The Rebellious Spirit and the Tearful Elf
Hey~ Elf girl, you watching~? Soft sunlight filtered through my eyelids, and I slowly opened my eyes. I couldn't even remember the last time I'd woken up feeling this refreshed.
"Mmm..."
I stretched out on the bed like a cat, extending my limbs fully. My body, which had felt so heavy and stiff, was noticeably lighter now.
Even in my previous life, I'd always suffered from sleep deprivation, but if I had to pick the best thing about coming to this world, it had to be Luna's fluffy bed and the magical conveniences that let me enjoy these refreshing mornings.
"Our music teacher finally graces us with her presence? You look so peaceful~."
Luna had slipped into the room at some point and was leaning against the window, sipping tea with a smile.
"Yeah, I actually got a full night's sleep for once. I feel like I might survive now."
"Glad to hear it~. Planning to take it easy today?"
"Obviously. Today I'm just gonna roll around doing absolutely nothing..."
I hadn't even finished my sentence.
────Swooooosh.
That eerie melody I'd heard under yesterday's sunset brushed past my ears once more.
It was light, as if carried on the wind, but it had a distinct pitch.
I stopped talking without realizing it and turned my head to gaze out the window at the dense forest.
...There it is again.
It was too precise to dismiss as mere wind rustling leaves.
This wasn't some hallucination lingering from the piece I'd played yesterday.
No, it felt like someone—or something—out there in that forest was calling out to me.
"Ria? What's up~? Staring out the window like that again."
Luna approached with a puzzled look, following my gaze into the woods.
"Luna, I can really hear it. That sound I told you about yesterday. It's not my imagination."
At my serious expression, Luna narrowed her eyes and peered into the forest.
But she soon shrugged and set down her teacup.
"Hmm... All I hear is ordinary leaves rustling~. Well, the mansion's barriers are rock-solid, so it can't be anything harmful. No one's bold enough to charge straight into a grand mage's home~."
"True, but... it feels weird. Like someone's imitating my music."
Seeing my lingering unease, Luna proposed with an amused glint in her eye.
"If you're that curious, why not go check it out~? Worrying won't solve anything. I'll tag along, so no danger anyway!"
I hesitated for a moment.
I hated getting dragged into troublesome stuff, but the idea that this mysterious sound was mimicking my music nagged at me.
More than that, my curiosity as a musician—wanting to know who'd responded to my melody—overpowered my laziness.
"...Okay. Let's go. But if anything dangerous happens, you have to protect me, Luna."
I slung my guitar case over my shoulder just in case and headed out of the mansion with Luna.
The forest path was more maintained than I'd expected, but as we ventured deeper, the trees grew thicker, sunlight dappling through sporadically.
Breathing in the earthy scent mixed with fresh grass, I asked Luna, who was humming idly beside me.
"Luna, by the way, do you know what's in this forest? Like dangerous monsters or anything?"
"Hmm~ Last time I checked, just ordinary wild animals and rare herbs? Oh, boars pop up sometimes, but they all quietly get out of my way~."
Luna strolled along as casually as if we were on a neighborhood walk, chatting away as we delved deeper into the woods. That's when the sound came again.
This time, it was much clearer and more distinct than before.
"I hear it! This way!"
I instinctively hurried toward the source.
The melody broke and resumed intermittently, drawing me closer like a siren's call.
At a spot where the shadows deepened, something sparkled atop a moss-covered boulder.
"Huh...?"
There floated a small, translucent humanoid figure a bit larger than my palm.
It shimmered like a carved gem, hovering in the air.
"Whoa~ A spirit? How fascinating~."
Luna murmured softly beside me, her eyes sparkling.
"A spirit? What's it doing here?"
"Beats me~. Spirits usually live in deep mountains or territories with little human presence, but this is right next to the capital and my mansion? Pretty gutsy little guy."
A bit tense from Luna's explanation, I asked,
"It's... not dangerous, right?"
"Spirits almost never attack humans unless provoked or if nature's harmed. They tend to fear us more."
I approached the spirit cautiously.
It watched me draw near but didn't flee, just stared.
"Hi? Was it you singing my songs yesterday and today?"
The spirit nodded slightly. Then it began vibrating the air around it.
────Whiiiish, hooong...
A melody like wind but with clear scales.
A snippet from the piece I'd played in the plaza yesterday.
I'd thought this world had no music, but to think a non-human was mimicking me.
"Whoa... it really is copying me. Amazing."
"Jealous~. Still just sounds like wind to me~."
Luna pouted.
"Huh? You can't hear it right next to me?"
"Nope. Spirits only let their 'voice' be heard by people they want to talk to or like. It's like mental resonance. They don't care much for humans to begin with."
At Luna's words, I looked back at the spirit.
This tiny, mystical being liked me? A strange sense of pride welled up.
"Hey, little spirit. Can you let this person hear you too? She's my friend."
The spirit tilted its head and turned toward Luna.
It stared at her intently for a moment, then darted behind me in fright, clutching my clothes and trembling like a rabbit facing a predator.
"Eek?! I knew it, but... ouch, that hurts~."
Luna let out a wry chuckle.
"Why's it doing that? Were you making a scary face, Luna?"
"Nah~ My mana’s just too much. Spirits instinctively sense the mana potential inside a mage, even if it's not released. To it, I'm like a walking mega-bomb~."
I gave a bitter smile at the tiny thing shivering behind me.
The grandeur of a grand mage was inconvenient at times like this. As I tried to soothe the spirit and pondered how it knew my music, why it copied me, and why it chose me,
—Rustle.
Something heavy stirred in the thick bushes behind us. Too weighty for wind or a small animal.
"...!"
I gripped my guitar strap reflexively. Luna dropped her languid expression and eyed the bushes.
Finally, pushing through the dense leaves, out stumbled... not a monster, not a boar.
"Huff, huff...!"
A girl—no, an elf—with disheveled golden hair, long pointed ears, and a tear-streaked face.
She scanned around with a whimpering expression, then lit up upon spotting the spirit clinging to my back.
"Boksoon! There you are!"
...Boksoon?
While I blinked at the mismatched name, the elf girl charged toward the spirit in delight.
But—
Thwack—!
"Ow?!"
She headbutted a transparent mana shield Luna had preemptively cast and tumbled backward.
"Owuu... my head..."
I turned to Luna with a baffled look as the elf whined, tears welling up.
"Luna... that's what I think it is, right? A real elf?"
"Yup, seems like it~. An elf near the capital? That's some rare sightseeing~."
Luna propped her chin, mildly surprised.
The elf girl rubbed her head for a while before finally noticing us beyond the shield and freezing.
"Eek! Wh-who are you? Elf hunters? I-I'm not tasty! And I don't have much mana!"
Huddled in fear, she asked timidly. To show we meant no harm, I kept my distance and replied,
"Not hunters. We just followed the spirit's sound here. Who are you?"
"Um... I'm Edelrin, that child's owner... no, friend. But... Boksoon really called you?"
Edelrin's eyes widened in disbelief. Luna interjected from the side,
"To be precise, not both of us—just this friend here~."
Luna patted my shoulder and added, scrutinizing Edelrin before asking sharply,
"But hey, don't elves usually live in groups deep in forests far from humans? Why's a lone one in a forest this close to the capital~?"
Edelrin's shoulders slumped visibly.
She hung her head, face on the verge of tears.
"Well... I was bad at spirit communication, something every elf can do, so I got bullied in my tribe. I couldn't take it and left alone, and somehow ended up here."
An elf who couldn't communicate with spirits?
I pointed puzzledly at the trembling spirit on my back.
"Then what's with this one? You said you couldn't communicate."
"Boksoon... when I was chased out and crying, it was the only one who approached and talked to me first. My one and only friend in the world..."
Edelrin kept glancing at me nervously before tentatively extending her hand.
"Um... could you give it back now? I know you're not scary, but I can't be without Boksoon..."
"Oh, sure. We just came out of curiosity, not to take it."
I turned to the spirit clutching my clothes.
"Come on, Boksoon. Back to your owner? Your friend's worried."
But no sooner had I spoken than the spirit peeked at Edelrin, turned away sharply—
—Whish!
—and hopped onto my shoulder, clinging even tighter.
"Huh...?"
Edelrin's face crumbled instantly.
Tears welled up in her eyes.
"B-Boksoon? Why? It's me! Edelrin! Your owner!"
—Whish whoosh!
"Wha—hey, what's wrong with you! Go back to your owner!"
Panicking, I tried prying it off, but it stuck like gum, refusing to budge.
Watching this unfold, Edelrin finally burst into sobs.
"Pfft... Ria, I knew you were popular, but seducing spirits now too~?"
Luna cackled beside me, clearly loving the chaos, while I stood there, mentally breaking down between the bawling elf and the spirit on my back, staring helplessly at the sky.
My peaceful day off had flown far away once again.