episode_0016

“It’s our first class, and I should have arrived for the class faster than this, but due to my work, I just returned from the north, so I’m only now arriving at the academy. So from now on, the schedule will usually change like this… As you all know, our academy has different classes every week, so let’s make it a habit to check the schedule.”

The professor of summoning magic started writing something on the board with laughter.

“Now, summoning magic. It has a wide range of fields. Any students willing to answer? Usually no one comes forward, so let’s draw out your responses. Summoning magic is generally divided into two categories, living beings and non-living beings. In the realm of living beings, it’s usually the summoning of familiar spirits with whom you make a contract, and in non-living beings, it’s the summoning of alchemical life forms derived from alchemy or the summoning of natural substances.”

Saying that, the professor looked ahead and snapped his fingers. As soon as he snapped his fingers, an eagle appeared from the swiftly drawn magic circle.

“This is the summoning of a familiar spirit. What I will teach you is how to make a contract with this familiar spirit and how to call it forth. And once all that is done, then we can think about multiple summonings and contracts, and if even that is done, well… let’s think about that when the time comes. Anyway, since you’re all first years, just making a contract with a familiar spirit will be overwhelming enough.”

After dismissing the summoned familiar spirit, the professor grasped a wand in his left hand.

“First, we need to find your familiar spirits… Hmm, any students who have familiar spirits, please raise your hands.”

Several students raised their hands, and the professor pointed his wand at them. Just as the protective barrier was unfolding rapidly, the professor spoke from the corner of his mouth, leaving everyone wondering what he was about to do.

“From now on, you will be taken to somewhere that remains in your memory, and once you arrive there, you will meet the familiar spirit most compatible with you. Of course, it won’t be easy. If any of you feel it’s dangerous, hit your right thigh with your right hand. Understood?”

“Then, ‘Mana, put them to sleep.’”

As the professor’s words ended, everything in front of me turned dark.

I heard the sound of the wind in my ears. Startled, when I opened my eyes, I saw a vast snowy mountain. Slowly inhaling in front of the barren trees on the snowy mountain, the cold rushed in.

Is this somewhere in my memory? I’ve never seen such a sight in my life. At the moment when I wondered if it was a memory of my body, something seemed to come down from the snowy mountain. A large something slowly approaching me, fear surged through my body. It’s dangerous.

Carefully, I spoke the incantation.

“Mana, protect my body.”

At the same time as my incantation, a protective barrier unfolded around me, and as I met the approaching being, breath escaped from my lips.

It was beautiful. More beautiful than anything I had seen in this snowy mountain. Its pupils were black. The fur covering its entire body shimmered silver, and ice particles emanated from its breath. It was a large wolf.

In the eyes of the wolf, which seemed ready to pounce on me at any moment, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

Come to think of it, didn’t the professor only tell us how to meet them, but not what comes next? And at that moment, the wolf lunged at me.

In response to its approach, I quickly raised my right hand and chanted the spell.

“Mana, shatter the enemy before me!”

At my shout, the impact magic flew from my fingertips and struck the wolf’s body, causing it to stagger from the magic.

Slowly inhaling, I stepped back. If I hadn’t unfolded the protective barrier earlier, I could have used the impact magic two more times, but I didn’t trust myself to fend off the wolf’s claws and teeth. Could I really do it? Clenching and unclenching my fist, the wolf approached slowly.

The black pupils targeting me, sharp teeth and claws, a posture that seemed ready to spring at any moment.

Instinctive judgment came to me. As my thoughts settled in my mind, I clenched my right hand into a fist and struck my thigh forcefully. Then, once again, everything in front of me turned dark.

“Actually, I didn’t intend to make a contract with you from the first class… You are indeed a princess of Aralia.”

As the professor spoke, Cerestia looked to her right, where a flickering flame spirit stood.

“It’s the first class, so let’s applaud the student who successfully contracts with their familiar.”

The classroom filled with applause, and Cerestia casually dismissed the flame spirit and looked ahead.

“So, in fact, the purpose of this first class is for you to confirm your familiars. It’s known that the first being encountered in this space of memory is usually a being one fears, or one’s past, or a being one will encounter in the future. Making a contract from the first class is almost impossible. So from now on, you need to think. How should you deal with it if you encounter it again?”

“Each familiar’s actions will be different. There may be familiars that attack, and there may be those that attempt dialogue. Let’s find ways to deal with them. If your familiar attacks, you must fight and win, and if it attempts dialogue, you must give the answer it wants.”

“And when that process is over, the familiar will propose a contract to you. You can’t make a mana contract yet. Well then, that’s all for today. Let’s all learn how to deal with familiars by the next class.”

After the lecture ended and students began to leave the classroom, I approached Sharen and spoke.

“Sharen.”

“Yeah, Astan.”

“What came out for you?”

“I… an odd golem appeared. What about you?”

“A wolf came out for me. If I had fought, I would have surely died.”

At my words, Sharen nodded, and I spoke to Sharen.

“I need to go buy a staff on the holiday. I didn’t plan to, but I realized this time that I lack mana.”

“So you’re going to buy a staff? That’s a foolish way.”

“Because I lack mana, I judged that it’s better to increase the power of magic to reduce the amount of magic used. So, Sharen, please.”

With those words and a smile, Sharen looked at me and chuckled.

“If she comes with a photon later.”

“Dirty aristocrat.”

“A kind aristocrat for Photon.”

And we both laughed heartily.

After the lecture, as I arrived at the restaurant with casual steps, no one was there. Sitting alone in the quiet restaurant, the fairy naturally placed the food in front of me, and as I casually ate it, someone sat down in front of me.

Thinking it might be Sharen, when I raised my head, there was Ceresria.

“Nice evening, isn’t it?”

“Well, yes, tonight is full of the light of Lunatemyss.”

The full moon was already up outside. Due to the late end of the lecture, it seemed like I might be a little late for work, but still, I needed to have a meal, so I tried to eat quickly. But Ceresria, who I faced, was smiling at me.

“You didn’t ask about the servant.”

“I’ll find out about the summoning method in the next lecture.”

“What came out as Astan’s servant?”

“A wolf came out, a strange wolf that seemed to live in the north. It was a strange wolf that exhaled the breath of ice from its mouth.”

“I hope you find the summoning method.”

Saying that, Ceresria smiled mischievously, then left something in front of me and left, and I picked it up.

It was a small jewel. Since I was unfamiliar with this kind of thing, I didn’t know what it was or why it was given to me, so I put it in my pocket. I should return it when I meet her later.

Thinking that, I quickly finished the meal left by the fairies and when I came out of school, it felt like the full moon was shining on me.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“Yeah, Astan, you’ve worked hard today… Don’t come tomorrow.”

“What’s the matter?”

“I need to briefly visit my hometown, enjoy Ignolia’s first holiday.”

With those words, Toa Madam laughed, and after putting the apron on the counter, I said I would leave first and came out of the bar.

As I came out of the bar, the first thing that caught my eye was the full moon. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a full moon. On a day like this, I don’t want to go back to the dormitory, and while I was thinking that, I heard a cat’s sound in my ear.

The cat that had always been behind the tavern was looking at me from there. After gesturing as if telling me to follow it, I cautiously followed behind as it moved.

The path the cat walked was filled with darkness. Slowly, the night’s cold rose up from my toes and covered my body, and amidst the darkness where it was hard to see, the cat continued to move through the alley without stopping.

“Where on earth are you trying to go?”

Then, as if understanding my words, the cat looked at me and started walking again. When we slowly arrived at the end of the alley, someone was standing there. Bathed in the light of the full moon at the end of the dark path I had walked so far, I cautiously spoke.

“…Who are you?”

As if hearing my words, the person turned their head to look at me. The person wearing a hooded robe had a face that was not clearly visible. I couldn’t tell if they were a man or a woman, but instinct told me that the person was a woman.

However, the person did not respond to my words, and as I stared blankly at them, the sound of the cat’s cry reached my ears.

At that moment,

The person disappeared.