NOVEL NEXT Chapter 44
Whew─
“Ugh.”
The cold wind clawed at my entire body.
With my eyes closed, I sighed in muted contemplation.
Did I sleep with my window open last night?
But it shouldn’t be this cold.
[Chaos says it’s time for you to wake up.]
…No. I didn’t fall asleep last night.
Before losing consciousness, my last memory was…
That’s right. The Spirit Realm!
Blink.
I hurriedly lifted my heavy eyelids and propped myself up.
[Chaos lets out a sigh of relief, saying you’ve finally regained your senses.]
“How long have I been lying down?”
[Chaos says it hasn’t been long at all.]
‘Well, at least I can communicate with Chaos. That’s a relief.’
I slapped my cheeks to shake off the drowsiness sticking to my face, then blinked and looked around.
“Wow…”
Swoosh─
Everything was a sea of green.
In the lush forest, the vibrant green leaves caught my eye, and as I stared blankly ahead…
A gentle breeze, carrying the essence of grass, tousled my hair.
The ground beneath my feet was a mysterious turquoise color, not brown, asserting its presence.
Tilting my head back, I saw the sky swirled with azure and pale green, illuminating everything in colors unseen in reality.
As I basked in the sight that made my heart feel fresh and alive, it felt like my soul, a little battered from rolling around in this other world, was naturally healing.
‘Forget the spirits, just being able to see this is worth it.’
Whew.
“Ugh.”
As I marveled and released tension from my body, a chilling gust from somewhere reminded me of my predicament.
‘Right. I’ve had my moment of healing, but now I need to find a spirit. I’m not going to live here forever. I have to move.’
But wait, why am I still naked?
Why do I keep ending up stripped down every time I fall somewhere?
I vaguely remember something about spiritification or whatever in a system interface before I collapsed. Is that it?
“This is called the Spirit Realm, so I doubt any other life forms would show up. Let’s not worry about it.”
[Chaos grins, saying it looks good.]
Oh man, I’ll see you in my dreams later. You’ll be in my soft cheeks.
“Is the only way to leave this place to contract with a spirit, as stated in the tooltip?”
[Chaos implies that since you can see what ordinary humans can’t, it seems there’s no other option besides a contract for now.]
I stood up straight.
Right. I have no idea which way to go. I guess I just keep walking forward.
*
Plod, plod.
Thirty minutes of just walking had passed.
“Nyuu?”
Huh?
A translucent squirrel with a pale green body appeared.
The first creature I noticed after arriving in the Spirit Realm.
It was definitely a spirit, no doubt about it.
‘What should I do? I can run away if it turns hostile, so let’s approach slowly without raising suspicion.’
I cautiously inched closer while maintaining eye contact with the squirrel spirit.
As I quietly closed the distance one step at a time…
[The trait of the Chaos Dragon mixed in your blood influences the spirit.]
[The low-tier wind spirit Philo is terrified.]
“Nyuuuh!”
Scurry!
“Ah.”
I froze, my hand outstretched.
Why is it scared of my mixed blood?
Wait a second. Am I seriously doomed here?
‘If I can’t contract, I can’t return to reality, and my goal of finding a low-tier spirit is running away because of my other trait?’
“No, wasn’t that creature just a bit weird? Maybe it was hypersensitive to other energies.”
[Chaos is sweating bullets.]
…
The result was… the same.
“Eek!”
[The low-tier wind spirit Kanak resists.]
Even the one that appeared to threaten me, looking like a raccoon with its arms spread wide.
“Grr, screech…”
[The low-tier wind spirit Piel is terrified.]
The small bird-like spirit, shaking with fear, unable to distinguish if it’s a chick or a sparrow.
Tap.
[The low-tier wind spirit Timmy’s body freezes.]
Even the mouse spirit froze, pretending to be dead.
If I touch one, it’s a contract or nothing, and I really felt like I would die for real, so I passed by.
“Fwoosh─!”
[The mid-tier wind spirit Haku feels threatened.]
Even the first mid-tier spirit that looked like an eagle spread its wings wide and immediately changed direction, disappearing into a dot in an instant.
Damn, even mid-tier spirits don’t want to deal with me.
“What the hell do I do now? I’m out of ideas.”
[Chaos holds his head in despair.]
“Damn it, is there really not a single spirit anywhere in the entire Spirit Realm that will contract with me?”
I was in a spiritified state, so I didn’t even feel hungry or tired. I had no choice but to keep walking.
Just as I was about to take another step forward…
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“─No. There will be no spirit willing to contract with you.”
What.
A voice I never expected to hear came from behind me.
I spun around.
“Ugh. What an eyesore.”
In front of me was a being as beautiful as her voice—was it a person? A spirit?
She pointed at my lower half with her index finger.
Whew.
“Hmm. It’s a bit better now that it’s covered. Are you in any pain?”
“Uh, yes. Excuse me, are you a spirit too?”
She nodded.
“Of course, I’m a spirit. You’re the only non-spirit entity in this Spirit Realm. It’s quite curious how a human can wander into the Spirit Realm in a spiritified state.”
That made sense. By the way, do I have to keep calling her ‘spirit’?
“Coming here wasn’t my choice. …May I ask what to call you? Don’t spirits have individual names as well?”
She pressed her index finger to her lower lip and spoke.
“Hmm, very well. No need to hide it. Call me Sirene.”
“Understood. So, Sirene, is there really not a single low-tier spirit willing to contract with me?”
“Regrettably so. Not only low-tier spirits but even those above them feel the same way.”
When I asked why, Sirene answered softly.
“Ordinary dragon kin are already a source of fear to spirits, and you’re a human with the mixed essence of a dragon, strengthened by opposing powers.”
She shook her head.
I could easily predict what would come next.
“Let me simplify it. You will never be able to discuss benefits related to spirits from now on.”
“So… does that mean my spirit affinity is effectively zero?”
“No, it’s even lower than that.”
The blunt confirmation hit me like a ton of bricks.
“No, I never intended to enter the Spirit Realm in the first place. If I need to contract with a spirit to leave, does that mean I’ll never get out of here?”
There was no guarantee I’d stay alive forever here.
If the body I collapsed with outside withered away, I might disappear just like that while in the spiritified state. How could I be sure of anything?
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll take care of it.”
‘This doesn’t seem like an easy problem to resolve.’
She continued instead.
“But, if I solve it, then you must leave immediately and never enter the Spirit Realm again, unless it involves me. Who knows what could happen if you get wrapped up in something again.”
“Is that even a thing? I don’t even know how to enter by my own will.”
And even if I knew, with every spirit running away from me, why would I want to go back?
Hah. Lumia is living a life far worse than this. I wouldn’t be able to endure it. I’ll have to tell her she did great next time I see her.
I asked Sirene.
“So what’s this method you speak of? Is it something I can do right away?”
“Yes, but…”
Her expression suddenly became hesitant, which didn’t suit her poker face.
“Ha, I guess there’s no helping it. I can’t leave the spirits feeling troubled and attacked, so think of this as an honor, and just stand there.”
What is she planning to do?
Plod.
Sirene got close enough for her breath to hit me.
“You’re not going to reach from there. Kneel.”
Doing as instructed, I knelt down on one knee.
‘Feels like some kind of coronation ceremony or something. Is she about to grant me a token that will allow me to escape? Or maybe a blessing?’
“This is your first, and it won’t happen again. Make sure you erase it from your mind the moment you stand up.”
What is she taking so long for?
She swept my bangs aside, exposing my forehead.
Peck.
???
[You have acquired the trait: Kiss of the Gentle Breeze.]
────
[Kiss of the Gentle Breeze] [P]
Due to the kiss from the supreme wind spirit Sirene, an unseen permanent mark has been etched onto the user.
The user will temporarily be treated as a spirit instead of a soul in the Spirit Realm.
─Cannot be erased by any means.
─Allows access to the Spirit Realm.
─Grants weak wind resistance.
─Increases the favorability of spirits slightly.
────
[Chaos jumps around angrily, asking what on Earth she just did.]
[Chaos is bouncing up and down, yelling.]
I gently rubbed the center of my forehead, where the sensation still lingered.
Did she just kiss the forehead of a guy she met for the first time to send me off for the sake of weaker spirits?
“No, I’m really sorry. I had no idea it would be something like this.”
She wiped her lips with the back of her hand.
“No, it’s nothing to apologize for. Just remember what I told you earlier. I won’t elaborate on what happens if you break that promise.”
“Understood. I’ll definitely keep it in mind.”
“Now, close your eyes tightly and vividly envision the big passageway back to where you were before falling into the Spirit Realm. You’ll return to your original location, and if you feel something different, open your eyes then.”
I thanked her and squeezed my eyes shut.
“May luck be with you in your future.”
“Th—”
Swish!
Instinctively, I felt it. I was back.
When I opened my eyes, I saw a dimly lit room.
‘This sensation against my knees. I must have collapsed onto the bed.’
I definitely journeyed in a spiritified state, yet I felt exhausted, as if I had accumulated spiritual fatigue.
How can so much happen in just a few days?
“Ugh, I really thought I was going to die.”
[Chaos sighs, saying he had no choice but to do what it took to survive.]
So ultimately, a failed spirit contract, and what’s this all about now?
Anyway, let’s cleanly forget the failure for now.
So until I head to the Labyrinth, all I need to do is train, bouncing between the Inn and Knights?
As I lay on the bed, I thought deeply.
‘No, I also need to stop by the Guild and check for any bounties, and get my armor repaired as well.’
That’s not all. There’s still so much I don’t know.
Knowledge and information that every adventurer should know, especially since the basics taught in mandatory education only skim the surface of what’s needed in this world.
So I need to make time to visit the Library too.
‘After all, Ivelyn prioritizes her sister, so even if I go every day, she won’t be able to focus on me.’
Training with Rotten at the Inn, checking the Guild for any bounty announcements, hitting the Library for exploration and reading, and stopping by the Knights every few days.
Wow, that’s tight.
But it needs to be done. No matter what unreasonable situations I face, I need to survive alongside everyone.
With a deep sigh, I closed my eyes.
‘Something tells me time will fly starting tomorrow.’
Just as my sight faded to black, a strong surge of energy enveloped me.