Am I a Healer? You'd Better Think So!-Chapter 4: Destiny

"Please... come..."

A weak, almost lifeless female voice echoed. In that instant, Darian's consciousness stirred.

'Hm?' He grunted mentally, stunned. He was submerged in total darkness—he couldn't feel his body, had no senses, and saw nothing around him.

Slowly, as his mind began to stabilize, he started to perceive something... A strange, unpleasant smell, unlike anything he had ever encountered. Suddenly, in the midst of the darkness ahead, it was as if two small lights appeared.

Amber eyes.

In that absolute darkness, they seemed to glow with a light of their own, shining with an uncanny life. But there was something unsettling about them. They weren't just beautiful—they were eyes that saw beyond, that judged, that hid storms beneath a calm surface. Eyes that could either enchant or devour, depending on who dared to gaze into them for too long.

But the moment he saw them, it felt like a hammer struck his consciousness.

His breath caught. He didn't know what lurked behind those eyes, but his curse revealed the truth instantly.

Evil.

A creature of pure malice, a karma so sinister it felt like he was standing before the worst demon from hell.

But...

Those eyes trembled slightly.

There was moisture in them. Darian felt a whirlwind of emotions rising—pain, sorrow, happiness—but above all, will.

A desperate will to fight.

A silent plea for a chance. Just one chance.

"You came... thank you..."

The same voice spoke again, now filled with emotion. Instinctively, he exhaled, and a strange sense of comfort washed over him. Soon, his consciousness began to blur.

**Thurmp! Thump!**

No one knew how much time had passed. A heartbeat echoed, pulling Darian back to awareness.

At the same time, he felt warmth coursing through him—a physical connection flowing within him.

'A body... Did I return to Earth?' That was the first thought in his mind.

But in the next second, he noticed something strange and tried to sense his surroundings...

'Wait... this is a body, but it's not mine!'

'Hm? You're awake.'

A soft female voice cut through his thoughts.

He still saw nothing but darkness. Given the situation, he felt slightly uneasy.

'Who are you? Where am I?'

'My name is Niara. You are... we are trapped in the dungeon of Celestia Academy.' The voice answered, somewhat thoughtful.

His alarm grew: 'Dungeon? Why am I in a dungeon?'

'I was the one who was imprisoned here. I summoned you... Sorry for the trouble, but I'm your Summoner, and you're my Spiritual Guardian.'

She answered, and he remained silent, shocked.

Back on Earth, his instructor had said that if he passed the test, he would become a Spiritual Guardian. If she was calling him that... did that mean he had passed?

'Shit... everything is weird with me. My test wasn't like everyone else's... I don't even know if I actually took a test.' Darian muttered internally, tense. 'Well, at least I didn't return to Earth disqualified.'

A brief sense of relief settled in, but then he remembered something important.

That smell from before. Those eyes. That demonic feeling... it had to be her.

And now he was stuck with someone very, very dangerous.

Earlier, he didn't have time to look deeply into her past; everything happened too fast. Now, he couldn't even properly sense her karma. It was as if... as if he and she were sharing the same body.

Back on Earth, he had never been able to see his own karma. So, whatever this was, it had to be connected.

He had a lot of questions, but he decided to ask the one that worried him the most:

'You... What did you do to end up here?'

First, he heard a soft sigh.

'I killed more than I can count. Many deserved it... but many were innocent. Those are my crimes. But I was the one who turned myself in.'

Her voice wasn't indifferent. Every word carried weight, like she was pressing against her own chest.

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Darian felt a chill.

Back on Earth, he had always lived in peace—until the day his mother died. During the 'test,' he fought and killed things that didn't even seem alive... though he knew they were. But he never felt anything when he defeated them; their dark aura and his will to survive made him forget about it.

He couldn't imagine himself killing a real person.

Let alone an innocent one.

Silence filled the air for a few seconds.

Then, her voice broke through: 'I can't properly introduce myself yet, we'll do that later. Since I'm your Summoner, we have a protocol to follow. I need to explain the basics of everything, right?'

'Yeah... I guess.'

He spoke, trying to calm himself. He needed information, no matter what. Otherwise, getting out of this situation would be tough. He had to stay away from someone like this—someone who killed even innocent people was impossible to trust.

'First, about our contract. You're someone from another universe, and you came here for a fair exchange.' She spoke calmly. 'I summoned you, so now we're bound by life and death. I'll help you get resources and grow stronger. In return, you'll help me eliminate the Risen and save my home.'

'Life and death... We're already bound? I didn't even get a choice?' Darian asked, shocked.

'Yes, the contract is already set. We Summoners know that you guys don't really die, you just wake up back home alive but lose everything. To keep things fair here, because of our connection, if the Summoner dies, the Spiritual Guardian dies too and suffers the consequences.' The female voice answered calmly.

'As for choices... that's mutual. Neither side chooses directly. According to the legends, karma only links two people if they're meant to be connected. There's never a wrong Summoner with the wrong Spiritual Guardian—both sides are always a perfect match, for better or worse.'

Darian took a deep breath... even though he didn't have lungs right now. The situation was worse than he thought. Then, he spoke seriously: 'Okay, but we're stuck here... Doesn't that go against the contract? How am I supposed to get resources like this?'

'That's true, but that's because I wasn't a Summoner yet. They thought I failed the test, so they locked me up because of my crimes. But now...' Their mental conversation was suddenly interrupted. The sound of footsteps echoed, and a faint light appeared in the distance, cutting through the darkness.

'Now that I've successfully summoned you, they can't keep me here anymore. They'll have to let me go...'

*Swish!*

The sharp sound of a blade being slowly unsheathed filled the air, making her stop mid-sentence.

At that very moment, a figure dressed completely in black stepped forward, eyes filled with killing intent.

This person wasn't here to talk.

A suffocating danger washed over Darian.

He felt the body he was inside trying to move. Then, the high-pitched sound of heavy chains scraping against the ground echoed through the space. It sounded like hundreds of massive chains—she was forcing herself to move, but she was completely restrained.

Right then, his eyes widened. Sensing something, he muttered with a trembling voice: 'You... don't tell me... you're completely sealed, without any power, not even enough to speak?'

'That's right.'

Darian froze.

He had just arrived, and he was already a millimeter away from getting sent straight back home.