The Golden-Haired Summoner - Chapter 42

“Daria?”

Hearing her name, she widened her eyes and looked up at me.

It seemed she was using the headscarf to hide her long, sharp elf ears.

With her current appearance, she looked just like a mountain girl who had just emerged from the forest.

Her dark skin and pretty features stood out.

“Who…?”

“It’s me, Geenie! We met at that place the other day.”

“Oh, the slave…”

I quickly covered her mouth.

Hey, hey, you can’t be talking about slave traders out loud in the middle of the market! The guards will haul us off!

“More importantly, what are you trying to buy? I thought I heard it was 30 silver?”

“Huh? Oh, this mirror. Isn’t it pretty? I’ve never seen such a beautiful mirror before.”

The mirror she showed me was round, covered in gaudy fake jewels of various sizes.

It looked like something a child would find delightful.

If those stones were real, it would be one thing, but it definitely wasn’t worth 30 silver.

“Oh! Excuse me, shopkeeper, how much did you say this was?”

“Th-three silver, three silver, ma’am. Haha, quite affordable, isn’t it?”

I have a pretty menacing glare when I need to.

Not because I’m actually mean or have sharp eyes. Really.

“Oh my! Did you just say three silver? But you said 30 silver earlier.”

“No, no, I must have misspoken. It’s definitely three silver.”

“Wow! I’ll buy it. Here’s the money!”

Mirrors were considered somewhat expensive here.

Even a basic one would cost at least two silver.

Glass itself was rare, and most mirrors used by commoners were so impure they were barely usable.

But this one was clear, with decorations, so three silver wasn’t a bad price.

I wouldn’t have bought it myself, though.

“Hmm, do you like that mirror so much?”

“Yes! It’s so beautiful. We don’t have decorated mirrors like this in our village. I wanted to buy something nice since I’m here in a human village.”

Kidnapped, yet out shopping at the market.

I shouldn’t judge—this girl was as much a handful as I was.

Still, I was a bit worried if she had escaped safely after our last encounter, but finding her here was an unexpected twist of fate.

“But where’s your brother? Zeras?”

“Oh, my brother? He was with me until just a while ago, but when I turned around, he was gone. Haha.”

Oh no, not again!

I regretted saying hello and considered pretending I didn’t know her.

I sighed lightly.

Since we knew each other a bit, I couldn’t just walk away. I’d have to help her find her brother. Dark elves like her could get into trouble if left alone.

Plus, I wasn’t particularly busy at the moment.

“Do you remember where you were staying? Wait, I saw Zeras at our inn before.”

“Inn? I don’t know. We just slept in a burrow at night.”

“A burrow? But you’ve got plenty of money. Why?”

“Brother says we need to save our money. Plus, burrows are more comfortable.”

Seriously?

But you’re willing to spend three silver on a mirror?

That’s a day’s wage for a commoner! The average monthly salary is about one gold.

“Haha, you should get home soon. But why haven’t you returned to your village, the ‘Village of Verdant Tranquility’?”

“Brother said he has an errand from the elder. He had to do it to come to the human village and save me. Isn’t my brother the best?”

Yeah, your brother’s got it tough.

He must’ve gone through a lot because of you.

My brother, on the other hand, got himself lost and took my senior along with him.

“So, do you know where he might have gone, or how to get back to where you slept yesterday?”

“I don’t know, but he makes a new burrow each time. The one from last night is probably gone by now.”

By “he,” she must mean an earth spirit.

It seemed convenient for camping.

Still, my Undine is the best.

Wait, wasn’t Zeras a spirit summoner too? A wind summoner, so he could be using spirits to search for his sister.

I nodded, looking up at the sky.

It would be best to go to an open area to be seen from above.

“Let’s go to the fountain square. It’s wide enough that a spirit could find you easily. It’s just a bit down the road.”

“The fountain? Sure, let’s go!”

Whatever I said, Daria cheerfully followed me.

I kept glancing back to make sure she didn’t wander off. Every time she did, I barely managed to keep her from straying.

This girl was even more restless than Pero and Iro!

No wonder she got kidnapped. Geez…

“Okay, sit here quietly.”

I finally got Daria to sit down on one side of the fountain.

With most people, I could leave them and go, but I didn’t trust her to stay put.

I ended up sitting next to her.

“Oh? What’s that over there…?”

“Sit!”

I swiftly grabbed Daria’s collar before she could get up.

It felt like babysitting a particularly restless preschooler.

This was more than I could handle.

Trying to do a good deed had backfired spectacularly.

That’s why people should stick to what they know.

“Huh? Geenie, what’s that man doing?”

“What?”

She pointed to a man who appeared to be begging.

“He’s begging. Haven’t you seen it before?”

“Begging? What’s that?”

“It’s when someone asks for money.”

“Why? If he wants money, he should work for it.”

That’s what I want to say!

I agreed with Daria, but the man she pointed to didn’t look capable of working.

He had no right arm and no legs.

“Well, he can’t work. See, he has no legs or arm. Who would hire him? Begging is the only thing allowed for people like that.”

“He could use spirits.”

“…Can I hit you?”

“Eh? Why, why?”

Do you really need to ask?!

I’ve met all sorts of odd elves, but this one…

Not everyone is a spirit summoner!

While all elves might be excellent spirit summoners, humans are not. Each person has different talents; some discover theirs, others never do. And even if they do, their talent may not align with their job.

I was just lucky.

“Humans don’t have many spirit summoners. That’s why I was so glad when I saw you back then.”

“Oh, so those people survive by begging?”

“Exactly. They have no choice. Hey, Zeras!”

I spotted Zeras in the crowd.

Even in his hooded cloak, his distinct dark aura and black hands made him stand out.

I couldn’t help but wave and call out to him.

Hey!

Come and take your sister, please.

It seemed my desperate plea worked, as he changed direction towards me.

“Have you seen my sister?”

The first words out of his mouth.

What? Daria was right next to me…

“Huh? She was just here.”

“She was here?”

In the brief moment I looked away, Daria had vanished.

Where did she go this time?

I scanned the area and remembered our conversation about the beggar.

I turned to see Daria crouching in front of him.

“There she is!”

“Daria!”

At Zeras’s shout, we both ran to her.

There she was, handing her whole purse to the beggar.

Who told you to donate your life savings?!

“Daria! What are you doing?”

“W-what are you doing, Daria?”

What more was there to say?

Zeras quickly grabbed the purse from Daria’s hands, reclaiming it before it was too late.

The beggar looked disappointed, and so did Daria.

I could forgive the beggar, but not Daria!

“Brother, can’t we give this man the money?”

“D-Daria? We need this money too. A little, maybe, but…”

Zeras’s voice quivered slightly.

Hey, that doesn’t suit your usual dark aura at all.

Now that I thought about it, this subtle, dark, controlled energy seemed characteristic of dark elves.

Daria had none of that.

“But brother, he looks so miserable. He can’t work. If we leave him like this, he’ll starve to death.”

Daria’s teary plea made me come to one conclusion about her.

*‘What a handful!’*

Sensing that sticking around would lead to trouble, I started to back away and left a short farewell.

That was all the help I could offer. It was nice seeing them, briefly.

“Adieu!”

“Hey!”

I don’t know, I don’t know! If I’m with you… Huh?

Was there a song like that?

Anyway, I needed to get away before they caught me.

I wasn’t at fault.

All I did was explain what begging was!

The commotion of meeting them aside, I soon forgot about it on my way back to the inn.

Instead, I bought a set of stationery and a small leather pouch.

The stationery was for writing to Master Yael about Annie, and the pouch was a gift for her.

Since I confiscated her jewel pouch, she’d been carrying spirit stones in her pants pocket, which worried me. I needed something to give her, and this pouch seemed perfect.

It was light brown, well-stitched, and waterproof.

I chose it carefully as a parting gift for Annie.

When I returned to the inn, Annie was still clinging to Chad.

Anyone would think they were father and daughter.

[Oh! Master, you’re back? How did it go?]

“You’re back?”

“Hey~”

“…”

Rai, in his wolf form, greeted me first, wagging his tail, followed by Lox and Chad.

Ash still looked displeased, likely because of what happened with the slavers.

I believed some people deserved to die; Ash thought no one did.

So, naturally, we clashed.

“Annie, could you come here for a moment?”

“Huh?”

Annie frowned slightly at my call.

Usually, when I called her, it was to make her meditate or nag her.

“Come on! I’ll go up first.”

[Master, what about me?]

[Come if you want.]

Rai came to my side immediately.

Annie, on the other hand, dragged her feet.

I didn’t wait for her and headed upstairs to the room.

I needed to tell Annie to go with Sir Hansen to Sharan tomorrow and pack her things—not that there was much to pack.

I took out the stationery and pondered what to write.

The first line was a greeting.

—

Dear Master Yael,

How are you?

I am your one and only lovely, charming disciple, Geenie Crowell.

—

Hmm, would “charming” be better replaced with “graceful”?

I pondered for a moment and then asked Rai.

“Rai, what do you think? Now that I’m older, ‘graceful’ fits better than ‘charming,’ right?”

[Um, Master. I think ‘terrifying’ fits better than ‘charming.’]

“…Do you even know what ‘terrifying’ means?”

[Of course! That’s why I think ‘terrifying’ suits you… No, I mean, ‘graceful.’ Yes, Master, you’re graceful. So graceful and charming.]

If he’d said one more word, Rai would’ve learned the true meaning of pain today.

After shooting him a fiery look, I turned back to the letter.

I crossed out “charming” and wrote “graceful” over it.

“Yeah, this is better.”

[The kid’s here, Master.]

I’d barely written two lines.

I put down my pen and picked up the leather pouch for Annie.

*Cre-eak.*

“I’m here.”

“Good, come sit.”

Annie hesitated before sitting across from me.

The awkwardness was palpable.

Anyone would think we were strangers meeting for the first time.

I couldn’t understand why she was closer to Chad than me.

Had I been so unkind to her?

“Why did you call me?”

“I have something to tell you. First, take this.”

“…?”

“It’s yours. Keep it safe. Make sure you carry your spirit stones in it. Don’t lose them.”

Annie held the pouch, just big enough for her hand, and her cheeks flushed as she smiled.

Why do girls like these little things so much?

Maybe because spirits were their only source of entertainment, but I couldn’t relate.

It would take an orichalcum for me to feel that kind of joy.

Was I being too spoiled?

“Th-thank you.”

[…What about me, Master?]

[If you don’t want to stand in the corner with your tail up, stay quiet.]

[Pff…]

Rai’s least favorite punishment was standing with his tail up.

It worked best in snake form, but with his wolf form, the classic “stand still” was enough.

“It’s not much. Anyway, Annie, this might come as a surprise, but you’re leaving for Sharan tomorrow. Alone.”

“Sharan? Where’s that?”

“Remember I told you? The Drike Academy where I studied spirit summoning is in the kingdom of Dmitri. Sharan is the capital of Dmitri, where the academy is.”

Annie didn’t seem as surprised as I expected, likely because she didn’t have a sense of distance.

“Oh, that’s where we were supposed to go anyway, right? Isn’t that where we’re headed now?”

“Yes, but the journey is long. You’ll use the warp to go ahead while I take the land route.”

“What’s warp?”

“Warp is a teleportation spell. It lets you travel distances that would take months or years by foot in an instant.”

Annie, who had been asking questions, finally realized what this meant and started to look upset.

“Why… why am I going alone? What about you, Master?”

“I get sick when I use warp. You’ll have to go alone.”

It wasn’t exactly life-threatening, but close enough.

Is warp-sickness even considered a real illness?

“I don’t want to! I want to go with you! Why… why am I going alone?”

“It takes three months to get there by land! With warp, it’s instant. So, of course, you need to use it. Even if I wanted to, I can’t.”

“But… I might die from it too! I want to go with you. I don’t know anyone there. It’s scary.”

Warp-sickness isn’t common.

I heard it’s like surviving two lightning strikes.

Was I lucky or unlucky? Either way, I thought it wasn’t too bad.

“I understand, but you’ll meet other people at the academy. You can’t stay with me forever. Besides, you’re closer to Chad, so why are you so upset?”

“I still don’t want to! I want to go with you! I don’t want to be alone!”

“You won’t be alone. There’ll be another teacher waiting for you there! This teacher is nice… unlike me.”

“Waaah, Master… you said you’d be my teacher! You stopped me from learning swordsmanship and made me study spirit summoning! So why are you sending me to another teacher now? Waaah, you’re mean! Traitor!”

T-traitor?

The word stung, but I couldn’t argue.

The truth was, I didn’t feel confident teaching Annie everything she needed, which is why I was entrusting her to Master Yael for the basics.

It wasn’t that I was abandoning her.

Annie was talented enough that I wanted her as my disciple.

I just needed her to learn the fundamentals from Master Yael first.

Wait, does this mean I lack basics myself?

“Hold on, Annie! The new teacher is my teacher. So they’re also your teacher, in a way. It’s not betrayal. You’ll warp ahead, and I’ll follow by land. And honestly, this teacher is better at teaching spirit arts than I am!”

“You’re mean! You don’t want me around, so you’re sending me away, aren’t you? Mom… Waaah, traitor!”