SSS-Ranked Awakening: I Can Only Summon Mythical Beasts-Chapter 275: Urgent Mission

"Hey! Get up!"

Damien's eyes snapped open as he was shaken violently awake.

"Arielle—" he groaned, voice thick with sleep. "What the hell—?"

"Get up," she ordered, already dragging the blanket off him. "We have work to do!"

Damien blinked, his mind struggling to catch up. The dim morning light filtered through the small window of his room in the Mercenary Guild, and Arielle was already dressed, her boots laced, and her weapon secured.

He sat up sluggishly. "You're way too energetic for this early in the—"

"I have a mission deadline," she interrupted. "And I need to get it done. Fast."

That immediately caught Damien's attention.

Arielle rarely took urgent missions unless they were actually important. In fact, ed never seen her take any mission this seriously. If she was this serious about it, then something was up.

He pushed himself out of bed instantly. "Alright. Give me a second."

He grabbed his clothes, throwing them on quickly while Arielle tapped her foot impatiently near the door.

"Come on," she urged. "We're wasting time."

"Where are we even going?" Damien asked, buckling his belt.

Arielle didn't answer.

She just turned and walked out of his room, fully expecting him to follow.

Damien smirked and didn't hesitate to go after her. "This should be fun."

He had no idea where they were heading, but if Arielle was rushing, it meant the job was serious.

~~~~~

They walked for two straight hours, passing through the borders of Westmont and heading toward the dense forest area just outside of town.

Damien's legs began to ache, and his patience finally ran out.

"Alright, stop," he called out.

Arielle, a few steps ahead, glanced over her shoulder, grinning.

Damien folded his arms. "Are you going to tell me what we're doing all the way out here? Or do I have to guess?"

Arielle simply nodded, confirming his suspicions.

Damien sighed, rubbing his forehead. "It's a mission, isn't it?"

"Of course."

"And let me guess," he continued. "You dragged me out of bed, made me walk two hours without telling me anything, all because you needed help completing it?"

Arielle chuckled. "You didn't exactly stop to ask me the details."

Damien groaned. "Because I thought it was something important. You made it sound like an emergency!"

"It is important."

"Then why didn't you just tell me?"

Arielle shrugged, her grin widening. "You were too excited to even listen properly."

Damien ran a hand down his face, exhaling. She had a point.

He had jumped out of bed the moment she mentioned urgency, not even questioning the situation before blindly following her.

Damn it.

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He lowered his hands and breathed on them, subtly checking his morning breath.

Arielle caught him doing it and laughed.

"Relax," she said, grabbing his arm and pulling him forward again. "We'll be done before your mouth gets the chance to stink."

Damien scowled. "I also didn't get to bathe, you know."

Arielle shrugged, completely unbothered. "There are rivers in the forest. Just wash up there."

Damien considered it. "Or," he muttered, "I could go back to the guild, take a proper bath, and then deal with whatever mission you dragged me into."

"Too late for that," Arielle said. "We're already here."

Damien sighed, giving up.

"Fine," he muttered. "At least tell me what we're doing, then. What's the mission?"

Arielle's grin grew wider—and that was the first bad sign.

He narrowed his eyes. "Arielle…"

She stretched dramatically, then casually dropped the bombshell.

"Oh, nothing much," she said. "We're just hunting thirty Grade Four mana beasts."

Damien stopped walking.

For a moment, he thought he misheard her.

Then he saw her completely serious expression and realized—

She wasn't joking.

"You call that light work?!" he shouted in shock.

Arielle laughed at his reaction. "For two thousand gold coins? Absolutely!"

Damien stared at her.

"You mean to tell me," he started slowly, "that's the mission you were so worried about missing?"

"Yep."

"Thirty Grade Four mana beasts."

"Yep."

"For only two thousand gold coins?"

Arielle smirked. "You say that like it's not a lot."

Damien groaned. "Arielle... Fine."

The cores Damien was carrying could sell for way more than that and yet, Arielle had dragged him out of bed.

She pouted. "I wanted to finish it properly. No shortcuts."

Damien pinched the bridge of his nose. "This is insane."

Arielle clapped his shoulder. "Come on. It'll be fun!"

Damien gave her a deadpan stare. "You mean it'll be a nightmare."

Arielle rolled her eyes. "Stop complaining. You're strong, I'm strong, and between the two of us, this should be over in an hour. You're strong enough to end it even faster."

Damien sighed. "Fine. But if it gets too serious, I'll end up charging you for it."

Arielle grinned. "Deal."

The deeper they went into the forest, the thicker the air became.

Mana beasts thrived in this region—especially Grade Four ones.

They were territorial, aggressive, and dangerous.

As Damien and Arielle moved further in, the sounds of rustling leaves and distant growls surrounded them.

"Alright," Damien muttered. "Where do we start?"

Arielle unsheathed her blades. "The usual way."

She grabbed a rock from the ground and hurled it into the trees.

The impact echoed loudly.

For a moment—silence.

Wooooshhh!!

Then the trees shook violently.

Branches snapped, leaves rustled, and suddenly—the first beast lunged.

It was a Crimson Claw Bear, its massive form barreling through the foliage toward them.

Arielle grinned. "That's one."

Damien sighed. "Only twenty-nine left."

The bear roared, its sharp claws glowing with condensed mana.

Arielle dashed forward, dodging its first swipe.

Damien followed close behind, summoning Aquila in a flash of light.

The Griffin screeched, slamming its talons into the bear's side—sending it stumbling.

Arielle took the opening.

With a swift motion, she plunged her daggers into its exposed throat.

The bear let out a final growl before collapsing to the ground.

Damien barely had time to process the kill before—

A second beast appeared.

Then a third.

Then a fourth.

Damien tightened his grip on his sword.

"This is going to be a long hour," he muttered.

Arielle just laughed. "Welcome to my world!"