“Clack.”
With the sound of the door opening, an immense weight dropped onto the desk.
“Bang!”
“Here. The young lady says you should study this first.”
Yurika said as she set down a mountain-like pile of books.
“What is all this?”
I let out a hollow laugh as I stared at the thick hardcovers stacked before me.
They reeked of old tomes whose titles I couldn’t even read.
“Type matchup charts. Compatibility between attributes and races is important for summoned beasts, too. Fire is weak against water, grass is strong against water—basic things like that.”
She explained kindly, as if teaching a kindergartener.
“Ha…”
I sighed and picked up one of the books.
The moment I opened the cover, dense alien writing filled my vision.
The letters looked like wriggling earthworms dancing across the page.
“You’re telling me to memorize all this? I can’t even read it.”
“What? You don’t know how to read?”
Yurika asked, her eyes widening.
Her expression held pure surprise mixed with a hint of playfulness.
“No. I do. The writing I use.”
I shot back, prickling.
“Then can you read something I write for you, Miss Yurika? It’s called Hangul. A very scientific and excellent writing system.”
“Hmm… I don’t know. I only know the Empire’s common tongue.”
She looked out the window, pretending not to hear me.
That cheerful little smile on her lips was irritating.
“Fine. Then I’ll sit beside you and read it aloud, so study. The young lady specifically asked for this, so you have to do it.”
Yurika dragged over a chair and plopped down beside me.
“Ha… Fine. Please read.”
I opened the book as if resigning myself to my fate.
“This is why summoned beasts are like this. There’s a reason I majored in summoned beast training at the academy. If they can’t understand words, you have to teach them with their bodies, but at least Lord Taesan can communicate, so that’s a relief.”
She clicked her tongue.
“Yes, yes. Of course. Miss Trainer.”
I answered half-heartedly as I turned the page.
“Summoned beasts are broadly divided into two types. Those with physical forms, and those with unusual forms.”
On the page were drawings of a wolf, a bear, and a flame-shaped spirit.
“For ordinary summoned beasts, the representative types are beast-types shaped like animals, such as Lord Taesan, and golem-types. Almost everything else is classified as a special summoned beast.”
“What counts as special?”
I asked, staring intently at the pictures.
“Hmm… spirits, or monsters born from the void.”
Yurika suddenly curled both hands like claws and thrust them right in front of my nose.
“Grr!”
“……”
I stared at her expressionlessly.
“You’re not even startled.”
As if deflated, she pouted and lowered her hands.
“Then aren’t special summoned beasts better than ordinary summoned beasts? Even the name sounds like something special.”
“The species of a summoned beast isn’t really a measure of strength.”
Yurika tilted her head.
“What matters is compatibility. No matter how powerful a fire spirit is, it can’t do much against a water-attribute slime. Of course, if it’s someone like Lord Taesan who just smashes everything with brute force, that’s a different story.”
She glanced at my forearm and giggled.
“Is that a compliment?”
“Of course! Being stupidly strong is a huge advantage. You don’t have to think complicated thoughts—just go ‘boom!’ and crush them.”
She mimed slamming her fist into her palm.
“But since Lord Taesan has no mana, you need to be especially careful of special summoned beasts that use magical attacks. Illusions, curses…”
She turned the page and pointed at one picture.
It was a drawing of a monster with a hazy, smoke-like form and red eyes embedded in it.
“For example, nightmare-type creatures like these can burrow into your mind before Lord Taesan’s fist even reaches them.”
She deliberately put on a scary expression.
“Well, still, since our Lord Taesan is a top-grade summoned beast, maybe you’ll be fine?”
“That… well, I won’t know until I experience it.”
I smiled bitterly.
Mental attacks, huh.
In a way, maybe they were similar to hate comments.
“Now, next page. From here on, it’s the type matchup chart by attribute. Fire is weak against water, water is weak against electricity… This is the basics, so you absolutely have to memorize it.”
“Ha…”
Feeling as if my vision were going dark, I forced myself to take in the pictures she pointed to.
I picked up a quill and scribbled in Hangul in the margin beside the matchup chart.
Seeing that, Yurika’s eyes widened, and she leaned over my shoulder.
“Wow! What is that?”
Her eyes sparkled with curiosity.
“It’s Hangul. The letters I originally used.”
“My goodness, those are real letters? They just look like drawings…”
She poked my notes with her finger.
“Drawings? I told you, it’s the most scientific writing system in the world. Do you have any idea how systematic the principles behind combining consonants and vowels are?”
“I don’t know. To me, it just looks like a cipher.”
Yurika smiled mischievously and tilted her head.
“You didn’t write curses in here, did you? Like ‘Yurika is an idiot’ or something.”
“Does that hit a nerve?”
“Oh my, you caught me.”
Yurika giggled playfully.
“Now, stop getting distracted and focus again! The young lady might come and test you.”
She put on a stern expression and opened the book again.
***
“Have you been well?”
Yustia entered the room with a fresh smile.
Her expression looked much brighter than before.
“You haven’t been uncomfortable during your stay, have you? If there’s anything you need, please tell Yurika right away. I should be taking care of you myself, but things have been so hectic lately…”
“Yes. Thanks to you, I’ve been doing well. Studying, too.”
I pointed at the memo papers scattered messily across the desk.
They were densely filled with Hangul, and I looked rather proud of them.
“Actually, I’m the one who should have all that knowledge memorized and give commands accordingly, but since you’re an intelligent being I can communicate with, Mr. Taesan, I thought I’d ask you to learn it as well. If you know it yourself, you’ll be able to respond more flexibly in actual combat.”
She trailed off apologetically.
Ordinary summoned beasts were nothing more than puppets that moved according to their master’s orders, so I was grateful for the way she acknowledged me as a partner.
“That makes sense. It’s easier for me too if I know about my opponent.”
I nodded.
Suddenly, I thought of the cage filled with the smell of sweat and roaring cheers.
The opposing fighter’s specialties, habits, weaknesses…
A single line of data an analyst found after reviewing footage all night could decide victory or defeat.
In the end, once the cage door closed, the only things I could trust were myself and the strategy I’d prepared.
No matter how much my cornerman shouted, I was the one throwing the punches.
“Exactly. In general, summoned beast battles are called battles of wits between summoners. But your judgment, Mr. Taesan, is just as important as how precisely I give commands at the right moments.”
Yustia continued, her eyes sparkling.
“That’s why I called you today—to practice coordinating as if it were a real battle. We need to check how well my commands and your movements match up.”
There was a strange tension and anticipation in her voice.
“Sounds good. Let’s give it a try.”
I clenched and unclenched my fists, lightly warming up.
For the first time in a while, my body itched to move.
It wasn’t a cage, but a training ground, yet the scent of a fight always made my heart race.
“Now, Lord Taesan. Say hello. This is a new friend who’s joined us.”
When Yustia placed her hand on the floor, a magic circle glowed softly.
Ziiing—
The air vibrated faintly, and a small form rose from the center of the magic circle.
“Ta-da! What do you think? Cute, isn’t it?”
Sitting on her palm was a white owl that looked like a ball of fluff.
But it was different from an ordinary owl.
A blue light shimmered at the tips of its feathers, and its eyes sparkled like stars.
“Hooh?”
When I stared at it with widened eyes, the owl tilted its head and looked back at me.
“It is cute. But this little guy fights?”
Honestly, it didn’t look like it could take even one punch.
“Hehe, you shouldn’t judge by appearances. This child is an intermediate spirit-type summoned beast called Wind Whisper. It controls the wind and has outstanding scouting abilities.”
Yustia explained proudly as she stroked the owl’s head.
“Most importantly, its mana efficiency is excellent, so I can maintain it for a long time without consuming much of my mana. For this semester, it’ll be the friend who covers the magical pressure our party lacks. It’s intermediate-grade, but it’s excellent as a support.”
She smiled in satisfaction.
‘Looks like she’s been worried about the gap left by my lack of mana.’
I met the owl’s eyes.
It stared back at me, then flapped its wings and flew over to perch on my shoulder.
“Oh my, Whisper seems to like you too, Lord Taesan!”
Yustia clapped happily.
“Is that so?”
“Please follow me.”
The place I arrived at under Yustia’s guidance was a massive dome-shaped building hidden behind the mansion.
Creeeak—
When the heavy iron door opened, my eyes went wide.
“Huh…”
My mouth fell open.
Inside was a spacious sparring arena the size of an indoor gymnasium, even marked with lines like a real competition field.
The floor had a springy feel, as if specially treated to absorb impacts, and magic circles that looked like defensive barriers glowed softly along the walls.
“As expected, a prestigious family really is different.”
To think they had a facility like this inside their home.
If the gym owner back on Earth had seen this, he would have shed tears of envy.
Yustia walked lightly to the far end.
Whisper, who had been perched on her shoulder, flapped its wings and rose into the air.
“Now then, shall we start with a light practice battle against Whisper?”
She beckoned to me and called out.
“Are you ready, Lord Taesan?”
I lightly clenched and unclenched my fists, then nodded.
“Anytime.”
“Good. Whisper, suppressive fire!”
The moment Yustia’s command fell, the owl hovering in the air let out a sharp cry and beat its wings.
Whoooosh!
In an instant, sharp blades of wind rushed toward me.
For the first time in a while, my heart pounded.
That electrifying thrill from inside the cage seemed to course through my veins once more.