West came back to consciousness choking.
Cold water burst from his mouth as his body convulsed, retching violently. He floated helplessly on the surface of the pool, coughing and vomiting up ruin-water in harsh, wracking spasms.
His fingers clawed weakly at the air.
For several seconds, he couldn’t even tell which way was up.
Then his vision steadied.
And the first thing he saw made his mind short-circuit.
The creature—the reptilian guardian that had nearly beaten him to death—was no longer standing.
It wasn’t even nearby.
It was buried.
Far across the chamber, its massive body was embedded deep into the wall, surrounded by a crater so large it looked as if a meteor had struck the ruin itself. Cracks spider-webbed outward for dozens of meters. Stone had melted. The wall had bowed inward like clay struck by a god’s fist.
The creature twitched once and then went still.
West’s eyes widened.
"...What...?"
A shadow fell over him, carrying an overbearing presence.
The air itself seemed to thicken with gravity bending subtly as something immense occupied the space above him.
West slowly lifted his head and his heart nearly stopped.
What stood before him was an enormous feminine figure that was so outstandingly beautiful, one could get lost in her gaze.
She was so massive that the chamber physically could not contain her body. She was forced to sit in a slouched position with one knee bent and her wings folded awkwardly behind her as they scraped against the cavern walls. Even restrained like this, she dwarfed everything around her.
She was... divine.
She had golden skin that shimmered as though sunlight itself lived beneath it. Four glowing silver eyes, arranged symmetrically that gazed down at him with cold, assessing intelligence. Her features were impossibly beautiful with sharp cheekbones, full lips curved in faint disdain and an expression that had never once known humility.
Her chest was gigantic and bouncy, hidden behind her flowing fragment which glowed like they were made of fireflies and her hips were curvy in ways that was indescribable.
She had six arms, each sculpted elegantly and resting casually as if she were lounging rather than occupying a ruin chamber.
Behind her head floated radiant rings tjat slowly spun like halos of light etched with symbols that hurt to look at directly. And her massive luminous wings were layered with feathers that glowed faintly at the edges, shedding motes of silver light into the air.
Her mere existence crushed the space.
West felt like an ant staring up at a star.
For one irrational second, he wondered if he’d died.
If this was some divine afterlife.
Then he saw the creature still lodged in the wall.
And reality snapped back.
Her gaze sharpened as it settled fully on him.
"Was it you..." her voice was layered in echoing harmonics that made it sound like several voices speaking at once—"who summoned this goddess?"
West tried to respond but instead of words, he doubled over, coughing more water out of his lungs.
The goddess frowned.
"How did a weakling such as yourself manage to tether me to this realm?" she continued with a disdainful tone.
West slapped a hand against the stone edge of the pool, dragging himself up slightly, still gasping.
The goddess’s eyes shifted to the creature embedded in the wall.
She scoffed.
"You summoned me... for such a weak and pitiful insect?"
Her lips curled faintly.
The arrogance in her voice was unmistakable.
She was prideful...
Overbearing...
And yet—
West couldn’t deny it...
She was breathtaking.
Once his lungs finally obeyed him again, he looked up at her, dazed and aching and bleeding—
And the first words that came out of his mouth were:
"...You’re really pretty."
The chamber went silent as the goddess blinked multiple times as though taken aback.
And then, a short, incredulous sound escaped her.
"Hmph." She tilted her chin upward. "Flattery will only get you so far, mortal."
Then, her lips curved slightly as a slow self satisfied smile appeared on her face.
"...But you are correct."
West was about to say something when a low groaned rang out.
He slowly turned and noticed that it came from the guardian.
Somehow, he was still alive.
Its massive body twitched as it slowly crawled free of the wall, disoriented.
Its movements were sluggish and uneven. It didn’t seem to understand what had happened... only that something catastrophic had struck it.
The goddess glanced over her shoulder and her expression instantly soured.
"Tch. It still lives."
She looked back at West.
"Very well," she said lazily. "Since you begged, this goddess shall help you deal with your minuscule problem."
West didn’t remember begging but he wasn’t about to argue.
The goddess rose slightly and that movement alone caused the entire ruin to creak ominously. She raised one of her six arms, extending her index finger and thumb as if preparing to snap.
Between her fingers, light formed.
Power condensed into a blinding point causing reality to warp subtly around it.
The creature finally understood how outmatched it was and fear flooded its glowing eyes.
It turned, attempting to flee.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t fast enough.
Pah!
The goddess snapped her fingers and the world turned white.
Sound vanished as a cataclysmic blast erupted outward, annihilating everything within its immediate vicinity.
Stone, roots, glowing cracks... all gone in an instant.
Walls were incinerated instantly, reduced to drifting ash. The shockwave tore through the ruin like a divine judgment, sending tremors rippling outward through layers of space itself.
The chamber ceased to exist.
When the light faded, there was nothing left of the creature.
No body.
No blood.
Not even dust.
Just absence.
West floated on the water’s surface, staring in open-mouthed awe at the empty space where a monster had been moments ago.
"...You’re really incredible," he whispered.
The goddess sighed.
"I know."
Then she frowned slightly upon noticing the level of destruction.
"...Oops. That was too much."
West didn’t even know how to respond to that.
A system notification suddenly appeared in his vision.
> [ Summon Identified ]
[ Name: Astraeon, Goddess of Radiant Dominion ]
West’s breath got caught in his throat.
A... goddess...
An actual goddess...
And he had summoned her.
His heart hammered.
The system prompted him immediately.
> [ Form Contract with Summoned Being? ]
[ YES ] / [ NO ]
West didn’t hesitate.
He clicked YES.
The screen flickered.
Then glitched.
> [ ERROR ]
[ Summoned Being Resisting Contract ]
West frowned.
"Why are you resisting?" he asked while looking up.
The goddess’s eyes narrowed.
"Because you are weak," she said bluntly. "This goddess will not be bound to a mortal insect barely worthy of existing."
Another notification appeared.
> [ Contract Failed ]
[ Reason: Summoned Being Too Powerful ]
[ Contract Requires Consent of Summoned Entity ]
West clenched his fists.
"You answered my summon," he pointed out. "Doesn’t that mean something?"
Astraeon laughed softly.
"You should count yourself fortunate," she replied coldly, "that I did not erase you for wasting my time by dragging me into this realm to swat such a low-level creature."
Her wings rustled as she turned away slightly.
"When you become powerful enough," she added over her shoulder, "you may attempt to summon me again."
Her four eyes glanced back at him.
"Perhaps then... I might reconsider."
With a dismissive hmph, her form dissolved into radiant light.
The pressure vanished.
The chamber or what little remained of it... fell silent.
West lay there, floating weakly, staring at where a goddess had just been.
"...Rejected by a goddess," he muttered hoarsely and then, laughed till a painful jolt in his ribs caused him to start coughing again.
"But she didn’t say never."