The Shrine in the Spirit Forest
"Over here! Over here!"
"A guest at this place? It's been hundreds of years, hasn't it?"
"It's been so long! The Shrine Spirit will be so pleased!"
From the spirits' chatter, it was clear that this shrine received almost no visitors. That was only natural — without a spirit's guidance, finding the place was impossible. There seemed to be a barrier in place as well, designed so that anyone without permission could not enter at all.
And earlier, the spirits had said they caught the scent of the Spirit of the World Tree. In other words, unless one met that kind of condition, the spirits would not serve as guides. The claim that they were the first guests in centuries made perfect sense.
Threats did not work on spirits. And they could be surprisingly stubborn about the oddest things, so coaxing them into a good enough mood to lead you to this shrine was no easy feat. You wouldn't even know whether you'd fulfilled the conditions — and if you hadn't, they wouldn't tell you that conditions existed in the first place.
Anyway, no. Don't know. There's no such thing. They would deny it like that, and even if their bodies were torn to shreds and their cores smashed to pieces, they would never give up the information.
"Lois."
"Yes?"
"I'm soaked. And I think I felt a little zap, too."
"Spirits tend to be mischievous. I'm wet as well, you know."
"I can't even see them, and they're splashing water on me, using the wind to pelt me with twigs and pebbles, tying grass together to trip me... What is this? Are they children? Are they actually children?"
"Hmm. In the sense that they're pure, calling them children might not be entirely wrong."
No — for spirits who were nothing if not pure, the description was perfectly apt.
"If you react, they'll take it as encouragement and play even more pranks. It's best to ignore them."
"I ignored them and I still ended up soaked!"
"If you give off a scent they like, they'll come running even if you ignore them. It seems Livia, being the Hero, carries that kind of scent as well."
"Are they smelling the Goddess or something?"
"They might be."
I couldn't say for certain. They chose good people and bad people by something closer to instinct, and the criteria differed from spirit to spirit. One spirit might like you while another disliked you.
But generally, they tended to favor the virtuous. So if spirits were floating around someone, it was safe to assume that person was good. Conversely, you could also feel sorry for them, since they'd be on the receiving end of those not-quite-pranks. Especially if you weren't a Spiritist and didn't have a particularly high affinity with spirits, yet they still clung to you — you could end up being pranked every single day without even knowing what was happening.
"Here we are."
"It's smaller than I expected. I thought it'd be a bit more grand and imposing."
I was a little surprised myself. I'd expected something larger, with a vast landscape unfolding once you stepped inside — but it was genuinely small. It was even smaller than the modest shrines commonly found in villages, so you could almost call it a little country house. But the emblem mounted above the door was unmistakably the Goddess's, so there was no doubt it was a shrine.
"A shrine is meant to look like this."
"A voice?"
"That would be the Shrine Spirit."
A wind stirred through the forest, then swirled and gathered into a form. If the Spirit of the World Tree had felt as though it were wrapped in verdant light, this spirit felt as though it were wrapped in gold. And as expected, it was far closer to human in appearance than the other spirits.
I didn't know why, but spirits grew more humanlike the higher their rank. The Spirit of the World Tree was like that, and the Shrine Spirit standing before us now also bore a form quite similar to a human's. Of course, there were various differences, so you wouldn't actually mistake it for a person.
"......"
When Livia looked as though she was about to say something, I covered her mouth and spoke in her place.
"That's just human nature. When it comes to a being they revere, worship, and hold in awe, they believe that making it larger and offering up their time in labor is itself proof of their faith."
"......"
"It's not just shrines. They build the tombs of Heroes on a grand scale as well, and even the graves of people famous the world over — if not quite at a Hero's level — tend to be rather lavish."
There were some among them who had perfectly ordinary graves, of course. But as a rule, people of value, people who had left their mark on history, often had graves that were special as well.
"All humans are like that."
"Yes. But that is merely a way of expressing faith. To you, Shrine Spirit, it may look like waste — but those great cathedrals give people the reassurance that their god is nearby. At least, they do for the people of that village."
"Why is that?"
"Because from anywhere in the village, you can see the Goddess's emblem at the top of the Great Cathedral."
"......Hmm."
The Shrine Spirit mulled over my words for a moment, then spoke.
"If that is how humans hold their faith... I see. That may well be so."
"Thank you for understanding."
"Very well. You who have been guided by the spirits — welcome. ......You there, the man."
"I'm Lois."
"I see, Lois. ......You carry the scent of the Spirit of the World Tree. Did you form a temporary contract?"
"I did."
"Does elven blood flow through your veins?"
"No."
"......"
The Shrine Spirit tilted its head slightly, as if puzzled, then slowly descended to stand before us. There was no hostility in the gaze it turned on me, but it was clearly studying me from various angles.
"What is that body of yours?"
"There are... circumstances."
Just like the Spirit of the World Tree, it seemed able to tell immediately that my body was not ordinary. I'd never been seen through by ordinary people, but lately it was happening a lot. Since what I had in my body was a Spirit Core, spirits in particular were probably especially sensitive to it.
But Titania had seen right through me even though she wasn't a spirit. What on earth was she? She clearly hadn't lived all those years for nothing.
"......Hmm. In any case, how did someone who isn't even an elf form a contract?"
"Ah — I fought until I was on the brink of death and forcibly linked our souls to make the contract."
"How crude."
"I agree."
But it was also true that there'd been no other way, and surprisingly, once I'd succeeded the first time, it hadn't been that difficult afterward. You could say I'd properly learned how to control my strength.
The Shrine Spirit hummed in thought for a moment, then shifted its gaze toward Livia.
"This one is a Hero."
"Th-that's right."
Still awkward with formal speech, I see. No — she could use polite language just fine, but if she wasn't paying attention, informal speech would slip out naturally. Still, as long as she was conscious of it she managed properly, so you could call it tremendous growth.
"Hmm, hmm. ......Oh? O-oh?"
The Shrine Spirit, looking at Livia, gradually took on an expression of What is this? What am I looking at? It seemed to grow more astonished the longer it looked, even more so than when it had looked at me.
"Pardon me a moment."
The Shrine Spirit carefully circled around Livia's body.
"Um, why are you doing that?"
Livia asked awkwardly, and the Shrine Spirit tilted its head.
"You are human, yes?"
"Yes, I'm human."
"There are holes through your head and your heart."
"Yes, that's right."
"......Huh?"
Ah. I understood at once what it was getting at.
"How are you alive? You?"
"Even if you ask me how... I'm just alive. It hurts, but I'm not dead."
"......"
The Shrine Spirit seemed to decide there was no falsehood in Livia's forthright answer, and turned its gaze to me. If it's you, you can give me an explanation I'll accept, can't you? That was the look it gave me, and as a Spiritist, I didn't particularly want to refuse those earnest eyes — even if they belonged to what you could call a Greater Spirit. But I didn't know either.
Livia's body was a mystery, plain and simple. I had no idea how you were supposed to interpret that. I let out a small sigh and spoke.
"This will sound like a lie, but Olivia Reinhardt here is a pure human being, and she is alive despite having holes through her head and her heart. On top of that, her Mana Nerves are damaged, and she's missing one arm."
"......"
"Lois, the way you put that makes it sound like I should be dead."
"Setting personal feelings aside, the question of how you're still alive has not left my mind once since this journey began. Livia, do you even die?"
"Well, I'm a person too, so I probably would?"
I'm a person too part was extremely concerning.
"Let me see..."
The Shrine Spirit carefully placed a hand on Livia's forehead. A faint light shimmered.
"Hmm... She really is a pure human..."
"Wow, as expected of a Greater Spirit! You can do that too?"
"......Even for a Hero, this is hard to believe. That mana, despite lacking the heart that circulates it and missing an arm... Depending on the person, they might believe she was the Goddess reincarnated."
I wanted to call it an overreaction, but she really was extraordinarily powerful.
"I see. Originally I had no intention of saying much..."
The Shrine Spirit let out a small breath.
At the very least, it seemed we'd avoided being turned away at the door. But even if it said it would hear us out, we were the ones who needed to hear a story.
Now then.
What tale was the Shrine Spirit going to tell us?
I was still worried — and yet, I found myself looking forward to it.