"Holy crap!" Flashbacks from the Cave of Flame resurfaced as some huge, scary-looking thing that was on fire hurtled towards her at extreme velocity. She threw herself to the ground to avoid a massive, sweeping blade cleaving the air where her neck had been a second ago.

The giant axe's wielder, a petite girl with thick blonde hair pulled back into ringlets scowled at her, eyes as red as the fire that permeated the sharp edge of her weapon.

"That was pathetic!" the girl sneered, grinding the heel of her foot into the Summoner's spine after the Summoner had not bothered to get up after her life-saving dodge.

Ow ow ow ow. The little demon's boots were plated with steel and dug through her thin hoodie. It felt like a knife was being driven into her back. All she could do was yelp and flail about in agony like a tortured fish, unable to escape the monster's grasp.

"You're the weakling who summoned me? I'd rather die than be commanded by someone like you!" she tsked, sheathing her axes behind her back. "I don't even need a weapon to handle you."

"H-hey, I'm not pathetic," the Summoner countered, shaking under the Unit's weight, "I've got heart, and stuff."

…okay, she was pretty pathetic.

The girl scoffed. "Lucky for you, I'm pretty generous." She removed her weight off the Summoner's back, and hauled her to her feet with a force that rattled the non-crazy girl's bones. "I'll give you one chance. If you screw up, I'm gone!"

Her eyes were red and narrowed in irritation and terrifying. The Summoner nodded.

"Yes, ma'am."

The girl disappeared, leaving behind the smell of smoke, a new mental bond in the Summoner's mind, and some painful bruises on her back.

…What was her name, even?

I figured that you wouldn't have a place to stay, being from a different world and all. Feel free to use anything you like while I'm not there. I trust that you'll treat my belongings with respect. You can use my bed too, if you want to. –Karl

And yet again, let Karl be praised, give thanks to Karl, for he is good. She eventually found his house because of a letter, her name boldly printed on the envelope in narrow, slanted handwriting and clearly visible as it hung from the door. So obvious that even someone as thick as her couldn't miss it.

The house was small, but suited for one person. The front door opened into a sitting area that merged into the kitchenette, which had doors leading to a bedroom, the bathroom, and the backyard. Everything, from the wooden furniture to the knives sitting on a block on the counter, gave an impression of being used and old, but very well-cared for.

The Summoner peered into his bedroom, a feeling of guilt rising up in her. There was a shelf crammed with books, a single window above a desk, a closet, and a bed neatly made with deep emerald blankets. Strewn across the room was a multitude of potted plants and what she assumed were weapon parts.

The bookshelf was an item of interest, definitely. She had played plenty of video games before – knowing universe lore and rules would come in pretty damn handy. It wouldn't do to accidentally offend a princess and end up thrown in a dungeon.

If this world even had monarchies. Heck, she didn't even know if the acceleration of gravity was the same as Earth's.

Another glance at the bed, and the guilt intensified. She decided not to use Karl's bed for the night, because that felt oddly like tarnishing a pure maiden's virtue. Or something. Even though it looked soft and lovely and probably smelled nice-

See, that's why she didn't deserve to use the bed. She walked over to the shelf, examining the titles. They were sorted by subject, the top row pertaining to combat strategies and weapon maintenance, the second row to horticulture, and the third to reference materials and atlases and the like.

Bingo.

She pulled out A Geographic Guide to the Realms, The Akras Summoners' Hall Unit Compendium, and A History of the War With Gods.

The Geographic Guide was a series of maps of Elgaia and Grand Gaia, with descriptions of climate conditions and photographs. She couldn't find much of it interesting or relevant to her, since she wasn't well-acquainted with the names of other countries.

What she did notice, however, was how small Mistral was in comparison to the rest of Grand Gaia. She could fit her thumb over the region.

Mistral is an island split into three subregions: Mistral, Morgan, and St. Lamia. It was the first island indexed by the Akras Summoner's Hall after re-entry into Grand Gaia. The climate is largely mild outside of the Egor Snowfield in Mistral and the volcanic areas (see Figure 2.4).

The rest of the chapter went into more depth about each of the three regions, as well as brief histories ("The Breeze Beach has been proposed as a possible tourist location, but the spread of monsters has prevented further development of the area."). She laid it aside, and picked up the Unit Compendium. It weighed about a billion pages, the spine extra-thick and sturdy to accommodate the volume's massive weight. On the first page, in bright red ink, was printed:

The following is property of the Akras Summoner's Hall. Unauthorized distribution of the information inside will be penalized harshly, and may result in imprisonment.

Well, that was pretty ominous. Perhaps this foray into the realm of forbidden knowledge would be the first step off the edge of a slippery slope, and she would become Voldemort, or something. Or maybe following unenforceable rules was for nerds.

She cracked the book open.

Units were sorted by name. Each profile had a sketch of said unit, and a ridiculously comprehensive analysis of the units' qualities. This was pretty unhelpful to her, because she had no idea what a 900 Attack or 600 Recovery stat was in reference to.

She still had a huge amount to learn, huh. She probably had less knowledge than a kindergartener raised in this world. At least she was grateful that this world used English speaking and writing systems. Having to overcome a language barrier would have been a true nightmare. It probably would have been hilarious, though.

She flipped through the book, settling on Eze and Kuda's chapters.

A warrior from the ruined Atharva Republic, he later became one of the Six Heroes. Raised in an old mine, he worked from the time he was a child. At one point he grew tired and left to become a demon bounty hunter. His swordsmanship was tempered through his mine work, and he could obliterate a normal demon in one blow. He spoke rough, but was polite to women.

…Huh. Her friend also seemed to have some kind of historic vague relationship with a Princess Emilia. A kind of crass guy with a stern princess made for a good romance story, she thought. She tucked the name Emilia away in her head for further research, and just so she could tease the guy later.

With trepidation, she flipped over to Kuda's chapter.

The sketch of him was not as detailed as Eze's had been, but the artist's rendition of him was accurate. The serpentine, deceptively relaxed posture and fierce gaze was pretty spot-on. The writing about him was also rather sparse, and was a summary of what Eze had told her.

An assassin rumored to take on any job as long as the reward was worth it. Though he demanded exorbitant amounts of money for his services, he was known to carry out his missions without fail, and was thus considered a very valuable asset. No one could match Kuda's assassin skills, which came to life through his whip-like sword. Kuda's name and prowess were so renowned that describing him as a mere "assassin" would not do them justice. However, since no one who saw his face ever survived to tell the tale, this information is all mere speculation.

Exorbitant amounts of money. Services…ugh. Remembering their first and only meeting made her want to roll up into a ball.

But honestly, if he was as good as his reputation proclaimed, he'd make her quest a lot easier. Logic stated that since he seemed content on his own, she would have to be the one to extend the olive branch. Even if the thought of interacting with him made her insides crawl…

Self-respect, or survival?

…She knew the answer to that.

"It hasn't even been a day yet. Are you that eager for more?" Kuda asked, surveying the room he had been summoned into as he leaned against his doorframe. It couldn't have belonged to her. The scent on the bed didn't match with hers, nor did the size of the clothing he could see hanging through the gap of the partially-closed closet. A male, in his late teens or early twenties. Independent and responsible. Good cook.

He was rarely summoned outside of combat situations, no less by someone whom he had scared. He was already intrigued.

"If by more, you mean more unwarranted physical contact, the answer is a," she gulped, and he watched her slim throat flex with the action, "definite no. If by more, you mean more professional diplomacy, of which there was none before, that'd be pretty cool."

Kuda unfolded his arms and stood straight, about to reply. Her hands immediately flew to her mouth, eyes screwed shut. A single eye cautiously opened.

"Sorry," she said, flushing as she removed her hands from her mouth. "That was rude, but not really, given your track record."

Heh. She was like a paranoid rabbit. How cute.

"You're sending rather mixed messages," he said. He'd mess with her for a bit. "Summoning me in a room with a bed," he gestured to the bed, ignoring her hiss that sounded like that is a holy place how dare you, "in a way that blocks the only viable exit." He gave the doorframe an audible tap.

Her eyes widened as she assessed her situation, and her poor decision. It was so very civilian of her.

"The window," she protested.

"Is too narrow for your shoulders to fit through," he rebutted. She slumped in defeat.

"Well-played," she said, voice simmering with resentment. "But really, please! Can we have a conversation, just one, where I don't have to be afraid of being assaulted or killed?"

Kuda was not one for handouts or mercy. The strong didn't become strong by giving away what they had, after all. This situation was no different. On the other hand, he did realize that turning down her request would stop progression, and she would likely refuse to summon him again.

And she was quite fun, compared to the stuffy summoners who tried to order him around like he wasn't the most famed assassin in all of history.

Kuda was not against compromise. He had his fun, and she could have her talk. So he sat down across from her on the floor, legs crossed.

"Alright," he said.

Okay, she had not expected him to agree so easily.

It was surreal. Kuda was still tall as sin, even when he folded up his stupid-long stilt legs and sat down facing her. She still had to look up to make eye contact. How irritating.

Admittedly, now that she had his attention, she had no idea what to say. This was bad.

Kuda's eyes looked back at hers, nonchalant and expectant. Then, they flicked towards her lap.

Towards the compendium, open to his entry. Before she could react, the volume was in his grasp, easily balanced in a single hand.

Seriously, that thing had the weight of a small child. It was impressive.

"'Loyal Assassin'?" he snorted. "What garbage."

There was always something embarrassing about someone finding out that you were researching them. Not that she knew from prior experience, or anything. "Uh..."

"The artist is pretty talented, though," he said. Then, with two fingers, he ripped his entry out of the book.

Wha…

"H-hey!" she shouted, grabbing the book back from him, stumbling under its weight. "What was that for?"

He folded the pages and stored them in his cloak, nonplussed. "I don't like that those summoners have data on me, much less such a poorly-written one."

"What kind of logic is that? These things are mass produced, probably. And it's not mine, either…" she groaned, slumping sideways. "I'm so sorry, Karl…" After he trusted her, too. She was truly the worst of the worst. She couldn't even get a replacement copy, since she wasn't a part of the Akras Summoner's Army.

Kuda's face was apathetic, and she hated him for it. "Your boyfriend?"

"My girlfriend." He quirked an eyebrow. "No, he's a friend. And you've wrecked his book. Why do you care?"

"Curiosity does not equate to caring," he said, leaning backwards on his hands. She wondered how many people those hands had killed.

"Look," she said, "you can't just do that. I get that you're this almighty powerful assassin, but if you do stuff like this, I just can't look at you as an equal."

Wow, those were some strong-sounding words. Stronger than she actually was.

Kuda's eyes narrowed. "You're saying boring things. Do you have a point?" She took a breath, trying to temper her anger. It wouldn't do to alienate him before negotiations even started.

"Yeah, I do. Like I said, you're really powerful, and I have a quest. You could help me, but I don't have anything that you would want. I don't even know why some Units help summoners without any incentive-"

"There isn't any."

His expression was inscrutable.

"Most of us aren't given the choice. The power Lucius gave you… he didn't ask any one of us if we wanted to be summoned before blessing humanity with the ability," he said, voice sardonic.

Oh. That was kind of… horrifying and dystopian.

"It'd be child's play for you to force me to do your bidding." It was a reluctant admission. His posture was relaxed, but his left hand toyed with the edge of a knife (which she hadn't spotted before?!).

Kuda seemed like a cat. Temperamental and violent. Maybe he enjoyed occasional tenderness, but never liked being called out on it.

Hated being chained down, more than anything.

"Well, that doesn't sound like a professional agreement at all," she said, willing her stupid mouth and brain not to say anything stupid or awkward. She had this horrible habit of making bad puns and inappropriate quips at bad times, and she knew this was the worst time. "That sounds an awful lot like slavery."

He made a sound that was vaguely agreeing and deceptively nonchalant. She knew better.

Ugh, this was getting unexpectedly complicated. She hadn't signed up for Real Talk when she had agreed to Lucius's proposition! The fact that it was with Kuda made it a thousand times worst. She thought she'd have a silly, wacky adventure with magic and then get transported back home. It'd be like one of those cheesy movies where she'd think it was all a dream until she found a symbolic object that suggested otherwise.

But it was to be expected that an actual war would give rise to lots of screwed up stuff that would affect society in subtle ways. Pink was associated with femininity because of Hitler, and all that.

She wanted to handle this maturely and properly. Kuda was the type who detested pity or dishonesty, so she had to be honest and cool.

"I don't want to force you, or anyone to 'do my bidding,'" she said, hesitant. "I want to ask you for help, because it'd be nice to have. I'm not looking for brownie points or anything because I'm asking you instead of telling you, but because that seems like the right, not-scumbag thing to do. Friendship and stuff sounds pretty cheesy, but I do think a positive relationship when you're supposed to be watching each others' backs is pretty-" Lucius save them all, she was babbling now.

"You can stop talking now," Kuda sighed, running a hand through his hair. The serious atmosphere left as suddenly as it came, and she nodded, closing her mouth.

"So how much do you charge for your services? Aside from surprise kisses." No, she was never going to let that go.

"Depends on the target, really. And how much I like the client." Wow, he was pretty forthcoming. Did that mean that she passed his test? Was this the start of a beautiful friendship? Or was this a reverse play where he would kill her with kindness? Like how some female insects killed their mates after intercourse! Kuda, you monster.

Brain, stop thinking. Okay, good. Now come up with a reply, brain.

"Since you like me a lot, it won't be that bad, right?" she asked hopefully.

He quirked an eyebrow and tilted his head, smirking. She groaned.

He hadn't meant to reveal that much to her. It irritated him, that he could still slip up despite his expertise.

She was simply such an aberration, an outlier from the norm. Her manner of speaking, as well as her appearance and the way any emotion that flowed through her displayed transparently on her face marked her as a foreigner. Unbiased and unmarred by his corrupted world. As a result, she was very easy to talk to. Unintentionally, he had loaded some of his resentment onto her.

The girl's reaction was acceptable, and he had already decided to allow her use of him in combat.

"Money doesn't mean much to me anymore," Kuda said. "I prefer valuable items. Though, there is something that only you could offer me that I'd like a lot." The phrasing was provocative and deliberate, and he was pleased to see her splutter and flail her arms around foolishly.

"…You're a jerk," she said, pouting.

"I didn't intend it that way, but the fact that you interpreted it like that means something about you, doesn't it?" She made this too easy. "Unfortunately, I don't offer that kind of service."

Her face was bright red now. Her grief calmed his soul.

"Back to business. As a summoner, you have the ability to power up units." She nodded, showing that she had some familiarity with the topic. "I want you to strengthen me to new heights. In return, I'll fight for you."

After all, while knowledge was power, power was power, too.

"And as a result, we're friends now," she said to Eze, who eyed Kuda with caution.

After their wonderful new relationship was established, the Summoner headed back through the gate to Mistral, motivated by her personal victory to go kick some ass.

She had kind of forgotten that Eze had fought in a war on the opposite side of Kuda. Amongst all the erratic mood shifts and tension, she had forgotten to review History of the War With Gods, and her rookie mistake could lead to a disagreement. Hopefully, there wouldn't be conflict. But…

"If you don't want to battle alongside him, we can work something out," she said, Kuda's previous words about coercion ringing in her ears. She was sure that many summoners were cooperative with their Units (it seemed like many were revered through history), but it only took a few rotten experiences to spoil someone's impression of humanity.

Moreover, what if certain individuals were literally insane? The logical answer would be not to use them in battle, but if a summoner didn't want to be killed, they would have to shackle the Unit down. The admission left a bad taste in her mouth, but she couldn't deny it.

She would try compromise whenever she could.

"…It's fine," Eze said. "As long as he didn't force you into anything."

She grinned. "Nah, it was a mutual agreement between comrades!" She did a goofy thumbs-up for emphasis.

Kuda stalked forward, probably jealous of her incredible camaraderie with Eze. "You didn't ask me if I was okay with working with the legendary idiot of the Six Heroes," he said as he folded his hands behind his head.

Eze bristled. "What did you say?" He demanded, unsheathing his sword.

"Now the deaf idiot of the Six Heroes, apparently," Kuda said.

A shout of rage, and the sound of metal clashing on metal.

"Guys! We're supposed to be fighting the enemies, not each other!"

"Holy shit," she squealed. Eze cringed at the two-octave jump her voice took, and Kuda shot her an annoyed glance. Haters. "They are the cutest things ever."

She ran towards the King Squirties, bloated with water, their eyes a dull black. Come to me, lovelies.

"Hey, those monsters are hostile! Get back-" Eze's warning fell on deaf ears as a King Squirty blasted the Summoner with water, torrential jet powerful enough to send her flying through the air.

It was cold, and painful. She couldn't breathe, and she was lifted from the ground.

Kuda gripped onto her hood as she went sailing by, and hauled her over her shoulder.

"Are you a moron or a child?" he asked, voice scathing. She was soaked to the bone, her hair slick against her neck. The freezing winds that blew through the field were no help, a particularly brutal one causing shivers to course through her body.

Gosh, Kuda was being mean to a girl who was just rejected by her loved one(s).

She sneezed. "Can I have your cloak?"

"I will drop you."

Despite Kuda's acidic nature and his constant fights with Eze (who was pretty cute when flustered, she had to admit), he was powerful. His Black Mist attack melted enemies and did a great job cleaning up whatever Eze and the Slime Squad couldn't take out in a single hit.

He may have been a dispassionate jerk who refused to loan a shivering girl his cloak, but it was okay because after a few minutes, Eze untied his top and handed it to her.

Off topic, but his abs were pretty sweet, too. And while his shirt was thin, it was much better than wearing a waterlogged hoodie.

She was going to give Eze two cakes. Kuda would get none.

"By the way, I summoned another powerful Unit," she said, summoning a Burny and holding it tight to her chest. She sighed in contentment and ignored its squirms in protest.

"Oh?" Kuda said, giving her a sidelong glance at her unconventional Burny usage.

She nodded. "A girl. She tried to kill me, too-" Aah, remember when Kuda tried to slit her throat? Fun times. "-but she didn't seem that averse to being summoned. She said, 'I'll give you one chance. If you screw up, I'm gone!'" the Summoner mimicked the girl's high pitched, angry voice. "I didn't get her name, though."

"Blonde hair? Axes?" Eze asked.

"Yeah, that sounds right. Her hair was tied up in these really high, curly ringlet-ponytails," the Summoner said, recalling her outlandish hairstyle.

"That's Michele, for sure," Eze said, whacking a Merman who got too close. "I think someone wrote this religious text about her after her death. I saw it on shelves but never read it." Because it had nothing to do with fighting was the unsaid reason.

"An aristocrat of the La Veda Republic," Kuda added. "I've done a few jobs relating to her family."

Did that mean he worked for her family, or someone in her family was one of his targets? Nonetheless, she had a name now, a name that the Summoner could use to stalk/research her.

She had been distracted by the quasi-drama with Kuda, but Michele was terrifying in her own right.

The Snowfield was easy to traverse especially with the extra manpower. Soon enough, they were standing before a silhouette. The knight Tilith had mentioned, most likely.

He was slim and androgynous, deep voice revealing his sex.

As her team prepared for a tough battle, she wondered about the battles she had fought. Well, it was more like she watched and tossed potions more than actually fighting.

…Was she even necessary? She could easily be replaced with a camera and a vending machine.

Kuda slashed at the boy's armor, searching for gaps that could be sliced through. The sound of his whip-sword clashing with the metal plates, stiffened by the cold, was grating and set her hairs on end.

Maxwell had the ability to summon as well, right? It was the exact same power that she and the other people of Elgaia used.

Maxwell could force any Unit to fight, even against their will. It was… wicked, without a shred of doubt. But according to Kuda, people who were supposed to be the "good guys" did it, too.

She frowned.

That knight looked young. What was he thinking, when his will had been cut and marionette strings were attached to his limbs, when he lost all autonomy? Could he even think, or did some kind of freaky brainwashing happen?

The Summoner was so lost in her thoughts that Kuda's warning came as a surprise, and she was surprised to see the Knight charging at her. She threw herself to the right, but his spear gouged a deep red gash in her side.

And it hurt like crazy. The wound immediately started gushing blood, pulsing hot red in comparison to the rest of her cold body.

"…Thunder Expulsion," Eze gritted out, appearing behind the knight and slashing him. With a crackle of lightning, the boy was decapitated and his head rolled to the ground before his entire body dissipated in a burst of light.

"I hate to agree with him," Eze said, jerking his head towards Kuda, who was picking Zel off the ground, "But you're definitely a moron."

He pressed a potion to her lips. She reluctantly gulped down the bitter-tasting liquid, feeling some of her pain alleviated.

"I agree too," she moaned, taking another potion. Her jaw was sore from all the chattering in the cold. "I am the worst."

And with that, Egor Snowfield had been conquered with the power of friendship. Kuda looked disgusted (which delighted her) at her proclamation, dismissing his summons and disappearing. She gave Eze a grin and a promise to return his shirt clean (she had bled all over it) before desummoning him.

She could talk to Tilith tomorrow. During the trek, the sun had set, causing the temperature to drop even further.

The Summoner went back to Elgaia, and kept tripping over her tired, disobedient legs. Her stomach ached with hunger, and she just felt disgusting, especially after getting soaked and then injured. She ought to buy a backpack or something and bring snacks for their adventures. And start lifting, because her endurance was a joke.

Because she was a responsible adult, she had completely forgotten to buy groceries. On the other hand, Karl probably had stuff in the refrigerator, or she could take some vegetables from his backyard.

Karl's backyard was immense, probably larger than his house. Half of it was a patch of tilled land hosting a variety of herbs and crops, and the other half was for training.

Yes, Karl grew his own food. It probably tasted better than store-bought stuff, because he was literally perfect like that.

She opened the fridge for a quick survey. Mostly fruits and vegetables, a shelf of bottled water, and condiments. No meat or fish. Was he a vegetarian?

Well, she wasn't. She hoped he wouldn't be upset if she cooked meat with his tools. Did that sully them, in a vegetarian's eyes?

She shook her head, choosing to deal with it later. She desperately needed a shower. The bathroom called to her, and it sounded like an angelic choir.

As she rinsed shampoo out of her hair, she realized that she had no towel or spare clothes.

Fuck.

Michele is a noble from La Veda who is focused on becoming stronger. Aggressive and violent, but loyal and protective of her loved ones.

There is also a bit where the Summoner stands naked in front of Karl's wardrobe, feeling immensely guilty as she puts on his clothes, but the shower felt like a fun place to end.

And that is the first day of the Summoner's ~crazy adventure~! It only took 14k words. What is pacing

I showed my friend parts of this chapter, and he commented "Wow eris, you're really good at writing sexual tension." Then, immediately: "I know you wrote porn of this, so show it to me already."

Honestly, sometimes I think about certain team compositions, and I wonder HOW WOULD THAT WORK? Like, any team with Melchio and Michele/Duel-GX/the others. "Hey, Michele, buff the dude who literally killed you!" As a result, I've chosen to go with a kind of dark interpretation of summoning. I forget that some of these character storylines are pretty dark, because the quest dialogue is so goofy.

Oh, and I'm probably going to have the Summoner start training because she's a ridiculous liability at this point. What do you think her weapon should be? That'll likely affect who her teacher will be. Karl and Grah use lances, and Seria, Lugina, and Paris use swords. Decisions, decisions.

I'm very grateful for all your faves, follows, and your wonderful reviews. They are very motivating, even though that isn't obvious by how long this chapter took to come out… hangs head u_u

As always, thanks for reading.

-eris