A Test of Skill I

The gaze of the minister felt heavy upon me. It felt as if he was staring into my soul. Despite his age, he carried himself with an intense weight.

“Hm. That is quite… unprecedented.” I could almost see a sneer form on his wrinkled face. “But not unexpected. This little project was doomed to have risks, after all.”

His office was uncharacteristically clean and tidy. Neat stacks of paperwork stamped with official looking seals filled his desk. Large bookshelves, each organized alphabetically and by year of publication, without a speck of dust, lined the walls. I had never seen a mage this organized in my life.

He scratched his wispy beard. “Aster Bright. I must begrudgingly give my commendations. You successfully uncovered and deciphered ancient texts on this so-called ‘hero-summoning’ ritual, and managed to perform it without any mishaps.”

“But I am afraid that is all the praise I can give you.”

I clenched my fists tight, trying my best not to show my frustration.

He raised an eyebrow. “Is there something you would like to add?”

“...No, sir. Please continue.”

“Hmph. Very well. Then let me be frank. I do not believe you are fit to be a part of the Royal Mages.”

“What?” I couldn’t think. He couldn’t just do that. After all my hard work? After everything I’ve done?

“Do not make me repeat myself, Aster Bright. Don’t get me wrong. I do not deny your talents. You became the youngest person to achieve this title for a reason. But your talents are being squandered, wasting away on useless magic and theories. Our ranks would have never taken someone like you if you hadn’t endeared yourself to Minister Epis with your little ‘thesis’.”

Ah. So that’s what it came down to, then. It was so petty I wanted to laugh. There was never any place for a summoner here.

Summoning magic. It was sometimes reviled, sometimes seen as a cute oddity, but most of the time dismissed. It bound monsters to the summoner, allowing them to be called upon in times of need, and sharing power between the two. Due to the nature of monsters, the more ignorant believed it to be a form of demonic magic. But most just saw it as useless. Why use a monster to fight when you could simply pelt your enemies with fire? Why use a monster to deliver messages when a homunculus could do it more reliably? Why use a monster for manual labor when telekinesis was effortless?

But try as I might, I couldn’t refute any of those claims. This hero summoning was supposed to change things. Show how valuable my magic could truly be.

Her face came to mind again.

“Please. Give me another chance. There’s still the combat trial tomorrow. If that goes well, surely that will-”

I’m interrupted by the slamming on a desk. The Minister stood up, and for the first time ever he looked genuinely furious.

“And what will that prove? That your little hero can swing a sword well enough to break it upon a demon’s hide, before it tears her to shreds and feasts upon her remains?” He furrowed his brow before sighing. “You cannot kill a demon without magic. Our kingdom was fortunate enough to be blessed by powerful mages, but the ruins of our neighbors are still testament to that fact.”

My throat tightened up. It was difficult to push words out. “Then… What will happen to her?” I sputtered out finally.

The Minister took a seat at his desk, and started signing some paperwork, as if I wasn’t there. Then, still focused on the pages in front of him, he spoke. “I am not heartless, if that’s what you’re asking. She will be permitted to stay within these premises for the week, and will be granted citizenship of our nation. That is the least we can do to make up for your mistakes.”

A dull thud of a stamp echoed in the room. “After that… Well, since you are the one who summoned her, it falls to you to take care of her. She will be your responsibility to shoulder.” Thud. Was it him stamping paperwork or the sound of my heartbeat? I couldn’t tell anymore.

In the end I couldn’t get another word in. I just left, completely dejected. Was there something else I could’ve said? Some magic reply that would have proved him wrong?

In my dreams.

A maid was waiting for me outside his office. She beckoned for me to follow, and I complied. The day couldn’t get any worse, I suppose.

I dragged my tired body through the halls, until arriving at one of the Academy’s guest rooms. The maid left me to my devices as I took a deep breath, gave a quick knock, and walked in.

Noel was lying stomach first on one of the lavish beds, swinging her feet in the air without a care. A tray of cookies and assorted slices of cakes was sprawled out in front of her. She seemed to be too busy eating to even notice me.

The more I looked at her the more she looked like just a normal girl. Did I really expect her to be some savior? Pangs of guilt wracked my stomach. I dragged someone from their home, expecting them to fight another world’s battle.

“Hey. I’m back.” I finally say, taking a seat beside her. The soft, comfy bed was ruined by the texture of crumbs.

“Oh! Welcome back!” She cheerfully got up, a face covered in cream and crumbs. She licked some frosting off her finger, as more crumbs fell onto the bed sheets. “So, how’d it go?”

I groaned, slumping down on the bed. “It couldn’t have gone worse.”

“Oh. Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. The only thing that’s to blame is my own incompetence. In fact, I should be the one apologizing.” I stared at the chandelier above us, fatigue washing over my entire body.

“But I’m the one who failed that test thing, right? That’s why you got into trouble.” Her face peered from above me.

I turned to the side, not wanting to meet her gaze. “No. I’m the one who summoned you, so the failure lies with me. And besides.” I try to swallow the lump in my throat. “I need to apologize to you. For summoning you here from your home, to what must seem like a strange, foreign world.”

She placed her hands against my cheeks, gently turning my head so our eyes locked. They felt cold against my skin. “You don’t need to worry about that.” She was smiling. “I’ve only been here for less than a day, but it’s been the most fun I’ve had in ages.”

“To be honest, I thought I was dead. I was going to die. But I saw a light- like a light and the end of a dark and scary tunnel, so bright that I couldn’t help but follow it. I just thought to myself, ‘I don’t want to die!’ so I reached out and grabbed the light. And the next thing I knew, I was standing there, inside that magic circle.” Her eyes looked so distant, but she shook her head and they were back to their usual vibrance.

“Well, let’s not bring down the mood that much!” She returned to her usual pep.

“Thanks for telling me all that. I’m sure you’re trying to cheer me uGHGHH” She shoved a slice of cake down my gullet as soon as I opened my mouth. I half coughed, half chewed through the spongy cake, spittle and crumbs flying all over. To be honest it tasted really good - a fragrant strawberry mousse, light and creamy with a soft, buttery texture - but dammit, she should’ve at least warned me! I swallowed down as much of the delicious cake as I could, before leaping to my feet.

Wiping spit and cream from my face, I exhaled deep, before landing a solid chop on Noel’s forehead.

“Ow! What was that for?” She whined, pressing against where I hit her.

“Learn to read the mood.” I sighed.

The room was fairly sparse aside from all the food. Just two beds, a door leading to a small bathroom, and a few tables and chairs. It was seldom used anyways, and the rooms weren't prepared in advance for guests. So it was a bit out of place to see a small pile of books lying on the bedside counter.

The topmost book was a picture book. One I recognized well. The Great Witch of the Woods. A typical fairy tale mothers told kids to scare them into behaving, or else the witch of the woods would come and eat them up. Back then, the three of us would dare each other to go find the witch. I always wanted to meet her, if she really existed.

“Did you ask one of the servants for this?” I held out the book towards Noel.

“Oh, yeah. I asked for some stuff to pass the time, and that’s what the maid came back with. The pictures were kinda scary, but I couldn’t read any of the words.” She shrugged, looking a bit sad at the now-empty plate of cookies.

Another failure, huh? The ritual was supposed to let her read our language too, not just speak it.

“Are you feeling alright? I think you need some sleep, man.” She looked a bit worried at me. I guess my frustration was plain to see. “The bed over there’s for you, y’know.”

“Thanks. I’ll take it.” I said, rolling my body over to the adjacent, crumb free bed.

Wait. What was I doing? I couldn’t be sleeping here, all alone with her. That… well to put it simply, it would be indecent.

“Umm, on second thought, I think I’ll just be on my way home.” I sheepishly got up, staggering to the door.

“No you aren’t.” Gripping my arm with surprising strength, she dragged me back to the bed and threw me onto the sheets. “You’re staying here. I don’t want you passing out on your way home.” She forcefully lifted up the pile of blankets and wrapped them over me. “So sleep. You deserve it. Besides, the maids told me you were supposed to stay here for the night anyways. Something about, uh… taking responsibility?”

Why did she have to put it like that? But I sighed, and resigned myself to the comfort of the bed. It truly has been a long day. I just needed to purge myself of any extraneous thought, and drift off gently.

She flicked off the lights as I closed my eyes. As my consciousness slowly faded, I felt something warm press against me.

I opened my eyes to see Noel, sleeping right beside me. “W-what are you doing?” I yelp, crawling as far to the edge of the bed as humanly possible. I mean it’s one thing to be in separate beds. I can pretend like she wasn’t there well enough. But, the same bed? Right next to each other? I’m still a guy, dammit. That stuff’s too much for me to handle.

“Oh come on, lemme sleep here. I, uh, kinda ruined the other bed.” She put on what I could only assume was her most innocent looking smile, as if she wasn’t to blame for that whole… mess.

“I, uh, don’t think there’s enough room for the two of us.” Did people from her world always like to get this close?

“Aw come on, there’s more than enough room! See?” She sort of stretched her whole body across the bed, her arm barely grazing my face. “More than big enough.”

“I’m serious. You really don’t want to be sleeping with me. I, uh, snore really loud. And toss and turn alot. It gets really bad.” Please just go to the other bed.

“What’s the matter? Are you shy?”

“N-no, I just…” I was stammering real bad. Was I always this self conscious? “I don’t think it’s appropriate for a man and a woman to sleep together like this!”

“Hm? Why not?”

How clueless could she be? Or was she really just trying to tease me?

“It’s… It’s indecent!” I finally manage to spit out.

She stared blankly at me, before laughing. “Come on, we’re friends! What’s the harm in sleeping in the same bed?”

I took a deep breath. She truly was… well, something.

She continued to speak. “Seriously. It’s been fun hanging around here. I… well you’re the first friend I’ve made in a long time.”

It was the same for me, too. I was always so buried in research and study that I didn’t have time to talk to anyone. So even if she acts so clueless all the time, it was nice to just have someone to talk to.

“And listen, I know you’ve been having a rough go of it. But just because some weird test or whatever said I failed, doesn’t mean I’m not gonna stop trying to be a hero for you. That’s what you summoned me for, right?”

She was right. It was still too early to quit. I can't give up now. If I did, then I would be letting down my entire research. Everyone who helped me with my work. Most importantly, I would be letting her down. Then… tomorrow. I’ll go through with all the planned tests. Losing my position as royal mage be damned, I’ll make it work.

“Thanks.” I whispered, but there was no response. Then, the faint sound of snoring came from beside me.

I smiled, and quietly drifted off too.