The Water Magician

"Alright, it's done!"

On the deck of the Public Ship No. 10, Ryo raised his voice in joy.

"Good work. Is it alchemy?"

Abel stopped swinging his sword and praised Ryo.

"Yes, yes. Those people... no, those demons suddenly appeared. Something unbelievable might happen from now on. I did it just in case. They say 'Preparedness prevents worry.'"

"Is what Ryo tinkered with related to the magic formula of Neil Anderson?"

"Eh..."

Ryo froze at Abel's words.

In this context, Neil Anderson referred to the Rondo-class second ship, the USS Neil Anderson. It was the submarine that Ryo created through alchemy.

Of course, Abel had also been on that ship, and it had saved them from danger several times.

Therefore, Abel was aware of its existence.

However...

"I never said anything like that, did I?"

Ryo muttered with wide-open eyes.

Indeed, Ryo had never mentioned what kind of magic formula it was.

Of course, he hadn't summoned Neil Anderson either.

He knew that Abel had occasionally peered over his shoulder from behind...

"No, I just thought it resembled the magic formula related to Neil Anderson that I was shown before."

"What did you say...?"

Ryo was completely speechless at Abel's words.

He realized that Abel hadn't just guessed randomly.

Because it resembled the magic formula he had seen before?

There was no way that could be known!

Someone who has never done programming would not know what the code is about just because they saw it.

Whether it's Fortran, LISP, C language... could they understand Python?

No, this was an abnormal situation.

What could be considered was...

"Actually, maybe Abel is a genius in alchemy."

Ryo said with wide-open eyes.

"There's no way that's true."

But Abel laughed it off.

"I've never studied alchemy even once."

"That's exactly it!"

Ryo countered, getting agitated at Abel's words.

"It's abnormal to understand it without ever studying it!"

"Is that so?"

Abel shrugged.

"Abel, when we return to the kingdom, you should immediately become Kenneth's apprentice!"

"Huh?"

"They say to strike while the iron is hot. If you learn now, by the time you reach old age, you could become a renowned alchemist throughout the kingdom!"

"What the heck is that?"

Ryo spoke passionately, while Abel seemed completely unfazed.

"Besides, I can't use magic."

"Ah..."

Ryo was left speechless by Abel's words.

An alchemist can handle magic.

Rather, one cannot become an alchemist without being a mage...

Come to think of it, he remembered having a similar exchange before.

"A specialized alchemist who designs magic formulas..."

"Does such an alchemist even exist?"

"I don't know, as I've heard very little."

"I thought so. I don't know either."

The world seemed to be unpredictable.

"Well, if you correctly guessed that it's related to Neil Anderson, then I'm satisfied."

"Just realizing that is an amazing feat."

Abel said happily, and Ryo nodded in admiration.

"Our 'readiness'... among land, sea, and air, the sea is indeed the most vulnerable. So I took precautions to be prepared for whatever might happen at sea."

"I understand land, but isn't the air also vulnerable?"

"Huh? Abel, you can fly now, right?"

Abel was wearing the Flying Ring.

It was an improved version by Ryo, which consumed magical power but allowed flight even if it wasn't 'Central Yellow' darwei.

"Well, I can say I can fly, but not with that much freedom..."

"So, you attract the enemies. In the meantime, I, along with Andalusia and Feiwan, will escape."

"Hey..."

"Are you saying you can't risk your life for your beloved horse?"

"Not just for my horse, I want you to think of a way to save my life too..."

Abel sighed and retorted at Ryo's accusatory statement.

"Well, Andalusia and Feiwan can't fly either, so what are you planning to do?"

"I'll create a large 'cart' instantly and load them on it. Since two horses weigh about a thousand kilos, it won't be able to fly even with the 'water jet thruster' activated... but I think it can land slowly. That's what I'm counting on."

Ryo's image was of the podium that Abel had flown when he performed his ascension ceremony in the City of Run.