The Elf's Forest (3)
…This actually works?
I made an incredulous face.
It had been a simple act of curiosity, nothing more.
Unlike elves, humans had low affinity with spirits, making conversation with them difficult at the best of times. That was why, as a general rule, only a chosen few were ever able to wield spirits.
And yet, a spirit was approaching me?
Not just any spirit — the Spirit King Sylphid herself.
I was running a hand through my hair with an expression of sheer disbelief when my world abruptly turned blinding white.
"!"
Alarmed, I scanned my surroundings in every direction. Seina, and the whole of Solia Forest, had vanished as if they'd never existed at all.
—Don't be alarmed. This is a space where you and I can meet, if only for a brief moment.
A beautiful voice drifted through the void. I turned to find a woman I'd never seen before regarding me with an utterly elegant bearing.
"Are you Sylphid?"
She looked unmistakably human, yet she exuded an overwhelming presence. Merely meeting her gaze made it clear I was facing a being on an entirely different plane of existence — something like how a human must feel gazing up at the cosmos.
—Yes, I am Sylphid, King of the Spirits. That aside, never once have I met a soul so calm upon facing me. How curious.
She said this with a look of genuine intrigue.
Must be thanks to my trait, I thought. Without my Mental Fortitude, I doubted I'd have managed to stay this composed.
Anyway, that wasn't the important thing.
"Why do you wish to form a contract with me?"
I couldn't help my curious nature, and the question gnawed at me. Was I really just a lucky bastard who'd stumbled into an opportunity like this? Or was there something else behind it?
—Did I not already tell you? You seemed terribly amusing to me.
"I'm not that entertaining."
—You would deceive the heavens themselves. Were you not the first human to become a Lord? That alone makes you fascinating.
The first human Lord. It was a title shocking enough to stun anyone who heard it. But that applied to demons and humans alike — to a Spirit King like her, it warranted nothing more than a "so I've heard."
"That's not reason enough. Tell me the real reason."
—What a question-laden human you are. If you're that curious, then I shall tell you.
Sylphid's lips curled upward as she continued.
—You are not a person of this world, are you?
'!'
For an instant, her words nearly sent chills down my spine. How on earth could she know?
As if sensing the question burning in my mind, Sylphid opened her mouth slowly.
—I have been watching you for some time. When my children attacked, you neither dodged their blows nor shielded yourself — you simply neutralized them.
She was referring to the skirmish with the elves. When I'd clashed with them, they had summoned wind spirits to assault me.
—That was a power that does not exist in this world. Therefore, you must be from another world entirely.
'…She can deduce that much?'
It was nothing short of astonishing. My defense stat was certainly abnormal — but she'd actually been able to detect it from that alone. Truly befitting a Spirit King.
—Does that answer your question?
"…Very well. Then, what happens if I enter this contract?"
—I shall share a portion of my power with you. Not a bad arrangement, I'd say.
Bad? This wasn't a bad deal — it was a winning lottery ticket. Sylphid's power ranked second among all the Spirit Kings. Contracting with her meant a guaranteed upgrade, no exaggeration necessary.
"Is there anything I need to do in return?"
That was the real issue — what did she want from me? Contracts were, after all, formed on the tangle of mutual interests.
—Nothing at all.
"…Truly?"
—Were you planning to pay me tribute? I simply intend to watch you. That alone promises to be entertaining.
Not bad. No — this is fantastic.
I answered without a shred of hesitation.
"Then I accept. I will form the contract with you, Lady Sylphid."
—A wise choice.
Sylphid extended her hand gracefully. The gesture was something like witnessing Michelangelo's Creation of Adam. And the moment her fingertips touched mine, it felt as though the entire world was being sucked into a black hole.
—I look forward to seeing what you become. Until we meet again.
With those words, my vision went dark.
"Gerard?"
"!"
When I opened my eyes again, I was back in Solia Forest where I belonged. Everything that had just happened felt like a dream.
"What happened?! Did you actually form a contract?"
I nodded at Seina's question.
"That's my lord for you! Humans can barely ever contract with spirits. What's your spirit's name?"
"Sylphid."
Seina turned the name over in her mouth for a moment, then spoke with what sounded like pity.
"…So it's a nameless spirit, huh? Hey, no shame in that. Want something to eat?"
She started trying to console me, which apparently meant she thought the whole thing was a lie. Believe it or not, that was her problem.
I sprang to my feet.
"It's about time I went looking for Floren."
I'd gained an unexpected windfall, but my break was over.
"None of the other elves will tell you, though. How are you going to find her?"
"However I have to."
Then a thought struck me.
Why not ask the wind?
I'd just contracted with Sylphid, after all. Surely I ought to give her power a test run.
I closed my eyes gently. Without even trying to sense the wind, it came to me naturally.
Where is Floren?
There was no place in this world where the wind did not reach. Their eyes were everywhere, circulating across the entire globe — though, of course, places too far away would be beyond them. In a bounded space like Solia Forest, the answer was bound to come.
The wind brushed pleasantly against my skin. I waited at my leisure for a reply.
How long had it been?
"—!"
My face filled with bewilderment.
"Gerard, did you find her?!"
I nodded absently. She'd been far closer than I'd imagined. The idea that the elves would pull something like this had never even crossed my mind.
"So they were toying with us all along."
Clicking my tongue, I activated Maximization and accelerated my speed.
"Will it truly be all right, Chieftain?"
The elf warrior Lefredo spoke with a worried voice.
"There's no choice. This is for Floren's sake."
"…That's not what I mean. I speak of that human. What if he should somehow find Lady Floren?"
Titania smiled at the warrior's concern.
"How could he? That human will never find Floren. Not in a hundred lifetimes."
She was certain of it. Only the elves of the forest and the spirits knew Floren's location. The elves would never reveal the truth to an intruder, and no human could ever contract with a spirit — it was a secret destined to remain hidden for all time.
Comforted by the thought, Titania took a leisurely sip of her tea.
—BANG!
At that very moment, the door of ancient wood flew violently open.
"Ch-Chieftain! It's terrible! That human… he's heading straight for Lady Floren's laboratory right now!"
"WHAT?!"
Titania shot up from her seat.
It was strange from the very beginning.
Seina and I made swift tracks toward Floren's laboratory. The whole story had been absurd from the start. Floren, who had been researching at the Tower of Magic, goes missing barely a day after returning to the forest? And not a single witness had laid eyes on her since?
She never disappeared at all.
—Do you, like all the others, dream of immortality? Or do you seek mountains of gold?
—At first, they all say no. And yet, as time passes, they come trying to use Floren.
The chieftain's words to me surfaced in my mind, and the pieces began snapping together in my head like a puzzle.
The elves, unusually hostile toward humans this time around. An impossible situation — vanished within a single day, yet not one witness to be found. And the abrupt, overwrought hostility the moment I arrived.
"Y-You there, human—?!"
"This area is restricted! Turn back!"
It had all been an elaborate performance staged by the tribes of Solia Forest.
"Wind."
I swept my hand through the air without ceremony. A blade of wind, sharp enough to slice steel clean through, arced in a crescent and came rushing down over the elf's head.
"!"
The crescent grazed just above the elf's crown. He stood frozen, fingering the severed strands of his hair, his face a mask of horror.
"D-Did you just use a spirit's power?"
"Impossible. You never even summoned one."
…Control's still a bit shaky.
That had nearly ended with an elf's head flying through the air — a gruesome scene narrowly averted. I'd clearly need to study the spirits' power a while longer.
"Seina, handle that one."
"Got it, leave it to me!"
"Where do you think you're going, human—! That direction is… GRAAAGH!!"
"Never take your eyes off your opponent."
With that side left in Seina's capable hands, I flung open the laboratory door.
Inside, a woman's back came into view, absorbed in her research, a crystal flask in hand.
"Jeffrey, dear? Is the human gone?"
I spoke in an icy tone.
"Quite the hiding spot you picked."
Floren whirled around in shock at my voice.
"A h-human…? How did you even find this place?!"
"Did you think I'd never know, for the rest of your life?"
That was what I said — but honestly, I'd never have found her without the spirits. I'd taken the elves for paragons of honesty. It hadn't even occurred to me that they might be running a con. But as of today, I'd learned their true colors.
Elves are liars.
"Truly impressive, I must say. Enlisting the Tower of Magic itself to pull off the perfect crime."
Requesting aid from the prestigious Tower of Magic was a clever way to lend weight to her disappearance. The Tower's people would surely have come here, investigating for magical traces and the like — and of course, found nothing. As time passed, she would have been quietly written off as missing.
Floren blinked her enormous eyes and stumbled backward.
"…Are you from the Tower of Magic?"
"Wrong."
I shook my head.
"Ha… then, could you keep this a secret? I'll do whatever you ask."
"Really, now."
I'd braced myself to threaten her, but if she was going to offer, all the better.
"Then make me my weapon."
"…Wait, you're asking me to make you a baby? Human! Are you insane?!"
I stared at Floren in utter disbelief.