「Practice makes... mediocre?」
Tatsuya stood on the jagged remains of the balcony, looking down at the ruined courtyard below. His eyes followed the slow, deliberate movements of the iguana monster as it prowled between the stone pillars. After weeks of being stuck in this twisted ruin, he knew one thing for sure: no amount of reading could make him feel prepared for the creatures that roamed this place.
Still... knowing doesn't hurt, he thought, his mind drifting to the species documentary he had buried himself in every night. Yet, even with all that information, it didn't stop the gnawing feeling in his gut that one wrong move could mean his death.
He shivered as the memory of the saber-tooth monster flashed in his mind. What kind of world has things like that? And then there was the iguana, with its massive, scaly body slinking through the courtyard, snapping up bugs as though they were nothing more than snacks.
"I mean, seriously," he muttered under his breath, though no one was around to hear him. "An iguana monster? That's what we're dealing with? What is this, someone's fever dream?" He crossed his arms and let out a low chuckle. His sarcasm was more of a shield now, a way to fend off the constant pressure of fear gnawing at him.
But that wasn't what really caught his attention.
In the middle of the courtyard, nestled between two towering pillars, was a giant spider. Unlike the smaller, horned rats and spiders that scuttled around his room, this thing was monstrous—easily the size of a house. Its abdomen bristled with jagged spikes, each one gleaming in the faint light. It was horrifying, yet part of him couldn't help but stare.
Looks like the spiders in my room... except it's juiced up on some serious steroids. His stomach tightened at the sight, a subtle tension creeping through his body as he watched. There was something thick in the air, a sense that something was about to happen.
He kept his gaze fixed on the courtyard below as the iguana's tongue flicked out, aiming directly at the spider's web. The spider reacted instantly, dodging just in time as the tongue sliced through the web and slammed into the stone wall with a deafening crack. Dust rained down from above, settling in a fine mist as the impact left a sizable dent in the stone.
Tatsuya instinctively crouched, pressing himself against the edge of the jagged balcony, his heart pounding in his chest. What the hell am I even watching?
Down below, the iguana retracted its tongue, its muscles coiling, preparing for another attack. But the spider wasn't giving it a chance. Its eight legs moved in a blur as it darted between the pillars, weaving through the courtyard with unnerving speed and precision. The scraping sound of its legs against the stone sent a chill through Tatsuya's spine.
Then, without warning, the spider lunged. Its fangs bared, dripping with venom, it aimed for the iguana's exposed side. The attack was sharp, fast—precise.
But the iguana was faster.
With a swift, brutal motion, the iguana spun around, its massive claws slicing through the air with deadly accuracy. The razor-sharp talons met the spider's soft underbelly, tearing through it with ease. The spider let out a high-pitched screech, the sound bouncing off the stone walls, filling the air with its agony as its body crumpled to the ground, twitching.
The iguana stood over the fallen spider, its head raised in triumph, letting out a low, guttural roar. Its claws dug into the spider's body, pulling it apart with a final display of dominance.
Tatsuya swallowed hard, still crouched at the edge of the balcony. "That's gotta be the worst stomach ache in monster history. Definitely top ten," he muttered, but his voice had lost some of its edge.
Just as he was about to relax, something much worse happened.
The spider's abdomen ruptured with a sickening pop, releasing hundreds of smaller spiders that flooded out in every direction. Each one was roughly the size of Tatsuya's hand, and they skittered across the courtyard, their tiny legs tapping furiously against the stone.
Tatsuya's stomach dropped as he watched the scene unfold. "No... no, no, no, no, no..." His voice was barely a whisper, his body frozen in place. The spiders poured out like a flood, some swarming over the iguana's body, others heading for the entrance of the temple in a frenzied attempt to escape.
But the iguana wasn't about to let them get away.
With a vicious snarl, it lashed out with its tongue, blocking the entrance and sweeping the ground clean of the tiny spiders in one swift, brutal motion. The creatures that had clung to its body were quickly crushed as the iguana rolled over the ground, flattening them with its weight.
Tatsuya stared in disbelief as the iguana then began climbing the mountainside, scaling the vertical rock face with ease, its long tongue darting out to snatch up the remaining spiders.
"That's just not fair," he muttered, slowly backing away from the cliff edge. His heart was hammering in his chest, the adrenaline coursing through his veins making it hard to breathe. The last thing he needed was that iguana deciding to climb up and have him for dessert.
Turning away, Tatsuya made his way back toward the altar room, trying to calm the surge of panic still gripping him. The species documentary book lay open on the stone slab where he'd left it, the pages worn and filled with scribbled notes. But after what he had just witnessed, he wasn't in the mood for reading about more terrifying monsters.
Instead, he picked up a different book—one with an elemental symbol on the cover. "Enough with monsters. Today, I'm learning magic," he said aloud, more to himself than anything. The old rat from before scurried up to him, its tiny horned head peeking out from behind the altar.
Tatsuya glanced at the rat, narrowing his eyes. "What, you want a reward for surviving? You know I almost sacrificed you to that saber-tooth monster a month ago, right?" He shook his head, chuckling softly. "Shoo, get lost."
The rat gave him a look that was almost human—annoyed, as if it actually understood him. But it limped away, leaving Tatsuya to focus on the book in front of him.
He sat down heavily, blowing the dust off the cover before flipping it open to the first page. "Alright, let's see what we've got here. Magic time."
But as he skimmed through the pages, his excitement quickly dimmed.
"Come on... really?" he grumbled, flipping through yet another page of fables and stories about ancient wizards. "I don't care about how magic was used to summon rain a thousand years ago—where's the part about how to use it?"
Frustration boiled up inside him, and with a growl, he slammed the book shut. It wasn't helping. With an annoyed grunt, he hurled it across the room. It bounced off the stone wall with a dull thud, knocking over the skull that sat on the tablet. The book and the skull rolled across the floor, coming to rest against the wall.
He sighed, rubbing his temples. "This is just ridiculous..."
But then something caught his eye. The book had fallen open to a page he hadn't seen before. Curiosity piqued, he stood up and wandered over to where it lay. His eyes widened as he saw it—a page filled with diagrams and symbols, showing the steps for a basic water spell.
"It's not exactly beginner-friendly," he muttered, squinting at the intricately drawn symbols. "But hey, I'll take what I can get."
According to the notes, this spell was mostly used for summoning bathwater. Tatsuya let out a hollow laugh. "You heard that, skull-man? I'm gonna summon bathwater with magic. I win."
For a brief moment, he stood there grinning like an idiot, holding the book up as if he had just discovered the key to the universe. But when the room remained silent, his smile faded. The embarrassment crept in slowly, his cheeks flushing as he glanced around the empty room.
"Why do I do this to myself..." he muttered, lowering the book. "I'm so dumb."
Two hours later, Tatsuya stood in the old stone bath, his head throbbing and his wrists aching from hours of practice. Summoning water was proving to be harder than he'd thought.
"Maybe I'm going about this all wrong," he mumbled, staring at the empty basin in front of him. "I've been thinking of this like a game, but this world doesn't work like that."
He closed his eyes, letting out a slow breath as he tried to focus. Magic has to follow rules... logic. Just like everything else.
He pictured the molecular structure of water, visualizing the bonds coming together. "Create the bonds... force the output," he whispered, concentrating harder. The air around him seemed to grow heavier, the humidity thickening as he focused.
And then—finally—tiny droplets began to form in the air. They gathered into a small sphere, shimmering faintly in the dim light.
It wasn't much, but it was real.
The water dropped into the stone bath below, creating a small splash on the surface.
Tatsuya stared at the water, a slow grin spreading across his face. "Mark my words, Iguana," he muttered, his voice low with determination. "You're going to be my first target."
He glanced back at the courtyard, where the iguana lay sprawled out atop the remains of the spider, completely unaware of what was coming for it.