Chapter 81: Each Spirit

I was asked to have my spirits erase their presence, and when they did, I was shocked. The old woman called Kristinka standing in front of me—no, the woman—also had a presence about her. She, too, had a spirit attached.

Perhaps she read the expression on my face, because she smiled and said, “I was granted a modest skill as well, and a spirit attached itself to me, but we never formed a connection.”

After following them back into the vast room, I saw more than a dozen men and women standing there besides the man called Lambert. All of them were armed.

When Elder Vilasenka nodded, he began to lead us onward. There was a tense, almost ominous atmosphere, but I soon understood why.

Without stopping, we headed toward the village entrance, moving instead toward a place where several stone pillars stood.

“A circle, a circle… You don’t mean circle stones—like a stone circle, do you?”

Spirits as remnants of ancient elven civilization… probably not, but my interest was instantly piqued.

Stones stood in a ring about twenty to twenty-five meters in diameter, placed seemingly at random. In the center, long narrow stones were laid out radially. I felt the same kind of presence as at a spirit hole, and my feet came to a halt.

“This is…”

“Please enter.”

“You don’t need to stand at the center, but could you step on the longest stone?”

The longest stone was one of those laid out radially from the center—meaning it ran straight ahead from where I stood.

Since it felt no more dangerous than a spirit hole, it should be safe.

I stepped inside through a gap between the standing stones and walked straight in. The presence of spirits rose up like a swarm of gnats, and just like before, they gathered around me.

“How incredible…”

“It’s been since Hardivinka’s time that the spirits have been this restless.”

“More importantly, why does that man show no fear, even though he must be sensing the spirits’ presence?”

“Perhaps he already knows of places where spirits gather.”

“Are you saying there’s a place like this near where the human folk live?”

“Isn’t the fact that so many spirits cling to him proof enough?”

“But if that’s the case, then it wouldn’t be strange for those living in this land to have even more spirits attached to them.”

“Either way, he’s a mysterious boy.”

They gathered even around my face, which was annoying, so I waved my hand and asked them to move away. They obediently did so, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

When I looked back at the elders, they nodded, so I turned back—but it felt like the spirits had increased again.

When we returned to a room at the back of the assembly hall, a woman was waiting there. I could sense a single presence around her as well.

“She is Hardivinka. She has been granted healing magic and is one who is connected to a spirit. Hardivinka, would you show him your spirit?”

The woman, who looked older than my mother, nodded, and at the same time a glow appeared near her shoulder—slightly smaller than my spirit, shining in a golden hue.

“Sir Leon, please show her your spirits as well.”

When I called out, [Come out and show yourselves], an overwhelming number of lights appeared—far more than just seven colors. Again, it felt like there were even more than before.

Hardivinka-san covered her mouth, trembling in shock at the number of my spirits.

The elders had seen this once already, but since they hadn’t counted them, they probably couldn’t tell if the number had increased slightly.

“Hardivinka has healing magic, and her spirit is golden in color. The earth- and fire-magic users I mentioned earlier had pale earthen-colored spirits and clear, red spirits attached to them.”

“Other than that, all we know is this: those with ice magic have spirits of pale, translucent light; those with barrier magic have pale, translucent golden spirits; and those with the compounding skill have spirits that glow a pale, translucent yellow-green.”

Hmm. The lights floating around me, blinking on and off, were far more varied than just rainbow colors. Could these be the spirits that govern magic and skills?

“From what you’ve said, it sounds as though each of these lights corresponds to a spirit that governs a particular magic or skill.”

“That is what we believe, yes. But yours have countless colors, and many of the same color as well, which is why it’s so puzzling.”

“Hardivinka-san, when you use healing magic, do the spirits help you?”

“There are times when my own healing magic isn’t enough, and I ask for their assistance.”

“And does that make the treatment successful?”

“I wouldn’t say always, but in most cases, my request is granted.”

“They don’t heal people on their own, without your say-so?”

“Not in my case.”

In my case, she said—so that must mean it has happened elsewhere.

When I looked toward Elder Vilasenka, old Kristinka answered instead.

“There is a story of someone who had earth and fire magic being attacked by a pack of wolves during a hunt. The spirits drove them off by repeatedly launching fireballs to protect the mage. But it only happened that one time.”

That means they acted of their own free will.

Or do they only react when the person they’re connected to is in danger?

I had a small idea and decided to test it—but doing so without permission wouldn’t be wise, so I asked first.

“Hardivinka-san, there’s something I’d like to try. Would that be all right?”

“Try what?”

“I’d like to send a spirit of the same color as yours over to your side. If they can appear and disappear when asked, I think it should be possible.”

Because my suggestion was so outlandish, she hesitated and looked to the elders for guidance.

“Sir Leon, are you saying you would give away a spirit connected to you?”

“Is such a thing even possible?”

“Absurd! Exchanging spirits is irreverent!”

“Why is it? Spirits aren’t messengers of Lady Felicienne, are they? You yourselves said we don’t really understand them yet. Besides, I’ve never once heard the church say anything about spirits.”

“That may be true, but is it right to treat spirits that way?”

“Why not? If it goes against Lady Felicienne’s will, then it should be impossible to give one away—and divine punishment might even follow.”

She smiled warmly as she voiced her agreement—this old lady really does have quite a personality.

Now that I’d learned that spirits can be seen and that they seem to bring blessings of some kind, coming to Serfanka had definitely been the right choice.

More than anything, now that I knew a spirit’s color could identify the type of magic, I wanted to figure out the colors—specifically, which color belonged to my own magic… what color is the spirit that attaches itself to a wind mage?

Looking at my spirits, I couldn’t really tell which was which. But if they truly help with magic, then using magic should make it obvious.

And if they don’t help on their own, I could always try asking.

Opinions were split about trying to move the spirits. The village chief, Serfanka, and Elder Vilasenka were opposed.

The one who said we should try it experimentally was the elderly elder, Kristinka.

Elder Laurenska and the healing mage Hardivinka couldn’t decide, and with the majority opposed, I was told no.

I hadn’t known elves used majority rule, but since I’d already learned what I wanted to know, I didn’t really care.

Well, even if they didn’t agree, I had other potential collaborators in mind. I only wanted quick results, so I changed the subject.

“By the way, do many adventurers come to visit the village of Faranka?”

“They appear occasionally, but they’re mostly just passing through.”

“It’s also quite far from Rosenne, so those who specifically come seeking Faranka are rare.”

“This is where our ancestors settled, so while it’s inconvenient, we can simply bring what we need from town.”

“Will you be returning to Korche?”

“I plan to look around the forests in this area for a while, then head for Rosenne. I’m on my way to the royal capital, so I won’t be staying.”

“If you pass through Korche, there’s something I’d like you to deliver to Claudins. Would you be willing? Of course, we’ll offer appropriate compensation.”

“You’ve already answered what I wanted to know, so I don’t mind—but it’ll be one or two months from now.”

“The items to be prepared are medicinal herbs and potion materials such as mana water. It will take four or five days to get them ready. Is that acceptable?”

“In that case, I’ll return here after I’ve looked around the area, so please have them prepared.”

Even though it was an elven village, it didn’t feel all that different from other towns, so exploring the surroundings seemed more interesting.

I especially wanted to circle the rocky mountain and its surroundings, and I was also curious about what lay straight to the north.

“Is that really all right?”

“What is?”

“Freeing spirits like that is something that shouldn’t be permitted.”

“I can’t say either way.”

“I’ve never heard of anyone so deeply connected to spirits, and if he came all the way to this village alone, then he must be highly capable. Besides, he came all this way solely because of spirits—there’s no way he knows nothing.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because of the numbers. Normally, only one or two spirits attach themselves. Since he’s connected to so many, even if he claims ignorance, he must at least know why.”

“That may be so, but would Lady Felicienne truly permit it?”

“He’s agreed to our request. He’ll likely return before long—there’s no harm in thinking about it then.”

After telling the gatekeeper that I’d be back before long, I left the village and headed straight north, walking into the forest.

Only small animals showed up in my detection, so I proceeded without concern. At a suitable spot, I took out a cabin and took a short rest.

While drinking tea, I thought about spirits.

If spirits attach themselves to mages and those with skills, then I should have a wind spirit, plus spirits for the detection skill and the presence-sensing skill—three types in total.

And if my disguise ability counts as a skill, then that would be one more spirit…

I could now summon them and see their forms, but how was I supposed to identify which spirit corresponded to which magic or skill?

It wasn’t so much that I forgot to ask—more that no one seemed to know—so it looked like I’d have to call out to them directly.

Also, if the wind spirit really was colorless and transparent, then even though I can see the wind, there’s no guarantee I’d be able to see it when it manifested.

At night, even colorless spirits should be easier to see, and it would probably be easier to distinguish the colors of the others as well.

Waiting for nightfall, I flew to the grasslands by the rocky mountain. After confirming that no one from the village of Faranka was nearby, I created a large dome and set up my cabin inside.