I Became a Mythical-Tier Tamer Due To A System Error

Chapter 34

The nightmare of the training camp was already widely rumored.

The first-year cadets who entered Yggdrasil were so accustomed to the threat, “The first ordeal you’ll face will be the training camp!” that their ears practically developed calluses.

‘The details of the training camp were basically kept secret, so not much was actually known.’

Anyway, the important thing was that this too was considered ‘part of the exam.’

The points earned in this training camp would significantly affect one’s grades.

That was also the reason why each student was grouped with others of a similar level.

Every activity in Yggdrasil came with both competition and cooperation.

‘Anyone would naturally look for someone who could help them or lead them.’

Cadets with strong abilities would form groups effortlessly, just by standing there and breathing.

On the other hand, the ones who weren’t chosen had no choice but to form groups with whoever was left.

I looked from afar at the black-haired boy.

‘Of course, Ren was insanely popular.’

After awakening as the Thunder God and dueling with me, Ren’s reputation skyrocketed.

Not only that, but Princess Arlhardt and the second ranker, Keirin, were always by his side.

The presence of those two created an aura that kept ordinary cadets from approaching him.

‘From Ren’s perspective, the main character of this episode must have been Keirin.’

The bond between Ren and Keirin would be the central story.

‘Whatever the case, I should just focus on my own matters.’

Ren had become Ruber’s disciple.

He would grow without me needing to clean up after him anymore.

So this time, I would focus solely on taking care of myself.

“My arm feels like it’s about to fall off…”

I brought the exhausted Karin to the bench to rest.

When she set her bag down, it landed with a thud! and the bench shook a little.

I didn’t even need to open it to know.

That bag was surely stuffed full of totems.

“You should’ve brought less.”

“If I don’t carve totems, I get anxious. This is only three days’ worth.”

Was this hamster planning to do nothing but carve totems during the training camp?

Sitting beside me, Karin caught her breath while constantly glancing around.

“So, who are the other teammates?”

“I’ve already decided.”

I turned my gaze to the tree behind the bench.

Karin followed my eyes and looked there too.

Had she just arrived?

Lapin was leaning against the tree, with a sea otter quietly nestled in her arms.

Receiving both our gazes, Lapin slowly walked over to the bench.

“Hello.”

As Lapin greeted us, Karin flailed and pointed a finger at her.

“Ah! You…!”

Karin blinked a few times, then awkwardly opened her mouth.

“You must be… Lapin!”

That was unexpected.

For some reason, Karin remembered Lapin.

‘Out of 600 cadets, Lapin is the quietest one.’

Yes, she had practically no presence at all.

“……”

Then, the conversation briefly stalled.

Since we were now in the same group, there was no need to stay in an awkward relationship.

I had already told Lapin how to get closer to Karin.

I lightly tapped Lapin’s shoulder with my arm.

“Ah.”

Lapin, as if remembering something, responded quickly.

“Karin, let’s get along well during the three days of training camp.”

When Lapin said that, Karin muttered to herself, “You even knew my name…?”

“Uh, y-yeah! Of course. Let’s get along.”

She quickly pulled herself together and answered.

“…But are you bringing that too?”

Karin pointed at the sea otter cradled in Lapin’s arms.

She had been shooting wary glances at it for a while now.

– Beep!

As if to answer in Lapin’s place, the sea otter squeaked.

I added an explanation.

“Lapin likes holding animals.”

“Ah, I see…”

She clearly wanted to say, ‘But does that really justify bringing it to training camp?’

But Karin wasn’t the type to ask bothersome questions.

“Cadets, the schedule will now be revealed.”

At some point, the teaching assistants had put up a large sheet on the field where everyone could see.

But the schedule had an unusual amount of empty space.

「Free Time 00:00~24:00」

Just a single line.

While cadets gathered to check it, those who saw it felt something was off.

“…Hm? That’s it?”

“What the, they said hell and all that.”

“Maybe it was delivered wrong?”

The infamous ‘hellish training camp’ didn’t seem to fit such a lax schedule.

It was only natural for the cadets to be a little confused.

The entire timetable was made of free time.

“Could it be a vacation?”

“They’re just telling us to relax and have fun.”

“With that much free time, we’ll get tired of playing.”

Some of the first-years already looked excited.

Some were even whispering, ‘Maybe the nightmare of the training camp is actually just a surprise party spread around the school?’

Though some cadets felt suspicious, that was all.

Only a handful of upperclassmen actually remembered the contents of the training camp.

And on top of that, the school worked hard to keep information from leaking.

So it would be difficult for anyone to predict what the training camp really held.

‘There’s a reason the schedule looks like that.’

It was true that the schedule would proceed as written. They weren’t the type to lie about that.

But what was visible wasn’t all there was.

Bwooo!

Before long, a massive shadow appeared, covering everything in sight.

When I lifted my head to the sky, I saw the form of a ‘ship’ flying in, blocking the sun.

“Grand Galpal!”

“That’s amazing.”

“Up close, it’s no joke.”

The cadets cheered as they looked at the enormous airship.

Its body was fitted with countless large and small propellers, like the wings of windmills.

The massive frame descended slowly toward the land, as if swimming through water.

For me, it was another moment that reminded me this world was truly inside a game.

‘To think the day would come when I’d ride this myself.’

The Grand Galpal.

A luxury airship weighing around 500 tons, owned by Yggdrasil.

Overall white in color, it measured 230 meters in length and 50 meters in height.

It was a massive transport capable of carrying up to 1,500 people.

The giant floating stones and mana stones installed at its base glittered magnificently.

“Please line up in order and board, we will depart immediately once boarding is complete!”

Following the crew’s call, cadets began boarding the airship one by one.

Like a country bumpkin visiting Seoul for the first time, I looked around curiously as I climbed aboard.

“Villed!”

A voice called from behind.

When I turned back, golden hair caught my eyes.

It was a second-year senior from the Alchemy Department, someone to whom I was once indebted.

“Senior Shuniel?”

Why had he come here to call for me?

“The training camp will be tough. Take this.”

He handed me a small box that fit in the palm of my hand.

“I don’t remember the details of the camp very well either… but maybe these will be useful to you, Villed.”

I opened the box Shuniel gave me. Inside were various potions, and even ‘holy water.’

‘These are exactly the kinds of things that’ll be useful in this episode.’

Recognizing that, I slipped the box into the pocket of my coat.

“I’ll gladly accept.”

“I hope you don’t get hurt and come back safely.”

Smiling faintly in return to Shuniel, who waved, I went straight up the stairs.

The interior of the grand airship revealed itself, just as magnificent as its exterior.

‘Since the game has become reality, I suppose a spectacle of this scale makes sense.’

The inside was as splendid as the outside.

Luxurious carpets, dazzling chandeliers, countless elegant tables, plus a swimming pool and buffet bar—every kind of leisure facility was included.

‘Rather than a means of transportation, it feels more like a resort by itself.’

Noble or commoner, many cadets were overwhelmed by the sheer opulence.

It was truly a cruise ship floating in the sky, rivaling even the finest seafaring liners.

“Hm…”

Karin was no exception. She didn’t show it openly, but.

From her darting eyes, it was clear she was amazed.

The Grand Galpal wasn’t something that flew about often in this world, after all.

This too was meant to display the Astrid Empire’s might to Yggdrasil’s cadets.

“How much do you think all this costs?”

“They say the mana required for a single trip is enormous…”

The cadets still gaped in awe.

But in contrast, Lapin seemed uninterested.

After glancing around briefly, she turned her eyes back to the sea otter.

So Lapin only cared about animals, huh.

‘Anyway, no point just standing here like this.’

I spotted a spacious table nearby and gestured.

It was a relatively quiet corner seat with few people around.

“How about resting here?”

There was plenty of time left before arriving at the training camp.

I had no intention of wasting that time.

‘This training camp will be grueling not only physically, but mentally as well.’

That was why, during these three days and two nights, everyone would have to rely on each other.

From now on, we needed to build a strong bond among teammates.

‘Karin already seemed interested in Lapin.’

I had noticed from the moment they first met.

‘Especially since she made the effort to remember the name of someone as quiet and unnoticed as Lapin.’

It must have been their first meeting.

But judging by Karin’s reaction, she definitely knew Lapin’s name beforehand.

‘She must’ve wanted to be friends with Lapin from before.’

After all, she was quiet herself and seemed to have no friends.

But she had never been given the chance, and being timid, Karin hadn’t been able to make the move.

Once I set the stage for them, as expected, a conversation began to flow.

“Do you really like that animal so much?”

“Yeah. Sea otter.”

“No, I know it’s a sea otter, but still.”

Karin spoke casually, but from time to time she checked Lapin’s reaction.

Perhaps because she had lived without friends for so long.

“Lately I’ve been keeping it in the pond.”

“A pond? You raised a sea otter in a pond? Taming it must’ve been really difficult—how did you manage that?”

But as they continued talking, I could feel her growing more comfortable.

Karin must have found it easy to talk to someone like Lapin, who calmly accepted whatever was said.

“Villed made it as a hobby. A pond. One that connects to the river so it can go back and forth.”

“That’s… quite an unusual hobby.”

Karin looked at me with a puzzled expression.

A hobby.

Well, let’s just leave it at that.

Besides that excuse, I didn’t have a better explanation for why a noble’s son had suddenly built a pond beside a river.

I shrugged my shoulders and spoke.

“Think of it as a kind of leisure sport.”

“Lei… what?”

Ah, maybe that wasn’t the best way to put it.

Karin gave me a confused look, as if she didn’t understand.

“Villed, you’re more unusual than you seem.”

“Yeah. Unusual.”

For some reason, Lapin chimed in with agreement.

I cleared my throat and took a sip of water.

Either way, the mood wasn’t bad.

‘This seems better than expected. Lapin and Karin might get along well.’

Though in the end, we were just three leftover extras who hadn’t found proper teams.