In front of them all was a majestic golden throne. The throne was quite big compared to a normal human beings size.
After letting out a sigh, Rebecca turned to face Tiamat, who understanding the meaning of her gaze nodded her head. The next second Rebecca raised her left hand and Tiamat disappeared into thin air.
But no other goddess looked confused at the sudden disappearances of Tiamat; they all knew that she probably went to calm down the crowd that would have been thrown into disarray due to their sudden disappearance from the hall.
Rebecca turned her gaze toward Karna and spoke.
"Now, Karna I think there has been some kind of a mistake because you are not supposed to be summoned.
According to our knowledge the magic circle could only summon eight being from a world, who would have excellent talent."
'Uh?! Summon?! Magic circle?!' Karna became more confused after hearing those words.
Seeing him like this, Rebecca sighed and then went on to tell him the same thing she had told the other eight before his arrival.
Karna was not a dense man, and after listening to her explanation, he realized that he had been caught up in a hero summoning of some kind.
He looked toward the eight men and women, who unlike him really looked like hero material; the way they were standing like they had gotten the hang of what was happening showed that they must have also been unique individuals on earth.
"Then…."
Ron's voice pierced the air with a touch of derision, his words veiled in sarcasm. "Watch this," he quipped, his voice dripping with irony. "I can almost hear him say, 'Oh, I've been summoned by the magic circle, so I must be a hero, right? Give me powers and let me save Pandora!'"
A smile played on James' lips, his proximity to Ron allowing him to relish in the jest. The two shared a moment of shared amusement, their camaraderie evident in their synchronized grins.
Yet, the hall was no ordinary chamber, and these were no ordinary attendees. In a realm of transcendent beings, sound was not limited by the confines of its source.
Ron's jest, though whispered, resonated clearly within the heightened senses of those present. Their awareness extended far beyond the limitations of human hearing, capturing the nuances of even the most hushed conversations.
The air held a charged tension as the ethereal assembly became privy to the subtleties of human interactions, a reminder of the profound differences that existed between the realms.
Amidst the unsuspecting harmony of the newly summoned heroes, Ron's words rippled across the hall, leaving no corner untouched by their implications.
Everyone who heard frowned hearing Ron's words; except for Luxuria who looked toward Karna with a kind gaze, as if she didn't heard Ron's words.
"Then, goddess Rebecca, if I were not to be summoned, that means I am not a hero; so, can I return back to my home world? Right?"
Hearing him Ron and James made a bewilders expression, like: what had just happened?
Rebecca raised her eyebrow hearing his words. The words spoken by the mortal named Ron were harsh, but there was a little bit of truth in them, as who would not want to be a hero in a world? The riches and admiration that one would receive would be an aphrodisiac in their own way.
Everyone except Luxuria reacted just like Rebecca, whether it was the seven-vailed goddess or the eight humans, they all reacted the same way.
"Hmm…. Can you tell me the reason why you want to go back?"
"Hey, no, don't tell me you are feeling fearful after hearing about the Demon Emperor." It was James who was the one who spoke.
Karna hearing his words made confused expression and spoke.
"Hmm, well, the Demon Emperor does sound like a scary being, and going to unknown world is scary too but that is not the problem, you know."
"What I mean to say is that, if the goddess Rebecca and all the others have decided to send only you eight to the world, that means that they have a way to defeat the demon emperor."
"Of course, there is still the risk of some of you dying. But it definitely won't be 100%."
"I mean, she is a goddess; she won't shoot eight bullets towards the sky and wish that one of them would hit the target in front of her."
All eight humans narrowed their eyes as they heard him, wondering, "Did he just mention our deaths like it was nothing? So simply?"
"Then why?" Goddess Rebecca asked again.
"Well, it's because of my parents; they need me. I am the only one they have after each other so, please send me back." Karna spoke sincerely.
All eight heroes had different reaction upon hearing his answer. Some mocked Karna's decision as naivety while some understood him.
However there was one thing that all eight felt, and they realised it know upon hearing him.
It was that they did not want to go back; being completely opposite to Karna's decision.
"Hmm...." After thinking for a second or two goddess Rebecca nodded her head in agreement.
"Okay, I will do that, but you have to wait." Hearing the words of the goddess Rebecca, Karna felt happy; he really thought that he might get stuck in here.
"Ok, what about you guys? Do any of you want to go back?" Rebecca turned toward the eight and spoke.
James was the first to speak: "If goddess Rebecca really has a way for us to defeat the Demon Emperor, then no."
"I also agree with what James said." Ron and Sophia spoke together.
"Hmm, I also agree with them." Akash spoke after thinking for second. After him Nadia, Ana and Kevin also answered.
"Same here"
"Same here"
The last one who was left was Miyuki. Who was now looking toward Karna, who was checking out his surrounding without any care.
She thought about what he had just said.
"Parents, hun." she murmured under her breath and then she also agreed to go with same condition as James.
"Good, Now I want you all to know that in the world of Pandora, strength is the only thing that matters."
It is the harsh truth of the world that only those who have true potential and are hardworking can reach the peak of the mountain called true strength. There are four levels at which a person's potential can be divided: low, medium, high, and excellent."
You all eight have excellent talent to be a great powerhouse in the world of Pandora. But talent is not the only thing; there is also affinity with mana, which is divided into three levels: low, medium, and high, and you all have high affinity to mana too, which makes you all the best candidate to be the hero to save the world of Pandora."
And with the heavenly system that amplifies the growth of its user that I, with the help of my fellow gods, have developed, with its help all of you can reach the realm of the demi-god, the same realm as the demon emperor.
And with you all leading the four holy kingdoms of humans, the demon emperor and its army would be destroyed completely."
Ending her words, the goddess Rebecca looked at the eight people and saw that all of their eyes were shining; even the serious girl named Miyuki had a twinkle in her eyes as she looked toward her. She thought that her explanation must have been really good.
What the goddess did not know was that all eight humans had stopped hearing her words after the word 'system' was said. Miyuki was the one to break the silence that dawned after goddess Rebecca stopped speaking.
"Goddess Rebecca"
"Hun? Yes Miyuki"
"Uh-ahem, what do you mean by system?"
"Oh that. I suppose it would be simpler to demonstrate than to explain. "Why don't you all try saying the word system in your heads?"