The Third Spirit (1)
A moment later, Aqua snapped out of her daze and let out a flustered voice.
[Te-, Terra? Terra?]
Aqua blinked her eyes repeatedly, mumbling blankly as if she still couldn't grasp the situation. I was just as shocked. But Terra's gaze was so steady and composed that it helped calm me down too.
I asked carefully, "You want to contract with me? Mind if I ask why?"
[I want to fight Pompeii too.]
Pompeii had challenged Aqua to a duel. The only ones who could participate were Aqua, her contractor me, and the spirits contracted to me.
Terra glanced at Uluru, who stood a short distance away, and said, [Life and death can't coexist.]
"……Life and death?"
Terra shook her head slightly, as if it were no big deal. [I'm personally interested in the human world too.]
Aqua had once called Terra a spirit full of curiosity. For someone like her, the human world brimming with new things must have been a place she absolutely wanted to visit.
'Especially since her friend Aqua is already out there in the human world.'
Like the saying "friends who go to Gangnam together," people always want to do what their friends are doing.
"Hmm……."
Terra wanting to contract with me was undoubtedly good news. It would be an honor for any spirit contractor. But for me, it was something I needed to think over carefully.
"Terra, can you give me a moment?"
[Yep.]
Terra replied flatly and stood up, stepping aside to give me space. I watched her retreating figure, lost in thought.
'Just because I have the Multi-Attribute trait doesn't mean I can contract with any spirit I want.'
The first issue was Spirit Affinity. I still couldn't fully cover the cost of Aqua's manifestation in the human world. There were Spirit Stones from the Spirit Shop, but greed could backfire.
'And the real problem is something else.'
It was about affinity with spirits—not the Spirit Affinity skill, but genuine closeness with the spirits themselves.
Most A-rank spirit contractors bonded with high-grade spirits. On the other hand, Jeong Ri-on from the Immortal Guild was an A-rank contractor but had contracts with three mid-grade sylphs.
This wasn't about the number of spirits possible per rank. Some contractors could handle multiple spirits, while others couldn't.
'Some spirits want to monopolize their contractor.'
In those cases, recklessly adding more contracted spirits wasn't wise. It could lower intimacy with existing spirits, actually reducing combat effectiveness. A spirit contractor's battles relied on bonds and teamwork with their spirits.
—Don't abuse contracts just because you can. Remember that well. One spirit like family is better than two awkward ones.
It was something the Spirit Studies professors had emphasized repeatedly.
I looked at Aqua and Mandu. Aqua was still sitting there with her mouth agape, blinking blankly. Mandu flicked his tongue indifferently, as if he didn't care either way—a sign of approval.
So the key was Aqua's opinion.
'She accepted Mandu easily enough.'
To Aqua, Mandu felt like a much younger brother—one she'd rescued herself, healed, and practically raised.
But Terra was different. She was Aqua's close friend and fellow successor. She might even feel like I was being taken from her.
'Studies show spirits close to their contractor feel more sense of loss with multiple contracts.'
One Academy professor had compared it to an eldest child's feelings when a sibling is born.
I gently scooped up Aqua, who was still sitting dazedly, and settled her on my lap.
"What do you think, Aqua?"
Aqua snapped to attention and peered at my face cautiously. [If I say not to contract, you won't?]
"Of course. Your opinion matters most when it comes to welcoming a new family member."
A relieved, trusting smile spread across Aqua's face.
[Mm!]
Aqua crossed her arms, her shocked expression fading. [Terra contracting with you…….]
She pondered with a furrowed brow. To help her think, I asked, "You against it?"
[eumm……. Not sure.]
Aqua let out a small sigh. [Even if she doesn't contract with you, she'll still go to the human world, right?]
"She said it's hard staying with Uluru."
[Then I hope Terra contracts with someone as good as you. But you're one-of-a-kind on Earth, so she won't find anyone better. So……. hmm…….]
Her voice brimmed with friendship and affection for her friend.
"You like Terra?"
[Of course! We've been friends since we were born!]
Aqua declared proudly, then fell back into thought. [If Terra has to contract with a human, I'd want it to be you. But…….]
Aqua pouted. [You're my contractor…….]
That pouty lip, full of possessive desire, was so adorable I pulled her into a tighter hug. Through our touching skin, I could feel her turmoil. I simply waited quietly for her decision.
[Hmm…….]
Pondering, Aqua spread both hands wide and stared down at them, muttering to herself.
[Terra gets a good contractor.]
She folded one finger on her right hand.
[I can live with Terra.]
Another right finger folded.
[Terra might steal Hyunwoo.]
This time, a left finger folded. Apparently, right hand for pros of contracting with me, left for cons.
Aqua agonized over it, folding fingers. By the end, all her right fingers were folded, while only one on her left remained.
[hmm…….]
Aqua stared at that single finger, pouting sadly. It must have weighed heavily on her.
I gently reached out and unfolded her left pinky. "Don't worry. I won't let Terra steal me from you."
Aqua looked up at me—eyes thirsting for love, worrying over love, like a child starved for it.
[But……. Even if we're two, you'll still be alone.]
"I'll just love you both twice as much. And whether it's two or three of you, you'll always be my first spirit."
Aqua blinked and asked, [I'm your first?]
"Obviously."
Her eyes sparkled as she asked again, wanting to hear it. [Always your number one?]
"Of course."
Aqua's lips curved up in a smile so joyful it tickled my heart.
[I'm your number one?]
"You're always my number one."
A brilliant smile bloomed on Aqua's face. It was thanks to her that I became a spirit contractor and unlocked the Spirit Shop.
'The greatest miracle in my life.'
All spirits were precious, but if I had to pick the most special one, it was Aqua without hesitation.
I leaned in and planted a soft kiss on her plump cheek, pouring my thoughts and feelings into it.
[hehe!]
Aqua threw her arms around my neck. Her soft, squishy lips brushed my cheek shyly and swiftly.
[You're always my number one too!]
"Heh heh heh."
In that embrace, I knew Aqua had made her decision.
* * *
When I relayed our decision to Terra, she immediately went to tell Uluru. And an argument broke out.
[Terra, contracting with a human is your choice, but I oppose you going to fight Pompeii.]
Uluru calmly tried to persuade her. [That's not our role.]
Terra, as if expecting the opposition, calmly stated her case. [It might not be yours, but I have to do it.]
[The role of earth spirits is to watch and accept what happens in the Spirit Realm. We mustn't intervene directly.]
We watched their debate with fascination. The gnomes in the cave began emerging one by one to witness their king and heir arguing.
[Uluru, I don't deny your role as an observer. You're the perfect mother of the Spirit Realm for that.]
Terra spoke with her usual stoic gaze. [But if Pompeii has truly fallen, it's not just the water spirits' burden.]
[Terra, earth is the foundation of this Spirit Realm. As earth spirits, we're the ones holding up the very bottom. We mustn't judge or restrain anyone.]
Spirits of the realm revered the Earth Spirit King, this land and these mountains. Her point was that the king or her heir stepping in could carry heavy symbolic weight.
Terra didn't back down. [I respect your will as much as I love you. But I'm like you, not you exactly.]
Uluru's eyes seemed a touch forlorn at those words—it wasn't my imagination.
[I see death in the earth. It's always there, warmly supporting life, yet sometimes colder and more frightening than anything.]
I couldn't help letting out a small gasp of admiration. I'd never imagined a spirit pondering death so deeply.
'She said if Uluru is life, then she herself is death.'
Terra's words weren't spoken lightly. She continued calmly, [I'll watch Pompeii with those you've chosen. And if he must die as a result, it should be by an earth spirit's hand.]
Everyone fell silent, listening. Uluru was wary of earth becoming a symbol.
'That's why she'd rather leave it to Aqua and Niagara without stepping in herself.'
Uluru wanted to preserve a harmonious, peaceful Spirit Realm.
[So stay the benevolent earth mother. I'll be the death.]
Terra, on the other hand, insisted earth must serve a symbolic role. Perhaps she believed the Spirit Realm needed a standard of justice.
'And she plans to be its enforcer.'
Who was right? Who was wrong? There was no answer here. As Uluru said, the world held only differing thoughts—no wrong ones.
Terra calmly finished her piece. Uluru gazed at her for a long moment, unable to argue, her eyes forlorn.
[……All right. If you respect me, I must respect you too.]
Her eyes remained sad, but a proud smile curved Uluru's lips. [Children must leave their mother's side someday. I just didn't expect it so soon.]
Uluru pulled Terra into a tight embrace. It looked like a 7-year-old hugging a 4-year-old, but it was unmistakably mother and daughter.
[Go, Terra. Follow the path you believe in. I'll always support you.]
[Thank you, Uluru.]
Terra hugged her back. The surrounding gnomes began stomping softly—a song of the earth for their princess embarking on a new path.
[hmm.]
Aqua eyed Niagara. So did I, and Sia Clearwater too. Our gazes chided him: Why couldn't you say something that cool?
[Ahem, ahem. Ahem.]
Niagara averted his eyes, as if he had nothing to say even if he could.
* * *
Thud-.
Thud-.
Against the rhythm of the gnomes' stomping, Terra approached me. It was time for the contract.