Legendary Hero is an Academy Honors Student - Chapter 19

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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19

“A practical exam from the first day?”

“Other classes are just temporary lessons, so why only us!”

Seeing the flustered students, Professor Yura spoke seriously.

“I told you. Those who plan to attend with half-hearted thoughts should leave. Do you think you’re the same as students from the other two majors?”

The students fell silent at that question.

“As summoning students, you should know. Summoning Studies can’t be learned with just mana sensitivity. To contract with spirits, you need spirit affinity, and to command magical beasts, you need ‘taming’ abilities.”

Professor Yura spoke with emphasis.

“Thanks to that, the number of summoners is overwhelmingly fewer compared to knights or mages. Accordingly, fewer people have reached the position of hero.”

The Summoning Studies students gritted their teeth at the irrefutable statement.

“However! The summoners who have reached the position of hero have accomplished greater feats compared to other heroes!”

She shouted with a face full of pride.

“Do you think it makes sense for you to do the same things as students from other departments?

“No!”

“You are chosen people! Right?”

“Yes! That’s right!”

“Then we’ll go hard from the first day!”

“Yes!”

“Good! Let’s go!”

“Let’s go!”

When Professor Yura raised her fist and shouted, the first-years raised their fists and shouted in the same way.

The atmosphere heated up in an instant.

When Professor Yura, who had instantly raised the students’ concentration, was making a satisfied expression, one silver-haired female student raised her hand.

“So what kind of exam will we take for the first day practical exam?”

“Good question. Eliza Herginn.”

The students murmured at that name.

The Herginn Family.

A renowned hero family of summoners from the northern continent.

“On this island, all the magical beasts managed by Lumern are gathered.”

Magical beasts are a kind of weapon for summoners.

“I’ll test your taming abilities once.”

Yura pointed to the forest.

“Tame one magical beast in this forest and bring it back. I’ll give scores based on what kind of magical beast you tame.”

After hearing the exam explanation, Eliza asked again.

“What if we tame and even contract with one?”

At those words, the students gulped nervously.

Taming and contracting are strictly different.

Taming is the ability to befriend magical beasts and is the first step toward making a contract.

After taming, if you have the ability, you can make a contract.

At Eliza’s question, Yura grinned.

“If you succeed in contracting, that magical beast is yours.”

“Ohhh!”

“As expected of Lumern! To acknowledge it if we succeed in contracting during class!”

There are two ways to contract with magical beasts.

The first is summoning contracts using catalysts, and the second is meeting magical beasts directly and making contracts.

In the latter case, you can also ‘sell’ magical beasts that haven’t been contracted.

Therefore, magical beasts are sometimes traded at very high prices.

Since they were told they could freely contract with such magical beasts, motivation couldn’t help but surge.

“Professor. What about students aspiring for spirit arts?”

This time Chen Xia asked.

“Summoners can basically handle both spirits and magical beasts. There are specialized sides, but Lumern’s summoning classes teach to maximize abilities in both, so work hard.”

Chen Xia nodded.

‘Magical beasts.’

In his previous life, Leo had also contracted with powerful magical beasts.

‘Though they all disappeared in battle.’

While recalling his old covenant partners, Professor Yura spoke.

“Time limit is three hours! Begin!”

“Ohhh!”

The first-years ran out enthusiastically.

“Hm? Aren’t you going?”

Professor Yura tilted her head looking at Leo, Chen Xia, Weredd, and Eliza who remained at the starting line.

The so-called marked students among this year’s first-years weren’t moving.

Eliza said while trimming her fingernails.

“I’m not interested in lower-grade magical beasts.”

Whoosh-! Eliza blew on her finger and smiled brightly.

“….”

The taciturn Weredd didn’t answer.

“Hmm… I only know taming theoretically, so I’m contemplating.”

Chen Xia made a troubled smile.

Finally, Leo, who had been quietly gazing at the forest, started walking.

“Oh my, class representative?”

Leo looked back at Eliza.

“I heard about your performance in Knight Studies class. Can I look forward to Summoning Studies class too?”

Looking at Eliza who asked with a bright smile, Leo shrugged his shoulders.

“I’ll just do my best.”

Seeing Leo casually deflect the provocation, Eliza made a bored expression.

When Leo entered the forest, Professor Yura smiled.

“Nice, that’s what youth is.”

“Well. Professor, you’re also getting old now…”

Thud-!

“Gah?”

Professor Yura, who had punched Carlo in the side, grinned while looking at Leo’s retreating figure.

‘I’m personally looking forward to this.’

Her intuition was telling her so.

***

‘I didn’t know it was possible to create such a magical beast ecosystem.’

Leo admired inwardly as he walked through the forest.

He had never seen so many different species of magical beasts gathered in one place, even in his previous life.

For summoners, this forest was literally like a treasure vault.

Students were busy searching through the forest like hunting for lice, looking for magical beasts.

Among them, it frequently happened that they would lose magical beasts while fighting over them.

Anyone with expertise in magical beast summoning would probably move very carefully.

The more powerful the magical beast, the more reluctant they were to show themselves before people.

That was why Weredd and Eliza had remained at the starting line.

Eliza too, in terms of skill alone, was at a level not inferior to Weredd.

“Isn’t that guy going too deep?”

Some students made bewildered expressions seeing Leo going deep into the forest.

Though they were noisily searching through the forest, other students were restraining themselves from going too deep into the forest.

In the case of higher-grade magical beasts, quite many held hostility toward humans.

Moreover, this wasn’t just a simple class but a practical exam.

Either way, scores are assigned.

If you recklessly take risks trying to contract with a high-level magical beast and fail at taming, you get a zero.

Lumern is a place of endless competition.

Stories like “bad luck” or “good attempt” don’t hold water here.

“Leave him be. He probably thinks he can just take Knight Department classes if this doesn’t work out.”

“That’s probably what he’s thinking.”

A few students snorted and lost interest.

Leo, who had ventured deep into the area, looked around.

After confirming no one was nearby, he pulled out the gray feather he had found upon arriving at the island from his chest.

‘As I thought, this is…’

Leo’s eyes gleamed as he summoned his aura.

Gray aura began to blaze.

It was the power of Phoenix Breath that Leo had mastered.

The aura flames transferred to the feather and began burning even more fiercely.

Then it turned to ash and scattered.

Whoosh-!

‘As I thought, this was a phoenix feather. Is there even a phoenix in this forest?’

The phoenix, one of the strongest magical beasts, was particularly difficult to contract with.

The burning phoenix feather used as a summoning catalyst turns to ash and disappears the moment it reacts to mana, making it unable to serve as a catalyst.

In the end, the only way to contract with a phoenix was to find one directly.

But phoenixes were proud magical beasts, so even meeting one didn’t guarantee an easy contract.

That’s why it was called the dream magical beast among summoners.

“As expected of Lumern. This is amazing.”

Just as Leo’s eyes were gleaming.

Whoosh-!

“…!”

Crimson flames flickered above Leo’s head.

Blinding light and powerful heat swirled around, making him flinch and lower his stance.

Whoooooosh!

Leo, who knew what this phenomenon was, wore an expression of disbelief.

The intense flames soon transformed into the shape of a giant bird.

Every time it flapped its wings, flames rippled.

Leo summoned aura flames to protect his body.

At Leo’s reaction, the magical beast that had revealed itself—the phoenix—spoke.

-Jerdinger’s flames? I thought it would surely be Raina’s flames… I came because I sensed the scent of familiar flames, but it wasn’t. Was I mistaken?

Leo asked in surprise at that muttering.

“Do you know my mother?”

-Mother?

The phoenix’s eyes widened, then it laughed pleasantly.

-Indeed! I wasn’t completely wrong after all! Yes! If she had a child, they would be about your age!

The intense flames subsided.

-Hehehe, do I know your mother? Of course I do! I owe your mother Raina a great debt.

Flapping its beautiful wings, the phoenix sat in front of Leo.

An atmosphere so gentle it was hard to believe this was a phoenix famous for its arrogance.

Leo could only wear a bewildered expression at the phoenix’s reaction.

‘This is completely different from the phoenix Risinass had. That bird bastard had no manners.’

How bad must it have been for Luna to suggest catching and boiling it?

-Son of Raina, what is your name?

“I’m called Leo Flobe.”

-Yes, Leo. My name is Pirina.

“What’s your relationship with my mother? Didn’t you say earlier that you owed her a debt?”

At Leo’s question, Pirina smiled broadly.

-Raina is the lifesaver of my contractor, Ellyn Runda.

“Ellyn Runda?”

Leo was surprised by Pirina’s words.

The Runda Family was a renowned hero family among the elves.

Moreover, Ellyn was the head of the Runda Family and a hero whose name was recorded in the Hero Record.

-At that time, Ellyn was a dungeon conqueror in Seirun, tasked with dungeon conquest missions.

“By dungeon, you mean the hero dungeons created when lost pages of the Hero Record go berserk, right?”

-That’s right.

There were five places that possessed Hero Records.

But beyond those, Hero Records existed somewhere else in this world.

More precisely, the lost pages of Hero Records.

Pages scattered throughout the world would sometimes go berserk and create Heroes’ Worlds.

What was created this way was called a hero dungeon.

-Hero dungeons invade reality. Over time, monsters from the Heroes’ World inside the dungeon cross over into reality through the dungeon entrance. Finding and conquering them is one of the main duties of hero academies.

Many countries concealed the fact even when hero dungeons were discovered.

This was because conquering a dungeon could achieve inheritance, just like in the Heroes’ World.

Countless countries had perished by concealing hero dungeons in this way.

Because hero dungeons were so dangerous, only those with the highest skills could be assigned such missions.

-One day, Ellyn was deployed on a mission to conquer a certain hero dungeon. He failed the conquest and all his companions died. When Ellyn was also on the verge of losing his life, it was Raina who saved him.

Pirina muttered bitterly as she recalled the past.

-In that process, Raina lost her flames. If only that incident hadn’t happened, Raina would have risen to the position of a hero too…

“Mother doesn’t regret past events. The present is most important—that’s her philosophy.”

-Hehe… That personality seems unchanged.

Leo asked Pirina, who smiled gently.

“But why are you at Lumern, Pirina?”

-I came here at the request of Lumern’s principal, Kalian.

“The principal’s request?”

-Yes, I can’t tell you the exact reason.

Leo felt puzzled by the secret story.

-What about you—why are you on this island? A first-year Knight Department student shouldn’t have any reason to be on this island right now.

Pirina naturally assumed that Leo, being Raina’s son, was in the Knight Department.

“I also take Summoning Studies classes.”

-What?

Pirina, who had been surprised, realized that spiritual power was faintly dwelling in Leo’s body and was impressed.

‘The spiritual power he possesses is weak, but… his vessel is excellent.’

Pirina, who had been gauging Leo’s qualities, burst into laughter.

-Hehe. This must be fate too.

“Pardon?”

-Leo, would you like to make a contract with me?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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