episode_0100

Before departing, I briefly met Nix.

“Got a question? Spit it out. Khihih-”

Just the fact that I spoke to her had her giggling and beaming like this.

Tilting her head, she looks like a slightly deficient child.

But unlike her outward appearance, she’s the smartest among us.

First of all, she’s proficient in magic.

Having lived in the sanctuary for hundreds of years, the amount of knowledge she’s accumulated is quite vast, so her information processing ability, as well as her speed in deriving answers, is quick.

In the process, her memory capacity has also improved, and she seems to be able to memorize an unbelievable amount of content.

It’s clear from when I briefly stopped by the scroll shop earlier; she memorized hundreds of magic formulas in less than an hour.

This high intelligence allows for superior calculation processing of formulas, and she understands magic better than anyone else.

That’s not all.

Nix is a spirit by birth, a mental lifeform composed of mana, so she’s innately familiar with mana.

From the moment she became aware of her existence, she understood the flow of mana, followed its flow, and even awakened the power to freely manipulate it.

Since the current trend in magic theory is “Pure Mana Studies,” those who excel at magic show considerable skill in basic mana manipulation. Nix could be considered a strong person who fits this societal trend.

Of course, for now, I’ve put magic aside and came to ask her about something much more important.

“…Regarding spiritual senses. A simple explanation is a bit difficult.”

If your eyes hurt, you go to an ophthalmologist; if your throat hurts, you go to an ENT.

If you want to know about the soul, you go to a spirit, a being that’s been a spirit since birth.

Isn’t that a very simple and irrefutable course of action?

“But why suddenly?”

“Hmm… To put it simply, it’s homework left by my mother. I think I’ll need the power to awaken and free my own spirit.”

“Hee… I see… Khihih-”

Nix giggled again.

This girl… I’m being serious, yet she’s dragging me into this strange atmosphere again—

“That’s no problem.”

“…Huh?”

—I was planning to get a little angry.

For some reason, seriousness emanated from her face.

Emitting her characteristic black mist—*pororong*—she seemed to be slowly drawing power.

“Nari, you are already somewhat aware of your spirit.”

“…Explain in detail.”

*Cackle-*

Instead of speaking, Nix continued her explanation by letting out black mist-formed mana.

「How is it, can you hear it?」

“This is…!!”

It’s clear.

It’s not a vocal sound, nor a message sent through ordinary magic.

It’s a voice conveyed through the soul.

The voice sent by the spirits of Artemis, the voice I heard to my fill at that ruin.

The language of spiritual bodies.

「…I can hear it.」 「See? You already have the ability to perceive other spiritual bodies.」 「Why is that?」

Nix widened her eyes.

「You’ll know, you fool. Your body is very different from an ordinary person, isn’t it?」

Then she curled her hand into a circle, brought it to my crotch, and wiggled it up and down.

As if kneading my penis.

…Indeed.

I don’t know exactly, but if it’s because of this body, I can understand it a little.

After all, I seem to have been selected as a ‘Player.’

And I possessed godlike abilities called Traits.

Among them, “[One Who Defies the Natural Order]” always caught my eye.

I felt mana for the first time thanks to this trait; and my ability to absorb mana helped me overcome many dangers.

It was the first stepping stone that allowed me to accumulate my current power; it was like my two hands and two feet.

「One more thing. Recently, haven’t you seen something strange?」 「Strange…？」 「That time, when you defeated Grey Wolf and Shadow Wolf, the leader of their pack.」

Slowly retracing my memories, something suspicious came to mind.

After they died, something like pure white ectoplasm scattered from their corpses.

「…That was a soul.」 「Right. I thought you already knew?」 「No. That was the first time I saw it.」

That was also the first time I annihilated such a large number of monsters.

In the first place, I didn’t have many experiences where I could… It sounds a little strange to call it an ‘opportunity,’ but anyway, I didn’t have much experience that would allow me to sense souls.

Perhaps only when I went to the Spirit Sanctuary?

「Probably then, and as a result of repeatedly using your power, you’ve grown a bit.」 「I can’t feel much difference.」 「You’re feeling it right now.」

It’s like how you can’t verify how much you’ve grown unless you measure your height.

This event seemed to be the trigger for properly assessing my growth.

*Ting-*

As if to prove that thought, the status window immediately appeared and updated.

『Due to power awakening, the delayed information update of the status window will be performed en masse.』 『Information has been added to the Trait, [One Who Defies the Natural Order].』 『- Can now perceive and understand souls.』

…I just got it for free.

Does it not appear until I consciously accept it?

In that case, I can’t trust it as a means of displaying my stats.

It’s worthless junk I should just throw away.

『…….』

What?

So who’s neglecting their work and playing around?

“Whew… It’s done. Only I myself are trustworthy.”

After letting out my anger to some extent, I pushed the status window to the corner of my sight and looked at Nix.

「……?」 「…There is such a thing… Anyway.」

If I already have the power to awaken my soul, the next step is natural, isn’t it?

“I’ll need to try various things…” “It should be possible. I believe in you. Khihih-”

The lingering worries that had been weighing on my mind like a boulder had vanished.

After settling old issues that I had overlooked due to busyness, all that was left was the passion to move forward with a steadfast goal.

Even Nix’s mischievous laughter sounded cute and lovely today.

“Come here.” “O-Okay-”

It’s a little awkward to do it in public, so I quickly pulled her into my arms.

Yuri and Eve are in the next room, preparing for a brief outing.

Although I’m not doing anything wrong, my heart is pounding as if I were committing adultery.

Gently supporting the nape of Nix’s neck where her black hair fell, I pulled her chin and gently pressed my lips to hers.

*Peck-*

“…”

I closed my eyes intending to give a quick kiss, but for some reason, the silence stretched endlessly.

I opened my eyes slightly.

“…Uuugh.”

There, before me, was a blushing face.

“What… Why are you so embarrassed?” “W-Well… I didn’t expect you to kiss me suddenly…”

Haha- look at this cute girl.

Burying Nix’s flushed face in my chest, I whispered softly in her ear.

“Is this a secret from Yuri?” “…Mm-hmm.”

Having found a solution to this, after preparing, Yuri and Eve also came out, and together, we left the inn.

I’d completely forgotten, but Yuri knew almost everything about me.

“Wait—stop, Nix. Why is your face so red?” “Uh, nothing.” “Hmm… Sniff sniff-”

She found Nix’s slightly shiny lips with eagle eyes.

And immediately pressed her face to them.

“…I smell my sister’s saliva.”

Then they kissed intensely.

… … …

The special training ground exclusive for gifted students can only be opened and closed by those with the key.

From the outside, it looks like an ordinary training ground, but inside, special magic formulas are engraved.

That is, a spatial magic that boasts unlimited size, as long as the stored mana allows.

Inside the special barrier that blocks nearly 100 percent of the interaction between the outside and the inside, nothing you do will affect the outside.

Of course, when conducting high-level training that manipulates the magic formulas themselves, you have to contact them beforehand and reinforce the magic defense formulas.

Otherwise… the magic barrier compressing that vast space might burst, and the information inside it would instantly spill out; Not only the training ground, but the entire academy might become a wasteland again.

Of course, what I’m doing today won’t lead to any such disastrous results.

Hmm… It’s a simple “astral projection game,” you could say.

Erasing the sensation of my physical body, feeling only my spirit, and containing my consciousness within that vessel.

You could call it a technique to let the soul leave.

Just as the first button is important in any work, the first attempt is also important when acquiring a new skill.

The more valuable failures you experience, the more it will help your success after many revisions.

That’s why I pulled out all the stops from the beginning.

Sitting cross-legged in the center of the training ground, concentrating my senses on the spirit residing within my body, I imagined the image of Nix freely flying in the sky.

“K-kngh… Come out, come out—Spiriiiiiit—!!”

I focused so intensely and exerted so much effort that if I slightly misapplied my strength, something else would come out.

The feeling of my limbs stretching freely, the feeling of my body getting all wobbly… but it didn’t go as planned.

“Puaahahahaha… A failure.”

Taking a deep breath after holding it back, I slowly stood up.

Right… It wouldn’t work the first time.

If such a dangerous and difficult technique were that easy to succeed at, the streets would be flooded with astral projectors.

‘Perhaps I lacked a little bit of sensation.’

After finding room for improvement, I prepared my mind once again. Turning around I saw…

…My body sitting there.

「…Huh?」