Ralth finished his breakfast in two or three bites. The food was simple but filling—warm porridge sweetened with honey, a slice of dark bread, and a wedge of pale cheese. He washed it down with a cup of herbal tea that tasted faintly of mint.
I don't know if it's an illusion, but Ralth felt that his body has become much stronger after connecting to the sea of soul. His thin body caused by years of malnutrition now has some muscles. Where his ribs once stood out painfully against his skin, there was now a layer of healthy flesh. His arms, once like twigs, now showed the beginning of definition.
Were the magi's food mixed with supplements? Or was this another effect of connecting to the Sea of Souls? The books didn't mention physical changes, but perhaps it was too obvious to need mentioning. Or maybe.....it was the effect of the cube's passive Mana absorption. Ralth didn't think about the cube often as it only activated when close to items tainted with mana, those of which apart from the books he had not run into onto the ship.
Feeling bored, he decided to check up on the Felsan Cube's energy absorption, anyway:
---
[FELSAN CUBE - ]
- Current Level: 1 (Locked Potential Detected)
- Energy Reserve: 3% (Absorb more magic to advance)
- Next Unlock:10% Energy Accumulation Required
Functions (Unlocked)
- 🔹 Energy Absorption (Passive)
- Converts ambient magical residue into gradual mind & body strengthening.
- 🔹 Knowledge Extraction (Active)
- Absorbs skills & information from magically tainted objects.
- 🔹 Mana Absorption (Active)
- Converts tainted magical energy from artifacts into usable power.
Locked Functions
🔹 ??? (10% Energy Accumulation)
🔹 ??? (25% Energy Accumulation)
🔹 ??? (50% Energy Accumulation)
🔹 ??? (100% Energy Accumulation)
---
Huh? It's at 3% percent now. Great! I guess? It's gonna take a while at this rate.
I guess I should head out.
"Hey! I have taught you magus literature these days, can't you help me out? Why don't you go out?"
When Charlotte saw Ralth was about to go out, she looked like a cat with its fur standing on end. She jumped up and grabbed his sleeve, her fingers digging into the fabric.
Ralth waved his hand indifferently: "Don't worry, I'm not going to shout outside that I have a beautiful roommate. Just stay quiet, can those bastards break in through the door?"
Charlotte bit her lip, clearly not convinced but unable to stop him. After a moment, she let go of his sleeve and stepped back.
"Just... be careful," she said softly. "Those people... they're not like us."
Ralth nodded and slipped out the door, closing it firmly behind him. The hallway was already filling with other apprentices, all eager to stretch their legs after the long confinement.
…
The space of the airship was not small. The massive vessel stretched nearly two hundred meters from bow to stern, with multiple levels connected by narrow staircases. The lowest levels housed the huge magical engines that kept the ship aloft, while the highest contained the control room where the magi navigated through the skies.
In addition to the passenger cabin where they live, there is also an observation cabin of several dozen square meters at the end of the airship. The walls curved outward in a half-dome, providing a panoramic view of the world outside.
This cabin is usually used by magi, but today the airship is being inspected, so the apprentice can also go in and take in the scenery. The cabin smelled of polished wood and the faint ozone scent that always accompanied magic.
Ralth stood by the window, looking at the endless sea of clouds with his heart pounding. He had never been this high before, never seen the world from above like the magi did every day. From here, the problems of the ground seemed very small indeed.
The walls of the observation cabin are made of something similar to glass, through which you can see the sea of clouds outside the airship. The material was perfectly clear but much stronger than glass—perhaps reinforced by magic. It was cool to the touch and thrummed faintly with the energy that kept the cabin pressurized.
The observation cabin was soon filled with apprentices. There were nobles and commoners among them. The nobles formed one circle, and the commoners formed another circle. The nobles wore fine clothes in bright colors, with jewelry that caught the light. The commoners were dressed more simply, in practical garments of brown and gray.
Although no one forced them to separate, the two circles were clearly distinct. Invisible lines drawn by centuries of social custom kept them apart as surely as any wall.
Except Ralth. He stood alone by the window, belonging to neither group. His clothing was common, but his bearing was not. The nobles glanced at him occasionally, unsure where to place him in their mental hierarchy.
Right next to Ralth, a group of nobles were mysteriously exchanging their secret information. Their voices were hushed, and they huddled together like conspirators.
In order to prevent civilians from eavesdropping, they even spoke in magus language. The strange syllables rolled off their tongues awkwardly, betraying their amateur status. A true magus would have laughed at their pronunciation.
"Are you sure, Emily? Is your brother really connected to the Sea of Souls?" asked a blond noble. His doublet was the latest fashion from the capital, the fabric shot through with threads that sparkled like stars.
"Of course, my brother would tell me lies, wouldn't he?"
Opposite the blond noble, a girl with the same blond hair and freckles on her face replied proudly. Her nose turned up slightly as she spoke, giving her an expression of permanent disdain.
Emily's words caused a burst of exclamations from the nobles. All of them were studying "How to Become a Magus's Apprentice", but only a few of them actually achieved any results.
"When did it happen?" another noble asked eagerly. "Did he use incense? Or was it the moonwater potion?"
"Neither," Emily said, lifting her chin. "Pure talent. Father always said our bloodline was special."
For most people, it is extremely difficult to connect to the Sea of Soul without the help of incense and potions. The incense had to be burned in a specific pattern, and the potion tasted like rotten eggs but opened pathways in the mind that were otherwise closed.
"By the way, didn't those Eltor family members and their people hire a magus to teach them? How are they doing? That's ten magic stones."
"Ten magic stones?" Some nobles who didn't know the news were shocked. Their eyes widened, and one nearly choked on his breath.
Magic stones were incredibly rare—crystallized magic formed only when certain conditions were met in places of power. They were the currency of magi, worth far more than gold or jewels.
"The Eltor family is indeed very rich. If these magic stones were converted into gold coins, I'm afraid there would be at least 100,000 gold coins."
"The kingdom's annual tax revenue is only 500,000 gold coins. The Eltor family is indeed rich enough to rival an entire country."
"But I heard that they didn't seem to succeed. Although the magus taught them, there were no incense or potions on the airship. Without any assistance, they were just like us."
"That's great." Someone gloated, not bothering to hide their satisfaction at another's failure.
The gap between a knight and a magus apprentice is no less than that between unarmed and armed. A knight might train for decades to master the sword, but a magus apprentice with just a few spells could reduce them to ash in moments.
One less magus apprentice means one less predator, which is a good thing. The nobles lived in fear of being overtaken by commoners with magical talent who might rise above their station.
Ralth listened on the side, pretending not to understand anything. He kept his expression blank, his eyes fixed on the clouds outside while his ears absorbed every word.
These arrogant nobles thought that it was impossible for them, the peasants, to understand the magus language, so they spoke without restraint. Their secrets spilled freely, unaware that Ralth understood every word.
Ralth was delighted to hear this. Knowledge was power, and he was gathering it step by step.
But at this moment, a scream came from the cabin not far away. The sound cut through the murmur of conversation, high and frightened.
"Tsk tsk, those people from the Snake Gang have started it again." An aristocrat exclaimed, rolling his eyes as if this was a common annoyance like rain on a picnic.
"They've almost had enough of the pretty low-class people on the ship," a noble said. "I wonder who they caught this time."
"These peasants are really wild beasts. They can't even control themselves."
The freckled girl named Emily had a look of disgust on her face, and she covered her mouth and nose as if she smelled the stench of the Snake Gang. Her delicate lace handkerchief did little to hide her contempt.
However, although these nobles talked, none of them moved to uphold justice. They shook their heads and clicked their tongues, but their feet stayed firmly in place.
The peasants are fighting each other, what does it have to do with the nobles? This wasn't their problem. Let the commoners sort out their own troubles. That was their belief.
"Ah!"
The woman screamed again, but why did the voice sound so familiar this time? It echoed through the halls of the airship, bouncing off the wooden walls and returning as an echo.
Ralth realized that something was wrong and quickly left the observation cabin. He pushed through the crowd, earning angry looks from nobles whose sleeves he brushed against.
That seemed to be Charlotte's voice. The pitch, the tone—he had heard it enough times over the past two weeks to recognize it anywhere.
The observation cabin was not far from room 225, so as soon as Ralth went out, he saw a muscular man with a scar on his face banging on the door of room 225. The scar ran from his left eyebrow down to his jaw, puckering the skin into a permanent sneer.
There were a few minions cheering beside him. Although these people were not as strong as the scarred man, they were still considered strong among the civilians. They had the look of dock workers or laborers—hands callused from work, muscles built through necessity rather than vanity.
"Woman, you'd better open the door! Otherwise, you will suffer the consequences."
The scarred man's voice was thick with and threatening. He pounded on the door with a meaty fist, each blow making the wood creak.
"That's right. We can still be gentle with you this time when we go in. Once the Boss knocks the door open, you'll be unable to survive."
The minions were shouting loudly outside the door, their crude laughter filling the hallway. Some other apprentices passed by, quickening their pace and looking away. No one wanted to be the next target.
Inside, Charlotte was desperately holding the door with a table. Sweat beaded on her forehead as she braced herself against the furniture, using all her weight to keep the door closed.
The room on the airship had only a simple bolt. If the door was not held against it, a strong man could knock it open with two or three hits. The bolt was meant for privacy, not security.
"Charlotte, you're such an idiot. Why did you have to stick your head out there?" Charlotte blamed herself while gritting her teeth and leaning against the door. Tears of frustration formed in the corners of her eyes.
Soon after Ralth left, Charlotte also became impatient. They were all young people, and no one wanted to stay locked up in their room. The walls seemed to close in, and curiosity about the rest of the airship grew too strong to ignore.
So she opened the door and looked outside, thinking that if no one was there, she would quickly go to the observation cabin to check. Her heart had pounded with excitement at the thought of seeing the clouds from above, of breathing air that wasn't confined to their small room.
But as soon as she opened the door, she ran into the Snake Gang members who were out looking for someone to rob and beat up. Their eyes had lit up at the sight of her, like wolves spotting a lost lamb.
The Snake Gang members were worried about not being able to find a person to rob, so when they saw such a weakling peeking out of the room, they naturally took over and went straight to Charlotte. She had barely managed to slam the door in their faces before they could grab her.
So the scene just now happened. Charlotte cursed her own stupidity as she pushed against the door with all her might.
Click.
With a sound of breaking wood, the bolt on the door of Room 225 was completely knocked open. The metal tore free from the wood with a shriek, and Charlotte felt the door give way.
"It's over."
Charlotte's heart sank at the sound. Without a bolt, there was no way she could hold back those people. The table began to slide across the floor as the door inched open.
But strangely, she didn't hear anyone coming in for a long time. The pressure on the door suddenly ceased, as if the attackers had simply vanished.
Instead, she heard a few screams and painful groans. The sounds of pain were mixed with surprised shouts and the dull thud of blows landing on flesh.
Did the magus' on the ship take action? Had one of them finally noticed the disturbance and come to restore order?
Charlotte walked out from behind the table and put her eyes to the crack in the door. She blinked, unable to believe what she was seeing.
She saw all the members of the Snake Gang lying on the ground, and a thin figure was stepping on the face of the Snake Gang leader. Blood trickled from the scarred man's nose, and one of his eyes was already swelling shut.
While stepping on it, he also cursed. The thin figure—Ralth—looked nothing like the quiet boy who had left the room earlier. His face was twisted with rage, his eyes burning with a cold light that Charlotte had never seen before.
"You fool! you damned fool! You dared to banged on my door, try to rob my roommate, and you tried to rob me as well! You must want to die!"
Ralth's foot pressed harder, grinding the man's face into the floor. The other gang members were scattered around, some holding broken arms or nursing bloody noses. None of them made any move to help their leader.
Charlotte pushed the door open wider, her mouth hanging open in shock. "Ralth?"
He turned to look at her, and the rage slowly faded from his face, replaced by his usual calm expression. He lifted his foot from the gang leader's face and stepped back.
"Are you okay?" he asked, as if nothing unusual had happened, as if he hadn't just defeated five men twice his size.
Charlotte nodded, unable to find words. As Ralth walked past the fallen men toward her, she noticed something strange—his eyes, normally dark brown, had flecks of gold in them now.
"How did you..." she began, gesturing at the groaning men on the floor.
Ralth shrugged. "I guess the food on this ship really is good," he said.