Egril Sishet had been in a horrible mood all day. The turmoil within the grand Republic of Mercenaries had not only not cooled down, but it had even escalated to new heights, heights that Egril had never anticipated. Casualties had reached an unprecedented historic record. Every day the news of deaths at the fringes of the territory reached his ears. And even in this fortress they weren’t safe. Not even two weeks ago, they had been besieged by a whole damn horde of demons.

  This was the Grand Fortress of Sishet! Weathered through the tribulations in history, it had never faltered, yet if one were to compare the present with its centuries long history, it’s current situation was terrible. Not only was there a food shortage, but the entirety of the republic was in crisis. As his chief in command, Egril had been forced to make hard decisions during this period. But just when he thought that things would get better, they had been attacked, and to top it all off the same person that brought them calamity had dared to show up.

  The fact that he hadn’t spat blood in anger upon seeing them and still tried to dialogue went to show how magnanimous he truly had been. Unfortunately, these bastards even dared to lie to his face.

  Through gritted teeth, he looked down at the parchment paper he held. It clearly had a perfect portrait of the brown-haired woman with amber eyes. It was practically identical to the person belowl, and below it was clearly a wanted notice. Hell, there had even been evidence recorded through a magic crystal that showed her participating in the act of summoning herself. Yet, this very same woman dared to be confused upon being scorned for her demonic allegiance?

  Laughable!

  “No matter, disposing of her will only help the republic,” he said annoyed before turning. “To think she’d dare show her face here.”

  While this demon summoner was powerful, this was no backwater village but the renowned Grand Fortress of the republic. In such a place, how could they lack high-tier combatants? The Republic of Mercenaries was arguably the strongest faction in the entirety of the continent. Dealing with someone who had yet to reach level 250, and a level 340 mage? The mage was certainly troublesome, but killing the perpetrator would be swift.

  They had long considered the potential losses. Even if they gained the enmity of the mage, it was possible to kill her companion before she could truly act; and then faced with all the remaining forces in the Grand Fortress, she’d have no choice but to withdraw. As for the other companion? She wasn’t even worth talking about, she was too weak to even be a worry!

  The sounds of ongoing battle were nothing but a melody to his ears. Even if it was a small step, killing this demon summoner would be a good step towards change in the republic.

  Egril chuckled as he peered over the battlements and?— the wall beside him exploded. He jumped from his spot. Had he been attacked? No, there was no movement. Then, what was it?

  He stared intently at the cloud of dust with high alarm, but as it dissipated he couldn’t help but blink. He recognized the figure; the fainted figure.

  “Hans?”

  He called, but before he could figure what was going on the wall shook as another person impacted it down below. This, immediately made Egril tense as he finally looked over at the battlefield, and what he saw made all color drain from his face.

  “H-How is this possible?!”

  Ten elites had gone down to subjugate the demon summoners, six Mages and four Warriors, all of them over Level 200 and two having already reached their Class Advancement at Level 250. Such a force should be able to wipe the floor with anyone below Level 300, let alone a demon summoner below Level 250, yet…

  They were being pushed back?

  Egril couldn’t believe it. The high level mage had basically teleported away and was watching the battlefield from afar, snacking on some seeds. Their other party member was nowhere to be seen, which meant this was an eight versus one, not counting the two people that had been knocked out already.

  Egril frowned, “So the mage lent their help briefly, before retreating, huh?”

  It made perfect sense. But they were underestimating them, and a lot. Right now, it almost looked like an even fight between the demon summoner and the eight others, but her attribute boosts were bound to end. And once they did, they would wipe the floor with her. Egril was certain of it; soon they would regret their decisions.

  He smirked, focusing on the battlefield. Thankfully, the two people that were taken out were on the weaker side and both were mages. Now, all that remained were the elite of the elite, Gerrit the Iron Wall leading the Warriors, the woman would have no choice but to push back. A Level 250+ defense specialist. And amongst the mages, all remaining four wielded fire magic, including Alyssa, the Explosion Mage.

  With their combination magic there was no opponent that they couldn’t take out. When all three mages assisted Alyssa, Tier 3 magic was as easy as breathing air. And naturally, since their opponent was a scum of demonic allegiance, there was no way they would hold back. All four mages were grouped together, chanting as the air began to grow hot.

  “In the end, they underestimated us,” Egril said simply.

  The demon summoner seemed to take notice of the mages casting, but unfortunately it was too late. She attempted to use a movement Skill but it was all for naught. The Warrior crashed into Gerrit’s shield instead, swinging her sword with a confused look, thanks to his Force Target Skill, and this was just the beginning.

  “Slash of Destruction!” A warrior swung?—

  A large line exploded across the ground, hitting the summoner..

  “Pierce!” A flash of light passed through the woman’s heart.

  And finally, Gerrit swung his shield back.

  “Repulse,” his whisper echoed, and the woman?—

  Went flying. A line of dust exploded in the direction the demon summoner was flung, destroying the environment and anything that got in the way. In the end, that was the best a single Warrior could ever hope to do. Egril shook his head as the mages finished casting. A gigantic red magic circle appeared in the distance.

  “Vanish from this world?—” Alyssa cried. “Explosion!”

  Red and black gathered in the horizon, coalescing into a single mass that instantly?— burst. The process occurred in less than a second as the whole world flashed before a roaring explosion shook the land. The pillar of flames went hundreds of meters into the air as everything in that area was incinerated from this world.

  The shockwave hit, ruffling Egril’s hair as he grabbed a handheld telescope from his waist. The very same one he used to identify the demon summoner, but this time it was simply to admire the work of the elites of the fortress. If not for them, the Grand Fortress of Sishet would’ve fallen shortly after the capital city. This was a testament to their strength.

  Egril took a look at the explosion site, the surroundings were covered in ash and at the center there was a crater that was easily fifty-meters in diameter. Such was the power of a Level 300 spell. Too bad the enemies never realized their folly. He smirked, and just as he was about to put away his telescope, he blinked.

  Why is there light?

  He frowned, and a lightly glowing orange figure stepped out.

  Wait?— His eyes widened. That’s?—

  The demon summoner cracked her shoulders, her hair was glowing, and so was her body, but more importantly. She was completely unscathed. There was not even a stain of ash on her. Finally, she spoke? to herself.

  “Not bad.”

  However, Egril was able to hear it, almost as if he was standing next to her. The realization sent a chill down his spine as he called out to the retreating elites. They were chatting, seemingly celebrating after realizing the mage that accompanied the demon summoner didn’t seem to intend to fight at all. And while that normally would’ve been a good thing, the demon summoner wasn’t dead.

  “Gerrit!” Egril called, his voice booming. “The summoner is alive! Raise your shield!”

  Gerrit paused, and turned raising his shield. The next moment, a loud bang echoed as dust billowed in all directions. It seemed that Gerrit had barely blocked, something that made Egril tense slightly less as he called.

  “Prepare for battle?—”

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  And Gerrint went flying from the smoke, hitting the wall of the fortress. The next moment, the demon summoner appeared behind one of the warriors and with a simple punch she?— broke through his back and her hand came from his stomach. The man’s eyes went wide and Egril felt it?— they stood no chance.

  The warrior was sent flying into another Warrior, and as the last Warrior tried to charge an invisible slash hit him and knocked him out, taking two mages along with it. Finally another one was grabbed by the neck as explosion magic hit all of them. Now, the only person that remained was Alyssa the Explosion Mage.

  “Alyssa, back off!” Egril cried.

  But it was too late. An arrow of darkness streaked from within the smoke of the explosion and hit her in the shoulder as a harrowing scream echoed. Knocking her out moments later. Egril couldn’t help but gasp as he realized that nobody remained standing. In the span of twenty seconds, all the elite combatants of the Grand Fortress were knocked out by a single person. A realization that sent chills down his heart.

  “So, are you willing to talk now?” the summoner’s voice echoed next to him. “Or do you want me to just kill you all?”

  He turned to see her with a hand on her hip, there was no hostility on her gaze, but there were also no visible injuries. The sight made him grimace.

  “Let’s talk…”

  Egril didn’t understand this woman’s power, or what kind of artifact she used to disguise her level, but one thing was for certain. She could’ve easily killed everyone that attacked her, he could just feel it. He himself was nearing Level 300 and even if he stepped forward, deep down he knew that she could just kill him just as easily.

  Just what kind of monster had come after them?

  * * *

  Amber stared at the man before her, and her first impression of him was a rather simple one. Coward. All he did was bark orders, truly a commander. Now, there was nothing wrong with being a commander, in fact the man before her had the aura of one. He had a wizened face, one that had scars and looked rough with a rather kept beard and bronzened skin. However, his expression was filled with terror, and there was another factor.

  His level.

  The man was clearly over 40 levels higher than her, yet he was scared.

  [Flail Warrior. Lvl. ???]

  A true coward. A sigh left her as she shook her head disapprovingly at the man. The gesture, however, instead of easing tension made the man even more scared as he took a step back.

  “Relax,” Amber said. “I’m just here for answers.”

  “W-What kind of answers could you possibly want?” the man stuttered.

  She tapped her chin. “Well, for instance why am I being called a demon summoner?”

  “Ha?!” The man gasped. “There is evidence, I even have your wanted notice!”

  With those words, he unfurled a paper on the belt of his waist and thrust it forward. The parchment waved in the air for a moment, and when Amber saw the contents she couldn’t help but pause.

  There was a picture of her, and below it there was text.

  Wanted notice:

  Amber the Cursed Berserker.

  Demon Summoner.

  Reward: 5,000 gold.

  “That’s…” That was her. But also… “But I’m not even a demon summoner?”

  The man frowned. “You say that, yet your Legacy Branch is called Primordial Demonic Blood. No matter how you spin it, you obviously have deep ties with demons. Unless you are telling me you decided to rename your Legacy Branch to something related to demons when you disguised level.”

  Amber frowned, it seemed every high level person had Appraisal at at least Rank 2 except for her ?— allowing them to see specific classes and legacy branches ?— but even if some didn’t, with these rumors going around it was rather easy to point fingers at her. But just as Amber was about to reply, she sensed Frei teleport to her side and whistle.

  “Well, damn. Didn’t know ya summoned demons, or that you disguised your level.”

  “I don’t and I didn’t,” Amber scoffed but just as she was going to turn to the man, she sensed a presence appear behind her. It was Aveline’s.

  “Frei, she’s been with you the entire time, when did she have time to summon demons aside from that failed summoning?”

  “It’s just a joke,” Frei shook her head. “Obviously if she managed to summon demons she’d just use them as punching bags.”

  Hearing their dialogue the man seemed confused, but now wasn’t the time for that. Instead, Amber shook her head and spoke to him.

  “Are you the leader of this place?”

  The man before her hesitated before ultimately nodded. “That’s right, so please don’t harm the civilians. If you have any demands, I’ll satisfy them so—”

  “Tell me about my wanted notice, how was it issued? What’s the evidence? How long has it been out? I want to know everything.” Amber interrupted.

  “Right, okay.” The man nodded. “Then follow me.”

  With that, the man turned around and walked along the battlements of the fortress. The mage that had been knocked into them was simply left behind. Not like Amber cared.

  As they walked through the fortress they met numerous soldiers but none were level 200 like the ones from before, and even though they were tense, all it took was a glance from their leader for them to not even ask questions. So, it was actually a rather calm journey all the way to what was usually used as an interrogation room.

  Except of course, this time it was used as a private space. The first thing the man did was order a subordinate to fetch some artifacts. Then, he sat down before Amber, waiting for his subordinate.

  “My name is Egril Sishet,” he began. “And I’m the current chief of the Grand Fortress of Sishet.”

  Amber just stared at him waiting for the man to continue. While she didn’t exactly hate the man, she also wouldn’t like someone that attacked her first, even if it was due to a misunderstanding. Moreover, there was no point in self-introduction given the wanted notice existed.

  She did wonder if it was issued by the Sacred Forest given she had stolen Arkara’s Staff, but if it was why would the bounty be so low? So, she didn’t even ask the man before her lest he’d think she was the ultimate evil or something for being wanted by the Sacred Forest as well.

  Though, it seemed that there was no point for wondering about things since the man, Egril Sishet finally decided on what he wanted to say next.

  “I’d like to apologize on behalf of the Grand Fortress,” he finally said, lowering his head for a moment before continuing. “However, it’s important to understand that even these wanted notices can be issued throughout the republic so long as enough money is given, we have proof. Proof that you summoned demons, and that these demons are the ones that attacked our fortress a week ago.”

  Amber blinked. She had absolutely no fucking idea what she had been doing a week ago in real world time?— she had spent like almost a year in the Primordial Spirit tower! But even if she could remember, she could smell the scent of bullshit from a mile away.

  “A week ago we had just departed Froststone though?” Aveline seemed confused. “That’s pretty far from here. Moreover, Amber essentially saved that village.”

  “I’ll have someone verify it,” Egril said simply.

  “Look, talking will get us nowhere. So let’s just wait for your proof,” Amber said simply before turning serious. “But let me make things clear.”

  The man tensed as she met his gaze.

  “One: The only time I tried to summon a demon, it rejected my summoning. Two: The reason my Legacy Branch is related to demons is because I’ve killed more than I can count. Three: If you insist I’m a demon summoner regardless of whether my innocence is proven, you can’t blame me if I stop holding back.”

  Hearing her words, Egril swallowed and nodded.

  * * *

  Egril’s head spun.

  Holding back? This person was holding back? Wait, of course she was. Otherwise she wouldn’t have merely knocked everyone out; moreover she would be injured if they had truly pushed her to any extent.

  But… one thing didn’t make sense. Why would a powerhouse like her disguise her level and class but not her Legacy Branch? However, all Egril could do was bite his lip and wait for his subordinate. If he asked the person before him, he’d surely die. In fact, he didn’t even know what to do. Assuming she indeed couldn’t prove her innocence, what would happen? If he refused her entry, would he die? Would innocent people die?

  He didn’t know. Finally, as he agonized over it, his subordinate came in holding a mana stone. It was the size of a fist and a deep purple color that shimmered under the light. Seeing that, he nodded and gestured for the subordinate to activate it. It was placed at the center of the table.

  “This is the proof of you summoning demons.”

  With those words and some mana poured in by the subordinate, the mana stone lit up and a projection of magic appeared above. It was in first person, from someone hiding in some bushes, and the vision showed a woman resembling Amber summoning some demons with her demonic sword cleaved into the ground.

  It lasted a few minutes as hordes of demons rose from a magic circle, and when it finished he cleared his throat.

  “As you can see that’s you in the projection, also the demons that attacked our fortress match the ones that were summoned in our projection, therefore?—”

  A loud laugh echoed. Egril turned and saw the elven wizard doubling over in laughter, almost as if she heard the funniest joke in her life.

  “T-That’s your fuckin’ proof?!” She cackled. “That’s so stupid!”

  He frowned. “What’s so stupid about it?”

  “Enchanted Mana Stones can be tampered with if the mage is skilled enough,” she said grabbing the stone. “Like this.”

  The image distorted as mana was poured into it, and it took about a minute, but now the figure summoning the demons was… Egril himself. He paused as the projection blurred and returned to Amber a few minutes later.

  “Obviously it’d take me hours to change the entire recording, but come on.” The elf chuckled. “Such a thing obviously can’t be trusted.”

  Egril frowned. “Talented mages like you are scarce, who’d go out of the way to falsify testimony for such a small bounty?”

  “Dunno, if I had the original stone I’d be able to tell with certainty.” The mage shrugged. “But, either way, I can tell this so called proof is flimsy considering I’ve been with Amber the entire time, so there’s no way she just snuck out and summoned a few hundred demons to attack your fortress.”

  Egril lowered his gaze. There was no way to tell if the other party was just blatantly lying to his face. After all, in the recording there had also been a mage that was about the same stature as this one powering the magic circle.

  “Look, how about ya help us see who initially issued this? Even though the republic is a fuckin’ mess I’m pretty sure ya’ll still keep these records,” the mage said. “Considering it saving yourself some trouble. Since she’s with me, ya can be 300% sure she’s innocent.”

  Hearing her words, Egril was about to scoff but the mage suddenly showed him something. It was a badge.

  “What’s that even supposed to?—”

  And his words hitched as he recognized the simple emblem with a depiction of the twin moons of Vir, and as he saw the gilded golden border, his eyes couldn’t help but tremble in fear as he paled.

  A-Arcane Council High-Ranking Officer!

  Second piece of news!

  This is an announcement! Basically, as everyone can tell, this chapter is very late, but there's a reason for it, and that was because I was making preparations. What kind of preparations you may ask? Well, preparations to renew Amber's serialization! That's right, Amber will resume semi-regular updates from now on! What does this mean? Well, it means there will be at the very least one chapter a week starting from now. Some may wonder, why not more? And my answer to that is: I don't want to burn out. I think I've managed to find a rhythm for writing that works well for me so I'll be sticking to that from now on.