Summoned a Hero But Got a Villain Instead-Chapter 96: Shopping[1]

There was a weird, awkward situation. Both Clara and Elena wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words.

Elena’s bright, cheerful mask was frozen in place. Her eyes wide with a million unasked questions.

Clara, for her part, looked like she’d rather be anywhere else in the universe.

But then the quiet street they were on started to notice them.

First, it was just a few students. Their eyes widened as they recognized the two most famous girls in their year. Then those students started whispering to their friends.

"Hey, isn’t that Clara Lysandra?"

"And Elena von Dravien! What are they doing here?"

"Wait... who’s that boy with them?"

Slowly, a crowd was gathering. Phones were starting to come out, their small lenses like a hundred tiny, judging eyes.

Elena’s face went pale. The playful curiosity vanished, replaced by pure aristocratic panic.

"Looks like the situation is out of control, Clara," she said, her voice a low, urgent whisper. "Sorry, I can’t help you. Bye!"

She turned to her driver. "I don’t want to be a part of this. I don’t want the headmaster’s anger to fall on me. So, bye! Driver, let’s go!"

The car door opened. But before Elena could jump in, Clara’s hand shot out and grabbed her arm.

Clench.

"Won’t you help a friend?" Clara asked, her voice low and dangerous. "So it was all fake? Our friendship?"

Elena flinched. "Don’t try to guilt-trip me," she hissed back. "You know what your father is like! And you’re out here with a stranger! I’m not getting involved in that!"

"Please," Clara said, her voice losing its edge. Becoming a simple, desperate plea. "Let us in."

Elena looked from Clara’s desperate face to the masked, silent boy standing beside her.

A slow, devilish smile spread across her own beautiful face.

She had her.

"Only if you tell me everything," she said, her voice a triumphant purr.

Dante, who’d been watching this entire exchange with detached amusement, finally spoke.

"Clara, don’t."

Clara didn’t even look at him. "It’s okay," she said, her gaze locked on Elena. She knew she’d lost.

They both quickly got inside the car. The door closed with a soft, expensive thump, shutting out the noise of the growing crowd.

The driver, a stoic man with an impassive face, took Elena’s instructions. The car pulled away from the curb with a silent, electric hum.

Inside, the silence was thick and heavy.

Elena broke it, her voice full of gleeful, hungry curiosity.

"So," she began, leaning forward, her blue eyes sparkling. "What’s going on between you two?"

Clara told her everything. The fight in the courtyard. The impossible display of power. The teleportation. And finally, the reveal. That this strange, masked boy was one of the legendary heroes.

Elena was shocked. Her mouth hung open, her eyes wide.

Then a look of pure, dawning, utterly triumphant realization washed over her face.

"Oh my god," she breathed, her voice full of awe. "I was right."

Clara and Dante were both confused.

"What do you mean, you were right?" Clara asked.

"Have you forgotten?" Elena said, her voice rising with excitement. "What I said to you, not even an hour ago? ’The men in this world don’t stand a chance against you. So the gods went shopping in another world and gift-wrapped one just for you!’"

Clara’s face turned a shade of deep, furious red.

She lunged forward and punched Elena in the stomach.

Thud. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

"Oof!" Elena let out a pained grunt, doubling over.

Clara then sat back, her posture rigid. Her expression said the last five minutes had never happened.

Elena, recovering, turned her attention to Dante. A new, speculative light in her eyes.

"So," she began, rubbing her stomach. "Do you have a girlfriend? Or, to be more precise, did you have a girlfriend in your previous world?"

Dante simply shook his head.

"Oh, poor you," she said with fake pity. "With a face like that, you could’ve pulled one. But that’s lucky for my friend here."

Clara’s grey eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.

"Say one more word, Elena," she said, her voice a low, chilling whisper, "and I’ll beat your pretty face so badly that Alaric will never want to marry you."

Elena gulped. She was scared of her friend now.

"And besides," Clara continued, her voice regaining its usual cool composure, "we’re not dating. We’re not anything. We’re just strangers."

"And this stranger wanted some help, so I’m delivering it."

’Yeah, everybody says that at the start,’ Elena thought to herself, a smug, knowing smile on her face.

The car slowed to a halt.

"Looks like we’ve reached the city," Elena said.

The driver got out and opened the door for her, then for the others.

"Driver, you wait here," she commanded. "We’re going to explore for a bit."

"What do you mean, ’we’?" Clara asked, her voice sharp.

"What, don’t tell me you want to explore with him all by yourself?" Elena replied with a teasing grin.

"No, that’s not what I mean," Clara said, her face flushing again. "I was leaving after I dropped him off."

Meanwhile, Dante was amazed by the beauty of his surroundings.

The city was a breathtaking fusion of magic and modern design. Gleaming, crystalline towers that seemed woven from pure light scraped the sky, their surfaces reflecting the twin moons. Below, the streets were wide and clean, filled with a mix of sleek, silent, electric vehicles and elegant, horse-drawn carriages.

People in a thousand different, fashionable outfits walked along glowing, magically-lit sidewalks. Their laughter and chatter was a vibrant, living symphony.

It was a world of impossible, beautiful contradictions.

"So you’ll just leave a hero like that in an unknown place, without any proper directions?" Elena’s voice, full of fake shock, pulled him from his thoughts. "How cruel, Clara."

"Stop your stupid games, Elena," Clara hissed, "if you don’t want a beating."

"It’s fine, actually," Dante said, his voice cutting through their bickering. "I needed some help from you both."

Clara turned to him. "What do you mean?"

"You’ll know if you come," he said simply. "And besides, if you come with me, I won’t lose time trying to get directions."

After a moment of silent, internal debate, they both agreed.

"So," Elena said, her good mood returning in full force. "Where do you want to go first, oh great hero?"

"I need to find a place that sells gifts," Dante said. "Clothing, accessories, and yeah, desserts too. Oh, and not to mention, real food. Food that actually has some taste."

Elena thought for a moment, then her face lit up.

"Then we should go right there," she said, pointing.

They followed her gaze.

At the end of the street, dominating the skyline, was a building that defied all logic. It was a massive, multi-leveled structure, its walls made of a shimmering, iridescent material that seemed to shift colors in the moonlight. A waterfall of pure, glowing water cascaded down its side, and a garden of impossible, glowing flowers bloomed on its roof.

It was a palace of dreams. A monument to wealth and beauty.

"You can find all of those things there," Elena said with a triumphant smile.

The mall was a work of art. A beautiful, impossible building that seemed to have been pulled from a dream. It was a perfect, shining example of the magic and wonder of this new world.