A Summon with Zero Mana, Yet Still the Star of the Show
We had no way of knowing I could be a summoner. The mana measurement officer had already left us. We immediately sat our butts down in the waiting area for the next test—the agility measurement station. The air around us was still chilly. No, it felt thicker, more unpleasant than before, clinging to the back of our necks like invisible tentacles.
“Hey, did you see that? Zero points on the mana scale. Does that even make sense?”
“Shaming the noble family in public. Clearly, they brought in some random person instead of the summoned creature.”
“Summoning someone and then taking the entrance exam? No conscience at all.”
The murmurs from behind us were growing louder, as if they wanted us to hear every word.
“Ha ha ha! Look at that!”
The sharp, biting laughter flew over like daggers.
I casually scratched my ear. I was used to it. The jeers and mockery that rained down every time I lost on the octagon, the flood of malicious comments that would bury the comment sections of the internet articles. Compared to those, this was just childish taunting.
*I’m fine, but is he really okay?*
I secretly turned my head and glanced at the person next to me—Yustia.
The proud noble daughter, would she be able to withstand such humiliation?
My expectation was beautifully shattered.
Yustia kept her head down, but her shoulders were trembling. I thought she was crying, but when I looked closer, the corners of her mouth were twisted up in a grotesque smile.
“Hi heuk, hi heuk…”
She was desperately swallowing laughter like a child who had just found the most hilarious toy in the world.
“…Why are you laughing?” I asked cautiously.
Only then did Yustia lift her head and look at me. Her eyes sparkled with light.
“Those kids over there.”
She whispered in her gentle voice, “After the agility test ends, they’ll still be able to say those things. Just imagining it makes me so happy, doesn’t it, Mr. Taesan?”
Her smile was so bright it was almost terrifying.
Only then did I realize. This girl was no ordinary person.
The taunts flying at us now were nothing but an appetizer for the reversal that was about to come.
I let out a short laugh and shook my head.
“Your taste is quite unique.”
“Next candidate, ninety-one—Yustia Rosenhart! Prepare for the agility test!”
With a sharp announcement, I stood up from my seat.
Yustia bounced up like a spring, as if she had been waiting for it.
Thud, thud. We walked toward the agility measurement area.
This time, the air felt even colder. Probably because of the miserable result from the mana test.
But Yustia walked with her head held high, as if showing off, and linked her arm through mine.
Her boldness made me bite back a bitter smile inside.
“Excuse me. Guardians and accompanying persons must wait in the waiting room.”
As expected, another student in uniform blocked our way.
On her chest, a nameplate read [Examiner: Esila] along with the title “Student Council Secretary.”
“All guardians and companions, please wait in the waiting room.”
Her voice was professional and dry.
“No, he is my summoner.”
Yustia answered again, parrot-like.
But this time, the nuance was slightly different. There was a relaxed, secretly hopeful air to it that hadn’t been there before.
“Eh?”
Esila’s eyes behind her glasses widened and shook.
“A summoner?”
“Yes, that’s right. Please check.”
Yustia pointed to the back of my neck.
I sighed and slightly lifted my collar.
The clear red mark near my collarbone was revealed.
The contract mark with Yustia.
Esila’s eyes widened sharply.
She opened her mouth in silence for a moment, alternating between me and the mark.
“This… this is…”
She swallowed hard and checked the documents again.
“…Impossible.”
Her expression was a mix of shock and curiosity as she muttered.
“Then we may enter?”
Yustia asked with a victorious smile.
Esila nodded blankly.
“Y-yes… You may enter.”
Esila looked around in confusion, searching for a teacher.
We slipped through the gap she made and walked unhurriedly into the agility measurement track.
The surrounding chatter grew even louder.
The students who first saw us stared with wide eyes, amazed and openly watching.
“What is that? A summoner?”
“Why did a person go in there?”
“Is the summoner too slow, so he’s running himself?”
The sarcastic voices stabbed at us, but I actually felt calmer.
A huge circular track stretched out before us.
The endlessly long runway made my heart start pounding.
This was my strongest stage.
As long as I didn’t make mistakes, I could run at lightning speed with this feather-light body.
I believed in myself.
I loosened up my muscles and took my place at the starting line.
“Watch, Mr. Taesan. It’s time to shut their mouths.”
“Ready… Go!”
The signal dropped, and I slammed my foot into the ground without hesitation.
Thud—!
My body shot forward like an arrow with the sound of friction.
It was a familiar sensation.
Explosive acceleration.
This place was different from Earth.
*Too light.*
Every time my foot touched the ground, it felt like I was floating.
Whoosh—!
The wind sliced past my ears as if it wanted to tear them off.
My vision blurred from the insane speed.
The scenery of the track smeared like smeared paint behind me.
One lap, two laps… The lap time dropped in an instant.
My heart pounded like it was about to burst as it pumped.
“Damn it, control isn’t working!”
The speed was too fast. My feet felt like they were about to twist.
It felt like my legs were moving without my will, acting on their own.
Like being on a wild horse that had gone out of control, gripping the reins by force.
Five laps, six laps…
The chatter from the spectator seats came like a wave.
“Wow, shit! What the hell is that?”
“Are they insane? They brought in a track athlete?”
“Is that even a person? That speed doesn’t make sense!”
The mix of shock and cheers hit my ears.
But I had no time to care.
I focused all my attention on keeping my balance.
It was precarious.
One wrong move and I’d fall.
And then came the moment I was completing the tenth lap.
Stumble—!
I couldn’t handle the speed and twisted my ankle.
“Ugh!”
The center of balance collapsed in an instant.
My body tilted and crashed to the floor.
Clang—!
I rolled on the rough dirt.
Dust exploded upward.
“Aaah!”
“Fell!”
Screams erupted from the spectator seats.
I gritted my teeth and pushed myself up.
My knees were scraped, blood oozing, and my whole body ached.
But the more painful thing was the humiliation.
*It’s over.*
The record was a mess.
Of course, by normal standards it was superhuman speed, but for a summoner test it was pathetically insufficient.
Considering the leopard summoner had completed 14 laps earlier, it was clearly a failure.
Limping back to the finish line, Yustia’s face was deathly pale.
“Ta… Taesan! Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Thank goodness. It doesn’t hurt, right?”
“It’s more embarrassing than painful.”
She rushed over and helped me up.
But her eyes were shaking with anxiety.
“Haa… If this happens, the top rank for admission is gone… If I’m wrong, I might fail the admission itself…”
Yustia muttered while biting her nails.
Her face instantly darkened.
The proud look from before was completely gone, replaced by obvious panic.
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. I expected you might make a mistake. Still, it’s lucky. Ten laps… is that… not bad?”
She seemed to be calculating with a complicated expression.
“First… I’ll need you to break twenty stone slabs that got a perfect score on the strength test.”
Yustia’s eyes trembled.
The only thing left was the destructive power measurement.
If I didn’t take an overwhelming score here, not only would I stain the Rosenhart name, but admission itself could become uncertain.
“Can you do it?”
Yustia squeezed my sleeve tightly.
The desperation was dripping from her voice.
“Let’s try. It’s not the slabs that will break, but their mentalities.”
I deliberately smiled.
It was to ease her tension, but in truth I had no speed advantage.
But what could I do?
The dice had already been rolled, and I was now either sweeping the pot or becoming a beggar.
“Let’s go, Mr. Taesan. Show them.”
Yustia nodded with a serious expression.
We moved toward the last test area—the destructive power measurement station.
“Hey, did you see? That guy tripped while running.”
“He’s fast but can’t control it. Dumb.”
“I wonder how destructive power will be this time. Don’t break your wrist again, will you?”
“But anyway, when it comes to breaking slabs, isn’t one the maximum? Then you’re bound to fail?”
“Hey. What the hell kind of nonsense is that? One slab? Do you think you can break even one of those?”
At the entrance to the destructive power measurement station, heavy stone slabs stacked up.
They looked at least 10 cm thick.
“Next candidate, ninety-one—Yustia Rosenhart!”
With the supervisor’s announcement, I took a deep breath and walked onto the platform.
Twenty stone slabs lay before me.
Their oppressive height looked down at me.
I slowly raised my right arm.
My muscles twitched and contracted.
*This time, no mistakes.*
I gathered my breathing and concentrated all the power in my body at the tips of my fingers.
Crash!
“Insane…”
With a roar, all twenty slabs turned into powder and scattered into the air.