Isaac checked the skills.
Sovereign Summon
Level 1
Rank: SSS+
Effect 1: Allows you to summon three Abyssal Lieutenants (Empress-Type Spirits). The summons will follow the will of summoner. (0/3)
Effect 2: Each Lieutenant can summon and command lesser ghosts depending on their strength.
Passive Effect — Aura of Sovereign: Spirits bonded to you find it hard to refuse your orders. All Spirits under you gain +10% Movement Speed and +10% Attack Speed.
Mana Cost: None
Cooldown: None
...
Isaac blinked at the page for a few seconds.
’What...?’
The skill seemed simple when read quickly.
But the more he looked at it, the more amazing it felt.
Abyssal Lieutenants.
Those were not normal monsters.
Those were creatures from the Abyss, one of the most dangerous dimensions known.
He remembered the lessons taught in the survival courses by Professor Catherine.
In the ancient era before the apocalypse began, sometimes Gates appeared at places of high mana concentration.
Those Gates connected the land to other dimensions.
Some connected to peaceful places.
Most, however, connected to dangerous ones filled with predators and ancient races.
But Gates to the Abyss were different.
Every kingdom used to enter full alert the moment one appeared.
The appearance of a single Abyss Monster meant that a kingdom was guaranteed to fall before the monster could be put down.
Not "maybe fall."
Guaranteed.
And now Emily had the right to summon three of them.
Isaac exhaled slowly.
’Emily can summon three Abyssal Lieutenants... and command them. That’s absurd. Her combat power just rose by several hundred times,’ he thought.
He tried to calm himself and think rationally.
Maybe the system would weaken them.
Maybe the summons would match Emily’s level instead of their original terrifying strength.
Of course, he would only know the truth when she used the skill.
He scrolled down to the second ability.
Call of the Fallen
Level 1
Rank: SSS+
Effect 1: Each entity killed by Emily temporarily leaves behind a [Core Fragment] or a [Shadow Fragment].
Effect 2: Combining five Shadow Fragments with one Core Fragment will temporarily resurrect the monster that the Core Fragment belonged to. You can command the resurrected monster.
Effect 3: Combining fragments changes resurrection strength:
• 5 Shadow Fragments → Initiate rank
• 10 Shadow Fragments → Adept rank
• 15 Shadow Fragments → Elite rank
You can strengthen resurrected monsters up to Champion rank.
Mana Cost: Scales with number and strength of resurrected monsters.
Cooldown: None.
Isaac read the skill twice.
Then a third time.
He wondered if he was dreaming.
’This is...’
Every monster dropped a Shadow Fragment.
That meant Emily had guaranteed materials for resurrection.
If she collected five Shadow Fragments and one Core Fragment, she could resurrect a monster and control it temporarily.
If she collected enough fragments, she could create monsters reaching Champion rank.
’Emily can basically mass produce Champion rank monsters,’ Isaac muttered.
Even if they lasted only a short time, this was still absurd.
The more enemies she fought, the stronger she would become.
Champions were strong.
Not as strong as Overlords, but still extremely rare.
Humanity had around three hundred Champion-ranked people in total.
Maybe even less after the recent disasters.
Emily could make that many on her own if she killed enough monsters.
He swallowed.
’Emily... could destroy the entire human race if she tried.’
He closed the skill window.
Isaac didn’t waste time.
’System, share the skills!’
A soft pulse went through his mind.
Sovereign Summons (SSS+ rank) gained.
Call of the Fallen (SSS+ rank) gained.
Checking her skills, and sharing them took only a second.
That was the advantage of his high Spirit Power and Intelligence.
He could process everything much faster than normal people.
When he finished, he finally looked toward Emily.
She remained there with a bright expression, almost unaware of the chaos her new powers represented.
"How are you feeling now?" Isaac asked.
"I feel good," she said with a smile.
Her smile eased some of his tension.
At least she wasn’t overwhelmed by the changes.
He tried to push aside the memory of the Catastrophe that had taken control of Emily earlier.
That entire event filled him with anger and worry. But he knew, this wasn’t the time to be swept by emotions.
He turned toward Sword Empress, who was observing the two of them with calm eyes.
"Emily got a skill that lets her summon monsters from the Abyss. Do you think it’s safe to test the skill now? I want to see if they’ll follow her properly. But I’m not sure if they could damage the city," Isaac said.
Sword Empress took a moment before answering.
"It should be fine. If the skill says they will obey the Young Lady, they should not cause harm unless she orders them to," she said.
She paused.
"Normally, Abyss monsters have bodies or abilities that cause collateral damage. Poison breath, corrosive mana, things like that. But if they obey her, she can make them restrain themselves."
Isaac nodded.
He still found it strange how calmly Sword Empress talked about Abyssal beings.
’She was definitely someone big in her past life.’
’That’s why she isn’t afraid of Abyss monsters.’
Another thought passed through his mind.
’I think the Blood Lord Catastrophe called her the sister of Sword God.’
He frowned a little.
’If she is Emily’s aunt, why does she call Emily Young Lady?’
He pushed the question aside.
Now wasn’t the right time to ask anything like that.
He turned toward Emily, who had just scrambled to her feet after noticing the Sword Empress standing there.
Emily brushed the dust off her clothes and bowed a little.
"Thank you for coming to check on me, Sword Empress."
"It is my job, Young Lady," Sword Empress replied. "Now, we do not have much time. The Crimson Sky Wyrm has become agitated. I believe it will attack soon, instead of two hours later.
"We should prepare for the fight. So please summon the Abyss monsters.
"I need to check them and confirm they do not have powers that will harm our citizens as collateral during battles."
Her tone was steady and calm, but there was urgency behind her words.
Isaac understood why.
Even though Sword Empress had said that Abyss monsters should obey Emily, there was always a chance of accidental destruction.
Champion-rank Awakeners inside cities had to control their punches and spells.
Otherwise one strike could blow apart a building.
The same logic applied to monsters.
What if the Abyss monster Emily summoned was the type that fought recklessly?
Even if Emily told it to be careful, that didn’t mean it would behave perfectly every moment.
Monsters had personalities.
Some listened well.
Some were wild by nature.
If one of them lost control during the heat of battle and attacked with full force, it could flatten dozens of buildings.
And an attack like that would kill hundreds of citizens.
Emily understood that too.
"Yes, I will summon them now, Sword Empress. But..."
She hesitated and looked toward Isaac.
For a moment she looked conflicted, then she took a breath and closed her eyes.
"Isaac... give me Mana and Constitution Potions. I need to push my stats to the limit."
Isaac shook his head immediately.
"No need for them. While my potions and the system potions are very pure, they can still lead to overdose. You just drank hundreds of potions earlier. So it’s better if you don’t drink anything for the next few weeks. Otherwise it could cause problems."
Emily clenched her fists.
"I want to drink the potions, Isaac. Don’t worry about side effects. I just broke through so—"
"Emily," Isaac said gently, cutting her off.
She stopped talking.
"You are not fighting alone. So don’t think you have to carry everything by yourself. Your current strength is already enough. Instead of potions, just use the grains to recover your mana during the battle."
Emily lowered her eyes.
She didn’t argue anymore.
Sword Empress stepped forward slightly.
"Isaac is right. Your role is already heavy enough. Forcing your body more might cause trouble at the wrong moment."
Emily nodded slowly.
Her shoulders relaxed a little.
"Okay... I understand."
Isaac gave her a reassuring look.
"We will handle this together," he said.
Emily took a small breath.
"Then... should I summon the Abyss monsters now?"
"Yes," Sword Empress replied. "Summon them one by one. I will inspect each of them."
Emily nodded again.
She raised her hand toward the ground.
A faint glow formed around her fingers.
Isaac stepped back a little to give her space.
Sword Empress stood beside him with her arms folded, watching carefully.
Emily whispered, "Sovereign Summons."
The air grew cold almost immediately.
A pressure spread around them, slow and heavy.
A shadow stretched out on the floor beneath Emily and then rose upward like dark water.
Isaac watched without blinking.
A shape formed inside the rising darkness.