Iris started to limp away and shout more orders. I looked at Shani. “The summoning spell will soon end, I will have to cast it again so you can stay around and show us where you found the ritual.” I said.

“Yaaay! More slaughter!” Shani cheered.

Could I simply extend the spell instead of dismissing her and casting it again? I focused on her and my magic. Modifying spells was a natural thing for sorcerers. But usually one would do it before the casting. Also I was dealing with a 9th level spell. That meant it could not be pushed into a higher tier to extend the duration anyway.

I started to truly ponder the problem. What was a summoning anyway? Shani once told me that a lower level spell just created a body. Those elementals were not real beings, they were not self aware, just temporary magical constructs. Once their power ran out they disappeared. But lords were real, they existed in another dimension and answered the call. Why would Shani return after the spell ran out? I examined the summoning spell in my head.

It was a curious thing. The elemental lord spell sent a call to a different plane. There an interested creature could answer. They would enter in a short term two hour contract to serve the caster. The magic would then bring them to their new master. The reason for the duration was the contract that protected the summoner. It would be possible to summon a lord forever, just like with demons. They would reside in this world until slain or banished. They also would have no reason to follow one's commands… I eyed Shani. She looked like a beautiful elf made of wind. With a creepy smile that showed way too many teeth. Unleashing her upon the world might be a bad idea.

Musings aside I felt the contract between us. I found a way to feed it another 9th circle slot to extend the duration. Any other ideas would have to wait.

“Huh? Oh… that tickles.” Shani giggled.

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It seemed to have worked. While I was lost in thought a soldier had arrived and was standing next to Lucy. When I looked at them the woman introduced herself. “My name is Alexis, I have been assigned under your command.”

She had a bow in her hand, a quiver on her back, was wearing chainmail and had a short sword strapped to her side. There was a scar on Alexis left cheek, her eyes were green and her short hair was black.

“She has been ordered to follow us and make it clear we are working with the guard, in case we meet others.” Lucy said. It seemed that they already talked while I was lost in thought. I nodded.

“Ok, let’s follow Shani and see what we find. In battle, focus on survival and let us handle the bigger threats.” I said.

We started moving. Just outside the garrison there was a big hole in the street. It was a curious location for the demons to emerge. I suppose they were fast enough to rush through the gate before the soldiers could close it. The smell coming from the sewer was terrible but not really worse than the battlefield. There were walkways on both sides with the dirty water in the middle. At least we did not need to get our boots wet.

Shani floated down into the hole and I jumped after her. Lucy had the foresight to grab Alexis and carry her. It was a small jump for our enhanced bodies but a normal person would injure their legs.

We kept following Shani deeper into the sewers. As we moved away from the hole it got a lot darker. “Um excuse me, but do you have some light?” Alexis asked. She was the only one of our small group who could not see in the dark. I could use a simple spell to conjure a ball of light. But it would make us all easily visible from far away. Instead I chose a different solution. I placed my hand on top of her head. The spell I used would grant her 8 hours of darkvision. Alexis gasped.

“That should do the trick.” I said smiling.

“Thank you.” She responded.

As we continued I saw a few demon corpses. It looked like Shani’s work. It took us about 15 minutes of walking to reach the source of the invasion. There was a big hole in the sewer walls that led into a large chamber. Going by the surprised look of our escort, the existence of said room was not common knowledge. I suspected that the entrance was secret, before someone blew up the wall.

I could see traces of magic in the room. There were multiple ritual circles on the floor. And a lot of corpses. Demons, cultists and victims by the looks of it. Shani certainly interrupted something down here. The biggest circle still had unused ingredients in its centre. It was not quite finished but when I looked closer I could see magic flowing into it. Something was still feeding the spell.

Suddenly a door on the far wall opened and a man emerged. He was wearing a black robe covered in red runes. His staff looked like charred wood with a ruby on top. While his head was bald he did have a full black beard.

“Oh my, what do we have here?” He said.