Hessel tensed her jaw: "How would you know about flying artifacts that only Master Craftsmen can create?"
"Because I've ridden one before," Luo Wei replied with a soft laugh. "Many years ago, a Master Craftsman in the Misty Plains invented an aircraft. That's how I flew across the ocean to the Western Continent."
Hessel furrowed her brows, silently analyzing the truth in those words.
After some thought, she felt Luo Wei had no reason to lie to her.
At the Knights' banquet before, Luo Wei had revealed that she was forced to come to the Western Continent for certain reasons, and needed to complete a family trial before she could return to claim her inheritance.
She couldn't have lied in front of the Knights.
So, was Luo Wei simply trying to tell her that her mechanical bird wasn't good enough, and wanted to teach her how to craft an "aircraft" instead?
No, there's no such thing as a free lunch in this world.
After careful consideration, Hessel finally deduced what she believed was the most likely motivation behind Luo Wei's approach.
—The family trial Luo Wei mentioned probably involved finding her own way back home.
Yes, that made sense.
Having discovered Hessel's talent in artifact crafting, Luo Wei wanted her help to create an "aircraft" that could take her back to the Misty Plains.
Believing she had seen through Luo Wei's intentions, Hessel spoke softly: "I am indeed interested in this 'aircraft' you mentioned."
"However," she looked at Luo Wei, "as you said, such a machine can only be made by Master Craftsmen. I'm just an apprentice alchemist - you might be asking the wrong person."
"No one starts out as a Master Craftsman," Luo Wei said gently. "Senior, your talent gives me hope of returning home. My words weren't meant as a threat - I simply wanted to gain your friendship early on."
"Perhaps we could have a win-win cooperation."
"Win-win cooperation?" Hessel asked puzzled.
"Yes," Luo Wei spoke sincerely. "You love crafting artifacts, and I want to go home. I can provide you with crafting secrets and ideas, while you help me create the flying artifact I need. We both get what we want."
"That sounds good," said Hessel, "but betting on an apprentice alchemist becoming a Master Craftsman seems rather naive."
What was a Master Craftsman? It was a magical profession title equivalent to an Arch Mage.
An apprentice alchemist would become an alchemist after passing graduation exams. Even talented alchemists needed at least decades of practice to become a Mystical Smith, and for a Mystical Smith to become a Master Craftsman?
It would be faster to dream about it.
The Western Continent hadn't produced a Master Craftsman in over a thousand years.
To understand how difficult becoming a Master Craftsman was, one could look at Siria Magic Academy's headmaster.
Headmaster Morrison had been attempting to break through to Arch Mage level for twenty years, and after all this time, he was still just an Advanced Mage who hadn't managed to breakthrough.
If even mages, known for the fastest advancement, struggled this much, what hope did alchemists have?
Hessel shook her head: "Forgive my frankness, but I wouldn't even dare to dream such dreams myself."
Luo Wei straightened her back: "Only cowards lack the courage to move forward. If you don't believe in yourself, then even with the talent to become a Master Craftsman, that talent will be wasted."
Stolen novel; please report.
Her gaze firm, she continued: "Though I've been stranded thousands of miles from home in a foreign land, I've never doubted my right to inherit the throne."
"Just as I never doubt that I will become queen, I believe you will definitely become a Master Craftsman. If I'm willing to believe in you, Senior, why do you underestimate yourself?"
Hessel's round pupils flickered: "You truly believe I will become a Master Craftsman?"
"This isn't what I believe - it's what I've seen."
Luo Wei stared steadily into her eyes, starlight glittering in her deep black pupils.
"I am a descendant of angels, with divine bloodline flowing through my veins. The gods once bestowed a special ability upon us. Do you know what it is?"
Hessel's eyes showed confusion: "What is it?"
"Prophecy," the girl's whisper was like a gentle breeze, dispersing as soon as it left her lips. In the darkness that obscured her face, only her moving lips could be seen as she spoke, "In my prophecy, I saw that you will become the greatest Master Craftsman in the Western Continent."
The night wind carried these ethereal words to Hessel's ears - though faint, they struck her heart like heavy drumbeats.
"Pro-prophecy, about me?"
At last, cracks appeared in her usually composed expression.
So that was it. That explained everything.
No wonder she was so certain.
Hessel clenched her fists as surging emotions leaked through those cracks, flowing throughout her body.
Even if this was a dream, this moment was enough to shake one to the core.
She studied Luo Wei intently. Though the girl before her was so slight, even looking younger than her peers, she possessed such mysterious powers within her - enough to mesmerize anyone who conversed with her.
"Alright, I accept. Let's work together for mutual benefit," Hessel no longer hesitated.
Befriending Luo Wei would benefit her too.
She still carried a deadly secret, so helping Luo Wei meant helping herself. If one day she faced pursuit and persecution in the Western Continent, escaping to the Misty Plains with Luo Wei would be a good option.
"Excellent, we'll work together for mutual benefit." Luo Wei's eyes curved in a smile.
"Yes." A faint smile also appeared on Hessel's face.
"Hey, you two juniors over there, how dare you slack off like that!"
An indignant male voice drifted over from the lake.
Luo Wei looked up - just their luck, it was Senior Sebastian, the guinea pig.
"Senior Noel, you're mistaken - we're not slacking off at all!"
She smoothly dipped her net into the water, scooped up a load of fallen leaves, and moved to dump them onto the nearby boat.
"See? I've collected quite a lot already!"
Sebastian's face changed dramatically as he leaned backward, shouting: "Hey hey hey, that's not fair! Just because I caught you slacking doesn't mean you can try to kill me with that stench!"
"Not at all," Luo Wei slowly pulled back her net pole. "If you don't believe me, Senior, why don't you come to our boat? We have a whole sack full of leaves - you can check for yourself, or I can scoop some out to show you?"
Sebastian shook his head in refusal: "No way! Forget it, I'll go collect over there instead."
As he pushed off with his pole and paddled away, he complained to his companion: "Today's juniors are so unlovable - both fierce and mean."
His companion agreed: "Right? They don't care at all about us poor lonely seniors. So unlovable indeed!"
Hearing their conversation, Hessel turned to Luo Wei: "What did you do to offend them?"
Luo Wei glanced at the familiar faces on the nearby boats and sighed: "Ah, probably because I caught them trying to steal the self-reflection papers."
Hessel fell silent, remembering how she had almost been caught herself.
"Thank you for showing mercy," she finally said.
"No need for thanks - we're friends after all," Luo Wei replied warmly.
At that moment, Hessel was incredibly grateful for her talent in alchemy. Otherwise, Luo Wei would surely have caught her and made her face punishment too.
Getting caught burning a classroom only cost four credit points and one day of community service.
But getting caught burning self-reflection papers would result in twenty credit points deducted and five days of community service, just like Sebastian and those other seniors.
The academy's community service was always particularly nasty - only the dirtiest and most tiring jobs that even paid workers refused would be assigned to students.
One night of scooping from this sewage-filled lake had already taken quite a toll on her - she definitely didn't want to do it again!
It took until late into the night for the twenty-some people to finally clear the blocked waterway.
Watching the murky water flow over the dam downstream, everyone on the boats breathed sighs of relief.
"Finally! Now we can go back to sleep!"
"Come on, let's get to shore - I need a bath!"
Everyone eagerly pulled their poles from the mud and started paddling toward the bank.
Seeing this, Hessel also moved to pull out their pole, but Luo Wei stopped her hand: "Wait, Senior - the waterway just cleared, so the current is still very strong. Be careful or the boat might get swept downstream."
As soon as she finished speaking, several shrieks and "splash!" sounds rang out nearby.
"Ah! Mmph..."
Several small boats had been swept against the dam, capsizing and dumping their occupants below the lake wall. The waterfall of sewage-mixed water hammered the heads that surfaced, pushing them back under like bouncing balls.
Hearing the unfortunate victims' screams, Hessel and Luo Wei exchanged a glance before bursting out: "Pfft—"
"Hahahahaha—"
Their laughter echoed far across the lake surface. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ patreon.com/BZDXG - Unlock a HUGE stash of advance chapters now! Dive deeper into the story ahead of everyone else!
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