Chapter 153 Apprentice

As Vincent was planning to get his rest, another knock on the door came.

Tap… Tap… Tap…

It was a weak knock as if the person on the other side doesn't want them to be noticed.

At first, he thought that it was Rem who had finished looking around the ship but he realized that the items he was sensing were quite different.

Soon, a weak voice, like she was whispering, was heard outside.

"Hello? I guess no one's here… I'll leave now."

It seems to be from a young girl who was in hurry.

They didn't even have the chance to react when she started walking away! She didn't stay in front of their cabin's door for three seconds!

'What's wrong with this girl?'

Vincent and Tara were curious about her identity. At this point, Vincent asked Tara to open the door and call the person outside who was really walking away.

This girl even seems surprised after Tara called her out to get inside the cabin. She hesitated for a moment before following her inside the cabin.

"H-hello? I'm Ayla, Sir Turhan's apprentice… He told me to introduce myself to you…" Ayla spoke after she was almost dragged by Tara to the cabin.

Finally, Vincent realized that this person doesn't seem to like coming here at all. She was probably just forced by Turhan so they can get to know each other.

"I understand… I guess you didn't like coming here. I'm sorry about that. I'll just ask a few questions then you can leave." Vincent said.

He felt that since she was already here, he would at least like to know what he would expect once he arrived at the Black Tower.

"A-ah… No, it's not like I don't want to come here. It's just that I'm not good at dealing with people…"

Vincent then smiled, understanding that this young girl is probably some introvert. He then accepted why she acted like that.

Anyway, it was also quite interesting to meet this kind of person so Vincent made sure not to make her too uncomfortable.

He then introduced himself before asking a bit about her…

Vincent then learned that this young girl is actually a Magic Craftsman who was specializing in enhancement!

After asking more about it, he realized that her skill was similar to his First Stage of Awakening Sequence, the Item Enhancement Skill!

"Sir Turhan said that during your appraisal, you noticed that the Tranquil Mind Crystal has been strengthened through an unknown method…"

Ayla then paused to see Vincent's reaction, before she continued, "In truth, I was the one who did it. This strengthening method is called Enhancement… It is a mystical technique that has been lost since the First Rapture…"

"That's amazing, Ayla… Can you do it to all kinds of weapons?" Vincent probed.

"Oh… I haven't encountered any issue unless it's badly damaged. If it's a good item, I can enhance them although there is also a high chance that it would fail multiple times before I can succeed... Besides, most of my enhancements would barely affect the item itself. It was still very weak and I'm currently researching a way to make it better."

"That's incredible… A while ago, Although the enhancement I sensed during my appraisal was weak, it's probably because the crystal was quite damaged already… Is it okay for me to appraise your highest enhanced item?" Vincent asked since he wanted to see the highest level she can enhance.

"This… I can show it… However, you have to tell me more about your appraisal method. To be honest, you're the first person to have detected my enhancement. Furthermore, the enhancement in the crystal is the weakest that I have, so the difficulty to sense it would be higher."

Ayla requested. Aside from her Master Turhan, this is the first time she was able to talk about the mystical enhancement to someone. However, she knows that she can't just agree to his request immediately.

"Ahh… You're right… Unfortunately, my Appraisal Method is my livelihood so I can't tell you more about it aside from what Sir Turhan already knows. How about this, I can give you an enhanced item instead. Its enhancement should be quite higher than what you have. It might help you a lot. I found it on the street—I mean, dungeon. Right, it's found inside a dungeon."

Vincent said. As he took out a Magic Artifact. It is a Nobility Circlet +6 that Tara randomly got for him. This circlet only has Speech +12 Attribute and a passive Cooling Effect. At most, it is something that can be used during hot summer.

Vincent didn't mind giving it to her since he has something so much better than this.

Furthermore, he might be able to increase his favorability.

"Beautiful…. Are you really giving this to me?" Ayla asked with a hurried breath as she clasp her hands.

Although Vincent can't see her face. He knows that she liked this artifact.

"Yes… Now, can you show me your best Enhanced Item?"

"R-right… Of course! I actually have three items that I have enhanced to the limit of my abilities. This is one of them." Ayla said as she took off one of her rings and handed it to Vincent.

However, after recalling that he was blind, she looked at Tara unsure whether she would take for Vincent.

But as if Vincent could see, he raised his hands and showed his palm to her. This gesture means that he wanted to take it himself.

Ayla then gave the ring to Vincent as the latter appraised it almost immediately.

He's curious about this item. Although he has already expected that other Enhancers are existing in this world, he was still surprised about Ayla's sudden appearance. It caught him off guard but thanks to him being able to control his expression, he didn't show how surprised he was after learning that she has skills similar to his System!

[ Do you want to Appraise the item? ]

'Yes…'