Chapter 791

Chapter 791: Attempting the Summoning Ritual

That afternoon, Jesse arrived at The Slaughtered Lamb, greeted Jarel, and headed to the basement. As he entered the hall, he sensed an unusual shadowy presence.

It wasn’t from a Voidwalker or a black dragon, but the hollow shadows left after many void summons. Sometimes that scent came during demon summoning, but it was especially strong in the basement then.

Jesse felt a vague unease, but he spotted Ursula’s Basadre lying at the passage entrance, which calmed him.

Approaching the Alchemy Room, he found Ursula lying there reading a scroll. She glanced up at the footsteps. "Jesse?"

"It’s me," Jesse said. "There’s a strange smell in the basement."

Ursula sat up, sniffed the calm cauldron, turned to smell the nearby robe, then raised her arm and sniffed it. "Is it me? I don’t smell anything."

Jesse replied helplessly, "Even if it’s not you, you’re down here motionless every day and wouldn’t notice any odd smells."

"Don’t say that," Ursula said, annoyed. "I walk by the canal to exercise." Jesse added, "It’s not herbs or sweat; it’s the scent of Shadow Magic."

"Ah, yes," Ursula said. "Jesse, learning the summoning ritual went smoother than we thought. We can do it now—the spell and Magic Circle work, just like in the Grimoire you gave. We’ve only summoned Mr. Basadre from the Alchemy Room to the practice room so far. We haven’t tried summoning a person. Zardeth wants to wait for you to try together."

So that was it. The void air came from their summoning Magic Circle attempts, which made sense. Moving a Felhound a short distance was still a big step from nothing.

"That’s beyond what I expected. Was Zardeth leading the ritual?" Jesse asked.

Ursula smiled mysteriously. "Not him. You’d be surprised—we all were. Jalane was first to lead it successfully."

"Really? I didn’t think she’d be so eager about this magic," Jesse said.

Ursula explained, "She had spatial magic talent in school. You might not know she’s good at the Blink Spell; she just never used it after joining the Dagger Association. Since you brought the chant here, she’s studied hard every day in the basement, more than Zardeth. I think it gave her joy beyond enchanting and tailoring."

"Who’s assisting?" Jesse asked.

"Zardeth, of course. And Surena—she’s keen on magic that doesn’t fight demons. She works well with Zardeth and Jalane. If Surena Caledon weren’t so lazy, she could be a great warlock."

"I don’t doubt it," Jesse said. "The problem is her fear of demons besides Gacresse. I thought Gacresse would help, but it didn’t."

"Well, at least Gacresse got her over her interest in ordinary men," Ursula said. "That keeps her from being played by people like Gakin, which is good for her and the whole Dagger Association."

"Does Erlan not care?" Jesse asked.

"You sound like Mr. Drudgemoor when we first met," Ursula chuckled. "Didn’t you see Surena and Jalane when you came down? They’re in the practice room over there."

"Is that so? I came straight here after arriving," Jesse replied.

"Go check. They know more about the ritual than I do, and I need to memorize this formula…" Ursula said, shaking the scroll.

Jesse nodded. He’d worried about bringing up Ursula’s half-elf heritage, but after talking, she didn’t seem bothered, which relieved him a little.

Walking to the other side of the basement, he heard Surena chatting with Jalane before he got close. At a practice room door, Jesse saw the Magic Circle fully drawn inside, just like the one he’d seen in the Burning Steppes. Every assistant’s spot, the runes—all matched his memory exactly.

Even with Mor’zul’s Grimoire having detailed drawings of the ritual’s Magic Circle, copying it right was impressive, especially for such a complex circle. That had to be Zardeth’s work.

Back then, the summoner Elaine used this Magic Circle to call Molofeel from Stormwind to that orc camp in the Burning Steppes. Jesse wondered if they could ever use it to summon Kallez to their Mage Tower.

"Jesse?" Jalane saw him and said eagerly, "You’re back! We’re all set—just waiting for you to see the first summoning ritual try."

Her eyes had a new spark; she was clearly into this. Jesse replied, "I can’t wait either. I practiced half the day and thought I could help."

Surena smiled. "I’m key in the ritual, so watch me. I’ll find Zardeth—we’ll try tonight. What do you think, Jesse? You’re free tonight, right?"

Jesse originally thought about visiting Greed later that evening, but since the Dagger Association members were so eager to try the summoning ritual, he looked forward to their independent attempt and agreed.

Dagger Association gatherings usually featured lavish feasts, but tonight no one felt like eating slowly. Everyone wanted to quickly attempt summoning someone through the ritual.

After a simple meal, the Dagger Association members gathered in the practice room with their demons. Zardeth surveyed those present and said, "Almost everyone’s here. Jalane, we can begin."

"Where’s Erlan tonight?" Ursula asked Surena. "Couldn’t you find him?"

"We’re summoning him tonight, remember Ursula? He’s waiting in Goldshire for our call." "Ah… my mind’s full of potion recipes I memorized today." Ursula shook her head. "Forget I asked." Zardeth inquired, "Anything else to note, Jesse?"

Jesse replied, "You all have more experience than me. I’ve only assisted in one summoning so far." "Then let’s try starting," Zardeth said, looking at Jalane.

Jalane Ayrole took a deep breath, nodded, and stepped into the magic circle’s center. Surena and Zardeth took their positions. The air grew still.

Jalane glanced at the spell scroll, closed her eyes, and began channeling magic. Jesse listened to her chanting—it matched his memorized version perfectly, with excellent pronunciation. She’d clearly studied the Demonic materials he left.

As the circle shimmered, Jesse sensed void energy flowing. Zardeth and Surena joined in, assisting Jalane with the ritual. Jesse watched the main caster, noting her abundant magical energy made the summoning seem effortless. Truly an Alterac magic school graduate—her foundation surpassed these second-rate warlocks.

A shadow slowly materialized at the ritual’s center. Erlan must have sensed the summoning and answered.

Just then, Surena frowned. Jesse instantly noticed something wrong. She seemed to be overexerting her magic!

Damn.

What happened? They’d successfully summoned a Felhound before. If Surena’s magic was strained, why attempt summoning a person?

Jesse recalled his own magical exhaustion when assisting Molofeel’s summoning. Though less complex than leading, assisting wasn’t easy work.

Surena clenched her teeth and kept chanting. Dead silence enveloped the room—no one dared disrupt this critical moment.

Erlan…

When Mor’zul forcibly interrupted Kallez’s summoning, even that mighty Doomlord nearly got crushed in the void gate. How could Erlan survive such an error?

Jesse glanced at Molofeel. She clearly sensed the problem too.

Her gaze turned to Gacresse. The Demon of Pleasure glanced at Molofeel, then at his master, seeming to understand. He moved behind Surena, stretched out his hands, and chanted. Jesse felt magical energy transfer from Gacresse to Surena. The weakened woman perked up, her stance stabilizing.

Erlan’s form grew clearer in the summoning circle. Upon fully materializing, he vomited blood.

"Sorry… I’m so sorry…"

Surena broke from the ritual, apologizing frantically. Ursula sprinted from the Alchemy Room with a potent Healing Potion—strong enough to pull someone from death’s door—and handed it to Jesse. He immediately helped Erlan drink.

Erlan shivered while downing the entire bottle, finally catching his breath. "Well… this time I truly sacrificed for the Dagger Association," he coughed out.

Jalane had nearly laughed from the ritual’s success, but Erlan’s condition drained her face of color. She stood frozen.

Her eyes darted between Surena and Zardeth. Zardeth declared, "Too dangerous. Without Gacresse… unimaginable. Summoning a person demands far more magic than a Felhound. This wasn’t success. We must refine the ritual."

"Glad to help," Gacresse smiled, acting as if nothing happened—a stark contrast to his guilt-ridden, terrified master now sitting on the floor.

"If he could transfer magic, why wait until you noticed?" Jesse whispered to Molofeel. She answered, "He cares for his master’s safety. Erlan Drudgemoor’s life means nothing to him."