Having made up his mind, Shaka was about to push open the door and head out when the wind chimes outside rang out.
A man with slicked-back blond hair, wearing the black teacher's uniform that symbolized pride in the "School District," appeared before him. In his hurry to leave, Shaka bumped into the stranger.
"I'm so sorry," the man apologized first. "You must be Commander Shaka. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm a teacher from the School District, do you have a moment?"
A teacher?
Shaka looked up to meet a pair of lion-gold eyes.
"Please, come in."
"I apologize if I'm interrupting your business."
"No, I was just planning to visit the School District myself, my research has hit a bottleneck," Shaka admitted.
Hearing the noise, the goddess stepped out from the backyard and looked slightly surprised at the man:
"Oh, Mr. Leon, what brings you to our home?"
Leon?
The "Knight among Knights"? One of only two Level 7 knights in the world?
What could he want?
Shaka remained calm and observed quietly.
Leon stood and bowed to the goddess before explaining his purpose: "I've heard from my students that your Familia have children who can summon monsters to assist with training."
After waiting for the goddess to take her seat, he hesitated briefly before getting straight to the point: "I wanted to ask, does that child have any plans to enroll in the School District?"
Good grief, are they trying to poach our players?
The School District can't compete with a goddess's resources, and everyone there is part of your "harem" anyway. What would we gain by going?
Shaka pursed his lips, his tone firm: "I can answer that right now ,no."
Leon smiled gently: "I know it was impolite to ask so abruptly, but my students have all come to me asking for help. They say real monster training during regular classes would be invaluable."
Shaka chuckled: "You're quite dedicated to your students."
"No, as a teacher, I still have much to learn." Leon spoke his usual catchphrase, then turned his gaze to Astraea.
"Since Commander Shaka is unwilling, I wonder if Goddess Astraea would consider having your familia join the School District?"
Shaka's eyes widened in surprise.
If poaching individuals doesn't work, poach the entire familia!
Typical of the School District, at least they're more civilized than familias that start wars over recruitment.
The goddess replied with regret: "I'm sorry, but I have reasons to stay in this city. If I travel the world, I won't be here when that child needs me."
Shaka realized what she meant, she wouldn't leave until she dealt with that troublesome elf. They couldn't return to Orario yet, but also couldn't go too far in case the children needed to find their way back.
How kind she is.
The atmosphere at the table grew awkward. Worried the conversation might turn confrontational, Shaka cleared his throat to break the silence.
"Perhaps we could consider a different approach, cooperation."
"Cooperation?"
"Yes. I'll help you build a virtual monster training environment, and in return, you'll provide us with the necessary knowledge and resources."
Leon thought for a moment and asked: "A training environment? What exactly would that entail? Have you had any results so far?"
Shaka began outlining his plan:
"Think of it as a dungeon arena hybrid ,monsters would spawn at set intervals, with a limited number at any time. They won't kill seriously injured students, but they'll fight with full strength."
Leon looked surprised: "Is something like that even possible?"
"It's still in the planning stage. I'll need relevant magical knowledge and materials to make it work."
"For example?"
"Dungeon soil, magic stones, special monster drops, things like that."
What about the success rate?
"Eighty percent."
It was a deliberately vague figure.
The idea of building a dungeon had been on Shaka's mind for a long time.
What kind of game is it without dungeons to go with the players?
With his monster-summoning ability, plus his mastery of Mystery and spatial magic, creating a real dungeon was only a matter of time.
After a long pause, Leon said: "I understand. Please allow me to discuss this with Principal Baldr first."
He could approve knowledge sharing on his own, but resource allocation required higher authorization.
Shaka responded generously: "The repairs must have taken quite some time, right?"
"A year and a half."
Leon confirmed: "Our warship needs extensive repairs, so we'll be staying in Orario for about a year and a half."
Shaka smiled: "In that case, the Astraea Familia can temporarily affiliate with the School District for the duration! In the next few days, I can arrange a demonstration of the monsters' strength, but we'll need you to provide the materials."
Leon looked to the goddess for confirmation.
Astraea smiled calmly and pulled Shaka close to her side.
Seeing this, Leon nodded: "I understand." He stood, bowed deeply, and handed over a card.
"I apologize for the disruption. Commander Shaka, this is a special pass, you're welcome to visit the School District anytime in the coming days."
With that, Leon took his leave.
After seeing him off, Shaka shared his thoughts with the goddess:
"We need to accelerate our 'Mystery' training and acquire more knowledge. Also, the familia can't stay in one place forever it would get too dull."
We need to open a new map!
Which meant they'd have to go to Orario sooner or later.
"I also need to learn from the School District about magical array construction to complete my 'spirit transfer' device."
The goddess was reluctant to enter Orario and interfere with the useless elf's path to redemption, but Shaka's development required access to the city. So "teleportation arrays" were essential.
The initial plan was to create a transfer system for spirits, allowing summoned creatures to travel between the everyday world and DanMachi via "spirit particle transfer" through special equipment.
Shaka would need to establish coordinate anchors in both locations, create a spatial portal linking them, then use descent magic to finalize the process.
Shaka spoke confidently: "That's right. Even if I travel to Orario alone, I won't need your protection, Lady Astraea. By affiliating temporarily with the School District, I can move around Orario as a student for the next year and a half – no guild registration required!"
"One and a half years is enough time for our familia to grow strong enough to establish ourselves in Orario!"
Astraea ruffled Shaka's hair, her eyes crinkling with warmth: "Do what you think is best, I trust you."
The slaying of the Black Dragon was a tragic wish that weighed on the world. After Alise and the others fell in battle, Astraea had given up on personally participating in the war.
But Shaka's appearance had reignited her hope. No god desired liberation for the lower realms more than she did.
"This child may inherit the will of those who came before, spreading the starlight of victory to every corner of the world."
Astraea thought to herself.