[POV Artur]
A portal opened up in the middle of my classroom floor. In the blink of an eye, my entire class and I were ripped away from there and thrown somewhere else.
When I came to, we were standing inside a massive hall. It looked like a palace. Panic spread instantly. My classmates glanced at one another in fear, instinctively moving closer together. I took a deep breath, trying to stay calm, and started observing our surroundings.
White-hooded figures surrounded us in a perfect circle. Each one held a staff that glowed softly, casting long shadows across the walls. The hall was enormous but swallowed by darkness. Only a few torches fixed to the columns and the faint light from the staves illuminated the space. The air smelled of oil and freshly extinguished candles.
On the floor, there was a red circle covered in inscriptions I couldn't quite make out due to the poor lighting. From what it looked like… we had been summoned.
Since I was at the back of the classroom when everything happened, I ended up standing a bit farther from the others. That's when I felt a hand rest on my shoulder. A chill ran all the way down my neck.
"Welcome, heroes"
I stepped away immediately and turned around. Unlike the other "mages" that man wore a dark blue robe trimmed with gold. His staff also stood out—it was made entirely of wood, unlike the others, which were embedded with glowing gemstones.
The darkness wouldn't let me see his face, but a white beard spilled out from beneath his hood.
"WHERE THE HELL ARE WE?!" Guinle shouted.
Guinle is the captain of the school's soccer team. A natural leader. He's never been the strongest physically, but he commands authority by raising his voice, always louder than everyone else. Even so, the class loves him. Very few people have the confidence—or the guts—to step up the way he does.
"Ah… how rude of me" said the white-bearded mage. "You have been summoned by the Sapphire Kingdom to fight against the Demon Lords"
(Great) I thought. (So we really were summoned. How cliché. They're going to use us as weapons of war. All that's missing is him saying some divine being was behind it)
"Now I will take you to King Dinos, Queen Fines… and the Goddess Sapphire" the old man continued, as if announcing a sightseeing tour.
(Ahh… there's a goddess too) I thought, shaking my head.
"What do you mean?!" Guinle said, clenching his fists, clearly furious.
Everyone had gathered at the center of the circle. Fear was written all over their faces. Sweat ran down the girls' cheeks, the boys stared at everything and nothing at the same time. Even Guinle was on edge—fists clenched, eyes wide, teeth slightly bared. Not understanding what was happening, he looked more like a cornered animal than a confident leader.
It was strange… almost funny, that primal scene forming in the middle of the dark hall.
I raised my head. Looked at my classmates one by one. Then I met the gaze of the old man in the dark blue robe.
"Let's go" I said, short and direct.
Before anyone had time to argue or panic again, I calmly started walking toward him. He studied me for a moment, then turned and began walking ahead of me.
Everyone followed.
The man led us to a door. When he opened it, light flooded in, forcing me to shield my eyes with my arm. On the other side stretched a long corridor. Marble walls reflected the soft glow coming from tall windows that revealed dreamlike gardens outside. Light filtered through ancient stained glass, painting vivid patterns across the floor, while the air carried a faint scent of jasmine.
We reached another door. As we passed through it, we emerged along the side of a vast hall bathed in bluish light from the stained glass. At the center, atop a navy-blue dais, stood three thrones. The one in the middle, larger than the others, looked as if it had been carved from a single massive sapphire. Beside it were two smaller thrones, dark blue, adorned with golden details.
The walls were draped with blue tapestries, and the ceiling mimicked a star-filled sky. The pillars, decorated in blue and gold, were lined with men and women standing between them. Their clothing resembled that of attendants, yet radiated royalty—they could easily be mistaken for nobles at a grand ball.
The students reacted in different ways. Some were visibly awed by the monument before them. Others kept their heads down, clearly unable to process what was happening. Guinle tried to maintain his usual bravado, but the light in his eyes betrayed him the moment he stepped into the throne hall.
I walked at the front, my expression indifferent to everything around us. My attention stayed fixed on the old man ahead, while thoughts piled up in my mind. Where exactly are we? What are they going to demand from us? This… feels like a serious problem.
When we reached the center of the hall, we stopped before the three thrones. On the right sat the king, on the left the queen, and in the center, the so-called Goddess Sapphire. To the other students, she looked like an unparalleled beauty: delicate features on her face and neck, as if sculpted from marble, pale skin contrasting with a blue velvet dress that resembled a river of liquefied gemstones. Her deep blue eyes evoked the darkest seas.
But to me… it looked different.
I saw only a woman sitting on the central throne. The seat was slightly too large, made of a material that looked like blue glass. She wore a blue dress that draped rather plainly over her knees. There was no aura. No mystical glow. Just a woman in a blue dress, on a blue throne, in a blue hall.
Her eyes, a shade similar to her dress, scanned the room with little expression. Still, even with my apathetic, skeptical view, I couldn't deny it—she was a beautiful woman.
[POV Sapphire]
"Welcome, heroes" said the Goddess Sapphire.
She rose and took hold of her staff. The wood was so dark it seemed to absorb the light around it, like polished ebony. At the top, a sapphire cut into the shape of a spearhead made it clear this wasn't just a symbol—it was also a weapon.
As she approached the group, slowly descending the short staircase that connected the thrones to the center of the hall, her gaze carefully assessed each of them. The young man at the front, in particular, caught her attention.
"You are of utmost importance to this kingdom" she continued, her voice calm.
"Everyone's clearly confused, so could you explain what you want? Quickly, if possible" Artur interrupted.
Sapphire raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Straight to the point" she replied with a faint smile. "That does make things easier"
Inside, alarms rang immediately. (He's dangerous. I need to be careful… I can't repeat the last mistake) Without showing it, she shifted her gaze to the other students, resuming her formal tone.
"After two hundred years of peace, the Demon Lords have begun to move once more. This places the human kingdoms in grave danger. However, after such a long period of calm, our warriors have become… rusty, so to speak"
She planted her staff firmly against the floor.
"That is why we decided to summon heroes from another world to fight the demons"