"Um."

"Missing home?"

"A little."

She seems to be a girl who hasn't traveled far from home much.

Glug!

Richard wanted to say a few more words of comfort to her, but the loud rumbling of his stomach made him decide to eat first.

He rolled out of bed; his dinner was on the table in the room.

Two palm-sized black breads, a piece of slightly burnt beef, and a bowl of beet porridge.

Although the food was not as good as the Chinese food Richard remembered, it was far better than the sawdust bread he ate in Hesse.

"Phew, that's a bit better."

After finishing his meal, Richard sat down in his chair and let out a long sigh.

Although this meal didn't fill him up, it at least filled his stomach with something.

"Richard, are you a knight?"

Ellie lay on the bed, turning to look at Richard.

Richard could sense that something was off about her voice; Ellie seemed to be...crying?

"No, why are you suddenly asking this?"

"Then we're doomed."

Richard frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Richard," Ellie's voice choked with emotion, "do you know what our entrance exam is like, according to the student handbook?"

"What is it?"

"It's murder!"

(End of this chapter)