[No Title Provided]
With that contract, the red book—which had grown fat by devouring patrons of the Golden May Library—was duly exterminated by Luna and her companions.
"Nooo, my library!!!"
Of course, right after the subjugation, there was the minor incident of Librarian Jerome bursting into tears of blood upon seeing the disaster that had befallen his domain. But when he spotted Flora and Walter collapsed in utter exhaustion, he clamped his mouth shut.
After hearing the full details of the incident and the red book's schemes from Luna, Jerome finally grasped the situation. With a solemn expression, he praised her and immediately handed over the promised two hundred gold as reward.
Fortunately, Walter and Flora had merely suffered mana and divine power depletion from overexertion. After a short rest in the church's recovery ward, they were back to full health and came rushing to meet Luna. Though they hadn't witnessed the final showdown with the red book firsthand, they praised her for handling their roles splendidly, suggested teaming up again for future requests, and then parted ways to return to their own duties.
And so, Luna used the money she'd earned working at the inn plus about half her reward from this job to successfully buy a house in the slums district.
"Hiiiiaaaah!"
Luna let out a shrill scream as she hurled herself onto the bed in her new home.
"Mmmuuu..."
She curled up like a kitten, rubbing her face against the sheets and making the cutest little noises.
[Heh. Well, can't blame her—she's earned it.]
Last night had been a nonstop battle with the red book. At dawn, she'd had to explain everything to Jerome. Then came goodbyes with her companions and buying this house for her workshop. All in one day.
"Euuugh..."
I got why she wanted to melt into that bed after handling all that, but...
[Enough lounging. Duty calls.]
"Mmmuuu..."
I raised a shadow tendril and dragged the bed-fusing, speech-impaired Luna over to the desk, plopping her down.
"Gack!"
Luna clutched her neck, grumbling softly as she was hauled away.
"Tch. Such a strict grimoire."
[Did I just hear some disloyal disciple harboring mutinous thoughts toward her master...?]
"So what do I need to do, Master?"
She quickly tucked in her pouty lips and gazed at me with sparkling eyes. I chuckled inwardly at the sight.
[Perfect timing—we snagged some Mystery Remnants too. We could craft another useful enchanted item like before, but today's project is a bit more... special.]
"Special?"
Luna tilted her head quizzically.
[Yep.]
From the recent clash with the red book, I'd gotten a clear read on Luna's fighting style. Her specialty: shadow manipulation. She molds simple shapes like tentacles or walls to distract enemies, then strikes fatally from blind spots with complex shadow constructs. Solid tactic.
But it has one glaring flaw: she's extremely vulnerable in close-quarters against groups. She'd be too busy fending off approaching foes to divert attention, let alone form powerful shadows. The red book's final frenzy proved that—she couldn't cope properly.
[Anyway, what we're trying today will patch that weakness nicely.]
"Ugh."
Luna hung her head, indignant but not arguing. She knew I was right deep down.
"So what exactly is going to cover my flaw, Master? If it's not an enchanted item, I can't think of anything."
To her fair question, I grinned.
[A contract.]
"A contract?"
[That's right.]
I floated through the air near her as I explained.
[Luna, as you know, your shadows teem with countless beings you don't even know about. From bottom-feeders like the Night Servants and Black Locust Swarms we summoned before, to powerhouses that could wipe out a whole kingdom if called forth.]
Luna gulped and glanced at her feet.
[Anyway, there are two main ways to call these things. First: direct summoning via sacrifice, like the red book and I did. Problem is, no compulsion—the summon might ignore orders or even turn hostile in the worst case.]
I glanced at the rapt Luna and continued.
[Second: contract. The standard for mages' familiars. You supply ongoing mana, and in exchange, it obeys you. Big difference from summoning.]
Luna nodded, getting it.
[So, contract with a sturdy frontline tank to handle your complex spellcasting, and boom—weakness fixed, no extra effort.]
At the end of my brief lecture, Luna's earlier boredom was gone, replaced by eager fascination.
"Master! So how do we do the contract?"
[Hah, easy there. It's simple.]
With Luna convinced, I spat out the red book's remnants I'd secretly stashed in my shadows and began prepping.
Tiny blades sprouted from the floor, dancing gracefully to peel off the stuck cover and slice away melted pages. Soon, after skinning the book stitch by stitch to its core, blackened, withered veins and heart appeared.
[Bingo.]
I carefully extracted the heart and called to the blankly watching Luna.
Prep for the contract complete. Now, just hope for a good catch.
I hauled desk-sitting Luna to the room's center. She stood tensely as I severed her shadow and pinned it in place.
Amazed by her detached shadow, she pricked her finger with a needle per my instructions, dripping blood onto it.
Plip!
As the drop slid from her pale, slender finger to the fixed shadow, it bubbled and swelled with a furious boil.
"M-Master, is this... normal?"
Luna eyed me anxiously.
[Of course. Perfect.]
I sharpened a tendril tip like a fishhook, impaled the withered black heart on it, and tossed it into the churning shadow.
Sploosh!
The black heart sank in, and the near-exploding shadow instantly calmed.
[Heh, be right back.]
"Huh?"
[Climb up when that tendril shakes.]
"Whaaat?!"
I ignored her shocked cry and sank into deep trance.
Blub blub...
A dreamy haze pulled my mind into a deep, black lake. Soon, I saw the black heart I'd thrown pulsing, regaining its color.
[Ahh—truly a ■■ direct■s■...]
Ruuuumble—
A six-headed deep-sea fish with flaring red mane charged from afar toward the heart. Strong, sure, but too much for Luna's level. Pass.
Kaboom!
A massive storm at my will swept it away.
Same story after: mountain-eating turtles, corpse flies, volcano-moths, rot-lords... Top-tier Ibemworld contenders swarmed for the contract, but all too mighty for current Luna. Rejected.
Man, nothing suitable...?
As I tired of vetting applicants...
[Hee hee hee hee...]
Laughter filled the void—from kids to dying elders, women, gentlemen, beggars, princes, hunks... A cacophony echoed in the dark backworld.
[Hmm...]
Unlike the others, this fresh approach piqued my interest. I waited.
Step... step...
Laughter faded; a bold applicant appeared.
[Oh? Ho ho. Yes, you'll do nicely.]
Satisfied, I yanked the hook.
[Looking forward to working with you, haha...]
Grumble—sploosh!
Dreamlike snap; consciousness returned.
[Ahh, that familiar sensation.]
"Hah—hah—You called but said nothing! I was worried!"
Luna shoved the now-empty black tendril at me accusingly.
"Looks like you just yoinked the heart and vanished, Master?"
[Hmm? No way. If it's your familiar now, the contract's sealed perfectly.]
"Then where is it?!"
[Right under your feet, duh.]
She looked down and yelped in surprise.
"Eek! Th-this is my summon?!"
[Yep.]
Luna muttered as she scooped up the black cat nuzzling her ankle.
"Meow~"
"S-so... cuuute..."
[Cuteness aside, this one's your sturdy frontline for future fights.]
"This little guy?"
[So I said.]
As if answering her doubt, the cat in her arms leaped lightly to the floor. Its shadow suddenly billowed, forming a chilling grin as it stared at Luna.
[Better? Convinced now?]
"Y-yeah..."
"Meow~"
Luna's voice deflated a bit; intimidated. The cat retracted its shadow and hopped back into her arms, purring.
I watched, then suggested casually.
[How about naming it?]
"A name? Hmm..."
She stroked it thoughtfully, then beamed confidently.
"Cheshire? What do you think?"
"Meow~"
The cat mewed approval; solid name, I agreed.
"Yaaay~ Anyway, we're done now, right?"
[Yep. Good work. Rest up.]
"Even if there was more, I couldn't..."
Luna mumbled as she crawled into bed. Cheshire settled by her head like a guardian.
What a tumultuous day.
"Hnnnya..."