Small bird-like beasts cut through the sky, fox-type beasts ran alongside students, and massive dragon-type beasts circled leisurely in the distant sky.

Some prepared for class with their beasts, some ate together, and some were scolded by professors simultaneously while playing around.

Here, a phantasmal beast was not a mere summon or a weapon.

They were family, friends, and contractors to spend a lifetime with.

『Ding-dong.』

『Notice to all freshmen and transfer students.』

Orientation for the Department of Phantasmal Beasts will begin shortly.

All students, please assemble in front of the Temple of Contract.

The Temple of Contract.

The most sacred place in the Department of Phantasmal Beasts.

In the center, the 『Great Tree of Contract』 that has lived for thousands of years had taken root, and it is said to be connected to the mana of phantasmal beasts existing all over the world.

It is not the human who chooses the beast.

The beast chooses the contractor.

Talent, family background, and grades mean nothing.

The contract is completed only at the moment their hearts connect.

Some students contract with a common beast on their first day, while others fail to contract with even one after years.

Conversely, history tells of students who were chosen by legendary or mythical beasts during their very first contract.

However, that was a miracle that occurred perhaps once in several hundred years.

Students of the Department of Phantasmal Beasts travel to numerous locations before graduation.

They start their first practice in the peaceful Grassy Plains,

Search for traces of rare beasts in the Great Forest of Souls,

Commune with aquatic beasts at Clear Lake,

And learn how to protect their contractor in extreme environments at Flame Canyon, Silver Snow Mountain, and the Twilight Desert.

Only students whose skills are recognized earn the right to challenge the Sky Archipelago, Dragon King Peaks, and finally, the Sanctuary of Stars, whose gates are said to open once every few thousand years.

Forming a new contract there was not just an honor; it was no different from becoming a legend of an era.

"Who's the favorite to win the Phantasmal Beast League this time?"

"I heard there are already over ten elite-class contractors."

"No, they say a legendary-class reaction appeared at the Temple of Contract."

"No way... this year too?"

Amidst the students' anticipation and tension, the campus was even more excited than usual.

Whether to become the best contractor, to meet a one-of-a-kind partner, or to find a destiny whose name they didn't even know yet, everyone was gathering under the same sky.