"Professor, is it true that a fairy was discovered on the Isle of Summoning?"
Eliza raised her hand and asked with a serious face.
Yura, who had been holding Ulta by the collar like a thug, sighed and let go.
"There were some sightings among the second-year students who were practicing here two days ago."
At this, the students began to murmur.
"Of course, it's all nonsense! I've never heard of a fairy being discovered on the Isle of Summoning, not even during my time as a student...!"
Yura, who had been shouting with confidence, suddenly paused and looked at Leo.
'Wait a minute. Come to think of it, phoenixes were also originally known to not exist on the Isle of Summoning.'
Then one day, a first-year student suddenly made a contract with one.
'And it was a young phoenix, at that.'
Yura's expression turned serious.
'Could it be that there really are fairies here?'
Just as she felt this doubt.
Ulta, who had been released from Yura's grip, straightened his uniform and shouted.
"Freshmen! If you're summoners, you must have a romantic notion about the three great summonings, right!"
The first-year students' eyes sparkled.
Why wouldn't they?
Every summoner dreams of it! Contracting with one of the three great summonings!
Of course, fairies are generally summoned by elves, but that doesn't mean there have never been any other fairy contractors throughout history.
An opportunity to meet a powerful summoning!
This was the kind of opportunity that summoners would dive into, be it a blazing inferno or the depths of the sea.
"Do you not want to see a fairy!"
"I want to see one!"
"Hey! Don't incite the freshmen with unconfirmed stories!"
Yura, who had been lost in thought, suddenly snapped back to reality and flared up.
Ulta sighed deeply at the sight of Yura.
"Professor, I'm disappointed. When I was a first-year, you were a lecturer full of dreams!"
"Try being a full professor at Lumern for three years and see how you turn out."
"Ah! I'm very sad to see you become such a weak adult who compromises with reality! Living in such a harsh reality without dreams makes your personality worse, doesn't it!"
A vein popped on Yura's forehead.
Pfft-!
Karlo, who had been holding back Yura from lunging at Ulta, shouted.
"Professor! Calm down! Calm down!"
"Let me kill him...! That arrogant guy who talks nonsense and mocks me!"
Ulta was the only one who could speak so freely to a professor, even as a fifth-year student.
Seeing Yura's veins pop, the first-year students were terrified.
After a moment, Yura, who had finally calmed down, asked.
"So, Ulta. The inter-departmental competition is coming up. You're not thinking of just playing a fairy hunt game, are you?"
At this, Ulta smirked.
"Isn't that obvious?"
Seeing Ulta's radiant smile, the female students screamed.
"Freshmen, what did I emphasize as the basic mindset of a summoner?"
"Compassion."
"No, it's love."
All the first-year students looked at Yura.
"You can't help but filter out what you hear. But his advice will still be helpful, given his skills."
The first-year students nodded.
Having experienced all sorts of things since coming to Lumern, they understood this.
"You should love the summoning you have contracted with, but you must also be able to love all summonings! And you must be able to create harmony based on trust! Yes! The realm of oneness with nature and summonings! Harmony with nature! That is true love for summonings!"
The first-year students looked at Yura with worried faces.
Even though they tried to filter out her words as Yura had said, it was still difficult for them to fully understand Ulta's words at their level.
Yura pressed her temples.
"So... in other words, you're saying we need to improve our affinity to communicate with summonings we haven't contracted with... Hey! Speak normally! Normally!"
After Yura's outburst, she took a deep breath.
"Alright. I get your point. You want us to do that, right? It might be a bit early for the freshmen, but..."
Yura curled her lips into a smile.
At that cat-like smile, the first-year students felt a sudden sense of unease.
Whenever she made that expression, something ominous inevitably happened.
"Freshmen. You will stay on the Isle of Summoning for three days for a special class! Your seniors have already submitted the overnight stay application, so there's no problem!"
"Huh?"
"It's the weekend starting tomorrow, anyway."
"But I have a meeting in Lumerean tomorrow!"
"We need to rest on the weekend!"
Yura said indifferently in response to the students' protests.
"How should I know about that? You all said you wanted to find fairies just a moment ago."
"I, I did say that, but..."
"Eliza, say something. Professor Yura listens to you, doesn't she?"
Eliza, the top student in the Summoning Department, is the one who receives the most trust from the professor, unlike Warden, who shows no interest in departmental affairs.
However, Eliza's reaction was indifferent.
"Since this is a proposal from Professor and Senior Ulta, it must be for our benefit. As long as we have comfortable beds and good food, I'm fine with it."
The students looked at Eliza with despair.
But Yura looked at her with disbelief.
"Huh? Eliza Herkin. What are you talking about? Comfortable beds and good food? Where are you going to find that?"
"Huh?"
Eliza was slightly taken aback this time.
"What you'll experience is the wild."
Yura, with her arms crossed, smiled with a wild charm.
"Surviving in this vast, self-sustaining ecosystem of nature! That's what you'll be doing from today!"
"What?"
"You want us to stay in that forest for three days?"
"It's not just about staying in the forest for three days."
Ulta smiled.
"I'll prohibit the use of summoning magic for three days. Of course, using auras and magic is also forbidden. Survive in that forest with just your own strength."
"Eek?"
"Does that make sense! The Isle of Summoning is home to all sorts of summonings and spirits!"
Summonings and spirits that haven't been contracted are very dangerous.
Especially if you encounter a summoning or spirit that is hostile to humans, you could lose your life.
Being told to survive for three days on an island teeming with such wild summonings and spirits, the first-year students couldn't help but feel anxious.
"Summoners should be able to handle summonings without taming them."
"R, really!"
"Of course, if you don't want to, you can give up."
Yura said with a blank face.
"But I won't give any special training to those who give up during the inter-departmental competition. The gap with the students from the Knight and Magic Departments will only widen."
The faces of the Summoning Department students hardened.
"I told you in the first class, didn't I? You can't be the same as students from other departments."
The students clenched their fists.
"When you think about the summonings and spirits you might have to deal with in the future, this isn't even considered dangerous. Do you think I'm throwing you into danger without a second thought?"
"N, no."
"Then you should understand the reason for this training, right?"
The students were silent in response to Yura's question.
No one dared to speak rashly.
"Isn't it because young summoners these days lack understanding of summonings?"
Everyone's gaze turned to Leo.
Yura smiled.
"Why do you think so?"
"Because in this world, you can easily obtain the medium needed for summoning if you have money. You can also contract with powerful summonings through the Hero's World."
Leo looked at the dense forest.
"Many summoners have obtained powerful summonings, but I think they have moved away from the essence of it."
"..."
"Because there are also scenes to be seen when you go out and make a contract with a summoning directly."
"That's such an old-fashioned thing to say, junior."
Ulta's eyes sparkled.
"But that's why it's the right answer."
Yura smiled.
"Leo is right. Through a medium, you can easily obtain a powerful summoning, but it's difficult to fully bring out its abilities."
Yura looked at the students and said.
"We, summoners, are humans who communicate with special beings that use the power of nature. In that sense, we are both part of nature and its rulers."
Everyone focused on Yura's words.
"Ulta talked about compassion for the same reason. How many of you have actually witnessed the true nature of the summonings you handle?"
Yura narrowed her eyes.
"Have you seen their true forms and made contracts directly? Aren't they all summonings you obtained easily through mediums provided by your families or during class?"
No student answered her question.
"That's why you can't truly use summoning magic. You need to experience nature and understand the summonings and spirits that live there more deeply. That's one of the paths to becoming a higher-level summoner."
Yura smiled.
"Do you still miss your warm beds and meals?"
"No!"
"Do you want to reach higher levels?"
"Yes!"
"Great! That's the spirit!"
Yura clenched her fist.
"Alright, I'll give you each a dagger."
"And I'll give you these bed bug catchers."
Ulta said with a smile.
"…You don't really think you can catch a fairy with that, do you?"
Yura opened her eyes lazily.
"Can't I?"
"I'm sometimes embarrassed that you're the top student in the Summoning Department."
Yura said sincerely, but Ulta just smiled.
***
The Isle of Summoning was one of the largest islands in Lake Lumerean.
In terms of size, it was much larger than the main island where the Lumern students were.
As such, deep in the center, a vast expanse of nature stretched out.
The Summoning Department students, suddenly thrown into the heart of nature, all wore tense expressions.
Without the ability to use summoning magic, they had to be prepared for any situation.
At the same time, they also harbored a strange sense of anticipation.
It was because of the fairy story Ulta had mentioned.
Thus, the students began to set up their individual camps for the three days.
This training was designed to prepare them for the Battle Royale during the inter-departmental competition, so it was set up as a solo challenge.
'Don't fight each other. Cooperation is allowed in emergencies. But you have to take care of your own bed and food.'
These were Yura's words before sending the students into the forest.
'This training will also serve as a practical exam, so do your best!'
'The summoning class is secretly the most hardcore.'
While Leo was looking for edible fruits to prepare a meal.
"Fairy! It's a fairy!"
A frantic voice came from a distance.
He saw nearby students quickly moving in response to the cry.
Leo also moved quickly.
But when he arrived, he saw a Summoning Department male student with his head caught in a flower-shaped plant with teeth, shouting with unfocused eyes.
"It's a fairy! It's a fairy!"
"…That idiot didn't even recognize a plant-type summoning and got caught by approaching it recklessly."
"Ugh! Idiot!"
A few students approached to help their classmate, looking at him with disdain.
"Rushing over like that makes me look like a fool."
Eliza frowned and turned away.
Just as the students were dispersing again.
Leo looked up at a tree.
There, he saw a mischievous fairy prince rolling around on a branch, clutching his stomach.