Simon followed closely behind Duke, and the others soon realized and began to line up as well.
The first in line was the boy with round glasses who had asked a question earlier. He stepped directly into the purple magic array and disappeared instantly.
The wizard apprentices in line behind him let out gasps of surprise upon witnessing this.
Though most of these wizard apprentices came from the West Coast, they had rarely seen such a witch array.
Duke was seventh in line, and the teleportation was proceeding quickly. In no time, it was his turn.
He approached the witch array, and Jode watched him expressionlessly, saying nothing.
Duke took a deep breath and stepped directly into the magic array.
A wave of dizziness washed over him, with a brief feeling of weightlessness, nowhere to land yet not falling, leaving him with a sense of insecurity as he couldn’t find a footing.
However, this feeling was fleeting, and when Duke regained his senses, he found himself in a forest.
It was dusk, the golden sun was touching the ocean horizon, casting orange light through the trees, leaving dappled shadows on the ground.
Duke quickly scanned his surroundings but found no one else present; the area was somewhat quiet, with only occasional unfamiliar bird calls audible.
He tucked the parchment recording his task into his space ring and began to slowly explore ahead.
As it was nearing sunset, Duke planned to find a place to spend the night.
This island harbored advanced magical beasts, all possessing casting abilities.
Even the weakest advanced magical beasts were as strong as second-class wizard apprentices, with stronger ones generally matching first-class wizard apprentices in strength.
Ordinary third-class wizard apprentices would struggle to handle advanced magical beasts.
However, there were no level-one beasts on this island, ones that would match official wizards.
If such level-one creatures existed, these wizard apprentices would face total annihilation.
Black Sail was assessing them to select promising talents, not to slaughter them.
Duke needed to use the time advantage of arriving early to find a suitable hiding place.
...
On the ship, many wizard apprentices were still lining up to enter the teleportation array, with over three hundred people needing time to be fully teleported.
Many of the wizard apprentices complained, "Why not teleport all at once? This is so unfair."
They naturally didn’t dare shout, nor show any dissatisfaction to Jode, but quietly grumbled to their friends.
Jode, however, heard them clearly and said solemnly, "This is yet another lesson for you, not to pursue fairness. You must realize that fairness is not the nature of this world!"
"Don’t always think about following rules, don’t become foolish from staying in the lab all day!"
At Jode’s words, those complaining wizard apprentices all fell silent, not daring to speak recklessly again.
Many people gained a deeper understanding of Black Sail, a wizard organization originating from pirates.
Talking about fairness and rules with pirates would only earn ridicule.
Jode wanted these young wizard apprentices to understand that the world is inherently cruel.
Being used to a greenhouse environment would cost them dearly later.
If Duke were still there, he might recall what Earl Hardy said to Vivian before leaving Florence Continent.
Wolves don’t ask a sheep’s name before they eat it.
...
Duke had arrived by a small lakeside by now, with a waterfall cascading down near it, producing a roaring sound.
The lake contained freshwater, suitable for drinking.
Duke, however, wasn’t there to drink; he summoned a few shadow insects and set them into the lake to explore downward.
The lake was deep, with its bottom invisible from the surface.
Duke had a keen sense of water element distribution, and in his perception, the lake was very deep, prompting him to explore below.
Being cautious, he opted to use shadow insects for scouting rather than risking it himself.
The shadow insects moved slowly underwater but could relay simple information, which was sufficient.
Through these shadow insects, Duke discovered a deep pit below, connected to the outside sea, allowing direct swimming out to sea from there.
Moreover, the shadow insects discovered a special cavern beneath, a reversed small grotto with no water and airflow inside.
Duke had the shadow insects investigate more thoroughly, confirming no particularly powerful magical beasts were there.
Indeed, some beasts and sea creatures were active below, but they posed no threat to Duke.
Duke glanced at the distant ocean horizon, with the sun almost fully set and night about to fall.
By the time all apprentice wizards arrived on the island, the place would be shrouded in darkness.
Black Sail seemed to have deliberately arranged this, making the apprentices face the first night immediately upon arrival.
How to safely endure the night was a question, as they couldn’t tell how many apprentices would see the next sunrise.
Duke stopped hesitating, and, seeing that no one else was around, effortlessly jumped into the lake, barely making a splash, as if merging with the water.
He released some shadow insects, placing them in hidden corners around, to maintain awareness of the situation above while underwater.
Upon entering the lake, Duke noticed the water was cooler than the sea.
It was indeed very deep and took Duke a while of swimming downward to reach the cavern spotted by the shadow insects.
Upon reaching there, he followed a circular tunnel, swimming forward, then upward for a bit before resurfacing to breathe fresh air.
It was a damp cavern, small but sufficient for one person’s movement.
There were gaps in the walls, seeping water droplets and faintly carrying wind sounds, occasionally gusting in.
After inspecting the surroundings to ensure safety, Duke cleared a clean area on the ground, laid a blanket, and lay down.
He took out some prepared dry food, ate a bit, then closed his eyes to meditate.
He didn’t plan to leave before dawn, as this was a perfect refuge, allowing him to avoid many troubles during the dangerous night.
He could already imagine the chaos that would descend upon this island once night fell.
Wizards were inherently not a kind group, and among Black Sail’s apprentice wizards, malicious individuals were not scarce.
This island, in essence, was a temporary chaotic haven, with human nature’s malice unveiled when order was disrupted.