In the afternoon they decided the game with Giselle…

　Adelaide was briefing Lou and Fran in the Chairman’s office about the Hunting Forest.

　Fran was already familiar with the ‘Hunting Forest’ system.

　So, Lou was mainly the one to receive the briefing.

　According to Adelaide…

　The forest was located on the outskirts of the royal capital, and was built as a training ground for students to test the activation and efficacy of their magic.

　It was jointly purchased and built by the kingdom’s Knight Cadet Academy and the Magical Boys and Girls Academies.

　Above all, it was a place where aspiring knights like Giselle, Michelle, and Olga were trained for actual combat.

　The area was so vast that the royal city of St. Helena, home to tens of thousands of people, could fit inside.

　The forest was surrounded by an outer wall and powerful magical barriers to prevent any harm to the outside world. Also, demons captured alive by the kingdom’s army and adventurers were manually released into the grounds.

　The terrain included highlands, sands, swamps, villages and ancient ruins, making it more realistic for fighting demons.

　There were various kinds of demons such as goblins, ogres, and more. Their claws and fangs were basically pulled out to prevent fatal wounds, and the physical strength of each demon was greatly reduced by casting Restraining Magic to each one.

　Once a year, when the school magic festival was held, a points-based hunting was held as part of the tournament.

　For example, one point for a goblin, five points for an ogre, and so on.

“It’s a training ground for students, so there’s little danger for senior wizards, but you’ll need some tricks.”

　Victory or defeat was a point system based on the strength of the demons in the Hunting Forest. 

　Thus, the key to winning was to grasp the location of high-point demons and hunt them efficiently.

“Can we have a sneak preview in a game like this?”

　Lou was completely unfamiliar with the Hunting Forest, so he said he wanted to take a look.

“Hmm, you’re quite cautious, Lou.”

　Adelaide was surprised by Lou’s request.

“I thought with your strength, you wouldn’t need a preliminary inspection.”

　Adelaide teased him about it, but Lou smiled calmly and replied, “I’d love to have a look around first.”

“Grandpa used to tell me never to underestimate any forest.”

　When Adelaide heard this…

　Once again, she confirmed how prudent Lou was, but at the same time, she felt that she could leave Fran in good hands.

“A preliminary inspection is no problem at all. I’ll give you permission to do that as well. When are you going?”

“Oh, I’m thinking of going now.

“Now? It’s an hour’s ride from the royal capital, even by carriage.”

“Oh, no problem. I’ll use magic.

　Is he going to use his Flight Magic again?

　Fran, who was listening to the exchange between the two at the side…

　She remembered that she had flown in the sky with Lou before, and she was deeply filled with excitement.

　I want to fly with Lou again!

　Adelaide brought her thoughts back to reality.

“No, that’s not what I meant. The entrance is closed at night. I’m afraid you’re not allowed to enter at night.”

　Adelaide thought that Lou would force his way into the Hunting Forest after hours.

　Fran, on the other hand, begged to go with Lou.

“Lou, I want to go too! Take me with you!”

“Tomorrow’s spring semester ends at noon, right? You’re both in the academy, so just directly head there.”

　Adelaide encouraged Lou to do so, while watching over Fran, who wanted to tag along.

“Sure, no problem.”

　Lou nodded with a gentle smile, as usual.

◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ 

　That night…

　In preparation for tomorrow’s class, Lou reread the school’s textbook ‘Magical Studies I’.

　The textbook began with the words of Louis Saleon, the great and legendary Magician King of ancient Lodonia.

　He said that all human beings have the qualities of a magician ――

　The qualities that Louis was referring to were the basic magical powers that mankind possessed.

　However, despite having the qualities, it was not at all clear whether you could increase your magical power so that you could use magic over and over again, or whether you could learn magical techniques and use magic effectively.

　What was magic to begin with?

　It was about taking the power of a ‘being’ beyond human knowledge and using it as your own.

　There were many different kinds of ‘beings’.

　They included the Creator and other gods; angels, spirits, demons, and devils. 

　God and angels were distinct, but…

　It was said that demons were the easiest for humans to control, followed by spirits, and then demons.

　Basically, their powers were almost unknown and only a part of them could be used.

　Magical formulas(techniques) were manuals for humans to use some of them.

　Legend had it that Louis, in his human form, had 72 pillars of mighty demons at his side, while he himself revealed unknown magic, which he compiled into a book, the so-called Grimoire of Saleon.

　Lou recalled.

　He had often heard Louis’ name from his teacher, Schulvestre Eltvara, every time he trained.

　Schulvestre met Louis countless times and competed with him in magic.

　Eventually, he and Louis mastered the magic of summoning demons in a friendly competition.

　One day, Louis told Schulvestre…

　“My body will eventually perish, but my soul will find you again!”

　Lou couldn’t quite put his finger on it when he heard about it.

　His subsequent training in Summoning Magic only reminded him of the severity of summoning demons, the greatness of his teacher who had mastered this difficult magic, and the king whose face he did not know.

　Unlike spirits, numerous demons were brutal and cunning.

　However, as Lou gained experience, he gradually learned to control them as he saw fit.

　Lou continued to read the textbook.

　The content geared for beginner wizards continued.

　It described calming, concentration and imagination, the concepts and necessity of each, and specific training methods.

　…I know these, and the methods aren’t all that different, but it includes the same thing I did.

　Then there was a section on magical characters and using them to learn basic life magical formulas. Finally, there was a section on aptitude for attributes, and that was the end of ‘Magical Studies I’.

　He was told there would be about 15 students, about half of Class 2C, taking the course tomorrow.

　According to Fran, more than half of them were taking the course because they were unable to perform magic successfully due to lack of mental stability, lack of concentration, or lack of imagination.

　In line with the school’s policy, the students were supposed to follow the textbook and practice repeatedly.

　However, Lou was experimenting to see if he could employ the training methods he had used.

　It was pointed out that there were some issues with Fran’s teaching methods, so he wanted to follow up on that as well.

　The other half of the students wanted to prepare for their new course, ‘Magical Studies II’.

　Magical Studies II was a textbook that entailed the application of Magical Studies I.

　The main content of the textbook was for the students to practice having their own familiars.

　Familiar was a generic term for a spirit, demon, or animal that moved at the command of the practitioner.

　A wizard’s talent was evaluated by how well he could build an absolute master-servant relationship with the summoned familiars and use them.

　Naturally, the higher the rank of the summoned being, the higher the rating.

　It was common for those who were not gifted in summoning to quickly give up on it.

　Then, once the students have a certain grasp of their familiars, their own aptitude attributes would be determined, and they could learn intermediate and higher level magic.

　Speaking of which, should I summon my own ‘ostensible familiar’ as well? 

　Lou fell asleep with this question in mind.

◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ 

　Next morning, 7:30 a.m…

　After breakfast as usual, Lou, Fran, and Adelaide left the mansion.

　They took a carriage to work at the school.

　The lockers for men were much smaller than those for women.

　But it didn’t bother Lou at all, because he and the veteran teacher who was scheduled to come to work today would be using the locker room together.

　When Lou entered the locker room, the veteran teacher was already there.

“Oh, you’re the new teacher. Nice to meet you. My name is Bernard Burin.”

　Bernard was probably sixty years old or less.

　He had silver hair, blue eyes, and a friendly smile, extending his right hand to Lou.

“I’m Lou Brandell. It’s nice to meet you.”

　Lou responded as well and slowly held out his right hand.