A Wild Man Has Entered the Academy

The training did not end even after Elvin was transferred to the hospital.

Despite losing an excellent assistant and sandbag – No, coach – there was still a real sandbag left.

Originally, sandbag training was done after meat training, but it was unavoidable under these circumstances.

Smack! Smack! Smack!

I threw a series of punches into the sandbag, just as Kara had taught me.

Naturally, I utilized my waist and shoulders, and even my legs whenever I had to throw a powerful punch.

At first, it felt awkward and disjointed, but as I continued to punch the sandbag diligently, I eventually adapted.

"Nice job. Keep it up. Now with all your strength for the last blow!"

Boom!

Following Kara’s words from behind, I threw in the final blow.

The sandbag, filled with sand and stronger than any other, accepted my punch, folded in half completely, and flew backward.

Ping!

The ring that had been securing it also snapped, sending the sandbag flying far into the distance and eventually sprawling pathetically on the ground.

Staring at the sandbag leaking sand from its broken center, I scratched my cheek.

‘Maybe I should have hit it a little softer.'

After Elvin was transferred to the hospital, I tried to control my strength, but it must have been a bare minimum considering my standard.

After all, with a strength stat of 143, tools meant to help were futile. I could swing most weapons single-handedly.

Moreover, having grown up in the wild, I never really adjusted my strength. I never even felt the need to do so.

"You did well. From now on, just focus on controlling your strength. It's annoying to pick up sandbags every day," said Kara, clearing away the sandbag that was leaking sand all over the place.

To prevent accidents, controlling your strength is essential. Every day, sandbags are busted during training and it does get noticed.

Unlike watches, there is no need to hold responsibility if training equipment breaks because they get shattered quite frequently.

‘But if I break too much, I'll probably get a warning.'

If warnings pile up, points get deducted. So, it's not good to smash the equipment in frustration.

While I was having that thought, Kara brought a new sandbag.

Despite being filled with sand and probably heavy, she easily hung it on the ring.

"Alright, let's do it again. Always use your legs, waist, and shoulders in that order. Unless there is a clear opportunity, just stick with your waist and shoulders, as mentioned earlier," Kara instructed.

Using your legs, or ‘closing in' for the attack, hardly ever works.

Unless you’re truly using ‘all your strength,’ stick to just using your waist and shoulders. Otherwise, you risk being hit back.

Thud! Twang!

The sound was already different since I reduced the strength compared to before. My fist didn't hurt.

It seemed it would be good to hit the sandbag with this level of force in the future.

"Once more with the use of your legs!"

Thud!

The straight punch, using the closing-in tactic, hit the center of the sandbag precisely.

Just like last time, the sandbag folded in half and was sent flying- fortunately, the ring didn't break this time.

Shush-

The sand spilling excessively from the sandbag was a problem. I didn’t know how many times this had happened.

I carefully placed the sandbag hanging from the ring on the ground. If I damaged it any further, I could get a warning.

[Skill: Boxing acquired!]

Surprisingly,

The message appeared in my eyes as soon as I moved the sandbag.

It was a message that appeared after a very long time. Moreover, it was a message about acquiring a skill.

Until now, the skills I had only included Throwing and surprise attacks. I had high expectations for this new skill.

[Boxing: F]

[Human hands are the most basic tools and weapons. However, boxing is not just about fighting with your hands.]

[The power and evasion rate of your bare hands increases depending on your rank.]

What a great explanation. I chuckled as I read the description.

It may seem unkind, but it states the crux of boxing.

If I can learn ground techniques here, it would probably evolve into ‘martial arts'.

Even though the long journey ahead is far, it's fortunate that Kara teaches well.

[The Instinct of the Wild is activated!]

What now?

I hesitated as I read the message that the Instinct of the Wild was activated.

The Instinct of the Wild doesn't activate like this, it's purely activated based on instinct.

[Rank of Boxing has increased to B!]

"… …"

That's f*cking great.

I don't know what the principle is, but the rank of boxing increased like crazy.

Normally, to increase one's rank, a person invests a considerable amount of time.

However, my rank skyrocketed just by acquiring it. It felt so sweet; I could almost feel my teeth rotting.

‘It’s not an empty shell, is it?'

I was certainly worried. I feared that while it seemed flashy on the outside, it was just mediocre on the inside.

In conclusion, I need to practice in real situations. I can confirm with time.

"We should stop training for today. You're not tired, are you?"

Kara approached me as I was looking at the messages and announced the end of training.

I couldn't check the time because of the broken watch, but I instinctively felt a lot of time had passed.

I'll be receiving training from Kara every training time from now on. I felt a little sorry since I'm only receiving.

"You've been punching a sandbag for a few hours and you haven't sweated a drop? Do you have super good stamina?"

After relentlessly punching a sandbag, Kara looked at me, who was perfectly fine, and marveled.

She must have strong stamina too, but my figure is nearing 150. There's no way I'll get tired easily.

Luna… Ah, she seems to be finished.'

Looking at Luna, she was sitting and resting. Seeing that her sword was laid down, it seemed she was done.

I walked towards Luna, leaving Kara behind, who seemed to be examining me.

She seemed to have trained quite vigorously, as her clothes were soaked with sweat. It had been a long time since she had taken off her school uniform shirt.

Thanks to that, her delicate figure was revealed, but I didn't pay attention to that.

"Hm? Sivar? Are you finished?"

Noticing my approach, she asked me. Additionally, she glanced at Kara behind me.

In response to her question, I simply nodded and extended my hand.

Upon seeing this, Luna wore a puzzled expression before cautiously resting her hand on mine.

"Shibal."

No, not this.

I explained further, shaking my head in disagreement.

I gestured as if putting something in my mouth, mumbling my words.

Only then did Luna understand what I was asking for, opening her mouth in realization.

"Candy? You want candy?"

As soon as she mentioned what I wanted, I nodded my head.

Despite having a little(?) trouble, I managed to receive my training quietly from then on.

Luna seemed to ponder my request for a moment before rummaging through her pocket.

"Here. Even though you caused a bit of trouble, it was my fault, so here."

She then placed the candy on my outstretched hand. As always, it was rice candy.

Without putting the candy in my mouth right away, I turned toward Kara and tentatively extended it toward her.

Kara glanced between the candy on my palm and my face before pointing at herself and asking,

"Are you telling me to eat this?"

She asked with an expression of disbelief. It seems that she hadn’t expected this.

There's a high probability that Kara will continue to teach me, not only today but also after the match.

That means less training for herself, which is a critical aspect.

Since I had nothing on hand, candy was the best option.

"…Thank you. I'll enjoy it."

At first, Kara seemed flustered, but then she smiled pleasantly and took the candy.

I felt Luna's gaze on my back but ignored it. No doubt, she must be having contradictory feelings.

"Compared to those who call themselves civilized, you're much better. How come there are many people worse than those who live in the wild?"

Kara, who always had a slight sense of rudeness, put the candy in her mouth while deriding civilized people.

She then savored the unique taste of the rice candy.

"……"

But her expression wasn’t too pleasant. To be precise, she seemed to be hinting at something.

Kara slowly chewed before grinning at me. I just stared at her.

"…The taste is a bit unique."

Isn’t she a fan of sweet things? Or is there something weird about rice candy?

But since she accepted my goodwill, it doesn’t matter. I plan on continuing to maintain good relations with her.

"Did you teach this too?"

While chewing on the rice candy, Kara asked Luna, who had approached us.

Luna alternated her gaze between me and Kara with a complex expression on her face.

Then, licking her lips, she answered in her usual calm voice,

"Probably The Principal or Ellie taught him. I don't know."

"It's well-taught.”

Indeed, Ellie teaches with passion. Sometimes, she is too passionate, which is a problem.

Rod is usually in the position of maintaining a safe distance and observing but tends to teach a thing or two.

Especially when Ellie isn’t around, he reads me fairy tales and poems, giving off the vibe of a grandfather.

"By the way, how do you rate Sivar's skill?"

"To be honest, it's so outstanding that I am envious. His body is sturdy yet flexible, and he absorbs everything I teach. Nothing is lacking."

I was unnecessarily embarrassed by Kara's praise. It was praise from Kara herself.

She hardly ever lies. Even when she does, she always gets caught.

"What stands out the most about him is how natural he is. He immediately does what usually takes thousands of tries to get right. It's satisfying to teach him."

"Do you think he'll learn other skills well, too?"

"I'll have to see about that. If you want, you could also…"

"I decline."

Just learn a little. You're going to get seriously hurt doing that.

Whether it's because of her strong sense of pride or not, Luna flatly refused Kara's offer.

Either Kara didn't care, or she only shrugged her shoulders. It was her advantage anyway.

"I'll go take a shower now. See you tomorrow."

"Take care."

"There's nothing for me to be careful about. Oh, before that, Sivar."

"?"

Kara called out to me just before she left. I faced her with an expectant expression.

She then softly smiled and offered me some advice in an emphasizing manner.

"I repeat, only fighting with your bare hands is a foolish behavior. Remember that the fight is always a tool for battle. Understand?"

I opened my eyes wide. Kara had also said this in the Soul World.

The condition was becoming close to her. You have to steadily raise the friendliness level to hear that advice.

We've only known each other for a day and we've already become close. It seems that the candy I gave her earlier played a role.

"Oh, damn. I shouldn't do this to someone who'll have to fight so fiercely in the future."

She scratched her head as if it would be a predicament if we got closer.

Regardless of friendliness, she is always sincere when it comes to battles like duels.

People call her a savage because of such tendencies, but it can't be helped. It's a culture unique to the Tatars.

"I'll only teach you defensive ground techniques. To learn attack techniques, you need more skilled people, but since the situation is like this, there's nothing I can do."

"Oh, right. Sivar? Let's go see Elvin afterward. We have to apologize."

"··· ···"

It's annoying. But I had to raise his friendliness level, so I just nodded without any objections.

Though one might question why I need to raise the friendliness level of a male character, he was a great ‘water giver' in the Soul World.

Like how he got me storybooks or dictionaries at Rod's request, he's competent in various aspects.

The more the story progresses, the more places money would be needed, so if I had Elvin, I wouldn't have to worry as much.

‘Grace, on the other hand, is more of something else rather than a water giver.'

After Kara left to take a shower, Luna and I headed to the hospital where Elvin was.

Thankfully, according to the doctor's opinion, it wasn't hard to put it back in place since it was a clean dislocation.

But he wasn't allowed to do any vigorous exercises for the time being, and he was told he couldn't participate in the upcoming duel.

"Luna."

"Yes, Elvin."

"I realized today what it feels like to teach an ogre how to fight."

"··· ···"

His arm was dislocated, but apparently, his mind was out of whack.

******

Luna thought it was an unusually busy day.

Even when she brought Sivar from the Chaos Forest and when he was dueling with Elvin, everything was fine.

She was in the position of watching from a distance. It didn't matter if Sivar messed up.

But after becoming a guardian, she realized how reckless that thought was.

An accident could happen in a blink of an eye with momentary inattention or a wrong word. But not all was lost.

She had realized the threat depicted in the cave paintings of demons attacking the academy. Thanks to this, she had bought some time to prepare.

Of course, she alone would not be sufficient to thwart the demons' plans. Hence, she needed a companion.

"You've worked hard. Anything happened today?"

"Not much…but some goods were damaged. Elvin's shoulder was dislocated."

"I understand the former, but the latter is intriguing."

"Yes. What happened was…"

After all the classes, she returned to Rod's residence for a report.

Rod was already there, so she saved the effort of searching for him.

"Sivar. What did you learn today? Write it down here."

Ellie had already arrived at the residence. As usual, Ratatoskr was by her side protecting her.

Luna looked at Sivar who was writing the answer to Ellie's question in a notebook, and then turned her head.

As usual, Rod was sipping on a tea made from calming herbs.

"The girl named Kara? She’s a student who wants to become a guardian while teaching Sivar."

"Yes."

"Can you bring her next weekend? I'd like to talk to her."

Luna smirked internally. It seemed like Kara too, would become Sivar's guardian.

Thankfully, Kara was not bad-hearted even though she was combative.

All she needed to do was to prevent Kara from instilling wrong ideas in Sivar.

"Understood. I'll let Kara know."

"Okay. Anything else?"

"Something else…"

Her voice trailed off as she giggled at Sivar. He was learning the language from Ellie.

It's probably inappropriate to have a discussion here. However, discussing the topic would be difficult in front of Rod.

Just then, Rod flicked his finger lightly. Luna looked at him, surprised by his action.

Rod sipped his tea and explained in a calm tone.

"I muted the sound as it seemed we were going to discuss a difficult topic. No need to worry, they won't hear our conversation."

Luna nodded at his explanation. Being a master swordsman, this wouldn't be difficult for him.

She glanced again at Sivar, who was communicating with Ellie and brought up the topic in a serious tone.

"Would The Principal believe…if I said that the demons are going to attack the academy?"

"A demon?"

As if he didn't expect it at all, Rod squinted one eye, showing his doubt.

He must have thought it would be a topic similar to counseling, but suddenly a demon popped out. Moreover, claiming that the demon would attack the academy.

While Rod hesitated for a moment, Luna mentioned the magic circle she found before.

"Yes. A magic circle was found among the things that Sivar damaged. It's a colorless magic circle."

"Hmm…"

"All demons have lost their color, hence they are all colorless. They maintain their form in black and white, but other than that, all use is impossible as far as I know."

Rod nodded at Luna's explanation. Colorlessness is a representative feature of demons.

"You're right. Demons cannot have or use color, aside from black and white. But that's only half true."

"It sounds like you're saying that demons can have or use color…"

"Rainbow colors, in the sense of being divided into red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. Red is the lowest, and violet is the highest."

"Why rainbow colors?"

"I'm not sure. But there is a saying that the first thing to appear when this world was born was a rainbow. It must be related to that."

It seems like I'll have to look for related books later. Luna made a note of this.

In the meantime, Rod, with a lot to think about, pulled on his mustache. It's one thing if it's a plague, but a demon…

The United Academy was established for major reasons but over time its meaning has faded.

It is hard to believe that such an entity would suddenly attack the academy.

"I've met a color-holding demon in my wild days too. It was a blue-colored demon."

"Was it strong?"

"For me at the time, it felt very strong. But that was 30 years ago. But a demon at the academy…"

If the academy was attacked by a demon, it would not be easily overlooked. But at the same time, it raises questions.

Why would demons attack the academy? What would they gain?

If they're not careful, they could become public enemy and thoroughly stomped out.

"Hmm…"

Rod pulled at his mustache repeatedly, then looked at Luna. Bright, shining blue eyes.

He didn't think she was lying. The topic just seemed too unfounded.

"What about the magic circle you said you found?"

"I threw it in the trash. I thought it would raise suspicions if I threw it directly into the incinerator."

"Careful. But how did you know it was a demon's magic circle?"

"… …"

At that question, Luna closed her mouth. Not because it was a secret, but because she wondered if Rod would believe her.

A special eye she had since birth. The circumstances of having this eye were unknown.

Rod nodded his head as if understanding something while looking at Luna's complicated expression.

"People tend to have secrets. I believe you."

"Then…"

"But I don't completely believe you."

At the resolute statement, Luna was about to blush but held back. Then Rod folded his legs and continued.

"It's hard not to because the topic seems so ludicrous. So I would like you to show me proof."

"Proof, you mean…"

"The colorless magic circle you found today. Or anything related to demons. That should be enough."

That would be very difficult. Luna gave a bitter smile.

The thing she found this time was by chance, too. If Sivar hadn't thrown his sword at the clock, she wouldn't have known at all.

But now she has to search on her own. It's expected to be a hard adventure.

"If you can convince me, I’ll lend you all the help I can."

"Wouldn't you let others know? The Principal himself investigating…"

"If that happens, the demon may notice and postpone or abandon the plan. It could also be the opposite. The important thing right now is not ‘why', but ‘when'."

It doesn’t matter what goal the demon has in attacking the academy. The main concern is when it is.

Even if one prepares adequately, not knowing the timing is a headache. That's why when is the most important.

‘Sivar…'

After hearing about the need to know the timing, Luna looked at Sivar. He was still learning how to write from Ellie.

If he was the one who drew the picture on the mural, wouldn't he know the time as well? That's what she thought.

Of course, it's all speculation. She can only wait until she's alone with Sivar.

"Cough! Cough!"

Just then, Rod coughs dryly. At the sound of his cough, Luna was startled.

Because of his age, Rod often coughs, but today it seemed especially bad.

"Are you okay?"

"Clearing my throat. Don't worry."

Rod held out his hand, calming Luna down. Then he brought a teacup to his mouth.

"No. More precisely, he was about to do so until suddenly Sivar appeared out of nowhere and grabbed the teacup. Luna and Rod were taken aback by the sudden appearance of Sivar and were momentarily shocked, only to have their mouths wide open at his subsequent action.

Quickly snatching the teacup from Rod's hand, he threw it directly against the wall.

The teacup shattered into pieces upon impact, its contents trickling down the wall.

Rod couldn’t help but be startled by the abruptness of Sivar's actions, which had happened so quickly. Moreover, despite grasping the cup tightly, it was snatched away. It was surprising even if his strength was waned because of coughing.

"What are you doing, Sivar? Why are you acting like this all of a sudden!"

The most startled was Ellie. She had been studying until now when Sivar suddenly acted out.

When nobody could understand his actions, Sivar scribbled something on a notepad with a pen.

Then, he showed everyone what he had written.

[Drinking. Medicine. Hurts.]

He continues to show his despairing sentence composition skills. But this is an improvement.

Luna who read what Sivar wrote, frowned, then asked with a voice of disbelief,

"Taking medicine hurts? What does that mean?"

"Explaining in detail would be helpful. I hope I don't have to scold you."

Next to Luna, Rod scolded him with a stern tone. Explanation was needed not just once but multiple times.

Sivar blinked at their response and checked the notepad.

"Shibal?"

Sivar, realizing too late that he had written something incorrectly, widened his eyes.

He quickly amended it with the pen and showed them again.

[Drink. Poison. Hurts.]

The word had changed from medicine to poison, but the overall sentence hadn’t changed much.

Luna read those words and looked at Rod. He brews the herbs himself, so he must know about their properties.

However, Rod just seemed troubled, hand on his forehead.

"Sigh…Sivar. Just because it's bitter doesn't mean it's poison. There's even a saying that bitter medicine is good for the body."

"…"

"It seems that although the sound was blocked, the smell was not. It's a technique that originally works like that…"

Since sound is blocked but not smell, it seems Sivar had mistaken the scent for poison and thrown the teacup.

But unlike Rod, Luna was uneasy. What if the herb was poison as Sivar had said?

Thinking this, she asked Rod cautiously, about the origin of the herbs naturally.

"Where did those herbs come from?"

"From the Herbalist Hospital, the physician in charge of internal medicine there."

Then that's trustworthy. Most Academy staff are high-profile figures from their countries.

If such a person were a weed of the devil, the academy would have been overthrown long ago.

"Shibal…"

Seeing signs of this all going over as a simple happening, Sivar scratched his head showing an unsettled expression.

After a while, as he was about to write something on the notepad to somehow explain,

"Hey. This is poison, isn't it?"

An unfamiliar voice resonated in everyone's ears. A stern voice, but other than that, a normal man's voice.

It wasn't Rod who spoke, his voice is usually deep and resonant. It certainly wasn't Sivar either.

Then who on earth spoke?

"That's right. It's poison. It may look like an herb, but my mouth can't be fooled."

"······?"

The voice came from the wall, where Sivar had thrown the teacup.

Everyone's gaze turned to the wall, and a very familiar large squirrel came into sight.

"······Ratatosk?"

Porori, in other words, Ratatosk, was munching on the crumpled herbs like seaweed.

After a while of chewing the herb, he spit it out with a "ptooey!" and wiped his mouth with his front paws.

"Don't eat this if you don't want to die. You must be strong to have lasted this long."

Then he spoke.

The words came from Ratatosk's mouth. To put it simply, an animal had spoken.

In this hard-to-believe situation, when everyone was frozen, only one person managed to speak.

"······Shibal?"

It was Sivar.

His usually expressionless face was truly a sight. His expression clearly showed disbelief.

It was a natural reaction, considering Ratatosk had just spoken words he couldn't.

"That's right, you idiot. I can speak."

Whether Ratatosk understood what Sivar had said, he confidently responded.

Soon, he confidently walked up to Sivar and posed a sincere question.

"But why can't you speak? I managed it in a few days."

Today Sivar, in a different way, lost to Ratatosk, or rather Porori.

"You're not an idiot, are you?"

Sivar tasted the same humiliation as when he was first abandoned in the forest.