My longest-ever self-introduction ended, and the remaining kids finished their introductions in turn.
By the time that was done, first period was drawing to a close.
"Aigo. Late, we're late. And we still have to form the squads."
Instructor Seo Ha-shin tapped his own shoulder with a clipboard.
"Since role groups have no meaning in the first semester anyway, squad organization will be done by ladder lottery."
A squad was a small unit among the troop organization units used in the army. Usually eight to sixteen people make up one squad, and when three or four such squads gather it becomes a platoon.
"Now, pick one each in reverse name order. The composition will change from time to time anyway, so do not fixate on the order."
But the Hwadam Army's organization was a little different. Six people made one squad. First Platoon, with eighteen people, therefore consisted of a total of three squads.
The ladder lottery decided the squad members in an instant.
The members of the squad I belonged to were Seong-gwon, Pyo Do-hyeok, Kim To-eun, Yi Hoe-uk, and Sa Seo-yeon.
My assignment luck was good if you called it good and bad if you called it bad. Seong-gwon being there was a boon, but Pyo Do-hyeok seemed to have turned to antipathy after the introduction. At least the rest of the kids were in a state of neither antipathy nor goodwill.
"Good. The platoon leader is...... ah, the assistant instructor isn't here yet, was it. Then Seong-gwon. You are acting platoon leader."
"Yes, sir."
"Squad leader is taken by the person who entered each squad last. Seong-gwon holds squad leader concurrently. It is not normally a concurrent post, but since it is temporary I will let it slide. Once the homeroom assistant instructor is decided that fellow will take platoon leader, so do not worry. That is all."
No sooner had Homeroom Instructor Seo Ha-shin finished speaking than the bell rang. End of first period.
Instructor Seo Ha-shin briskly gathered up his things.
"For the record, all classes are conducted with two platoons grouped together, and the basic format is to move to the lecture room to take the class. You would not want to blacken First Platoon's name by being late or the like, would you? Carry on."
The sorry sight of him waving a hand as he left was light to the very end. Though that absolutely did not make it feel like frivolity.
"Prepare to move."
And so the instructor left. Seong-gwon, the acting platoon leader, spoke. Her hands, meanwhile, were gathering up the distributed textbooks and writing implements.
"Second period is 'Phantasms and Mysteries,' third period 'Military English,' fourth period 'Otherworld War History.' Take care not to bring other textbooks, and move in two ranks. Squad leaders are to check the textbooks their squad members have gathered, then line up in the order of First, Second, Third Squad."
Seong-gwon had not been the type with a particularly soft way of speaking at our first meeting either. But after going through the provisional enrollment period on top of that, she was like a real soldier.
"Um, are we leaving already?"
"Even taking the unmanned rail to the lecture room, the move takes two minutes. Considering that our route will overlap with the other platoons' kids, it could be more. So I intend to leave early; do you have an objection?"
"No, I just want to go to the bathroom......"
"There are bathrooms in the lecture building too. If it is not urgent I recommend relieving yourself there."
More to the point, has this Seong-gwon already memorized the academy's layout? I have more or less memorized it too, but not down to the bathroom locations yet.
Looking at the platoon leader, who was not kind...... but was meticulous, I felt my own inadequacy.
The original Seong-gwon did not put on second lieutenant's bars at twenty-five and major's at thirty for nothing. If I want to aim for the original Seong-gwon's standing, I have to work harder too.
"Wow, our acting platoon leader is a serious by-the-book type."
Just then a cadet from my squad, Kim To-eun, muttered to herself. It did not sound like a tone meant to insult Seong-gwon; it felt like an honest exclamation of admiration.
With two bunches of hair sticking up like rabbit ears added on, she felt a bit bouncy as well. The hair color being a full light purple made it more so.
'At times like this I do get a sense of unreality.'
Earth is Earth, but people's hair colors are so gaudy and sometimes styles appear that ignore the laws of physics, so the feeling is strange. Though that absolutely does not mean I regard this world as not real.
"Hey, hey, is it okay if I call your name?"
"Hm? Ah, me?"
"Yeah. Earlier they said something about saying names carelessly meaning a forced contract or whatever."
"Others calling it is fine. It just can't be me saying it myself. The instructor called my name plenty, didn't he."
"Then that's a relief. I'm Kim To-eun. You're Ya-hwi, right? Is your name one syllable?"
"Yeah. A single character."
"Your name's so pretty! Let's get along from now on."
"Same here."
Both Kim To-eun and I had gathered everything we needed. And lining up in two ranks honestly took three seconds.
So the two of us chatted comfortably while the rest of the kids fumbled into line. Kim To-eun had been sending me friendly looks even before the self-introduction, so she was easy to talk to.
"Wow, a popular guy. Already making moves and getting hooked?"
But here a cadet from Second Squad cut in.
A male cadet whose bright yellow blond hair — so yellow it made you wonder whether it was really made of gold — and vividly blue eyes stood out.
"What the......"
"I'm Pyo Do-seok. Nice to meet you, popular guy?"
This cadet's name was Pyo Do-seok. He was the twin older brother of Pyo Do-hyeok, the cadet assigned to my squad.
He was also a cadet whose impression differed enormously from that of his twin Pyo Do-hyeok. Pyo Do-hyeok had not once relaxed his expression since entering the platoon room, but this one grinned and traded words readily.
"What. You're not even going to greet me?"
The problem was that this one had also taken a dislike to me after the self-introduction.
And that level of antipathy was worse than Pyo Do-hyeok's. Pyo Do-hyeok at least pulled his emotions together quickly; Pyo Do-seok did not hide his hostility even now as he spoke to me.
It made me wonder whether being kind in tone alone was all it took.
"Enough talking."
What should I do about this. Just as I was about to deliberate, Seong-gwon cut through the strange air.
A glance around showed that the formation was already complete. Seong-gwon stared at us.
"We have to depart."
"Can't be helped."
Not even Pyo Do-seok could withstand that gaze. Watching him withdraw, I turned back to Kim To-eun.
"Are you all right?"
"Uh, yeah."
What's with that guy? Kim To-eun whispered to me in a small voice. All I could do in response was give a weak nod.
It was a creaky start in many ways.
***
"Good to meet you. I am Choe. Ye. Na, and I will be teaching you Phantasms and Mysteries."
The first class was Phantasms and Mysteries. A subject that taught knowledge about Phantasms.
"What is a Phantasm? What on earth is the subject Phantasms and Mysteries learning and teaching?"
Scratch, scratch.
Instructor Choe Ye-na wrote letters on the board. Phantasm. Being a water marker, the somewhat pale-white letters drove into the eye.
"The other world and Dimensional Gates are concepts well known even to civilians. Known well enough to be taught in ordinary elementary and middle schools. But Phantasms are not. These beings, defined with vague concepts like summoned beasts or superpowers on the strength of paltry eyewitness accounts, you will learn properly as of today."
Education about Phantasms had been carried out to some degree during the provisional enrollment period too. But Instructor Choe Ye-na treated that period as though it had not existed.
Since it had not been taught properly, she seemed not to count it.
"First. Phantasms are the wellspring of the power that lets humans stand against Otherworld Creatures and the other world, and at the same time they are companions as dangerous as Otherworld Creatures if not properly controlled."
Instructor Choe Ye-na lifted the water marker from the board for a moment and operated the remote she held in her palm.
A blurry photograph came up on the mounted TV screen. It was a photo of a disordered city center.
"In 1965, in the city of Guangzhou, China, an incident occurred that produced hundreds of dead and thousands of injured. To the outside world this was known as a disaster caused by a Sudden Dimensional Gate, but......"
Beep.
The photo changed.
"The reality is different. The culprit in that incident was a Phantasm that had escaped control."
What was faintly captured in the photo was a monster easy to dismiss at a glance as an Otherworld Creature. Instructor Choe Ye-na worked the remote further.
"The Killer of the 13th, who produced eighty-seven victims in the United States. This incident is the same. It was reported as having been done by a human, but in reality it was the work of a Phantasm."
Beep. Beep. Beep. Every time the photo changed, various cases from various countries popped out. It got to the point where I wondered whether it was fortunate that Korea was not among them.
"As you see, a Phantasm is not a being that is merely safe. That is the reason we must learn about Phantasms, and the reason this class exists."
I wrote down every word the instructor said in the distributed paper textbook and in a memo pad I had brought personally. Recording was not allowed for security reasons, so writing was the best option.
'I can't be lazy just because I have knowledge of the original.'
The deeper we went, the more certain it was that stories not even mentioned in the original would come pouring out. Better to work hard from now than to regret it when that time comes.
"Open to page eight."
Meanwhile the instructor finished her introduction. The sound of pages turning filled the classroom, and a page with the basic definition of Phantasms concisely written appeared.
Phantasm: a collective term for creatures, non-creatures, and phenomena originating from fantasy such as myth, legend, or folktale.
Phantasm Aptitude: the disposition or talent to be able to perceive Phantasms.
Phantasm Contract: for the purpose of borrowing a Phantasm's power......
"Phantasms are beings originating from what are called 'tales.' Beings appearing in stories handed down from old times gained life and came to actually exist."
Instructor Choe Ye-na explained on the basis of the contents written in the textbook, while adding notes on the board now and then.
"Therefore, in order to know Phantasms you must learn the old tales they appear in. You will be visiting Cheollyang Hall often from now on, so get into the habit of reading in advance."
Cheollyang Hall was the library, wasn't it. Judging from the talk of reading, that seemed roughly right.
Perhaps thinking things were flowing in a direction quite different from what they had expected, some cadets' expressions rotted away.
'More to the point, she isn't mentioning artificial tales.'
But something else was on my mind.
'Did she leave it out because we're only just beginning to learn?'
In fact that was highly likely. If you get into artificial tales the story becomes tremendously complicated.
It would be roughly like shoving quadratic equations at kids who are only now learning numbers.
'But we'll learn it someday.'
Because artificial tales are the sharpest blade the Hwadam Army, the sharpest blade humans, have prepared.
Being so sharp that it sometimes cuts the one holding it, too.
"Moving on to Phantasm Aptitude. Phantasm Aptitude, going into detail, divides broadly into three. Perception Aptitude, Per-Individual Compatibility, and Total Contract Capacity."
Whatever stray thoughts I brought to mind, whatever the cadets felt, the instructor's explanation continued.
〈Perception Aptitude〉 and 〈Per-Individual Compatibility〉 were the talents I had compared to cooking before. To pick easier words, you could express them as (perception and contract) possibility and compatibility.
"Total Contract Capacity refers to the size of the vessel a human has."
The last, 〈Total Contract Capacity〉, was exactly what it said. It was the talent for how many, and of what Grade, you can contract with.
"This vessel is generally completed around the age of nineteen, and does not grow after that. There are said to be people who grew very intermittently, but at a level of maybe one in ten years, so consider them nonexistent."
Of course, a contract with a Phantasm did not automatically happen just because mutual agreement was reached. You know how, even with a water glass and water, and even with both of them saying OK, it is impossible to put 2 liters of water into a 500ml glass.
That kind of limit the Hwadam Army called 'Total Contract Capacity.' And readers of the comic usually preferred the phrase 'cost limit' to Total Contract Capacity.
'The higher the individual, the higher the cost required.'
Thanks to this system, having both quality and quantity coexist was impossible. Most either contract only with one strongest one, or fill up with low-Grades when a little cost is left over.
'Where does my cost limit lie, I wonder.'
Total Contract Capacity had to be grasped by feel, so it was hard to know your own limit until you grabbed one and contracted.
'I feel like I could contract with that one?' you can sense intuitively, but knowing 'contracting with that one would fill about half my vessel?' is difficult.
'I don't know how much more is left.'
Should I call it fortunate. The Twin Dragon Swords alone did not fill my Total Contract Capacity. Though that does not mean I know how much is left.
"Moving on, Phantasm Contracts divide into 'Temporary Contract' and 'Binding Contract.'"
Meanwhile the words 〈Temporary Contract〉 and 〈Binding Contract〉 were carved onto the board. They were fairly important concepts.
"A Temporary Contract is forming a contract for a limited time. By not handing over your name, you hold a link that can be undone at any time."
What I had formed with the Twin Dragon Swords now was also a Temporary Contract. If both, or one side, wished it, it could be dissolved at any time.
"Of course, since the connection is weak, the amount of power you can borrow or draw out is also small. What's more, since a Temporary Contract also occupies Total Contract Capacity, it cannot be called highly efficient either."
What's more, a Temporary Contract did not eat less of the total capacity.
Looking only at efficiency it really was bad. Though it beats contracting rashly, finding it a terrible fit, and pounding the ground in regret.
"A Binding Contract, on the other hand, is a contract formed through the medium of a name. In exchange for being able to draw out the whole of a Phantasm's power, once you contract it is not annulled until one side or the other dies."
A Phantasm that has formed a Binding Contract is not made to serve any human but its Phantasm Master. If its intelligence is high it might grant a request, but the only one who can give orders becomes the Phantasm Master alone.
"For these reasons, Binding Contracts are permitted only to fourth-years and above, whose Total Contract Capacity is completely fixed, and even then it is recommended to do it later still."
But not being able to take it back until one side dies...... was a stronger penalty than one might think. Even if you discover a new aptitude later, you cannot revise your partner.
'The comic said a lot of kids postpone it until right before graduation because of this.'
Of course, wanting to find a suitable partner was not the only reason.
This was also a calculated move to contract with as strong a Phantasm as possible. Just because your Total Contract Capacity allows it does not mean a high-ranking Phantasm will unconditionally contract with you.
'Rare though they are, there are apparently high-ranking Phantasms who accept the courtship dance the cadets perform.'
If you make the effort and still cannot win one over by the last day, you form a contract from the hand you hold. But if the effort works? You might contract with someone stronger. So postponing the Binding Contract is not a loss.
"Most Phantasms do not forcibly form a Binding Contract just because they learn your name, but 'most' is the same as saying 'not all.' So take care never to hand over your name. If you do not want to regret it later."
Ending up contracted to someone you did not even want is a problem, but contracting before your Total Contract Capacity is fixed is certainly a loss as well. Since no one knows how far an individual's Total Contract Capacity will expand.
"You First Platoon in particular. Take care at the Phantasm Selection Ceremony you will hold this afternoon. Unless you want to sacrifice your own body to give the remaining platoons a lesson."
But what was that just now?
We choose Phantasms today?
'This soon?'
In the comic they chose a week later, though?
What?
Tab 15