Summoners War: Only I Summoned Divine Beasts

Nathan covered most of his body with clothes, wore goggles, and made sure that nothing entered his respiration system. The reason for such clothes was none other than the ash that fell from the sky.

If he raised his head, he would see an ash cloud that spread so wide that it covered the entire sky. If he lowered his head, he would see the land covered in ice and ash.

He leaped onto a small cliff and took another look at the surroundings. Aliens started to emerge, unhindered by the cold and ash. Worm-like aliens grew in size as they emerged from the ground.

Nathan squinted his eyes. "There are a thousand of them… Most of them are elite class. This is not looking good. If I don't hold them here, everyone would be in trouble."

However, this wasn't the end of the trouble. When he took a look at the right side, there were other holes that seemed to be used by the worm-like aliens just recently.

"This is not good. We can't hold this place any longer." Nathan muttered as he couldn't help but look at the distance, seeing a huge alien shadow. Its strength was stronger than any alien before him. "How are we going to fight back? No. I should make my move and buy them as much time as possible. This world is done for…"

The moment he leaped forward, the aliens noticed him and let out a union screeching sound. The deafening scream made Nathan click his tongue, but he still advanced forward.

While raising his hand, he formed the Soul Contract, but that was also when it was cut off. It abruptly ended with him roaring as if trying to pump his own spirit. "Haaaaa!"

"Haaaa!" Nathan suddenly woke up and rose from his bed, his back drenched in cold sweat. "Ha… Ha…"

Nathan widened his eyes in shock and looked around, noticing that he was in his bed. Selena was gone with the quilt being lifted on the side, but Sera was still sleeping on the other side.

"Nathan?" His scream woke her up. Her body rose as she rubbed her fuzzy eyes. "What's wrong?"

Nathan looked at her, panting. He didn't know what was wrong as well. It was a dream, but it was so vivid that he could still recall the chilling wind that pierced through his clothes, the rotten sulfuric smell coming from the ash, or the fear of facing those aliens.

It was supposed to be just a dream, but for Nathan, who never dreamed such a thing, it was just weird. In this world where a dream demon existed, he wondered if it was just a mere dream.

'Sulfuric smell… ash… aliens… And that cold… Is it winter? But the world is covered by ash clouds. There aren't many places that can produce ash with a sulfur smell…

'Now that I think about it, there are those earthquakes like a sign of volcanic eruption. Was that volcano the one causing such devastation? No. This is just a speculation. That might just be a dream… or was it?'

"Nathan? What's wrong? Your face is pale." Sera's voice echoed, bringing him back from his deep thoughts.

"Ah!" Nathan shook his head furiously to forget about it for a moment. "Never mind. Now that I think about it, where is Selena?"

"I don't know. I have just woken up. Then again, Selena's recently developed a habit of going to the kitchen early in the morning. I'm too sleepy to follow her, so I don't know what she's up to."

"Alright." Nathan nodded. "You should get a bit more sleep."

"What about you? Do you have a nightmare or something? Your body is drenched in sweat."

"Mhmm. I will change my clothes and get some fresh air. I need to meet Alavenya today."

"Sure." Sera just placed her head back on the pillow. In the end, it was too early. The outside was still dark, so she planned to get a bit more sleep.

Nathan, on the other hand, walked out of the room and wandered around. His mind was getting fixated on that so-called nightmare.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

'Can I really use my Soul Contract on myself? For example, showing that kind of nightmare again? Maybe hypnotize myself to trace that dream… Even though it's just a dream, it feels so vivid. There's also something called a lucid dream, but…'

Nathan crossed his arms. He didn't know why, but he felt too bothered by it.

Without him realizing it, he ended up passing the kitchen. Selena and Risa's voices snapped him back.

"This looks good. The smell is also good."

"Mhmm?" Nathan raised his eyebrows. He couldn't help but take a peek at the kitchen, realizing that Risa and Selena seemed to be cooking something.

"I think I have a talent for cooking as well." Selena pumped her fist, feeling proud.

"Hahaha. Sure, sure."

"I will let Nathan eat this today."

"That's a no. You can't do that." Risa stopped her without hesitation.

"Huh? Are you thinking that I will steal your job? I just want to cook something for him from time to time." Selena shook her head.

"No, not that. Do you know that once you cook something, you have to ask these two questions?"

"What questions?"

Risa raised two fingers. "First, after you're done, you look at your delicious-looking food and ask yourself. Who needs to be the first one to eat your food?"

"The person I love?" Selena blurted out the answer as if it was the natural thing to do.

"Incorrect. The answer is yourself."

"Myself?" Selena was confused. Why would she eat it?

"Just because it looks and smells good, it doesn't mean the taste is good. That's why you have to taste it first to ensure that your food is truly great. If it tastes bad, it's not eating but torture."

"Oh…" Selena couldn't refute her words.

"Good. The second question is. Now that you know your food is great on everything, who will be the one to eat next?"

Selena thought for a moment. "Nathan…" She paused for a moment before adding, "Sera, us too!"

"Correct. You want the person you dedicate your cooking to to taste the food, then the people who you wish for them to eat this food."

Selena nodded furiously as she couldn't help but taste the food first before noticing something. "A bit too salty?"

"See?" Risa smiled wryly.

They didn't realize Nathan was outside, sweating. He wiped the sweat on his forehead while muttering inwardly, 'Good job, Risa. There's no terrible food torture… I guess I should just go outside for now and meet Alavenya after breakfast.'