Ch. 17
“If Your Majesty were to grant such a thing, I would be grateful. However…”
“However?”
“My abilities are still lacking, and I dare not accept such a great reward, Your Majesty.”
Master Yael’s mouth dropped open as he stared at me in disbelief.
He knew me as the embodiment of baseless confidence, after all.
“Oh? How admirable. Then tell me, what reward should I give you?”
“…I am lonely.”
“Lonely?”
The king, the headmaster, and Master Yael all looked at me as if they couldn’t understand what I was getting at.
I absentmindedly fiddled with my brooch, carefully forming my request.
Something reasonable, something that would make me seem special, yet not something so greedy that it would raise suspicions.
“I am the only student in the Spirit Magic Department, so I am always alone. If Your Majesty would permit it, I would like to keep a pet of my own.”
Would he allow it?
I clasped my hands together and widened my eyes in what I hoped looked like a small girl’s innocent wish. But I had no real confidence that it would be granted.
“Lyle. Are students not allowed to keep animals at the academy?”
“Of course not, Your Majesty.”
“Then this shall be a special exception. Geenie Crowell is granted permission.”
Yes!
Even if I ended up keeping a rat, it was worth trying. Dormitory rules strictly forbade animals, after all.
Rai had better appreciate my efforts.
With the king’s permission secured, the only thing left was to find a corpse. Now, what animal would be convenient to carry around? Rats were small, but people found them disgusting…
As I mulled over my options, a sudden scream came from where the maids were gathered.
“Kyaaah!”
“Aaah!”
The knights immediately rushed toward the commotion. The maids scattered in panic, and one particularly frail-looking maid collapsed, foaming at the mouth.
“What is this commotion?”
Looking closer, I spotted a small snake slithering out from the rose bushes. Its movements stood out against the lush green grass.
“It seems a snake has appeared, Your Majesty. I will dispose of it.”
“Royal Guards!”
One of the knights strode toward the snake. Sensing danger, the creature lashed out and bit the knight’s foot. But its fangs were useless against the knight’s armored boots.
In the end, the snake was sentenced to death for disrupting the royal tea gathering.
The execution was swift and decisive.
It would have been easier to simply behead it with a sword, but no one dared to unsheathe their blade in the presence of the king.
As I stared at the snake’s lifeless body, lying in the same position as it had been in life, I felt a strange emotion.
Was it pity? No, this was…!
“Ah! Wait! Sir Knight, please wait!”
I cried out desperately as the knight turned to dispose of the body.
I quickly clambered down from my high chair and ran over to him.
The sudden attention of everyone in the gathering focused on me.
“What is the matter, my lady?”
“Could you give that snake to me?”
“…What?”
The knight furrowed his brows, clearly baffled.
Master Yael, who had followed after me, tried to turn me back toward my seat, but I needed that snake.
I vaguely recalled that one of the 124 rules of royal etiquette forbade leaving one’s seat without permission. What a hassle.
“Your Majesty! The poor snake…”
Regardless of my true intentions, I turned to the king with teary eyes.
“It committed the crime of disturbing Your Majesty’s presence, but how could it have known? Please, allow me to take it and bury it in a sunny place.”
Crying was easy.
I only had to recall the moment I had died, longing for my mother and father.
The king seemed quite moved by my tearful plea.
“What a kind heart you have! To even feel sympathy for a snake.”
“A Spirit Mage must love all of nature.”
Even as I said it, I marveled at my own nonsense.
Master Yael stared at me in utter bewilderment, clearly struggling to reconcile this version of me with the one he knew.
With a simple wave of his hand, the king signaled the knight to hand me the snake.
“Here.”
Up close, the snake looked much bigger. It was as thick as three of my fingers and a dull, earthy color.
If its head was triangular, it was likely venomous. And this one had quite the menacing triangle.
The knight looked at me expectantly, as if waiting for me to take it. I gave him a pitying look instead. Some people really lack common sense.
“Please wrap it up.”
There was no way I was touching that thing with my bare hands.
Apparently flustered, the knight pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and carefully wrapped the snake in it.
[Master? Master, that thing… surely not…]
[Surely is how you catch a Spirit.]
[Please, anything but that!]
[Hehehe.]
[A rat! Master, please! A rat instead!]
Rai wailed as if sensing his impending doom.
But I liked the snake. It didn’t shed fur and had a distinctive charm.
Looking at it closely, it was actually kind of cute.
…Maybe my tastes were a little unusual.
Even I had to admit that I tended to do things most people wouldn’t.
A normal girl wouldn’t barge into the alchemy lab, shove someone out of their seat, and do what I was doing now.
I stared intently at the bubbling cauldron over the furnace. The black liquid inside boiled and frothed.
It was a concoction made by melting down copper, bronze, silver, gold, iron, and a few gemstones I had on hand—all of which I had borrowed from the alchemy lab.
It would have been nice if it turned out a pretty color, but despite the effort, it was just a dull, murky mess.
“Geenie… isn’t this taking too long? What if the professor comes?”
“As if I don’t know that? That’s why I told you to stand guard!”
“S-Sorry!”
I snapped at the owner of the seat I had stolen, scaring him off.
The reason I was engaging in such a suspicious activity?
It was all thanks to Rai’s incessant begging.
“So? Is it ready? I think it looks about right.”
[Not yet. Just a little longer, and we’ll reach the perfect temperature. The timing is crucial, Master.]
“Damn, it’s hot as hell.”
According to Rai, once more than ten types of metals were melted together, dropping the snake into the mixture would cause it to dissolve and merge with the molten metal, becoming its body.
Something about the metal needing to remember the snake’s shape? That metals that retained their form were best suited to become bodies?
It was completely unscientific.
But this world didn’t operate on science.
I thought it sounded like some quack’s nonsense, but for now, I decided to do as Rai instructed.
[But, Master?]
[What now?]
[Does it have to be this snake?]
This was the thirteenth time he had asked the same question.
And the answer was always the same.
[Who is the master here?]
[…Geenie Crowell, my lady.]
[And you are?]
[A mere spirit…]
[And I am?]
[A superior…]
[Exactly.]
[…Sniff.]
Rai had a bad habit of getting cheeky, so I had to make sure he stayed in his place.
Laughing so loudly at the tea party, for instance—I needed to reestablish my authority as his master.
[Ah! Master, now! It’s time!]
Squatting in front of the bubbling cauldron had reached its limit.
I grabbed the white pouch in my hands and dumped its contents into the pot.
The snake I had obtained earlier slid smoothly into the molten metal, dissolving instantly.
Watching its body melt away into the metallic liquid, I couldn’t help but feel like a witch brewing some sinister potion.
[It’s kind of sad, in a way…]
[Gasp! Master, do you actually feel sympathy?]
[What happens if I drop a rat in there too?]
[…I will shut up now.]
Tsk. This slow-witted spirit could never understand his master’s delicate heart.
Then again, he was made of metal. What more could I expect from a brooch?
[Is it done now?]
[It’s happening!]
What is?
The question barely formed in my mind before the liquid in the cauldron suddenly solidified.
Then, just as quickly, it began to shrink and evaporate.
Mana was being absorbed.
“Oh?”
Where had all that black liquid gone?
I peered into the now-empty cauldron.
Inside, curled up in a coil, lay a very familiar-looking snake.
[Master! It worked!]
The snake raised its head and shook it excitedly, as if boasting about being alive.
[So it really does work…]
[You doubted me?]
[Well, this world defies logic at every turn.]
The pitch-black snake slithered out of the cauldron, its movements sluggish at first.
Then, as if recognizing me, it lifted its head high.
I instinctively reached out, thinking it wanted me to hold it, but as soon as I felt its weight, I quickly shoved it away.
[For the love of—slither like a normal snake!]
My wrist nearly snapped!
Despite its appearance, the thing was ridiculously heavy.
It seemed the metal hadn’t disappeared—it had just been compressed.
Of course. I had boiled an entire cauldron of molten metal. That weight had to go somewhere.
[Shall I lighten my body, Master?]
[You can do that?]
[Of course. I can adjust the weight, strength, and even properties of all metals at will.]
[Seriously? Then can you turn into a diamond?]
[Yes!]
[You’re actually useful! Do it now!]
[If I absorb a diamond, that is.]
…Damn it. Of course.