Ch.144Negotiation (7)

*

Despite spirits having existed for an incredibly long time, very little was known about them.

Among animals, humans, and all other beings combined, those who could communicate with spirits were absurdly few.

Due to the distinct differences between individual spirits, even the spirits themselves found it difficult to explain their characteristics or physiology.

Spirits, being closer to concepts or natural principles rather than living organisms, rarely attempted to explore their own identity, which was only natural.

What spirits were, how they were born, what kind of beings they were—even spirits themselves couldn’t properly explain.

Guardian spirits—beings that embodied the concept of protecting someone.

Pia, Ash’s guardian spirit, also didn’t know much about spirits.

“How…”

However, despite this, there were two things that all spirits commonly knew.

That spirits couldn’t help but love spirit mages.

And that no one except spirit mages could communicate with them.

“…Ah, ugh.”

Silvia stared directly at Pia with gleaming eyes, offering no response.

That gaze, too firmly fixed to be considered coincidence or illusion, made Pia feel the emotion of fear for the first time.

The instinctive judgment that she needed to flee to Ash’s side made Pia move.

Pia leaped up like a compressed spring suddenly released, concealed herself, and rushed toward the door.

“Stop,”

BANG!

“Eek!”

When Pia tried to open the cabin door, something flew at high speed and crashed into the door with a loud noise.

Pia tumbled backward in shock.

Slowly raising her head, Pia’s vision caught the rabbit bone fragment embedded in the door and Silvia’s head turned directly toward her position on the floor.

Pia was astonished once again.

When Pia concealed herself, or more precisely, when she stopped revealing herself, even Ash couldn’t see her.

For spirits who inherently lacked form, being invisible was actually their more natural state.

Yet Silvia was clearly fixing her gaze directly on Pia, who had concealed herself.

Pia muttered with a trembling voice.

“Why… why can you see Pia…”

“…”

Silvia didn’t answer.

Her head, unnaturally turned toward Pia with tightly closed lips, was terrifying and grotesque.

Eventually, her face twitched slightly,

“Haha,”

Silvia burst into laughter.

“My, you’re not trembling, are you?”

“…Answer me, how can you see—”

“Let me tell you in advance, I can’t see you.”

“…Huh?”

Hearing Silvia’s words, Pia slowly got up and carefully walked sideways.

Silvia’s head slowly followed Pia’s movements.

“No need to check like that. I don’t see you. I’m sensing something like… Ash’s magical power remaining on your body.”

“…!”

The mysterious power that spirits invoke.

Clearly different in principle from magic, and sometimes boasting overwhelming power that surpasses magic, this miracle nevertheless required some material to consume for its power.

Some spirits used their own life force to perform miracles, while others received sacrifices from humans, but in Pia’s case, she used Ash’s magical power.

The reason why Ash, who had no talent for magic whatsoever, had such an abundance of magical power was because Pia had been consuming and growing it since he was young.

Looking at how Malice, a spirit mage from a previous era, was known as a great magician with tremendous magical power, other guardian spirits probably used their masters’ magical power as well.

“Magical power…”

Pia stuck out her tongue.

Whatever magical power remained on her body was extremely minimal.

How was it possible that Silvia could sense and detect such a small amount of magical power that even Ash, its owner who had trained in magic his whole life, couldn’t perceive?

Or was it because it was Ash’s magical power that she could sense it?

Pia realized once again that Silvia’s obsession with Ash far exceeded imagination.

“I don’t know what you’re saying, but I can’t hear your voice either.”

“…Crazy obsessive woman.”

“I can only tell that you’re there, that’s all.”

Pia tried insulting Silvia just in case, but Silvia continued speaking without paying any attention.

Her claim that she could sense Pia’s presence but couldn’t see or hear her appeared to be true.

In other words, Silvia was not a being who could communicate with Pia.

Realizing this fact, Pia felt an inexplicable sense of relief and slowly exhaled.

The thought of having to act for someone other than Ash was utterly horrifying.

“You’re probably wondering since when I could see you, so let me tell you—it was from mealtime just now. Suddenly I could see.”

“Huh…?”

“I said something ‘like’ magical power, right? To be honest, I don’t really know what I’m sensing either, or why I can suddenly see… I just started seeing it from earlier. The fluctuating aura of you hovering around Ash.”

“…”

“So it made me feel bad, somehow it looked to me like you were demanding ‘don’t sleep with Silvia’ to Ash.”

“Because you shake your hips like a beast every night…”

“I really wish you wouldn’t do that.”

Pia abruptly closed her mouth at Silvia’s voice that seemed to cut off her words.

It was because Silvia’s expression had hardened to the point of looking extremely grotesque.

Her face was unnaturally rigid, like a corpse or as if she were wearing an intricately carved mask.

From that expression and those words alone, Pia could realize.

That all the appearances and words she had shown to Ash earlier were lies.

‘Ash, I… honestly, I’m scared.’

No,

This woman isn’t afraid of anything.

Not walking the path where her comrades died, not ruining the world, not facing her own failures.

She fears none of these things.

Such matters no longer concern Silvia at all.

There is only one thing she fears.

Only Ash rejecting her.

“You know, I really hope that what I’m feeling is just a feeling and nothing more.”

“…You’re insane.”

Honestly, Pia had nothing to fear.

While it was certainly surprising that Silvia had become able to sense Pia, she clearly wouldn’t be able to touch Pia, so she had no way to harm her.

But Pia was afraid.

This woman would definitely succeed.

She would find a way, no matter what.

She might not save the world if it meant keeping Ash by her side—no, she might even agree to hand the world over to the Demon King.

That certainty spread through Pia.

“Pia.”

“…!”

“I have no idea what you’re thinking. Whether you dislike me, or if you’re jealous because you like Ash as a man.”

“…Grr,”

“So I’ll say this one last time.”

Silvia slowly stood up and approached Pia.

Pia, sitting down, slowly backed away.

“I really want Ash to be happy by my side.”

“…I also want Ash to—”

“Even if Ash becomes unhappy, I’ll keep him by my side.”

“…Ugh,”

“Even if Ash becomes miserable or comes to hate me, I will definitely keep him by my side.”

“…”

“So, if you want Ash to remain happy, please make sure I don’t get any strange feelings.”

Silvia slowly cornered Pia against the wall.

With her back against the wall, Pia looked up at Silvia, trembling with fear.

Silvia leaned in with that frightening face and asked.

“…Do you understand?”

“…”

“Now, go to Ash. Oh, and of course, this conversation stays between us. Got it?”

“…”

Pia darted between Silvia’s legs and fled the cabin.

Silvia straightened up as she felt Pia’s presence disappear.

The sound of the door closing with a clatter came from behind her.

“…Hmm, did I scare the child too much… No, Ash said she only looks like a child, so it should be fine.”

Silvia muttered as she began cleaning up after the meal she and Ash had eaten.

Gathering the bone fragments from the meat Ash had eaten and the flesh she had left, throwing them into the bonfire, Silvia muttered.

“Still, I wonder why I suddenly became able to see her…”

*

I was crouched by the lakeside, washing my freshly shaved chin.

Looking at my reflection in the water, I was relieved to see that despite not having shaved for a while, it turned out clean and neat.

My beard only grew thinly above my upper lip, below my lower lip, and on my chin, yet Silvia still wanted to kiss my face despite seeing that.

I was lost in such idle thoughts when it happened.

“Ash! Ash!”

“Huh?”

Pia called my name and hurriedly burrowed into my arms.

I quickly set aside the dagger in my hand and patted Pia’s back.

“Whoa! You startled me. That was dangerous—I hadn’t put the dagger away yet!”

“That’s not what’s dangerous! There’s something more dangerous!”

“More dangerous?”

Pia was trembling all over.

“Why, what’s wrong? Did something happen?”

“…T-that…”

“Take your time and tell me.”

Pia looked up at me with tears welling in her eyes.

I slowly stroked Pia’s head, waiting until she was ready to speak.

“W-well…”

“Yes?”

“…”

Pia hesitated, her lips quivering, then lowered her face and buried her head against my chest, shaking her head.

“It’s… nothing.”

“…Pia?”

“…Uuu,”

“It’s okay, tell me.”

“…T-that, uuu, actually…”

Just then.

“Ash!”

From the distant cabin, Silvia waved her hand and called my name.

When I turned my head toward Silvia, she waved her arms widely and shouted loudly.

“Are you done shaving?”

I shouted back while patting Pia’s head.

“Yeah, I’m done!”

“Then let’s continue training in five minutes! We’re doing evasion training again today!”

“Got it! I’ll be there!”

After answering, I lowered my head again to look at Pia.

Pia was trembling, her face buried deep in my arms.

.