Olivia quietly slipped away to the back of the building and attempted the familiar summoning ritual. She wrote out the ancient words of power required to establish a connection with other realms. She already lost count of the number of times she did this.

Over and over. Every failure only made her more discouraged.

Why her? Why was she the only one who couldn’t summon a familiar?

‘I have to summon a familiar. If I don’t, all my years in the academy will be for nothing!’ she thought to herself.

Despite being frustrated, she continued with the ritual.

She chanted, "O spirits of the other realms, heed my call and banish the wicked from this world. I implore you to lend your aid to cleanse the land and restore peace.”

Nothing happened.

She tried again, but no spirit attempted to communicate with her.

‘Maybe I’m just not meant to summon a familiar’, Olivia thought sadly with a sigh.

"Don't give up."

She heard a familiar voice. Immediately, she turned her head and saw him, then wondered if she was dreaming.

"Shina!" Olivia was surprised to see him. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm on my way to deliver an invitation. There will be a dinner party sponsored by house Icarus for the graduates." He held up an envelope.

"A dinner party?" Olivia's eyes widened and shone brightly. She could already imagine the wonderful food.

Shina was aware of her excitement for the cuisine. He chuckled. "Nothing big. Just a chance for union leaders to scout for potential members. This might be your chance to find a union."

"But will any union accept a summoner with no familiar?"

"It might be difficult, but I'm sure there are some who will take you in. You will get a familiar eventually if you keep attempting the ritual." Shina was positive about it. He gave a little smile.

“I’ve been trying for years to get a familiar, but I’ve had no luck. I can’t be called a summoner if I haven’t summoned anything.”

“You have a point.” Shina nodded. “But don’t give up. Try finding a union anyway. It might help.”

Olivia sighed. She knew the odds were low, especially for Shina’s union.

"I have to hurry and get this letter delivered. You can do it, Olivia," Shina said. "Best of luck to you."

If it was Shina's words, they were always encouraging. This gave her the motivation to keep trying.

Unfortunately, she just had no luck that day.

The dinner party was held in one of the academy’s ball rooms. Only the new graduates and officers of different unions were invited to the event. There was a buffet and a live chamber orchestra. Students mingled with the union officers over food and fine drink.

Olivia sat on a table with Shina, who was one of the alumni helping out with the small event. She was glad to have a companion at such an event. So far, she hadn’t caught the fancy of any union officer yet, unlike her peers.

One student at a nearby table was bragging about the union invites she received. Her voice was loud enough for Shina and Olivia to hear. Olivia recognized her. She was one of the top ten graduates.

"Have you found a union yet, Olivia?" Shina asked while eating a plate of cake.

"I want to join your union," replied Olivia.

"Royal Red, huh? It might be hard to get an invitation." Shina looked a little worried.

"I'd need a familiar for that, won't I?" Olivia said sadly.

"Perhaps. Well, you can always give it a try."

"Please tell me who your union leader is!" Olivia's determination made her accidentally slam a nearby tray downwards, which sent a bowl full of punch flying. It landed perfectly on the head of a black haired boy. The room's attention was immediately on the one drenched in punch. After a few seconds, laughter could be heard.

"I'm terribly sorry! I didn't mean to," Olivia said while covering her mouth. She wanted to die out of embarrassment.

The boy turned. He did not look amused. Rather, an intimidating glare was visible on his face. It was someone she recognized.

"This is Adrian Icarus, the union leader of Royal Red," Shina said awkwardly.

Olivia turned pale. Surely, her chances of ever joining Royal Red were now zero.

Adrian was handed a towel by one of the servers. He sighed and left the room to clean himself up.

‘Noo! What have I done!?’ Olivia screamed in her head.

"Don’t worry about it, Olivia. I’m sure he’ll forgive you,” Shina comforted her.

Olivia already felt the icy glares of Adrian’s unofficial fan club on her. How dare she embarrass the great prodigy of House Icarus like that! Who does she think she is? After some minutes, Olivia couldn’t take it any longer and excused herself. She didn’t return to the party anymore after that.

She took a stroll in the garden to cheer herself up and found an isolated area. There, she decided to do the summoning ritual again. She knew deep inside that her career as a summoner depended on having a familiar. After all, how could she be called a summoner if she can’t even summon a single spirit?

She prepared the summoning ritual and began chanting the words, "O spirits of the other realms, heed my call and banish the wicked from this world. I implore you to lend your aid to cleanse the land and restore peace.”

Nothing.

She made several more attempts.

Still nothing.

Olivia was getting desperate. ‘No! I can’t just give up here!’

Other people could easily summon spirits after their first or second attempt. Why couldn’t she do the same? Was she really that bad at it?

Olivia shook her head. ‘I’m going to keep going until I finally get a familiar! I’m not going to give up!’