BSS 107

Chapter 107

A lot of time had passed, but the idea of my sister having a child… it didn’t quite sink in. The Anel I knew was a strong warrior, not a mother. They felt completely different.

“That child knows you too, Jini. I’ve always talked about you.”

“About me?”

“You were the bravest girl I’ve ever known.”

“…Sister.”

Hearing that felt like an enormous compliment, and my heart warmed. The way my sister looked at me, and the compass that had brought me here, made me realize that I was someone meaningful to someone else.

“But at first, I didn’t recognize you. It wasn’t until I saw that sparkling spirit that I was certain.”

“Are you talking about Ador?”

When I had been indebted to the Shavel mercenaries, Ador often had to serve as a streetlight at night. Everyone called it “the sparkling one.”

“You seem bigger than before.”

“Really?”

“I remember it being about the size of a fist back then, but now it’s about as big as a human head.”

Was that so?

I looked up at Ador, hovering slightly above. He hadn’t noticed at all. Maybe I didn’t notice the difference because I saw him every day.

[You’ve grown, haven’t you?]

[Unobservant master! You just realized that now?]

[Why did you grow?]

[Because the master’s power has stabilized! It’s easier for me to manifest my power now.]

It was the first time I’d learned this.

Was it like a machine improving its performance, resulting in higher output?

Spirits were mysterious beings, both in the past and now. Humans could interact with them, but very little was truly known.

Much about them remained shrouded in mystery, and research progressed slowly because there were so few spirit tamers.

This lack of information also contributed to the declining number of spirit tamers—a truly vicious cycle.

Indeed, the future for spirit tamers wasn’t bright. Who knew when they might all disappear…

“By the way, what happened to the snake you used to cherish?”

It was Rai speaking.

I gently patted the wolf’s head sitting quietly beside me.

No one would believe if I said that was the snake.

So I had to change the subject again.

“Did I cherish it that much?”

Thinking back, I really did have a lot of secrets. Mostly because explaining them was too bothersome.

“Well, I remember. You always carried it around, didn’t you? Even when sleeping, eating—wherever you went, it went. Anyone could tell you two were friends.”

“Hmph, that much…”

“That snake would coil around your head and hiss at anyone who approached. It was a very clever snake that knew how to protect its master.”

[Hehe! You know a thing or two, human. Master!]

“Do you remember taking revenge on the mercenaries who tried to eat that snake?”

My sister asked with a smile, but I felt a little embarrassed by how long ago it had been.

And with Rai getting all dramatic, it made it worse.

[Gasp! Master! Was that… for me?]

[…Not exactly for you.]

Damn it. Adults had a way of casually bringing up other people’s embarrassing moments.

“Later, when the mercenaries tattled to me, they were so frustrated… They all really liked you. Said the little one was very fierce. Now it’s all just a memory.”

That didn’t feel like praise.

Fierce? That meant cold and tough. When was I ever that cold? I have feelings too!

“Do you still keep in touch with the Shavel mercenaries?”

“No, we can’t. This place is so deep in the wilderness.”

“That’s true.”

I looked around at the dense trees. The endless forest sometimes felt as vast as the open sea.

“Only our tribe lives around here. Not just letters, but outsiders themselves are rare. Anyone coming this far is either coming to die or for some desperate reason.”

“How far to the nearest village?”

“Hmm, about four weeks on foot.”

Ugh, I felt sick just thinking about it. We’d already been walking ten days, and my patience had long run out; I was drawing on future reserves of endurance.

Why do dragons live in such remote places?!

“On horseback, maybe ten to fifteen days.”

“Horses…”

“By the way, are you traveling alone?”

“This one’s with me.”

My sister’s gaze shifted to Rai, and she seemed to accept it immediately.

At that moment, a tribe member cautiously approached behind Anel. He seemed to realize that I and Anelia were acquainted, so his hostility toward me wasn’t as strong as before. He was still wary, though.

“ak dmffheh fdk rkdigo. zkclrk ekcuTdj.”

Then he started speaking quickly to my sister in a language I didn’t understand.

[What’s he saying?]

[Don’t know.]

In Korhan, a confederation of tribes, there were thousands of tribes and therefore thousands of languages. I could speak many, but tribal languages were beyond me.

After a brief conversation, my sister turned to me.

This was right after I had sent Ador back to the spirit realm.

“Jini?”

“Yes, sister.”

“Let’s go to our village together for now. We can’t let you stay long, but we can share some food. You can recover from your travel fatigue, and I’ll lend you my words.”

“Really? Is that okay?”

“Of course. But that wolf isn’t dangerous, right? It’s fine?”

To her tribe, Rai must have seemed threatening.

He was much larger than normal wolves, and his color was unusual.

“Our tribe reveres wolves, but we also fear them greatly.”

“Don’t worry! If it misbehaves, I’ll pull out all its teeth.”

[…Those are my teeth!]

Not mine, so it was fine.

“Could you wait a moment? Before we leave, we need to treat the injured. Seems like a leg is broken, so we need a splint.”

“You mean that person?”

The one who had fallen hard from the tree earlier.

The tribe member was angrily yelling at Anel, who looked troubled.

It was probably my fault. Maybe he resented me being brought to the village after injuring him.

Even if we didn’t share a language, people could read body language.

“I don’t like helping others unnecessarily, but…”

I removed my cloak from my shoulders and slowly approached the injured person.

I smirked and glanced around.

“I’ll help this time. Because I injured you. And it’s also for my sister’s tribe.”

“You’ll help? Can you heal?”

“Did you forget, sister? I’m a water spirit tamer.”

Water symbolizes healing and is also the mother of life. Intermediate water spirits can heal.

“Undine.”

Luckily, we were in a jungle, so the area was humid, and Undine appeared quickly.

[Did you call me?]

A small whirl of water spun in the air and took the shape of a dolphin. Its blue, gem-like eyes shone as it swam leisurely by my side.

Anelia wasn’t seeing spirits for the first time, but she still seemed impressed.

“That’s… different from the one I saw before. Much larger and the aura is different.”

“Undine was a lower-tier spirit. This one is intermediate.”

The tribe members, seeing a spirit for the first time, stared at Undine in astonishment.

Their faces, once hostile, now looked almost cute.

One reached for Undine’s translucent tail and jerked back in surprise when his hand passed through.

“What are you going to do with a water spirit?”

“People know so little about spirits. They don’t realize how incredible these beings are.”

I nodded toward them with a playful smile, urging them to watch closely.

“Undine.”

[Yes, master.]

“Show them. Show them how gentle and magnificent you are.”

[Healing.]

“From the beginning, show them the great power you possess.”

Undine flew to the woman who couldn’t stand.

The blue light emanating from Undine flowed like water and gathered around the injured leg.

It rippled, then seeped naturally into the leg.

Like rain soaking into the soil.

At the same time, the bruises disappeared cleanly.

A small but undeniable miracle.

The surroundings went quiet, and the injured woman, realizing her leg no longer hurt, began exaggeratively massaging it.

Soon, she leapt up joyfully and shouted.

“dkvmwld ks gdk!”

From that moment, the way the tribe members looked at me changed.

The fierce wariness melted like snow, replaced by respect and awe.

Or so I thought.