Novel Full Chapter 321: Granny Jenner
Ethan genuinely looked surprised "That’s strange."
This had never happened before.
He tried again, completing the chant once more. But, it was the same result
[Summoning Failed]
Ethan’s brows drew together. "What’s causing the failure?"
This was a question directed to the system.
[Target soul is not present within the Well of the Undying]
Ethan’s eyes widened. For a moment, he stared at the screen in surprise before speaking.
"So in essence... she’s either alive... or she’s become a summon for someone else."
[That would be the case]
Ethan exhaled.
"Alive...? Or bound to someone else?" The thought gnawed at him, especially the idea of being bound to another.
What if the one she was bound to was someone terrible? Or someone like Ophelia Tudor, whose summon also seemed content under her...
"No, no, no," he muttered, shaking his head as if that could force the thought away.
"Fuck."
He hated this.
Only now did he truly understand why the King’s law forbade summoning anyone who hadn’t been dead for at least five decades.
Before the thought could spiral further, something else surfaced.
His father.
He quickly head over to a drawer nearby, opening and picking up a pocket watch from it.
He repeated the same process to call for a summon for the first time. But he got hit by the same notification.
[Summoning Failed]
He stared in renewed shock, remaining frozen in place for a moment before slowly lowering himself onto the edge of the bed, sitting in total disbelief.
He genuinely didn’t know what to make of any of it.
——
After about thirty minutes, Ethan walked downstairs and back into the living room.
His expression was noticeably off.
Eduardo stepped forward immediately.
"Master Ethan," he said, eyes searching him. "Did it work? Were you able to summon her?"
Ethan shook his head. "No."
The word came out flat.
"I couldn’t summon her...Or my father."
That alone was enough to draw reactions from others.
"But that doesn’t make sense," Eduardo said immediately. "How is that even possible?"
Ethan shook his head. "It means they’re either alive... or they’ve been bound as summons to someone else."
Both Francesca and Eduardo were in total disbelief, just like Ethan had been some minutes ago.
"...How?" Eduardo muttered again.
Ethan shook his head. "I don’t know." Then he straightened up and sighed. "But that’s not what we focus on right now."
"We deal with Audrey first, then come back to this after."
The room went silent again, and for the next ten to twenty minutes, it was awkwardly quiet.
Then Valerie spoke. "We still have another option...Granny Jenner"
Ethan and others turned to her.
Valerie continued. "In theory, her seal magic would still work for what we need. And she’s Grand Class."
She paused briefly, then added with more certainty.
"Even if the version of the spell we know is at a lower tier... she can still execute it at a much higher level."
Ethan nodded slowly in agreement.
Almost every known spell today was created by a Grand Caster who had control over that element of magic.
When a Grand Caster created a spell, they defined its logic, structure, and conditions; writing everything into proper spell codes so others could use it.
In trying to replicate a technique into a spell, they could scale it down by adjusting its logic so that weaker version of it could be used
In other words, even if the spell itself appeared as a lower-tier construct, in the hands of its creator it would always be far stronger than what anyone else could replicate.
"Do you have anything of hers that isn’t the grimoire?" Ethan asked.
Valerie shook her head. "No, Master Ethan. That’s the only thing I have of her. But all we need is just one page out of it, right?."
Ethan nodded, thinking it through. "Yeah, that should be enough."
Valerie nodded. "Alright then. Do it."
Ethan glanced at Valerie again. "Do you want to come? Maybe meet her when she arrives?"
Valerie’s expression softened into a smiles as she nodded affirmatively.
Ethan extended his hand toward her, helping her to her feet. She held onto him carefully for a brief moment before letting go, and together they moved into the basement.
-
As soon as they reached a clear space, Ethan exhaled lightly and made the grimoire appear from his inventory.
He flipped it open, scanning quickly before tearing out a page of one of the lesser spells that they both knew how to cast.
He placed the paper on the floor, bit into his palm, and let a few drops of blood fall onto it until a red magic circle formed over its surface.
The bite mark on his palm healed almost instantly, then the chant followed and after that, the system sent him a new notification.
[Catalyst is insufficient. Connection to target cannot be established]
Ethan stopped. For a second, he just stared at the forming circle as it dimmed out.
He let out a short breath, almost a laugh, but with irritation underneath it. In the last few minutes, he had suffered more summoning failures than ever before.
He sighed and turned to Valerie.
"I don’t think this alone will do," he said in a calm voice. "It isn’t enough to establish a connection to your grandmother."
Valerie frowned. "How so?"
Ethan answered. "When it comes to catalysts, the best ones are body parts"
"After that, the next best option is something they used consistently. That repeated interaction creates a kind of imprint strong enough for summoning."
Valerie’s eyes dropped briefly to the torn page.
"But every part of that book mattered to her."
Ethan shook his head slightly.
"Maybe it’s not how you’re seeing it," he replied. "You’re looking at it piece by piece. But for your granny, it might have been the grimoire as a whole."
Valerie’s expression fell. Because she understood that if they used the grimoire, it would be gone completely.
The catalyst would disappear and be replaced by the summon itself. Even if the contract with the summon ended, the catalyst would not return.
It was as though catalysts were the one-off price you paid without refunds.
Ethan noticed the look on her face, and understood as well.
"I get it," he said. "That book is the only thing you have left of her. So I’m not going to force that decision on you. It wouldn’t be fair."
He stepped back slightly and gestured for her to follow so they could leave. "We’ll find another way to deal with Audrey."
Valerie looked both disturbed and thoughtful in the silence that followed for another second.
Then she lifted her head again. "Let’s use it"
Ethan studied her for a moment. "Are you really sure?"
She nodded, then smiled. "Yes."
"Moreover, what’s the point of having the grimoire if we fall to Audrey tomorrow?"
Ethan smiled, and didn’t argue further.
He the closed grimoire, and placed the whole book down. He cut into his palm again and let the blood fall.
The magic circle formed as his chant resumed.
The circle flared up in red light, then changed to purple light. This made Ethan sigh in relief.
’I almost thought this authority thing stopped working.’ He thought to himself.
The purple specks of light gathered together, forming a humanoid shape. Slowly, the glow dimmed and faded—until a figure stood within the circle that made Valerie’s eyes well with tears.
Granny Jenner.
——
A/N: Chapter 153 - Spell Logic & Codes
Jenner Picture Art will come in next upload. discord users will get it first
Oh and Mr Joker05, I believe you’ve gotten your answer now?