The Golden-Haired Summoner - Chapter 26

Rai smacked his lips in satisfaction.

Ah, the world is beautiful.

A New Bond

It had been a week since we left Magi’s lair.

I had received plenty of jewels from Magi to cover our expenses and some food, though not much.

We couldn’t use warp magic, but since I could sit on Rai’s shoulder or palm in his ogre form, the journey wasn’t too tiring.

But…

*Growl*

“I’m…so hungry…”

The problem was that it had already been a day since our food ran out.

We were still wandering through the vast forest, without even a small village in sight, let alone a city.

Even if I tried to catch something to eat, most of what I saw were monsters or packs of wolves.

Unlike Magi, I wasn’t the type to eat monsters, and I wasn’t desperate enough to gnaw on wolf meat yet.

I also didn’t have the stomach to eat a rabbit or deer, even if they appeared.

I hadn’t realized I was so picky.

I couldn’t walk long distances, and I couldn’t stomach anything that tasted too fishy.

It seemed that I had lived a somewhat luxurious life back at the academy.

I longed for a hot bowl of soup, maybe some steak or steamed fish with a nice seasoning.

Even just fruit—oh, how I missed the jerky and fruit Magi gave me, which I’d long since eaten.

Ah, and I threw away so much of it when I got sick of it…

[See, Master! I told you we should have gone the other way!]

“But Adolaide said there was a village just a little further in this direction.”

Ugh, I can’t believe I’m suffering because of a dragon that doesn’t even know her own address.

I had a map of the continent in my head, yet here we are.

Magi, that damned…

[Master, do you really think she would’ve just given us directions so easily after all we absorbed from her?]

“Tch, but if you can’t trust a dragon, who can you trust?”

The gifts I got from Magi came in three forms: a sword she made, a dragon heart which ended up in Rai, and some of her treasures!

Yes, they were gifts. Not stolen, gifts!

When Adolaide offered her treasure, I had Rai absorb about two-thirds of the mountainous pile.

I thought about having him take just half, but refusing a gift didn’t seem polite. Taking it all felt like I’d have to go back to human lands to steal more, so I left enough to form a small hill.

Not that I wanted to get on her bad side by taking everything.

Well, she might still be annoyed with me, but I did what I could.

Anyone who saw Rai might think we didn’t need to absorb that many jewels since Rai can always produce more. But Rai can only use his powers with the metals and gems he’s absorbed.

So it wasn’t a bad idea to absorb as much as possible.

Of course, Rai could also increase the amount of the materials he had absorbed, but doing so required a lot of mana. It was more efficient to absorb new gems when we could.

And once he absorbed them, they could be stored with almost no mana cost, effectively turning Rai into a living vault.

Still… did Adolaide give us the wrong directions on purpose?

I started to doubt her. It had been nearly a week, and the forest didn’t seem to be ending. In fact, it was becoming more like a jungle, with swamps here and there.

A dragon’s word is supposed to be absolute, without lies. If they lie, they lose their immortality and incredible power, becoming nothing more than a giant monster awaiting death.

[Tch, if I had known this would happen, I would’ve absorbed everything! Right, Master?]

I was sitting on Rai’s hands, which he had clasped together in front of him while in his ogre form.

So naturally, when I looked up, I saw his large, gold face and teeth grinning down at me.

And that gold ogre was making a regretful expression as he looked down at me.

Ugh, I can’t stand how unsettling ogre faces are. I’ll make him turn into a wolf next time.

“Yeah, yeah. But for now, can you move your face? You’re going to drool on me.”

[Eek! I don’t drool, Master!]

“But you do cry.”

[Th-that’s…uh?]

*Growl* *Growl*

Rai’s tears are diamonds…

Rai was about to make another excuse when he suddenly froze.

He hadn’t stopped walking the entire week, except when I was asleep. Since he didn’t get tired and didn’t need sleep, it wasn’t hard for him. Just boring.

Most monsters and wild animals ran away at the sight of Rai, making the journey even easier.

Unlike a real ogre, Rai didn’t have a heavy body or a foul smell. But with his fierce appearance and huge frame, he could still play the part of the forest’s ruler perfectly.

He was probably much stronger than a real ogre too.

I learned nine years ago that ogres were somewhat intelligent, but at the end of the day, they were still just monsters.

“What is it?”

[There’s someone about 30 meters ahead, Master.]

“How many? Maybe it’s a village?”

[Master’s stomach is growling too loudly for me to tell.]

Tch, lucky you. You don’t get hungry!

I rubbed my still-grumbling stomach and spoke.

“Can’t you just check?”

[I don’t knowww.]

Rai made a cutesy face with his ogre expression, and I could barely stand it.

I wanted to scream just looking at him.

Since we seemed to be near people, I figured it was time to change Rai’s form to avoid scaring anyone.

“Transform into something between 1 and 5.”

[A wolf?]

“Yeah.”

Rai had a numbered system for his transformations. Number 1 was a snake, number 2 was a wolf, number 3 was a fox, number 4 was a rat, and number 5 was a bird.

Of course, he couldn’t fly as a bird, so we rarely used that form.

There were forms all the way up to 12, but aside from the ogre at number 6, I hardly ever used the others.

Rai’s favorite transformations were usually the wolf or fox, and sometimes, when forced by my orders, the ogre.

Recently, it had mostly been the ogre.

I climbed down from his hand to the ground.

Rai’s massive gold ogre body seemed to melt away, quickly shrinking into the form of a wolf.

When he was in the middle of transforming, Rai looked like an amoeba—or maybe a slime. He was squishy but didn’t seem like he’d stick to anything.

In his wolf form, Rai was still gold, though a slightly darker shade than when he was an ogre.

His eye color also changed to a bright golden hue, whereas before, his eyes had been black.

I climbed onto Rai’s back.

[What should we do, Master? Should we head toward the people?]

“Yes.”

After nearly a month and a half, the idea of finally meeting someone lifted my spirits.

To be honest, my excitement was partly because I was hoping they’d share some food.

Rai dashed through the trees, and I clung tightly to his mane, lowering my body to avoid being hit by stray branches.

His fur wasn’t exactly fur, though—it was more like fine metal threads.

The threads could tangle together and, if pulled out, they’d float off in the wind like strands of light metal.

I couldn’t tell exactly what material they were made of, but Rai had said they were a mix of various metals that had been modified to resemble wolf fur.

It took a lot of mana to transform him into this form, but it looked so real that I didn’t mind the cost.

Before, transforming Rai had required my mana each time, but now that he could charge his own mana while resting, he hardly ever needed mine.

[Master!]

“Hmm?”

Rai came to an abrupt halt.

[Arrows incoming.]

“Wha—ah!”

I lifted my head just in time to see the gleam of an arrowhead and ducked down at lightning speed.

At the same time, I grabbed the back of Rai’s head to shield myself.

*Tang!*

*Ting!*

[M-Master! Ack!]

“Adol! Lightning Dance!”

A few more arrows whizzed by, narrowly missing Rai’s ears, and I called for Adol to counterattack.

Lightning Dance!

The spell sent out a series of shock waves to all nearby enemies, stunning them.

It was designed to hit multiple targets quickly, making it more effective against groups than individuals.

[Kahaha!]

*Zzzap!*

“Aagh!”

*Zzzzt!*

“Kuh!”

*Zap!*

With every movement Adol made, people fell from the trees, along with weapons like swords and bows—and rocks too?

[Kuhahaha! Any more? Huh? Are there more, Master?]

Adol flitted around, looking for more targets after taking care of the ones in the area.

The spell wasn’t strong enough to deal serious damage, but it had certainly left an impact. Most of the injuries seemed to come from the fall rather than the spell itself.

“No, that’s all. You can come back.”

[What?! My grand appearance ends just like this?]

Adol was one of my more useful spirits when it came to attack power, but he was easily distracted.

After dispelling Adol, I glared at the attackers.

I hadn’t done anything to provoke them, yet they’d fired arrows at us. They didn’t deserve any kindness.

Of the five people, one was injured from the fall, and two were running away.

“Why did you attack me?”

Two of them crowded around the one who couldn’t move, possibly because of a leg injury.

Instead of answering, they took up defensive stances, as if warning me not to come any closer.

What? Do I look like a killer to them?

They’re the ones who tried to kill me first!

I looked down at them in frustration. Though their appearances varied slightly, they all had the same brown skin and gray hair.

[Shall we just kill them all, Master?]

“…I asked why you attacked me!”

Most of them looked older than me, but I didn’t feel the need to be polite. I was a bit angry.

After all, they had just threatened my life… and more importantly, I was still starving.

*Growl*

Damn it, even my stomach was oblivious to the tension, growling loudly in the middle of this confrontation.

Perhaps because of that, one of them finally spoke.

“…You, outsider, this our land.”

They seemed to be part of a jungle tribe.

It was broken common speech.

A jungle tribe, huh…

I had suspected as much, but still, did they have to shoot arrows just because I set foot on their land?

Am I that much of a threat…?

[They’re saying it’s their land? Tell them to show you the deed, Master.]

[Shut up!]

Rai’s constant supply of ridiculous comments was becoming a problem.

I glared at him just as another broken sentence came from the group.

“We… protect… village. You! Big, big wolf! Dangerous.”

…Where did they learn such strange common speech?

[Pffft! Big, big wolf? Really? Pffft, hahahahaha!]

Rai’s already expressive wolf face contorted with laughter, his mouth stretching into an absurd grin as his eyes narrowed.

Shaking with laughter, he lifted one paw to point at the tribal people.

I guess he found this hilarious…

“You wolf soup! You think that’s funny? It’s because of you they shot at us!”

[Kghk.]

Rai wasn’t capable of feeling pain, but when his master scolds him, he at least pretends.

That makes it all the more annoying.

While I was yanking out a tuft of Rai’s fur, more members of the tribe arrived, pushing through the trees.

It looked like the ones who had fled earlier had brought reinforcements.

Did they really have to call for backup after I let them off easy?

Like the others, these newcomers had dark skin and silver hair. About ten or so emerged from the forest.

I hesitated for a moment before calling out to Adol again.

“Adol!”

[Seriously, why is my master such a brute…oh!]

Preparing for a potential battle, I called for Adol. He didn’t even notice he’d been summoned, still in the middle of grumbling about me.

“Oh-ho-ho, is that so?”

[M-Master! I swear, I wasn’t talking about you! Sure, you can be a bit brutish and ignorant, but I’m innocent, really—]

“I’ll call you again when you’re about to die, Adol.”

[M-Master, wait—!]

Un-summoning him was instant.

Cutting off the flow of mana is like turning off a TV, and the spirit disappears.

It was pointless to scold Adol, and the best punishment for him was to not summon him at all. He considered being ignored the ultimate torment.

Fine, I’ll just pretend I don’t have one less spirit to rely on.

Just as I was mentally erasing Adol from my thoughts, I heard a familiar word.

“Geenie?”

…Huh?

Did I mishear? Was that a tribal word?

I turned toward the voice.

It came from among the new group of tribal people. And there, standing among them, was a person staring at me with remarkably clear eyes.

Shimmering silver hair, tall, with relatively light brown skin, and a woman in her thirties who looked at me not just with familiarity, but with awe.

She was pretty, too, especially among the other tribesmen.

“Annel… sister?”

[Oh, that woman from a while ago…]

A while ago? It’s been nine years!

Then again, by that logic, Magi would’ve been ‘just now’…

My thoughts about scolding Rai vanished as I focused on her.

“Oh my goodness, Geenie! Is it really you?”

“Sister!”

In that moment, the hunger and anger I had been feeling were forgotten, and I rushed toward Annel, the woman who had saved my life nine years ago.

“Geenie! You’ve grown so much!”

Annel’s voice was soft, and her common speech was fluent. She touched my hands and face with affection, confirming it really was her.

It was the Annel who had saved my life all those years ago.

Which meant… were these people from the Silver Wolf Tribe?

The tribe known for being excellent dual-blade warriors?

Then this must be the jungle nation of Korhan?

A flood of questions ran through my mind, but the overwhelming joy of seeing Annel again took precedence.

“Sister! I’m already nineteen years old now! But what are you doing here? What about your mercenary work?”

“That’s what I want to ask you! I retired from being a mercenary. I have a child now, a girl who looks just like you! She even knows about you—I’ve told her all about you.”

“A child? You were such an amazing mercenary… But I’m so happy we met again, Sister!”

“I feel the same way! When I saw your sparkling spirit, I knew it had to be you!”

Ah, if she’s talking about that ‘sparkling spirit,’ she might not see Adol again for a while…

“I didn’t even realize where I was, so I never imagined I’d run into your tribe. But seeing you now, I’m sure it’s you!”

“Is that so? I’m old now, though. But look at you, Geenie, you’re in full bloom!”

“Sister, you’re still young! You haven’t changed a bit since back then—still beautiful, confident, and strong. You’re my life-saving hero!”

“Oh, you still have a way with words! But I’m just an old lady with an eight-year-old daughter now. Calling me a hero is too much, Geenie!”

…Wait, an eight-year-old daughter?

That reminded me of something important I needed to ask.

“Sister, so… who is your husband?”

“You mean Eini’s father?”

“Yes!”

Now that I thought about it, I vaguely remembered that the Silver Wolf Tribe had a matriarchal society, where the men mostly did housework.

I glanced at the other tribespeople behind Annel. They were all women.

I also vaguely recalled Annel saying something about searching for a suitable husband while she was out of the jungle to work as a mercenary.

“Who else? It’s Kenta.”

There was a brief silence.

What did she just say?

Did Rai hear that?

[Uh… I think she said Kenta, Master.]

…Kenta?

“Kenta? Captain Shavel? Sure, he’s a bit older, but he’s strong and—”

“No, Kenta! Don’t you remember? Kenta!”

“…You mean that hulking, burly guy? Well, yes, he was very kind—”

Yeah, he did give me a huge hunk of meat once.

“Kenta!”

[Whaaaaaat?!]

“Huh?!”

I was in total disbelief.

“Why are you so surprised, Geenie?”

Annel looked puzzled by my reaction.

Of course I was surprised! They didn’t match at all!

Kenta? The guy with nothing but muscles?

And wasn’t Kenta always being scolded by Annel?

And now they were a couple?

Back then, Annel was an advanced mercenary, and Kenta was a senior one, so if I just looked at it from that angle, they made a decent couple. But Annel and Kenta?

That felt like a loss to humanity!

“I’m just… a little…very shocked. What part of Kenta made you want to marry him?”

“Marry? We didn’t get married.”

“But… you have a child?”

“He’s just Eini’s father. Our tribe doesn’t have marriage, Geenie. We just bear strong men’s children.”

For a moment, my vision went dark.

The Silver Wolf Tribe.

A matriarchal jungle tribe living in the jungles of Korhan, where every member is a skilled dual-blade warrior, known for their distinctive silver hair and dark skin.

That was all I knew about Annel’s tribe, the Silver Wolf Tribe.

“So, where is Kenta now?”

“Hmm, we parted ways about eight years ago. He said he wanted to return to his homeland once he saved enough money. He’s probably back there by now.”

“So… Kenta doesn’t even know you had a child?”

“Probably not. He didn’t even know I was pregnant when we parted.”

The reason I was so shocked wasn’t because of my memories from my previous life, but because Annel’s way of thinking was so different from mine.

I didn’t have to go back to my previous life to know that no society in this world, at least that I was aware of, worked like that.

They didn’t marry, they just bore children?

“Are you okay? Don’t you feel any resentment toward Kenta?”

“Why would I resent him? I never told him. Besides, if I had, he would have wanted to follow me. Our tribe is strict about outsiders, especially men.”

*Growl*

It might have been less shocking if she had just said she married Kenta.

But to only bear a strong man’s child…

It was such a stark contrast to the society I was used to.

And of all people, why Kenta?

I guess his overwhelming strength was useful…

“Sister, just out of curiosity, does your daughter… look like Kenta?”

“Yes, she looks more like him than me.”

“Huh!”

[A female Kenta?!]

Oh, dear gods!

Why would you burden Annel with such a trial?

It’s already enough for me to suffer…

I had to stop my imagination from running wild.

I could already picture a muscular eight-year-old girl who looked just like Kenta.

The thought alone sent a shiver down my spine.

Just imagining it was terrifying.

As I shook off the horrifying image, one of the tribespeople, who had been eyeing me suspiciously from behind Annel, approached us.

“Rkatnsdlrk ekcutek. djtj clfygodi gksek.”

“dlfeks qnfjwls ekflfmf akcvjtj qnahrdmf eofk, rm enldp ehfdkrksek. dl dkdlsms so dhfowjs clsrnk. dnlgjagkwl dksgdmsl gkaRp ehfdkrkwk.”

What are they saying?

It sounds like gibberish…

Since they seemed to realize that Annel and I knew each other, their hostility toward me had mostly disappeared. Only the one who had injured their leg continued to glare at me.

Who told you to shoot at me in the first place?

You should’ve said something earlier about knowing Annel!

[What did they say?]

[I have no idea.]

I hadn’t learned this language, apparently.

It wasn’t the common language, ancient runes, or anything like that. It must be the tribe’s language.

There were thousands of tribes in Korhan, each with their own language. This must be one of them.

After a brief conversation in the tribal language, Annel turned back to me.

“Geenie!”

“Yes, Sister?”

“Let’s go to our village. We can’t let you stay long, but I’ll give you something to eat. By the way, that wolf of yours… it’s not dangerous, right?”

“No, he’s not dangerous. He just got startled earlier…”

Annel nodded at my response.

It seemed like Rai was a pretty intimidating presence to her tribe.

“Alright. But please make sure the wolf doesn’t cause any trouble. Our tribe reveres wolves, but we also fear them greatly.”

“Don’t worry, Sister. If he causes any trouble, I’ll pull out all his teeth.”

[Cough! M-Master?]

“Before we head to the village, we need to treat the injured. Her leg looks like it needs a splint.”

With that, Annel approached the injured tribeswoman to examine her leg.

It was already bruised.

The woman seemed to be complaining to Annel, who looked a bit troubled.

Was this my fault?

I stepped closer and carefully touched the injured woman’s leg.

As I pressed gently, she let out a groan.

“Ouch!”

‘Ouch’ seemed to be the same in the common language.

After examining it for a bit, it didn’t seem like the bone was broken, just cracked slightly.

Normally, I wouldn’t have worried about this, but since these were Annel’s people, and I felt a bit responsible, I decided to summon Undain.

“Undain!”

Since we were in a jungle, the air was filled with moisture, making it easy for Undain to appear.

A small water vortex swirled in the air before forming the shape of a dolphin.

Undain, with her blue, gem-like eyes gleaming, flew toward me, and the tribespeople watched her in awe.

“What is that, Geenie? A spirit?”

“Yes, she’s the mid-level water spirit, Undain.”

“You’ve already become a mid-level spiritist? That’s amazing, Geenie! But why did you summon her now?”

“Because I injured her. Shh! I need to concentrate for healing magic.”

After quickly answering Annel’s question, I took a deep breath.

Healing magic was one of the most difficult water spirit spells, requiring a lot of focus.

Even among mid-level water spirits, many couldn’t perform healing magic at all.

At best, most could manage a basic healing spell.

In my case, after forming a contract with Endairon, manipulating Undain or Undine had become easier, allowing me to cast more advanced healing spells.

But even for me, healing magic was still tricky.

“Pure power of water, grant your gentle healing touch. Embrace the wounded with your sacred grace—Cure!”