Phantos, who had approached after sensing Ludger’s arrival, twitched an eyebrow when he noticed Carlo standing beside him.
“Hm?”
Because he had focused his awareness solely on Ludger, he had been a bit late to notice.
But once he did, he immediately realized that the air around Carlo was strangely peculiar.
“What exactly is this kid?”
It was one thing for Ludger—who had left to see the world—to come visit him again, but to bring along some greenhorn kid at his side?
Phantos could not help but feel a considerable amount of curiosity.
Facing him, Carlo was completely cowed, like a frog frozen before a snake.
‘W-what the hell is this...?’
Carlo swallowed hard.
So tense that his fingertips tingled, he unconsciously clenched and unclenched his fists.
Carlo had fought many people in the back alleys.
Big guys, vicious-looking thugs—he had personally beaten all of them into the ground.
Because of that, Carlo had believed that he would never be affected by any outward traits of his opponent.
But standing before Phantos changed his mind entirely.
He was a mass of living muscle. Yet he was not simply crude or bulky.
As one could tell from his initial appearance, he possessed agility and elasticity so extreme it was hard to believe they belonged to such a gigantic body.
Above all else, what truly terrified Carlo was the overwhelming pressure pouring out of Phantos.
A suffocating force powerful enough to reduce even wild predators to mere grains of sand.
Carlo could barely tell whether he was breathing properly at all.
“Phantos. This child is one of the new disciples I’ve recently begun teaching. How about reining in your presence a bit.”
“A disciple?”
Though puzzled, Phantos did as Ludger said and withdrew his pressure.
“Huff—! Huff—!”
Only then did Carlo realize he had not been breathing, and he gasped for air.
Watching him, Phantos crossed his arms and gave his assessment.
“Hm. Still a completely green greenhorn.”
At the word greenhorn, Carlo flared up for an instant and glared at Phantos—but the moment their eyes met, he had no choice but to lower his gaze.
Phantos stared at Carlo with mild interest, then instantly realized there was something unusual about him.
“This greenhorn. Half of him is mixed.”
“As expected. I figured you’d recognize it the moment you saw him.”
Ludger nodded, agreeing.
Phantos immediately understood why Ludger had brought this greenhorn to him.
“You want me to teach this kid?”
“As you can see, Carlo is a mixed-blood of human and beastkin. Half of his body carries beastkin blood. He only recently became aware of it, so I came seeking help from someone with experience in that regard. Among the beastkin I know, you are the most outstanding.”
It was half flattery, but it was also Ludger’s genuine opinion.
At that, Phantos stroked his chin as if considering the matter.
Given his personality, he was probably finding the idea of teaching Carlo quite bothersome.
Depending on his mood, he might very well have told them to leave, not wanting to waste time on some greenhorn.
Yet after a brief moment of contemplation, his answer was wholly unexpected.
“Fine. I’ll do it.”
“Really?”
Ludger asked, genuinely surprised.
“Didn’t you come because you needed someone to teach him? Why are you surprised.”
“I hoped you would, but actually hearing you agree still caught me off guard.”
“Well, I get it. Normally, I wouldn’t even have glanced at an offer like this.”
Phantos himself was fully aware of that.
“So why did I suddenly feel like indulging a whim? Obviously because of you.”
“You mean me?”
“Yeah. From the looks of it, you’ve started playing the role of a teacher again, haven’t you? And that made me curious. What does it actually feel like to take in a disciple and teach them?”
Phantos had no teacher. He had never learned from anyone, having mastered all his combat techniques on his own.
Naturally, the relationship of master and disciple felt distant to him—something that would never concern him.
Serving a master now would be laughable, and taking in a disciple would normally make him scoff.
Yet strangely enough, curiosity stirred within him.
Because he had clearly seen with his own eyes the subtle change Ludger had undergone while working as a teacher at Seorn.
“Doesn’t seem like it would hurt to try it once.”
Saying that, Phantos looked straight at Carlo.
“And judging by his aura, his aptitude doesn’t seem bad either.”
What appealed to him most was Carlo’s talent—and his peculiarity.
A mixed-blood of human and beastkin. Outwardly human, yet inwardly bearing the strongest traits of beastkin.
Only Phantos could sense that. And at the same time, he understood why Ludger had brought this kid to him.
“You understand, right, Carlo? From now on, Phantos here will be your teacher in learning what it means to be beastkin.”
“W-wait a second. Seriously?”
Carlo asked in disbelief.
For him, it was no easy thing to grasp this reality.
Regardless, Phantos—having already concluded the conversation—reached out with a massive hand and gripped Carlo’s shoulder.
Just having his shoulder grabbed rendered Carlo completely helpless, like a cat caught by the scruff of the neck.
“Since we’re already here, let’s start the lesson right away.”
“Ah. Mind if I watch from the side?”
“Doesn’t matter.”
Phantos forcibly dragged Carlo in front of him.
Then he spoke to the still-dazed boy.
“Come at me.”
“...What?”
Carlo stared at Phantos and asked again.
Then he turned his head to look back at Ludger.
“Me?”
Fight him? This monstrous beastkin?
The fighting spirit he had shown back at Seorn had long since gone out like a candle in the wind.
It was only natural. The newly awakened beastkin senses within him were screaming that the beast before his eyes was an absolute powerhouse he could never hope to oppose.
“Didn’t you come to receive instruction as a beastkin?”
“No, I mean—”
“You’ve come this far. I won’t accept objections. For the record, I’ve never taught anyone before, so all I can do is let you accumulate experience through real combat. Take your stance—unless you want to die.”
“D-damn it!”
Realizing Phantos was not bluffing, Carlo quickly drew up his fighting spirit.
Seeing how Carlo did not shy away from a fight no matter what, Phantos grinned.
“Good posture. We beastkin are a race of born warriors. That’s why awakening and suppressing our instincts can only be achieved through real combat.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than Phantos’ fist shot forward.
Thud!
Carlo was struck and sent flying backward, tumbling across the ground several times.
Sprawled out flat, Carlo’s eyes had already lost consciousness.
“Tsk.”
Phantos clicked his tongue as he looked at Carlo, who had been knocked out by a single punch.
“Looks like I’ll need to control my strength a bit.”
* * *
When Carlo came to, what he saw before him was the corpse of a massive beast.
Before he could even scream in shock, Phantos appeared behind him and asked,
“You’re awake? Knocking out after just one hit. Pretty weak, aren’t you.”
“...!”
Carlo jolted upright in surprise.
The moment he saw Phantos, the events just before losing consciousness came flooding back.
No matter how you looked at it, getting knocked out by a single punch was absurd.
“Anyway, if you’re up, eat. You need to keep your stomach full.”
He had wondered where the delicious smell was coming from—it seemed they had been grilling meat.
Carlo was about to protest that food was the last thing on his mind right now, but the scent tickling his nose made him swallow unconsciously.
On top of that, he saw Ludger calmly sitting by the campfire where the meat was grilling.
Wait. His disciple gets beaten unconscious, and he just watches?
Stubbornness flaring up for no reason, Carlo jumped to his feet.
“Well, whatever. Fine.”
Yeah. Either way, it’s not like I’m going to die. And if I’m doing this anyway, I might as well eat properly.
With that, Carlo sat down in the empty spot, and the meal began.
He had never cooked and eaten meat out in the wild like this before, so he worried it might taste bad.
But the moment he took his first bite, that concern melted away like snow.
“What is this?”
After that single exclamation, Carlo devoured the meat in silence like a madman.
Who would have thought that simply grilled meat, with no special preparation, could taste this good?
Carlo tore into it greedily, like someone who had been starving for days.
Just as the meal was coming to an end—
Phantos stood up and spoke.
“Alright. Let’s start again.”
“...What?”
Before Carlo could even ask what he meant, Phantos moved like the wind and hurled a fist at him.
“Damn it all!”
Even as Carlo cursed the sheer absurdity of it, he moved swiftly.
He wrapped his body in mana to evade, while simultaneously attempting to counterattack.
It was completely different from when he had been knocked out helplessly earlier.
Partly because he had experienced it once and could respond—and partly because Phantos had eased up a little.
He blocked the first punch and thought he had succeeded in counterattacking—
Thud!
Only to be knocked flat by the second punch.
“Hm. Still weak.”
“Aren’t you just ridiculously strong?”
“Well, still—seems like he’s worth raising.”
Phantos bared his teeth as he looked at the faint burn mark left on his fist.
In that brief moment, Carlo had managed to land a meaningful hit.
He had thought he was holding back against a greenhorn, but he hadn’t been completely careless.
Yet this was the result—which meant Carlo’s talent was greater than expected.
What had begun out of idle curiosity was starting to look fun.
* * *
“Seriously. This is just cruel.”
Carlo lay sprawled on the ground, staring up at the sky as the sun began to set.
He had already passed out and woken up more than ten times.
During that time, he had not landed a single proper hit ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) on Phantos.
He was confident in his skills, yet this result—wasn’t it too much?
And every loss ended in unconsciousness. What exactly was he supposed to learn from this?
As Carlo lay there, Ludger approached and looked down at him.
“How was your first lesson?”
“How would I even know.”
“You’ll get used to it. You may not realize it, but you’re lasting longer each time compared to the beginning.”
“Really?”
“Yes. You lasted a full five seconds longer.”
“Ha. That’s supposed to be comforting?”
Five seconds. Was he kidding?
Carlo thought Ludger was joking—but surprisingly, he was serious.
Those five seconds were earned against none other than Phantos.
Proof that Carlo’s talent, however slowly, was beginning to shine.
“Anyway, you did well today. Let’s head back.”
“Huff... huff... Do the others get lessons like this too?”
“Didn’t I say they’re customized? Of course they’re different.”
“Damn it. So I’m the only one stuck with this.”
Even as he complained bitterly while gasping for breath, Carlo didn’t forget to add one last line.
“Next time, I’ll definitely win.”
Overhearing the conversation, Phantos let out a quiet chuckle of anticipation.
Yes. Come at me as much as you like, greenhorn. Struggle is the very essence of beastkin. Through it, you’ll be tempered into something stronger.
* * *
“Ah—ah—hello, Professor.”
With his cold expression, considerable height, and solid build, Robert—who stood out as unusually mature even among his peers—greeted Ludger while visibly tense.
“Robert Hirston. Have you been well?”
“Y-yes. I—I’ve been well.”
“As you’ve probably heard, we’ll be starting your lessons now. Naturally, they’ll be customized.”
“W-will mine be practical training too?”
Robert asked, clearly worried.
Ludger shook his head.
“No. Your lessons will proceed differently.”
At that moment, Carlo—who had barged in on his own to observe Robert’s lesson—shouted,
“Then why does he get special treatment?!”