Chapter 154 – Second Summoning.

Rusty stepped into the summoning circle as instructed. The runes around him flared to life, pulsing with magical light that reflected off the high ceiling of the summoning chamber. For a moment, he felt the familiar sensation of his essence being pulled away. But before the summoning ritual could begin, something unexpected appeared before him once more.

“Oh?”

A system window appeared, explaining everything in detail. After he finished reading it, the screen vanished and was replaced by another interface. On the left side, there was a small box divided into four squares. On the right, a large list of items appeared. He recognized all of them as things he had stored in his storage and stash tab.

“So, does this mean I’ll have access to my stash tab while being summoned?”

“It seems so. Although it’s quite small, you won’t be able to carry more than one main weapon or a few smaller items,” Alexander replied.

Rusty began to reconsider his loadout. He had planned to use a setup similar to last time. In his hands, he held a shield and a polearm with multiple edges and a blunt hammer head on the reverse side. However, now that he could bring a second weapon, perhaps it was time to make a change.

It’s not a one-on-one fight. I’ll be in a forest. Maybe I should approach this differently.

After thinking it through, he decided to replace the polearm with a halberd as his main weapon. In the item box, he stored a mace for situations that required close combat and blunt force. At his side, he strapped on a short sword as a secondary weapon. With this setup, he felt ready to face a wide variety of enemies. He wished he had room to bring a bow and some arrows, but the box was simply too small for that.

“This should do it. I’ll see you two later!”

“Take care, Rusty.”

Alexander said, and then in an instant, the summoning circle flared with renewed brilliance. A high-pitched hum resonated in the air as mana surged through the runes. The world around him blurred, colors melting into streaks of light before collapsing into shadow. He could feel his essence being pulled away yet again and he wondered, what new foes awaited him in that world of summoners?

******

“Is this really the extent of what she can do? I thought she was supposed to be special. Was her victory over Lady Grandwell just a fluke?”

“It must have been. Look at that thing… a child could summon a better monster.”

“Hahaha, what is that small thing even supposed to do? Is this really it, or is she hiding her true power?”

The voices of three teenagers echoed through the forest. Each of them wore the black and blue robes of Mystwood Academy. Their attention was fixed on a girl standing nearby, wearing a robe of pure black that hung loosely over her thin frame. It looked slightly too large for her, as if it had been made for someone else.

Gwendolin Rainstar stood with her back against a wide, gnarled tree, her arms trembling at her sides. Leaves drifted down around her, rustled by the summoned monkey’s heavy steps as it circled her. The hobgoblin, tall and armed with a crude club, growled low, a toothy grin spreading over its misshapen face. The snake, a half-meter-thick hissed and coiled around a nearby branch, ready to strike at its master’s whim.

Across from her stood three students from a different class, something made clear by the robes they wore. At the academy they attended, students were ranked, and their clothing reflected their class status. Those from the most prestigious families or with the highest grades were placed in Class A. They wore ornate silver and blue robes and carried badges engraved with their class rank.

The three students now facing her each wore a badge marked with the letter B. In contrast, Gwendolin belonged to the lowest class—Class D. Her plain black robe and simple badge reflected that status clearly.

Gwendolin’s imp crouched in front of her, tiny clawed hands raised in a mock battle stance. Its dull red skin and curled horns made it look more mischievous than menacing, and its wings fluttered uselessly, too small to lift its body more than a few meters.

“Pathetic.”

Spat one of the boys, a lanky teen with sunken eyes and glasses perched on his freckled face.

“An F-rank imp? Are you serious?”

The other two chuckled.

“Do you know how many nobles would pay to see Grandwell’s name dragged through the mud? If we rough her up a bit, maybe House Grandwell will finally take us seriously. Maybe even sponsor us.”

Said the second boy, whose round, pudgy face matched his rotund frame. His belly jiggled as he laughed.

“That’s true. Lady Kathrine will be pleased!”

Added the third, shorter than the others and distinguished by a sharp, birdlike nose.

At the mention of Katherine Grandwell, Gwendolin’s breath caught. That name had haunted her since the duel. She had barely won, but the victory had brought her nothing but whispered threats and growing hostility. Now, these students, eager to win the favor of the noble house she had humiliated, had chosen the forest and her isolation to carry out their plan.

“Why…?”

She whispered, her voice shaking.

“Why are you doing this? I never did anything to you.”

The pudgy boy sneered and took a step forward, his monkey summon echoing his movement with a thud of its fists against the mossy ground.

“You did something the moment you embarrassed a Grandwell. You don’t understand how things work here, do you?”

“People like you don’t beat people like her.”

The sharp-nosed boy added, practically spitting the words.

This narrative has been purloined without the author’s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

“Your family’s disgraced, your grades are garbage, and now you strut around like some kind of prodigy? That duel was a joke. A fluke. And we’re here to make it right, show everyone who you really are.”

The imp, sensing its summoner’s fear, flared its tiny wings and let out a shrill screech. It stood its ground with surprising defiance, though it was dwarfed in every way by the monsters surrounding it. Still, it was a summoned creature, one that did not know fear, and it hurled itself at the three enemies to protect its master.

The hobgoblin cracked its knuckles and stepped forward with a snarl. The imp didn’t stand a chance. Its head was crushed beneath the hobgoblin’s club, and its limp body was then swatted aside by the monstrous ape-like creature beside it. It slammed into a nearby tree, then shimmered and dissolved into particles of blue mana. The imp had been destroyed without landing a single clean hit.

“Hahaha, what was that? It’s so weak!”

“N… noo…”