I'm a Half-Butterfly Bound by an Unfair Contract

'I'm alive...?'

"Gwek?"

When I opened my eyes, fully expecting to be dead, I was utterly bewildered.

I was certain I had died after having all my strength drained by those tree roots, which I assumed belonged to some kind of magic beast.

So why was I currently draped over a branch of the very tree that had tried to kill me?

'The tree doesn't seem to know I'm awake yet. Should I run?'

I debated whether to make a run for it while it was distracted.

It felt like I could escape if I really tried.

Besides, I had no idea where it was taking me.

'No. Let's just stay quiet for now.'

However, this time, both my reason and my instincts told me not to run.

Reason argued that, no matter how I looked at it, the tree was the one that had saved me. Instinct, on the other hand, had been favorable toward the tree ever since it rescued me from that sack.

Since the very instincts that had kept me alive this long were feeling friendly, there had to be a good reason for it.

"—Are you awake? How is your body feeling?"

'Whoa, startled me!'

"Gwek!"

As I was staring blankly at the tree, it suddenly spoke to me.

It didn't seem to have eyes, so how did it know I was awake?

I couldn't see anything resembling eyes on it.

As I analyzed the tree, I felt relieved that there wasn't a shred of hostility in its voice.

If there had been even a hint of malice, I would have had to run for my life.

But its voice carried a warm familiarity, like meeting a fellow countryman in a faraway land.

'My body is fine.'

"Gweeeeek."

I replied in my own way.

Before I lost consciousness, I really thought I was a goner. But now that I was awake, my body felt lighter and more comfortable than ever.

There was a refreshing, crisp energy flowing through me.

It seemed the tree had done something to help me.

I wanted to check my status window, but I held back since I was in the middle of a conversation.

It's only polite to focus entirely on the person you're talking to.

'But why isn't it saying anything else?'

"Gwek?"

"—Sorry. I can't understand you. But you're doing okay, right?"

Ah, so it couldn't understand me.

Well, that made sense. To anyone else, I probably just sounded like a caterpillar screeching.

I never imagined my inability to speak would make communication this difficult.

Still, it seemed to grasp the general idea through my gestures and the atmosphere.

Yet another reason to hurry up and become a fairy.

It was incredibly frustrating being unable to communicate properly like this.

'I'm perfectly healthy.'

"Gwek."

"—I'll take that as a yes. First, let me thank you. Thank you so much for saving me."

The tree expressed its gratitude with utmost politeness.

Hearing those words of thanks genuinely touched me.

It had already been about a month since I turned into a caterpillar.

During that time, my life had been nothing short of barbaric.

When I first became a caterpillar, I never could have imagined hearing such civilized words in this forest.

I'm definitely glad I stayed alive.

"—But there's one thing I need to tell you. Yesterday, while I was recovering, I accidentally drained all of your strength..."

'Yeah, I felt that.'

"Gwek."

Before I blacked out, I was absolutely certain I was going to die.

So how was I still breathing?

And filled with a refreshing energy ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠completely different from my original power, no less.

What on earth did you do to me?!

I appreciated the rescue, but wait—wasn't the tree the reason I needed saving in the first place?

"—To save you, I had no choice but to inject you with my mana. So, I had to unilaterally form a contract with you... Is that okay?"

'A contract? What contract?'

"Gwek?"

I didn't think I was stupid, but listening to this tree was giving me a headache.

I knew what mana was, but why inject it into me, and what was this unilateral contract business?

I tapped the tree's trunk, gesturing for it to give me a proper explanation.

I needed to know exactly what had been done to my body.

And I needed to check my status window.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

'A contract has been added? But what's with the "Hidden" part? Does it mean the name is hidden?'

A new "Contract" section had appeared on my status window.

Judging by the context, the contractor's name should have been there, so "Hidden" likely meant their identity was concealed.

If the name is hidden, does that mean it won't even tell me what kind of contract it is?

Fortunately, while the name was hidden, it still explained what the contract did.

And looking at it, there didn't seem to be any major issues.

I didn't know what "soul rank" was, but the tree's mana wasn't having any negative effects on me.

If anything, I should be grateful for the massive boost in my energy.

Even if I didn't know how to control it yet.

'This is basically a corporate merger.'

I neatly summarized the situation in my head.

They forced a hostile takeover through accidental blackmail, but once the merger went through, they turned out to be an incredibly generous parent company.

I guess I couldn't complain about a merger like this.

"—Even if it's a contract, it's nothing bad, so don't worry. It's actually great for you! Your usable mana has increased, and your soul rank must have gone up too. Our species has a very high soul rank, you see."

'But how do I even use mana?'

"Gweeeeek."

The problem was that I had no idea how to spend the capital they just funded me.

I had completely forgotten the basic common sense that my magic beast body possessed mana.

And I couldn't even tell if my soul rank had increased or not.

Wait, did my experience points go up because my soul rank increased?

Does that mean its rank was only slightly higher than mine?

Besides, you have to teach me how to use mana before I can decide whether to be grateful or not!

"—So, you'll forgive me, right? This contract is actually a once-in-a-lifetime thing. But since you contracted with me, your life as a magic beast is set! Our species is famous for having an inexhaustible supply of mana!"

Ah, so there's no refund policy?

I stared flatly at the tree, which had nearly killed me due to its own mistake and then forced a unilateral contract on me.

Although I couldn't see its face, I could tell from its aura and the awkward twitching of its roots and branches that it was feeling incredibly embarrassed.

No matter how I looked at it, it just seemed like a good-natured but slightly dim-witted magic beast. I swallowed a sigh.

'Well, it was trying to save me, so let's let it slide. In the end, my mana increased anyway.'

Now, if only I knew how to use this mana.

'Teach me how to use mana.'

"Gweeeeek."

"—Hm? What's wrong?"

Yeah, learning from this tree was going to be impossible.

Since we couldn't communicate, there was no way to ask.

If there was any magic beast out there capable of gesturing "teach me how to use mana" in a caterpillar's body, I'd love to see them try.

Absolutely impossible.

'I'll probably figure it out naturally as I live.'

Postponing the use of this supposedly infinite mana for later, I decided to focus on leveling up and evolving.

I figured once I evolved to a point where I could use mana, I'd just understand it instinctively.

Normally, I should have been able to evolve into a flying butterfly by now.

But the sun was about to set, which meant I'd have to wait until tomorrow morning.

Might as well hunt some water deer.

"—To be honest, even if I can't tell you, my species is incredibly prestigious, okay? Normally, you couldn't contract with me even if you begged on your knees... Hey, where are you going?!"

Also, for a tree, this thing was way too noisy.

Aren't trees supposed to have a heavy, solemn vibe?

It felt less like a tree and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠more like a flashy, hyperactive flower.

I crawled down from the branch and set off to find a water deer.

"—Wait for me!"

And the tree was floating right behind me.

I couldn't even fly as a half-butterfly, so how on earth was a tree floating?

Life is truly unfair.

'Hold still.'

"Gwek."

"—Oh? We're stopping?"

Spotting a resting water deer, I signaled the tree to stop and climbed up a tall tree for a safe hunt.

Curious about what I was doing, the tree floated up right after me.

I was incredibly envious of its ability to fly so freely, but I forced myself to ignore it and spat my blood at the water deer.

"Squeeeeeal!"

Drenched in my blood, the water deer's flesh and bones melted away in an instant as the poison spread, killing it.

It happened far faster than I expected.

'What? That fast?'

Normally, I had to wait at least two minutes for them to die, but now, less than thirty seconds had passed and the experience points were already rolling in.

The only change I had undergone was contracting with the tree.

"—Oh. You attack by infusing your blood with mana. That's actually quite efficient for an inefficient method. But can't you use magic?"

It seemed I had been infusing my spit blood with mana all this time without realizing it.

Now that my mana had grown larger and purer, the power of my attack had naturally skyrocketed.

'And of course I can't use magic! How is a caterpillar supposed to use magic? Are you mocking me?'

"Gweeeeeek."

"—Huh? You really can't use magic? Are you not actually that intelligent despite understanding me? No, that can't be right. Usually, if a beast is smart enough to understand language, they can use magic."

What is this guy even talking about?

Someone has to teach me first for me to use it!

"—Well, I guess I'll have to teach you. Sound good?"

'Of course it sounds good! I shall revere you as my master!'

"Gwek."

Evolving could wait, but if I missed this chance to learn magic, I might never get another one.

"Grrr..."

Deep inside a cave in the heart of the forest, a sleeping entity felt an unpleasant scent constantly tickling the tip of its nose.

A dark, pitch-black scent that it was certain it had hunted down and eradicated from the forest.

No matter how much it tried to ignore it and go back to sleep, the smell refused to fade, only growing thicker by the second.

"Roaaar!"

Having ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠its slumber thoroughly disrupted, the cave-dwelling entity finally hoisted its massive, heavy body.

It rose to hunt down and slaughter the dark pests that dared disturb its sleep.