I’ve seen monsters getting killed in gruesome ways before in my life, but I never realized just how terrifying it would be to witness a burning body of a human-like myself. I’ve been in many dungeons, and sure, a majority may have been level one dungeons, but I’ve never ever been in a situation where my life was in danger, until today.

“Hilde, use your trap to get Rin out of the fire!” Roy commands.

I sit frozen in terror as I watch the burnt body get dragged out of the purple flames and come to a stop right in front of me. The Spirit’s body was charred and smoking, with no sign of life. I gingerly crawl my way towards the Spirit that had saved me, the one I had refused to acknowledge his existence.

Although I was the Summoner of this party, the battle with the dungeon dragon continued without my calls. I could hear the battle raging behind me, but all I could focus on was the corpse of the Shielder that had risked his life for me, even when I haven’t been giving him the best treatment.

I think I ended up staring too much at the burnt teenager as my stomach decided to turn inside out and I ended up throwing up the meals I had today. A truly unpleasant scent of burnt flesh and vomit fills my nose, and I throw up once again.

I start tearing up, unsure if it was from the death of this human, or the sensation of vomiting.

Suddenly, as I wipe the tears out of my eyes, the corpse groans.

My heart starts beating with great speed, and despite the smell and the terrible shape of the teen, I hurriedly bring my ear to the chest of the Shielder. I listen to the best of my ability, hoping for a miracle.

It’s silent for a moment…

Then I hear it...

Heartbeats…

I get up and run as fast as I can towards my backpack, tears forming in my eyes again.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see my other Spirits laying out all their anger on the dragon. The attack was disorganized, but all of them were blinded by rage. Roy slashed at any part of the dragon that came his way, Liz was gouging out the eyes of the dragon with her spear, and Hilde was tightening the grip of the chains around the dragon, almost ripping apart the skin of the dragon.

I couldn’t pay them much attention though, I had to find healing potions.

If only Aquaria was here…I should have learned how to do healing spells!

To my relief, I find our stock of small healing potions filled with red liquid. I’m not sure if it would be enough, but I had no other choice, I needed to do absolutely everything I could to repay the teen who had saved me.

With a pile of potions in my arms, I kneel down next to the Shielder.

Please work…

I begin pouring the potions all over the Shielder, dousing him in red liquid. At first, nothing happens for a while, but slowly, the natural color of the Shielder’s skin begins to return to him. However, there were obvious scars and small burns over his body, and even his hair had changed to a white color rather than the black he had.

Although all the potions have been used up, the Shielder still looked in terrible shape.

It’s all my fault… I did this to him…

Guilt pains my chest as I start crying. It was frustrating knowing that I had caused the death of a human simply because I didn’t want him as a part of my party. I knew that other Summoners simply killed the Spirits that they thought had no use to them, but every part of my body prevented me from bringing the knife to the Shielder, even when he was out cold for 3 days.

“Summoner, there’s still hope.” A familiar voice calls out to me.

I didn’t realize it, but the dragon had already been slain, and the rest of the Spirits were surrounding me and the Shielder. I look up to the Knight who had called out to me.

“Lastaria isn’t too far, right?” Roy starts, “I know you’ve told us how you don’t want to use your last name or your family crest to get what you want, but don’t you think Rin deserves a chance?”

I understood what Roy was getting at. Time was running out, and I had no time to deal with my pride and ego.

“Let’s hurry to the carriage.” I stand up with a sense of duty coursing through my body, “Roy, carry the Shielder.”

Roy carefully picks up the Shielder, and we rush out of the dungeon as fast as we could. We drop some items on the way up the dungeon stairs, but none of that mattered to me right now. I needed to get Rin healed.

We enter the carriage and I pray to the gods that the horses understood the situation and would run as fast as they could. I cracked the whips, and the horses began sprinting.

While I was focusing on controlling the horses, I could hear Liz calling out for herbs to the other Spirits. Maybe it was a remedy? I don’t know. I keep my head straight forward, not only because I was occupied with the horses, but also because I didn’t want to see the Shielder’s body.

* * *

We make our way to Lastaria’s nation walls and thankfully, it’s already midday, meaning the gates were wide open for anyone. We quickly rode on the speed limit of the national law to reach the Lastaria Royal Infirmary as fast as we could.

Once we had reached the infirmary, I jumped out of the carriage and stormed past the doors.

“Excuse me, ma’am, no running indoors please!” A nurse shouts.

I shoot her an angry glare and dug into my pocket. I take out my family crest and undo my ponytail, letting my long hair flow down. Some patients and doctors gasp as they instantly recognize me as soon as I let my hair down.

I stomp to the front desk, slam my crest onto the desk, and order at the top of my lungs.

“I, Isabel Virac, the royal Princess of Lastaria, command that you heal this Shielder with the best equipment you have!”

My name and sudden presence cause the atmosphere to ripple, and everyone silently bows and gets on their knees. A doctor gets up and begins ordering for his subordinates to bring a stretcher.

I watch as groups of nurses and doctors flock the Shielder and hastily carry him into a room.

After watching the Shielder’s body go around a corner, I sigh and collapse on a couch, burying my face in my hands.

Shielder…please be alright…

* * *

After signing a pile of paperwork, the payments have been made for the Shielder to receive the best equipment in the entire infirmary.

“I’m going to have to report this to father…” I solemnly muse to myself as I exit the infirmary.

“We’ll go with you.” Liz softly whispers as she pats my back.

“I don’t want to involve myself in family matters too much,” Hilde starts, “but is there a reason that you don’t want to use your family crest?”

I sigh and stare at the ground, “Honestly, it’s just my pride. My parents hold so many expectations of me, but I was always outshone by my brothers in terms of battle. They would try to get tutors for me, but even they would give up on me and quit the job.”

My Spirits remain silent.

“Out of frustration, I decided to run away and train on my own, and for a while, it seemed to be going alright. I reached the required amount of Mana to successfully summon Spirits, and I learned some spells on my own.” I continue, “but I guess, I wasn’t prepared to actually put a life at risk, even if I had threatened it back at the summoning bar.”

After trying my ponytail back, I begin staring at the floor where the Shielder had been for a while. I shake my head clear and walk out of the royal infirmary straight for the royal castle.

* * *

“It’s a surprise to see you again, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?” My mother, the Queen of Lastaria softly says.

“Yes, mother.” I kneel.

I look around the royal room out the corners of my eyes. In a way, it’s quite heartwarming to see the place where I spent a lot of my childhood, but there were plenty of bad memories in this place.

The red and golden carpets across the marble floor, the grey chiseled walls lit up by fancy golden chandeliers which hung high, the mosaic glass windows which gave some color to the room, and the golden thrones that my parents sat almost all day in. None of it has changed since I last left.

“So? What brings you back all of a sudden after running away?” My father, the King of Lastaria asks.

I bite my lip and hold in my frustration.

“I used our crest to treat a Spirit of mine.”

The royal room stays silent for a couple of minutes. I turn to my spirits, and thankfully leave the room, leaving me alone with my parents. I face my father again.

“So, you’ve accepted your place in the royal family?” my father sternly asks.

“No!” I quickly retort back, before realizing what I’ve done and kneel back down.

My father clicks his tongue, “Do you still intend to keep this foolish façade up?”

“It’s not a façade!” I yell back, “I just…had to do what I could to heal this Spirit.”

My mother gives me a small smile, “Is this Spirit important to you?”

“I don’t know…he’s a Shielder, but I don’t know how to use him.”

Silence reclaims the room once again.

Suddenly, someone starts slow clapping in the corner of the room. Everyone’s eyes head towards the source of the clapping to find a tall man walking out of the shadows. My body freezes in fear at the sight of the man, Luke Virac, who is my eldest brother.

“I think there’s nothing wrong with what Isabel did, even if she still intends to not be a part of the royal family,” Luke smirks at my father.

“Luke, I thought you were out training with your Spirits.” The king coldly says.

“I just finished training earlier than expected. Is my presence troubling you, father?”

“Is that rhetorical? Your presence troubles everyone.” The king answers honestly.

“Leonard!” My mother snaps, “These are still our children we’re talking to.”

“Very well, I’ll ignore the use of the family crest this time,” My father stands up and walks past me, “but the next time you do so, you’ll be admitting your place in the royal family and will return to the castle immediately.”

Thankful that I can finally leave the royal castle again, I suck up my pride and bow, “Yes, Father.”

I make my way out of the castle and head back to the royal infirmary. If the doctors and nurses followed my orders and used the equipment used for kings and queens, then Rin should be regaining consciousness near the end of the day.

As I step outside the castle gates, I notice a blue knight leaning against the wall.

“Roy?”

“You’re finally out!” the knight stands up straight, “The others decided to wait outside the infirmary for Rin.”

Rin…right, that was his name

I sigh and look straight at Roy, “Roy, tell me, what would Rin like as a gift?”