"Reverse Isekai?" Scarlett thought, her mind swirling with confusion.
Different thoughts raced through her head.
"But since when did my world have adventurers and mages? It was supposed to be a normal world! Is this some kind of parallel version of it?"
Her sharp eyes darted around, taking in the crowd's reactions.
Many people looked disappointed. Some had surprised or puzzled expressions.
But the ones who had summoned her—dressed as adventurers and mages—had the most complex expressions of all.
It was as if they were thinking, What the hell did we just summon?
Meanwhile, most of the crowd had tense and alert expressions, ready to react in case she turned out to be a threat.
Scarlett gently put Irish down, helping her stand on her feet.
"Where are we?" Irish asked, looking around in confusion.
"I think I know, but I'll explain later," Scarlett replied calmly.
Just then, a woman in a sleek office outfit stepped forward.
She had blue hair and a professional aura, looking like the perfect secretary.
Bowing her head slightly, she spoke in a polite but firm tone.
"Can you understand my language? I'm Akino Jabami. We were attempting to summon a powerful entity. Are you the one we were looking for? What kind of world do you come from?"
The entire area fell silent.
Everyone waited, eyes locked on Scarlett, expecting an answer.
Not a single person even glanced at Irish.
Scarlett took a deep breath and smirked slightly.
"My world?" she echoed. "Why don't you tell me about your world first?"
Shock.
A wave of disbelief rippled through the crowd.
People's mouths dropped open.
Their eyes widened.
Only one thought ran through everyone's mind—
A woman?!
Nobody had imagined that beneath the heavy, masculine iron armor was actually a woman… with such a beautiful and enchanting voice.
Noticing their shocked expressions, Scarlett reached up and removed her heavy iron helmet.
The moment it slipped off, her long purple hair cascaded down her back like a silky waterfall.
Then, her face was revealed—seductive, breathtaking, beyond imagination.
A wave of blush spread across the entire crowd.
It didn't matter if they were men or women, old or young—everyone felt their hearts race.
Akino's cheeks turned red as she thought,"S-so beautiful!.
Her gaze shifted to Irish, and her thoughts spun again.
"She's just as stunning. Are all the women in their world like this? Is it a world full of Goddess looking females?
She quickly pushed those thoughts aside, straightened her posture, and cleared her throat.
"Ahem… actually, about our world—"
She was about to explain when a stampede of reporters and cameramen rushed toward Scarlett.
"Miss, please tell us your name!"
"Are you as powerful as you look?"
"Who is this other beautiful tomboy beside you? Are you friends or lovers?"
The chaos was overwhelming.
Scarlett had dealt with kingdom officials, noble gatherings, and even battlefields, but this was different.
At least in the kingdom, people didn't swarm her like starving insects chasing food.
Meanwhile, the reporter in the helicopter was losing his mind.
"Put me down! Hurry up and land!" he yelled.
His frustration grew as he banged his fists against the window.
"Why the hell did I decide to stay up here?! I should be down there! Should I jump? Should I just jump?!"
But despite their excitement, the reporters also knew that one wrong move could get them silenced by the higher-ups.
Scarlett let out a long sigh.
Just then, security guards rushed in, forcing the crowd back.
Akino quickly grabbed Scarlett and Irish's hands.
"Let's talk later. First, come with us!" she said firmly.
Scarlett didn't resist.
Akino led them toward the white building behind them.
They moved quickly through the grand hall, down twisting corridors, and finally stepped into an elevator.
The moment the doors closed, Irish panicked.
She stared at the small space, her hand moving toward her sword.
"What is this thing?! Is she trying to trap us inside this tiny room?!"
She was ready to fight, but Scarlett gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"I'm here," Scarlett said with a calm smile. "No need to worry."
The elevator suddenly started moving, and Irish panicked again.
"It's moving without any magic! Something's wrong!"
Without hesitation, she unsheathed her sword, ready to strike at the unknown force controlling the small room.
But before she could do anything, Scarlett grabbed her wrist gently yet firmly.
"No need," Scarlett said with a calm voice. "I told you, it's okay."
Irish hesitated for a moment, then slowly lowered her sword. She didn't say anything but kept her head down, still uneasy about the strange magicless mechanism.
Akino, who had been watching them closely, smiled to herself.
"I knew it," she thought. "She's the leader between the two."
She turned to Scarlett, curiosity in her eyes.
"It seems like you're familiar with this kind of technology."
Scarlett nodded slightly. "Somewhat."
"So tough," Akino thought with admiration.
Before they realized it, the elevator had already reached the highest floor—the 24th floor.
Akino stepped forward. "This way," she said, leading them through a large doorway.
The room was bright and spacious, with white walls and modern furniture. Rows of seats and computers lined the space, making it look like a high-tech office. But at this hour, there was no one else inside.
Scarlett and Irish followed Akino to the far end of the room, where the entire wall was made of transparent glass.
Through the massive window, they could see the city below, glowing under the night sky. Countless lights twinkled like fireflies, blending beautifully with the stars above.
It was a breathtaking sight.
Akino turned back to them and asked, "So, where should I start?"
She took a deep breath before explaining.
"We were once just normal humans, with no magic or special abilities. But several years ago, everything changed."
Her expression turned somber.
"Out of nowhere, a strange status window appeared in front of people. After that, dungeons started appearing all over the world, and monsters poured out, bringing death and destruction."
She paused, her voice filled with sorrow.
"But then, some people awakened special abilities granted by the system. They became strong enough to fight back, kill monsters, and clear dungeons before they could break open. These people are called Hunters."
Her expression brightened slightly.
"Hunters are ranked from E to S, with E being the weakest and S being the strongest."
Scarlett listened intently, absorbing the information.
Then, something struck her.
"What year is it?" she asked urgently.
Akino blinked at the sudden question.
"Umm… May 2027."
Scarlett's eyes widened.
"2027?" she repeated in shock.
Her mind raced. "That means this is my world… but in the future? Did the timeline shift?"
Within seconds, she pieced it together.
"If only one year passed for me, but more than five years passed here… then time flows differently between worlds."
She turned back to Akino, her voice steady.
"Why did you summon me?"
"Oh, right!" Akino said, snapping back to the main point.
"Actually, it's because of an S-rank Hunter named Granny Shia. She's a Chinese Hunter, and she's famous for her prophetic abilities. She can see glimpses of the future."
Akino's expression turned serious.
"A few weeks ago, out of nowhere, Granny Shia started screaming and panicking in her house. She kept repeating three words: 'Calamity,' 'Catastrophe,' and… '10 million battle points.'"
She took a deep breath before continuing.
"Before she could explain what she saw, she suddenly collapsed and became paralyzed."
Scarlett and Irish listened in silence.
"Her visions have always been incredibly accurate," Akino added. "Because of that, the strongest summoning specialists from around the world gathered to perform a ritual… and that's how you ended up here."
Scarlett nodded, taking in everything she had just heard.
"Okay, one last question," she said. "What do you mean by 10 million battle points?"
Akino tilted her head slightly before answering.
"Oh, that? That's how we measure a Hunter's strength. It's a system we use to rank their battle power," she explained with a smile.
"An E-rank Hunter usually has around a hundred battle points. A D-rank can have up to a few thousand. A C-rank reaches tens of thousands, and it keeps increasing from there."
Her tone then turned serious.
"But the real reason we use this system is to compare S-rank Hunters. It helps us determine who is the strongest among them."
Scarlett listened carefully, sensing there was something important coming next.
"And that's where things get serious," Akino continued, her voice dropping slightly.
"The world's strongest Hunter, Arthur Mathew, has a battle point score of one million."
Scarlett's eyes narrowed.
"But Granny Shia mentioned 'Ten million battle points,'" Akino said, her expression darkening.
"That means the enemy we're facing has at least that much power. In other words…" She took a deep breath.
"This enemy is ten times stronger than the world's strongest Hunter."
For a few seconds, there was complete silence. The weight of that information sank in deeply.
At this point, Scarlett understood everything.
"So, out of fear of losing, they did everything they could," she thought.
"They performed a summoning ritual, hoping to bring someone even stronger than Arthur."
She turned her gaze toward Irish.
Irish looked confused but not completely lost. From her expression, she seemed to have a rough idea of what was happening.