The first thing Yuuji felt was pain.
Not the sharp, stabbing kind—but deep, twisting, bone-deep agony that seemed to come from the very core of his soul. His body felt like it was on fire, but there were no flames. His skin felt cold, but there was no wind. It was like his senses were trying to catch up with a world that didn't follow the rules he once knew.
And then… light.
Golden, blinding light.
He gasped, lungs burning, as if breathing for the first time after being underwater for hours. His hands grasped at dirt—real, warm earth. And his ears filled with sound. Shouting. Chanting. Swords clashing. The deep growl of something inhuman.
Yuuji lifted his head.
He was lying in the middle of a glowing red summoning circle, drawn into scorched earth. Around him stood six cloaked figures, arms raised, lips moving in ancient, magical incantations. Behind them—chaos.
A battlefield.
Flaming arrows arced through the sky. Magic spells lit the air with streaks of lightning and ice. A horde of monstrous beasts—black-furred, red-eyed, snarling—charged across the plains, tearing through armored soldiers like paper.
He didn't know where he was, but he could feel it.
This wasn't Earth.
This wasn't home.
"The summoning is complete! The Chosen One has arrived!" one of the robed men shouted.
"Protect the core! Fall back to the summoning ward!"
A younger soldier with bright blue armor knelt beside Yuuji, breathing heavily, his face smeared with blood and ash.
"Can you move?! Say something! What's your name?!"
Yuuji blinked. His throat was dry. His voice barely came out.
"Yuuji... Amano."
The young soldier's eyes widened.
"By the Light... He's real. The prophecy—it's true."
Before Yuuji could ask anything, a massive shadow loomed behind the soldier.
A beast—ten feet tall, jagged horns, molten eyes, black smoke pouring from its snout.
It roared.
"LOOK OUT!" Yuuji shouted, instinct taking over.
And then something clicked inside him.
Time slowed. His heartbeat echoed like a drum.
Flames burst from his hands—not ordinary fire, but deep blue, wild and ancient. The beast lunged—and Yuuji's body moved on its own.
He raised his palm, and a pulse of sapphire fire exploded from his chest.
The monster never even touched the ground again.
It disintegrated mid-air, reduced to ashes in a single blink.
Everyone around him froze.
Even the monsters.
The soldiers stared. The robed summoners fell to their knees. Someone whispered:
"He wields the Forbidden Flame..."
Yuuji collapsed to his knees, gasping.
What... what was that? he thought. That wasn't normal fire... that was something else.
Then came the sound of footsteps.
Not rushed. Not panicked. Calm. Confident.
Yuuji looked up—into the piercing emerald eyes of a woman.
She had silver hair that shimmered like moonlight, and wore elven armor of green and gold. A longbow rested across her back, and a dagger was strapped to her thigh. Her stare was cold, unreadable.
"So this... is our so-called savior."
Another girl stepped beside her—taller, wrapped in a priestess's robe of white silk. Her eyes were soft. She knelt beside Yuuji, placing a warm hand over his.
"Don't worry. You're safe now... with us."
Yuuji blinked, confused.
Us?
And then he saw them.
Four more women stood at a distance, each one staring at him like he was some kind of puzzle.
—A girl with blood-red eyes and raven-black hair, smirking in amusement. Her mage robes were revealing, as if to challenge attention.
—A beastgirl with fur-lined boots and claws, bouncing on her feet like she was seconds away from leaping onto him.
—A cold-eyed assassin with short silver-blue hair, a thin dagger between her fingers, completely still.
—And finally... a woman clad in crimson-scaled armor, her wings folded behind her. Her presence burned like fire, her horns curved like a dragon's.
Yuuji's head spun.
He barely managed to whisper:
*"Who... who are all of you...?"
The elf replied, not smiling.
"We are the Squad of the Forbidden Flame. And starting today... you're our commander."
Somewhere far, far away—deep beneath a mountain swallowed by shadows—a figure cloaked in crimson laughed.
"So... the summoning succeeded. Let's see how long their 'savior' lasts… before he breaks."
And the demon horde began to move.
[To be continued...]