Summoning Genius of Kizen Chapter 18Simon turned his head towards the window, unable to pretend he hadn't seen her any longer. The girl's face instantly dropped out of view. "......."Was she trying not to be seen?Simon turned his head back and pulled out a new chiffon cake. Her face then slowly peeked back up above the window sill.Blink, blink.The girl's blue eyes blinked. The closer the chiffon cake got to Simon's mouth, the faster her blinking became.Simon chuckled inwardly and opened his mouth. "Neptis-nim, please come in and join me."At his words, the girl's face shot forward. "Ah, how did you know? Can I really?"As if she had been waiting, Neptis leaped over the window sill and scurried over, sitting with her knees together in front of the chiffon cake. She then looked up at Simon with wide, round eyes.Her appearance was so much like a puppy wagging its tail and waiting that it made him laugh. "Of course. Please eat." "Hehe, I'll eat well!"She picked up the chiffon cake with her small, fern-like hands and began to eat, making munching sounds.Watching her two small cheeks puff up and move, Simon felt a strong urge to pat her head, regardless of her being the ruler of Kizen. "Would you like some of this too?"Simon took out more snacks he had bought from the cafeteria, and each time, Neptis's eyes sparkled. "Sooo good!"She mumbled, chewing on a jam sandwich. "At home, they never let me eat sweets!" "......Ahahaha."Simon unexpectedly found himself having a dessert time with the great Necromancer, a person rarely seen in one's lifetime. The two shared snacks and talked about various things.From thanking her for the subspace inventory to talking about Lorraine.And naturally, the topic shifted to school life. "You said this was your first time at school, right? How was it?" "It's fun!"Simon answered immediately. "The professors are cool, my friends are kind, and the classes are interesting...... I think I'm surprisingly suited for school."She smiled brightly and nodded. "Haa— This is nice. Talking to you like this in Kizen reminds me of Richard." "My father?" "Yeah! Your father was a Kizen student too. Didn't you know?"It was the first time he had ever heard such a thing. She chuckled and wiggled her finger. "Richard was really something else. Unlike you, who's so proper, he was a troublemaker, a problem child of the century." "......My father?"Simon's mouth fell open.That dignified and strict father being a troublemaker in his school days? The image of his father and a mischievous imp simply didn't overlap. "Despite that, he was incredibly smart. He caused all sorts of trouble but always managed to get one over on the professors. There were countless times I had to go and drag Richard back when he tried to skip class and run away." "......Th-That's hard to believe. So, did my father successfully graduate from Kizen?"She shook her head. "No. He dropped out in his second year." "......Ah." "He suddenly dropped out, saying this school was too small for him. There had never been a student like that in Kizen before. Richard was a special case in many ways."Neptis leaned back on her arms and looked up at the ceiling.A deep, wistful emotion, unlike her childish appearance, passed across her face. "Yes, I was young back then too." "......."He wanted to interject, but he held back, feeling it wasn't appropriate. "Anyway! There's probably no place on Locke Island that Richard hasn't explored. If you look closely, you might find traces of your father all over the school!" "Ah! That would be interesting."She stood up and patted her bottom. "Well then, I have an evening appointment, so I'll be going now! I might get scolded if I'm late. Hehe." "Already?"Simon uttered words filled with regret, then was surprised by himself.The time with her had felt so enjoyable and short that he had unconsciously revealed his true feelings. "You'll see me again soon, Simon."Neptis smiled sweetly. "Thanks for the snacks! Goodbye!"Just as Neptis was about to leap over the window sill, a small note-like object fell from her clothes.Simon picked up the note and rushed to the window. "Neptis-nim! You left this......!"Whoosh.She had already vanished without a trace.Simon scratched his head and examined the outside of the note. "Given the circumstances...... she must have meant to give it to me, right?"Simon muttered to himself and sat on his bed. He then unfolded the note, which had been folded in half.It was a map.The map showed a point outside Kizen, past its interior, with the destination marked by a skull.A skull? Shouldn't a destination usually have a treasure chest icon or something?Simon carefully examined the map. There was no other information besides the destination.Why would Neptis tell him about this place? —If you look closely, you might find traces of your father all over the school!Simon firmed his resolve and clenched his fist.He decided to depart immediately tomorrow.***The first weekend morning at Kizen dawned.The place marked on Neptis's map was a forbidden forest, so he decided to depart when it got dark.Dick and Kazhan had already left early, and Simon had his Summoning Studies textbook open, engrossed in catching up on advanced learning.He had tried opening other subjects to study a bit, but he couldn't concentrate well.Since he had to choose a main subject before the upcoming group project anyway, Simon decided to go all-in on Summoning Studies this weekend.'The difference between skeletons and zombies. First, obedience to commands. Skeletons tend to be obedient to a Necromancer's commands, but zombies rely on instinct, and their hatred for the living is amplified, making them difficult to control.''So, the next stage after zombies is ghouls. They are fewer in number but incomparably stronger than zombies. Wow, they can travel up to 300 meters in a single leap?' 'There's also something called a Rag Golem! When will I be able to make one of those?'He never knew studying could be this fun. Time flew by like crazy, and Simon swallowed his regret every time he looked at the clock.After spending a full day studying Summoning Studies, as the sun began to set, Simon finally took action.He wrote '1 night, 2 days visit to Rochester' in the dorm's overnight log.Rustle.He left Kizen's main gate and arrived at the forbidden forest as darkness fell. The reason Kizen prohibited entry to this forest was simple: 'Monster Infestation Zone.'Monsters lived in the Reshill Mountains too, but what kind of monsters roamed Locke Island was still unknown.Simon carefully moved his steps. 'A stream flows to the east, and Kizen's castle walls are visible to the west. Okay, I'm going the right way.'Walking while meticulously checking the map, things were smooth so far.However, the deeper he went into the forest, the more frequently animal cries were heard, and droppings were found. When he poked them with a branch, they were moist and squishy, indicating something had been there recently. '......Sigh, I just want to go back.'It would be a lie to say he wasn't scared, but Simon steeled his heart. He walked as quietly as possible, even if it meant being a little slow.And then.—Grrrrrrr.A growl came from nearby.Simon's body stiffened. He covered his mouth and lowered his posture.His eyes, accustomed to the darkness, caught a black shadow standing under a tree. It was sniffing, its nose twitching. 'A monster.'At that moment, the monster, which had been sniffing, turned its head. Its glowing eyes in the darkness stared at Simon.Thump! Thump! 'Fast!'Simon hastily reached for the dagger at his waist. Eyes flashed in the darkness, and a silver trajectory approached with a whoosh! sound.Simon drew his dagger and swung it towards the trajectory.Clang!With the sound of metal clashing, Simon's body was thrown backward. Claws swung again, leaving a long scar on a tree as they passed. 'A Werewolf!'It was a dangerous creature, enough to be a death sentence for most ordinary people to encounter. Fortunately, it wasn't an adult, so its size was small. 'If this were before I entered Kizen, I would have run away, but......!'Simon gripped his dagger and stood up. With his left hand, he channeled Jet Black into his ring and pulled an imaginary lever.Rumble.A subspace opened on the ground, and bones shot out from within. 'Restoration!'The bones, scattering in the air, began to align themselves in an orderly fashion around a skull. Soon, two complete skeletons stood on the ground in front of Simon. 'It's done!'Simon clenched his fist.This was the first time he had used a Necromancer's skill in a real fight.It was incredibly reassuring. Regardless of their power, the mere fact that he wasn't alone brought him psychological comfort.With this, it was 3-on-1 in the blink of an eye. The Werewolf flinched, showing signs of being outnumbered, but then bared its teeth, revealing its will to fight.Thunk. Thunk.Simon made two old short swords pop out of his subspace again. The skeletons caught the swords flying through the air. —Kiiiaaah!The Werewolf lunged, and the battle began.Slash!A long wound appeared on the Werewolf's abdomen from the skeleton's sword strike. But the creature lunged forward and struck the skeleton's upper body with its right arm.Crash!Half of the skeleton's bone-composed upper body was shattered in a single blow. Simon, connected to the undead, felt a throbbing pain in his head.But taking advantage of this opening, the other skeleton, which had circled around, stabbed its short sword into the Werewolf's empty flank. —Kiiiaaah!The Werewolf let out a pained shriek. Simon roughly extended his right arm. 'Restoration!'The shattered bone fragments trembled, then re-formed into the skeleton's body as if time were rewinding. The restored skeleton immediately plunged its short sword into the Werewolf's chest. "Now! Charge!"The two skeletons, with swords still embedded, dragged the Werewolf and pushed it against a tree behind them.With a thud! the tree shook violently, and leaves fell. 'Now's my chance!'Simon, holding his dagger, made his final charge. The Werewolf, pinned against the tree, violently swung its arms, shattering the skeletons, but—Thwack!Simon's dagger plunged into the Werewolf's neck faster than the skeletons' strength gave out.A gruesome sensation of flesh and muscle tearing flowed up his wrist, but this was a life-or-death situation.Simon desperately tightened his grip on the hilt.Crunch. Crunch.Finally, the Werewolf's body went limp. Simon, breathing heavily, stumbled backward, then his legs gave out, and he landed on his bottom. '......Da-Dangerous.'His lips still trembled from the lingering tension of the battle. 'No time for this. I need to clean up quickly.'It would be troublesome if other monsters were drawn by the recent commotion and the smell of blood.Simon struggled to his feet and attempted 'Restoration.' One skeleton was too severely damaged to be restored, but the other was barely able to move.Simon put the restored skeleton back into his subspace and resumed walking. 'Come to think of it, this is my first battle since entering Kizen.'In just three days, Simon's combat power had significantly increased.How much stronger could he become if he endured here for one year, no, three years? He couldn't help but imagine.After walking for another 20 minutes, he finally arrived. 'Here it is.'He had reached the area marked with a skull on the map. Looking around, it was empty and desolate.The only strange thing was that only this spot had no trees or grass growing. 'I guess I'll have to dig?'Simon opened his subspace and pulled out a shovel he had borrowed from the dorm's gardener.Simon gracefully caught the shovel as it spun in a circle and fell from the air, then rolled up his sleeves and began to dig.Thud! Thud!It was incredibly skilled shoveling, enough to impress anyone watching.The work didn't last long. Something hard hit the tip of his shovel.Simon squatted down and slowly brushed away the dirt. 'It's a stone floor.'It was a floor made of special black-colored rock.As Simon cleared the dirt and examined the floor, he soon discovered a deeply indented mark in the center of the floor. It was a hand-shaped indentation.He subtly placed his right hand over it, and the size was roughly similar. But it probably wasn't an artifact that opened just like that.Simon closed his eyes, activated his Core, and emitted Jet Black from his palm.Whoooosh!As Simon's Jet Black flowed into the artifact, the floor lit up. Then, with a grinding sound, as if by magic, the floor opened. 'It's a staircase!'A staircase leading underground appeared.Simon smiled triumphantly.What secrets could be hidden here? Why had Neptis called him to this place?Simon felt his heart pounding as he took a step forward.
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