"This is the familiar summoning circle I obtained after fighting the Demon King with the Tyrant's Eye of the Wicked Lord. Of course, I can successfully summon a familiar! Don't you believe me, Thunder Hammer User?"
The girl called "Thunder Hammer User" was Sanae Dekomori.
Upon hearing Rikka declaration, Sanae immediately shook her head in denial.
"Of course not. As the first servant of the Eye of the Wicked Lord, I naturally have great trust in you!"
"Very good!" Rikka nodded with satisfaction, clearly pleased.
The two began studying the blueprint in their hands more carefully. In truth, this was just a strange drawing that Rikka had found by chance. She liked the design, thinking it matched her "chuunibyou" persona, so she brought it back. The idea of summoning a familiar was just an extension of her fantasy.
"That..." After a while, Sanae hesitated before asking, "How do we summon a familiar?"
She couldn't just yell at a piece of paper, right?
Sanae's question made Rikka pause and think deeply. She placed her hand on her chin, trying to come up with an answer. After a dramatic moment, she snapped her fingers.
"Since it's a familiar bonded to me, naturally I'll summon it with my blood!"
"What?! You need blood for the summoning?" Sanae exclaimed in shock, but the atmosphere was already too intense for her to back out now.
Rikka produced a needle from somewhere. Despite her earlier bravado, the thought of pricking herself made her nervous. After all, even with her "chuunibyou" delusions, she was still just a high school girl.
"Let's do it together!" Rikka quickly turned to Sanae, holding out another needle.
Sanae, visibly frightened, accepted the needle with trembling hands. "O-Okay, okay!"
After what felt like an eternity of hesitation, the two girls finally pricked their fingers, producing a couple of drops of blood that fell onto the drawing.
At first, nothing happened. After all, it was just a harmless delusion. But before Rikka could dismiss the whole thing as a failure, something unexpected occurred.
"Buzz!"
The red lines on the blueprint, which had been completely still until now, began to glow faintly. To the girls' horror, a terrifying, twisted creature slowly crawled out from the center of the design.
"What… what is that?" Sanae stammered, backing away, her body trembling uncontrollably. Rikka, though frightened as well, mustered her courage and shouted at the creature.
"Since I summoned you, take me to the Invisible Boundary!"
Rikka's "chuunibyou" persona was born after the sudden death of her father. Unable to accept the reality of his passing, she convinced herself that he had entered an invisible boundary, a hidden realm. For her, all her fantasies were attempts to find a way to reach her father.
Could it be? Could I finally be close to succeeding?
"Open the passage to the Invisible Boundary for me!" she commanded.
But the creature said nothing. Instead, it stared at Rikka and Sanae with a menacing grin that slowly spread across its grotesque face.
"Bang!"
Suddenly, the door to the club room was kicked open with force.
"I don't know about opening the Invisible Boundary, but you two sure are brave!" Ryuji stepped into the room, his eyes locking onto the two girls and the strange creature before them.
Rikka and Sanae turned to face him, completely bewildered by the sudden interruption. They hadn't fully grasped the gravity of the situation yet.
"Who are you?" they asked in unison, still not comprehending the danger they were in.
Ryuji glanced at the twisted creature before them. Miko and Yukino, who had followed him, were frozen in fear, their faces pale. Even though they had encountered terrifying creatures before, the sight of this new monster still filled them with dread.
"What is this?" Miko whispered, her voice trembling.
"It's so terrifying," Yukino added, barely able to keep her composure.
"It's not an ordinary spirit or curse," Ryuji mused as he began walking toward the creature. "If regular people can see it, it must be something special. Either a unique type of curse or perhaps an urban legend given form."
As he passed by Rikka and Sanae, he gently patted their shoulders.
"From the perspective of ordinary people, you two are quite brave," he said with a smirk. In a way, their "chuunibyou" tendencies had prevented them from being completely paralyzed with fear. For that, Ryuji gave them some credit. At least they weren't losing their minds.
As he prepared to deal with the creature, a familiar voice echoed in his mind.
"Successfully contacted a target: Rikka Takanashi!
A golden entry has been triggered. Do you want to load it?"
"Successfully contacted a target: Sanae Dekomori!
A golden entry has been triggered. Do you want to load it?"
Ryuji smiled. Two golden entries in a row? Not bad.
He planned to deal with the situation before reviewing the new entries, but then the system chimed in again.
"Host has triggered more than ten golden entries. You are awarded one chance to draw a golden entry!"
Interesting,Ryuji thought. He hadn't expected to unlock a special reward for triggering ten golden entries. I wonder if this will happen again later on for other entries.
"Ryuji!"
Miko and Yukino cried out suddenly, their voices filled with concern.
The monster, which had been eerily silent until now, lunged toward Ryuji with frightening speed.
Pah!
Ryuji raised his hand, catching the creature's attack effortlessly, as if swatting away an insect.
"Wow!" Rikka and Sanae gasped in unison, their fear momentarily replaced by awe.
The two girls stared at Ryuji with wide eyes, admiration shining through their earlier terror. Rikka, ever in character, suddenly exclaimed, "Are you my Guardian Knight?"
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