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Mira told Leyla to try using the Concept Magic spell she was best at.

Leyla was still a little unsure as to how that would help in their situation, but she could tell that Mira knew what she was talking about, so she decided to follow her indications, and replied with an energetic 「Okay!」 before activating a Concept Magic spell.

Her choice was Light, a flying glowing orb. But it was not a regular one, as Leyla could make it fly around exactly the way she wanted.

(Incredible… She’s actually way more capable than her appearance would suggest.)

Mira was shocked seeing Leyla’s Light, not having expected her to be so proficient at it. As far as Mira was aware, only players who actively participated in raids, or researchers at the Tower of Concepts were at that level.

In other words, at least when it came to the Light spell, Leyla was already on par with those expert spellcasters. That also reinforced Mira’s assumption that Concept Magic was hindering Leyla’s progress with summoning.

「Your skill is certainly a sight to behold.」

Mira praised Leyla’s ability, but also moved to the main topic, adding 「And that’s what’s holding you back,」 talking like a professor pointing out Leyla’s shortcomings.

Leyla was still a complete beginner as a summoner, but nothing short of an expert when it came to Concept Magic. In other words, Leyla was subconsciously modifying her mana when using Concept Magic, as otherwise she would not be able to move the glowing orb the way she did.

「I see… I never noticed.」

Leyla was shocked to hear that, but also seemed slightly happy. That was fully warranted as well, as she had been told she could do something only experts could do, showing her efforts to improve had borne fruit.

But hearing that it was also holding her back from becoming a summoner left her slightly conflicted, and all she could do was wait and hear what Mira would say next.

「It’s admirable that you’ve reached this point already, but as I just explained, you’re doing it subconsciously, which is causing all your issues.」

Starting with that, Mira continued her explanation, her voice ballooning with excitement.

Mira pointed out that Leyla was subconsciously applying the same modification to her mana when using summoning, which was having a negative effect.

Summoning was essentially a completely new set of skills for Leyla, so she used what she was familiar with as a fallback. Especially for things she had done countless times with other spells she was good at. That was something Mira had seen countless times during her research, spellcasters using past experience as a comfortable crutch when trying to learn something new.

When applied to spells of the same class or with similar effects it usually had no negative effects, but summoning just so happened to be more particular about it.

「That Light you showed me was made with mana primed for change. There’s other forms, like spread, release, flow, fixation, condensation, and many others…」

As Mira spoke, she activated various Concept Magic spells, like a flame to start a fire, ice to cool something down, water to put out fires, wind to dry something, and even one to excavate holes. Eventually she concluded with a question: 「So tell me, what would you say is the ideal form of mana for summoning?」

「The ideal form of mana for summoning… Hmm…is it…release?」

Leyla was completely lost, but after thinking about it for a while eventually came to that response, though her voice sounded weak.

「Sorry, but that’s incorrect. The right answer is fixation.」

Summoning was a way to call forth the help of various entities one formed contracts with. But from a more technical viewpoint, it was more like opening a gate of sorts, letting the summon pass through. All spells used by summoners revolved around that gate and keeping it fixed in place. That was something that could not be changed whatsoever, hence why summoners used fixation mana.

「Then again, that’s all part of my own research, so I can understand if you were unaware of it.」

Mira explained that there was nothing wrong with not knowing about that, and then moved on to the main part.

Whenever Leyla tried to use any Summoning Skill, she would inadvertently do it with change mana, as that was what she habitually used. But that also happened to be the opposite of the fixation mana most suited for summoning.

「You’ve been using those other spells for so long that whenever you channel mana you prime it to change out of habit. That ends up conflicting with Summoning Skills, and it ends with a failed spell.」

After that, Mira also mentioned that release mana was a bad combination for summoning as well.

「Then what should I do?」

They had found the root of the issue, Leyla’s past habits, but that was not something one could just unlearn, so she was unsure of how to proceed to be able to use Summoning Skills.

But Mira’s smile was undeterred, even though Leyla looked so stumped.

「It’s nothing too complicated. If this is something you’re doing subconsciously, then just try to focus as much as you can to correct it. It shouldn’t be too hard now that you’re aware of the inner workings.」

Saying that, Mira went to stand next to Leyla, giving out instructions there.

「First, designate the spot where the summon should appear.」
「Okay!」

Leyla gave an immediate reply and followed Mira’s instructions, building up the summoning spell step by step.

After designating the spot where the summon should appear, the summoner had to select a summon. Leyla only had one so the choice was obvious, a Dark Knight.

「And now comes the most important part. Flush all Concept Magic out of your mind and focus solely on summoning. Try to picture an immovable gate, and a resilient armor set. Imagine you’re building them up piece by piece with your mana, and measure how much of it you need.」

Channeling mana was something common amongst all types of spells, so it was easy to do it by feel and never think too hard about it. Mira was making sure Leyla paid attention to it now though, giving her something clear to focus on.

Everything was in place once her mana was in equilibrium. The only remaining step was to fully activate the summoning.

It was then that Leyla began to doubt herself, wondering if she would succeed or fail like she had so many times in the past. She turned to look at Mira, her mind clouded by those worries.

But Mira nodded with confidence. Mira had taught her everything she needed to know, so there was no way Leyla would fail now.

Seeing Mira’s face like that brought a strange feeling of ease to Leyla. Mira looked younger than Leyla, but somehow seemed like a far more mature and reliable figure, almost like she was looking at a deity of summoning.

Encouraged by Mira, Leyla felt like she could accomplish anything she set her mind on now, and with that courage, she activated the summon.

Summoning Skill: Dark Knight

This attempt felt completely different to all previous ones, so Leyla’s eyes opened wide while focusing at a certain spot on the ground, which she had used as her target for the summon. That was also the spot where her mana gathered and formed a magic circle.

A set of armor emerged from the black magic circle. It still looked like a common soldier compared to Mira’s Ashen Knights, being shorter and thinner, having a lot of room to grow. But at the same time, it also represented a new beginning in Leyla’s life as a summoner.

「Yes, you’ve succeeded. That’s a splendid Dark Knight!」

That was also how Mira had started her life as a summoner, so watching Leyla brought many memories back. Leyla grinned happily seeing the Dark Knight too, while Mira congratulated her on her achievement.

「You did it Leyla!」

Sara seemed to be even happier though, her eyes filled with tears of joy as she hugged her little sister who had just succeeded at her first summoning.

Watching how much Sara congratulated her sister made Mira feel proud of having contributed to that, while also understanding that Sara was the overprotective type of sister.