It was a golden weekend morning after midterms. Kizen’s main gate was a chaotic swarm of students heading down to Rochest. A long line of reserved carriages waited by the roadside, their drivers haggling with students planning picnics in the valleys and on the beaches.
While some buzzed with excitement for the holiday ahead, others were not so lucky.
"Seriously! What is this?!" Meirin cried, her face a mask of misery as she clung for dear life to the side of a charging wild hippopotamus. "I must be crazy! A secret monster recipe, my ass!"
To be stuck in this situation on a perfect weekend—she wanted to go back in time and knock some sense into her past self. It had all started when she and Kamibarez had pestered Simon to get Hongfeng’s monster-cooking secrets. Simon had sent the letter, and Hongfeng had readily agreed, providing a time and a meeting place. But when Simon’s group arrived, they found four hippos grazing placidly in a field, and that was that.
"Hey, Meirin! You know your posture is pretty risky right now, right?" Dick yelled from his position on the hippo behind her, teasing her as usual.
"I’m wearing shorts under my skirt today, you pervert!" she shot back, her voice dripping with contempt.
"Ah, she didn’t fall for it."
"You’re so dead when we get off this thing."
After silencing Dick with a withering glare, she glanced around. Kamibarez was clinging to her hippo with a look of pure resignation. And Simon...
’Damn it. Of course he’s the only one riding perfectly.’
Simon gripped the hippo’s torso with his legs, his posture ramrod straight as he maintained perfect balance. Only the TAs could ride like that; his stability was on another level entirely.
After what felt like an eternity, the four of them finally reached their destination.
"Whew... Wow, that was rough," Dick panted, bent over with his hands on his knees. "We just got here, and I’m already wiped."
Meirin and Kamibarez had collapsed onto the grass. Only Simon remained standing, calmly reviewing Hongfeng’s letter.
"Let’s rest for a bit, then we’ll head out."
Hongfeng had said that teaching them the recipe would be easy, but first, they needed ingredients. Her proposal was a mission: hunt a monster called a ‘Nuthlug’. According to her, the Nuthlugs were an invasive species wreaking havoc in the forests of Roke Island.
Originally from the mainland, they had somehow found their way here, and their voracious appetites and rapid breeding had caused a population explosion.
Their mission was to hunt the Nuthlug leader. Since they would be butchering and eating it afterward, it was crucial to capture the boss with as little damage as possible.
"Ugh, I can’t shake the feeling we got scammed," Meirin muttered, pushing herself up.
"Professor Hongfeng must have her reasons," Simon said, his voice gentle and soothing. "Besides, it’s good practice for us to hunt monsters."
"I suppose you’re right."
"Simon!" Kamibarez scurried over to him.
"What is it, Kami?"
She ducked behind him, her body tense, and pointed a trembling finger.
"O-Over there!"
Simon turned. Lured by the scent of humans, three Nuthlugs were lumbering toward them. They had short, stubby bodies covered in blue-green fur, and their faces were an unsettling mix of gorilla and pig.
"You have got to be kidding me. We have to eat ‘that’ today?" Meirin grimaced.
Dick just chuckled.
"It might not be so bad. Probably tastes like monkey."
"I’ve never eaten monkey!"
The Nuthlugs began to charge.
’Ah, right,’ Simon thought, glancing back at his team. They were already preparing their spells, but they paused to look at him with wide, questioning eyes. ‘This is the first time we’re all fighting together properly.’
The Cyclops evaluation had been restrictive, but today was different. Today, they could combine their full strength. A strange thrill coursed through him as he turned to face the enemy.
"I’ll start."
Simon pulled an imaginary lever, summoning a skeleton armed with a spear and another with a shield from his Subspace. The shield-bearer charged, crashing into the first Nuthlug with a loud ‘thwack’. The monster’s main weapons were its sharp claws and teeth. As the shield held it at bay, the spearman circled around and drove its weapon forward.
The spearhead sank into the Nuthlug’s torso with a dull ‘thump’, but its dense muscle stopped the blade from piercing through.
"Excuse me."
Dick moved with fluid grace and lightly touched the skeleton’s spear.
"Enchant."
The weapon turned Jet-Black, then plunged straight through the Nuthlug, bursting out the other side. The monster’s eyes rolled back as it went limp.
"Watch out! More coming from the left and right!" Dick warned.
"We know!" Meirin snapped.
Standing to the right, she swung her arm, and black flames leaped onto the other Nuthlugs. They writhed in agony, thrashing wildly.
"Hah!"
To Simon’s left, Kamibarez fired a Blood Bullet from a kneeling position. The moment it struck its target, it erupted in a crimson explosion with a deafening ‘bang’, obliterating the monster’s upper body in a single, devastating blow.
Simon moved as well. He summoned three skeleton archers and drew the one-gold bow he had gotten for free from the weapons shop.
’Nock.’
With a soft yet sharp sound, Simon and his archers drew their bowstrings taut in unison.
’Fire!’
At his mental command, he relaxed his grip, and four arrows flew as one. They struck an approaching Nuthlug with a series of rapid ‘thwips’—two in the head, two in the chest. It collapsed, dead before it hit the ground.
’Reload.’
’Click. Clack.’
Simon and the skeletons reloaded with practiced efficiency.
’Fire!’
This time, the arrows split, each finding a different target. Nuthlugs emerging from the undergrowth were picked off one by one, each falling to a single, well-placed shot.
"In front! They keep coming!" Dick shouted as more than half a dozen Nuthlugs burst from the bushes at once.
"Simon!" Meirin called out. "Kami and I have enough firepower! Focus on tanking!"
"Got it."
One of a summoner’s greatest strengths was adaptability. Simon recalled his archers and summoned his melee skeletons once more. Using cross-operation, he formed a solid wall with six shield-bearers.
"Enchant coming your way!" Dick yelled, pulling a shield from his own Subspace.
He cast his spell on it and handed it to a skeleton that was without one, completing the defensive line in the blink of an eye.
’Thud! Thud!’
The Nuthlugs slammed into the shield wall. Simon gritted his teeth, focusing on maintaining the formation. ‘Hold!’ He cycled his mental connection—skeletons one, three, and five, then two, four, and six, back and forth without pause. The defensive line would weaken in the split second his focus lapsed, so he had to maintain the cross-operation.
"Ugh! I can’t hold them for long!" he grunted.
"Pull the skeletons back now, Simon!"
Simon looked up to see Meirin hovering high in the air, a blazing black flame cupped in her palm. She spun once, then swung her arm down.
’Dark Flare’
’FWOOOOOOOOOSH!’
The black inferno rained down on the Nuthlugs, erupting in a massive explosion. The skeletons, pulled back just in time, were unharmed. It was a display of near-perfect control. A pile of charred ash was all that remained before the shield wall.
"Nice one, Meirin!" Dick cheered.
"Naturally," she replied, landing lightly and tucking a strand of hair behind her ear with a smirk.
’Grrrrk!’
A lone Nuthlug charged her from behind. She spun around, her sky-blue hair whipping through the air.
’BOOOOOM!’
A crimson explosion engulfed the monster before it could reach her, and it collapsed to its knees. In the distance, Kamibarez lowered her hand.
"Thanks, Kami!"
"You’re welcome!"
Having weathered the first assault, the group pushed forward, picking off Nuthlugs as they advanced deeper into the forest. Their performance during the Cyclops evaluation had clearly paid off; the four of them fought with near-perfect synergy.
"Damn, this is intense," Dick remarked, looking back after slicing through a Nuthlug. An entire section of the forest behind them was scorched black from Meirin’s attacks. "Hey, Meirin, are you sure it’s a good idea to use fire magic in a place this dense? What if you start a forest fire?"
"You idiot," she grumbled, sketching a magic circle in the air. "Jet-black flames are artificial. They extinguish on their own after a while."
"Oh, right."
"So why don’t you extinguish yourself?"
"Ooh, nice one!"
"Ugh."
Meanwhile, Kamibarez was panting heavily, having expended too much of her own blood. A wave of dizziness washed over her, a sure sign of anemia.
"Kami, are you okay?" Simon asked, rushing to her side.
Her eyes immediately fell to the smooth, exposed skin of his neck. Her heart began to pound, and a desperate, agonizing thirst seized her. Her nose tingled, and her mouth fell open. ‘Just one bite. Just one taste. To sink my fangs in and drink my fill...’
"Kami?"
"Hah!"
Startled, she scrambled backward and clamped a hand over her mouth.
Simon tilted his head.
"What’s wrong?"
"N-N-Nothing! I’m just a little dizzy."
"Then let’s take a break."
Simon waved to Dick and Meirin up ahead. They both felt the need for a rest and nodded in agreement.
’Ugh... what is wrong with me?’ Kamibarez buried her face in her hands. It had been nearly five years since she’d felt her vampiric instincts so strongly. She thought she had them under control, but Simon was constantly testing her resolve.
"Kami! Are you okay?" Meirin called, running over.
Kamibarez forced a smile.
"I’m fine."
Dick, meanwhile, was examining tracks on the ground.
"The boss Nuthlug is probably nearby. There are a lot of prints here that are way bigger than the others. Looks like it was here very recently."
"Really?"
Simon pulled a large object from his Subspace and set it on the ground. It was a Golem’s Core.
"In that case, I’ll prepare the golem while we rest. We can use it to smash through the rest of the forest."
"Good idea!"
Simon dug a shallow hole and placed the core inside. Connecting his mind to it, he began to channel Jet-Black energy.
Soil and rock began to cling to the core as if drawn by a magnet. None of them had ever seen a golem being created before, and they watched in fascination.
Just as the golem was about a third of the way complete, a set of heavy, thundering footsteps echoed through the trees.
Dick drew his sword.
"Everyone, watch out! Something’s coming!"

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