Chapter 265: Nefer from Iskal’s Household
“Everyone’s fingers are injured. Treat them.”
“Fingers, you say?” Ash urged the glasses-wearing one to begin the treatment.
“They were trying to dig up Magic Silver with their bare hands!”
“Now that you mention it, this layer is where Magic Silver appears,” Chris remarked, prompting the glasses-wearing one to start the healing.
“O Spirit, Nefer, heal this person,” the White Snake commanded.
So, the White Snake is Nefer.
With a graceful motion, Nefer slithered down the glasses-wearing one’s back and towards the injured adventurer’s finger, which could use a bit of mosaic coverage.
Stopping midway, Nefer bit down on the glasses-wearing one’s wrist, as if to say, “Is this about right?” Then, releasing its grip, it moved on to bite the injured finger.
It’s biting. The White Snake is biting, but will that really heal? Is that what recovery looks like?
“What’s going on?”
“With the spell, the Spirit traveled up Iskal’s arm and enveloped the affected area. There was a brief pause in the Spirit’s light before wrapping around the finger, likely to replenish its magic power. It seems recovery magic is tied to the Contracted Spirit,” Dinoss explained to Retze about the glasses-wearing one’s situation.
So, Soune, while I can see my own Contracted Spirit, the appearance of Spirits looks like a Ball of Light to me. Only the glasses-wearing one knows about the biting.
The Butler has come to recognize Az as a blue Little Bird, and when a Spirit acknowledges a Contracted one, its form can be seen by others. However, it seems some people are utterly incapable of seeing them. By the way, Ash can somewhat discern the color and shape of Spirits.
Some Spirits dislike being seen, and the way they appear can vary greatly, but they often look like faint Balls of Light.
Nefer continued to heal one after another, each time slurping up the glasses-wearing one’s magic power with a delicious expression. — Our eyes met.
Hey, the moment our eyes locked, Nefer pulled away from the glasses-wearing one with a startled expression, hastily returning to the healing. There’s no doubt it was greedily consuming extra magic power!
“That’s impressive. I’ve seen healing a few times, but healing old wounds must be difficult, right?” Dean remarked, impressed.
“Since it created a new wound over the old one, it was a bit tricky. But it seems the latter part went well,” the glasses-wearing one replied.
It’s not just about control; it’s more like discipline. Peeking from the shadow of the glasses-wearing one’s head was a snake with a face that seemed to ask, “Am I exposed?”… but it’s none of my business. Let it bite as much as it wants.
Wait, is it biting now!?
With a triumphant expression, Nefer opened its mouth wide and bit down on the glasses-wearing one’s neck.
“Waning Moon… Vice Guild Master!?” Chris supported the swaying glasses-wearing one. Did he just refer to him as the Lord of the Waning Moon?
In the end, I told Chris that the glasses-wearing one tends to replace names with something else when addressing those who can see Spirits. He was completely unaware of it, so he was surprised.
“…I’m sorry. I thought I did well in the latter part, but it seems I lacked magic power.”
No, that has nothing to do with healing.
Oh right, Spirits can somewhat read what I’m thinking. Stop biting; you’re going to make him faint.
As if signaling the end, Nefer retreated into the glasses-wearing one’s hair. Is that its bed?
What kind of contract (discipline) is this? Is it just tagging along? Isn’t it a bit problematic to suck up magic power while watching its owner’s complexion? You can see Nefer, right, owner?
I leaned the glasses-wearing one against some luggage, and it was time for a late lunch. The adventurers who went up said we could freely use their firewood and water, which made me a bit happy. Apparently, more supplies would arrive later in an Iron Cage.
We prepared charcoal, but it seemed the adventurers who returned from above had brought heavy firewood.
We couldn’t exactly bring out the Fire Stand. Since we were told we could use it freely, we arranged the firewood side by side to create a fire bed. We had to ensure the fire starter didn’t get wet, as steam rising from the damp ground could extinguish the flames.
Retze provided some easily ignitable fire starter made from charred cloth. Once thin branches were placed on top, Chris lit it using the flame transferred from the Lantern to the hemp rope. After that, we just needed to gradually add larger firewood.
Dinoss and Dean rummaged through the adventurers’ supplies without hesitation, pulling out water and dried meat. Karn stacked firewood near the fire bed.
The Butler began boiling Hot Water, while Chris and Ash draped a thick cloak over the glasses-wearing one, making him comfortable. — That cloak left by the adventurer looks like it might have bugs. Is that okay? He’s covering his face with it; won’t he get bitten all over?
Lunch was simple, keeping an eye on the glasses-wearing one. Ah, so he blocked his view with the cloak to avoid being seen. This way, if there’s a mishap, someone might stop him before he notices.
I wanted to make a warm stew, but we were out of potatoes! I wonder about solid Roo? It seems like we might just scrape by with the consommé powder.
I added the consommé powder to the Hot Water and tossed in some dried mushrooms and onions. Then, I chopped up some suspiciously marked dried meat from the adventurer and added it in.
Retze warmed up the already cooked and smoked trout, while the Butler retrieved some hard bread that lasts a long time.
When I tore the trout apart with my hands, it flaked easily into fibers, making it quite delicious and easy to eat. The soup, after passing the Butler’s judgment, was delivered to the glasses-wearing one along with the trout.
“This is delicious… I’m so glad it’s warm, and the flavor is gentle.”
This glasses-wearing one didn’t bother to kindle the campfire.
With the Light magic available, he could sleep safely within the Magic Circle he drew, so there was no need to struggle to light a fire in the damp area. No, maybe he exhausted himself drawing the Magic Circle?
The luxury of having water, I sipped the post-meal tea the Butler prepared.