By Zephyria 
A blue lump of mana flashed here and there like a meteor, bouncing off my body. The creature, shrieking incessantly and butting its head against my chest, didn’t hurt at all, but its actions were so rough I worried this fly-like thing might get hurt.
“No, what promise did I…”
“[You said you’d help me if I found the bride! You idiot, you fool!]”
“Ah.”
At my dazed voice, the spirit raged, contorting its face into a crying expression.
Unlike Hugh Benson, who couldn’t hear the spirit’s voice before, it seemed everyone around me could hear it today. The gazes fixed on my face felt so unfamiliar and embarrassing. Ruben’s gaze, in particular, felt sticky and made me quite uneasy.
“I… No, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I just lost my head…”
“[I! Couldn’t! Come home! But you just left!]”
“That, that’s why.”
“[We promiseddddd!]”
Despite squeezing my eyes shut, not a single tear fell. The spirit sat down on the ground and wailed.
Couldn’t come home.
The day this spirit helped me, it had waited outside even though the mansion’s gate, etched with defensive magic circles, was open. I realized this spirit couldn’t find me because the mansion we were hiding in was protected by various spells.
So, it had been waiting here all this time?
I had never forgotten a debt of gratitude, no matter how small the help. Even the aid of a mere creature was still help, and without it, I wouldn’t have found Ruben in time. Feeling deeply embarrassed and guilty, I lowered myself to examine the spirit.
“…I, I’m sorry. Alright, what can I do to help you?”
“[Hmph, don’t run away this time! Really! I’ll be super angry!]”
“Alright, if there’s anything I can do…”
The spirit mimed wiping its tears with both hands and then suddenly shouted.
“[Save Nadi!]”
“…Nadi?”
What was that?
Was it a person, a spirit, or a beast?
What… How should I save them?
But we had to return to Sierren now. We couldn’t spare much time for this Nadi. If they were nearby, I could retrieve them, but I considered it a priority to get Ruben to a safe place first.
“Um… Is this Nadi person also sleeping soundly?”
“[No! Nadi is awake.]”
“Then, if we go to Sierren for a moment…”
“[No!]”
At that moment, the back of my hand glowed blue.
A tingling pain pierced through my hand. I was startled by the sensation, like being sliced by a sharp knife, but it wasn’t an unbearable pain.
Now… was this the spirit getting angry? While I was speechless and bewildered, Marianne suddenly cried out in alarm.
“The promise! I’ll keep, I’ll keep the promise.”
“[Are you going to find Nadi?]”
“I… I guess I have to.”
“[Hmph. Hurry up.]”
Had I ever seen Marianne’s face turn this pale? Marianne’s gaze was fixed on the back of my hand, unable to look away. I, too, dazedly looked at the mark.
“…Mika.”
“Yes…?”
“When did you make a contract with a Sylph…?”
“Yes?”
Me? …When?
We had only taken five steps out of the mansion. Everyone stood silently, looking down at the spirit. Elvin quietly placed the bundle he was holding on the ground. A clinking sound of pots came from inside the bundle.
In my daze, Hugh Benson urged Marianne on.
“…What is it? That’s not a wild spirit…?”
“It’s talking. Why would a spirit with a master make a contract with someone else… What did you do?”
“A contract… What is a contract?”
“It’s a contract! What did you give as payment to have five concentric circles for a contract penalty? Why? How?”
“…”
How would I know?
As I stood silently, Ruben tugged at my sleeve. He seemed to want to ask something but held back. He certainly had good instincts. Even if he asked if your bride was referring to me, I couldn’t answer now.
Marianne groaned, clutching her head like Hugh Benson.
The spirit leaped high like a grasshopper and shouted again.
“[Go save Nadi! Right now!]”
❖ ❖ ❖
This was not a conversation for the street.
Since the spirit couldn’t enter the mansion, we had no choice but to find Daru nearby. Coincidentally, it was the same Daru, the same tea house, where I had first brought Raul.
I felt extremely displeased and didn’t want to enter, but since there was no other place to talk quietly, I meekly followed.
The spirit, as if it had never cried, flew around the round table with a clean face. Ruben, who had come out wearing a deep hood, also lowered his hood and stared blankly at the spirit.
Ruben had mentioned seeing a Spirit Master before, hadn’t he? Was it still fascinating?
Marianne, not knowing what to ask or answer, spoke first.
“So… Who is Nadi?”
“[Nadi is Nadi!]”
“Mmm… Is Nadi a person?”
“[A person? Hmm… Nadi is Nadi!]”
This was a difficult hurdle from the start.
Marianne shot me a glare with her eyes. I bore it silently, thinking it was my fault.
Hugh Benson, pressing his temples with both hands, asked with a contorted face.
“Alright. Nadi… How tall are they?”
“[Here! About this tall! …This? No, a bit shorter?]”
Benjamin, who was inadvertently pointed at by the spirit, asked, “Me?” and pointed at himself with his index finger.
About Benjamin’s size.
I had heard that spirits only felt close to people, spirits, or magical creatures. Nadi seemed to be a person. And likely a human male.
Given how many mercenaries had been captured, I wondered if Nadi was one of them.
I wondered which Grand Duke’s mansion I would have to raid again.
I didn’t want to do anything dangerous with the children, so I was quite troubled.
“…Um. Do you know where Nadi is now?”
“[Yes! I am the wind!]”
“Yes, I get that you’re the wind. So, where are they?”
“[In a black room!]”
…A black room.
“You don’t know which district it is?”
“[District?]”
“The one people divide with numbers…”
“[The wind is always one!]”
“…I see.”
As soon as I heard the answer, I saw Hugh Benson cover his face with his hands. How frustrating it must be.
Perhaps relieved that I would help them now, or perhaps because it was a creature that couldn’t think much, the spirit just hummed cheerfully and wasn’t very helpful.
Tapping the table with my fingertips, I tried to suppress my troubled thoughts. After a moment of thought, I asked Marianne.
“…Um, what is this contract, and what’s the penalty?”
“Spirits… like pretty people, you said?”
“…Yes.”
“Secondly, they like people who are desperate.”
“…”
Desperate people.
“Magic is desire. The more desperate you are, the denser the mana you use… So wild spirits often seek out desperate people, receive mana from them, and grant wishes.”
“Yes, I heard that too. But are there spirits that ask for payment instead of mana?”
Hugh Benson chimed in. He had seen me communicate with spirits too. That’s why he hadn’t stopped me. Marianne continued.
“Spirits that have… interacted with humans more and become smarter will want more things. That’s why spirits with masters, or who had masters, are more dangerous than wild spirits. You never know what they’ll demand as payment.”
“…That thing, the penalty or whatever.”
“If you break the terms of the contract, the spirit takes mana equivalent to the degree of desperation. Those terms are etched into the contract circle in concentric circles and cannot be altered or canceled. Five concentric circles mean that the Sylph can take all the mana it can.”
“…Why, why five?”
“Because a Sylph has five fingers.”
“…”
It was an unbelievable explanation, but I understood.
The spirit, listening to our conversation, chattered cheerfully. Mostly about how much it liked Nadi, how well Nadi treated it, and how much fun they, or even five spirits together, had on their travels.
I half-listened, pondering how many people would need to enter that black room. Should Elwin leave the others while Hugh Benson and I infiltrated again? But if this spirit couldn’t enter the mansion, how could we know what kind of person Nadi was?
While we debated, the spirit hopped and skipped on the table, humming.
“[Nadi is pretty. We came from the west. We have to go to the desert! We’re going home!]”
“…What?”
“[The pretty groom has to take Nadi to the desert. That’s the promise.]”
We were all speechless.
That was impossible.
Rescuing a person was one thing, but go to the desert? To uncover the purpose of the one impersonating a god and escape the influence of black magic, we needed the Magic Tower’s help. We had to go to Sierren. It was only right that we protect Ruben under the Duke Widrow Family’s protection and remain wary of the First Prince.
“What is that… It’s absurd.”
“[That’s the promise! We already promised. The pretty groom said they’d do anything!]”
…Did I say something like that… Yes, I did.
Marianne, who had been silent for a long time, let out a growl like a beast and gripped the table tightly.
“Mikael… wherever you go, always get permission from others before signing contracts.”
“…Yes.”
Her voice, spoken through gritted teeth, was quite menacing.
If having mana taken away was akin to feeding mana to a magical creature, I felt a sudden urge to just feed it plenty of mana and be done with it. However, fearing that I might provoke Marianne further by meddling in something I didn’t understand, I watched quietly.
After much deliberation, Marianne asked the spirit again.
“Can you… enter the black room too?”
“[No! But I can enter the black house.]”
“The black house? …Is there a black room inside the black house?”
“[Yes!]”
At least we could get guidance to the vicinity. I was relieved that the risk of going in circles was reduced.
After thinking for a long time, what should we do?
“When do we go?”
“…Shouldn’t we send word to Duke Widrow before that?”
Ruben, who had been listening quietly, suggested. That was also true.
Tedros, who had followed us and was witnessing this predicament, knocked twice on the table to make his presence known. Then, Hugh Benson nodded and spoke.
“First, let’s find out where that black house is. Then we’ll send word or get help from informants. Splitting up the personnel in Owen was enough for once, so let’s stick together, the six of us.”
“…Yes. Then I will return to the mansion and wait.”
“Please do.”
Everyone stood up.
The spirit did three somersaults in the air and fluttered to the window.
“[Then, are we going to Nadi now?]”
“…Yes. But this time, we’ll go by the path people use.”
Why the rush? Nadi was awake, after all. If someone got hurt trying to climb through a window, it would be more trouble.
The spirit grumbled and whined for a long time, but we didn’t follow the path it led.