You have completed a Quest.

| You have 1 free spin.

Gris activated the spin. Just like before, a multicoloured wheel appeared in front of his vision. The lower tiered sections were far larger than the higher tiers. The wheel spun.

Come on. Give me something good! Like a dragon. Or a hellhound. Or something that isn’t a fucking cockroach!

From dark-copper, to white, to blue, to purple, then finally to orange, and all the shades in between. They rotated in his mind, his vision surrendered to the colours. The wheel slowed down. It quickly shot over orange, then copper…

Come on!

The wheel stopped on white.

You have obtained a 2-Star Summon - Greenkin.

Right in front of him, the same small, green, scaled goblin appeared in a flash of light. Gris stood out of his chair. The Greenkin looked around, falling to the goblins – or greenkins – laying dead on the floor.

The others stepped away from the summoned creature. It was easy to guess why. It was the same greenkin that had tried killing them not 5 minutes ago.

Well this is awkward, Gris thought. So this is a Summon that doesn’t try and kill you as soon as it’s summoned?

Gris poked the creature in the shoulder. It replied with a poke of its own. Gris commanded him to raise its arm. The greenkin listened. Gris commanded him to raise his other arm. He listened. Smiling, Gris commanded him to place his hand on his knees, then reach his toes, then finally to grab his hips and rotate in a circle.

Heads, shoulders, knees and toes. Knees and toes.

Christian watched the events unfold with a strange look, but it was evident his attention was taken by something in front of his vision. His hound looked embarrassed. As did the demon by Chloes side. Chloe wasn’t even looking at him. Her eyes were also glazed over.

“What? I’m just testing his flexibility,” Gris said. Yeah, great excuse. “Anyway, where’s your other Summon? Did it not work?”

“Oh, it worked,” Christian said. “But I’m met with a decision.”

“Decision?”

“It’s telling me that I can’t have 2 Summons at once. I need to merge one, but the one I decide to sacrifice, ends up dying, and reincarnating into the same monster somewhere. Oh, and the sacrificed monster gets a Revenge System. If it hunts me down, it gains all of my power. Or something like that.”

“Yeah,” Gris said with a sigh. “I have a cockroach currently hunting me down. I’ve named it John Wick. I wonder if it has intelligence. It’ll be like being hunted down by a system-enhanced plankton.”

Christian burst out laughing. After a minute, he barely stopped, slapping his thigh in the process. “Shit. Cockroach John Wick. That’s fucking hilarious, man.”

“It’s not hilarious,” Gris replied. “What if it comes back stronger. Cockroaches are tough to kill. What if it takes a chunk out of my other shoe? I’d be devastated.”

Christian laughed once more. “You’re funny.”

Gris looked serious. It only set of Christian once more.

“But plankton? Seriously?” Chloe asked.

“The cockroach from Spongebob.”

“Is he even a cockroach?”

“Nevermind,” Gris said, changing the subject, looking at Christian. “Okay, so why the long decision? I doubt you want to be hunted by whatever that dog is. It’s scary. I mean look at its teeth. It still has blood and green flesh stuck in between them.”

“Alright, I’ll sacrifice the kobold.”

Christian arrived at a decision. He selected whatever he had to select, and when he did so, the hound by his side groaned in pleasure. It grew a little taller. A little stronger.

So that’s what happens when you merge them? He needed to know more.

“What else did it do?”

“Baron Vespemere can talk now,” Chloe announced strangely.

“Baron who?” Gris asked, but his vision landed on the demon. He bowed.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Conjurers,” Baron Vespemere said, his voice as smooth as royal honey. “My name is Baron Vespemere of the Kargek Planet, as much as my current memory leads me to believe, anyway.”

“P–planet?!” Christian said in shock.

Yeah, like fighting monsters from another world alongside a summoned hell-hound is less surprising.

“What do you mean you’re from another planet?” Christian asked.

“Tell them everything you told me, Vespemere,” Chloe said, ushering the demon.

Didn’t he just awaken is ability to talk? Monsters can do that? Unlock skills… So it – he – can talk inside Chloe’s mind? Well colour me surprised.

“Very well,” He said. “You are all Conjurers. Lords of the Summons. Like me, you have been integrated into the Birthright System. The moment I was summoned, I lost all of my memories bar my vague knowledge of Conjurers, my Title, name, and planet of residency, and a smattering of other things.”

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

“Do you know why this has happened?” Jok asked the demon, wanting more information. “Why were we integrated into this whole System? Why has the Earth changed so much? It mentioned terraforming at the beginning.”

He nodded his head, but said, “I do know. As do all of you. If I may?” He glanced back at Chloe, as if asking permission. No, he was asking for permission.

He needs permission to talk? Gris wondered, what were the rules of an intelligent Summon? Could it only talk when allowed? If that was the case, then for what reason? It seemed incredibly strict.

Chloe nodded.

Baron Vespemere continued with his hands behind his back, chin raised, “The Birthright System felt sorry for you and your weak and frail human anatomy. Because of that, it bestowed upon you a System for you to grow stronger. If that is even possible.”

“Hey,” Bo said, standing tall. “Is he wanting a fight?”

“No, he’s not wanting a fight, Bo,” Jok quickly added and stood in the middle of them. “Vespemere?” The demon nodded. Jok said, “Thanks for the information, but we already know that. Birthright. So, it seems Earth isn’t the only one with this so-called System? Vespemere is one. And the same goes for all of these monsters that we have Summoned. We take them from their home-world, and force them to fight for us?”

Jok was right. It was a disturbing thought. Is this what Pokemon felt like? One moment they were strolling the wild, eating to their heart's content with their pals, then the next they were forced into a small, baseball-sized ball by an over enthusiastic child. Then they were forced to fight in tournaments and breed so that they had their potential increased. Poor things.

“If it’s any consolation, I do not feel hatred towards any of you. Not even Chloe,” He said, looking at his Master. “In fact, I feel proud. I don’t know why. If I had to take an educated guess, then fighting for a Conjurer is something that will win me honour.”

He really likes his educated guesses, Gris thought as a smile crept up onto his lips.

Jok added, tightening his fists, “Whatever the reason is, the world has changed. We should have entered the next station by now. Not only has the distance increased, the tracks have also extended.”

Gris quickly followed his gaze outside. He looked down at the tracks. He was right. He hadn’t even thought of that before now. Why were the tracks not only not touched, but also extended? Was whoever, or whatever responsible for all of this, not touching the tracks to provide transportation? That was… oddly kind. You know, despite sending blood crazed monsters hunting for their flesh.

Shit, this is all so confusing. I bet my money it’s on terraforming oompa loompas. I always knew they couldn’t be trusted.

“So,” Gris said, turning back around. “If there’s no way of knowing what our next stop is going to be, we should really tell Derek that we shouldn't stop. If this is truly a post-apocalyptic world now filled with monsters, we need to be careful. We should stop outside of the station, and walk in. Check if it’s safe. The pillar of light – the so-called Tower – is in that direction as well. I think that’s what we should do? I’ve watched zombie movies, but that’s the extent of my survival knowledge.”

“You’re right,” Jok said, tightening his hands into a fist. “Tower of Birthright. We should also now take that threat seriously. The longer we stay here, the tougher these monsters will become. Given how tough they are to kill already, it doesn’t bode well for us.”

“But our families,” Christian said in surprise.

“We have one year,” Jok said grimly as looked out the window at the blue pillar in the distance. “God knows how far away that is. It’s better to be careful now. Let’s get back to the front. We need to be there to make a decision.”

Jok and the others hastened through the car, but Gris stayed. Chloe looked back. “I just want a moment of silence.”

My social battery is running out.

She nodded at his words, and replied, “As long as we stay by each other's sides, we’ll be alright. I promise.”

Gris placed his elbow on the windowsill as he watched the new world pass by. Blood had splattered on the glass, partially ruining his view. He wiped the glass with his finger. Red smeared. It just made it worse.

He sighed. He was so busy trying to live, that he hadn’t even had the opportunity to think about his family. Somewhere out there, his parents were surviving. Or they were already dead. He wasn’t close with them. They were shitty parents; they had abandoned him when he was old enough to live on his own. Did he want them to live? They were his parents, after all.

Gris moved his attention away from the topic. For now, he just had to keep moving, one step after the next.

His Summon was sitting on the other side, also gazing outward.

“I guess this is our new life, huh? I wonder what London is like right now. Has the government taken control, or is the whole place screwed?” He asked the creature, but it didn’t respond. It just turned to him and tilted its head. “I guess I should give you a name. How does Gorlac: the Ultimate Slayer sound?”

The greenkin just looked at him. There wasn’t a single thought behind those eyes.

“Yeah, I don’t like it either. I’ll keep thinking. Leave it to me,” Gris said, then sighed. “We should go. Let’s pick you a bow, some arrows, and a blade before we leave. I guess you’re watching my back from now on. Last minute enemy is now my teammate. This planet has always been fucked up, huh? Guess you don’t know. Do you? Well, I guess it’s nothing compared to what you were used to in your own world. With bloodthirsty monsters, and all that. Although we do have politicians. I’m honestly not sure which is worse.”

Strangely, it felt nice talking to someone that couldn’t talk back. Talking was usually a chore. Thinking of what to say and how to respond once spoken too. It was a different form of stress relief. It felt oddly good.

Groaning, his wounds still hurting, he stood up, and turned around. Gris frowned. Someone was opening the door to the car he was in. The newcomer was a young man around 25 years old. He had short, swept back hair, and wore suit trousers and a white shirt. Blood splatters had ruined the white. The person looked at him for a second, as if not expecting him to be there. Then, he shut the door and hurried back.

What the hell? That’s fucking suspicious?

“Wait!” Gris chased him. He ran through another empty car, before entering the next. It was where that old guy was with the snake hugging his neck and shoulders.

Gris spotted the young man. He was standing in the middle of the aisle with two others. The rest of the people in the car were sitting down. He walked up to him, and pulled his shoulder to get his attention. The others sitting down, looked at Gris’s Greenkin in fear and abject horror.

“What the hell man?” He asked with a scowl. But he grimaced upon seeing the state Gris was in. The burnt face, charred arm, almost naked chest. He sent a glance at the greenkin in disgust. Perhaps the only thing stopping them from lashing out was the fact it was following Gris. It was his Summon.

Gris ignored him. “Hey, what was that all about? You see me then you run away? Don’t you think that’s a little suspicious?”

“What are you talking about? See you where?” He looked genuinely confused. But how could he? Why was he acting as if he hadn’t seen him?

“Back in the car,” said Gris, growing irritated. Why was he lying? What for? “You opened the door, saw me, then high-tailed it back here.”

“Look man,” The young man said. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’ve been standing here for a while now. We just finished attending to the wounded. My mates can attest to that.”

“He’s right,” One of them added in defence.

What the hell?

“Is there a problem here?” The old man with the snake coiling around his neck approached. “You’re upsetting everyone. Especially with what just happened, we don’t need you causing a ruckus.”

Gris glanced around. Everyone was looking at him. They were scared. Maybe not from him, but from the whole ordeal that they had just gone through. Some of them were injured, crying. Some were worse than others. They had probably lost someone.

“I guess there isn't,” Gris said, shaking his head. “I just… thought I saw something.”

Am I going crazy? I swear I saw him though…