Disaster-Class Spirit Summoning
"Yawn…."
Rian lifted his heavy eyelids and slowly sat up. Outside the window, the red sunset had already settled in, dyeing the dorm room in twilight hues. His roommate Asrion must have gone out, as he was nowhere to be seen. Thanks to sleeping soundly all afternoon, the intense fatigue had eased considerably.
Hmm. Digestion's complete.
Rian patted his stomach, checking his body's condition. He could feel a faint layer of flesh on cheeks that had been sunken from long-term malnutrition and arms that had been as skinny as twigs. The gaunt impression of the orphan boy was gradually giving way to the outline of a beautiful youth.
But this is nowhere near enough.
Rian got out of bed and did some light stretching as he thought. The mana flow at his fingertips was perfect. But the hardware of his body—that is, the vessel that had to contain and endure it—was still subpar.
I need a few more days of stuffing myself with meat and securing plenty of sleep.
His experience from that morning's illusion magic class had piqued his interest, but pushing his frail body too hard now would just make him collapse again.
I can't die like in my past life.
In his previous life, he had died from overwork. He hadn't mingled much with people, but he often took commissions from so-called friends he'd made on anonymous boards. The pay had been decent.
For him, breaking down and reassembling those cryptic codes and languages had been both his hobby and his job. Even his knowledge of math, physics, and thermodynamics had just been tools he'd picked up for fun to decode ciphers more dimensionally.
In the end, he'd holed up in his room, forgetting meals and sleep, tackling puzzles day and night until overwork claimed him.
Matching hobby and work is great, but dying makes it pointless. This time, I need to manage my body as rigorously as my hobbies.
Rian opened the door and stepped out. Time to fill his stomach with more meat again.
As he exited the dorm hallway and passed through the west building's main gate—
"Rian—!"
A familiar voice cut through the evening air. Before Rian could turn—
A girl with jet-black hair cascading freely came running up with quick pattering steps and threw herself into his arms.
"Vesperia?"
Rian accepted Vesperia's hug, stumbling back slightly.
"Rian! Thank you so much! It's all thanks to you! Hehe~"
Vesperia poked her head out from his embrace, her amethyst eyes sparkling. Her face brimmed with unmistakable deep gratitude and affection.
"Nyaong~"
Blackie, perched on Vesperia's head, greeted him too.
Then Ardelia approached, her dazzling golden hair swaying. Brightie followed obediently at the hem of her skirt.
"I offer my sincere thanks as well, Rian. If not for you, we would have faced a real disaster today."
Ardelia didn't hug him as fiercely as Vesperia. But her red eyes held a truer gratitude than ever before. It wasn't her calculating smile. It was the pure smile of a single girl.
Rian scratched his chin, puzzled. Then he glanced at the two spirits sticking close to the girls.
"Hmm. Looks like the spirits pulled their weight while I was out cold."
At his words, Vesperia widened her eyes.
"Huh? You knew what happened to us?"
"I was dead to the world until just now. How would I?"
"Then how'd you know the spirits did something awesome?"
To Vesperia's curious question, Rian answered flatly.
"Obvious, isn't it?"
He started counting on his fingers.
"One, you two come up to me out of nowhere and thank me profusely. Two, the only meaningful variable I've provided you since this morning is spirit enhancement. Three, so the only logical conclusion for why you're grateful is that the spirits more than earned their keep."
Vesperia gaped and clapped in awe at his clear logic.
"Whoa…! Rian, you're so smart! You're exactly right!"
Rian just shrugged indifferently at her pure admiration.
"A lot happened,"
Ardelia stepped forward and calmly recounted the afternoon garden incident.
Intruders kidnapping inside the academy. A surprise attack targeting Vesperia. And how Blackie's shadow blades and Brightie's eye beams had turned the kidnappers into bloody messes in an instant.
After hearing it all, Rian nodded and pointed at Brightie, sprawled at Ardelia's feet in its velociraptor form.
"See? Told you so."
"Pardon?"
"You freaked out when I set this form this morning. But how's it in real combat? Predator base with compressed light attribute fired from the eyes for quick suppression—perfect efficiency, right? Nothing beats it for battle."
She chuckled and admitted it.
"…Yes. You're right. Your insight was spot on. This one's performance was incredible."
Ardelia stroked Brightie's sleek head feathers without hesitation, honestly acknowledging it. Pleased by her touch, Brightie cooed "Kyuuu—" and rubbed its face against her palm.
Watching, Rian said,
"Well, they earned their food, so good. Now I gotta eat. Need meat first to recover."
The three naturally headed to Diamond Class's exclusive dining hall.
Dinner was, as expected, a meat feast. Rian wiped his mouth with a napkin after clearing the plates in seconds.
"Alright, dinner's done. Time to move."
"Where to, Rian?"
"Professor Elmiana first. Gotta finish my spirit summoning. Then to Professor Ash's office to discuss the illusion magic database."
Rian's evening schedule was clear. Build virtual reality. To kick off that grand hobby, he'd wrap up with Professor Elmiana quickly, then head to Professor Ash.
Vesperia's eyes sparkled.
"Whoa! Rian, can I watch you summon your spirit?"
Ardelia gazed at him with quiet anticipation too. That overwhelming mana wave from morning that nearly shook the classroom and collapsed the building. What monstrous, wondrous form would that unknown spirit take?
Both girls were bursting with curiosity.
"No reason not to. It'll be outside anyway—plenty of space."
At Rian's easy approval, the girls jumped up excitedly. The three left the dining hall toward Professor Elmiana's office.
But just as they passed the grand archway entrance—
"Ah! Student Rian! There you are!"
A silver-haired elf paced anxiously by the flower beds in front. Professor Elmiana. Spotting him, she rushed over barefoot like she'd met her savior.
"You were waiting here?"
"Yes! Can't waste time going back and forth to the office!"
Professor Elmiana seemed unable to bear even a moment's delay. Panting, she grabbed Rian's hand.
"I heard about the incident! Your tuned spirits toyed with kidnappers targeting the lady like dolls! My goodness!"
She'd dropped even the forced calm from class.
"Come on, hurry! The site's all set perfectly!"
Grabbing his hand, she led the way. Rian and the girls followed.
Professor Elmiana led them to a vast clearing on the academy outskirts. Meant for training grounds, but now its center bore a massive, intricate spirit summoning circle dozens of meters wide.
"After the indoor circle blew this morning, I rented this with my authority. Ground it with special mana stones for a super sturdy summoning circle just for your spirit, Student Rian."
She puffed her chest proudly.
"This size and durability can handle even a spirit from a 9-Circle archmage. Go on, Student Rian—show us your power!"
Her eyes gleamed like a fanatic audience awaiting a stage show.
Vesperia and Ardelia retreated to the edge, watching Rian's back intently.
"Whew…."
Rian ambled to the center of the giant circle.
Summoning, huh.
He'd roughly guessed what spirit tried to emerge when the morning circle burst. The familiar, colossal image that flashed in his mind as mana took form. The perfect symbol of fantasy he'd unconsciously imprinted from countless webnovels and fantasy films in his past life.
It'll be big, but this space should handle it.
Rian stood stock-still in the circle's heart. Then he fully opened his 4D tesseract-structured Mana Circle.
Come forth, my fashion spirit!
Wuuuuuuuung—!
In that instant, the entire training ground's air screamed and compressed.
"Gasp…!"
"B-breath…!"
Ardelia and Vesperia nearly collapsed at the edge. Professor Elmiana hastily shielded them with defensive magic, her face shocked.
It wasn't mere mana waves. The space itself warped under immense gravity-like pressure. The ground trembled faintly, soon shaking the whole clearing like an earthquake.
Paaaaaaaah—!
A massive forepaw emerged from the giant circle Professor Elmiana had drawn overnight.
"T-this magnitude…!"
Her pink eyes widened to saucers, mouth agape.
Kudududuk! Kwagagak!
"……?!"
"……?!"
Professor Elmiana, Ardelia—even ever-cheerful Vesperia—froze, mouths shut.
What descended before them was calamity incarnate, trampling human common sense.
Thud—!
Each step cratered the dirt, cracking the earth. Four massive, hefty legs. Jet-black scales shimmering dark red armored its body seamlessly. It unfurled a pair of enormous wings from its back.
Overwhelming. Wingspan exceeding 150 meters of vast leathery membrane. Head held high, it towered 47 meters—surpassing the academy's main building. Including its thick tail, total length surpassed 140 meters.
A walking mountain.
The strongest creature in any fantasy setting? Dragon, obviously.
KRAAAAAAAARRRRHHHH—!!!!
Finally, the fully summoned colossal dragon threw its maw skyward and roared. A horrific bellow tore the air, threatening to engulf not just the academy but the entire capital of Solaris.