Ch. 11
“What’s so special about this candlestick?”
“Can’t you hear it? It’s greeting us. This is a metal spirit!”
At that moment, the look on Yael’s face was priceless.
“Haah, Miss Geenie? It seems like you’re trying to appeal to my sympathy, but I won’t fall for it.”
“…Are you seriously thinking I’m spouting nonsense right now?”
“Yes.”
Wow, what a blunt answer!
“I’m telling the truth! What do you take me for?”
“You just want to form a contract with a spirit, don’t you?”
Did he think I was like a little kid carrying around a doll because I wanted a younger sibling? Does he seriously believe I’m ten years old?
“Can’t you hear this voice? This guy has been talking non-stop for a while now!”
[Talking too much? How unfair. I am an exceptionally dignified spirit! This is slander, Master!]
“There’s no such thing as a spirit shaped like a candlestick, Miss Geenie.”
“I know that! That’s why I’m telling you—it’s a metal spirit! Metal!”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing. If you’re going to make things up, at least make them sound plausible.”
I was about to lose my mind! I actually succeeded, so why won’t he believe me?!
Unfortunately, it seemed like Rai’s voice was only audible to me.
How could I make it so that even Master Yael could hear him? Frustrated, I anxiously wracked my brain before blurting out,
“Fine! It’s just because he doesn’t have a physical form yet… If I absorb him and—uh, well, yeah. If I create a body for him, then you’ll be able to see him too. That way, you’ll know I’m telling the truth.”
“Oh dear, you’ve been reading too many fairy tales, Miss Geenie. This is quite the amusing delusion. Playing pretend-contract is fun, but let’s stop here.”
“Aaagh! I’m serious! I found it in a book at the library! Bam!”
“…Wait, are you talking about that ancient contract formation you asked me about yesterday?”
“Yes, that one! And it actually worked!”
Would he finally believe me? Master Yael’s expression softened slightly.
I enthusiastically thrust the candlestick toward him, eager to prove I wasn’t crazy.
Hurry up and praise me! Tell me I’m amazing!
“Look! I made a contract all by myself! I told you I could do it. And the spirit that emerged from it was non-elemental. This guy isn’t roaming around freely—he’s staying inside the candlestick! That alone makes him super unusual…”
“I was planning to teach you about non-elemental spirits later since it’s a complicated topic. Where did you even hear about them?”
“This candlestick—no, I mean, this metal spirit…”
“Regardless of where you heard it from, non-elemental spirits only exist in theory, Miss Geenie. We can’t summon them. They were rare even in ancient times, and humans cannot control them. You can’t just pull something out of a book and claim it’s real.”
“…But that’s not true? Maybe you’ve got it wrong? The contract formation definitely worked. Look, here’s the proof…”
[Ahem, well, I ‘am’ quite rare.]
I was starting to have doubts.
Could it be that I wasn’t talking to a spirit but had actually been possessed by a ghost all night? Maybe I had been conversing with a ghost that had absolutely no sense of its surroundings…?
“Miss Geenie, you still believe it because you’re young, but that contract formation is no longer usable. It’s just an ancient relic, nothing more.For a spirit to emerge from it… It’s about as likely as a whale appearing in a lake.”
“…What?”
“I’m quite familiar with that contract formation. I tried summoning a spirit with it when I was younger, too. Of course, I failed.”
Master Yael gave a good-natured chuckle and shrugged, as if reminiscing about a childhood memory.
“All young spiritists go through this phase—they all try using that formation at least once. It’s a rite of passage. But it hasn’t functioned as an actual contract formation for the past few hundred… No, even thousands of years. It’s a discarded summoning circle that spirits no longer use. Do you understand?”
“But…”
“Even if I wanted to humor you, this is just too absurd.”
“…”
“Forming a contract at ten years old is already an incredible feat. Haha, but claiming it’s a non-elemental spirit—on top of using an ancient contract formation? Even scholars wouldn’t accept that as a joke.”
He thought I was just making things up like a child playing pretend.
Master Yael was a sincere and upright man who never mocked others, but this case seemed different.
No matter how I thought about it, I wasn’t possessed by a ghost.
That meant I had done something so unbelievable that Master Yael simply couldn’t accept it.
I needed to take this seriously.
I stared intently at the candlestick.
“…Are you some kind of big deal?”
[Of course. I am one of a kind in this world.]
“Well, I’m one of a kind too.”
[…Now that you mention it, that’s true.]
I had apparently done something far more extraordinary than I had realized.
The fact that this slightly odd spirit was an entity so incredible that even Master Yael couldn’t believe it…
And the fact that I had summoned such a being myself…
None of it made much sense, but that was the reality.
“Why did you come out when I summoned you?”
[Because I liked you, Master.]
“What do you like about me?”
[You smelled different from other humans.]
Was I emitting some kind of scent that signaled I had lived a previous life? Did I reek of a reincarnated soul?
I sniffed myself but, of course, couldn’t detect anything unusual.
[I had been wandering for a long time, wanting to return to this place. I waited for the right contractor, but it wasn’t easy. Just as humans cannot choose their parents, we spirits cannot always choose as we please.]
“…That’s an odd comparison.”
[That’s how it is, Master. It was simply meant to be. Humans call it fate.]
As I continued my serious conversation with a candlestick, Master Yael finally snapped.
“Ugh, fine! Fine, I get it!”
“What? Are you finally going to believe me?”
“Haaah… I surrender. If you’re that determined to form a contract with a spirit, I’ll prepare a practical training session for you. But I’m warning you—it’s still too early for this.”
“…You’re really going to let me form a contract?”
I hadn’t been aiming for that outcome, but it was a welcome surprise. My eyes sparkled with excitement.
I may be the one saying this, but I was a very cute and charming girl.
Master Yael, however, looked down at me as if he were staring at a scam artist.
“I’ve told you many times—just because you attempt a contract doesn’t mean it will succeed. Whether a contract is formed or not is entirely up to the spirit. Failed contracts vastly outnumber successful ones.”
“What if someone succeeds on the first try?”
“There’s no such case.”
“But what if there is?”
“Then they’d be a genius among geniuses.”
Wait a minute… Could it be that…?
‘Am I a once-in-a-lifetime prodigy?’
The thought was so unbelievably arrogant that I couldn’t say it out loud, but the probability was quite high.
This body of mine… It was anything but ordinary.
—
For now, I decided to keep my mouth shut about Rai.
Master Yael wasn’t going to believe me anyway, and it seemed like a bigger deal than I initially thought, so it was best to keep it under wraps for now.
More than anything, I didn’t want to attract the attention of the scholars.
[Master, what is that? And that? My goodness! When did the world change so much?]
It was obvious that if scholars found out about this rare spirit, one that couldn’t stay still for even a moment, they’d come swarming in.
And that would be nothing but a huge hassle.
Dealing with nuisances was a serious issue for me.
I had always felt that life was exhausting, but realizing it was because of my overwhelming genius made sense.
‘Sigh’, being a genius sure is tough.
“Miss Geenie?”
“Yes?”
“How far are you planning to carry that candlestick?”
“Hmm… Well, think of it as a lucky charm.”
“…The same candlestick that’s in every dorm room?”
“Yes. Do you have a problem with that?”
One of Master Yael’s virtues was that he didn’t argue unnecessarily.
He was an excellent person who respected individual preferences, so instead of questioning my shameless response, he simply looked ahead and continued walking.
I quietly followed behind him.
Clutching the candlestick tightly in my hands—the same candlestick that housed the talkative metal spirit, Rai.
[Master! There’s a huge chunk of metal rolling over there. Can I absorb it?]
“…Are you insane? That’s the armor of the holy knight Barolde, and the headmaster cherishes it.”
[But it looks like high-quality material. Just a little piece…]
“No! That’s not something rolling around—it’s a decoration!”
[Aw, come on.]
Even a starving dog wouldn’t drool over every little thing like this.
The more I observed Rai, the stranger he seemed. Not just because he was a metal spirit, but because of the way he acted.
Yesterday, in my desperation to form a contract, I had only thought he was a little peculiar. But looking at it now, he was an incredible subject for research.
A spirit that didn’t need to return to the spirit realm? That was unheard of!
[By the way, Master. Why are you speaking so softly?]
“Because talking to a candlestick makes me look insane.”
[But I’m a spirit.]
“That’s exactly why I need to keep our contract a secret!”
[Aha, I see. Well, you don’t have to speak out loud—I can hear you just fine if you talk in your mind.]
“…That’s possible?”
[Of course. We have a soul contract. Since our souls are connected, we can do things that normally aren’t possible.]
So, we could communicate through thoughts?
They never taught that in class.
“How do I do it?”
[Just wish for me to hear you and direct your thoughts toward me.]
“You mean it’s not about thinking, but about feeling?”
[It’s both, I suppose. If you truly desire it, your willpower will naturally convey your message—just like I’m doing now.]
I see…
If I focus enough, he’ll hear me…
A matter of will. Mind and heart. I stared intently at the candlestick, concentrating. Right now, I was…
[Yes, you’re hungry.]
[Of course I am. I haven’t had breakfast yet.]
[You’re quite good at this.]
[Huh? You’re right! It actually worked! You can hear me?]
[Loud and clear.]
As expected, I ‘am’ a genius!
Feeling a justified sense of confidence, I practically bounced with excitement before rushing ahead to call out to Master Yael.
Hey, Master! Do you realize your student is a genius?!
“Instructor! Master Yael!”
“What is it, Miss Geenie?”
“When you form a contract with a spirit, is it possible to communicate without speaking?”
Master Yael stopped walking and turned to look at me.
He seemed pleased that I was asking questions.
“Of course. But it depends on how well the contractor and the spirit are attuned to each other. More importantly, the spirit must be willing to hear the contractor’s voice. Since it requires mental energy, it also takes training.”
“Can you do it? Do you talk to wind spirits that way?”
“It’s possible, but speaking aloud is faster and more convenient. It’s also more efficient.”
“I see.”
“Do you have any other questions?”
“Nope! Let’s hurry!”
We were on our way to somewhere important.
Master Yael was taking me to attempt my first ‘public’ spirit contract—one he was convinced would fail.