Simulation Training

Simulation training?

What was that?

Was it the kind of simulated Magic Circuit Karya had mentioned before?

Hadn't he said... her magical control wasn't good enough for that?

"Simulation training is a wonderful thing." Karya's tone brightened again. "For a little girl like you, who has poor control over her magic but incredible talent, simulation training can not only help you master magic, but also build up your combat experience."

"That does sound pretty good." Lux blinked. "But I still don't know how the simulation works."

"Simulation training is a series of illusion spells." Karya didn't keep her in suspense. "Specifically... under the effects of the illusion, you'll face certain fixed scenarios and train by casting spells and fighting."

"I know about illusions." Lux recalled the basic lessons she'd studied. "By definition, they use the flow of magic to interfere with the senses and judgment—but I remember that illusions are hard to make real. If I practice casting spells inside an illusion, does that mean I'll be using magic in the real world too?"

"In theory, yes."

"Wouldn't that be dangerous?" Lux couldn't help raising her voice. "I still can't fully control my own magic, and Light Magic is so conspicuous..."

"But you have me!" Karya chuckled, as though he'd been ready for this. "I said you're talented, but compared to me, your magic is nothing to write home about. Don't worry. I can absorb all the magic you use to cast spells, then give you the proper feedback in the illusion based on how you use them!"

"What if you don't know what will happen when I cast a spell?" Lux still wasn't convinced. "Wouldn't the feedback in the illusion be wrong?"

"If you can cast a spell that's beyond my understanding, you won't need simulation training." Karya sounded a little exasperated. "Spell models may vary endlessly, with countless possible combinations, but the basic theory of magic is still very solid. Once your casting ability goes beyond that, you'll be qualified to cast spells freely."

"What if I decide the situation calls for swinging a sword instead?" Lux continued. "If I choose to swing my sword under the illusion, wouldn't I look like an idiot in the real world, making the same movements?"

"Looks like your theoretical knowledge of illusions isn't solid enough, Lux." Karya snorted. "The one thing that's always true of illusions is that [the caster receives the target's real feedback and magical flow]. Whether the target's actions match their reactions in the illusion is up to the caster!"

"..."

At those words, Lux stiffened on the spot. Fortunately, Karya seemed to be in a good mood today and didn't press her further about illusions.

Lux promptly changed the subject and began asking about other aspects of this training method.

Even Sona, who had been independently carving a Nullstone Magic Circuit, came over to listen, fascinated by this completely new way to learn magic.

Half a day later, Karya finally finished explaining all the features and precautions. Once Lux and Sona understood, they were both stunned.

"...It still feels a little unreal." Lux understood what Karya meant, but something still felt off. "Also, what did you mean by 'certain fixed scenarios'?"

"Oh, they're memories and fragments from my long life. You're always saying I never tell you my own stories, aren't you?" Karya explained carefully. "In these stories, you'll see it all..."

"That actually sounds pretty good." Lux nodded again. "One last question. Why are we only starting this training now?"

"Because before, I didn't have any magic to build the illusion for you." Karya sounded as if he'd had a hard time of it. "Teaching two little girls isn't easy, and I haven't absorbed much of your magic, so it won't affect your growth. Just a tiny bit."

Lux clearly had no idea what Karya meant by "a tiny bit." Once she'd gotten answers to all her questions, she happily agreed to try simulation training.

Sona nodded at the same time.

Seeing that her friend had agreed too, Lux immediately suggested, "We can train together, actually."

Unfortunately, to train together, Karya needed magic to connect and resonate with the Circuit. That Circuit was far too complicated, and Lux and Sona wouldn't be able to master it anytime soon.

At Lux's current level, carving a simple magic absorption and amplification Circuit was already her limit.

In other words, they could only take turns training, one at a time—one would train while the other kept watch.

They couldn't play co-op Contra. With the Magic Circuits they had now, Lux and Sona could only play Super Mario.

Soon, Lux and Sona packed up and left Crown Guard Manor, carrying the one-foot-square Magic Circuit they'd painstakingly carved.

"Where should we look for Nullstone that's already absorbed some magic?" With a backpack on her shoulders, Lux gripped the sword in her hand. "You said it's hard to tell with the naked eye whether Nullstone has absorbed magic."

"But I also said Nullstone itself conducts magic very well." Karya seemed to be preparing something, and his response was unusually slow. "So the bigger the piece of Nullstone, the more likely it is to have absorbed magic. And since connected sections count as one, the entire wall around the Demacian Imperial Capital can be treated as a single piece of Nullstone."

"So we just need to find an empty corner of the wall, press the Magic Circuit against it, and set you into the groove?" Lux confirmed the training method one last time. "Then I just need to hold the sword hilt, right?"

"Exactly." Karya didn't sound impatient. "While you train, Sona can keep watch. When she trains, you can keep an eye on the surroundings. That'll work."

Before long, Lux and Sona found an empty alley. They went to the very back, then followed Karya's instructions and pressed the Magic Circuit carved from Nullstone tightly against the walls of the Demacian Imperial Capital.

After fitting her sword into the groove at the end of the Magic Circuit, Lux finally reached out and gripped the hilt.

"Now." Karya's voice sounded in Lux's ear again. "Close your eyes. Simulation training begins!"

At Karya's instruction, Lux closed her eyes.

The next moment, she felt herself fall.

No, it wasn't just the feeling of falling.

It was as if she'd lost every sense.

With her eyes closed, Lux couldn't hear anything, and her sense of touch seemed to vanish completely. She couldn't even tell the passage of time, and her consciousness sank into stillness.

When her senses finally returned and she opened her eyes at Karya's prompting, Lux seemed to have found herself in the middle of a desert.

Firm sand lay beneath her feet, and endless dunes stretched out before her. Lux looked around, then crouched and picked up a handful of grit. It felt so real, as if she truly had arrived in the desert.

"This is a fragment of one of my memories." As Lux curiously examined the robe she wore, something she'd never seen before, a figure in a cloak suddenly appeared beside her. "Get used to the surroundings. The trial is about to begin."

"You're... Karya?" Lux turned to look at the person who had appeared beside her without her noticing. "Is it really you?"

"It's me." Karya shook his head, sounding a little helpless. "The me from the memory—"

"Let me see what you look like!" Lux sprang forward, reaching to pull back Karya's hood. "I've never seen your face!"

But just as Lux was about to touch him, an invisible barrier stopped her. It seemed Karya didn't want her to remove his hood.

Undeterred, Lux crouched and tried to see his face from below. But the orderly feathers on the hood of his cloak cast a shadow that completely concealed Karya's face. Even standing right in front of him, Lux still couldn't see what he looked like.

"I told you, this is a fragment of my memory." Karya shook his head helplessly. "My own face isn't in my memories, so there's no way you can see what I look like by going through the trial."

"Tch." Disappointed, Lux stood up and kicked at the sand. "Honestly, you're so mysterious. We're all friends, and you still won't show your face... I wouldn't mind if you were ugly."

"There's no one in all of Shurima who'd dare claim to be more handsome than me." Karya chuckled, seeing right through Lux's attempt to provoke him. "All right, maintaining the simulation takes a lot of magic. We can chat after the trial. For now, go down to the bottom of the dune and get ready to train."

As he spoke, the dune beneath Lux seemed to come alive and "flung" her into the air. She tumbled all the way down to its base.

"You haven't told me what I'm supposed to do!" Lux scrambled to her feet and shouted. "And... don't I even get a weapon?"

"The objective is to last ten minutes." The space around them seemed to warp, and Karya's voice began to waver. "As for a weapon... there's a sword here. Catch!"

As he spoke, a sword fell from the sky and stuck into the sand beside Lux's feet.

Lux bent down, picked up the sword, and pulled it free. Before she could get used to its balance, the sand around her began churning as if it were boiling.

In the next instant, countless beetles the size of wild dogs crawled out of the sand, chittering as they charged at Lux.

Faced with a sight she'd never seen before, Lux opened her mouth and let out a scream of utter despair.

"Aaah—!"

Well, that was a familiar tune.

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