“What do you think you are?”
“What?”
“You are Lumerne students. In other words, hero candidates! If you’re in danger, shouldn’t your first thought be to overcome it yourselves?”
The students flinched at Ain’s stern rebuke.
At that moment, Ain noticed Leo moving without hesitation.
“There’s at least one decent student.”
A Kraken’s rising tentacle came crashing down rapidly.
Swish-!
Leo drew his sword and cut the tentacle off.
Thud-!
He kicked the twitching tentacle on the ground, pushing it back into the lake, and shouted.
“Don’t be scared of its size! With your abilities, you can handle this just fine!”
Leo’s gaze was fixed directly on Celia and Chloe.
“Hmph! Who said I was scared?”
Chloe scoffed in irritation, while Celia, determined not to lose, also drew her sword.
“What do you take me for, Leo?”
Fwoosh-!
The flame aura, a symbol of the Zerdinger family, flared up on her sword.
“Do you think I’d be scared of a squid like this…!”
Splash-!
“Ahhh!”
A water cannon shot out from the tip of the Kraken’s tentacle, drenching Celia.
Although she used Aura Armor to block it, she ended up looking like a soaked rat.
“That’s a Kraken’s habit. It reacts to heat and fires water cannons.”
Leo chuckled as he flicked her forehead lightly.
“Seems like you’re still lacking experience.”
“Ugh! We’re the same age! Don’t lecture me about experience!”
Rubbing her forehead, Celia shouted with a flushed face.
Meanwhile, the Kraken attacked again.
Celia’s eyes burned with anger.
“You cursed squid! I’ll turn you into dried squid!”
Fwoosh-!
Celia’s sword drew an elegant arc.
Slice-slice-slice!
The Kraken’s tentacles were finely chopped and scattered.
Seeing her proud expression, Leo smiled and swung his sword.
Whoosh-!
With a powerful gust of wind, the Kraken’s tentacles were sliced even finer than what Celia had cut.
“Ugh! I won’t lose to you!”
Fired up by the sight, sparks flew from Celia’s eyes.
“Your swordsmanship is impressive.”
Meanwhile, Chloe raised her magic staff and chanted runes.
Crackle-!
“Icicle.”
Ice particles formed in the air and coalesced into a giant icicle.
When Chloe released her spell, the icicle flew forward.
Thud-! Crackle-! Shatter!
The frozen Kraken tentacle shattered into pieces as the spell struck.
“Hohoho! Why sweat it out like knights when you can handle things smartly from the back… huh?!”
Feeling triumphant, Chloe suddenly became the Kraken’s target.
Surprised by the Kraken’s unexpectedly fast attack, Leo grabbed Chloe by the back of her neck and pulled her away.
“A mage shouldn’t act recklessly on the frontlines.”
Swish-!
Leo swung his sword, slicing off the Kraken’s tentacle.
“Kraken reacts to mana, so use your magic carefully.”
“O-okay.”
The freshmen, who had been panicking, began to collect themselves and fight back.
The Kraken was a high-ranking monster, but Lumerne students weren’t the type to give in without resistance.
Watching from behind, Ain smirked.
“This year’s freshmen are excellent.”
Professor Ain, who had scolded the freshmen earlier, now seemed quite satisfied.
This lake is infamous for being home to all sorts of aquatic monsters.
As a result, monster attacks in the water were almost an annual event.
Every student admitted to Lumerne was exceptionally talented.
By getting into Lumerne, they had already proven their skills.
Skill, background, academics.
These freshmen had nothing to envy and were naturally full of confidence.
“With that mindset, they won’t survive Lumerne’s curriculum.”
The freshmen didn’t realize that they had merely met the minimum standard to learn at Lumerne.
That’s why a sense of urgency was necessary, and allowing monster attacks in the water was Lumerne’s way of instilling it.
Of course, they didn’t let the students fight unprotected.
For instance, the ship’s structure, which would usually be at the most risk during a Kraken attack, remained intact.
The freshmen, however, didn’t notice this and were preoccupied with fending off the Kraken.
“As expected, the top scorers are standing out.”
Ain, observing the students’ skills, focused on Leo.
“Impressive.”
A spark flickered in Ain’s eyes.
Leo’s swordsmanship was clean and efficient, without unnecessary movements.
Moreover, it was as if he could predict the Kraken’s movements, skillfully slicing through its tentacles with light footwork.
“I’ll remember him.”
From his swordsmanship, it was clear he aimed to join the Knight Department.
Feeling satisfied that he had found an outstanding student, Ain smiled.
***
The freshmen barely managed to defeat the Kraken, but the attacks from aquatic monsters didn’t stop.
The deck party from earlier felt like a dream as the students faced a relentless monster parade.
After about an hour, all the freshmen were a mess.
Their uniforms were soaked, their bodies drenched in sweat, and their faces showed clear signs of exhaustion.
They were too busy fighting off the oncoming monsters to catch their breath.
“I can’t fight anymore! I’m out of mana!”
Chloe shouted, lying flat on the deck.
“Ugh… does anyone have mana potions left?”
Carl glanced around, but no one responded.
“Huff… huff…”
Celia, breathing heavily, glanced at Leo.
“That stamina monster!”
Leo, still looking alert and guarding the waterside, showed no signs of fatigue.
How could someone the same age have such endless stamina?
“Hah!”
Grinding her teeth, Celia took a deep breath and stood next to Leo.
At that moment,
“I see the dock!”
“This dreadful fight is finally over!”
“Waaaah!”
Cheers erupted from the deck.
To the exhausted students, this was the best news they could hear.
Shortly after, the ship docked, and the students disembarked with relief.
Waiting at the dock was a petite woman in formal attire with glasses.
“Thank goodness! It seems there weren’t any major issues!”
Hearing her words, the students felt a surge of emotions well up inside them.
‘Nothing happened? We were attacked by monsters!’
Of course, no students were bold enough to voice their complaints aloud.
After all, if someone had come to greet the freshmen, they were likely a professor at Lumerne.
“Professor Ain, thank you for escorting the freshmen! I’ll take over from here.”
“Understood.”
Nodding, Ain looked at the freshmen and spoke.
“I will be teaching the first-year Knight Studies class this year.”
The Knight Department students flinched.
“Some of you Knight Department students will take my class.”
Ain smiled as he glanced at a few students, including Leo.
“If you want to reach a higher level, come to my class!”
“Yes!”
“Understood, Professor Ain!”
The Knight Department students responded loudly.
Satisfied with their reply, Ain's expression grew meaningful.
“Also, make sure to listen carefully to your guide teacher.”
Leaving those words behind, Ain departed.
“My name is Artian Nier. I’ll be teaching the first-year Summoning class.”
Adjusting her glasses, she smiled kindly as she introduced herself.
“Artian Nier? That’s a name I’ve never heard before.”
Celia tilted her head in confusion.
If someone were qualified to be a professor at Lumerne, they’d be famous in their field.
But the name Artian Nier was unfamiliar.
“Artian Nier is quite well-known in the central regions.”
At that moment, Carl spoke up.
“What kind of person is she?”
“They say she’s a Spirit Summoner.”
“A Spirit Summoner?”
Celia’s eyes widened in surprise.
Summoning is divided into three main categories:
Elemental summoning, which involves contracts with spirits,
Beast summoning, which involves controlling magical creatures,
and Spirit summoning, which involves calling fragments of beings known as spirits.
Spirit summoning, the rarest of the three, is an extraordinary ability.
‘It was one of Risinas’s specialties.’
Since Spirit Summoning is a unique innate talent, even Kyle, with his all-class capability, couldn’t learn it.
“Shall we head to the venue for the entrance ceremony?”
Artian smiled softly as she spoke.
However, the students protested.
“Professor! Isn’t there a place where we can change clothes?”
“Yes! We can’t attend the entrance ceremony looking like this!”
The students, who had been obedient in front of Professor Ain, now raised their voices one after another.
They were all noble students.
With Ain’s reputation as the "Knight of the Frozen Sea," they had been intimidated.
But Artian, who was unknown and appeared gentle, became the target of their complaints.
“Ah, no! I mean, we have to follow the schedule…”
“Our families would never allow us to attend an important event in such a state!”
“That’s right! We entered Lumerne with pride! This treatment is unacceptable!”
“Yeah! We’ll file a formal complaint through our families!”
“E-everyone?!”
Being naturally mild-mannered, Artian hesitated, unable to respond to the students’ protests.
Emboldened by her reaction, the students raised their voices even more.
“We should stop this.”
Celia frowned as she spoke, but Leo chuckled.
“No need.”
“What?”
Artian lowered her head.
And then…
“You little brats! Do you think I’m a pushover because I let it slide?! How dare a bunch of freshmen act up and challenge a professor?!”
Artian raised her head sharply and roared.
The gentle atmosphere she had earlier was gone, replaced by a fierce glare.
The students who had been shouting froze in shock.
One male student, still not grasping the situation, stammered nervously.
“E-even if you’re a professor, we can’t accept such harsh language…”
“Oh? You still don’t get it?”
Thud!
“Huh? H-huh?”
With a chilling smile, Artian grabbed the male student by the collar and lifted him effortlessly.
The student was notably taller and bulkier than the others.
Yet Artian showed no signs of strain as a golden aura emanated from her.
“G-gold aura?”
“A dual class?”
The students gasped in astonishment.
The male student, pale with fear, looked ready to faint.
Artian hurled him toward the lakeside.
“Aaaaah!”
Splash-! Flop! Flop!
The student thrashed about in the lake.
Artian issued a sharp warning.
“Anyone who rebels like that again won’t be let off easily!”
Before she could finish speaking, her expression shifted.
“What a hassle.”
Now exuding a cold aura, Artian sighed and waved her hand lightly.
Golden magic burst forth as she used her magic to rescue the student from the lake.
The students were wide-eyed in shock.
She was supposed to be a Summoning professor, yet she used both aura and magic!
“I thought so.”
“You know something about this?”
Celia, still astonished, asked Leo hurriedly after hearing his murmur.
“She’s letting the spirits she contracted with possess her body. Her personality changes because of the spirits she’s bound to.”
“Spirit Possession? That’s an ability I’ve only heard about in legends!”
Even among Spirit Summoners, Spirit Possession was an extremely rare talent, and Celia was in awe.
It was clear why Ain had told them to listen carefully to her.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! The spirits I’ve contracted with tend to be impatient!”
Having returned to her original personality, Artian apologized profusely, looking flustered. But the students remained silent, merely observing her warily.
They quickly realized that, despite her lack of fame, the professor before them was someone far beyond their abilities.
Smiling brightly, Artian spoke cheerfully.
“Anyway, everyone! Let’s head to the entrance ceremony!”
“Yes…”
The students replied weakly, their spirits dampened.
End Of Chapter
