Yujun, to the Abyss King's Daughter...
Yujun approached the Abyss King's daughter.
Unlike the Abyss King himself, she was not large. An ordinary dark elf — though ordinary hardly meant her beauty had faded. She was simply terribly gaunt. A body worn thin to the bone, lips gone blue, breath so faint it seemed it might stop at any moment. She was in such critical condition that it was a wonder she was still alive.
"How do you intend to treat her? As I told you, not even an elixir could cure my daughter's illness."
"There is no illness in this world an elixir cannot cure. You know that."
"I do."
"Which is why you've all but given up."
"You understand well."
This, too, lined up exactly with the game's setting. The problem was that his daughter's condition had worsened beyond that point. Still, so long as she was alive, it hardly mattered.
"What's your daughter's name?"
"Sena. Why do you ask?"
"I just wanted to confirm."
Fortunately, the name matched as well. Then there was no reason left to hesitate.
Yujun opened his inventory and took out three highest-grade mana potions.
"Mana potions?"
The Abyss King sounded doubtful. Yujun turned his head.
"Have you tried giving her mana potions?"
"They had some effect. Her color improved for a moment, then she slipped right back to how she was."
"Hm."
"Do you mean to cure my daughter with mana potions alone?"
"Hardly."
Yujun answered offhand, opened Sena's mouth, and let a mana potion trickle in. A hint of color returned to her face — but only for a moment. Mana drained from her body in real time.
Where was that mana going? It was not dispersing into the air. Yujun already knew.
The Spirit Realm.
Right now, the Abyss King's daughter was linked to a spirit. And not just any spirit.
The Spirit King of Light, wasn't it?
Water, fire, earth, wind. A spirit of light, outside the four great elements, was exceedingly rare — and immensely powerful. The price of such a contract was, of course, enormous. It demanded mana beyond imagination. She had endured this long only because she was the Abyss King's daughter. Had she been an ordinary dark elf, she would have lost her life the instant a contract with the Spirit King of Light began.
There are two ways...
Sena was currently on the very brink of forming the contract. But unless she paid the Spirit King of Light his price, that contract could not succeed.
Giving the Spirit King his due — that was the first solution. The second was to sever the link with him entirely.
Ordinarily, the second is safer.
And it was the second method that could save Sena's life right now.
"There's something I need to ask you first."
"What is it?"
"There are two methods."
Yujun explained both to the Abyss King in detail. By the time he finished, color had returned to the king's face.
"A spirit? I never considered that. It certainly makes sense. Then use the second method."
"This isn't something you can decide on your own. We have to ask first."
"Ask what?"
The Abyss King looked bewildered.
"Your daughter's wishes matter most."
"What are you saying? My daughter has been unconscious for years."
Yujun smiled.
"Strictly speaking, she isn't unconscious. She just can't move a muscle. Her mind is perfectly clear. She's probably hearing everything we say."
"How could you possibly..."
"I checked her status."
"Even those renowned in this field could learn nothing. And you claim to have seen it at a glance?"
"What, do I look like a quack?"
"I cannot help being suspicious, to be frank."
"Just wait. I'll show you soon."
Sena's color worsened sharply, so he fed her another highest-grade mana potion.
No need to be stingy.
He was not so low on stock that he had to ration potions in a situation like this. To speak with her, though, he needed one more item.
Grade: Ungraded
Option: Allows you to look into the target's soul.
A Soul Gem. A consumable he had often used against undead and specter-type monsters.
I used this when I treated Sena in the game, too.
The description said only that it let you look into another's soul. In truth, you could speak with them as well. He remembered conversing with Sena through a Soul Gem, their words appearing as text.
"That is...?"
"A Soul Gem. You know it?"
"I do. You mean you can speak with my daughter using that?"
"You never tried?"
"I believed she was unconscious."
Sena was so still she might as well have been dead. It was hard to believe any consciousness remained.
Yujun rubbed the Soul Gem before her face. It crumbled to powder and seeped into her skin, and a faint bluish shape rose above her face.
"Uh... huh?"
"Sena."
"Y-yes! You really are talking to me right now, aren't you? Please — answer me!"
The Sena who had appeared like a ghost cried out in desperation.
"That's right. Your father's here too. But first, I have one question."
"A question?"
"You're in the middle of a contract with a Spirit King, aren't you?"
"H-how did you know?"
"That isn't what matters. You're stuck like this because you can't meet the conditions, right?"
"Yes! What do I do? Am I going to die soon?"
Sena visibly sank. She looked resigned to the fate closing in on her.
"You don't have to die. There are two ways."
Having been conscious all along, she seemed to know already. Even so, Yujun repeated exactly what he had explained to the Abyss King.
The king heard him out and decided without a moment's thought.
"Sena. The second method seems best. To me, your life is more precious than anything."
"No."
Sena's face was grave.
"...I prefer the first. I want to form the contract with the Spirit King."
The Abyss King went rigid, as if struck.
"More precious than your life? Contracting with a spirit?"
"Father. I've been lying here for years because of this one thing. It isn't fair. If everything I suffered through simply comes to nothing..."
"Even so... even a Spirit King is nothing compared to your life. Think carefully about which matters more."
"My mind is made up. I will contract with the spirit. Even if it costs me my life."
Not even the Abyss King could break his daughter's stubbornness.
"You there."
The Abyss King called to Yujun.
"You must save my daughter. I am asking you."
"Give me what you promised, and I'll save her one way or another."
"Of course. If my daughter's condition improves, I will aid you in every way I can."
"Every way?"
"I mean I will lend you my strength. Whenever you need help, I will give it."
"Good."
If the Abyss King became an ally, nothing could be more reassuring than that.
"Then let's begin."
"What should I do?"
"Focus on your link with the spirit. Clear your mind of stray thoughts as much as you can. Communicate with him the way you usually do."
"But he doesn't really talk to me."
"Do it anyway. Force the conversation if you have to."
That would raise the odds of success.
"All right. I'll try."
Yujun nodded and took out two more items.
Grade: Legendary
Option: Greatly increases affinity with spirits.
Two Supreme Spirit Stones. These, too, were truly precious — precious enough that if he had owned only a few, he would have hesitated to bring them out. But he had spirit stones to spare.
Yujun set both upon Sena's body.
"Can you feel the spirit stones' power?"
"Yes. It's tremendous..."
"You have to absorb that power completely. Don't force anything. Just let it happen naturally."
In truth, he did not really know the method. In the game, simply using the spirit stones had been enough.
"Oh — I think the spirit of light has taken an interest in me."
He had spoken at random, but it seemed to help her. That was a relief.
"He was interested from the start. Now we wait. Hold on a little longer."
A contract with a spirit was never easy. With the Spirit King of Light, that went without saying. From here on, it was closer to a gamble. All he could do was leave Sena to manage it herself.
I only ever dealt with this through the game, so I don't really know how any of it works.
The Abyss King paced, anxiety written across his face. Yujun snapped.
"Hey. Quit wandering around and sit down. You're making me nervous."
"A-all right."
Time passed. The Abyss King spoke.
"Tell me — how did you know my daughter's heart?"
"What do you mean?"
"When she said she wanted to contract with the spirit. You seemed to know beforehand that her wishes would differ from mine."
"It wasn't that I knew beforehand. Think about it. If she sent the spirit away now, all that time would be wasted, wouldn't it? She's right on the verge of the contract. Forcing them apart would feel like a waste to me, too. I just reasoned it out."
From his time playing War of the Gods, he already knew how the daughter felt. He could not say so plainly, so he brushed it off.
"Hmm..."
The Abyss King nodded.
"When will she be able to wake?"
"That, even I don't know."
"The odds?"
"The chance of a successful contract is high. He's stayed because he likes Sena. The contract simply never formed because the conditions were strict."
"And what, exactly, is that condition?"
"High spirit affinity."
"That is all?"
"That's what makes it difficult. Spirit affinity isn't something you can raise through effort. You're born with it. If there's one loophole, it's a spirit stone — and those are genuinely hard to obtain. Even if you find one, it's low-grade or lower-mid at best."
"Did you not have Supreme Spirit Stones?"
"Me? I just have a hobby of collecting rare things."
The Abyss King turned his gaze back to his daughter. Sena was soaked in sweat. Mana was pouring out of her at a rapid pace. Yujun fed her one more of the mana potions he had already set aside.
"Hah... haah..."
Sena's mouth opened for the first time. The moan was breathless and pained, but it was a good sign. The Abyss King's face brightened visibly.
Another five minutes or so passed. Sena opened her eyes.
"Sena!"
The Abyss King went to her. She pushed herself up and offered an awkward smile.
"It's been so long, Father."
"Why did you take so long to wake?"
"I missed you."
"I... missed you as well."
Their moving reunion came to an end, and Sena turned toward Yujun.
"Thank you. We've only just met, and you've helped me this much."
"Be sure to put in a good word with your dad."
Yujun said it on purpose, loud enough for the Abyss King to hear every word. Sena nodded hard.
"Of course! I successfully contracted with Zeke."
"The Spirit King of Light?"
"Yes."
"I'm jealous."
Contracting with a Spirit King was something only heaven's own luck could make possible. No amount of paying to win had ever secured a contract with a Spirit King. But that was not what mattered now.
Yujun went to the Abyss King.
"The things you said you'd give me. Can I have them now?"
"The Abyss Herb and the Skill Gem, was it?"
"Yeah. High-grade or better. You've got them?"
"...Did you come already knowing everything?"
"You're the Abyss King. Of course you'd have them."
"The Abyss Herb, I'll grant you. But a Skill Gem is an item not even I can obtain easily."
"Obviously. And yet you have one."
A smile touched the Abyss King's lips.
"However precious a gem may be, how could I begrudge it before my daughter's benefactor? I will give them to you at once."
The Abyss King drew a gem and the Abyss Herb from his inventory.
"Oh..."
Yujun received them in both hands, exceedingly polite.
"Why the sudden formality?"
"When someone this impressive is giving them to me, of course this is how I should receive them."
"Ha. What an amusing fellow."
The faint smile on the Abyss King's face turned serious.
"There is something I would ask of you."
"A request?"
Yujun tilted his head. Did the Abyss King have yet another worry?