The wizard apprentices who had narrowly escaped death gathered on the deck, their expressions grim. It was said that the fierce sea monsters had rampaged through the third floor before being intercepted by sailors rushing to the rescue, resulting in significant casualties among the apprentices on the fourth and fifth floors. In contrast, those residing on the lowest deck managed to escape unharmed.

On the deck, Bin Hanson spotted Nidhogg and the others, exhaling in relief.

"It's such a relief you're all okay! Damn, those sea monsters nearly scared me to death. I told myself, how could a great magic apprentice from Grand Tambrosen City get eaten by sea monsters before even reaching the wizard academy? I certainly don't want to end up as their feces..."

As he spoke, Bin Hanson gestured to the people behind him, saying, "Come, let me introduce you..."

Nidhogg couldn't help but marvel at Bin Hanson's luck. Originally housed in the damp and humid second-level cabins, just slightly better than the lowest deck, this circumstance ironically saved his life this time.

Shaking his head, Nidhogg sighed at his own misfortune. "I was just thinking of getting some fresh air on the deck when I reached the fifth floor. Then all hell broke loose. Usually, it wouldn’t be unusual for me to stay indoors for days...”

Despite searching around the deck, Nidhogg and the others couldn’t find Wade, likely another casualty among the many. On the other hand, Kiran stood on the opposite side of the deck, looking at the distant sea, his demeanor detached and uninterested in speaking to them.

Bin Hanson mocked quietly, "Hmph, always sucking up to Wizard Arowoz, a natural slave."

Bin Hanson's disdain for Kiran was unsurprising. On their journey, Kiran had been overly attentive to Wizard Arowoz, ingratiating himself shamelessly. After separating from the wizard, he barely acknowledged Nidhogg and the others, even ignoring a conflict between Yorkris and another apprentice by simply stating, "Not my problem," and walking away.

Thus, Nidhogg and the group now had little interest in talking to him either.

Yorkris, however, was not concerned with such trivial matters. Holding his sister anxiously, he whispered comfortingly as he looked at her empty eye socket. "Don't worry, sister. Once we reach the wizard continent, I'll definitely ask the most powerful wizard to heal your eye."

Yorkliana tried to smile at her brother's words, her pale face managing a faint expression of hope.

"Brother, don’t lie to me. I might be naive, but I’m not stupid. Such powerful wizards aren’t easy to meet. Besides... it’s okay, brother. Look at Wizard Dira; doesn't he also have only one eye?"

Everyone glanced at Wizard Dira, who was busy counting the number of surviving apprentices on the deck, his eye replaced by a constantly rotating gear—an eerie sight. The thought of Yorkliana undergoing a similar transformation was chilling.

Yorkris quickly reassured her, "No, no, I will definitely heal your eye! I swear!"

As for Nidhogg and Nina, both nursing their own injuries—Nidhogg's leg and Nina's shoulder—they found themselves leaning against the mast in a sort of unspoken camaraderie.

Nidhogg, feeling awkward and conflicted about earlier events, remained silent beside Nina, who was similarly embarrassed at her own emotional outburst. Thus, silence reigned between them, marking their brief moment of closeness as if it were just a fleeting illusion.

Later, word spread across the deck detailing the aftermath of the attack: thirty-two sailors had died alongside a staggering one hundred and seven wizard apprentices, most of whom had been on the fourth and fifth floors.

Nearby, Wizard Dira stood with the bosun and the two legendary knights, Baron among them. The bosun appeared unscathed, while Baron bore a noticeable wound on his back but seemed unfazed.

"Master, what’s troubling you?" Baron asked Wizard Dira, surprised by the sorcerer’s continued concern despite the monsters having been repelled or killed.

Few could discern Dira's worry. Wizards rarely displayed their emotions openly, and Dira’s partially mechanized features further masked subtle expressions. However, Baron, having served him for decades, noticed the slight signs of distress.

"There is something off about this sea monster attack..." Dira remarked, his sole eye casting a significant look at Baron.

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Startled, Baron probed, "Could we have been targeted by another wizard?"

Dira nodded slightly. "If my senses are correct, it's quite possible."

Baron's dark complexion paled in fear. As a legendary knight on the wizard continent, he understood the terror of being targeted by an elusive wizard, especially isolated on the vast sea without any support.

"Is it an enemy of the academy or someone after you?" Baron inquired, forcing the question with anxiety.

"It could be either," Dira replied contemplatively, "but there’s also a chance it could be for them." His gaze directed Baron’s eyes towards Yünli and Bibilianna.

Baron hesitated before replying bitterly, "For them?"

Could these two apprentice geniuses inspire such a dangerous confrontation with Wizard Dira?

"It’s just a possibility," Dira admitted, "but there are secrets you don’t understand." He paused, sighing. "Since the sea creatures have been driven back, and my mana is depleted, if anything does happen, it would likely be soon. We’ll wait and see."

Dira’s eyes flickered with a sudden, dark resolution. "However, if indeed there is an enemy targeting them, Baron, I need you to do something."

Baron knelt, "What are your orders?"

Leaning close to whisper, Dira instructed, "Kill them both! These two are once-in-a-century talents, possessing extremely valuable innate sorcery. They are potential strong contenders in the Holy Tower qualification battles! If our Iis Wizard Academy cannot claim them, neither should a potential rival academy."

...

The sea breeze blew fiercely as the sun climbed higher, casting heatwaves over the ship. Many retreated to the cabin, unable to withstand the scorching temperature, leaving only a few on deck—Nidhogg and Bin Hanson among them.

Nina, Yorkris, and Yorkliana had already returned to the cabin.

"Hey, Nidhogg, with Wizard Dira’s room destroyed, where do you think he'll sleep tonight? And what about those two guys?" Bin Hanson referred to Yünli and Bibilianna.

"I don’t know, probably somewhere on the fifth floor," Nidhogg replied indifferently.

Yorkris chuckled, "That’s my guess too. But with Yorkris, Yorkliana, and Nina all on the fifth floor, I wonder whose unlucky room will be taken over."

Nidhogg shrugged, "Plenty of rooms from the dead on the fifth floor, why theirs?"

Yorkris retorted, "Maybe, but many rooms were also damaged..."

As Nidhogg and Bin Hanson bickered idly, a shadow suddenly covered them. They assumed it was a passing cloud, paying it no mind until the flapping of wings and an irritating cawing drew their attention skyward.

Above them, an unseen multitude of black ravens blotted out the sun, forming a dark, obscuring cloud. Amidst this avian fog hovered a shadowy figure watching the ship.

Though too distant to discern details, the figure's mere presence exuded a terrifying magical aura. Everyone felt the cold grip of fear, as if the ship were about to collide with an iceberg.

Their vision filled with an endless expanse of black crows.

"Hey, wizards on the ship, come out," spoke the figure, their voice calm and rasping, like Arowoz's, androgynous.

Wizard Dira emerged from the cabin, staff in hand. His gray robes flapping ominously, he ascended to face the dark figure across the sky.

As he discerned the newcomer’s features, Dira’s expression shifted dramatically. "A... a second-level wizard!?"

"Heh, never seen you before, but I see plenty of promising students from Iis Small House Wizard Academy here. I'm taking over this ship... Consider yourself lucky, now scram."

Dismissively, the wizard atop the raven cloud ordered, showing no inclination for a fight.

Dira's expression grew dark, almost like a storm ready to burst. As a respected pathfinder among the Seven Ring Holy Tower’s Nineteenth District Reality Wizards, Dira was widely acknowledged to have the potential to ascend to higher levels.

With centuries of amassed wizardly knowledge, he felt confident enough to challenge many longtime veterans. Yet, today, his adversary was a second-level wizard!

A second-level wizard represented the managerial hierarchy of typical wizard academies, forming the core leadership. Nearly every academy director shared intricate ties with the upper echelons of the wizarding world.

Moreover, the power disparity between wizard levels was substantial. Each ascension brought capabilities far beyond what typical spells or innate talents could counterbalance.

Dira hesitated.

Abandoning the academy’s ship unprovoked, though a major responsibility, wouldn’t irreparably impact Dira, given his status and potential to ascend to a second-level wizard.

However, on this voyage were two once-in-a-century talented apprentices! And at such a critical point for the wizard continent...

Dira spoke gravely, "Master may take the ship, but may I request to take two individuals with me?"

"Hmph! I said leave now..."

A snort of disdain interrupted, embedding a freezing anger in the voice from the cloud. "Courting death!"

No one expected Dira to strike first, launching a surprise attack on a superior wizard.

A spear of ice, radiating biting cold, shot forth like an arrow from a fully drawn bow, carving a frosty trail through the sky toward the heart of the cloud-bound wizard.

But as the second-level wizard roared, an overwhelming magical force erupted, dispersing some of the clouds above and unleashing fierce winds that sent waves crashing in all directions.

A faint chime, and the ice spear shattered into countless icy shards. Simultaneously, Dira mounted his staff, streaking toward the distant horizon.

Yet a massive black cloud pursued him relentlessly...

"You cannot escape!"

The wizard’s cry echoed from the cloud, their figures vanishing into the horizon.

Only then did Nidhogg and Bin Hanson feel as though they were saved from drowning and began greedily gulping the fresh air.

During the second-level wizard’s power display, every apprentice on deck had felt an apocalyptic sensation, unable even to breathe.

"Scared me to death! I thought we were done for!" Bin Hanson exclaimed, clutching his chest before adding in disbelief, "Damn, this life is unlivable, escaping death twice in a day, and we haven’t even reached the wizard continent! Is that place even fit for humans to live?"

Nidhogg inhaled deeply, wearing a grim expression. "Looks like there's about to be a major upheaval."