Summoners shadow 4 a lit.., p.1
Summoner's Shadow 4: A LitRPG Adventure, page 1
Summoner’s Shadow 4
A LitRPG Adventure
DB King
Copyright © 2023 by DB King
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
v002
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Contents
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Contents
Series by DB King
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
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About the Author
Series by DB King
Apocalypse Knights
Crafter’s Fate
Dragon Magus
Dungeon of Evolution
Elemental Mastery
Fatehaven Farm
Kensei
Mage’s Path
Night Guild
Ranger’s Magic
Shinobi Rising
Spellweaver Codex: Elder Mage Chronicles
Summoner’s Shadow
The Last Magus
War Wizard
World End
Chapter 1
Bran sat on one of the lounges in the Founders’ study, sipping a freshly brewed cup of tea.
Urslan sat across from him, holding his own cup in both his hands, staring into it. The Grand Archmage of the Ketria Academy wore his usual robes of a deep red. Though the man always looked old, right now, he somehow looked… older. Maybe it was the bags under his eyes, the deep lines creasing his forehead, or the way he was moving—so slowly and deliberately. Maybe it was all three. “I’m sorry I lied to you, Bran, about what I knew of your origins.”
Bran stared at the man for a long moment before replying. Urslan looked more tired than he ever had. These last few months, hiding from Volrath, must have really taken their toll.
This was the first time Bran and the Grand Archmage had gotten a chance to speak privately for… well, he couldn’t tell how long it had been, after having spent so long in the Lost Realms, where time moved differently. But what Bran did know was that Urslan had been lying to him—or, strongly withholding the truth—since the moment they had met.
The Grand Archmage of the Ketria Academy had always known what Bran was. From the second he had seen him fuse the Shade and the griffin together back in the Wayward Inn’s stables, when the Mage had crashed through the roof astride a monster that refused him as its master.
“I understand why you lied,” Bran said. He raised his chin. “You wanted to gain my trust before… before telling me I was a monster. A Worldbreaker.”
Urslan nodded, still looking into his tea. “Perhaps that was the wrong choice.” His gaze drifted away from his cup, toward the many books on the shelves in the round, dome-like room. “If I had somehow gotten you training in the Lost Realms earlier—right away—Indri might have been spared.” He tilted his head to the side, frowning. “Volrath might still be alive.”
Bran blinked. “Is that something you would wish for? For Volrath not to have died?”
The Grand Archmage of the Ketria Academy and the former Dean of the Dreadmorth Institute had been friends, long ago, when they had been students at Ketria. But things had changed—drastically—over the years.
Whenever Bran closed his eyes, the blackness reminded him of the day when he had defeated Volrath. Or, rather, when Volrath had defeated himself.
The Mage had used a massive amount of shadow energy, energy he had stolen from the Shadow Realm and taken into himself, to create an unimaginably large explosion—like the one he had used to destroy the capital of the Kalaran Empire, Indri.
It would have killed thousands of summoners and monsters if Bran hadn’t activated a portal to a Monster Realm and tackled the man into it.
Bran had barely gotten out alive himself. If he weren’t a summoner, his entire body would have been scarred from that day. Even then, the only reason he had survived at all was because of the dark-haired man with an eight-slot Summoner’s Bandoleer.
Another Worldbreaker—like him. A stranger, who had but a health potion to his lips, cast a spell to put him to sleep, then disappeared before he woke again, fully healed.
Urslan sighed. “I wish Indri did not have to perish for this war to come to an end.”
Bran nodded, brought out of his memories. “That, I agree on,” he said, then looked away. “I don’t know my place in the world anymore, Urslan, now that Volrath has been defeated.”
When Prince Roderick had been found and became the King of Kalaran, making Ealdor the capital of the kingdom after the loss of Indri, Bran had sworn his fealty to the man. He was still a citizen of Kalaran. Still a Summoner Knight.
But he was also a Worldbreaker, and he wanted to learn what that meant.
King Roderick, with Duke Baxter at his side, had offered Bran a prestigious position—one who had been difficult to refuse.
Head of the Summoner Knights.
Bran hadn’t even told his party about that. Not yet. Only Roderick, Baxter, and Urslan knew.
A strong part of Bran wanted to accept the offer right away, but an even stronger part of him knew he couldn’t. Not until he had returned to the Lost Realms.
Not until he had found his people.
“You wish to return to the Lost Realms.” Urslan smiled weakly. “I saw this coming. When—or, I suppose, if—you return, I’m sure King Roderick won’t hesitate to make you Head of the Summoner Knights if you wish it.”
Bran didn’t doubt that. Technically, he was the most powerful summoner in the Mortal Realm. What he had done… he had heard there would be a statue erected in the main square in Ealdor, where Ganadon’s had once been. Bran winced thinking about that traitor. He shook his head, bringing his focus to the present moment. “When I decided this, I was going to go alone.” He smiled. “Alaro, Lara, and Patrick wouldn’t let me.”
Technically, the other members of his party—also Summoner Knights—reported to the King, and to Urslan. They would need the Grand Archmage’s permission before coming with him.
Bran raised an eyebrow at Urslan. “Do I have your permission for them to accompany me?”
Urslan chuckled. “My permission? The four of you are war heroes, Bran. As far as I’m concerned, you can do whatever you damn well please, so long as it doesn’t endanger anyone.”
Bran held his tongue, not wanting to respond to that right away. Though he couldn’t wait to find his people, he knew he could very well be endangering the world by doing so.
There was every chance that when he found the Worldbreakers, they wouldn’t be friendly. What if they didn’t take kindly to Bran showing up with three humans in tow?
Then again, the Worldbreakers could have returned to the Mortal Realm at any time. Assuming Bran was a good representation of their power-potential, a Worldbreaker could create portals with ease.
“I wouldn’t dream of endangering anyone, Urslan,” Bran said after a pause.
Urslan tipped his head back, eyeing Bran with a frown. “I know. You have proven yourself a thousand times over in the short time I have known you. I trust you. The kingdom trusts you.”
It was an odd thing, having the trust of the entire kingdom. He wondered what it would be like, the next time he walked through Ealdor. Normally, people stopped in the streets when they saw a summoner walk by.
What would happen when they saw him? Especially after statues of Bran had been erected around the place. It made him feel… strange. And not in a good way. He hadn’t defeated Volrath because he wanted to be praised by the entire nation. He had defeated Volrath because it was the right thing to do.
“You don’t think you’ll need me?” Bran asked. “The Morkoth Empire…” He trailed off, knowing he didn’t have to say anymore.
“Are still recovering after the emperor’s death. They don’t want war any more than we do. Besides”—the old Mage winked—“they don’t have to know you’re gone.” He shrugged. “Not to mention, as you very well know, time moves differently in the Lost Realms. Even if you’re there for years, it won’t be very long for us.”
Bran nodded. He supposed Urslan was right.
There was nothing stopping him from journeying to the Lost Realms once more and reactivating the portal that he was sure led toward his people.
All he had to do was gather the others.
Chapter 2
“I think we have enough supplies,” Lara said. She was looking at Alaro, hands on her hips, an eyebrow raised. She wore robes of a deep blue—no longer the red she used to wear. Bran wondered if Urslan still considered the young woman to be his ward anymore, now that she was a powerful Summoner Knight.
The Ranger strapped a second Superior Bag of Holding around his waist, then raised a finger. “It’s not that I don’t think we’ll have enough supplies, it’s that I want to ensure we have enough room for all the loot we’re going to gather! Do you know how many things we had to leave behind last time?” Alaro, his hair tied in a ponytail, looked crestfallen at the very thought. He wasn’t wearing his Ketria Uniform. Instead, he wore light, leather armor he could move quite easily in.
Lara sighed. “Yes, I’m aware. I was there, after all. And you’ve brought this up at least a dozen times since we returned to the Mortal Realm.”
“A dozen times?” Patrick, the party’s Beastmaster, said with a shake of his head. “It was at least two dozen times by my count.” Patrick used to be a Royal Guard, but since becoming a Summoner Knight, and what happened with Dominic, the Head of the Royal Guard, it didn’t seem as though he would return to that life. He wore full-plate armor that could shift along with him—like when he grew wings out of his back.
Bran’s armor had the same feature, and he was grateful for it.
“We left behind a fortune!” Alaro spluttered, gesticulating with his hands. “Several fortunes, at that! My mother almost had a heart attack when I told her.”
Bran couldn’t help but chuckle. It was nice listening to the others chatter on like this. The last time they had been to the Lost Realms, Bran had mostly only seen the other members of his party during the evenings. This time, things would be different. They would all be together, like they had been when in the Shadow Realm.
He didn’t really know what this journey would be like. Didn’t know what to expect. But he was glad his party was coming along.
It wasn’t only Alaro that added another bag of holding to their waist. The others did, too. They were standing by the door to the Market Hall inside of the Ketria Academy. More than a few of the students glanced over at them, though they were used to seeing the party and Bran around the academy, that didn’t stop students from stealing glances at them all the time.
Bran supposed he couldn’t blame them. To them, Bran had come here as a first year less than half a year ago and, in a short time, he had progressed to being the strongest summoner in the Mortal Realm. And it wasn’t only him that had progressed—it was everyone in his party.
As the Lost Realms were a closely guarded secret, the student body—and the rest of the world—weren’t aware of how the party had managed to progress so quickly in such a short amount of time, which only managed to add to their mystique and the awe people had in them.
Looking out at all those students—first, second and third years alike—Bran contemplated their respective levels and the way the academy trained them.
Bran had progressed so much faster than them not only because he was a Worldbreaker but because of the way he had been trained. He could see a hundred different ways their training could be changed. A hundred different ways the next generation of summoners could be far stronger than the last. What would I do if I were the headmaster here? The Grand Archmage? He narrowed his eyes, thinking about it for a long moment.
Then he shook his head and focused his attention back on the others. He wasn’t in charge here—he couldn’t make any changes. Besides, he was eager to get out of this place.
There was so much left for him to do.
Bran looked at his supplies.
Inventory
Superior Bag of Holding - 1
Coins:
132,349x Gold
53x Silver
45x Copper
Regular Contents:
1x Advanced Potions Book
1x Advanced Enchantments Book
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Earth
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Nature
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Fire
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Shadow
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Wind
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Steel
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Chaos
35x Greater Health Potions
35x Greater Mana Potions
35x Venom Antidote
35x Blinded Antidote
35x Weakened Antidote
1x Dead Shot Recurve Bow
1x Worldbreaker Glaive
34 Slots Remain Empty
Inventory
Superior Bag of Holding - 2
Coins:
0x Gold
0x Silver
0x Copper
Regular Contents:
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Earth
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Nature
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Fire
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Shadow
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Wind
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Steel
35x Elemental Resistance Potion: Chaos
35x Greater Health Potions
35x Greater Mana Potions
35x Venom Antidote
35x Blinded Antidote
35x Weakened Antidote
30 Slots Remain Empty
Bran smiled. Perhaps it was overkill having two Superior Bags of Holding and this much spare gear. He doubted he would ever need seventy of each of these potions. There would always be time to craft more. But it was better to have something and not need it than to need something and not have it. Besides, the extra room for the loot they were bound to gather in the Lost Realms would have to go somewhere.
Whenever Bran checked his inventory, and the amount of gold that he had sitting within it, he couldn’t help but stare at the number. It was… ludicrous to think he was so rich. It hadn’t all been from loot, either, as Alaro had been right—they had left behind a lot of items back in the Lost Realms, items he imagined would no longer even be there as more than three months had passed in the Mortal Realm since they’d come home. That meant seven and a half years would have passed in the Lost Realms.
Some of that gold had been awarded to him, along with his new armor, which was far better enchanted than anything he had ever had in the past.
He had also been supplied with a new sword and bow, with enchantments far superior to the ones he had previously wielded. Though he didn’t want to let go of his Worldbreaker Glaive.
His previous weapons—excluding the Worldbreaker Glaive—had been limited to holding four enchantments at no more than one hundred percent.
Now, his new weapons could hold six enchantments, and each could reach two hundred percent, just like his Worldbreaker Glaive. Bran had heard of legendary couldn’t be able to afford such things.
The Worldbreaker Glaive was the only one of his weapons he had further enchanted, but he was eager to apply further enchantments to his new weapons and full-plate armor.
He looked at his armor and weapons, taking in their current strength.
Worldbreaker Glaive
Advanced Ergonian Steel
Enchantments:
140% increased piercing damage
100% extra damage to demon-type monsters
80% chance of inflicting a critical hit
