"Knights of Light! Seize this vermin this instant!"
As if they had been waiting for his command, four knights in polished steel armor and billowing white cloaks burst from the entrance, immediately drawing their gleaming longswords as they charged toward me.
Seeing the wall of blades, hearing the thunder of heavy footsteps—at that moment, my heart began hammering, and sweat slicked my body. Cold dread seized me, and panic clawed at my chest.
'What am I—'
I glanced at the tall demoness standing before me like a blade drawn from the dark. Jagged black armor clung to her form like a second skin, organic and cruel, as if it had grown from her rather than been forged.
As my eyes focused on her, I felt a connection—something faint but undeniable, as if I didn't even need to speak for her to understand me.
She shifted her stance, angling her shoulder forward. Red sparks crackled along her arm as the first knight lunged—and she drove the jagged spike on her pauldron straight through his guard.
The black spike of her armor impaled the knight's arm, and using her height, she hoisted him off the ground before delivering a vicious slap that sent him spinning through the air and crashing into the wall beside the platform where the old man stood.
A greatsword—impossibly large, nearly twice her height—materialized in her hand, its dull crimson blade paired with an ominous black hilt and crossguard. She swung it from behind with ease, the movement tearing through the wind with weight and menace.
When she slammed it against the next knight, his head smacked the floor, sending webbed cracks spiraling outward before he tumbled away like a wrecked vehicle.
She twirled her sword effortlessly and brought it down upon another knight. However, in that instant, golden light erupted beneath her. As she slammed the greatsword down, a shockwave exploded, sending even me staggering backward and fracturing the pillars that held the hall.
The entire hall shook as if it would collapse.
As I peered through the settling cloud of dust, I saw Emperor Aurelius beneath her, blocking her strike, blocking her strike with his own longsword—comparable in height to hers.
The atmosphere froze into a moment of pressure and silence as both remained locked in position.
Then I heard Kai's voice.
"Cade! It doesn't have to be like this! Don't do this!"
My brows furrowed.
'What is this bastard talking about? Try getting arrested in a world you know nothing about.'
He shouted again, as if I were standing mountains away from him.
"I understand you're scared, and this is a strange world. We don't know what they're going to do to you. But resisting like this...? Is that the best you can think of?!"
My gaze hardened.
"Do you have a better idea?"
He stepped toward me.
"Yes! For now, surrender. Let's speak on your behalf—it's not your fault you summoned a disaster, and more importantly, it's still within your control." He placed his hand on his chest, as if positioning himself as my beacon of hope. "Let me reason with the authorities here. Trust me, I won't let anything happen to you."
My hardened gaze persisted—and darkened further.
Honestly, I didn't buy his bullshit. But he was also right in a way. I had little information and no idea what I'd be up against if I decided to resist and run.
'Hell, I haven't even been past this hall. I don't know what it looks like outside.'
So I was left with too few choices, and it seemed I'd have to depend on Kai. I didn't trust him, but I was certain the hero in him would want to prove itself—the least I could do was rely on that.
Or at least devise another plan in the meantime. One thing I knew: I wasn't dying here.
I gave my summon a mental command to stand down, and immediately she relaxed her shoulders and pulled back, disintegrating into a whirlwind of red sparks. Instantly, I felt something rush back into my soul, and with it came crushing fatigue.
My steps faltered as I tried to walk forward. My vision blurred, my knees buckled, and the cold stone rushed up to meet my face. Everything went dark. I had passed out.
***
My eyes shot open, and immediately I sat up, only to find myself in a dark room. My brows knitted together as I observed my surroundings.
It wasn't so dark that I couldn't see anything—pale moonlight filtered through a barred window high above, painting silver lines across stone walls that smelled of damp and old metal. I could make out a table and chair beside the bed I'd woken on, and a heavy metallic door.
The room itself was wide enough for ten people to occupy without feeling cramped. But the realization that I was in a prison cell made me feel suffocated regardless.
I rested my elbows on my knees, staring down and replaying everything that had happened.
From suddenly receiving the strange Lodestar while I was in class to finding myself in a new world, awakening as a wretched F-rank, and now summoning an evil spirit instead of a Heroic Spirit like they'd expected.
An incredulous chuckle escaped my lips.
'Never had a bad day, huh.'
I lifted my head and exhaled.
'I've got to move past it anyway. Let's see—the man said we can check our summon's status, right?'
I gave the mental command. And immediately, it appeared.
[SPIRIT PROFILE]
Name: Kassandra the Unconquered
Title: The Tyrant Empress, The Blood Conqueror
Spirit Tier: Calamity (9)
Fortitude: 8.2
[PASSIVE ABILITIES]
• Dominion Aura
• Tactical Genius
• Absolute Authority
• Fear Incarnate
[ACTIVE ABILITIES]
• Emperor's Command
• Intimidation Cascade
• Tactical Dismantling
• Tyrant's Advance
• The Red Banner
As I read through it over and over, I paused on something striking.
'Fortitude. 8.2? Calamity Tier?'
My eyes widened in disbelief.
'Didn't the old man say fortitude 7.0, 7.5 is considered a tall tale? And that Calamity tier hasn't been seen in eight hundred years...?'
My eyes blinked again.
'What the hell am I looking at right now?!'