The class buzzed with whispers as the teacher walked in, wearing a robe that shimmered faintly with spiritual energy. Without saying a word, she tapped the board, and a glowing diagram appeared—showing a progression tree.
"Today, we'll be learning about khodam development," she began. "A shaman's strength lies not only in their raw talent but in how they manage and grow their khodams."
She pointed to the board as the diagram shifted.
"You start with one natural khodam. That khodam begins at level 1. Once it reaches level 5, you can awaken your second natural khodam. After that, you'll need to raise both of them to level 10 to unlock the third one. To summon your fourth, you must raise all three to level 15."
"Upon obtaining your fourth khodam, you're considered a fully certified shaman and can graduate from this academy."
The diagram shifted again, showing two new categories: Artificial Khodam and Jin Slaves.
"A khodam at any level can equip artificial items and jin slaves. These are support-type spiritual entities or tools. Artificial khodams include weapons, armor, accessories, or mystical artifacts—mostly inanimate objects empowered by spiritual essence. Jin slaves, however, can be living creatures: animals, plants, monsters, even humanoids."
She snapped her fingers. A chart appeared beside the diagram:
---
Khodam Capacity by Level:
| Khodam Level | Artificial Khodams | Jin Slaves |
|--------------|--------------------|------------|
| Level 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Level 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Level 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Level 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Level 5 | 5 | 5 |
---
"These numbers apply to each natural khodam. If you have two level 2 khodams, then you can have four artificial khodams and four jin slaves in total."
A student raised their hand. "Can we mix genders? Like, can a male shaman control a female jin slave?"
The teacher narrowed her eyes and replied firmly, "No. That's one of the unbreakable rules of the spirit world. Male shamans can only enslave male jins, and female shamans can only control female jins. This limitation applies regardless of power or rank—even the weakest female jin, like a female tuyul, cannot be enslaved by a male shaman."
Whispers broke out across the room. Some students looked disappointed. Others, intrigued.
Rai scribbled everything down, eyes wide with realization. With proper leveling, khodams could become an army of their own—customizable and specialized. The idea of using jin slaves as spiritual decoys or backup lives was terrifying… and genius.
Artificial Khodams: These are created from objects such as weapons, armor, artifacts, or accessories. They act as enhancers, attribute boosters, or elemental extenders for the khodam they're assigned to.
Jin Slaves: These are living beings that can be ordered, possessed, or used as substitute lives. When a jin slave dies, the khodam inside can escape and return. As long as the shaman lives, their jin slaves will regenerate, even after being destroyed.
"But if the shaman dies," the teacher warned, "the jin slaves die with them."
The class fell silent.
Rai leaned toward Unna and whispered, "So… if I get four khodams to level 5, I can get 20 jin slaves and 20 artifacts?"
Unna whispered back, "Yeah. That's like running your own mini army…"
Rai smirked slightly, thoughts already racing about what kind of artifacts and jin would fit her khodam's personality.
She had a long road ahead, but at least now the map was clearer.
After a brain-melting class full of theory—more intense than any national math exam—each student finally received two glorious books from the heavens (aka the teacher). These books were thick, heavy, and could probably knock someone out cold if thrown hard enough.
The first book was titled "Artificial Khodam Encyclopedia – Part 1", and everyone got the same one regardless of gender. Inside? A wild collection of weapons, armor, magical earrings, floating boots, and other items that screamed "fashion meets destruction." If you thought accessories couldn't kill—this book would politely prove you wrong.
The second book, though… that's where things got suspiciously silent.
Why? Because it was the "Jin Slave Catalog – Gender Edition Part 1."
Boys received the male jin version.
Girls received the female jin version.
And yes, it had pictures.
Not just regular pictures, but full-blown model-style illustrations, complete with:
Habitat: "Lurks in swamps while smoking lightning."
How to Capture: "Approach slowly, initiate conversation, and trap them using the Chains of Love™."
Uses: "Can absorb poison, cook noodles, or lend an ear during emotional breakdowns."
Alfin, who sat beside Diana, looked like a curious cat in a fish market, trying to sneak peeks at the female jin book. His eyes widened as he saw a jin girl shaped like a giant flower maiden that could release calming scents from her hair.
Diana caught him and smirked,
"What are you doing, Fin? Your book's cool too. You've got guard jins and construction jins," she teased, slamming her book shut.
Rai, sitting nearby, was calmly reading… until she wasn't.
As she flipped through pages, her face turned into a shimmering shade of awkward pink.
"Are these jins or RPG characters? There's one who can serve tea, give foot massages, even specialize in toenail polishing!" Rai thought, chuckling to herself.
Each page felt like a wild mix of game manual, shopping catalog, and fantasy novel. And weirdly… it was addictive.
Rai got serious:
"Okay, this one's good for patrols… this one's a healing type… and this one—perfect gossip partner."
Still, Rai had to be careful. If she looked too interested in the female jin book, someone might get suspicious. So he calmly smiled while thinking,
"I'm just curious… not creepy. It's envy, not pervy."
Meanwhile, all over the classroom, students were marking their favorite pages like they were picking skins in a gacha game.
Class ended that day not with tired yawns—but with excited whispers and dreams of leveling up fast, not to graduate… but to unlock cooler and crazier jin companions from their brand-new catalogs.