GalaxyTL
“This is my spirit, Hiro.”
『Nice to meet you. I’m Hiro.』
One afternoon, on a day off. “Come to think of it, we haven’t introduced our spirits yet, right?” Ronny and I realized this and were introducing our spirits to each other in the guild’s backyard.
First, so we could see them, we’d guess what kind of spirits they were. I’d heard that Ronny’s spirit was an earth spirit, so it appeared right away!
Hiro-kun, a cute, squirrel-like spirit with round, shiny eyes, spoke slowly. I wonder if it’s also easygoing?
“Nice to meet you, Hiro-kun. I’m Meg! This is…”
『Shou-chan!』
『Hiya! I’m Fuu!』
『I’m Homura!』
『Honestly, you’re all so hasty… I am Shizuku. Nice to meet you.』
I was about to introduce my spirits, but my assertive spirits started introducing themselves on their own. M-My pride as their master…!
“Fufu, they’re all so lively. I’m Ronaldo. Nice to meet you.”
『I know! It’s Ronny!』
『Ronny.』
『Yeah, Ronny, nice to meet you!』
『Nice to meet you, Ronny.』
Oh, it’s so lively. Spirits are rare, so they’re probably happy they can see them, I’m sure. We can make them visible to everyone with magic power, but we don’t do that unless there’s a good reason.
Ah, that means… maybe even Hiro-kun’s happy to be able to talk to someone else. Alright, I’ll try talking to him.
“Hiro-kun, thanks for helping us out back then! You stopped them, didn’t you? That was amazing magic!”
『Eh, um… yeah, um, well, it’s because… my true name was called. And it was just… only for a little bit…』
Hiro-kun seemed surprised at being thanked. It was fidgeting shyly, hugging its large tail. S-So cute…!
“Even so, it helped us so much. Thank you!”
『Fwah… e-ehehe. You’re welcome.』
When I gently patted its back, it narrowed its eyes happily. Wow, so cute. Fluffy. Healing. Ultimate healing!
Actually, if it hadn’t helped us that time, I wouldn’t have an arm now. Just thinking about that sends chills down my spine.
“Meg, you have contracts with… so many spirits.”
“Ah, yeah. I was actually going to ask about that! I heard you can only have one spirit per person, but… is that true?”
“Hmm, I’m not sure if it’s ‘normal’. I’ve only ever lived in the mine. At least… for mine Dwarves, it’s one, or at most two.”
That’s true. You wouldn’t know unless you’ve experienced it. Ronny and I both live in rather small worlds.
“Shouldn’t we… ask the spirits?”
“Ah, good idea!”
It’s true that we’d get a better idea of the average number if we asked them. When I looked at Shou-chan, it was confidently puffing up its chest. It’s eager…!
『I know everything you want to ask, Master! Leave it to Shou-chan!』
Shou-chan then, as if about to start a lecture, told us to sit in a row. Ronny and I obediently sat down on the grass. Ah, seiza style? It’s particular about these things. Even the spirits were all lined up, sitting properly. …So cute!
『Ahem! Now then, let me explain! To get straight to the conclusion, it varies depending on the race and individual!』
Shou-chan started explaining, using some of the slightly difficult words it’d learned. Yeah, yeah, you’re so cute, Shou-chan!
『Dwarves are, by nature, sturdy. They don’t need to form contracts with a lot of spirits. So it’s basically one or two! Elves are a race that lives in harmony with nature. Their bodies are weaker than other races. That’s why they borrow the power of many spirits!』
“Eh!? Are elves… physically weak?”
That’s news to me. Schlie-san, even without magic, his physical abilities are incredibly high, from what I’ve heard?
『The elves at the guild have worked incredibly hard, you know? But after using their bodies, they have to sleep a lot. I think they sleep more than other demi-humans, right? Even you, Master, you’re always sleepy!』
Now that you mention it…！ I thought it was because I’m still a child, weak, and get tired easily that I sleep so much… So basically, because my race is physically weak, I was unconsciously recovering through sleep. What a revelation! I’m not sure if Schlie-san sleeps a lot, but I’m sure it’s true if Shou-chan’s saying it. Woah, I had no idea!
『But elves have a lot of magic power. They’re better than anyone at handling it, you know? So Master’s better at training magic than physical abilities!』
“Yeah, I vaguely realized that.”
I see, so that’s why my and Ronny’s “normal” is different. Both are correct! Ronny and I exchanged glances and nodded.
“But we need to train physically too. If we lose immediately just because our weakness is targeted, that’s not good enough for an Ortus member!”
“Yeah, me too. Not just physical abilities, but magic too. I want to… form a contract with at least one more spirit.”
So Ronny and I have completely opposite strengths and weaknesses. I wonder if we can teach each other? Of course, we each have amazing mentors, but it seems like we could exchange information like this, even on our days off!
『I know the perfect spirit for Ronny!』
『I know too! I’m sure it’s the same spirit Shou-chan’s thinking of!』
Shou-chan and Fuu-chan started arguing about that. How lucky. I guess spirits can tell if they’re compatible.
『The flower spirit. It’s a bit timid, but very knowledgeable. I think you two will get along well, Ronny.』
“Shizuku-chan also knows it? Homura-kun? Do you know it?”
A flower spirit. I thought Homura-kun would also know, since everyone else does, and asked, but…
『I-I’m hiding… It’ll get scared and run away if it sees me…』
He muttered this, dejectedly lowering his bright red tail. Th-That’s right. Fire is a big no-no for flowers.
“D-Don’t worry! Once it gets used to you, it’ll realize what a kind spirit you are!”
He was looking so pitiful that I tried cheering him up. He lifted his head, his eyes sparkling. Yeah, that’s it!
『But stay hidden until they form a contract with Ronny! It’ll get scared and won’t want to form a contract!』
But it drooped again at Fuu-chan’s blunt comment. Ahh! Homura-kun, cheer up!
『Can we go now? We’re going?』
Fuu-chan asked, not seeming to care at all. She’s quite the go-getter. I’m sure she means well!
“Yeah, let’s go. Is that okay, Meg?”
“Of course! If you guys are going, I’ll go too! Make hay while the sun shines, as they say!”
And so we stood up, to head towards where the flower spirit is.
——
TL Note: Starting to treat Homura as male and Fuu as female since they use male and female pronouns respectively. Shou-chan still seems to be rather neutral despite having a female-leaning appearance in the official illustrations. Of course as stated in the story, none of the spirits actually have genders.