SHAMAN PROTOCOL
Chapter 88: MOO: Manifestation of Oppressed Omen

Chapter 88: MOO: Manifestation of Oppressed Omen

For a while, they all just stared at the grandpa, who should’ve been the biggest help in this activity. Sadly, the man carried a legacy of failure. No wonder he never advanced to the next year, let alone graduated.

The only good thing about learning the old man had an astounding world record in failure... was that now, the twins were holding his hands.

"Grandpa, if you die, are you going to become a ghost?" Boom asked.

Blitz followed up with, "When are you going to die?"

"Haha! I don’t know." The grandpa laughed. "But I hope I won’t become a ghost."

"That would be scary!" Blitz mused, while Boom nodded in agreement.

Mikel snapped his eyes forward, now walking behind the old man and the twins. Ran walked beside him.

Ran sighed heavily. "We’re doomed."

Mikel glanced at this anxiety incarnate, unimpressed. "Ran, shouldn’t you be walking ahead?"

"Heh..." Ran let out an awkward laugh. "I think... I should?"

[Master, the panic machine might be a panic machine. However, he is wise enough to quietly let the three go ahead as a sacrifice.]

He probably didn’t think that far ahead, but it did come off like that.

Mikel shook his head and looked around the forest. "By the way, we’ve been walking forever. Where’s the ghost?"

"Uh..." Ran perked up and looked around too, his steps slowing. "Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen any other students either."

"That is because this forest is a labyrinth," said the old man ahead of them. "Mr. Nocty probably placed us inside his Spirit Zone."

Mikel arched a brow while the twins looked up at the old man with wide, curious eyes.

"Spirit Zone?" the twins echoed. "What’s that, Grandpa?"

"Spirit Zones are barriers that shamans can unleash for different reasons," the old man explained. "Some use them to hide, others as protection, and some to create illusions originating from the caster."

The twins blinked. "I don’t understand."

"Me too! I don’t get it!"

"They’re barriers," the old man said with a chuckle, flashing them a patient smile. "Specifically, Mr. Nocty put us inside his barrier so we can’t see the other students or the spirits assigned to them. In this barrier, we’re under the illusion that it’s just us—and our target—in the forest."

"Ohhh..." the twins nodded, mouths forming matching round shapes.

Then, in unison: "We still don’t understand it!"

The grandpa laughed again, continuing on with the two children still clutching his hands.

Mikel, meanwhile, stayed quiet. He looked up at the canopy overhead, sunlight filtering through the leaves.

So that’s why it suddenly felt weird, huh?

"Does that mean we’re just in an illusion?" he asked, curious. "And we just can’t see them?"

Ran shook his head, reminded that Mikel barely knew anything about shaman rules or the extent of their abilities.

"Not exactly," he said. "It’s more like... we’re in the same space, but on separate dimensions."

"Dimensions?"

"He’s correct," the grandpa chimed in without turning back. "We’re all in the same space, but in different dimensions. Once you’re inside someone’s Spirit Zone, the only way out is by overpowering it with your own... or fulfilling the zone’s conditions. Hence, a labyrinth."

"Normally, shamans use Spirit Zones in battle to avoid damaging the real world," he continued. "But they also serve many purposes—especially in the academy’s simulations."

"Still don’t get it!" Blitz chirped.

Boom nodded. "Me neither!"

"You’ll understand it when you get older," the grandpa replied kindly.

"Old like you?!"

"I hope much earlier."

Mikel rocked his head to and fro, then glanced discreetly to the corner.

So... something like the Nightbound, huh? Doom, do you know about that?

[I am not aware of their terminology. However, I recognize a skill like that — Anima.]

"We’ll learn it in the second year and master it before graduation," Ran said with surprising confidence. "It’s one of the best skills a shaman can have."

"And why’s that?"

"Because Spirit Zone doubles a shaman’s strength. It gives them a massive upper hand," the grandpa said, glancing back this time. "It not only raises your chances of winning, but surviving."

He continued forward with the twins holding onto him. The children kept gazing up at his weathered face, smiling when he smiled down at them with warmth.

Ran and Mikel simply stared at his back.

Ran looked down at his palm. "Right," he breathed out. Then he clenched it, took a breath, and jogged to catch up. "Wait for me!"

But instead of stopping behind the three, Ran jogged ahead, taking the lead. He turned back to them with a kind smile.

"I still can’t wield my Phantom properly, but I can summon him. Maybe he can help us find the target."

"Yay~!" the twins cheered, like they were born to say it in sync.

"Phantoms, huh?" The grandpa tilted his head slightly, watching Ran as if he were reminded of someone long ago. "How time flies."

Meanwhile, Mikel kept walking at a slow, steady pace, unintentionally widening the gap between himself and the group. It wasn’t far—he could still hear them—but it felt like a stretch.

Anima, huh?

It was his first time hearing about Spirit Zones, but it sounded useful. He couldn’t help thinking—if he’d known how to use that earlier, maybe his home wouldn’t have needed ghost labor in the first place.

Then again, he wouldn’t end up in here at all. Not because the academy wouldn’t find him... but because he’d probably still be resisting Doom.

I should probably ask the Book of the Dead if it knows how I can learn it faster.

[Master, the Protocol is a guide toward the path of a true shaman. Creating an Anima is one of the steps you’ll naturally encounter.]

At my level... do you think I still can’t learn it?

[You already can, Master.]

Mikel’s brows twitched as his steps halted. He stared at Doom’s floating system screen in disbelief.

Since when?

But just as the thought crossed his mind, the ground rumbled beneath his feet. Ahead of him, the others also stopped at the sudden tremor.

"Huh?" The twins blinked, then turned back with frowns.

The moment their eyes landed on Mikel, something massive burst out of the ground behind him.

The earth split open, and a loud, bellowing spirit cow launched itself from the dirt.

"MOOOO!!"