Chapter 121: Return

The first thing Ian saw upon waking was a red-haired woman gently rubbing his hair.

The moment he met her eyes, he immediately realized—she wasn’t human.

‘What with those eyes…’

They weren’t human eyes. They were the eyes of a top predator. Just looking into them was enough to make his body tremble. There was power embedded in her gaze itself.

Ian had only seen such a presence in a few beings before.

A handful of 4-star summons. 

And most of the 5-star ones.

Those demigods or divine beings possessed the kind of aura that could make lesser creatures shudder with a mere glance.

“You said you wanted to revive this human?” The Phoenix looked at the now-awake Ian and smirked. 

Risking your life for such a frail human—was it worth it?

She couldn’t understand it. But whether she did or not, a summon had to follow the summoner’s command.

“I’ll go back,” she said.

The Phoenix, who had unilaterally canceled the summoning, returned to the mark on Noah’s hand. 

Watching her vanish before his eyes, Ian couldn’t help but stare at Noah in stunned silence.

Noticing his gaze, Noah scratched the back of her head awkwardly.

And that wasn’t even the most shocking part.

“Just now… how did you…?”

“Ian, you told me once. There’s something called the Protectors in this world.”

“I did…,” he replied hesitantly.

But even he had only hinted at their existence—he didn’t tell her how to find one.

Noah had found it. All on her own.

“You also said that I have a constitution that’s loved by the summons. If it’s me, you believed they would love me…”

Noah recalled the moment she extended her hand. 

5-star summons weren’t bound by the system. They were divine beings who resisted the system’s control through sheer power.

To ask such a being to become a summon was nearly a grave insult. If the Phoenix hadn’t sensed something spiritual in Noah—hadn’t realized that killing her might bring imbalance to the world…

She wouldn’t be standing here. Her body would’ve been reduced to ash in a volcano by now.

“So I did it. Because I believed in you.”

“…Noah.”

She had taken a dangerous gamble, risking her life—and won. Noah had trusted Ian’s words and leaped into the unknown. And she succeeded.

It wasn’t just courage. It was fate. Fate that she had succeeded.

“Welcome back, Ian.”

Tears welled in Noah’s eyes as she spoke.

Ian smiled gently at her.

***

“So? What happened?”

“We’re still investigating… It’s possible they crossed the border.”

Even so, it couldn’t be considered a failure of the frontline defenses.

The territory of humanity was vast—so vast that it was impossible to monitor it in its entirety. Protection could only be concentrated along major roads, and even then, it was just enough to block the demons from marching in.

If demons chose to move through a dozen remote mountain ranges, there was simply no way for humanity to stop or even detect them in time.

“Of course, demons don’t usually move that way. Not normally.”

Demons were, by nature, proud and arrogant. Sneaking around to attack humanity? Unthinkable.

Yet there were always exceptions in the world—beings who shattered expectations. And that seemed to be the case this time.

“…So what, if something like that happens again, are we just supposed to get stabbed to death?”

“You should go out with a summon.”

“Even if it’s inconvenient?”

“Isn’t that better than dying?”

He wasn’t wrong. Being slightly uncomfortable was better than being dead.

Despite existing rules, a 4-star summon had been attacked within the academy. The rules would need to change immediately—to make it mandatory for cadets to be accompanied by their summons.

‘It’s going to be a mess for a while.’

Summoning within the academy had been prohibited to help manage cadets and avoid discrimination among them. After all, understanding someone’s status as a 3-star Summoner or the heir of a Count or Marquis was different from experiencing it firsthand.

But now, with everyone walking around alongside their summons, the cadets would learn through direct experience.

‘Ah, that person is of a higher rank than me.’

“Stella.”

“What?”

“I’m hungry.”

With a sigh, Stella picked up the apple she had been slicing and fed a piece to Ian.

As he ate the fruit she offered, Ian silently prayed that everything would turn out alright.

***

Commander of the Western Front.

Duke Therra. The one known as the Duke of Earth.

He expressed his deep regret that a cadet from the academy had been seriously injured due to a breach in his territory.

And when he learned it was Ian—his expression darkened in fury.

His wrath made the ground itself tremble. His summon responded in kind, materializing his rage into reality.

It was a preemptive strike against the demon forces.

The attack from a 4-star summon unleashed the force of a natural disaster. The earth split and quaked, lands were torn apart, and tremors surged through the terrain.

Though the attack wasn’t specifically targeted, and might not have reached the higher-ranking demons, that didn’t matter.

What mattered was letting out the fury.

“You crazy b*stards—how dare you lay a hand on our Hero?”

He knew who Ian truly was.

The Hero. 

Humanity’s secret weapon. Its last card. Someone more precious than even his own life.

Such an existence was truly necessary, and he was attacked by demons that passed through his realm? The thought that he might be responsible was already making him irritated.

“Sh!t! F’cking sh!t! Demon spawn!”

The duke was recklessly releasing his power toward the demon realm. It was something he usually wouldn’t do. 

Fortunately, before he exhausted himself by pouring out all his energy, his summon restrained him first.

[Duke, please stop.]

“Ugh… I’m still furious.”

[Act with reason. Even if your instincts shake your resolve, this isn’t the time or place to lose control.]

“Shut up.”

However, the summons wasn’t wrong, so the duke quieted his rage and looked down at the ruined land beneath him.

Truthfully, his tantrum was meaningless. Nothing would change just because he was angry.

Still, Ian had been attacked. Even though it was impossible to protect every corner of such a vast territory, the duke knew he would face harsh criticism.

“Therium.”

[Yes, Duke?]

“What do you think would be a good apology gift?”

[Since he was attacked by demons, wouldn’t the head of the demon responsible suffice?]

“Right?”

With that, the duke turned his gaze toward the distant earth. Thousands of demons had gathered, drawn by the energy his technology had emitted.

“Come at me, you cockroach-like b*stards.”

Then, the ground beneath him soared into the sky.

***

As Ian had anticipated, the Academy had descended into chaos.

It wasn’t just the demon invasion—longstanding rules were being rewritten. 

Trust in the Academy had hit rock bottom. 

Naturally, the cadets stopped listening to the instructors.

Tuk.

“…Who—sorry.”

Ian nodded slightly.

The cadet who had bumped into him offered a brief apology without making eye contact. 

Ian smirked at the insincere gesture.

‘This punk did it on purpose.’

The cadet was clearly trying to show off, puffing up his shoulders as if his 3-star summon made him invincible.

Unfortunately for him, the person he bumped into was Ian.

“Be careful,” Ian said flatly.

Though the cadet was a senior, Ian didn’t bother speaking politely. He brushed past the cadet and headed straight to the cafeteria.

The once-orderly cafeteria was now a mess, with more cadets using brute force to cut in line.

It made Ian wonder if these were really the same cadets of the Summoner Academy who, until recently, were treated with honor and dignity.

‘How did things fall apart this badly?’

Maybe these cadets were never decent to begin with—just spoiled nobles keeping up appearances for the sake of their reputations.

Like everyone else, Ian walked straight to the front and served himself food.

That was the rule now—no one dared resist.

Others whispered behind his back, but Ian didn’t care. 

As he carried his plate to a table, their eyes silently accused him of being no different from the rest.

“Marquis.”

“…?”

“Long time no see.”

Someone didn’t just whisper—they approached him directly.

Caroline sat across from him, her blonde hair curled in two loose rolls. She hadn’t been visible earlier, but now she appeared, moving with the confidence of someone with a 3-star summon.

“I was eating with the other cadets. Crespy’s pride was on the line, so I couldn’t cut in.”

“Oh? And I just cut in because I have no pride?”

“Ah—no! That’s not what I meant… sorry…”

Ian laughed aloud at her flustered reaction and the awkward reason she gave for sitting in front of him.

Caroline blushed, then quickly composed herself and looked him in the eye.

“Marquis, do you think things are okay right now?”

“No.”

“…I thought so. So… yes?”

“Of course it’s not okay.”

“Then why…?”

When she asked why he wasn’t doing anything about it, Ian paused and set down his fork, taking a moment to collect his thoughts.

After a while, he replied.

“If I suppress them with force…will that be any different in the end?”

“…Ah.”

Whether the cadets swaggered around the Academy or cowered under pressure, it made no real difference.

This was the Academy’s problem to solve, not his.

More than anything—

‘This works in my favor, anyway.’

Since Ian stood to gain the most from the current chaos, there was no reason for him to intervene.