Authors note: Just a few things I'd like to talk about. Thank you for reading my fiction this far and I hope you will be willing to continue reading. If I can be allowed to be a little shameless I'd like to ask you readers to share this story with others. After all more people reading equals more feedback right? And I'm all for the feedback.

Also for those who might be unsure about the harem tag, I put it on there using the definition of 'a group of women perceived as centering around a particular man'. After all Calgar is surrounded by females. But I'm not planning on having the typical Rom-com setting as seen in anime, and while women might fall in love with him, he is the type of character to be loyal to only one despite Gods usually being famous for polygamy.

Me no like wishy-washy MCs.

Wasn't sure if the descriptions in this chapter came out alright. It's one thing for me to see it in my head and another to use the right combination of words to get it across. So let me know what you think.

Thanks again and without anything further here is the chapter. Enjoy!

Edit: After reading the comments I decided to take off the harem tag, as I don't see a situation in the story that would need me to have it.

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Chapter 7

The country of Ganar was located in the northwestern part of the continent, next to the ocean. Its southern border was protected by a mountain range, and the northeastern border by a thick forest. Only from the southwest could one easily enter and exit the country by land.

From the west to the north laid the ocean, and near the top was a large peninsula where the port city of Simen was located. If you head southeast and pass through a small forest, you will find the capital, Beista.

Surrounding the city edge were two layers of an even stronger version of the walls employed by the Lords for their own cities.

In the first layer was the farmland. Unlike other countries, Ganar put more importance on food quality and quantity. They enjoyed eating delicious food and it showed that other countries did as well by the fact that it was one of their major exports.

In the second layer were the residential and commerce areas, with the stores and shops being closer to the farmland and the citizens’ houses being closer to the center.

And in the center of the city were the aristocrats’ manors and the Castle. Beista had been built with a large hill as its focal point, so the Castle sat atop the hill overlooking the entire surroundings.

The capital had entrance gates in each of the cardinal directions. From the east gate entered an intercity carriage, and once it passed the first layer, it stopped at the plaza in the second.

The passengers all disembarked, including Calgar and Yumi.

“So this is Beista? Quite magnificent.” Calgar commented.

“I’d love to show you around, but let’s go to the academy first. I want to make sure everything is ready.”

The main streets of the capital were in a cross pattern and were intertwined by three circle streets surrounding the Castle and going out to the wall, resembling a target pattern. From the plaza, Calgar and Yumi headed north, following the slight curve of the street.

Lots of pedestrians lined the sides, staying out of the way of carriages and wagons. The shops were tightly packed together, with signs depicting their craft hanging above their doors.

With about an hour and a half of walking the sun was now directly overhead. As they came closer to the academy, the amount of buildings decreased. Soon they could see a group of buildings by themselves.

This was Beista’s Military Academy.

In relation to the Castle, the academy was northwest from it. Here they could see a large road connected from the main street and head in the direction of the buildings. Yumi started walking ahead with Calgar close behind.

To the right and left was open ground covered with grass, with only the occasional tree to disrupt the view. As they came closer, they could see the large central building.

Protruding from the top of it was a tall clock tower with faces on all four sides. The building had more width than length, and judging from the position of the windows, was easily three to four stories tall.

Flanking the central building on both sides were three sets of identical buildings.

Yumi pointed to the left set. “Over there are the girl dorms. Each building belongs to a different year. The one closest to us is for first years. It’s the same for the boys on the other side.”

“Then are we headed to the girl’s dorm?”

“Not yet, I need to check in at the main building.”

They climbed up the steps leading to large double doors and entered. The entrance was very spacious. On the floor was a beautiful red carpet. On the left and right were stairs leading up to the second floor.

Yumi walked directly ahead and approached a woman who was sitting behind a counter. This receptionist would deal with visitors and any general problems the students may have.

The receptionist looked up from some papers and greeted them. “Good afternoon. Well, if it isn’t Ms. Nishka. Are you ready to start the new semester?”

“Yes I am. I’m here to sign in.”

“Certainly.” She brought out a ledger from under the desk. “I’ll just have you sign a few things… Also, can I ask who that is behind you?”

“Ah, this is Calgar, my familiar.”

Calgar nodded. “A pleasure to meet you.”

The receptionist was shocked. “You found a familiar? Good for you! I knew you could do it. You’ve done well to persevere through the other students teasing.”

Yumi shook her hands in front of her. “Ha ha, yep it was tough but I succeeded. Hey Calgar how about you take this luggage to my room? I’ll meet you there later.”

She shoved her shoulder bag into his arms and gently pushed him to the entrance. “It’s the middle building, room 107 on the first floor, you can’t miss it.”

“Understood. I will see you when you’re finished.” Calgar read the mood and obediently left.

Yumi turned back to the receptionist, slightly upset. “Why did you have to say that? I didn’t want him to know…”

“Forgive me; it was a slip of the tongue. I will be more careful in the future.”

“It’s too late now that he knows.”

The receptionist gave an apologetic look. “I’m really sorry.”

“Just give me the ledger please.”

Yumi took a pen and signed where the receptionist pointed out. Finally when she signed the last blank line the receptionist added.

“That’s right, I almost forgot, but it seems the principal wanted to have a word with you when you arrived.”

“Really? Well, I wanted to talk to him anyway, but this is unexpected. Did he say what it was about?”

“Nope, just that you were to go see him when you arrived.”

“Then I’ll be on my way. Have a good rest of your day.”

“You as well Ms. Nishka, please enjoy the semester.”

Yumi walked to the stairs and climbed to the second floor. In the middle of the hall were the steps that led up to a landing that doubled back to the third floor. Upon arriving at the top of the stairs, you would be greeted by a large beautiful oaken door. This was the principal’s office.

Yumi approached and knocked on the large door. There was a brief pause followed by a man’s voice telling her to come in.

“I am Yumi Nishka. It seems you have called for me Principal?”

In the center of the room was a coffee table with two soft velvet couches on opposite sides. On the right side of the wall was a display case full of medals and trophies. In the back of the room was a large desk.

Sitting behind that was a man in his fifties. His hair was brown, but had a slight touch of grey mixing in, giving him a refined atmosphere. He had sharp blue eyes that seemed to pierce through and analyze anything he looked at. His face was clean shaven and his overall build was on the slim side. He wore a dark blue embroidered robe, a common indicator that showed he had a mastery of magic.

His name was Logan Marrs, and he was the principal.

Logan looked up from a book he was reading. “Good you’re here. I wanted to talk to you about a message I received from Reinhardt.”

Yumi was puzzled. “From grandfather?”

Logan set the book down and motioned for Yumi to take a seat, to which she complied.

“Yes, in his message he mentioned that you were able to contract with a familiar?”

“Yes, it happened on the way home. It is actually something I planned to talk to you about.”

“Is that right? I more or less received the details in the message, but I’d like to hear it from you.”

“I understand. What exactly would you like to know?”

Logan took a sip from a cup before asking. “Is it true that he is stronger than Seren?”

Yumi hesitated in answering, but finally said. “I don’t know, as they have never fought, but I want to say that my gut tells me that Calgar would win.”

Logan smiled. “Interesting…”

Yumi showed a confused look.

Logan shook his head. “Sorry, let me elaborate. Your grandfather and I go way back. I met him in this very school when he was just a bratty teenager. He was probably concerned about you getting involved in something, so he asked me to keep an eye on you.”

“You knew grandfather? But he never mentioned… wait, did you have the nickname Logie?”

Logan’s face turned sour. “That old codger called me that to other people huh? Thanks, I’ll be sure to get him back twofold. But getting back to the main issue is the fact that this Calgar is always materialized?”

Yumi nodded. “Yes.”

Logan again had a smile. “Really, it's very interesting… I would love to have a chat with him. Where is he exactly?”

“I sent him over to the dorms with some luggage. I can go get him if you’d like?”

He waved his hand dismissively. “No need, I can have a long chat with him when you start classes. So about him not drawing too much attention… Just have him stay in your room during breaks and lunches. Basically avoid showing him off to the students as much as possible and I think it will work out.”

“Isn’t that a little cruel?”

Logan shrugged. “If you don’t care about keeping a low profile like Reinhardt wants, go ahead and show him off. Just know that it will have consequences.”

“I understand. I’ll talk it over with Calgar.”

“Alright, that’s all I had to say. If there is nothing more, you’re free to leave. Oh, tell Calgar I’d like to talk at least once and that he is welcome to come anytime.”

Yumi stood up. “I’ll be sure to let him know. Until next time Principal.”

Logan opened up the book he was reading earlier. “Mm, stay out of trouble kid.”

Yumi exited the room and headed to the dorms.

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Calgar opened the door that was marked 107 and went inside. To the right was a table with two chairs and a sofa tucked against the wall. There was a door that likely led to the bedroom.

On the left was a very simple sink and stovetop, with a tiny bit of counter space. Cabinets hung above where plates and cups could be stored. Another door on this side led to a simple bathroom with a shower in it.

When he had first entered the Nishka mansion, Calgar was intrigued by things like the sink and shower. Yumi had explained how they worked to him and he was impressed. But it wasn’t that he was impressed with the ingenuity of such a contraption, after all magic could do the same thing with half the effort.

What amazed him the most was that after losing the knowledge to do the action with magic that the mortals would come up with a non-magical alternative. It became clear to him after researching a few books from the Nishka study, that the mortals of today treated magic as a tool mostly for war.

Calgar set the luggage Yumi entrusted to him on the floor next to the couch.

“Luna, Sol we need to talk.”

The swords at his waist glowed for a moment and suddenly the twins appeared in front of him in their mortal disguises.

Luna stretched. “Ah, feels good to move around. I was starting to get stiff.”

Sol faced Calgar. “What is it Father?”

“I have a job for you two. I want you to go around and find information on powerful magical artifacts.”

Sol nodded. “It shall be done.”

Luna questioned. “What do you plan on doing with magic artifacts?”

“It has to do with me regaining my former strength. It should be possible to absorb an artifact's energy and speed up my recovery.”

Calgar folded his arms and continued in a lower tone. “Listen well girls, our highest priority is restoring my strength, after that is Yumi’s well-being. Everything else isn’t important, understood?”

The twins smiled at him; of course they would put him before anything else.

“”We understand.””

The two left through the door to start on the task their Master assigned.

Calgar looked out the window. He once again thought about the future. What should he do when he returns to his former self? He learned the Gods live in the Celestial Realm. Should he go there? Would they welcome him?

Due to the actions his brothers and sisters took, staying on the planet with the mortals was not a wise decision. He knew it would disrupt the balance. It was proven when they first came here. Only with all of their influences combined did everything settle into place.

It crossed his mind that his absence might have had a detrimental effect, but if it did it was not so obvious to immediately notice.

He still didn’t have enough information.

If possible he wanted to talk with the other Gods, but at the same time a part of him was afraid to. It was ironic. In everything Calgar did, he had confidence. Be it war or any other craft, talking with another, giving advice, teaching, scolding, it didn’t matter; he always did them confidently.

But when it came to the Gods… he hesitated. Why? Even if he asked himself he couldn’t find a conclusive answer. Was it because of the relationship he had with them? That feeling of closeness that only comes with one’s own family? Was keeping the other party at arm’s length the secret to being confident?

Many years had passed, could the Gods have changed? What if they aren’t the same as before? Calgar wondered if this was the source of his hesitation.

The door opened and Yumi entered the room, bringing Calgar’s thoughts back to the present.

“Welcome back Yumi. Did everything go well?”

Yumi flopped down on the couch. “Well enough. I talked with the Principal and he suggested that you avoid other students as much as possible. But I thought that seemed a little harsh. What do you think?”

Calgar thought a moment. “Rather than being seen, as long as they don’t notice I’m around it will be fine right?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Even though my armor is flashy, I’m quite skilled at concealing my presence. To normal mortals it would seem as if I’m not there, but it’s really only playing a trick on the brain. Would you like a demonstration?”

“Sure.”

“Alright, I’ll leave the room and walk in. Try to see if you can notice me.”

Calgar left and closed the door. Yumi still sitting on the couch stared at it.

The door opened normally, but she didn’t see Calgar walk in.

She called out. “Aren’t you coming in?”

“I’m right here.”

Yumi shrieked and jumped up in surprise. Calgar was standing next to her.

“H-how… when in the world did you come in?”

“When you saw the door open I entered. Remember how I said it was tricking the brain? It’s a technique to make the brain register me as something unimportant and so you don’t think about it.”

“How frightening… I swore you turned invisible or something.”

“That’s an option too, but at my current power it would be quite taxing.”

Yumi sighed. “Again I’m amazed by you Calgar.”

He chuckled. “Why thank you. Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?”

“No, all that was important was signing in. We are free for two more days.”

“Then if you don’t mind, how about showing me around the capital?”

Yumi smiled. “Good Idea. Let me clean up and we can head out.”

“I’ll be outside the room waiting.”

While Calgar stepped out into the hall, Yumi headed for the shower.

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Extra: I want to thank Lift-off for finding a really cool article on how the brain perceives images. It's very Intersesting!

https://www.rt.com/news/brain-neuroscience-visual-information-709/