Celine, The Blood Summoner

The author of Adventurer's Crusade was truly a cultured man—Kai respected that much. Yet, despite the array of beautiful female leads, the protagonist remained blissfully oblivious to any romantic potential, sailing through relationships like a ship lost at sea.

Celine was a striking Summoner Mage who hadn't made her entrance until much later in the story. She arrived at the Institution of Magic as a spy for Biola, but Kai couldn't blame her; she had never truly wanted to serve Biola and had been shackled by a slave contract. By the time she freed herself from her slave mark and gained the trust of the main character, the war between Biola and the Asura Kingdom had escalated into chaos.

So it was surprising to see her here now.

'Actually, I shouldn't be surprised,' Kai thought. 'The plot is deviating more and more with my presence.' His interference had shifted the narrative dramatically. Instead of a subtle takeover, Biola was now intent on destroying the city. While he couldn't pinpoint the exact cause, he was certain that his presence had caused these changes. Still, he preferred it this way—he would encounter beautiful characters sooner than the story had originally dictated.

As Celine surveyed the bloody scene before her, the elation of her newfound freedom began to fade. Kai stood there, cloaked and enigmatic, his eyes sparkling with lightning as he held the ashy remains of the beast's scale.

"P-Please!" she cried, collapsing to her knees. "I'll do anything you want; don't kill me!"

Her desperate surrender was almost comical to Kai, whose eyes twitched with a mix of annoyance and intrigue. "Stand up," he commanded, his voice firm as he pointed at the lifeless beast on the ground. "Are you the one who summoned this magical creature?"

"Y-Yes," she stammered, her voice trembling. "But I was ordered by my Master to do it."

Kai couldn't help but feel irritated by her willingness to betray her master under stress and danger. Yet, he understood that survival often meant making difficult choices. He recalled how her loyalty had bolstered in the original story after spending time with Elijah, but that was a concern for another time.

"And where's your master now?" he pressed further.

"A thunderbolt fell from the sky and killed him," Celine replied quickly, her eyes wide. Kai couldn't suppress a chuckle; the thunderbolt he had summoned to defeat the monster must have struck her master instead.

'Well, at least she's free now,' he mused. With her master gone, there was potential for recruitment. He needed strong allies—he couldn't rely solely on his knowledge to navigate the shifting tides of war.

'Might as well start growing my harem,' Kai thought, taking a moment to assess Celine. She was undeniably cute and brimming with potential, especially as a Summoner. If he remembered correctly, she was one of the few who practiced Blood Summoning—a unique path that made her summons significantly more powerful, depending on the mana she wielded.

Regular Blood Summons were within his capacity to handle, but this one had been amplified by an Evolution potion, making it a formidable opponent.

"Well, I'm sorry for killing your summon," Kai said, stepping away from the remains.

"It's not dead," she replied with a small smile, walking over to the beast's remains. She pressed her hand against its head, rubbing it gently. "Now return, my dear."

To Kai's astonishment, the serpent vanished before his eyes, its form dissolving into thin air. Celine pulled her hand back and turned to him, her expression a mix of fear and curiosity. Although he was slightly shorter than her, there was a palpable tension in the air.

"Come on, let's go," Kai finally said with a sigh. "We have a long way to go. If you don't mind staying with me,"

"O-of course I don't!" she exclaimed, her enthusiasm peeking through her initial fear. She fell into step behind him as they exited the Imperial city, the atmosphere thick with uncertainty but also a hint of camaraderie.

As they moved through the streets, Kai felt a strange sense of purpose begin to take root. He glanced back at Celine, who walked closely behind, her expression shifting from fear to determination.

#####

"Kai Brandon, you say?" A raven-haired man murmured, his purple eyes gleaming in the dim light of the room. Shadows danced across the walls, accentuating the sharp features of his face as he focused intently on the black crow perched on his shoulder.

The crow squawked, and though its sounds were unintelligible to most, the man understood its meaning perfectly. A sly smile crept across his lips as he contemplated the implications of the news. "So he defeated a Grand Magus, huh?" he mused, a note of intrigue coloring his voice. "That changes everything."

He leaned closer to the crow, his excitement palpable as his eyes shimmered with a predatory gleam. "I want you to bring him here," he commanded, his smile stretching wider, revealing a hint of menace. "This Kai will be a fascinating toy. I have no doubt he'll be a lot of fun to break."