The Guardian System: The strongest Summoner's quest to save his family

Kara approached with several of her fighters. The woman had grown into her leadership role during Seraphine's absence. "What's next? Do we stay here or move on?"

"We need to leave," Helga said. "The fire from the town is spreading, and it won't be long before it destroys the entire Crimson Briar Patch. We will let people recover mana, treat wounds, and process their gains for half an hour. Then we leave."

The raid began setting up a temporary camp at the clearing's edge, away from the Elder's corpse. Fires were lit. Food was distributed. Healers moved among the wounded.

Reidar dismounted and dismissed his bears. The creatures faded into mana, their purpose served. Before he could check his own status, new notifications appeared.

[Circle of Renewal reached 100%.]

[Circle of Renewal's tier increased.]

[Circle of Renewal skill has been upgraded to Domain of Eternal Spring.]

[Mending Touch reached 100%.]

[Mending Touch tier increased.]

[Mending Touch skill has been upgraded to Sanctuary's Embrace.]

[Root Grasp reached 100%.]

[Root Grasp's tier increased.]

[Root Grasp skill has been upgraded to Worldroot Binding.]

[Group Rally reached 100%.]

[Group Rally's tier increased.]

[Group Rally skill has been upgraded to Warchief's Command.]

[Elemental Storm reached 100%.]

[Elemental Storm's tier increased.]

[Elemental Storm skill has been upgraded to Primal Maelstrom.]

[Summon Spectral Knights reached 100%.]

[Summon Spectral Knights' tier increased.]

[Summon Spectral Knights skill has been upgraded to Summon Spectral Legion.]

[Summon Rift-Sprite Contubernium reached 100%.]

[Summon Rift-Sprite Contubernium's tier increased.]

[Summon Rift-Sprite Contubernium skill has been upgraded to Summon Elite Rift-Sprite Battalion.]

[Void Javelin reached 100%.]

[Void Javelin's tier increased.]

[Void Javelin skill has been upgraded to Oblivion Lance.]

<Fucking finally!> These eight skills had been stuck for a while, but it looked like the massive usage of them during the raid finally brought them to the next level.

Reidar cared about the new skills, but what he was more interested in among them were the two new summoning skills.

—[« Summon Spectral Legion »]—

Interface Details

Tier: 8

Proficiency: 0.0%

Type: Active

Casting: Instant

[ Description ]

Create an elite company of twenty specialized mana warriors. The caster may choose the composition of their legion.

[ Core Attributes ]

Mana Cost: 1,850 (Fixed Amount)

Spell Type: Batch Summon (Customizable)

Cooldown: 6 minutes

[ Summon Attributes ]

Summon Potency: 20 x Specialized Spectral Warriors (Caster Level)

Summon Type: Mana Construct

Duration: 60 minutes

[ Unit Selection ]

The caster may distribute the 20 summons among four unit types:

Spectral Archers

Spectral Swordsmen

Spectral Spearmen

Spectral Mages

[ Unit Abilities ]

Spectral Archers:

Proficiencies: Intermediate Bow Proficiency

Skills: Piercing Shot, Volley Fire, Spectral Step, Spectral Arrows

Spectral Swordsmen:

Proficiencies: Advanced Combat Proficiency

Skills: Blade Flurry, Parrying Stance, Spectral Charge, Phantom Slash

Spectral Spearmen:

Proficiencies: Intermediate Spear Proficiency

Skills: Phalanx Formation, Impaling Strike, Shield Wall, Sweeping Thrust

Spectral Mages:

Proficiencies: Intermediate Spellcraft

Skills: Stone Wall, Fire Lance, Summon Spectral Steed, Summon Spectral Knights

[ Acquisition Data ]

Source: Evolved from Summon Spectral Knights at 100% proficiency

Requirements: Level 80

Monster Description:

(…)

—[«END»]—

—[« Summon Elite Rift-Sprite Battalion »] —

Interface Details

Tier: 9

Proficiency: 0.0%

Type: Active

Casting: Instant

[ Description ]

Rips open forty simultaneous rifts across multiple realities, summoning a full battalion of Elite Rift-Sprites. These enhanced elemental beings possess mastery over expanded elemental forces.

[ Core Attributes ]

Mana Cost: 2,400 (Fixed Amount)

Spell Type: Batch Summon

Cooldown: 8 minutes

[ Summon Attributes ]

Summon Potency: 40 x Elite Rift-Sprite (Caster Level)

Summon Type: Elemental

Duration: 90 minutes

Available Elements: Wind, Water, Fire, Stone, Ice, Lightning, Shadow, Light, Nature

[ Summon Abilities ]

Elemental Supremacy: When three or more sprites of the same element attack the same target, their damage increases by 35%, and they trigger additional elemental effects.

Rift Resonance: Elite Rift-Sprites can merge their powers. Two sprites of complementary elements (Fire/Ice, Light/Shadow, Wind/Stone) can combine attacks for devastating combination effects.

Battalion Coordination: Every 10 sprites present grants all sprites +5% to all stats (maximum +20% with a full battalion).

[ Element-Specific Abilities ]

Wind Elite Rift-Sprites:

Skills: Gale Force, Razor Cyclone, Swift Current

Water Elite Rift-Sprites:

Skills: Tidal Surge, Healing Rain, Aqua Prison

Fire Elite Rift-Sprites:

Skills: Inferno Blast, Flame Wall, Ignition Aura

Stone Elite Rift-Sprites:

Skills: Boulder Crush, Earthen Armor, Tremor

Ice Elite Rift-Sprites:

Skills: Frost Lance, Blizzard, Ice Fortress

Lightning Elite Rift-Sprites:

Skills: Chain Lightning, Thunder Strike, Storm Charge

Shadow Elite Rift-Sprites:

Skills: Void Bolt, Shadow Veil, Life Drain

Light Elite Rift-Sprites:

Skills: Light Ray, Radiant Shield, Purifying Light

Nature Elite Rift-Sprites:

Skills: Entangling Vines, Natural Regeneration, Thorn Barrage

[ Acquisition Data ]

Source: Evolved from Summon Rift-Sprite Contubernium at 100% proficiency

Requirements: Level 90

Monster Description:

(…)

—[«END»]—

<Holy Fuck!>

Reidar stared at the notifications. His fingers tightened around his mount's mane. The mana cost alone made his chest tighten: 1,850 for the Spectral Legion and 2,400 for the Elite Rift-Sprite Battalion.

But the capabilities dwarfed anything he'd summoned before. Twenty specialized warriors he could shape to any battlefield. Forty elite elementals with combined attacks. And the tiers, eight and nine, made his skin prickle.

This wasn't just an upgrade. <I wonder why I've got this huge tier upgrade…>

He pulled up the system menu; the interface flickered to life before his eyes. The help section glowed, and he sent a direct query: Why the jump in tiers?

The response appeared with no delay.

"Skill evolution tier is determined by multiple factors, among which are usage frequency, Combat complexity, Strategic application, and the User's developmental path."

"While usage speeds up progression, the primary determinant is the alignment between the skill and the user's chosen combat paradigm."

"The user's specialization lies in summoning-based warfare. The system recognizes this. Skills integral to the user's dominant fighting style receive enhanced evolution potential."

"Secondary skills — healing, buffs, and direct spells — serve supportive roles in your repertoire. As such, their evolutions follow standard, but slightly altered, progression curves."

"Mending Touch evolved to Tier 4 because it supports your endurance but does not define your battlefield presence. Summon Rift-Sprite Contubernium, however, is central to the user's offensive style. Its evolution reflects not just how often you use it, but how much it shaped your identity as a survivor."

Reidar sighed. It all made sense.

It wasn't just about casting more fireballs or healing faster. The system had been watching. Tracking how he fought and what he prioritized.

His entire approach was being rewarded with power that scaled beyond normal limits.

He looked down at his hands, then toward the distant glow of the burning town. The flames had reached the forest's edge and were quickly coming that way. The Elder's corpse lay still.

Then he focused on his status.