Chapter 97
Chapter 97
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 97
Chapter Title: Spirit Affinity: Akerunar (1)
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The rugged mountain range located in the northern part of the continent.
Among the northern barbarians, this grand natural expanse of the mountains, called 'Barkat,' was regarded by all tribes as a space akin to a mother's embrace.
If the elves of the Great Primeval Forest called the massive World Tree their mother tree, then the barbarians of Barkat spoke of their land as the mother earth.
It was relatively recent that the tribes of Barkat had properly formed a federation.
The 'alliance leader' of the Erbar Federation and the hegemon of the mountains.
One of the Seven Peaks that shook the continent, the great warrior who had subjugated the federation's tribes beneath him.
—Great Chieftain Partlinger.
A warrior of enormous build standing atop a sheer cliff had created the most formidable force in Barkat's history.
"Hoo...."
The warrior's flesh, drawing in breath as he sat on a broad rock, was distinctive enough that anyone could recognize his identity at a glance.
Countless tattoos etched over his hulking, uneven frame.
The black beast hide draped over them.
Even the vivid scar crossing his chest.
Great Chieftain Partlinger's body was covered in traces of countless battles.
"Korkia. No need to beat around the bush if you have something to say."
And right beside such a Partlinger stood an old woman, her back hunched.
The barbarian crone in a hood reached out and traced the tattoo on the great chieftain's back.
The tattoo depicting a constellation was something the old woman had inscribed on Partlinger's back long ago.
What had once been merely an ordinary drawing had now become a mark imbued with special power.
"Oh, great warrior of the mother earth. You knew full well this old hag had heard whispers on the wind—."
"Korkia. It's not like I've only known you a day or two."
"Indeed. The first time I saw you, Great Chieftain, you were still a babe—."
Keek-keek-keek-.
A chilling voice flowed from the old woman's mouth.
One of the Five Tusks who followed Partlinger, renowned as the greatest shaman of Barkat.
The great shaman Korkia admired the light within the tattoo as she relayed news from distant lands.
"This old one heard from the whispering winds that the World Tree's unification has failed once again. Keek-keek-."
"Something from the Great Primeval Forest, then."
At Korkia's words, Partlinger sneered as if he had expected as much.
Partlinger knew well what kind of stubborn pointy-ears inhabited the Great Primeval Forest.
And he knew they had long been trying to draw forth the power of that bizarre thing they called the 'mother tree.'
The birth of a high elf—
It seemed their attempt to create a queen to awaken the foolish elves had failed again this time.
"Hmm, those stupid pointy-ears are all the same—."
Nod, nod-.
Partlinger showed no particular reaction to Korkia's words, as if it were obvious.
Toward such a Partlinger, Korkia's tale continued.
"But the end awaiting the great warrior of the mother earth shall be different...."
"......"
"As this old one said before, the great chieftain of Barkat is a hero born under the fate of the stars."
Stroke-.
Korkia's hand traced the tattoo on Partlinger's back.
Most mountain shamans tattooed beasts onto warriors, but sometimes they inscribed traces of constellations that held no power.
And only the greatest warriors were permitted to fill such constellations.
For example, a great warrior like 'Great Chieftain Partlinger.'
"So, one day, achieve the greatest feat in Barkat's history and place that vast empire's lands beneath our feet—."
"Hahaha! You're right. With the finest shaman proclaiming it, it won't be long before it comes to pass."
Partlinger burst into boisterous laughter as his eyes gazed over the vast mountains unfolding below him.
Venturing beyond the mountains to conquer fertile lands was an ancient aspiration passed down among the Erbar tribes.
And he believed only he himself could fulfill that aspiration.
'With the power of the stars, even the empire's knights won't be able to stand against me anymore.'
Just in time, the ritual to receive the power of the stars was not far off.
The chance to complete the constellation tattoo on Partlinger's back was drawing near.
If he could convert all his accumulated feats into power through this ritual, not even the empire's knights would withstand his blade any longer.
Once he felled that accursed knight, no one in the empire would dare stand against Partlinger.
"The era of upheaval approaches, Great Chieftain—."
It was truly an era of upheaval.
The continental situation, including the Erbar Federation, was turning upside down.
And Great Chieftain Partlinger could feel that flow of the times in his very skin.
The world's order would be overturned.
And in that battlefield, the victor had to be Great Chieftain Partlinger and his warriors.
"Isaac Leobrant has breathed his last foolish breath, and the lord of the Sky Citadel who acted as if the heavens were his own has vanished...."
Korkia's hand gripped Partlinger's shoulder.
Powerful energy began flowing into him through the shaman's fingertips.
Hoo-.
Boundless vitality overflowed from Partlinger's dantian.
"Soon, the era of the Great Chieftain will arrive."
The pinnacle of the coming era.
Great Chieftain Partlinger had not the slightest doubt that he would stand there.
* * * * * *
Celestia, the illusory archive.
In the heart of the magic library where members from all corners of the continent gathered.
There, I sat alone at my desk, reading grimoires as usual.
Rustle, rustle-.
The sound of pages turning in the grimoire spread out on the desk echoed through the library.
'The number of samples I've gathered so far isn't small.'
Ever since the development plan in the Alperatz Marquisate began, I had secured numerous samples to analyze the new incantation system.
The grimoire in my hands now was one of those samples obtained that way.
Thanks to the accelerating mutation of the grimoires, research on the new incantation system was progressing rapidly.
'It seems I could probably rewrite even basic grimoires at this point—.'
The results of my research so far were substantial.
The outline of the unknown incantation system was starting to take shape in my mind.
A bit more time like this, and I should be able to inscribe grimoires with the analyzed incantations.
It was all thanks to Perry and Akerunar's assistance.
"......"
Rustle-.
That was only for a moment as I turned the grimoire's pages.
As I lifted my head to refresh my mind, an elf leaning on the desk, lost in thought, entered my view.
The elf mage, Akerunar.
She was the one who had made immense contributions to the Alperatz Marquisate's development plan.
"Hmm, these incantations are all new to me...."
"......Akerunar."
The mage renowned across the continent as one of the Seven Peaks had shown steady interest in Celestia's grimoires since entering the library.
She read through the library's grimoires one by one every day.
I watched Akerunar reading the mutated grimoire right in front of me.
As I did, a sudden question flashed through my mind.
'Come to think of it, I've never seen Akerunar use spirits.'
Considerable time had passed since Akerunar came to Celestia.
Yet, I had no memory of ever encountering her spirits.
She had burned with passion only for magic, not spirits.
'Elves have inherently high affinity, making spirit contracts smooth, right?'
The contents of materials I read recently resurfaced in my mind.
According to those steeped in elven superiority, elves born with the World Tree's life force were naturally likable to spirits.
That was why every elf mastered spirit arts.
But Akerunar, despite being an elf, seemed somewhat averse to spirit arts.
Hmm-.
That thought lingered only briefly as I pondered Akerunar's state.
Soon, I looked at her reading the book and spoke.
"Akerunar. I have one thing I'd like to ask."
"......Yeah."
Was she startled by my sudden question?
Akerunar flinched as if caught off guard.
Swoosh-.
At the sound of my voice calling her, Akerunar drew closer.
To her, I asked why she didn't use spirits.
"Is there some reason you don't use spirits?"
"......"
Hearing my question, Akerunar grew even more flustered.
She avoided my gaze, fumbling awkwardly.
Hmm-.
After a long moment of looking troubled, Akerunar finally bowed her head reluctantly and spoke.
"Lord Johan. I've... never been popular with spirits from the start."
"Not popular with spirits?"
"Yeah. My affinity was low, so they called me a half-baked elf. I've never really gotten close to any spirits."
The story from Akerunar's mouth.
Hearing it, I looked at her with puzzled eyes.
I didn't agree with the elves' views myself, but I never expected to hear such a thing from an elf.
Even I, a human, could handle spirits easily, so it was hard to understand why she, an elf, had given up early.
"I-it's not that I hate spirits or anything...."
Perhaps feeling the need to elaborate on what she just said.
Akerunar hurriedly added explanations.
"It's just... without spirits, elves tend to get looked down on and discriminated against...."
"......"
"And since I studied human magic... among my own kind, I'm seen as... a bit more eccentric, I guess...."
"......"
"Truth is... among my kin, I only have one friend, Rafaria... so I spent my days making dolls...."
Akerunar's self-confession continued, revealing her complicated feelings.
Discriminated against by her kin for failing to contract spirits.
Mocked by her own for researching human magic.
Making dolls mimicking spirits because she wanted one.
Such stories poured out.
And as I listened, my expression grew increasingly subtle over time.
A sense of displeasure boiled up from somewhere in my chest.
"Discriminated against by elves for lacking spirits."
Discriminated against by peers for learning magic instead of spirit arts—
It was laughable.
How dare those primitive spirit wielders discriminate against a great mage.
No matter how much spirit arts they mastered, they could never catch up to even the toes of magic.
The tale of a capable mage being scorned for such a reason was far from pleasant to me.
"I'll make you friends with spirits."
So, I decided to teach Akerunar spirit arts myself.
"Let her experience firsthand how worthless spirit arts truly are."
"What......?"
Akerunar looked at me with bewildered eyes upon hearing my words.
She seemed unable to comprehend.
But my resolve was firm.
Having joined Celestia's secret society, she was ultimately a piece I would claim.
So, bestowing my own brand of favor wouldn't be bad.
"Don't worry. I'm skilled at handling spirits, after all."
A spirit affinity project led by me, the spirit expert.
It was time to make Akerunar a companion spirit.
* * * * * *
Akerunar had never properly faced a spirit in her entire life.
She was a cursed elf.
An elf inherently half-baked from birth.
There had to be a reason why every spirit she'd encountered either ignored her summons or fled after being called.
Otherwise, it would be hard to explain why not a single spirit matched with her.
Tweet-tweet-tweet—!
"......"
So, this was the first time Akerunar was facing a top-grade spirit like this.
Peck, peck-.
On a desk in one corner of the vast library.
There, Akerunar faced a pure white sparrow spirit.
Tweet-tweet-tweet—!
Of course, the sparrow spirit facing Akerunar wasn't particularly friendly.
To be precise, it was no different from the other spirits she'd met before.
The spirit before her disliked Akerunar.
No, it was even showing anger toward her.
"Lord Johan... it seems this one doesn't like me...."
Tweet—!
Facing the spirit's attitude, Akerunar spoke to Johan, who was watching her.
No matter how great Johan was, how could he make a spirit befriend her?
Just as Akerunar was about to resign herself to that thought.
Stroke-.
A heavy voice suddenly flowed from Johan's mouth as he stared at the spirit.
"Was the last selection process insufficient?"
- …….
A single word from Johan's mouth.
Immediately after, the spirit that had been chattering noisily went silent in an instant.
More than that, it stood there shrinking, mouth closed.
Hmph-.
Johan's gaze now fixed on the sparrow spirit.
"......"
Receiving Johan's gaze, the sparrow spirit averted its eyes and slinked closer.
Peck, peck-.
Before long, the spirit approached Akerunar's hand and meekly perched on her palm.
Was it okay to treat a spirit like this—?
Such a question crossed her mind, but soon Akerunar quietly reached out toward the spirit.
"Oh, good... n-nice....?"
Stroke, stroke-.
Akerunar's hand petted the spirit.
It was an action other elves did casually.
But for Akerunar, it was a first.
Shiver-.
Receiving Akerunar's touch, the sparrow spirit trembled violently, trying to avoid it.
"Not bad."
Watching Akerunar and the sparrow spirit, Johan deemed it fine and turned back to his grimoire.
Seeming to give them a chance to bond more.
After Johan averted his gaze from the spirit.
The sparrow spirit, as if waiting, glared sharply and pecked at her palm with its beak.
Tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet—!
"Ah...."
Akerunar looked at the sparrow spirit with a disheartened face.
As expected, she couldn't befriend even a top-grade spirit.
As she made a regretful expression with that thought, Johan lifted his head again.
Hmm-.
A questioning hum from Johan echoed right after.
The sparrow spirit's attitude flipped in an instant.
Tweet, tweet—.
As if its previous behavior was a lie, the sparrow chirped beautifully.
Moreover, aware of Johan's gaze, it even rubbed its cheek against Akerunar's palm.
Stroke, rub-.
Satisfied with the friendly cheek rub, perhaps.
Johan turned back to his grimoire.
Tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet—!
"......"
Immediately after, the sparrow spirit began pecking fiercely again.
Akerunar looked at the spirit with thoroughly bewildered eyes at its reversed attitude.
It was so baffling she couldn't even think of what to say.
How to describe this subtle shift.
Before she could find the words, Johan's gaze left the grimoire and turned to them again.
"Hmm...."
The sparrow spirit, whose attitude had flipped once more, rubbed its cheek against her palm again.
Stroke, rub-.
Along with a soft texture, the sparrow spirit's chirps filled the air.
Tweet, tweet—.
"......"
Akerunar gazed at the spirit with an increasingly enlightened expression.
After that, this subtle change continued for quite a while.
Tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet—!
"......"
Hmm-.
Tweet, tweet—.
"......"
The familiar scene repeated before her eyes several times.
Tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet-tweet—!
"......"
Hmm-.
Tweet, tweet—.
"......"
Haa-.
Akerunar let out a sigh and lifted her head.
Only now did Akerunar understand how Johan had 'subdued' the spirit.
The archmage of the library apparently hadn't befriended spirits through normal means.
'As expected, spirits hate me.'
It seemed there was a faster way in the world than befriending.
In that case, learning it wouldn't be bad either.