Chapter 522: Serious Talk and Verification
“I just contracted with the Atmosphere Spirit over there.”
“Is this what you call ‘just’?” Karn raised an eyebrow, skepticism evident in his voice.
“I had most of my Magic Power taken away in a flash.”
“Hey…”
Retze’s chair creaked ominously.
“I thought the Great Sage was amazing for not collapsing, thanks to the Magic Power recovery method I learned from Haulon. Mainly, it was my grip strength.”
“Grip strength?!?” Haulon shouted.
“Don’t go doing anything reckless, alright? Even in places without Demon Beasts, there are dangers lurking everywhere.” Retze adjusted his seat and took a sip of his drink.
“Yeah. I try not to call out the names of high-ranking Spirits unless I’m in a safe place, but many Spirits have their characteristics directly reflected in their names.”
I often fall into traps.
“The Sea God Seikai was also pushing hard to contract with Jean. It seemed like Jean wasn’t entirely against the idea, but depending on the Spirit, they might not just pressure him but also guide him into saying their name. It’s impressive, but it sounds tough.” Chris said with a worried expression.
The nuance of “pushing hard” is a bit… physical, isn’t it?
“So you don’t mind the contracts themselves?” Haulon asked for clarification.
“I might pull back from Spirits that are too pushy, but I don’t mind the contracts themselves. I’m actually leaning towards it. However, if the weight of Spirits becomes too heavy, it might throw the balance of the world off and turn it into a Spirit realm, right?”
“Blub!” Dean burst out laughing.
“What do you mean by that?” Haulon asked, his expression serious.
“If the number of Spirits visible to humans increases, it’s one thing, but if they start possessing humans and taking control, it could lead to humans losing their essence. Like the Black Spirits that possess Demon Beasts, I think it would feel like being dragged along by the emotions of the Spirits.”
“Why would the world change like that if Jean’s contracted Spirits increase?” Haulon asked gently.
I don’t need to be coaxed to explain.
“It’s not just my contracted Spirits; if the overall strength of Spirits increases, that’s what will happen. Originally, what the Gods asked of me included not just contracting with Spirits but also creating and developing things to enrich the Material Realm. It’s not good for either Spirits or the material world to become too lopsided.”
“…Even if I had infinite Magic Power, suddenly contracting with all the Spirits to strengthen them would be dangerous, right?”
“Exactly. The Heroes are consuming Spirits at an impressive rate, so it should be fine to some extent. But the Light Spirits might be a bit problematic. The imbalance of Spirits also affects the Material Realm.”
I don’t really know what would happen. If only the Light Spirits grew stronger, would that mean no more nights? Or would it turn into a world that’s perpetually bright, like staring into the sun?
Both of my guardian Spirits are Light Spirits, and I’ve contracted with quite a few Light Spirits in the Fortress City, starting with the Spirit Lamp. Since the Ball of Light protects the Heroes, they probably won’t exhaust the Light Spirits.
“The world changing is scary, but you need to be careful not to be dragged along by the Spirits, alright?” Retze warned.
—I’ve already been quite pulled along, to be honest. This body was originally crafted by Spirits, like a Changeling, much like the False Hero. At first, my memories of Japan and my life as a human were strong, and I didn’t question it, thinking I was just a regular human.
“As long as everyone is by my side, I’ll be fine.”
As long as I want to stay in this Material Realm.
“What do you mean by enriching the Material Realm? What specifically should we do?” Karn crossed his arms, wearing a serious expression.
“It should be about making it easier to live in, ensuring there’s no worry about food, and increasing both people and animals, right? Things like Spirit Lamps or anything involving Spirits would be even better.”
“Ah, during the Era of Fire, many things related to Spirits, like the Great Lighthouse, were at their peak. In the Era of Wind, the soil carried by the Wind Spirits was much more abundant, and Nakahara was a rich granary.” Haulon seemed to recall various things.
“—The idea of not being myself anymore is frightening.”
“I want to be a good neighbor to the Spirits while still being myself.” Retze and Chris chimed in.
Chris has a big heart. Really big.
“The thought of the world not being the one I know is also scary.” Dean seemed a bit withdrawn.
“Are you not fond of Spirits?” I didn’t think he was particularly scared or avoided them when I showed him the Spirits in the Magic Circle. Dean has a big heart too, doesn’t he? Why?
“I want to bury my face in the chest of a beautiful, soft lady! I can’t stand not touching! I want to eat delicious food too! If I mix with Spirits, everything will change!” He slammed his mug down, making his point.
“Ah, yeah. The Sea God Seikai’s Iruka felt like a plump, wet eggplant.”
“Plump…? Eggplant?” Dean’s earlier enthusiasm completely faded, and he looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“Like this.” I pulled a well-grown, fresh eggplant from [Storage] and dunked it in a cup of water, rubbing it against Dean.
“Ah! Wait!” Dean squirmed away.
“How does that differ from a real dolphin?” Haulon asked.
“I’ve never been rubbed by a real dolphin, so I wouldn’t know.”
So I can’t say.
“Well, that’s normal.” Retze muttered without looking at me.
There are no dolphin shows, and I don’t live by the sea, so I never get the chance to be rubbed by a dolphin.
“If you’re going to verify, take this and go meet a real dolphin.” I handed Haulon the eggplant.
“I don’t want to get wet, okay?”
“Why not just take Dean with you?”
“Sounds good.”
Haulon and I both turned to look at Dean.
“So, Dean, good luck.”
“What exactly am I supposed to be doing?!”