"Class advancement at last?"
Kai's eyes lit up with excitement as he stared at the message on the virtual panel.
Back in the pathetic browser game he'd wasted so many hours on in his previous life, the real fun only began after you changed classes.
And now, he was about to ascend to the Source Mage, considered the most powerful class of all.
Without hesitation, Kai selected Confirm.
In that instant, the entire virtual interface exploded with light—blinding, all-encompassing, divine.
And then—
He felt it.
His soul was drawn into an endless realm, surrounded by crackling lightning. It didn't just surround him—it became him. He was the storm.
How long he remained in that world, he couldn't say.
When Kai finally regained awareness, it was as though his body—flesh, blood, bones, meridians, and even his magical core—had been completely reforged.
Reborn.
Now made of thunder.
Then the pain hit.
Veins bulged across his forehead as every cell in his body tore itself apart and reassembled in a violent loop, again and again.
Ten agonizing minutes passed as Kai staggered, drenched in sweat and gasping for air.
And when the pain finally subsided, he held out a finger.
A slim arc of golden lightning danced at the tip, pulsing with an aura so intense it made even his own heart tremble.
No magic circle. No chant. No incantation.
The lightning was simply there—like it had always belonged to him.
He didn't just wield the storm now.
He was the storm.
Just this one spark... could annihilate the old version of him in an instant.
He was stronger than ever before.
Truly powerful.
Once the changes settled, Kai summoned the panel again:
[Kai]
[Class: Source Mage]
[Magic: Source Lightning Magic LV1 (+)]
[Source: 182 points]
Regular Lightning Magic was gone, replaced by its upgraded form—Source Lightning Magic.
Still, when Kai lifted a hand and summoned a pale blue magic circle, arcs of lightning crackled within it.
He tilted his head, intrigued.
"So I can still use regular spells… but they've evolved too."
Even though this was technically standard magic, the shift in his magical essence had made it far stronger—easily several times more powerful than before.
Just then—
Knock!
Kai stretched as he pushed open the library door.
And paused.
He felt a strange pull at the edge of his awareness.
"…Someone's summoning a demon?"
That aura—yes, definitely a summoning.
He narrowed his eyes.
"Don't tell me Koneko passed out more of my flyers again."
…
Knock. Knock. Knock.
A heavy pounding echoed through the small apartment.
Utaha Kasumigaoka curled up beneath her blanket, trembling so hard her teeth chattered.
She glanced nervously at the monitor connected to her front door.
No one was there.
But the knocking continued, louder and more forceful.
"C-could it really be… a ghost?" Her heart pounded wildly. She wanted to go check, to confirm what was happening—but her body refused to move.
Knock.
Knock-knock.
Boom. Boom. Boom!
The pounding grew more violent, as if something was growing impatient.
The temperature in the room dropped steadily.
"No. No, I can't let it in…!"
Utaha gritted her teeth, summoning courage from somewhere deep inside. She scrambled toward her desk, fumbling through papers until her fingers closed on a particular sheet.
A flyer.
It looked ordinary enough—except for the incredibly complex magic circle printed on it.
That was the only reason she'd kept it around. It seemed perfect for the supernatural mystery novel she was writing.
Holding it tightly in both hands, she stared at the magic circle and whispered, almost involuntarily:
"Demon or whatever you are... please come and save me…"
Fwoom!
The magic circle flared to life, glowing bright red.
Utaha screamed and dropped the flyer.
But instead of fluttering to the ground, it hovered—then expanded, transforming into a glowing summoning circle nearly three meters across.
And then—
A figure appeared before her.
"Demons… really exist?"
Utaha stared, wide-eyed, as a tall young man with black hair and glowing red eyes emerged from the circle.
She had summoned him—of that she was certain.
But seeing this mythical being appear in real life still shattered her entire sense of reality.
"…Do you need me to prove it?" Kai asked casually.
As he spoke, a pair of black wings unfurled behind him—bat-like, sleek, and pulsing with dark energy.
They radiated a sinister aura that sucked the warmth from the air.
Utaha could only gape in silence.
Fwoosh.
Kai retracted the wings and gave her a light smile.
"Greetings, Contractor. My name is Kai. I have come in answer to your call. Please state your desire."
As he looked at her, Kai's eyes gleamed faintly.
Of course he recognized her the moment he saw her.
Utaha Kasumigaoka.
What the hell kind of anime mash-up world was this?
So far, he'd run into characters from no fewer than three different series.
Utaha slowly pulled herself together.
Her worldview might've been shattered, but survival came first.
Tentatively, she asked, "Mister Demon… could you please get rid of the evil spirit outside my door?"
"Of course," Kai replied with a smirk.
Whatever was knocking out there—it was just a low-level cursed spirit. No big deal.
Without waiting for another word, he strolled to the door and flung it open.
"You opened the door! YOU OPENED THE DOOR!"
The creature outside shrieked the moment it saw him.
It had a grotesquely oversized head, a shriveled little body, and ten twitching eyes.
"Ugh. Hideous," Kai muttered, wrinkling his nose.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!"
The cursed spirit bared its jagged teeth and lunged at him.
Too slow.
A bolt of blue lightning shot out and obliterated the thing before it even touched the ground.
"Know your place," Kai muttered, brushing some imaginary dust from his shoulder.
Low-level cursed spirits like that weren't just weak—they were dumb as bricks.
Still, it made him wonder: what world did this thing crawl out of?
He shut the door and turned back to Utaha, who was still staring at him in stunned silence.
"Well, that's taken care of," he said brightly. "Now… shall we talk about compensation?"
Utaha stiffened. Her voice was barely a whisper: "C-compensation?"
Kai smirked. "You didn't think summoning a demon came free, did you?"
She shrank back instinctively. "W-what do you want from me…?"
Kai casually took out a Queen Piece from his Evil Piece set and held it between his fingers.
"It's simple. Become mine."
"…Huh?"
Utaha turned bright red, her voice rising an octave.
"You're a perverted demon!"