Chapter 43
Chapter 43
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: 5. Welcome to the Summoner's Academy. (8)
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“Alright, let’s begin the summoning ritual.”
“Yes… grind.”
At my words, the girl glaring at me like I was the enemy who killed her parents was none other than Aris, the famous eldest daughter of the Retia family.
But why was she staring daggers at me like that?
-Maybe because the master peeked at her panties? Embarrassing for a girl, right?
-I don’t think so… or maybe?
Honestly, I hadn’t seen that coming either.
That the first one to bolt from the entire student body would be the student council president.
And that the first one from the first-years to run would be the renowned Lady Aris of the Retia family. On top of that.
-Who’d think someone would get caught in such a lame trap and end up dangling in midair?
-The master’s already set for immortality just from the curses the students have hurled at him.
Ah, the moment I first saw the famous Lady Aris of the Retia family after the interview—dangling in the air, pressing down her skirt, and screaming—wasn’t something I’d predicted.
At that time, the sight of her glaring at the boys who’d come out into the hallway to look, telling them to scram, was straight out of a horror movie.
Still, among the first-year boys, her black panties had become the stuff of legend.
“Aren’t you going to start quickly?”
“The summoning circle’s already fully drawn.”
I shook the chalk as I spoke, and she ground her teeth so hard I worried for them. Doesn’t that hurt?
“Come forth, become my power…”
Aris calmed her anger and began chanting the spell steadily.
Her target was a single goddess.
I’d prepared fitting offerings and used a high-quality magic stone.
If the contract went through, she’d be perfect for promotional purposes.
“Summon!”
I watched with anticipation, and as Aris finished her chant, the magic circle glowed, summoning a creature with white ears and body, red eyes…
“Come and contract with m—”
Clang!
“Wh-what are you doing?!”
-What the heck, that thing pissed me off!
In an instant, I switched the steel bat to full bat mode and launched it skyward.
That was a monster that shouldn’t exist in this world! I reverse-summoned it right away!
“That’s a dangerous demon. Eliminate it on sight. Absolutely no contracts.”
There’s no God of Ma in this world.
It’s dangerous, super dangerous.
“G-got it.”
Nodding as if she understood, Aris gathered her mana again and began chanting.
And then.
“You shall be my…”
Clang!
“Why, why again?”
“That one’s dangerous too.”
Sure, it’s a famous hero, but the dialogue and the gender make it risky.
Specifically, it’s a dangerous weapon that could destroy this world—copyright issues could come alive.
And then.
“I have arr—”
Clang!
“I’m Hoka—”
Clang!
“Let’s dance togeth—”
Clang!
“The new hero is always…”
Clang!
“I’m Opti—”
Clang!
“Huff, huff…”
-Master, I’m tired too…
“Why are you batting away everything you summon!”
She’d sinned, yet she was the one getting mad! Calling forth nothing but dangerous things in a different way—was this girl the incarnation of an evil god bent on world destruction?!
Damn it, I couldn’t keep this up anymore. If she weren’t from a marquis family, I’d have ditched her on the spot!
“Summon!”
Exhausted but still pushing on with the summoning.
I prayed desperately for a normal summon this time…
Clang!
“Squeak?”
-Master, the feel was different this time!
-Yeah, it summoned properly…
-Then why’d you hit it?
-…Unconsciously?
That’s why habits are scary.
I’d gotten into the groove of batting them before they fully materialized, so even this time, I smacked it the moment it appeared.
-What was it?
That one was…
-A god.
A god.
#5 Their Circumstances: Aris Lil Retia’s Circumstances.
The world doesn’t always go the way you want it to.
I knew that well.
Even as the eldest daughter of the Retia marquis family, one of the empire’s most powerful houses.
I had no intention of denying it.
But was it wrong to want just a normal academy life like everyone else?
Things were fine up until the entrance interview.
The professors were all friendly toward me, and the academy’s atmosphere seemed great.
And it stayed that way for the first three days after enrollment.
But after that, everything changed. Suddenly, an announcement blared: no leaving until 10 p.m.
Iron bars appeared on the windows, barriers rose in the hallways.
…Is this really academy life?
Who in their right mind would think an academy like this exists?!
Still, for the sake of a fulfilling academy life, I endured.
I heard the student council, starting with the president upstairs, tried to escape but failed.
But as time passed, as our knowledge grew.
We realized it was absolutely impossible to solve all the assigned textbooks and get out.
The textbooks didn’t make sense from the start.
They were titled basics of summons, understanding summons, concepts of summons—seeming beginner-level, but packed with profound content.
So profound that no one could solve them!
Even when questioning professors, they couldn’t answer immediately—and some questions were at a level where even the Summoner Academy wouldn’t have definitive answers!
Does this make any sense?!
And then it hit me: even if this year ended, I had three years of academy life left.
Most of my youthful teens spent on Night Self-Study!
In that moment, I shot up from my seat and dashed into the hallway.
Then, with a whoosh, a rope wrapped around my ankle and yanked me into the air.
Of course, it wasn’t some minor mistake on my part.
Despite appearances, I’d trained relentlessly in our traditional martial family, the Retia house.
But even so, I hadn’t anticipated the barriers suddenly surging up to the ceiling.
I missed the timing to leap off one while climbing, so my jump wasn’t precise, and in that gap, an arrow flew in abruptly.
Thanks to my training, I twisted midair.
And just as I barely landed, the rope bound my ankle and pulled me skyward.
Panic hit instantly; I screamed, and thanks to that, my underwear screamed right back to the students who came running.
And to Professor Niserwin, the cause of it all!
I was mortified and furious. I confronted him right away, but it ended in my defeat. He just mocked me and sent me off.
And he even made a weird proposal.
“How about joining a club? I think Lady Aris would like it.”
“…What club?”
“The Student Liberation Army.”
It sounded like something that shouldn’t exist in an academy, but given the current situation, it wasn’t that strange.
The goal: escape Night Self-Study.
And Professor Niserwin would support it as the club advisor.
Who’s the one who caused this mess?!
But I had no choice but to accept.
I’d never had an affinity for summons, and as a high noble, I’d skipped even the basic guardian contract kids usually do, out of family pride in growing strong myself.
So I couldn’t guarantee breaking through the professors—who were at their peak this semester—so I ended up creating the absurd club Professor Niserwin suggested.
Recruiting members was easy.
He’d personally lead contracts with summons.
That alone drew the attention of most first-years.
Like it or not, most of us first-years, including me, had come to this academy trusting the name Niserwin Ain.
But after repeated summons, Professor Niserwin batted away everything as “dangerous.”
Finally, pushing my mana to the limit, I gathered every last drop for one final summon.
Clang!
He batted it away again. But unlike the others instantly reverse-summoned, this one groaned as it flew but didn’t vanish.
Looking closely… it felt familiar. A woman I’d never seen, yet strangely so.
Beauty worthy of goddess status.
Her head covered by a helmet, body by armor, but blue hair peeking from the helmet shone transparently like seawater, and even to me as a woman, her armored figure was stunning.
In one hand, a long spear.
In the other, a shield depicting a snake-headed woman.
I’d never seen her, but this familiarity…
‘One of the summons Professor Niserwin described had these features…’
The one he said suited me best…
“Professor Niserwin, that’s not…?”
Goddess Athena.
Goddess of war and wisdom. Versatile in cooking, pottery, civilization, and more—a beauty said to rival the goddess of beauty.
And that goddess was drooling far away, collapsed.
‘He smacked the Goddess of War!’
Even rare summons from other worlds, historical gods, are memorized by martial families for war, tactics, and victory.
Among them, Athena stood out for her wisdom, producing legendary generals!
Smacking such a goddess? We’re done for!
“Lady Aris, prepare for the contract.”
“Huh? Is it possible?”
But Professor Niserwin rushed forward, silver armament in hand—the same one he’d used to bat away the others—and charged the goddess.
“H-how dare you be so rude… grk?”
Regaining her senses, Athena shook her head, glaring at us, but he clubbed her.
“W-wait! Ngh? Urgh? Th-this, hngh? Wh-what rudeness… stop…!”
Incredibly, the attacked goddess staggered, moaning!
Even if otherworldly beings have limited power here, she’s still a god.
Some demons force contracts via threats if refused, or kill unsatisfactory contractors.
But beating a god—the pinnacle of summons?!
If this draws divine wrath on us, we’re in deep trouble!
“Urgh… I’ll kill you! Aegis!”
“Lady Aris, looking at that shield will petrify you.”
“H-how?!”
White light poured from Athena’s shield, so I shut my eyes as instructed.
“Huh? Wh-what, how do you kn—ow?”
Eyes closed, I heard moans and screams begin.
“Kyaa? N-no? St-stop!”
“Refuse denied!”
“Urgh?!”
How long did I listen to the goddess’s cries? My anger at Professor Niserwin faded amid the trembling screams when someone tapped my shoulder.
“You can look now.”
“H-how?”
Professor Niserwin’s voice right beside me.
But the goddess’s pained cries continued unabated.
Curiosity won; I turned and saw.
“Hyap! Iyap! Thud thud! Yap yap!”
“Guh? Eek? Urgh? Nooo…”
A small silver creature rode the goddess’s upper body, pummeling with both fists.