After the incident, as though he had done nothing at all, Lancet headed to the same place where he had once stood with Astensia, back when all of this still felt new and uncertain.

Behind the senior Elementalist faculty had become something of a private landmark for him since then. It was here that Astensia swore him her oath.

The air there was cool and still. Lancet stood for a moment, taking it all in as he looked around. Why was he here?

Well, with everything going on, Lancet figured it was best to get his own matters in check before he moved on to handle external problems.

The first of these personal matters was Spectra. Now that Thor and Astensia were fully committed to being his Summons, he had to make the Mother of Demons do the same. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

It would be trickier, but Lancet had cards to play. Letting out a breath of preparation, Lancet extended his hand.

"Summon."

Red smoke unfurled in a thin curling wave.

It rose from the floor with a slow, elegant violence, drifting upward in coils that looked almost alive as they gathered into shape. The smoke was darker than fire and smoother than shadow, and when it parted, Spectra Hexarra stood within it as though she had always belonged there.

She looked as dangerous as ever, and somehow more beautiful for it.

Her white hair fell around her shoulders in loose, pale strands that seemed almost luminous against the darker tones of the space.

Her rose headgear gleamed crimson, lighter than her red lips and as shiny as the visible cleavage of her villainous bosoms.

Her presence was refined and predatory at once, her expression carrying that same effortless poise that made it difficult to tell whether she was amused, curious, or already in the middle of considering how best to ruin someone.

Her eyes settled on Lancet immediately, and the corners of her lips curved with lazy interest.

"Well," she said, her voice low and rich, every syllable carrying a velvet allure to it, "this looks intentional. Summoning me in such a place, one has to think you chose here for a reason, right?"

Lancet did not smile, though he did give her a steady look. ’She’s really smart. Fuck. Have I screwed myself over by making her really smart?’

"This is where I first spoke with Astensia," he confessed, trying to act like it wasn’t his intention to keep it a secret.

Spectra’s gaze drifted around the area, taking in the stone, the architecture, the quiet blend of old and new. Her expression softened into something thoughtful, though it never lost that seductive edge.

"How nostalgic," she murmured. "Though it is fitting. A place for the beginning of obedient monsters."

Lancet’s eyes narrowed slightly, but he did not bite at the bait.

Spectra seemed to find that amusing. She glided a little closer, her steps nearly silent, her posture graceful. Each thigh swayed in front of the next with seduction and class, a sultry movement made to look like part of her charm.

"I have been curious about this world," she said, turning her head to glance at one of the nearby lamps. "It is so very strange to me. Gothic steel and modern conveniences. I see architecture that I recognize but made with material that I don’t."

She eyed Lancet. "And then there’s the glowing machines. Curious fast things. Hm... humans always did love building their cages beautifully."

She lifted a hand and let her fingers pass near the soft hum of one of the light fixtures without touching it.

"And apparently," she continued with a slow smile, "Demon Binders are accepted now. I never expected humans to be accepting of anything connected to us."

Her eyes came back to him, and a faint bitterness entered her tone, though it was laced with amusement rather than resentment.

"But it may be too little, too late."

Lancet watched her carefully.

Spectra was smiling, but he could not forget what she was. He could not forget the kind of being she had been in the old world, nor the way her power had once been feared by entire nations.

She had a charm to her that could make a room feel smaller and hotter just by existing in it, but beneath that was something ancient and volatile.

He kept his voice calm. In times like this, Lancet forgot that he had actually created her.

"You’re my Summon now," he proclaimed.

Spectra’s smile brightened almost imperceptibly, as though she liked the sound of that more than she intended to show.

"Am I?" she asked.

Lancet held her gaze. "Yes."

She tilted her head slightly, her expression becoming more openly playful. "Is that because ’Master’ says so?"

The title came out with deliberate sweetness.

She was teasing him, and she knew exactly what she was doing. Her eyes gleamed faintly with it.

"Your other two Summons call you that as well, don’t they?" she continued, her voice rich with mock innocence. "Astensia. Thor. They both look at you like you are something worth obeying."

Her lips parted in a small, amused smile. "Are you?"

Lancet didn’t speak. Spectra was smart, yes, but she also liked to talk... and she liked to hear herself talk.

After he said nothing, Spectra raised a curious brow. "You do understand the reach of my power, don’t you?"

Lancet narrowed his eyes. Then, completely out of nowhere, he pushed his hand outward.

"Unsummon."

Spectra vanished at once into a spiral of red smoke.

The smoke collapsed inward without resistance, folding around itself until there was nothing left of her presence except a faint lingering scent and the impression that she had not been truly gone for even a second.

Lancet waited for a second. Then, he raised his hand again.

"Summon."

The same red smoke bloomed out once more.

Spectra returned as naturally as before, emerging from the haze with the same elegant calm, the same half-lidded eyes, the same effortless poise. Her smile had not faded. If anything, it looked deeper now, more knowing than before.

Lancet’s expression remained firm, eyes narrowed to a concise glare. "Do you get it now?" he said. "You can be as strong as you like. But if I unsummon you, you disappear. If I keep you here, you stay. Regardless of your power, you only act when I allow it."