Chapter 175 departure
The three-masted schooner was quiet and hazy, like a monster hidden in the night, and as soon as the two pointed boats stopped next to it, two rope ladders quietly slid down, just in front of the sharp boat.
Tom turned his head and whispered to the teenagers: "Don't talk, don't make a big noise."
At his request, the atmosphere suddenly became depressing, and Splinter and the others, who had been laughing and relaxing, all became solemn, as if it was only then that they realized that they and others were not traveling happily, but were preparing to lurk and break through the church's blockade, and they would be tied to the cross if they were not careful.
Seeing that they all understood the seriousness of the matter, Tom whispered to Lucian: "Evans, I'll go up and check first, and after confirming that there is no problem, you will arrange for the children to climb the rope ladder. Thank you for your hard work."
"It's nothing." Lucian didn't mind, at this time, if he was reserved as a formal magician and asked to be the first to go up, the teenagers behind him would have no arrangement and supervision, and it would be easy to get confused, attracting the attention of other people in the sailboat, and harming himself. So sometimes, everyone is really good.
Second-class knight Tom gently pulled the rope ladder, and the whole person climbed up quickly like a black afterimage, climbed over the boat, and disappeared into the corner of the deck.
The atmosphere was depressing and tense, and even such a proud boy as Splinter had a solemn face, unable to say a word, quietly waiting for Tom's signal.
After a while, Tom stuck his head out of the boat, and since Lucian didn't tell him that he had dark vision, he dropped the agreed white handkerchief, indicating that everything was normal on it and that he could climb the rope ladder.
"Splinter, Katrina, you all crawl aside." Lucian arranged unhurriedly, and his calm attitude made the slightly nervous teenagers seem to have found a source of support and confidence, slowly calming down, and being able to climb without trembling their hands and feet in the concentration of spellcasting.
One by one, the teenagers followed Lucian's methodical command, went up to the deck without making a big move, and hid under Tom's signal.
"Olmos, Heidi, it's your turn." When arranged to Olmos, Lucian found that this brown-haired boy, who was said to have good mental strength, had a low sense of existence, studying quietly every day, practicing quietly, eating quietly, and returning to his room quietly, like the shadow of everyone.
Olmos nodded, stretched out his hand, grabbed the rope ladder and climbed up, extremely fast and very balanced.
"It seems that he has the strength of a knight's attendant......" Lucian judged subtly, compared to him, Heidi looked extremely clumsy. The rickety, swaying rope ladder frightened her pale face and stiff movements, and she couldn't help but scream if it weren't for Mr. Evans' authority and "fear" penetrating deep into her psyche.
Lucian looked at it with a smile, not helping Heidi unless she showed signs of falling. Such experiences are a valuable asset for their growth.
In the midst of slowness, pain, and fear, Heidi finally turned onto the deck, only to feel weak all over her body and weak hands and feet, but thinking back on the experience just now, she was full of pride, she actually climbed this terrifying rope ladder.
Similar to her, Leilia also climbed a level and stopped, and it was very difficult to reach the deck, and Annick, who was setting off at the same time, had already hid in the shadow of the boat as Tom had instructed.
All the apprentices successfully went up, Lucian did not delay, holding his black suitcase in his left hand, pulling the rope ladder with his right hand, and stood silently on the deck after a few rubbing.
Tom greeted him with a dark-skinned, curly-haired sailor: "Hehe, Evans, you seem to have the strength of a high-ranking knight's attendant."
"I have a knight's sword." Lucian didn't answer directly, and then led by Tom and the sailor, through a small door behind the deck to the bottom of the cabin.
After going down two floors in a row, the smell of muddy and damp sweat hit my face, and the aisle was dark, all thanks to sailors holding candlesticks to illuminate the way forward.
At this time, two people suddenly came over the corner, chatting and dressed as sailors.
The atmosphere immediately froze, and a dangerous emotion hit every apprentice's heart, just as Lucian was about to cast "Charm Humans" despite being checked by the ship's magic array, the two sailors nodded at Tom at the same time and said, "Boss."
Tom replied in a low voice: "No problem, right?"
"No, everything is fine." Two sailors get out of the way.
As if sensing the suspicious eyes of Lucian and the others, Tom turned his head and squeezed a smile out of his gloomy face: "I am the boatswain of this ship, otherwise how could it be so easy to smuggle in? Viscount Wright's merchant ship was arranged with many magic formations, and there were priests presiding over it. Moreover, even if you sneak in, without me, the boatswain, to help you prepare food and fruits, you will definitely starve to death and die of illness during the nearly month-long voyage."
The storm strait is called a strait, and it is indeed not wide, but because it is often lightning and thunder, strong winds and waves, it takes a lot of time to cross it.
It is said that many powerful magicians have explored why there are so many and concentrated thunderbolts and hurricanes in this strait, but in the end there is no conclusion.
Looking at the "freshly baked" boatswain Tom, Lucian thought of the deep friendship between Graneuf and Viscount Wright, and vaguely felt that Viscount Wright's fleet was afraid that it would be infiltrated very much, especially Graneuf, as one of the maintainers of Sturk's underground order, sailors, coolies, etc. should be mostly controlled by him. As a great knight, did Viscount Wright notice it at all?
Led by Tom, Lucian and the others soon arrived at the penultimate level of the cabin where the cargo was stored, which was dark, damp, dull, dirty, and full of all kinds of stench.
And in some hidden corner, there is a row of cabins, they are very narrow, they seem to have been not originally intended for habitation, but now they have been cleaned out and hammocks are hung.
"The apprentices have two and one for himself." Tom arranged, and finally said, "During this time, you can't leave the cabin on this floor, you can only meditate and can't cast magic, and even when you are active on this floor, you must always pay attention to the situation of someone coming down to check the cargo. When you get to Holm, the hardships you suffer will be rewarded."
After sending Tom away, the apprentices took the candlesticks and went back to their rooms.
Leilia and Heidi were together, after pushing open the door, the two of them looked at each other and smiled, and then said to Annick, who was passing behind him and was about to go to his room: "Annick, I don't have to practice magic casting on the boat, I feel so relaxed, I feel like I'm almost hoarse from chanting spells."
"You can sleep in now!" Heidi felt that this dirty and smelly cabin didn't seem to be that bad.
"But we still can't forget to practice simulation by ourselves, magic is our foundation, and the more skilled we are, the more useful it is." Annick said this, and he still couldn't help but show a relaxed expression on his face, holidays are every child's favorite thing!
"What are you talking about?" Familiar, gentle, and always a little fearful voice sounded behind them.
Leilia and Heidi immediately stood up, clasped their hands, and lowered their heads: "Mr. Evans." The smile on his face still couldn't be hidden.
Lucian nodded slightly: "Since we can't practice magic, then let's continue to learn arcane and magic basics in the afternoon, identify the types of 'magical creatures', and then do a set of exercises."
"Huh?!" The faces of the three children completely collapsed.
…………
Although the study time and practice were increased, Lucian still intended to give them enough time to rest and relax, but the plan was quickly interrupted, and when the sailboat returned to the dock to set off with the caravan and enter the surging Storm Strait, Leilia and Heidi began to get seasick, vomiting and weak, unable to think.
Such apprentices accounted for the vast majority, even the proud Splinter and Katrina were not spared, except for the expected Olmos, only Annick, a thin-looking apprentice, was not affected. If it weren't for the deaf and mute coolies sent by Tom to deliver food and fruit, who were also responsible for removing the vomit from the apprentices, this floor would not be inhabitable at all.
In the gaps between the piles of wooden boxes, Lucian, who was avoiding the stench, was answering Annick's questions about the principles of magic construction.
"Mr. Evans, when will Leilia and Heidi get better?" Annick was a little worried.
Lucian leaned against the wooden box and patted Annick on the shoulder: "In two days at most, they will be able to fully adapt and start to recover, after all, good mental strength will help with this, and there is vegetable oil prepared by Mr. Tom that can reduce seasickness. Don't you see that they are much better than the previous two days?"
Just as Annick was about to answer, the sailboat suddenly shook violently up and down, causing him to almost fall, and when he finally stood firm, a palm suddenly appeared on his mouth, and the light of the candlestick went out without warning.
"Someone is coming down, don't talk." But soon, Lucian's low voice appeared in his ears, allowing Annick to suppress the surprise and fear in his heart.
As an official magician, Lucian keenly sensed that someone was coming down from the upper floor, so he reacted in time.
Through the gap in the wooden box, the dim candlelight shone into the eyes, and the magnetic young man's voice sounded very excitedly: "Dear Cherie, you are the sun in my heart, without you I will always fall into darkness, how I miss you these days, I can't even pray to calm down."
"Dear Jacques, I am the same, I wish I could become an angel, grow wings, and fly to your side. But these days, my father often accompanies me and teaches me knowledge, and the maids don't give me a chance to sneak out." The female voice is very soft.
Lucian breathed a sigh of relief quietly, thinking that a knight or a priest had come down to check, but who knew that it was a young couple who met secretly.
Jacques' voice was painful: "Cherie, I don't understand why the Viscount wants his daughter to study at the nun school in the Kingdom of Holm, doesn't Sturk have a monastery?"
"Your Excellency...... Viscount Wright?" Lucian was slightly surprised and thought that this was actually the sailboat that Viscount Wright himself was riding.
Rumble, terrifying thunder penetrated the decks, exploding in this dull and gloomy cabin.
(End of this chapter)