SSS-Ranked Awakening: I Can Only Summon Mythical Beasts

Damien stood in the corner of the room, arms folded, gaze fixed on the two figures still unconscious on the floor.

They had been restrained—wrists bound, ankles tied, subtle runic bindings humming faintly over their skin from a binding item Damien had activated on them. The room was dim, lit only by a low-burning lantern threatened to be devoured by the silence in the room.

He’d given them a few hours to wake. Long enough for them to stew, to think. Or panic.

Now, it was time.

But not with Arielle here.

She stood by the wall, arms crossed, face unreadable. She hadn’t said much since they’d dragged the two in—former allies? Ghosts of her past? Damien hadn’t pressed. Yet.

He tilted his head toward the door. “You should step out.”

Arielle raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“I don’t want you here when this starts.”

“They’re connected to me and they might as well be here for me. I should be—”

“They are connected to you. That’s exactly why you shouldn’t be here.”

He held her gaze.

After a long pause, Arielle sighed and relented. “Fine.”

She turned toward the door, stopping just before exiting. “Don’t kill them.”

Damien’s voice was flat. “Depends on the answers.”

She left without another word.

As her footsteps echoed away down the hall, Damien closed the door and reached into his coat. He pulled out a small, dull-blue crystal embedded in a steel clasp—an item he’d bought from a shady vendor before they left Westmont, just in case.

He didn’t think he’d be using it this soon.

He crushed it between his fingers.

A pulse of silence expanded across the room. The flickering of the lanterns dimmed just slightly as the air grew dense. Soundproof barrier activated.

Now, no one outside would hear what followed.

The two captives began to stir—first the girl, then the boy. Their movements were slow, groggy. Confused. But as their senses returned, so did the tension in their muscles. They tried to move—only to realize they couldn’t.

“Good,” Damien said calmly. “You’re awake.”

The girl’s eyes narrowed. She looked young—late teens, maybe early twenties. He stared at the girl’s face— the soft lines, short hair dyed with a streak of violet—and chuckled.

The boy beside her blinked rapidly, blinking away dizziness. His expression was harder to read. Older, wiry, with small tattoos running along the edges of his neck.

“You gonna torture us?” he asked dryly.

“Not if you’re cooperative.”

The girl scoffed. “Then get on with it.”

Damien stepped forward, hands still behind his back. “Who are you?”

The boy and girl exchanged a look.

“Start talking,” Damien said, voice like cut stone. “I’m not in the mood to be patient tonight.”

The boy finally nodded. “Alright. Fine. No point dragging it out.”

He shifted slightly in his bindings. “We’re part of a group called The Traversers. Or… we were.”

Damien’s brow twitched slightly. “Explain.”

The girl spoke up next. “The Traversers is a roaming organization—mostly made of orphans. Street kids. Runaways. People no one wanted.”

“But someone found us,” the boy added. “Talent Holders.”

Damien’s eyes narrowed. “Meaning?”

“They took us in. Not all of us had Talent, but we were taught the same way. Art of Battle. Magic Essence manipulation. Enough to fight. Enough to survive.”

Damien folded his arms. “Why does a group like that exist?”

“Because no one else gives a damn about us,” the girl said bitterly. “We had nothing. They gave us something. A place. A purpose.”

“Joining was voluntary,” the boy continued. “But leaving… wasn’t.”

“The group moves often,” the girl added. “No headquarters. No names. Just wherever the leaders gather. That’s ‘home.'”

Damien’s voice stayed cold. “What do you do? What was your role?”

“We worked in intel,” the boy said. “Information gathering. Selling what we found. Sometimes logistics. Transporting goods for people who didn’t want eyes on their crates.”

“Mercenary work. Black market. Espionage,” Damien summarized.

“Exactly.”

Still, they hadn’t said why they were here.

Damien narrowed his gaze. “You’ve said a lot. But not why you’re here. You were watching Arielle. Spying.”

At her name, the two visibly flinched.

“Why?” Damien pressed. “She was your target?”

The girl shook her head quickly. “No. She wasn’t a target.”

The boy exhaled. “We weren’t going to hurt her.”

Damien didn’t move. “You expect me to believe that?”

“She was one of us,” the girl said softly. “Back then. In the Traversers.”

Damien’s eyes flickered.

“She led a small group,” the boy continued. “We were part of it. But then… one day, she was gone. Just disappeared.”

Damien stepped closer. “And your people don’t let deserters go.”

“No,” the boy admitted. “We thought she was dead. That’s what usually happens.”

“But we left, too,” the girl said quickly. “A few months after she vanished. We couldn’t stay. Not without her. Not after everything.”

“We registered ourselves as mercenaries,” the boy added. “Been surviving like that since.”

Damien tilted his head. “You’re telling me it was a coincidence?”

“We didn’t come here looking for her,” the girl said. “We were just passing through. But we saw her. Alive. And not alone.”

“You,” the boy nodded. “She was with you and the other boy.” He gestured to Lyone who was still asleep. “That’s why we didn’t approach.”

“She looked different,” the girl added. “More guarded. We thought maybe she’d changed… or maybe we were wrong. So we watched. Tried to figure it out.”

“And then I caught you,” Damien said.

The boy smirked, but it was thin. “We were trained to hide. First thing they taught us. But you still found us.”

“She must’ve meant something,” Damien said. “If seeing her made you stop moving.”

The girl looked down. “She was the only one who treated us like people. Like a family. She was the older sister we never had.”

Damien was silent for a moment.

Then he sighed.

He raised a hand, and the runes around their bindings dimmed. Threads of light dissolved into the air as the enchantments released.

The ropes fell loose.

“Names,” Damien said.

The boy rubbed his wrists. “Zeke.”

The girl stood slowly, stretching her sore legs. “And I’m Lira.”

Damien nodded once. “You’re free. But this town’s under watch. Don’t do anything stupid.”

Zeke looked at him. “You’re close to her.”

“I am.”

“And protective.”

“Also true.”

Lira gave a tired smile. “She always had a way of collecting strays.”

‘Strays, huh? I don’t think that includes me.’ Damien’s expression didn’t change. “You included?”

“Yeah,” she said softly.

A long pause followed.

Then Damien moved to the door. “Wait here. I’ll bring her.”

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