Rebirth Of The Bastard Spirit Summoner

At the other side of the monolith standing just beyond the podium were a group of mercenaries, each with bored expressions.

Some were impatiently tapping their foot on the floor, a few were whistling while others were drumming their fingers by their sides.

"Rusty! How damn long is five minutes? I feel like I've been here for hours!" came an annoyed shout from the crowd.

Rusty frowned. It was not that he was purposely delaying them, he just didn't know how long five minutes was…

He placed a finger on his chin. "100 seconds?"

"Are you a fool?" said another mercenary, stepping forward. He waved his battle axe in the air as he spoke, sounding very confident. "Five minutes is obviously 180 seconds, didn't you get any education?"

A wave of jeers tore through the crowd. "180 seconds?" said a woman who held a serpentine whip in her hands. "You are all blockheads!"

Rusty frowned. "Alright, how many seconds is it then?"

The woman suddenly became fidgety, her eyes dancing from place to place to avoid his gaze.

"The bitch doesn't even know!" came a voice from the crowd.

"Who says I don't know… it's… it's… IT'S 500 SECONDS!"

'She just guessed that, didn't she?' Rusty frowned as the mocking laughter began.

"You know what, fuck the timing. Let's roll!"

"URAHHHHHH!" The mercenaries screamed, their bloodthirsty gazes fixed on the Way Stone.

But just as Rusty was about to take a step forward, he heard a loud shrill, like a file being run through metal. And then—

Whoosh!

He jumped back as a shiny rock rushed past him, almost splitting him in half. The gigantic crystal raced towards the Way Stone, climbing the platform and encasing it, jagged spikes protruding from each side.

"What the hell?" Rusty immediately turned back to check the source of the crystal, all the mercenaries had turned around as well.

Step!

The sound of her footsteps pierced through the silence, each stride graceful and each step with a certain degree of confidence behind it.

She was an impossibly beautiful woman with dark skin that glowed faintly, silver hair, and, like a demon incarnate, on the top of her head were two curved horns.

The mysterious woman glanced at the Way Stone and frowned, then she drew her hand through the air in a purposeful manner, crystal condensing in the invisible path—up until a large crystal scythe now lay in her hands.

She casually rested the weapon on her shoulder and smiled.

"Sorry boys, were you going to use that?"

•••

Stark pulled out his sword and casually took a step forward, causing Darell to take one step back. Then he paused and suddenly began to laugh like a man possessed.

"I don't know what trick you pulled, but it's not like it matters!"

'It was actually pretty simple… a dead animal and a spirit to play his role was all he needed.'

"I already know your plans!" Darell continued, shoving Kaeri forward. "Your little elf betrayed you," he said with a twisted smile on his face.

Stark glanced at Kaeri and frowned. The girl seemed shocked at first when she realized he was the masked man, but her guilt weighed on her a second later.

It was stupid…

She was a slave, resisting his commands was just far too difficult, and yet she had most likely stubbornly suffered for it.

He had expected her to unwillingly betray him from the very beginning, that was why he told her little of his plans.

There was a period of silence, with Darell expecting Stark to say something or maybe attack Kaeri, but then nothing happened. His smile slowly faded from his face.

He frowned and then raised his hands by his sides. "This is too much for one measly man such as yourself, but I can't ruin the fun, can I?"

"I brought a little gift along with me, Mr. Stard. Twenty mercenaries, each with their own preferred weapons."

"You thought you had me cornered." He laughed. "You are just a fool who walked into my trap. Today, I will have the privilege of seeing which weapon cuts through flesh best, and which mace cracks bone quicker."

"I will not outright kill you. No, I will rip that mask off your face and watch you writhe in agony, then I will flay you alive and hang you in front of the city gates for all to see!"

Silence…

Stark stared at him from behind the mask, unsure of what to say.

"Okay…?"

And then they waited…

But nothing happened. No static buzz on the Way Stone. No mercenaries. Just silence.

"Where are those fools?!" Darell screamed in frustration, and then his eyes widened as something suddenly appeared in front of him—or rather, behind Kaeri.

Whoosh!

Shifu swung his axe, ripping into Kaeri's back, and disappeared just before the nearest knight could lay hold of him.

Kaeri let out a low whimper as she fell to the floor, holding onto her bleeding shoulder.

Darell stared at her, his eyes wide in shock, and then, for the millionth time that day, he laughed. "Turning on yourselves already?! Then let's make this interesting, shall we?"

"Kaeri, get up and kill that bastard."

Like a puppet, Kaeri rose to her feet, her eyes fixed on Stark. Meanwhile, Stark said nothing, he just watched as she began to weave her spell into life.

But in the last moment, her lips tugged upwards in a knowing smile.

"Explosion!"

Darell's eyes widened. "What the fuck are you—"

Boom!

A sound wave blew past her, followed by a surge of wind that caused her clothes to rattle like a sheet in the storm.

And then came the flames, erupting from her body like sealed gas. The bubbling orange consumed everything within reach—laying its claws on whatever dared to stand in its path and bringing it to ruin.

…Including the very air around them.

And then, in the fiery mess, wreathed in hellish flames, Kaeri stumbled but caught herself before she could fall, her skin burnt from the unforgiving heat.

But there was a smile on her face, a smile that could cause even the hardest men to tremble.

The smile of one who had nothing to lose.