Doggone Academy

Candy crafted a makeshift barbecue rack from wood. His skills weren’t limited to wielding a knife; he was also adept at crafting and other handy work.

With a generous application of spices and salt, he began to roast the skewered meat.

The enticing aroma filled the cave, stimulating our salivary glands.

While everyone chose the path of non-violence as their way of respecting the Circulatory System, Candy took to killing and feasting without hesitation.

Any student from the Alchemy Department witnessing this would have been horrified.

Were we to be rejected by the Circulatory System, we’d be pushed to the fringes and likely end up at the very bottom. Is he unaware of how to adapt to the Circulatory System because we prepared in isolation from the others?

Moreover, Luna didn’t seem to feel any significant issue with this approach either.

Cecil asked hesitantly in a troubled tone.

“Candy, is it really okay for us to eat this?”

His answer was rather simple.

“Yes.”

What was fascinating was that while everyone else brought ample food supplies, he only brought salt and spices.

Cecil hesitated briefly, but then he offered Luna the first barbecue skewer.

Luna grabbed it with both hands and took a bite, only the size of her fingernail. It was clear from her awkward movements that she wasn’t well-acquainted with eating in such a manner.

Cecil felt confused.

Luna appeared to be a lady raised with great care, but despite her unfamiliarity with these crude methods, she was trying her best to adapt to Candy’s ways. The top student of the Magic Department was leaving her own desires behind and placing all her trust in Candy. What could have happened between them to form such a deep bond of trust?

Cecil closed her eyes in deep thought.

Truthfully, she wasn’t in a position to be choosy either. She was hungry, and the rest of her group members were still far away.

Thinking of the letter she received from Bertang made her head throb.

Bertang had managed to cross the flooded river somehow, but he strictly opposed her suggestion to join forces with Candy’s group.

He stated he couldn’t trust Candy and compared seeking refuge in the danger zone to retreating into a bear den to avoid the rain.

But the decision didn’t take long to make.

When it came to choosing between Bertang and Candy, the latter was the clear choice. Her heart’s compass pointed straight to the man before her.

She ended up extending her hand.

“Give me one, too.”

She had been famished all day and needed to eat something if she were to continue the following day.

She also remembered the significant alchemical passages that Candy had asked her to translate before. Considering them, there might well be a theoretical justification for the act of feasting.

Shortly after, Candy handed her a well-roasted skewer.

With nervous anticipation, she took a bite and was surprised at the flavor; it was pleasantly delicious.

Typically, wild animal meat had a strong gamey taste, but this was different, thanks to the unique spices that nullified any off-putting flavors and odors.

Was the purpose of this exercise solely to hunt? There was no other reason he would prepare such an array of spices.

Seeing that Cecil liked the meal, he placed a few more skewers over the fire and stood up.

“I’m going to wash off some of the boar blood. Help yourself to more food.”

His clothes were stained with blood from handling the meat.

As soon as Candy stepped out, an awkward silence filled the cave.

After finishing her skewer, Cecil spoke to Luna.

“I have something to discuss with Candy, do you mind if I step out for a moment?”

Luna examined Cecil’s attire carefully, her expression suggesting she found something unsatisfactory.

“Yes… but there’s a condition.”

“What is it?”

“Take this cloak with you.”

She then handed her a neatly folded and dried cloak.

“Uh? Oh, thank you…”

Though it was good to have something to block the rain, Cecil couldn’t be sure whether it was truly offered out of kindness.

***

Cecil followed Candy’s footsteps. Soon she felt a presence behind her and turned to find a wolf-like spirit trailing her. It was one of the spirits Luna controlled.

“…?”

The spirit was following her closely, probably in preparation for unexpected emergencies, but could there be another motive behind it?

Despite feeling uneasy, she had no other choice but to move on.

She didn’t have to go far before she found Candy. He was washing himself under rain pouring down like a waterfall near the edge of a cliff.

She had thought he was merely cleaning his hands and feet, but he was actually bare-chested. Caught off guard by the unexpected scene, Cecil stifled her cough and quieted her presence.

Getting closer, she got a clear view of his torso, and her mind went blank.

His body was covered in scars as if clawed by some beast, and multiple grotesque, twisted signs of penetration wounds marked his abdomen.

Even the most hardened veterans of countless battles wouldn’t bear such scars.

He was barely seventeen. What kind of life had he led during all that time?

The dark side of Candy that she had never anticipated captivated her.

Suddenly, Candy turned around and spoke, spotting Cecil who was hiding behind a tree.

“If you keep staring like that, I can’t take off my mask.”

“…”

“I want to wash up too.”

With her spying discovered, she decided to tease him. Cecil emerged and casually loosened her cloak’s tie.

“Hm… how about we bathe together?”

“…”

“Showing each other one secret at a time.”

At this, the wolf spirit behind her started barking furiously.

Grrrrr, growl!

Cecil frowned at the intruder.

The wolf spirit bared its teeth, seemingly protesting because she was about to violate the condition of wearing the cloak.

Seeing that Candy showed no reaction to her provocation, Cecil sighed and tied the cloak again.

“Ah… it was just a joke.”

He neither glanced her way when she unbuttoned nor reacted to the taunt. Either he was enduring with patience or he was loyal to someone else. His true intentions were inscrutable. It might have become boring had he wagged his tail at every whim, yet his total lack of response only piqued her interest more.

“It’s cold. You should come inside.”

Cecil stopped fooling around and got straight to the point.

“Actually, I came here to ask you for help.”

He brushed back his reddish-brown hair and asked.

“…What is it?”

“I need your help. Could you let us accompany you and Luna until we get through the danger zone?”

“…”

Finding Candy was partly the reason she had come.

“We don’t have anyone who knows how to fight in our group. It seems like Luna considers you as the group leader, so I’m asking you.”

He didn’t ponder long.

“There’s no need for complicated requests. Luna and I owe you, after all.”

“You’re agreeing?”

“Yes. But brace yourself. It’s going to be a tough journey.”

***

“Going into the danger zone?”

Jason from the plunderers’ group, who was leading the charge into the Circulatory System, spoke.

“That’s what I’m saying. I can’t quite grasp it.”

Word had spread that some of the top-ranked students and a few who had fled from the plunderers had entered the danger zone.

One member of the group accompanying the plunderers scoffed cynically at those who had ventured into the danger zone.

“It seems they can’t distinguish between good and bad. Either they’re obsessed with fighting, or they don’t understand that there’s something more dangerous than the plunderers.”

Being plunderers only meant they took food and supplies; by regulation, they were prohibited from inflicting additional harm beyond suppression.

Venturing into the danger zone could result in serious injuries, so fleeing in that direction seemed like a foolish choice.

“Well, thanks to that, we’re able to lead the way like this.”

They had managed to secure enough food to last many days from their pillaging. This let them enjoy bountiful meals without worry as they entered the Circulatory System.

At the edge of the Circulatory System, there were only three or four groups, including themselves. They were leading, overtaking those who were expected to be at the top.

While moving through the dense forest, group leader Jason suddenly halted his companions.

“Hey, wait up, stop.”

The rest stopped and turned to Jason, who looked around frantically.

“Are we on the right track?”

“What are you talking about?”

One of the members took out a compass to check their direction and replied.

“We’ve been heading north just fine.”

A strange look crossed Jason’s face.

“No, man, I think I’ve seen this place before on the way here. Are you sure?”

“…?”

Another member made a joke about the situation.

“Why do you look so rattled? You’ve been sneaking alcohol into your water bottle and taking sips secretly, haven’t you? I told you to cut that out.”

The others, except for the group leader, chuckled and laughed.

“Hey, you guys, I’m not kidding. Come take a look.”

Jason ran to a particular spot and called for his companions to follow.

When Jason’s face contorted with seriousness, the others sensed that something grave was happening, and the laughter ceased.

“What’s up?”

In the northward direction they intended to head, there were footprints from four people.

They seemed too familiar to belong to a different group that had passed through earlier.

“Look closely.”

The group leader matched his own foot to one of the prints.

The size and pattern of the sole matched his exactly.

“…!”

The group fell silent, struck by shock. They thought they were advancing, but they were just going around in circles. All their movements throughout the day had been in vain.

“You can’t trust a compass here.”

Jason pulled out a dagger and left a large X mark on a nearby tree.

“Something’s messing with us.”

The group moved in a different direction, sensing the unease and unable to make any more jokes.

After about five hours, the group leader spotted something and his face turned pale. There was a large X marking the direction they were heading—it was the one Jason had marked earlier.

Enraged, Jason yelled and struck another nearby tree with his dagger.

“Damn it!”

The group members slowly turned pale as they realized the situation they were in. No matter which way they went, they ended up at the same spot.

“What in the world…?”

And as if to mock the befuddled group, someone’s laughter echoed through the forest.

-Kkarrukkk!

They all startled and drew their weapons, going on alert.

“What the hell! Who’s there!”

There was nothing at the source of the laughter. There wasn’t even a breeze, and the leaves were still.

Then, laughter came from another direction.

-Kkaruk-karruk!

The sound was like that of a cheerful child, but in the sunless forest, it made their skin crawl.

Soon after, the laughter dwindled. It wasn’t the echo of a single being.

Above the trees, below their feet, behind the stones, they were being mocked from all sides.

“We haven’t killed anything! Let us in!”

Something was wrong. Despite observing the principle of non-violence, the Circulatory System had not welcomed them.

“Ah…”

A group member’s hands trembled and then dropped his sword, overwhelmed by the intangible threat and slipping into panic.

Their bodies, not their minds, felt it. A colossal, unfathomable presence was toying with them in its clutches.

They realized they had underestimated the Circulatory System, but by then, it was far too late.