BSS 13

chapter 13

While I was pulling every kind of face talking to Rai, Ms. El must have thought my worries were serious. She patted my shoulder kindly and spoke in a gentle voice.

“If you can’t decide, how about a fire spirit? They’re the most commonly used. Practical, and among the four major spirits, they have the strongest offensive power.”

“Rejected.”

“Pardon? With your personality, Miss Genie, fire should be perf— I mean, considering your sharp temper, fire seems like a good match.”

“I absolutely hate fire!”

“Huh?”

I died because of fire in my previous life—why in the world would I want to contract with a fire spirit?! I clicked my tongue openly.

It wasn’t certain, but in that kind of situation, my corpse probably burned, too. What greater disrespect to my parents could there be than even losing my body? The thought suddenly brought a painful tightness in my chest.

I never managed to feel attached to my parents in this life.

A convenient part of being at the academy was exactly that—

I didn’t have to call them mom and dad. Every time I said those words, it felt like a thorn stuck in my throat.

Ms. El knelt beside me as I stood there with a sulky face and arms crossed.

He always tried to meet my eyes and genuinely understand me. …He never successfully did, but he tried.

“Then how about a wind spirit? You are my student, after all. It’s the specialty I can teach best.”

“Wind spirits are hard to handle, aren’t they?”

“That’s their reputation. But they’re very versatile.

Their attack and defense are both decent, and they’re fast and agile, so sometimes they’re used for communication.”

I recalled the lessons I’d learned about spirits. Of course, excluding fire.

Wind spirits were difficult to control because of their fickle personality. But they were relatively easy to summon.

Like Ms. El said, they were balanced in every area—nothing lacking, nothing excessive.

Water spirits were gentle and easy to command, but the hardest to summon.

Their defense was excellent, but their offensive power was notably weak. However, starting at mid-tier, they had healing skills—though weak, they could perform recovery magic.

Water had symbolized regeneration since ancient times. The source of life, the mother that embraced all fury.

The Spirit King of Water was said to be able to revive even the dead.

Lastly, earth spirits. Their personality was generally dull, but not violent—just stubborn.

They had the strongest defense among the four, and their offense wasn’t bad. High-tier earth spirits could cause massive earthquakes and wreak chaos across battlefields—a perfect anti-personnel weapon.

They could dig tunnels, block tunnels, cause quakes… definitely useful in war.

[Master, why are you staring blankly?]

[I am not blankly staring, I am thinking.]

[Thinking about what?]

[Which attribute spirit I should contract. Which one fits you best? Wind? Water? Earth? Not fire.]

[My attribute is close to non-attribute, but if you insist… earth, I suppose? Most things that come from earth are under my domain. Still, I am not bound by attributes.]

Oh? In that case—

“Teacher! I decided!”

“Oh! Which one?”

“A water spirit!”

As I cheerfully shouted, Rai’s tired voice echoed in my head.

[…If you were going to pick that, why did you even ask me?]

[Because when you said earth, I realized I don’t want earth. Thanks!]

“A water spirit, hmm. A fine choice. May I ask what draws you to them?”

“Well, because water puts out fire.”

“…I see.”

“Yes. That’s it.”

Ms. El seemed to give up on understanding me. Silently, he pulled out a ring of keys.

We stood before a large door engraved with the spirit-language symbol for “water.”

[Water? Tsk. Water.]

[What’s your problem now?]

[I don’t want to share my master with some common spirit!]

I was still carrying the chatty candlestick under my arm.

He kept insisting he was a spirit, but I had yet to find a single use for him. Would there ever come a day he was helpful?

Who knew.

***

When we stepped inside, lights automatically flared to life from the ceiling.

It looked like magical lamps. On the floor was a summoning circle—much simpler than the one used for Rai. It looked like a low-tier water spirit contract circle.

The “contract room” wasn’t particularly special. It was just a large room with a circle carved into the floor.

“Hm, so that’s it.”

While I relaxed and looked around without a hint of nervousness, Ms. El fussed around anxiously, laying materials on the floor.

He repeated himself for the tenth time, pestering me.

“Miss Genie? I’m saying this because you seem overconfident… but even if the contract fails, don’t be discouraged.

There might be a spirit that suits you better. Finding it is also part of training.”

“You sound awfully sure I’m going to fail. Just my imagination, right?”

“N-no! Haven’t I always said I trust you? Even though you skip classes and sleep through the ones you attend, deep down I believe you’re a good, gentle student.”

When someone tries that hard to believe, it means they don’t believe it at all, doesn’t it?

“It’s practice, Miss Genie. Just practice.”

“Yes, yes.”

“Stand here and read this.”

He placed me in the center and handed me a book, then began pouring mana concentrate into the circle.

I’d done this yesterday, but the clear lighting made it feel more vivid. The dark-green lines gradually painted the pattern—still beautiful and mysterious.

Mana became magic when given the correct rules. Summoning circles worked the same.

In the book was the summoning chant.

“You know the theory, right?”

He handed me a pouch of fairy dust with a worried face.

Not just theory—I had done the practical part yesterday. I nodded confidently.

“Read this passage. The low-tier water spirit summon chant is:

‘O blue spirit of water, pure and gentle power, I seek to join your benevolent strength. By the ancient oath passed down since the beginning, answer my call.’

Can you memorize it?”

“I’m not exactly a prodigy at memorizing.”

“Still, do try.”

“Can’t you just hold the book for me?”

The spirit won’t know if it’s open-book anyway.

He looked displeased, but knowing my personality, he gave in and held the book. He really was too nice.

“Hold a handful of fairy dust.”

“Yep!”

“When you let mana flow into your palm, the dust will glow.”

Since I had practiced yesterday, it was easy.

“Feel the mana flowing through your toes into the circle. Imagine mixing your mana into it, very slowly.”

He explained step by step in the tone of someone guiding a practice session—not a real summon.

Probably because he thought I couldn’t form a contract.

“When the circle shines, throw the dust and recite the chant. Loudly, so the spirit hears.”

I dumped a generous amount of fairy dust into the air.

It spun, glittering gold, then was drawn into the summoning circle like a whirlpool.

Light met light, intensified—and opened a path.

The familiar glow burst up from the circle, though in the brightly lit room it seemed less dramatic than yesterday.

If this were someone’s first time, they’d probably be trembling with excitement.

Calmly, I recited:

“O blue spirit of water—”

“Louder.”

“Pure and gentle power, I seek to join your benevolent strength. By the ancient oath passed down since the beginning, answer my call.”

A breeze stirred out of nowhere, swirling the fairy dust—along with the mana slowly flowing out of my body.

But it was far less draining than summoning Rai. That glutton really did eat mana like crazy! What a wasteful guy!

“Huuh?”

As the light faded, Ms. El gasped.

Above the circle, a tiny drop of water formed.

It bubbled softly, shaping itself—and soon, in perfect form, a small water spirit looked up at me.

Bubble.

“Oh my.”

I lit up like a kid given a new toy, delighted at the shy little low-tier water spirit—an Undine.

I didn’t like dolls, but spirits were useful.

“So cute! Spirits are this cute?!”

“…Impossible!”

Ignoring Ms. El’s shocked gasp, I reached out toward the spirit.