Blizzard, part 3/6: Fire

POV The Summoner:

Kira's heart pounded in his ears, his body frozen and rooted in place as the ice-wolf monster leaped with lethal speed, its crystalline claws outstretched toward him, each one sharp as a razor's edge. The frigid wind that came with its pounce was like the breath of the grave.

He tried to move, to raise his sword, to defend himself, but his limbs betrayed him. "Mommy!" he whispered.

Suddenly, an explosive barrage of flames detonated from the periphery of his vision, lighting up the darkness with a searing white brilliance.

The inferno sliced through the frosty air like a fiery guillotine and severed the beast's trajectory. The wolf crashed to the ground, the ravenous fire consuming it in a matter of seconds.

He could feel the searing heat wash over him, the sea of flames spreading everywhere with the explosive speed and force of a high-speed train, guided by an invisible force.

The air was thick with the revolting scent of singed blood, steam rising in thick clouds and blocking his vision.

'Now I don't know who the demon is here...' The flames were everywhere he could see, as if he were drowning in the atmosphere of Venus.

The boy, covered in mud and blood, remained frozen in shock, his feet submerged in the disgusting reddish sludge of burned monster remains and water from the melted snow as the inferno dissipated. His body trembled, nausea rising like a tide.

'T-this... She didn't kill them; she disintegrated them.' It wasn't the first time he saw someone die or even kill some scumbag with his own sword, but it was the first time he saw such a massacre.

At last, the last embers of flames and the steam clouds disappeared, dragged away by the relentless wind.

The wolves had vanished, erased by the fiery onslaught, and the snow had evaporated, leaving only the devastated landscape.

'There were so many of them...' He suddenly felt inadequate, as he was supposed to be the main character who got transmigrated to another world, yet he was outshined by a random summon.

He raised his gaze, only to shudder as he met the pair of glowing lilac eyes. Like a reaper, she stood in her black coat, not even a droplet of blood staining her immaculate look.

'No, she is my summon, so her power is mine!'

Ring!

<<>>

Summon identification:

Name: Insane Imperial Knight

Class: Esper Witch; Knight of a Galactic Empire

Error: The rest of the information was blocked!

<<<\\ >>>

A chilling dread gripped Kira's heart, sudden and sharp as the icy claws that had almost claimed him. 'Wait, the girls!'

Amidst the scorched earth and the stench of destruction, his mind raced with horrific possibilities. 'Please tell me they didn't die on me.'

He spun around, his movements frantic, his eyes scanning the devastation for the spot where he had left the girls. Then relief crashed into him, a wave washing away the terror. There they were—shaken, faces drained of color, but alive.

A self-loathing realization clawed at his conscience. 'I am truly pathetic. I didn't even think of them until now.' His arrogance and pride were crushed under the weight of his failure to consider their safety sooner.

The melodious feminine voice rang, "Do you know the way to safety?"

He opened his mouth to respond with confidence, to reclaim some semblance of control, but the words that came out were weak and defeated. "We can use the mountain peaks to navigate back to the town." His voice faltered, the enormity of their plight landing like a blow. "V-visibility is bad. We are lost."

The admission hung heavy in the frozen air. The blizzard, indifferent to their plight, continued to rage, a wall of white obscuring any hope of quick escape.

'I was such an idiot... I should have listened to their warnings.'

POV Tia:

<Basic Pyrokinesis II (79%)> --> <Basic Pyrokinesis II (100%)>

Beep!

<<<>>>>

<Basic Pyrokinesis II reached proficiency 100%>

Distributing rewards:

<+2 esper points>

<Stat points gained: +4 WIL, +3 ENE, +1 INT>

<Basic Pyrokinesis II> --> <Basic Pyrokinesis III>

<<<>>>>

<Basic Telekinesis VI (115%)> --> <Basic Telekinesis VI (122%)>

As she looked at the remains of the icy wolves, she felt like something about them was wrong: 'It is as if they had no sense of self-preservation. They simply kept attacking without any fear or care for their dead—they were monsters.'

Monsters were distinguishable from magic beasts by their unnatural malice. Magic beasts held a semblance to animals, attacking out of hunger or fear. But monsters were attacking purely out of malice.

'What is it?'

Tia's skin prickled with an instinctive alarm, a silent scream from every nerve ending that they were not alone. The air was thick with a magic presence that seeped with dread and violence.

'Can it be the frost demon?' The thought skated across her mind. She was a witch who dealt with paranormal powers, but she never met a real demon.

She looked around, but the thick snow blocked her vision, and the source of the magic aura was far out of the reach of her telekinesis.

At last, she collected her thoughts: "We should move; there is a lot of blood, and that is bound to attract more predators."

Despite the chill wrapping around her, a bead of sweat traced the curve of her spine. She felt the weight of unseen eyes upon her. And it unnerved her.

'Why is it not attacking? Why is it only watching?' The questions circled in her mind.