Editor : Amethyst00



Smack—!

The reinforced wooden swords for training clashed.

It was a scene commonly seen in the garden assigned to the dormitories of the Knight Department.

In addition to sparring, the garden was bustling with students working on strengthening their bodies.

"To build up your trapezius, you have to train like this!"

Among them, the members of The Power, a club made up solely of Knight Department students, were actively helping first-year male students with their training.

"Check out this trained body! Cool, right?"

Merette, a fifth-year student in the Knight Department, grinned broadly as he showed off his arm muscles.

The first-year male students looked at him with admiration.

"You can all be like me if you train! As Knight Department students,body training is a must! And if you have a well-trained body like this, the female students will like you too! Anyone want to join our club?"

"Me, me!"

"I want to join!"

The first-year boys all raised their hands.

Watching this from a distance, Celia whispered to Niel.

"Niel, has Merette-sunbae ever had a girlfriend?"

"Never."

"Then he's lying."

"It's not exactly a lie. Thanks to Merette's guidance, quite a few male students have succeeded in getting girlfriends."

"That's kind of sad."

"Well, it's all their own doing. The leaders of The Power club have historically only had muscles in their heads."

Niel shook her head slightly as she looked at the muscle-bound fool.

After finishing her sparring, Celia unzipped her sweat-soaked tracksuit.

While rehydrating, she tugged at the collar of her top to let the air in.

But apparently unsatisfied, she started flapping the hem with both hands.

Niel frowned at the glimpse of Celia's slender waist and grabbed the hem of her clothes.

"My lady, there are eyes watching."

"Oh, right."

She had done it instinctively, just from the heat.

Celia quickly straightened her clothes.

Of course, no one openly stared at her even if she was visible.

No one even dared to sneak a glance.

She was the student served by Niel, the top fifth-year student in the Knight Department.

Anyone caught sneaking a peek would obviously have a rough school life ahead.

"Still, everyone's really into it."

While drinking water, Celia looked out at the garden.

This place was, quite literally, a training ground.

Every night.

Students of the Knight Department spent their time on passionate individual training and sparring.

The reason was simple.

As the upperclassmen and top students trained, the atmosphere naturally followed.

"Ugh! I hate this kind of mood!"

At that moment, Eliana grumbled as she approached.

She must've just sparred with Chen Xia—she was fanning herself, lips pouting.

"It's not even summer yet and I'm already drenched every day? What is this, moonlight gymnastics?"

Celia clicked her tongue at Eliana's complaints.

"It's voluntary, isn't it? If you hate it, take a break."

"But then Xia drags me out!"

This training atmosphere had developed while Eliana was away on a mission.

Still, it wasn't mandatory, so anyone could rest in the evenings if they wanted.

But Chen Xia didn't allow Eliana to rest peacefully.

"Sir Leo said to take care of Eliana."

"It's your fault for slacking. You brought this on yourself."

"You're just the class rep's lackey!"

Eliana cried out to Chen Xia as she approached.

Chen Xia only smiled in return.

That was when—

"Whoa! Whoa! What is that?"

"Gasp! Isn't that a Pegasus?"

"It's my first time seeing one!"

A commotion erupted among the first years.

"What's going on?"

Eyes shining, Eliana ran toward the source of the noise.

In front of a small spring in the garden, a Pegasus was drinking water.

"That's Sir Leo's Pegasus. What's it doing here?"

Eliana approached the Pegasus.

"Don't get too close. It could be dangerous."

Celia frowned, but Eliana just chuckled.

"I've seen the class rep's Pegasus a few times. And don't they say Pegasi are friendly to beautiful girls?"

Eliana flipped her hair dramatically.

"No way a Pegasus like that would threaten me, right?"

Saying so confidently, she approached the Pegasus.

Celia turned to Chen Xia.

"Isn't that just a myth?"

"It is."

Celia folded her arms and looked at Eliana like she was pathetic.

Meanwhile, Eliana cautiously extended her hand to the Pegasus, Alty.

"Come here?"

Alty, who had been drinking, approached Eliana.

"Wow! Maybe I have a talent for summoning!"

Alty's friendly response made Eliana's eyes light up.

'Should I try riding it?'

She'd always dreamed of riding a Pegasus since she was a child.

Normally she wouldn't even dare, but this was Leo's summoned creature.

'It's so gentle. And if anything happens, the class rep will probably come help me.'

He might even be nearby right now.

So Eliana climbed onto Alty's back without hesitation.

Other students gasped in horror.

"Hey! You can't just ride a Pegasus like that—!"

"Tada! Look at me!"

Contrary to expectations, Alty accepted Eliana on its back without protest, leaving everyone stunned.

The Three Mythical Beasts are known for their pride.

Especially Pegasi, who absolutely hate it when someone they don't acknowledge rides them.

Everyone was shocked by the unexpected situation.

Eliana, the one who'd pulled off this reckless stunt, looked smug.

Then she noticed a necklace around Alty's neck.

"What's this?"

She tugged it, and at the end was a bonus stamp.

"Why is this here?"

As Eliana panicked, Alty suddenly kicked off the ground and charged straight into the Knight Department students.

"Gyaa!"

Caught off guard, Eliana was thrown from Alty's back.

"What the—?!"

"Pegasus?!"

"What's it doing here?!"

Alty rampaged like a wild colt, turning the training ground into complete chaos.

But only for a moment.

Soon, the expressions of the fleeing students turned fierce.

"Hey! Catch it!"

"Catch that Pegasus!"

The fourth- and fifth years began chasing after Alty.

'Ahh! Everyone's chasing me with scary faces!'

Alty ran toward the forest, smiling happily.

'They're trying to catch me! What'll happen if I get caught?!'

Running wild with delusions, Alty vanished into the forest after trashing the Knight Department's training ground.

The Knight Department students, having barely driven Alty out of their area, stood frozen in disbelief.

The commotion had died down, but no one really understood what had just happened.

"What the hell was that?!"

bl

Rumble-rumble-rumble—!

Weekend night.

Despite it being after curfew, upperclassmen from each department left their dorms and gathered in the central hall.

"What's going on?"

Tonight's dormitory supervisor, Professor Melina, smiled gently as she asked.

It was well known that Melina was a Dragon Queen.

Because of that, very few students dared to demand anything openly in front of her.

"I just have something to say to the student council president."

One of those rare few.

Elena smiled lightly, then looked up at the ceiling.

"Leo! I know you're listening. Let's talk!"

In response, Leo revealed himself from thin air.

Tap—!

He landed lightly on the ground and asked with a smile.

"Having a good evening, seniors?"

"Oh, a very good one, thanks to someone."

Elena smirked sarcastically.

From the Summoning Department, Runeba stepped forward.

"Leo. Someone cleaned out all the snacks in our dorm, and we found this."

Runeba opened his palm, revealing a red feather.

"Same with the Magic Department. Leo's fairy wrecked our dorm. I mean, I can be wild myself, but I don't mess with people on a dorm-wide scale."

Elena's voice was icy.

Then from the Knight Department, Merette stepped forward.

"The president's Pegasus wrecked our training ground! The damage is huge!"

Leo's face turned slightly serious as he looked at Merette, who was on the verge of tears.

'Did Alty cause more damage than I expected?'

"It was leg day today! Now I can't train my legs…"

"You're done."

Niel grabbed Merette by the collar and dragged him back.

Takon stepped forward in his place.

"You need to explain why your summons went berserk."

Leo responded casually.

"I'm starting a game."

"A game?"

"Yes. From now on, at night, my summons will be roaming around."

Leo smiled.

"Did anyone see them holding stamps?"

"I did."

"Anyone who catches them, just stamp it yourself."

The students all looked shocked.

"Of course, the more you catch, the higher your chance of winning the department competition."

"How do we even catch your summons?"

"Use a bug net, a trap, whatever works. They'll resist so they don't lose the stamp, but they won't attack."

Then Leo snapped his fingers.

The emblems of each dorm appeared on the wall of the central hall, followed by a scoreboard.

"As of now, the Summoning Department is in first place."

The Knight Department was second.

The Magic Department was third, by a narrow margin.

Students started murmuring.

Elena narrowed her eyes.

"The summons appear outside the dorms too, right?"

"Yes."

"And the curfew?"

"Still applies."

"So we're supposed to sneak around catching them until midterms are over?"

"I never said to break the rules."

"If we don't get caught, it's not a crime?"

Leo smiled again.

"Anything else?"

"There are also hidden problems all around the dorms."

"Problems?"

"Yes. Solving them earns points too."

"This is just like a full-on game."

"Exactly. That's why I said it's starting."

Leo shrugged.

"And if you defeat another student after curfew, you get bonus points."

At that, students began eyeing each other.

Leo's intentions were clear.

Once night falls, the dorms become lawless.

He was practically inciting them to fight.

While the atmosphere grew tense, Leo handed out flags embroidered with each department's emblem.

"Keep these safe."

"Why?"

"If your flag gets stolen, your department is out."

"Wait, does that mean…"

"We can raid other dorms?"

Leo nodded.

'That means there must be a way to get in.'

Students looked tense.

"And finally. Regardless of which department wins, MVPs will be selected by year. The MVPs will become the class representatives."

Niel raised her hand.

"Yes, Niel?"

"MVP goes to the student with the highest score, right?"

"Yes."

"Then is there a prize for the overall top scorer, beyond just being a representative?"

Honestly, fifth years didn't care much for being class reps anymore.

The most likely top scorer would be Elena.

'Or possibly Lyl from the Summoning Department, currently away on a mission.'

As the upperclassmen all shared this thought—

"I'll grant one wish, within my power."

"A wish?"

Elena's eyes sparkled.

"This sounds fun."

Leo chuckled at Elena's lifted corners of her mouth.

"That's all for now."

He checked the time.

Only about ten minutes left of the day.

Leo smiled again.

"The moment midnight strikes—it begins."