Victor ruffled the temples of his forehead as he gave a long sigh, slumping his back into the confines of his wooden chair. He had several papers held in his hand, but he couldn't be bothered to read them any longer. With a quick thrust of his hand, he threw the contents upon his untidy table filled with an assortment of cluttered books and jumbled papers.

Today was a rainy day, much more so than usual. Droplets began to form at the window in front, paired with the sound of light pattering. His mood was being directly affected by the rain, and he couldn't help but heave out another sigh. Running through his thoughts, he was trying to figure out what he was going to do before it was time. A slight knocking sound could be heard nearby. Tap Tap. He turns his head towards the location of the sound, softly uttering a single word.

"Yes?" Victor replies, prostrating himself upwards on his chair.

"Senior Magus, may I come in?" A female voice replies quickly.

Ah, that must be her. Victor stands up, walking towards the intricate wooden door with a flaring insignia etched onto it. All doors within the Sigure Magus Academy had this symbol. It was not only a display of power, but it contained a magical inscription to ward off demons and other unwanted creatures within the academy. Victor opened the door slowly, peering through with only one eye.

There stood a girl with tall stature, wearing the academy's female uniform. It was a black and gold-laced uniform, along with a medium-sized skirt coupled with black long socks. At the side of the uniform, an emblem of a blazing phoenix with its majestic wings fully extended could be seen. It looked like she was clutching an object within the palms of her hand with great force, so Victor could only take a meager glance at it.

"Ah, you're not the person I was looking for," Victor said, disappointed but slightly relieved at the same time. Today was not a good day for him, because everyone knew it was 'that' day.

"Hello, great teacher." The female replied, bowing her head. "I am sorry that I am not the person you wanted to see, but I have something for you."

"I didn't mean it like that," Victor said, slightly flustered. Usually, he was much more reserved with his students, but he could not help it, as today was quite a peculiar day for him. "I am glad that one of my finest students has the time to come visit me."

"I had thought that teacher had maybe forgotten about me." The girl blushed, her hands clutching the unknown object even firmer.

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

"Oh, I could never!" Victor exclaimed, "How is your graduation this year? Was it to your liking?"

"Yes. I very much enjoyed it." She said triumphantly, "I came to pay my respects to all my instructors before I finally set off."

"That is very kind of you," Victor replied back, filled with a sense of pride for his student.

"I have this for you." She replied, holding out a clear shining necklace. It was round in shape, but there situated a blue pearl gem in the middle glowing a grand luster.

"Oh, I simply cannot," Victor replied, his hands declining the blue gem. "You must keep it for yourself, I would feel wrong to take it from you."

"I insist!" She reaffirmed with great vigor, "I thought you would need it for the summoning you had to perform."

Victor chuckled, "Ah yes, that."

He did not want to be reminded, because he was already nervous from the day prior. He had not gotten any sleep, which would presumably explain why he was in such a grouchy mood today. Speaking of the summoning, it was near the allotted time for him to be sent down.

"Although I thank you for looking out for your mentor, I must respectfully decline."

"Very well then." She bowed respectfully.

"I thank you for coming to visit me, however."

"May I do one last thing before I take my leave?" She inquired.

"Hm?"

Before Victor could react, the student spread out her arms, putting him in a warm embrace. Victor was surprised at first for receiving such an unexpected hug, but he did not mind it soon after. The action put him in a better mood than he was in previously, albeit only a little. He gave a soft smile and extended the touch, giving the student a small pat on her back.

"Thank you so much." The student said, removing her arms around him. "For everything."

"Likewise." Victor nodded, "It was a pleasure to be your teacher."

"I will take my leave now." She responded dearly, as she quickly strode towards the door and left the room, her footsteps receding as the door was shutting behind her. The room grew silent, with only the slight pitter-patter of droplets on the windowsill. The rain was surely going to pick up, yet he did not know when.

Returning to his work studies, he returned to the papers he threw on his desk. Quickly re-reading what he skimmed over previously, he quickly recapped what he had to do. The set of papers detailed of a ritual performed every hundred years, organized by the Magus Association. He was one of the several hundred Magus that were required to assist in the summon. It was tradition to perform this ritual; one that has lasted since the creation of the Magus Association a few thousand years prior.

Its purpose was to summon a being from another world. Previous summons of the ritual would either fail miserably or summon an ungodly creature. Of course, they would have to terminate such beings, but they had yet to summon a live human in such events. Because the ritual was such a grueling feat to perform requiring many skilled Magecraft magicians, he had to make sure that he would not fail the incantation. It would take only one person to destroy the ritual.

Going through his manuscripts once again, he caught another knock at his door. Victor's heart skipped a beat, and his hands were getting clammy. This must be it. He was being called to a meeting, presumably to talk in detail about the said ritual.

"You may come in," Victor said with a small gulp.

The door unlocked with a slight creak and there stood another tall woman leaning upon it. This time, much older than the previous. Adorned on her was a fine black robe decorated in gold and jewelry and on the side an emblazoned Pheonix emblem. She only glanced at Victor, giving him a quick but steady nod. Victor understood immediately, and he stood up from his workplace, getting ready to depart from his classroom.