Ch. 150
Silk ribbons? Totally lame!
A pet? Look at Rai!
Magic tools? Too soon.
After wandering the market for a long while, I stopped before a fairly large weapons shop. Hanging there was a handsome pair of twin swords that caught my eye.
Right, Annie’s tribe was famous for twin-blade swordsmanship.
“Rai! How about those? The size is just right and the material looks good.”
[For a kid’s entrance gift? Twin swords?]
“Yeah. She may be in the Spirit Department, but she can practice swordsmanship too. A Spirit Swordmaster! How cool is that?”
[…If the message is ‘kill anything that bothers you,’ I won’t stop you.]
“That’s not exactly the message. Though it’s not a bad one.”
[That’s… very much how it reads.]
The twin swords tempted me, but if Rai was snarking, it meant they were a terrible idea, so I dropped it.
I knew Annie wasn’t the type to kill recklessly like me, but if a child I vouched for so much as injured some noble, it would be a headache.
“Picking a gift is harder than I thought. When have I ever done something like this?”
I’d already looked through nearly every shop and stall by the time I stopped before an apothecary, where a sign caught my eye.
“Special remedy for hand numbness!”
On a rainy day, Ash’s trembling hand flashed through my mind.
He’d switched his sword to the other hand and looked at me a little sheepishly.
Hands clasped behind me, I stared at the nameless dried herb.
“Welcome! What are you looking for?”
The shopkeeper hustled out and launched into his pitch—a talkative fellow.
“For numbness, this one works great! Even better if you take it with that. If it’s old-age numbness, I recommend different items.”
“What about numbness from an old injury?”
“What kind? There are many kinds of numbness. If it aches dully, you’ll need something stronger. If it’s an old wound, stronger still!”
“When he was a kid… about ten years ago, his palm was pierced in an accident, and the nerve was cut—it seems like aftereffects. He did get treated, but it still goes numb sometimes. When it’s bad, he can’t even hold his sword.”
Pressing my left index finger into my right palm to demonstrate, I explained. The shopkeeper nodded like he understood, then dashed inside.
Soon he returned with a silver ointment tin.
“In that case, I’ve got just the thing! This! You make a plaster and apply it. It’s really something. Just 20 silver!”
“Does it work?”
“Of course!”
“Promise?”
“I promise!”
“On your life?”
“…Must I go that far?”
“You said 20 silver! It better be worth that!”
Maybe I pressed him too hard.
“I’ll make it 5 silver.”
It plummeted to a quarter of the price in an instant.
I was going to buy it anyway. Ash had bought medicine for me when I was laid up, so this was a small return favor.
“Can you cut it more?”
“You look like you’ve got plenty of money, why…?”
“I’m going to say I found it on the way, but you don’t find 5 silver lying in the street.”
“Excuse me.”
“Just cut it!”
“There, the blonde Spirit Mage.”
That was definitely someone calling me.
Lured by the friendly, clear voice, I turned to see two figures in dark cloaks approaching. Judging by the aura, they weren’t human.
That distinct aura was unmistakable…
“Would you recognize me, nameless one?”
[Oh, it’s that Dark Elf.]
It was the Dark Elf I’d freed on the mountain. She had told me her name.
“Of course. So, Da… Da… Daru- something?”
[Daphne?]
“It’s Daria.”
“Right! Daria! Nailed it.”
“Yes—one syllable.”
Well, let’s not sweat the small stuff.
I tossed the shopkeeper 5 silver and gestured for him to scoot. Even if I hadn’t, Daria’s companion was radiating such murderous intent that he bolted anyway.
“You’re still in town. I thought you’d have left already.”
“I wanted to thank you, so I kept waiting.”
“That’s not necessary.”
Her face was hidden by a hood, but I could feel her companion glaring at me.
He was at least a head taller than either of us, and his killing intent was nearly on par with a carnivorous monster’s—only neatly contained, unlike a monster’s.
“You’re my benefactor. But leaving without knowing your name felt rude.”
“Geenie.”
“Geenie—I’ll carry that name in my heart forever. Thank you for saving me, even if this is late. I swear on our god’s name: I won’t forget your kindness. This is my brother, Zekar.”
So the murderous aura wasn’t a fluke.
An Exorcist, was it? I remembered an extremely dangerous-sounding brother was coming to fetch her.
Apparently he had found her. Being Daria’s brother, he was, of course, a Dark Elf.
“You. You’re the one behind that catastrophe.”
His aura felt familiar. Hearing that gloomy voice, it clicked.
This jerk! He was the one who made a scene in front of the inn! I’d stared at him because his aura felt similar to Roenin’s. He nearly killed the man he picked a fight with, and Ash stepped in to stop him.
“The town is abuzz saying Dark Elves did it. Surely it wasn’t you?”
“Is that your idea of thanks?”
“…I am grateful you saved my sister.”
“How do Dark Elves repay favors?”
“…”
“Money would do.”
If he thought that level of killing intent would scare me, he was sorely mistaken.
Endairon’s presence was ten times heavier; Magi’s, twenty times more chilling. And Adelaide Gold’s killing intent carried a despair that made it feel preferable to die by my own hand. After all that, a Dark Elf didn’t rate more than a snort.
“Humans truly know no shame.”
“I’m the one who saved her—why should I mind my shame? If you’ve got something to give, hurry up. I’m busy.”
“Insolent!”
“Wanna go, then?”
I bared my teeth and growled as harshly as Rai had earlier, and Zekar answered with equal savagery.
A Dark Elf notorious for a bad temper and a human no less ill-tempered—no wonder it took no time for murderous intent to bloom between us.
Unable to watch, Daria threw herself between us to mediate, but we kept barking even while she held us apart.
“Filthy human!”
“Who are you calling filthy, you soot-black—!”
“Stop! Please stop! I hadn’t planned to give anything… but you’re right! Humans do show appreciation with gifts, I’ve heard. Please take this!”
In a fluster, Daria slipped off the bangle on her wrist and offered it to me.
A round ornament carved from stone—old-fashioned charm, but not my taste.
“It’s nothing much, but please accept it.”
“It really is nothing much. Sorry—put it away. I’m not into jewelry.”
“…If you wear this, you won’t be harmed even if you enter Dark Elf lands. It’s a sign of friendship.”
“Which means if I never enter Dark Elf lands, it’s useless.”
“T-There are other functions! This bangle increases affinity with spirits. Wearing it helps—at least somewhat—with spirit arts.”
I’d been declining with a bored face, but in the blink of an eye my attitude flipped. Lest she change her mind, I snatched the bangle first and clasped both of Daria’s hands.
Then I gazed at her like we’d been friends for ten years.
“My, Daria! You are such a good elf!”
“I’m glad you like it!”
“Ugh… revolting.”
Zekar was being dramatic.
“Thank you. I really do like it. I needed just such a piece! Can’t get enough of them. So—do you have more?”
“More…?”
“I want a full set. How much? Earrings and a necklace—do you have those? Rings? Where do these come from? What’s the material?”
I’d never seen anything that boosted affinity with spirits, so my greed surged uncontrollably.
As expected of the original friends of spirits—the Elves! You had things like this and kept them to yourselves?
I’d seen auxiliary tools that helped mages, but even those were rare and limited. For Spirit Mages, I’d assumed such items simply didn’t exist.
“The material is ordinary stone. But it’s taken from the altar we’ve used for generations, so it’s thick with the spirits’ aura.”
“An altar?”
“Humans call it a spirit circle. We have a temple where the spirit circle is enshrined. This was carved from that stone.”
“You call the Chamber of Contract a temple?”
The materials were easier to obtain than expected. A space with a spirit circle—Royal Drike Academy had one of those. An awfully wasted room, since I was the only student.
“We regard spirits as one of the gods. Gentle, small gods who come to us… so we hold them dear.”
“I see. So to make this, you just carve stone from a space engraved with a spirit circle?”
“It’s a bit different. All our clans use prescribed altars to summon spirits and form contracts… most of our altars have histories of at least several thousand years. The oldest are over ten thousand.”
“…Wait—don’t tell me.”
“That’s right. Only old altars, and those used endlessly, gain that efficacy. After thousands of years of incessant summoning and contracting, the spirits’ aura settles into the altar and it becomes numinous—but that’s not all.
We craft that stone into ornaments we always carry, as a source of prayer. This is… not ordinary stone, but a composite imbued with the power of spirits and Spirit Mages.”
So much for that. That’s the kind Rai can’t copy. Even if he absorbed it, he’d spit out ordinary stone.
I couldn’t hide my gloom, and from the sound of his snickering I knew Zekar was mocking me.
“Kh-kh-kh…”
“There’s no way humans have such ancient altars…”
“Of course not! Hah, inferior humans. So arrogant for creatures who barely live a hundred years.”
‘…Do you have a Dark Flame Dragon in your right hand or something? You’re insufferable.’
It stung because it was true. Humans could never make such altars. Short lifespans were one issue, but above all, Spirit Mages were extremely rare. We couldn’t have the same culture as Elves, most of whom were Spirit Mages.
Zekar was obnoxious, but I had to concede. Must be nice—being an Elf! Having things like this!
“When one of us makes their first contract, the eldest presents this to the youngest.”
“So you don’t have any more?”
“Sadly, I only have the one.”
Regret made me smack my lips and look to Zekar. He definitely had one.
“You’ll get nothing from me!”
“Hmph, you don’t need to bark. I get it.”
All I did was look—no need to overreact. Sure, I looked like I wanted it, but I didn’t even ask!
Pouting, I slipped Daria’s bangle onto my wrist.