Candy Girl munched idly on a handful of sweets as a portal flared to life beside her. A gorilla with a flowing orange mane and a densely muscular build lunged out of it with violent, unrestrained brutality. Its powerful arms pounded against its bulging bare chest, producing a heavy, drumming rhythm as it released an aggressive, bone rattling roar.
The beast stood at an imposing eight feet tall, a genuinely menacing and terrifying sight before the watching crowd.
Its jaws bristled with sharp fangs, delivering a bite force powerful enough to rival that of a hippopotamus. Its thick body fur, a dark, dense gray, looked tough enough to shrug off even the deadliest bullets the world had to offer. Its hardened fists moved like the pistons of some relentless machine, capable of crushing solid blocks of lead with ease.
This was the Orange Maned Kong, a 4.5 Mid Level Elite Tier summon with the potential to reach a full 5.6 High Tier. Its raw size and brutal, overwhelming strength were the true pillars of its power.
The referee took careful notice of the situation, stepping well back to a safer vantage point of observation.
Mark stared silently at his opponent’s summon for a long moment before finally closing his eyes and inhaling deeply. His mind drifted back to what he had once witnessed while exploring the soul space belonging to his own summon.
The walls there had been covered in ancient, engraved writings and artistic drawings, each one conveying some fragment of a story or message lost to time. Most of the symbols remained completely unreadable to him, likely incoherent to any mind outside their original context.
His thoughts lingered particularly on one strange drawing, one depicting a towering, ancient island populated entirely by feminine figures, all gathered together in the midst of some wild, sprawling festival.
He could feel a primal, ancient force connecting him to that memory, a deep and powerful sense of authority flowing steadily through his veins. And now, it was finally time to call his summon forward.
His eyes snapped open, bright as a lit torch, as he released a firm mental command.
’Cassandra, come forth. It’s your time to shine.’
Glowing mana energy swirled beside him like a slowly blossoming flower before converging together to form a tall, unmistakably feminine figure. The sharp, deliberate click of heels echoed across the hard floor of the platform.
A majestic woman appeared, her orange hair pulled back into twin ponytails that framed a pair of striking sea blue eyes, dressed in a round shouldered, sleeveless brown minigown that stopped high at her upper thigh, its hem carefully pleated. She stood with the unmistakable presence of a warrior, a short pelvic curtain falling neatly between her long, powerful legs.
Yet standing at only six feet nine inches, she still remained noticeably taller than her own rightful summoner beside her.
Every eye in the crowd widened at once with visible shock and sharp, sudden attention. A strong sense of premonition rippled through the audience, dread rising in their chests at the thought that the disaster from before might somehow repeat itself all over again.
However, nothing changed this time. Mark’s summon remained perfectly still at her current, moderate height. It seemed, at least for the moment, that nothing further was going to happen after all.
Inside an office within the administrative block, Mary’s eyes widened sharply with shock the instant they landed on the Amazon summon, visible clearly through the floor to ceiling glass wall before her. The sight brought back terrifying memories from the last time, back during the ceremony where so many students had nearly lost their lives.
It always stirred a sickening wave of dread deep within her chest whenever she thought back on it. That day had left a lasting, traumatic mark on nearly everyone who had been present.
"He’s out on the stage now, and he’s already called upon that summon of his once again!" she said aloud to Mr. Williams, who stepped forward to look for himself, hands clasped calmly behind his back. His eyes narrowed with focused attention.
"Let’s see just how strong his summon truly is. This should help us properly investigate and verify whether he’s genuinely a Monarch Tier summoner," he stated, watching the unfolding scene closely from above.
"He clearly has real potential in him, just like his father before him. I’ve suspected as much for a while now, and I intend to confirm it once and for all."
Candy Girl studied the finely structured frame of the Amazon’s body with obvious interest, still munching contentedly on her snack throughout.
There was no denying she possessed a physique that surpassed even top supermodels tenfold, drawing more than a few unwanted stares from the boys nearby and plenty of envious glances from the girls. Still, Candy Girl remained confident that the raw, brutal strength of her own summon remained unmatched by mere appearance alone.
Mark had used the shrinking potion on his summon earlier, reducing her original size down to roughly a third of what it truly was, bringing her closer to the build of a talented basketball player or a runway model. He had also taken note of the name already assigned to his summon and strongly suspected it carried some deeper significance tied to the Amazon Order, something he still needed to properly investigate.
He stood quietly beside her, hands tucked into his pockets, his expression composed into practiced nonchalance. Despite technically being her rightful master as her summoner, he still looked almost insignificant standing next to the commanding, dominant presence of the woman beside him.
Her eyes flickered with a faintly condescending gaze as she studied the hulking gorilla summon across from her. Her body language made it clear she held little respect for the raw might of ordinary mystical beasts when measured against her own overwhelming presence.
The Orange Maned Kong let out a ferocious, wild roar, its golden eyes gleaming with bloodlust and destructive intent as it sprang forward with a speed that seemed to defy its massive size entirely. Its arms and feet cracked the surface of the platform with every stride as it charged forward like an unstoppable, racing train.
Mark felt a powerful gust of wind tousle his auburn hair the instant Cassandra surged forward, moving with an overwhelming, almost impossible speed for something her size. He had to steady himself just to keep from stumbling, raising both hands instinctively to shield his face from the force of the passing gale.
Her heels struck the hard floor with powerful, deliberate steps as both summons finally collided in an explosive burst of raw striking strength. Dust and dirt erupted violently into the air at the exact point of impact, sending a trembling wave of force rippling across the entire massive arena.
Amid the swirling cloud of dust surrounding the platform, the gorilla summon was sent flying high into the air before plummeting back down in a wide, curving arc that ended in a loud, heavy thud against the stone. Cassandra remained rooted exactly where she stood, holding a firm defensive stance with her legs spread wide to anchor her balance.
Her wrists suddenly gleamed bright as sunlight before the glow faded, revealing a pair of golden vambraces and matching armbands, each etched with intricate runic symbols along their surface. They covered the full length of her upper arms like a protective shield.
The armor must have released some form of reflected blast, a brutal burst of feedback triggered by the force of the impact against it, almost like some kind of built in energy absorption mechanism.
Despite the sheer difference in size between the two summons, the Amazon remained a true giant in blood and soul, carrying the legendary, herculean strength of the Amazon Order deep within her. This was the raw, unmistakable might of a Giant Born.
But the fight did not end there. In an instant, the Amazon reappeared exactly where the gorilla had landed, open hatred etched across her stance, her block heeled foot slamming down onto its bare chest with a sharp, echoing crack.
She raised her foot higher still, clearly preparing to deliver a far more devastating, finishing stomp. Her eyes gleamed with something close to pure malice and simmering rage.
"No, stop!" Mark shouted quickly, his voice cutting through the tension just before she could bring the blow down. He found himself genuinely stunned by the sheer, overwhelming aura of fury radiating off her in that moment. Just how dangerous could she truly become?
Cassandra froze mid motion, her head turning toward Mark with a flicker of recognition and visible self control settling back over her expression.
Candy Girl suddenly dropped her snack pack entirely, a sudden, bloody cough escaping her mouth. Her eyes welled up with tears as she slumped down onto all fours, drawing deep, labored breaths.
The loss of her summon must have hit her with tremendous, grave force to provoke such a severe reaction, or perhaps she was simply too fragile to withstand even a straightforward defeat like this one.
Whenever a summon suffered near fatal injury, or outright death, the deep bond shared between summon and summoner could drag the summoner down right along with it, especially for those whose own bodies were weaker or more fragile in nature.
Under the combat instructor’s swift command, a team of medics rushed onto the stage to carry Candy Girl away, after which she managed to retrieve her fallen summon back into her soul space so it could properly rest and recover.
This was a common and useful tactic among summoners, one many relied on regularly. Whenever a summon was withdrawn back into the soul space, it would gradually rejuvenate and heal over a certain period of time.
It worked almost exactly like respawning back to full health in a video game.
Silence settled heavily over the arena. The audience sat stunned, having watched what nearly became another devastating repeat of the earlier disaster, unfolding right before their eyes once again. Without Mark’s timely control, the death of a fellow student would very likely have been confirmed by now.
Then, all at once, the crowd erupted into a wave of victorious cheers, celebrating his win in keeping with the long standing tradition and expected norms of a proper tournament.
Mark spotted Hermione sitting among the sophomore section, waving toward him with clear enthusiasm. The moment their eyes met, she gave him a playful, teasing wink.
He chuckled softly, returning the gesture with an enthusiastic thumbs up in her direction. If it had not been for her, he doubted he would have made it this far with his summon, standing here like this at all. And he truly, genuinely appreciated everything she had done for him.
A/N: I hope that you enjoyed. Please help support the book by adding to your library and giving a powerstone or two. Thanks for your attention