Chapter 174 - The Storm Approaches
Here is Chapter 174 of "Exploring Technology in a Wizard World": Hearing the sound, the four wizards moved swiftly, âwhooshingâ to the door and pushing it... Donât miss it!
Hearing the sound, the four wizards moved swiftly, âwhooshingâ to the door and pushing it open, only to find no one outside.This isâŠ
Puzzling over the situation, there was another loud âbangâ from the top of the cabin. The four wizards looked up to see a large bird resembling a duck crashing against the top of the cabin, its feathers a dark purple-black and its beak long and pointed. The bird paused for a moment after hitting the cabin, then flapped its wings vigorously and flew off into the distance.
âIs this⊠a Storm Bird?â Siv said aloud.
âOr perhaps called a Misfortune Bird, though I personally prefer to call them Funeral Bell Birds,â Louis added.
âHow could this be happening here?â Quinton frowned.
âIâm afraid the sea is not at peace,â Dempsey said, turning his head to look into the distance.
âFlap flap!â
Soon after, dozens of Funeral Bell Birds broke through the night, striking the massive ship before rapidly flying off into the distance.
âSo many of them!â Sivâs expression grew serious.
âIt seems something is indeed going to happen,â Louis suggested.
âA storm?â Quintonâs eyes glittered as he inquired.
âIt must be a huge storm for so many Funeral Bell Birds to appear. And I suspect this isnât a natural storm, but rather a Magic Storm created deliberately to attack the ships at sea,â Dempsey explained.
âCould it be thatâŠâ Siv began to guess but didnât finish his thought.
âIt should be,â Dempsey nodded with certainty, âotherwise it wouldnât have been so sudden, catching us completely off guard. However, they may have mistaken their target by encountering us. That said, this could be a good thing for us. Werenât we just discussing a test? Now, the test has arrived.â
âIsnât this too difficult?â Quinton spoke up, âJust dealing with the storm and the heavy rain is tricky enough, but if the students also have to fend off whatever is coming, Iâm afraid the casualties could be significant.â
âIsnât this exactly what weâre trying to achieve?â
âThe problem is⊠the students with High-level Talent are also likely to run into trouble during such a test. And I highly doubt whether the students can handle whatâs coming at all. After all, itâs far more dangerous than Pirates.â
After a moment of thought, Dempsey spoke, âIf thatâs the case, then letâs have our Apprentices get involved as well, to give them some experience. Keep a closer eye on the students with High-level Talent and try to ensure they donât die, though a few injuries are not a concern. As for the poor performers, itâs up to them to make an effort.â
The other three wizards exchanged glances without a word, and Dempsey proclaimed his decisive order, âAlright then, letâs carry this out. Everyone, go and wake your Apprentices, then have them notify the students below deck.â
âAlright,â the three wizards agreed and walked towards another cabin.
Richard floated in midair, watching all this happen, until finally his eyes flickered, and he moved his thoughts, returning to the cabin.
âBuzz!â
Feeling a slight vibration, Richard sensed his Consciousness merging with his body, and the next moment the body lying in the chair opened its eyes and stood up.
After waiting a short while, Richard heard the sound of rapid footsteps and shouting outside his cabin door. Soon it turned very lively. The sleeping students were woken one by one and notified to head to the deck.
Richard waited a while, then stepped out at an appropriate time, blending into the crowd and making his way to the deck.
When he came back onto the deck and stood among the crowd, Richard looked towards the sea and noticed that, compared to when he had projected out of his body, there was no change.
The Wizard Apprentice maintaining Order instructed everyone on deck to wait patiently, but not a single Wizard was to be seen.
Richard thought about the wizard conversations he had overheard earlier, guessing what was to come.
It was certain a storm was brewing; the constant increase in humidity and the steady decrease in atmospheric pressure were solid evidence.
But the arrival of a storm wasnât the danger itself. Surely, the so-called test wasnât just to have everyone stand on deck getting soaked. According to the wizards, the real spectacle would follow the storm, and it was even more dangerous than pirates.
What could it be?
Some kind of demonized creatures?
It was possible.
As Richard pondered, he saw Gro approach. He waved him over, thinking about the conversation the wizards had in the cabin, and instructed Gro, âIf we fight later, stay close to me; Iâll keep you safe.â
âUh, okay, Lord Richard,â Gro nodded, agreeing without hesitation.
No sooner had Richard spoken than a glint caught his eye, and he suddenly saw Nancy approaching with two swords. She handed one to him and said, âI knew it; you still donât have a suitable weapon. So, why donât you take my longsword?â
âUhâŠâ Richard accepted the sword.
Nancy leaned in and cautioned, âDuring the fight, stay close to me, and Iâll keep you safe.â
âThisâŠâ
âI donât think youâre incapable, but this test is different from the others and very dangerous. Iâve been specifically warned, and youâll be safer near me. After all, Iâm still waiting for you to be my attendant.â
âAlrightâŠâ Richard was at a loss for words.
Gro, listening to the exchange between Richard and Nancy, looked at Richard, then at Nancy, and then down at himself, his expression a bit odd.
But before Gro had time to consider further, someone on deck with sharp eyes spotted something and suddenly cried out, âWhat is that?â
âHm?â Immediately everyone looked in that direction.
They saw a silvery white light appearing on the distant sea, rushing towards the great ship at high speed. Some people took a defensive stance, while Richard simply blinked his eyes.
The silvery glow drew closer, and at a few dozen meters from the great ship, it suddenly split to the left and right, bypassing the vessel before rejoining and swimming off into the distance.
Visible to the naked eye, the silver light was a school of finger-sized fish.
After this school of silver fish passed, not much later, a red light appeared on the distant sea, also approaching the great ship rapidly, swimming past one side of it. It could be seen that they were palm-sized flat fish, emitting a red phosphorescence.
Then after that came a green light, a school of fish similar to flounder swam by.
Next were blue lights, then cyan lightsâŠ
Like a carousel, various colors of light flashed across the sea, school after school of fish passed by and moved away, drawing gasps of wonder from the people, who forgot their initial tension while gazing at the beautiful scene.
Richardâs eyebrows slightly furrowed.
Richard knew that the situation before him likely meant the approaching storm was causing the fish living in the water to sense danger, prompting them to flee in a frenzy.
So thenâŠ
Richard looked in the direction all the schools of fish were fleeing from.
The more urgently the fish fled, the closer the storm approached, so⊠what could be following the storm?
The reveal seemed imminent.