The Last Ape attributed the absence of a summoning magician to his improper understanding of magic usage.
There were many occasions throughout history when magic that had been researched long ago was not transmitted correctly to future generations.
Just like how an ancient legendary sword summoning magic turned out to summon an entirely different weapon.
Due to passing down incorrectly, it became a lightning spell that attacks a wide area.
The Last Ape stated that the abilities he was accustomed to using were merely a fraction.
“Then, what is the cost of wielding this weapon?”
To use such magic, there is usually a price to pay.
It could be a contract, a favor, or it might even require a sacrifice.
“Sometimes, I wish you would summon me to this world. I’ll tell you more about it later.”
It didn’t seem like a difficult request.
Though I felt a bit uneasy about other requests I hadn’t brought up, I decided to accept it readily.
“Show me your hand.”
As I extended my hand, the Last Ape etched a symbol into the back of my hand using lightning.
“Store mana in your body as usual and use it to summon me.”
“But why are you being so kind to me?”
“Well, I feel a considerable sense of familiarity from you.”
It seemed related to how well the lightning magic resonated with me.
“Then, what precisely are you? A spirit? A god?”
“I am nature itself. The one who governs lightning.”
When I asked how he differed from a spirit, the Last Ape opened his mouth with a somewhat troubled expression.
“To be honest, I don’t really know either, so I call myself ‘nature.'”
“Are there more beings like you?”
“There are, but they are referred to as spirits.”
The Last Ape informed me of four famous great spirits.
Fire, water, wind, and earth.
These four, he said, are very influential great spirits in the world.
“Why are you excluded from that list?”
“That’s a good question. I also want to be included, but there aren’t many in the world who handle lightning well.”
I could sense that the Last Ape secretly wished to join those great spirits.
I speculated that perhaps the request he had yet to tell me was related to that.
“Well then, for today, I shall take my leave.”
“Wait a moment!”
“Huh? What’s the matter?”
“Can this be used when summoning weapons too?”
I showed him the symbol on my hand.
Since the explanation was somewhat vague, I needed a more detailed clarification.
By storing mana in this symbol, the Last Ape would appear.
However, I was confused about whether it pertained to the weapon or the figure right in front of me.
“If you only want the weapon, just think of the weapon. If you need both, shout ‘Last Ape has descended!’”
With those final words, the Last Ape transformed into light and vanished.
As he spread his wings and ascended to the sky, a large moon was shining brightly.
Once the dark clouds dispersed, the night sky must have cleared up very nicely.
Upon returning to the skies of Raden, the city appeared rather dark.
Once a vibrant city, it was now enveloped in anxiety, not knowing when war might break out.
It needs to end swiftly, but I have no idea when that will be.
When I returned to my hotel room, Tenji was still awake.
“Busy, I see?”
“No, I was just thinking a bit.”
“Speaking of the Undead, are there still some left over there?”
The ‘over there’ I referred to meant beyond the gate.
Tenji seemed to catch on quickly, nodding his head.
“I’m not entirely sure now, but they did appear occasionally while I was crossing over.”
“You mentioned they had not shown up for a century, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct. There was one particularly dreadful creature.”
“What was it?”
“A dragon made of skeletons.”
As Tenji seemed to recall the situation back then, his tightly clenched fists were trembling.
“That was something humans couldn’t contend with. Its massive body and the poison it spewed were extremely dangerous.”
“What happened to that beast?”
“It hasn’t come out since it entered the gate one day. Thanks to that, a semblance of peace returned.”
The dragon made of skeletons was still alive somewhere.
If it were to cross over into this world, it would be almost like a disaster.
“Still, I think the situation here is somewhat better.”
“Why’s that?”
“You’re not fighting against a horde of skeletons.”
I heard that in that world, the moment the skeleton army began their attack, a major city was annihilated within a day.
Although they gathered powers to wage war against the skeleton army belatedly, their territory kept diminishing as time went on.
Eventually, Tenji said that without the help from the Xaihum Continent during the gate exploration, that world would have perished already.
Current reports indicate that things over there have stabilized to some extent, and they are recovering their lost territories.
“This is just out of curiosity, but is the JS Group doing well over there too?”
“It’s more than just doing well. It competes with the scale of a former nation. At this point, it practically operates like a country itself.”
It was a stark contrast to the image I had of it in Xaihum.
Here, it had the feel of a solid businessman, whereas over there, it resembled a nation, which felt quite dissonant.
As morning arrived, team leaders from the Royal Guard and Knight Order gathered in the conference room.
The room that appeared spacious felt cramped with numerous personnel.
It was a gathering established to convey information regarding the battle that occurred the previous day.
Leading the meeting were not the Demon King but Team Leader 5 and two other team leaders who had been present at the scene the day before.
The expressions on the faces of the other team leaders listening were extremely grim.
“Don’t we need the magic stone armor?”
Someone from the Royal Guard raised their hand and suggested.
Everyone’s gaze turned towards the Demon King, but he showed no reaction.
“It’s still not officially a wartime situation.”
“If we hesitate, the situation will only worsen. As you know, Raden can’t engage in a siege.”
It wasn’t a city surrounded by castle walls in all directions, which meant that if the enemies invaded, urban warfare would have to take place within the city.
I roughly understood the efficacy of the magic stone armor.
It was armor that enhances the wearer’s physical abilities, making wars favorable.
“The Knight Order has magic stone armor, but we have only a few who possess it.”
The Knight Order only distributes it to those of a certain rank and above.
“Hah.”
The Demon King sighed and stood up.
“The enemy’s weakness is their cores; we just need to break them. Just because they resurrect doesn’t make them any stronger, right?”
“That’s true.”
The two team leaders who had witnessed the scene nodded in agreement.
“However, there is a more significant and troublesome issue.”
Team Leader 5 placed a detailed illustration on the table.
It was a drawing of the massive skeleton I had fought.
“This is the leader of the undead horde. Dealing with it is extremely tricky, especially since it’s giant.”
“Isn’t it just a matter of taking it down?”
“Ririan faced it, but she couldn’t deal a significant blow.”
With that statement from Team Leader 5, the atmosphere in the conference room became even heavier.
The expressions on the faces of the Knight Order and the Royal Guard were filled with disbelief.
“It limited its strength due to the urban environment.”
I offered an excuse that wasn’t really an excuse.
While I couldn’t land a significant hit, I had managed to corner the opponent somewhat.
Regardless, it was true that due to my lack of power, I failed to take down the enemy leader.
“I’ll defeat it properly next time.”
I spoke while wrapping my left hand around my right, which was clenched in a fist.
Seeing my resolute demeanor, the gloomy atmosphere in the conference room lightened a bit.
After the meeting concluded and most team leaders left, Riki called for me.
“Could you follow me for a moment?”
As I followed him down the hallway, Riki looked at me with a rather surprised expression.
“You are Ririan, right?”
“Ah, yes.”
When Riki first met me in Raden, he hadn’t recognized me.
It seemed he hadn’t had a clue until just a moment ago when Team Leader 5 mentioned it.
“But why are you a female?”
“I have a somewhat complicated background.”
“That aside, let’s go inside for now.”
Riki guided me to a room adjacent to the conference room.
Upon entering, it had a somewhat storage-like atmosphere with various items on display.
He picked up one of the displayed items and handed it to me.
“Here, this is a gift from the Demon King.”
The item Riki handed me was the magic stone armor mentioned during the meeting.
“Why this…”
“It was something the Demon King had kept aside, so you can accept it without hesitation.”
A large bright yellow magic stone was embedded in the center of the armor.
“Won’t others complain?”
“Who would complain about something given by the Demon King?”
“But I’m not even a member of the Knight Order.”
By principle, the armor is granted to knights of the Roran Empire.
I wondered if it were acceptable for a private individual to possess it.
“You worry too much. No one in the palace doesn’t know your name.”
It seemed that just the fact I had a connection with the Demon King was enough for me to own this armor.
“If you wear it and infuse mana into it, it will transform into a regular outfit.”
Riki demonstrated the transformation of the coat he was wearing into the armor.
“I can hide it as well.”
“You can keep it hidden during normal times.”
I donned the magic stone armor and infused it with mana.
The gem embedded in the armor glowed and transformed into a black trench coat.
After emerging from the storage room with Riki, I headed to the underground training area of the hotel.
Downstairs, Tenji’s trainees were immersed in training, while in a corner, Isabel and Aila were seated cross-legged.
As I approached, Isabel was in the middle of creating a shield.
Aila, on the other hand, was quietly embracing mana without showing any sign of stopping.
“Did the meeting go well?”
“Well, somewhat.”
“Hah… I’m so bored I could die!”
Aila scattered the mana she was holding and shifted to a more relaxed position.
“What were you in the middle of doing?”
“I was told to get familiar with mana.”
“Aren’t you already pretty familiar with it?”
Aila’s ability to gather and use mana was evident even to my eyes now.
It was described as a good practice method for those just starting their journey into magic.
