After Lillian left, Herag began to organize the information he had gotten from her.
Augustus Academy was similar to ordinary schools, except it had an eight-year program, where wizard apprentices studied according to the curriculum arranged by the academy. If someone was particularly outstanding, they might be chosen by an official wizard to become their student.
Augustus Academy was relatively peaceful among these wizard organizations, with relatively less conflict among the wizard apprentices.
The Moonlight Forest where Herag was located was completely different, wherein all knowledge and resources needed to be paid for; wizard apprentices had to complete various tasks to earn points or magic stones to exchange for the corresponding resources.
Knowledge and guidance from official wizards were also resources, which wizard apprentices had to strive to earn.
Lillian came to knock on the door again, and when Herag opened it, he saw a bed quilt.
"This is an extra velvet quilt I have, don’t use the one from the boat, it’s damp, smelly, and moldy," Lillian said, hugging a heavy quilt that almost obscured her entirely.
Herag took it: "Thank you!"
The outside of the velvet quilt was actually silk, with gold trim, and it felt very smooth.
He grew even more puzzled, Lillian should be stronger than himself, why would she show goodwill towards him, there were never any free lunches.
To receive something, one must pay a corresponding price, Herag understood this principle very well.
"Oh right, if you’re preparing to go up and eat, call me, we’ll go together. Otherwise, those people might cause you trouble seeing you’re alone; the ship is particularly boring, some people find joy in bullying newcomers. I heard someone once hung up a newcomer at the bow to fish, and if Dino hadn’t found out in time, the newcomer’s head would have been eaten by fish," Lillian reminded.
Lillian boarded the ship a few days earlier than Herag and saw more, knowing those people better.
Herag remembered the situation he saw on the deck and the third floor earlier, those people didn’t know each other, maintaining their distances.
He couldn’t completely trust Lillian, and likewise, Lillian would also hold something back.
If they were , the people upstairs would certainly be no different.
Herag returned to the room, used the original quilt as a mat, and laid Lillian’s velvet quilt on top.
"Let’s go, time to eat, I’ll show you around," Lillian said, standing outside the door.
"Okay." After locking the door, the two of them headed to the second floor.
On the staircase, Herag glanced downward, the fifth floor was very dark, from this angle he couldn’t see any light, but could smell something foul and fishy from below.
Lillian held her nose disdainfully: "The sailors live on the fifth floor, they aren’t very clean... There are another two floors below, said to store some cargo and ballast items."
As Herag and Lillian climbed past the third floor, they saw a thin-faced man squatting alone at the stairwell, his eyes wide open, staring at them constantly.
"Don’t look at him," Lillian whispered, picking up the pace.
Herag averted his gaze from the man, quickening his steps to the second floor.
He could feel the man’s gaze following him until they reached the second floor, where it finally vanished.
"That guy is Fegar Mullan, one of the two second-class apprentices among us, the one who hung someone at the bow fishing was him. That guy has some mental issues, seems mentally unstable, don’t provoke him," Lillian said fearfully mentioning Fegar.
Herag nodded, Fegar’s gaze indeed made him uncomfortable, like a predator searching for prey, filled only with indifference and cruelty.
He felt fortunate to be living on the fourth floor; otherwise, seeing such a guy squatting in the corridor would be chilling.
The dining area on the second floor was fairly spacious, with white bread, pickled meat, and smoked meat placed in baskets, free to take as needed.
Herag also saw two large baskets of green tangerines, the aroma noticeable from afar, their skin especially green, just the sight made one’s mouth water.
Besides them, there were also three wizard apprentices scattered around eating in the dining area.
Herag and Lillian’s jovial behavior did not go unnoticed by the others, who noted it silently.
"Why are they so cold to each other? With official wizards on board, there should be a degree of safety, right?" Herag asked.
Lillian, adopting a mocking look, smiled: "Dino doesn’t concern himself with such matters; there’s no prohibition on killing here, as long as it doesn’t impede the voyage, Dino won’t care if he doesn’t see it. Tokens aren’t registered to real names, and the wizard organization doesn’t care how you get them, some people lack tokens."
"I see." Herag had thought that the presence of official wizards would ensure some peace on the ship; he himself had two demonized items, others probably had some as well.
Without tokens, people must pass tests to have a chance of joining a wizard organization, having a token provides direct entry, creating temptation for some to risk everything for murder and treasure. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ NovᴇlFirᴇ.ɴet
These wizard apprentices boarded the ship knowing nobody, wary of others’ intentions, leading to the current situation.
Herag and Lillian each took some food and chatted while eating, while the other three noticeably hastened their meal and quickly departed upon their arrival.
This dining area was exclusively for wizard apprentices; sailors couldn’t dine here.
"I have a token for Augustus Academy, many people want it, I have no choice but to form an alliance with you," Lillian said, looking stressed.
Herag understood, those without tokens mostly targeted those with, and Lillian’s Augustus Academy token certainly attracted much coveting.
"I seem to have gotten the short end, just by walking with you, they now assume we’re together, meaning you’ve dragged me into this," Herag finally realized the catch; a simple meal turned into a trap.
Lillian straightened her ample chest: "I’m stronger than you, I can protect you, besides, forming an alliance with a noble princess..."
Herag cut her off, rubbing his finger: "Cut the nonsense, I want something tangible."
Lillian, seeing he wasn’t convinced, rolled her eyes, and pulled out a ring: "Here, it’s a space ring, you probably don’t have a demonized item , right?"
"This is nice!" Herag grabbed it quickly.
Lillian said seriously: "You think keeping your distance from me ensures your safety? Quite the opposite, you’ll be even more endangered. There’s a total of two second-class apprentices on board; if we team up, even second-class apprentices can’t ensure they can kill us both and escape unharmed."
"Know that if a second-class apprentice gets hurt, would the other spare them? So, we should temporarily join forces to guarantee a measure of safety."
After thinking for a moment, Herag said: "Alright, we can cooperate since in others’ eyes, we’re already together."