Lionel’s eyes widened sharply, and the same startled reaction rippled through everyone watching the scene unfold from a safer distance. What they were witnessing felt genuinely rare, almost like catching sight of a blue moon, especially coming from the one summoner known throughout the school for rarely, if ever, relying on the full strength of his own summon.
No one truly understood Derek’s reasoning behind that particular habit, though most assumed it stemmed from something deeply personal rather than simple preference.
Summoners generally didn’t push through hardship without leaning on their summons for support, since the world had long since been shaped around that convenience, which made his restraint feel all the more unusual to those watching.
Only in genuinely desperate, dire, or life threatening situations did he ever fully commit to calling upon his summon’s true power, and this moment had clearly crossed that threshold.
"Diamond Head!"
A deep, resonant voice boomed across the clearing as a towering humanoid summon, its body encased entirely in heavy crystalline armor, emerged from the flaring portal, immediately settling into a defensive stance with both arms raised.
Long, jagged shards jutted outward from its back, while broad pauldrons covered its shoulders and thick, hardened gauntlets protected its clenched fists.
Its helmet like head, lined with sharp, angular edges, was crowned with two long, curved horns sweeping backward. The entire armored frame gleamed a deep emerald green, forged and shaped entirely from dense, hardened diamond, carrying incredible durability, brutal resistance, and near unshakable toughness.
Its sharp, angular, heavily built frame sparkled with scattered points of light that twinkled faintly like distant stars, the kind of sight that could easily send wealthy collectors scrambling to outbid one another at auction. Diamond remained the hardest naturally occurring substance on Earth, sitting at a full ten on the Mohs scale, prized worldwide for its brilliant clarity, dazzling fire, and flawless, colorless transparency.
Derek’s eyes flashed with barely restrained fury. His diamond clad summon, standing tall like some imposing soldier, turned and gestured sharply toward the Nemean lion. Clusters of massive green crystal shards erupted suddenly from the ground directly in the lion’s intended path, while more curled protectively around the beast like the ribs of some colossal creature, severely restricting its movement.
Gasps and hurried whispers spread quickly through the crowd of onlookers, few able to believe what Derek had just revealed. He had finally unleashed the full potential of his summon, instantly transforming himself into a far more dangerous opponent.
The sheer combat skill and defensive mastery on display made it immediately clear why this particular summon had long surpassed so many others in raw capability.
"Oh my gosh, he’s actually called out that mysterious summon of his again, after almost a whole year! This is serious!" a student shrieked, drawing even more attention toward the unfolding scene, though everyone remained cautiously at a safe distance.
"Wait, is that the summon they call Diamond Head? That’s actually really cool," one girl said, admiration clear in her voice as she turned to a friend nearby.
"Especially that iconic catchphrase, it’s got serious superhero energy behind it. Honestly gives me nostalgia for when I was a kid," the other replied, practically glowing with delight despite the clear danger and destruction unfolding just beyond them.
"I heard it can actually speak, unlike most other summons, which apparently says a lot about its intelligence, battle skill, and overall mastery!" someone else chimed in, briefly pulling several heads in their direction.
Diamond Head was widely regarded as one of the most brutal, nearly indestructible summons on official record, owing entirely to its remarkable crystalline properties and battlefield resilience. And here it stood once again, finally revealed after such a long absence.
Not far from the unfolding chaos, inside a nearby an entertainment building close to where the Nemean lion had originally been heading, two girls huddled together beneath a table near a wide window overlooking the scene outside.
Pressed tightly into the cramped space, they watched with wide, frightened eyes as the mystical beast prowled dangerously close to where they had been standing only minutes earlier.
Though technically summoners themselves, neither girl carried anywhere near the raw strength needed to stand against a combat oriented summon of that caliber. Neither had trained specifically in offensive combat either, falling instead squarely into the ranks of support and utility focused summoners.
"I think Derry baby, just saved us with that incredible summon of his! He really does care about us, about all of us together," the girl with glasses said, her voice caught somewhere between shock and heartfelt appreciation.
"This is honestly the first time I’ve ever actually seen his summon in person, and it’s absolutely stunning, that whole prismatic shimmer across its armor is unreal!" the rainbow haired girl added, practically breathless as they squeezed even tighter into their hiding spot beneath the table.
"Do you really think he can survive going up against a direct enforcer sent by the school’s own tyrant of a king?" she asked anxiously, her gaze dropping as the grim possibility of losing their lives crept uncomfortably into her thoughts.
"Don’t be so pessimistic, Sydney! He’s basically our knight in shining armor, and he’s a legitimate rival to the high ranked students, don’t forget that!" the girl with glasses scolded gently, giving her friend’s arm a light, reassuring swat.
Back outside, the confrontation had spiraled into something genuinely chaotic and uncontrollable, both summoners and their summons locked in a devastating clash.
Whatever rules or restrictions technically governed the school grounds no longer seemed to matter to either of them, the full weight of their mutual animosity finally settling in completely over the course of their fight.
With one heavy, powerful swipe of its massive paws, the Nemean lion tore straight through the surrounding crystal shards, breaking free of its confined trap entirely. A low, grating growl rumbled from deep within its throat, savage bloodlust burning behind its glowing yellow eyes, still locked firmly on its intended target.
Meanwhile, Diamond Head remained perfectly composed, its calm blue eyes tracking every movement its opponent made before launching a rapid volley of sharpened crystal shards, each one streaking through the air like a deadly, well aimed projectile.
The lion leapt clear of the barrage, bounding effortlessly over a single story building nearby. Spotting its opponent once more, it lunged forward, claws gleaming and teeth bared, more than capable of shattering solid gemstone on contact.
Moving with the precision of a fully trained, disciplined warrior, Diamond Head formed a solid hexagonal shield in one hand, the other reshaping smoothly into a sleek, gleaming blade.
With a low grunt of effort, it slammed the incoming beast aside with tremendous force, shattering its jaw and sending it flying nearly a hundred meters through the air before it crashed straight through the side of a gymnasium, leaving behind crumbled walls and a thick cloud of settling dust.
"Oh my goodness, did that summon seriously just manipulate raw material to forge a weapon straight out of carbon crystal? That’s incredibly rare!" a nearby student couldn’t help but exclaim.
"That’s honestly way beyond something like standard Elemental Infusion, it’s insane! I’m getting out of here before this gets any worse," another student gasped, eyes wide with alarm as they clapped both hands over their mouth in shock.
In just the short time the battle had already lasted, several school buildings nearby had sustained visible damage, and things were clearly poised to get far worse the longer the fight dragged on.
Plenty of onlookers silently hoped for a quick, decisive end. Some grew wary enough of the escalating danger that they chose to remain outdoors entirely, unwilling to risk heading back toward their dormitories in case the destruction spread further.
With a fierce growl, Lionel drove his transformed fists hard against Derek’s crystalline defense, the blow absorbed cleanly, blocked like a true, unyielding shield. This was exactly the advantage Derek’s diamond durability offered him, and he clearly relished every second of it.
Derek countered swiftly, driving his knee upward before following through with a brutal punch to Lionel’s left cheek, the force sending him rolling several times across the ground. Lionel registered the faint metallic taste in his mouth only after realizing blood had begun trickling steadily from his lips, staining his sharp canines crimson. His eyes blazed instantly with renewed fury.
"I’m not finished here!"
But Derek was already closing in again, pressing his advantage with another flurry of attacks. He drove a heavy stomp downward, only for
Lionel to dodge with a smooth, practiced roll, springing back onto his feet before leaning sharply backward to avoid a crossing punch aimed straight for his jaw. His eyes widened slightly at the sheer intensity behind Derek’s continued offense.
Somersaulting backward to create some much needed distance, Lionel allowed himself a small, knowing smile as an idea suddenly crystallized in his mind. He waited patiently until Derek charged forward like an enraged bull before finally uttering a single word.
"Exchange."
It was a rare, specialized skill capable of instantly swapping the positions of summoner and summon alike. Lionel understood the real risk involved, potentially placing him at a serious disadvantage against something as formidable as Diamond Head, but he judged the gamble well worth taking regardless.
What now stood before Derek was the massive form of the Nemean lion itself, its wild yellow eyes blazing, jaws lined with fangs sharp enough to have once threatened even legendary Greek heroes, its claws sharp enough to carve deep, permanent grooves into solid stone. Skidding to a halt through sheer friction, Derek redirected his forward momentum entirely into one final, devastating punch.
But the lion vanished into thin air the instant before impact, sending Derek stumbling forward off balance.
Lionel appeared suddenly behind him, momentarily unsettled himself by just how close he had come to eating a direct hit from Diamond Head, though he quickly recovered, smirking as he slashed cleanly across Derek’s now exposed side, crimson blood spilling freely across the ground as sharp, searing pain shot through his body.
"I’m not finished here."
Lionel summoned his lion once more, swapping positions with it instantly, and Derek, gritting his teeth against the pain, mirrored the exact same technique in response. Both summons materialized precisely where their summoners had just been standing, immediately charging forward at one another with dangerous, escalating force.
Both summoners then reappeared together in a flash, taking the place of their respective summons once again. Lionel’s eyes widened slightly at how quickly Derek had adapted to match his own strategy, before both vanished once more, swapping positions with their summons yet again like a pair of shifting phantoms.
Every single time they transitioned into a new position alongside their summons’ movements, they launched another decisive strike before disappearing and reappearing somewhere else entirely, leaving fresh wreckage scattered in their wake with each exchange.
Onlookers scrambled to put even more distance between themselves and the fight, realizing both combatants had effectively turned the battle into something resembling near instantaneous teleportation through repeated use of Exchange, making their movements across the battlefield almost impossible to predict.
At a certain point, Derek began to notice himself slowing down, growing more predictable with each exchange, an unfamiliar, creeping dizziness spreading steadily through his mind. Lionel caught the subtle shift immediately, smirking as he deliberately pushed the pace even harder.
It was only then that Derek fully grasped something he should have accounted for far more carefully whenever he committed to using his summon at full strength, and it seemed his opponent had somehow already uncovered that exact weakness, now actively exploiting it against him.
It was the steep, punishing toll of mana consumption, a persistent problem that had quietly plagued him every time he relied on his summon, and one he had always kept carefully hidden.
He had spent considerable time meditating, hoping to develop a more refined technique for conserving and extending his mana reserves. It simply hadn’t worked. It remained a genuine flaw in his abilities as a summoner, one he still had no real solution for.
By repeatedly triggering Exchange through Lionel’s carefully devised strategy, he had walked straight into that very weakness without realizing it. This wasn’t merely an inconvenience, but arguably one of the most dangerous vulnerabilities any summoner could possibly carry.
Fully aware of this now, and desperate not to expose that particular weakness any further, Derek clenched his jaw tightly before doing something no one watching would have expected.
He turned, and began to run.
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A/N: Sorry it took a while. I hope you enjoyed. Don’t forget to support too. Thanks.
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