Dust still hung in the air.
Mark stood amid the ruins of the shattered cliffside, the glowing lines on his body slowly dimming. His ether reserves ticked up, but only barely—1%... 2%... 3%...
"Not enough," he muttered.
He opened his system interface.
The screen shimmered into view, pulsing red.
[Item: Amulet of Bael]
[Status: Usable]
[Warning: Current form of Bael exceeds prior summoning threshold. Summoning Time has been shortened to 5 minutes.]
"From 6 hours to just 5 minutes, huh…" Mark didn't hesitate. "Alright, use it."
The amulet function in the system interface glowed on activation, light pouring from it in jagged pulses of gold and obsidian.
A magic circle bloomed beneath Mark's feet, ten meters wide, inscribed with mystical old runes. Demon Cat Empress' facial expression changed as she felt the air turn heavy, wind howled unnaturally, and lightning arced across the sky without clouds.
A second later—
