Her Knight Crabby

A girl who calls

It was a big day for everyone on Hiensa. Today was the yearly awaited Day Of Calling. This was the time when children would summon their very own beast companion.

Beast companions come in different shapes and sizes. There was no definite beast guide for them as every beast have their own characteristic that separates them from similar-looking beasts.

Even so, excellent beasts would earn their place in the Bestiary of Fame. And the easiest way to do that was the Battle League.

It was every children's dream of one day etching their names on the pages of the sacred book.

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Tenmyr Continent.

Kingdom Farcezia.

Blue Mountain City.

A 12-year-old girl was in a queue of children around her age. This queue was for receiving the government-issued summoning plate. The girl had lilac hair reaching her shin. Her usual deadpan amethyst eyes glinted in excitement for the first time in a long time. Her clothes were old and seem a little short for her size. One would notice how much care came to the dress. There were no visible stains, but the fabric had softened from too much handwashing.

Coupled with her face that was wrapped up like a mummy, she stood out from the crowd. She would hear people whispering about her face and clothes. Occasionally one would notice fingers being pointed at her. But she didn't care about any of this. In her head, she was only thinking about the summoning plate.

The summoning plate issued by the government was of the poorest kind and the beasts summoned from them weren't always satisfactory. The worst summoning ever recorded was a beast companion that looked like a slime.

Among the ones in the queue, this little girl might be the only one lining up for the free summoning plate. Every other child would go for the next best thing, even if they had to pay a year's worth their parents' salary.

But for an orphan like her, even the freedom to choose was a luxury.

The sun had already set by the time she received the plate. She straight for home hugging the plate tightly. She tripped a few times as she dodged the dangerous alleys and kept on the crowded streets. Bruises covered her knees and elbows but she kept hugging the plate in fear that it would break if she dropped it.

She arrived at a ramshackle hut that she calls home. She entered the hut, lit up a candle, and blocked the door with a table to keep it shut. The hinges of the door had already rusted and the lock was broken.

Moving towards the center of the room, she knelt down and carefully placed the summoning plate on the floor.

She removed the strips of cloth covering her face and threw them at a corner. The soft candlelight touched her cute little face. She took out a small knife from under her dress and made a cut on her palm. Blood dripped down on the summoning plate, followed by the girl's tears.

Summoning a beast requires a sacrifice of precious objects, but for her who has nothing, there was only one thing she could give, the vague memories of her parents and her late grandmother.

The very thought of forgetting them crushed her heart but there was nothing she could do. For any other kid, they might just want a pet, a tool, or a weapon. For her, she wanted someone to love and love her back. From the depths of her heart, she yearned for someone she could call a family.

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Somewhere on Earth, a certain someone felt her emotions.

And so he answered the Calling.