A dream.
What's this about?
Why is there a blue-haired and purple-eyed guy standing beside me?He's more handsome than me. I bet he can get any chick he desires.
Boom!!!!!!!!!!
"Ahh... It… it hurts. What just happened? Waah!"
"Meh... m... my hand! It got blown off, but it doesn't hurt."
"Autumn, what are you doing?!"Again, that blue-haired guy reached out to me.
Then my eyes caught sight of an enormous being floating in midair.What kind of fight am I part of?I don't remember signing up for something like this.
Trriiiiiiii trrrrriiiiiiiiii.A hand shuts off the ringing machine.
The alarm bell woke up the young man.
"Waah, what was that? A dream?That was one of the most annoying ones I've experienced."He gasped."Oh no! 5:05 already!Gotta get ready for exercise—I'm twenty minutes late!"
The young guy moved across the mirror and thought to himself,"Yes, this is me. Very grizzly orange hair.Pink eyes, which make people think I'm some kind of weakling.A very fragile build and an orphan on top of it.How can I manage this thing called life?Anyway, time to go for the run."
The young man came outside and saw the mail post had a letter for him.He moved closer and picked out the letter.
For Autumn Hydrogon.
"A letter for me? That's interesting.Let's see what it says."
Autumn Hydrogon, you are selected for E-Mana Exams. Congratulations.
"Wait, what?! For me to give the exams, I should be registered as a recognized magician.But the magical ability I possess… I've kept it hidden from the world.Oh, did... Mr. Harbon do this?"
Autumn started running.He opened the gates of the house and took off.
He reached a shop that looked more like a garden than a store.
Autumn entered the store."Mr. Harbon... Mr. Harbon, where are you?"
An old man, huge, very tall, and slightly chubby, came out at the young man's cry.His face had a very long black beard, which was well-kept and silky smooth.
"Ohh, Autumn, my boy. How are you doing?" Harbon greeted.
"What is this?"The young man's expression was filled with aggression as he held the letter.
"The exam letter," Harbon said. "Congrats."
"Why did you do that for me?My magical ability doesn't allow me to fight, and I want to keep it a secret from the world.If I end up in the Summoning Corps, it's all on you!"
"What's wrong with being in the Summoning Corps?You serve the king, make good money, and gain a lot of respect."
"You don't understand.It's a cage.I want to be independent."
"Independent? Adventurer talk, hmm?Forget it. Live a nice and cozy life.Nothing worth such a hassle.Along with that, there are not many natives who are on par with the power of the summoned heroes.They are literally gods among us."
"No, they aren't.Those otherworlders are just normal humans like you and me.They just get powers by unknown supernatural means.They have an advantage over us, but that doesn't mean they are inherently better."
Harbon rubbed his hand against his beard."Nice resolve.But if you want to become an adventurer, then why this uproar against me for putting your name in for the exam?"
Autumn's face went blank.
"See, I know everything about you, Autumn.You want to be in the Summoning Corps; that's why you were hiding your powers from the world.That's okay.Anyone with summoning magic is said to be only good for summoning.But you can pave the path for others like you—to be looked upon as more than what society expects you to be.
"Now, don't tell me you don't want to fight.There's no adventurer job that doesn't require fighting.If that's what you want to be, you need to give the exam."
"Umm… It's not that.There's a guy who's very aggressive and hates me.I don't want to face him."
"Well..." Harbon picked up a biscuit and placed it on the table; the face of the biscuit turned toward Autumn."Think of this as a wall—a wall that is that bully.Okay, now what will you do, Autumn?"
"Break the wall!And then he is not my bully.I'm not getting bullied."
"Wrong answer. You eat it."
Harbon gulped the biscuit in milliseconds, along with some air."And that's a bully stopping you from chasing your dream.If you run away from responsibilities that your dream demands from you, then you will end up as what you hate. Remember, boy, not chasing your dream is the biggest crime you can commit against yourself."
Autumn's gaze went down.He thought to himself,"Yeah... Special things require special efforts.I can't stop because one guy is a thorn in front of me.I cannot stay weak forever.I am fifteen, and one day I will turn twenty.By that time, it will be too late to do anything.
I guess I have just been thinking about doing things and was fulfilled by that much,but I didn't try to do the actual task.I can kill huge monsters in my imagination,but thinking about those imaginations is time wasted.I want to change."
"So, have you made up your mind?" Harbon asked.
"Uhmm." Autumn nodded."But what power have you registered my name with?"
"Thunder."
"What?! Thunder? But I am a summoner! I do summoning magic!"
"Yeah," Harbon said."That's why I have forged a formula that will convert your summoning magic into any other form of magic.It's a very ancient formula.
"But since we started mass summoning of heroes from another world,We reduced summoners to just hero-worshippers.But they used to fight as well."
"So, for all this time, those herbs I have been summoning for you…"
"Yep," Harbon said."A part of it I have used to help make the formula, alongside the pills I was making for the market.
"So, are you willing to change yourself?Remember, things will not be the same from here on out."
Autumn, with a slight grin on his face, gave a small nod.