CH 64

(Are you satisfied?)

(Yes, I’m fine now.)

Tia slowly released my head, which was being held tightly, from her arms at my words. I thought that normally in such situations, I would be the one to hug her, but I guess it really doesn’t matter either way.

(Ah, you can stay right where you are. I’ll lie down.)

(Fufu~, Then I’ll sleep together with Ed.)

I used my hand to stop Tia from getting up, and laid down next to her. The floor was not as cold as I thought it would be.

(So, Tia. I heard you reached here three days ago, what did you do?)

(Yeah! That’s it! Mou~, It was so hard!)

Tia pouted her cheeks in frustration, close enough to feel her breath. Instead of being able to speak, our joined hands were strained and a little sore.

(After we went through that door, I was surrounded by a white world for a moment and … found myself outside. There were a lot of kids around, and among them was Nash … the one who’s sleeping there. That one kid was a little ahead of me, and he started talking to me. He said, “I’ll sign the contract, just give me your name.”)

(Did you tell him?)

(I really wanted to ignore him, but then I noticed that you, who was supposed to be with me, was gone, so I decided to be mature and not change the course of the world that Ed was supposed to know, so I just went by my name,Tia. And in addition it’s a familiar name that I’m used to being called, The kid in front of me didn’t look skilled enough magician to bind me up … and I didn’t want Ed to not be able to find me if I changed something.)

Names were extremely important in contracts. Especially in a case like this, it must have been very unfavorable to Tia, since Tia gave her original name.

Well, there was no way that “very unfavorable” would be enough to bring Tia, a skilled spirit user who has lived for over 100 years, under his control.

(I see. Well, let’s just say this time, no matter how many names you change, I’m not going to lose Tia, so if you’re really in trouble, don’t worry about it, okay?)

(I believe you, but still just in case. In fact, you found me right away like this, so it worked, didn’t it?)

(I’m not saying it didn’t, but …)

This time it wouldn’t have made much difference what Tia called herself since she was right around the corner, but if she was far away…. No. Would it still be the same if I used the [Akashic Compass]?

(Honestly, it’s only the difference would be it will take a little longer before I can rest easy, okay)

(If so, then the name was worth it.)

Tia, who was pouting a moment ago, now smiled and winked at me. This quick change of mood was very typical of Tia.

(And then nothing special happened. I am acting like the contact has been made, so he shouldn’t think I’m acting strange. The only thing I did was use spirit magic when I was asked to do it….. And How did it go with you, Ed?)

(Hmm? Yeah, I’m just like you. Also, I call myself Eidos, the “Human Spirit” in case you’re wondering.)

(Eh, what’s that? The pseudonym is fine, but a human spirit? Is there such a thing?)

(I don’t think there are any. That’s why I’m calling myself that. I’m not going to bother anyone, and if I don’t, it will act as a good cover.)

(Wow, Ed is really smart when it comes to these things.)

Tia gave me a dumbfounded look as I smiled at her. Then, after exchanging some minor information, I quietly raised myself from the floor.

(Well, then, it’s time to go back. I’m with a guy named Miguel, so if you need anything, just write me a letter or something. It’s the next room over from this room.)

(Okay, but don’t you have to join us right away? I thought we had to work together in the Hero’s party?)

(Yeah, he’ll be fine. The best time to leave this world is a year from now, when the contract ends. If we can get Miguel to recognize you as one of his own friends within six months, we should be able to go home together then, so we’re not in a rush yet.)

Once they were recognized as a party, it didn’t matter living apart, at least within the school, and since Miguel and Nash were classmates, they would have frequent opportunities to interact with each other. Even if the two of them were to have a fall out in the worst case scenario, neither Tia nor I were actually bound by a contract, so we would be able to move independently and so it won’t matter.

(Ah, I see. I’m relieved. … So I should just keep on acting like I’m contracted to do this?)

(That’s a safe bet. As far as I remember, there shouldn’t be any major incidents, but still, try to keep a low profile for a while. At least, Don’t let your ‘master’ stand out too much that he is… taken in by the royal court. If that happened, he would be separated from the rest of us.)

(Ah, I see! So the spirit magic I use is supposed to be Nash’s ability, and depending on its evaluation, it might keep me away from the academy. Eeee, did I do it by any chance …?)

(… ring any bells?)

Tia’s ears dropped with an anxious look on her face, and I asked her, reluctantly.

""

(When I made a contract with him, he asked me, “What can you do?” I used the magic of the six attributes as usual. Then it became a serious thing…)

(Miguel was talking about something like that. In this world, you can only use magic of the attribute that your contracted spirit has, so it would be a really big deal if you could use all the six attributes.)

(Hmmm, but that’s strange.)

(Is that so?)

Tia raised her eyebrows at my words, and I asked her once I had gotten back to my feet. I couldn’t help but be curious about such a topic when I was about to leave.

(Of course it is, When I use spirit magic, I don’t make contracts each time, do I? I am able to use magic without hassle, so it can’t be “that type of world”1)

(Hmm? Then why do the children here make contracts with spirits?)

(That’s what I don’t understand. A contract with a spirit makes it easier to draw out the power of the contracted spirit, but on the other hand, the contracted spirit will always suck out your mana, and it becomes difficult to borrow the power of other spirits. So even if you make a contract with a spirit for some purpose, It’s not like you can’t use spirit magic without making a contract with one, so it’s unthinkable to have contracting with a spirit as the goal.)

(Then they can only use the power of the spirit they’ve contracted with. …)

(That’s precisely because they have a contract with that spirit. Since it consumes mana to maintain a contract and additional mana is needed to use the power of uncontracted spirits, perhaps they can’t meet the requirements to use spirit’s power? For example, if a spirit magic requires 10 mana to activate when there is no contract with anyone, the contracted spirit’s power can be used with 5 mana, but if you want to borrow power from a different spirit in that state, you need 20 mana. However, if it is common sense here to have a contract with a spirit, the mana required to activate spirit magic is five, right? If they can’t even see any sign of activation even after pouring in double or triple the mana required, it’s quite possible that they came to the conclusion that you can’t use the spirit magic without having a contract with them)

(Ah, that again…)

I became speechless listening to Tia, the expert. If it was true, … or maybe it was true, what a distorted tradition that has been passed down.

However, such was the way of the world. It would be overwhelmingly difficult to overturn the common sense, “This is the way it has always been.” If there was one answer in front of you, no one would think, “What if there is another answer to that?”

(Hey, do you think I should point this out to him?)

(Seriously, please don’t do that.) I told Tia,

He would either be beaten as a heretic or celebrated as a wise man. Either way, Nash’s future would be severely distorted and guaranteed to keep him away from the academy.

(…Well, you’re right. I’ll hold out as long as I can)

(Really, please?)

I patted a disgruntled Tia on the head, and this time, I got up. Then my eyes, now completely dark, caught a glimpse of Nash’s sleeping face with a happy look on his face. …

(Hang in there.)

After muttering inwardly sympathetically, which I had somehow developed, I stealthily opened the window of the room and hurried out to the outside, where it had begun to brighten before I knew it.