The landscape in the dreamland was the same as always, with beautiful plains of grass extending to the horizon and a clear blue sky with scattered clouds moving slowly due to the soft wind.
But unlike usual, I was not practicing combat against the demon.
Instead, I was seated cross-legged on the ground while staring unblinkingly at an apple in front of me.
My eyes did not move from the apple for even an instant. For over an hour, I just stared at it without moving in the slightest.
In the meanwhile, I activated [Confidence] and tried to use it to influence the apple.
I only wanted it to do one thing.
To move.
But even after one, two, and three hours passed, the apple didn't move.
Finally, I was unable to endure the fatigue and let out a sigh, moving my gaze away.
“This is useless,” I complained.
The demon, who had been observing everything from the start, shrugged.
[That is natural. Will is not something that you can master easily. Actually, it’s surprising that you managed to activate it once before, even if it was accidentally.]
“I did not expect it to be so hard. I just can’t find the feeling I got when I stopped the egg that time.”
[There is no need to be anxious. You already used it once. You should be able to use it again eventually.]
I nodded.
“By the way, you have not explained still what Will is.”
The demon put on a thoughtful expression and nodded.
[Mm, there should not be harm in you knowing. To put it in simple terms, [Will] is the ability to bend reality according to your thoughts. It’s to use your soul to make the world around you obey you.]
I was startled.
“… That sounds really overpowered.”
[It is, but at the same time, it’s not.] He chuckled. [Although bending reality according to your thoughts sounds powerful, it’s not that simple. The universe follows a set of rules, and if you want to achieve something using Will, you must still follow these rules.]
[Let’s say for example that you want to use Will to create an apple. However, one of the basic laws of the universe is that energy can neither be created nor destroyed. That means that you can’t simply create an apple from nothing. If you want to do it, you need to supply the energy necessary for the apple to appear.] He continued explaining.
I listened to his words and nodded in understanding.
In other words, every time I use will, I need to supply the energy needed to affect reality.
Even so, it still sounds like a very powerful ability.
The demon read my thoughts and nodded.
[There are still other restrictions, but you are right. Developing Will is a good idea. If you become good enough at it, your combat strength will show a remarkable improvement.]
I nodded and stood up from the ground.
I wanted to continue training Will, however, I had already spent several hours on it. The time in the dreamland was limited, and I also needed to train my other abilities.
I called out at Scarlet and Saphire, who were playing tag a couple of meters away and asked them for help.
The cat and the lamia stopped paying and rushed over gleefully.
I then recalled them into my body, turning them into tattoos as I focused on their power, now residing inside my body.
The first I managed to feel was Saphire. I could feel her thoughts of closeness and glee as well as her powerful mana dwelling within me. With just a thought, I tapped into her power, and I could feel a part of her mana flowing into me.
Next, I found Scarlet. The cat’s thoughts were simpler than Saphire's; hers were a mix of joy, arrogance, and laziness.
Scarlet’s mana had shown a noticeable improvement since last time. She had easily broken through to the third Tier, and her growth showed no signs of stopping.
At this rate, she would catch up with me in a couple of months at most, perhaps sooner.
When I tapped into her power, I felt her mana flowing into me too.
Scarlet’s mana was quite different from Saphire’s. If Saphire’s mana was calm, gentle, and soft, Scarlet’s mana was fiery, lively, and violent.
Both of their mana reflected their powers, one over water, and the other over fire.
After I tapped into their powers, I extended my hands forward and tried to use them.
Quickly, two balls, one made of fire and another of moisture, appeared on the palms of my hands.
I focused on them and used my mind to control them. Soon, the two balls started to change forms, going from arrows and blocks to more complex forms like small rabbits and birds.
This is the method the demon taught me to use the power of Saphire and Scarlet without summoning them. According to him, if I practiced long enough, I could eventually use the entirety of their powers without summoning them.
Unfortunately, I was far from that level. Even though I had improved since I used Scarlet’s fire in the battle against Leon Meyer, I could barely use ten percent of Scarlet and Saphire’s strength now.
After around one hour, I stopped the training and let out a tired sigh.
[Although your improvement is slow, it’s noticeable. It looks like the day when you can use the entirety of the power of your summons is close.]
“I think it’s still better to summon them, though.”
[True. However, being able to use their powers without summoning them means you can keep their existence hidden, turning them into a trump card that you can use to turn the tables around in a dangerous situation.]
Quite true.
“By the way, demon, [Soul Contract] should have other functions, right? I feel that this is not the limit of the skill.”
The demon put on a peculiar expression.
[… You are quite perceptive.]
“So I am right, huh? Then, can you tell me what else it can do?”
The demon thought for a moment and shook its head.
[I’m afraid it’s better if you explore it by yourselves. That way, your gains will be greater.]
I rolled my eyes.
Just say you don’t want to tell me.
I looked at Saphire and Scarlet’s tattoos and fell deep into my thoughts.
Mm… I guess I should experiment by myself, huh?
Just then, I felt my consciousness becoming hazy.
The time inside the dreamland was coming to an end.
A few minutes later, I opened my eyes on my bed.
Looking at my phone, the time was 6:58, a bit short before seven.
I sat on the bed and stretched my body, then I started the preparations to go to college.
Now that I think about it, today's class is special.
Today is the first time the freshmen go inside a dungeon.
The landscape in the dreamland was the same as always, with beautiful plains of grass extending to the horizon and a clear blue sky with scattered clouds moving slowly due to the soft wind.
But unlike usual, I was not practicing combat against the demon.
Instead, I was seated cross-legged on the ground while staring unblinkingly at an apple in front of me.
My eyes did not move from the apple for even an instant. For over an hour, I just stared at it without moving in the slightest.
In the meanwhile, I activated [Confidence] and tried to use it to influence the apple.
I only wanted it to do one thing.
To move.
But even after one, two, and three hours passed, the apple didn't move.
Finally, I was unable to endure the fatigue and let out a sigh, moving my gaze away.
“This is useless,” I complained.
The demon, who had been observing everything from the start, shrugged.
[That is natural. Will is not something that you can master easily. Actually, it’s surprising that you managed to activate it once before, even if it was accidentally.]
“I did not expect it to be so hard. I just can’t find the feeling I got when I stopped the egg that time.”
[There is no need to be anxious. You already used it once. You should be able to use it again eventually.]
I nodded.
“By the way, you have not explained still what Will is.”
The demon put on a thoughtful expression and nodded.
[Mm, there should not be harm in you knowing. To put it in simple terms, [Will] is the ability to bend reality according to your thoughts. It’s to use your soul to make the world around you obey you.]
I was startled.
“… That sounds really overpowered.”
[It is, but at the same time, it’s not.] He chuckled. [Although bending reality according to your thoughts sounds powerful, it’s not that simple. The universe follows a set of rules, and if you want to achieve something using Will, you must still follow these rules.]
[Let’s say for example that you want to use Will to create an apple. However, one of the basic laws of the universe is that energy can neither be created nor destroyed. That means that you can’t simply create an apple from nothing. If you want to do it, you need to supply the energy necessary for the apple to appear.] He continued explaining.
I listened to his words and nodded in understanding.
In other words, every time I use will, I need to supply the energy needed to affect reality.
Even so, it still sounds like a very powerful ability.
The demon read my thoughts and nodded.
[There are still other restrictions, but you are right. Developing Will is a good idea. If you become good enough at it, your combat strength will show a remarkable improvement.]
I nodded and stood up from the ground.
I wanted to continue training Will, however, I had already spent several hours on it. The time in the dreamland was limited, and I also needed to train my other abilities.
I called out at Scarlet and Saphire, who were playing tag a couple of meters away and asked them for help.
The cat and the lamia stopped paying and rushed over gleefully.
I then recalled them into my body, turning them into tattoos as I focused on their power, now residing inside my body.
The first I managed to feel was Saphire. I could feel her thoughts of closeness and glee as well as her powerful mana dwelling within me. With just a thought, I tapped into her power, and I could feel a part of her mana flowing into me.
Next, I found Scarlet. The cat’s thoughts were simpler than Saphire's; hers were a mix of joy, arrogance, and laziness.
Scarlet’s mana had shown a noticeable improvement since last time. She had easily broken through to the third Tier, and her growth showed no signs of stopping.
At this rate, she would catch up with me in a couple of months at most, perhaps sooner.
When I tapped into her power, I felt her mana flowing into me too.
Scarlet’s mana was quite different from Saphire’s. If Saphire’s mana was calm, gentle, and soft, Scarlet’s mana was fiery, lively, and violent.
Both of their mana reflected their powers, one over water, and the other over fire.
After I tapped into their powers, I extended my hands forward and tried to use them.
Quickly, two balls, one made of fire and another of moisture, appeared on the palms of my hands.
I focused on them and used my mind to control them. Soon, the two balls started to change forms, going from arrows and blocks to more complex forms like small rabbits and birds.
This is the method the demon taught me to use the power of Saphire and Scarlet without summoning them. According to him, if I practiced long enough, I could eventually use the entirety of their powers without summoning them.
Unfortunately, I was far from that level. Even though I had improved since I used Scarlet’s fire in the battle against Leon Meyer, I could barely use ten percent of Scarlet and Saphire’s strength now.
After around one hour, I stopped the training and let out a tired sigh.
[Although your improvement is slow, it’s noticeable. It looks like the day when you can use the entirety of the power of your summons is close.]
“I think it’s still better to summon them, though.”
[True. However, being able to use their powers without summoning them means you can keep their existence hidden, turning them into a trump card that you can use to turn the tables around in a dangerous situation.]
Quite true.
“By the way, demon, [Soul Contract] should have other functions, right? I feel that this is not the limit of the skill.”
The demon put on a peculiar expression.
[… You are quite perceptive.]
“So I am right, huh? Then, can you tell me what else it can do?”
The demon thought for a moment and shook its head.
[I’m afraid it’s better if you explore it by yourselves. That way, your gains will be greater.]
I rolled my eyes.
Just say you don’t want to tell me.
I looked at Saphire and Scarlet’s tattoos and fell deep into my thoughts.
Mm… I guess I should experiment by myself, huh?
Just then, I felt my consciousness becoming hazy.
The time inside the dreamland was coming to an end.
A few minutes later, I opened my eyes on my bed.
Looking at my phone, the time was 6:58, a bit short before seven.
I sat on the bed and stretched my body, then I started the preparations to go to college.
Now that I think about it, today's class is special.
Today is the first time the freshmen go inside a dungeon.
