“Alright, everyone, let’s do this.”
At Owen’s brief command, the spirits scattered to the four corners, each stopping a few hundred meters apart. They drew their swords and plunged them into the ground.
“Four Spirits Sealing Formation.”
Owen knelt, placed his hand on the ground, and activated a spirit technique. A square barrier, incorporating the four elements, expanded from the spirits, enclosing the three of them.
“Well, this should do for now.”
“…………”
Owen said it casually, but the sight of him simultaneously contracting four high-level spirits and creating such a complex, powerful barrier was anything but ordinary.
Rourke had learned similar techniques, but the caliber of the spirits Owen controlled and the complexity of the techniques were on a completely different level.
The two were left speechless, and Owen sighed softly as he stood up, wearing a puzzled expression.
“Hey, don’t just stand there gaping. Rourke, prepare the evil spirit. Gareth, you’re coming with me outside the barrier.”
“Right.”
Snapping out of it, the two followed their instructions. Rourke stood in the center of the barrier, holding a medium in one hand. Gareth left the barrier with Owen and gripped the hilt of his magic sword, ready for anything.
“Rourke, we’re ready whenever you are! Start whenever you’re prepared!!”
“Got it!”
Responding to Owen’s voice from outside the barrier, Rourke felt a whirlwind of emotions swirling within him.
Fear and anxiety, but even more so, joy and excitement filled his chest.
“…Haa.”
Rourke closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm himself.
Once he had steadied his mind, he opened his eyes, pulled out the medium, and forcefully spread it open, summoning the evil spirit.
“Come forth!!”
A purple light emitted from the medium, and a familiar, massive pectoral fin covered Rourke’s vision.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.PAGES.DEV
“Well, it’s begun.”
“That’s the evil spirit Rourke defeated at Luna’s ruins…”
Owen and Gareth, outside the barrier, murmured as they watched the high-level evil spirit, resembling a giant ray, appear before Rourke.
“Can he really make a contract with that evil spirit…?”
Gareth, feeling the oppressive dark spiritual energy emanating from the spirit even through the barrier, couldn’t help but ask Owen.
Just moments ago, Gareth had thought there might be a chance Rourke could contract with the evil spirit. But now, seeing it in person, the possibility seemed almost nonexistent.
“Well, who knows?”
Owen gave an ambiguous reply, narrowing his eyes slightly at the pressure coming from the evil spirit.
From what he could see, the evil spirit wasn’t acting violently and was calmly floating within the barrier. At the very least, the worst-case scenario—the spirit going berserk the moment it appeared—had been avoided.
But this was still only the very beginning. The real challenge lay ahead.
“…………”
Rourke quietly watched the floating evil spirit.
Noticing his gaze, the spirit slowly descended until it stopped right in front of him.
The spirit’s eyes bore into him, but unlike the hostility he had felt during their encounter at Luna’s ruins, there was no malice now. Taking a small breath, Rourke steeled himself and moved to the next step.
Rourke slowly reached out his hand toward the spirit and began channeling his spiritual energy into its massive form.
This was to establish a temporary connection—a temporary contract—between the spirit and the Spirit Master.
Normally, Spirit Masters would skip the temporary contract and go straight to a full contract. But given that this was a evil spirit, Owen had decided to take things step by step to ensure safety. If anything went wrong at this stage, breaking the contract would be easier, and the damage would be relatively minor compared to a full contract.
“…………”
Rourke gulped nervously, but the evil spirit remained calm, accepting his spiritual energy without resistance. A connection—a temporary contract—was formed between Rourke and the evil spirit.
“…Haah.”
“No way…”
“So, onto the second stage.”
Even though it was just a temporary contract, Rourke had successfully contracted with a evil spirit.
Sweating from the tension, Rourke let out a sigh of relief. Gareth stared in disbelief, while Owen looked slightly relieved.
“Rourke, how’s your body?!”
“I’m fine!”
From what Owen could see, there were no external injuries, but internal damage was still a possibility.
Rourke’s response, however, indicated no issues. His voice didn’t sound forced or deceptive.
“…So, is it possible to contract with a evil spirit through spiritual energy alone?”
Owen pondered as he watched Rourke and the evil spirit. Was Rourke special, or was there no harm in this kind of connection?
With so few precedents, there was little to go on, but Owen racked his brain for answers from the limited information available.
“Master! I’m going for the full contract!”
“…Got it!”
But Rourke’s voice interrupted Owen’s thoughts, and he quickly shifted gears, preparing to step in if needed.
“Gareth, stay alert from here on out.”
“Right.”
Snapping back to attention, Gareth nodded and focused on Rourke once more.
Finally, the process transitions from a provisional contract to a full one—a spirit contract.
At this point, no one can predict what will happen.
It’s possible that Rourke could suddenly become incapacitated, or perhaps he might go mad and rampage alongside the evil spirit.
Imagining a tragic future, Rourke hesitates for a moment, but in the next instant, he steels his resolve. He raises his hand toward the evil spirit and recites the sacred incantation in a clear, resonant voice.
“O noble spirit, heed my call and bind yourself to me. If you do, I shall become your vessel. I command you once more—if you respond to my will, reveal your true name!”
As Rourke finishes the incantation, a connection forms between him and the evil spirit—not one of spiritual energy, but a circuit of souls linking them. At the same time, the spirit’s thoughts flow into Rourke’s mind, translated into words he can understand.
—–It’s finally happening.
Rourke closes his eyes and focuses his consciousness, determined not to miss a single word of the voice streaming into his mind.
[◎△＄♪×￥●＆％＃！]
“…………Huh?”
[★♯●■＄！：＊％!?]
“………Wait, what?”
“▲☆＝￥〒♂◎＆■♯£”
“…………”
He had no idea what it was saying.
***＊＊
“Something’s not right…”
The first to notice Rourke’s strange condition was his mentor, Owen.
After reciting the incantation, Rourke hadn’t moved a muscle, and the evil spirit had also frozen in place.
At first, Owen thought the contract had finally succeeded, but it didn’t seem to be the case.
“Owen, open the barrier. I’ll go in and separate Rourke from the spirit.”
“Wait a moment, Gareth. It’s better not to provoke them right now.”
Owen stopped Gareth, who had already drawn his magic sword and summoned Beowulf, ready for battle.
“But…!”
“As long as we don’t know what state Rourke is in, provoking the spirit could backfire.”
If they carelessly agitated the spirit, which was currently calm, it might go berserk—and that would put Rourke’s life in grave danger.
Moreover, since there was no sign of spiritual energy disturbance from Rourke, the situation hadn’t escalated to a critical point that required immediate intervention. So Owen calmly reasoned with Gareth to keep him from acting rashly.
“Then… what do we do?”
“For now, we have to trust Rourke and wait.”
Owen was prepared to step in immediately if anything went wrong, but it wasn’t the right time yet. Unless there was a clear sign of abnormality from either the spirit or Rourke himself, acting recklessly would be unwise.
“……Grrrr…”
“Rourke! Are you okay!?”
After watching for a while, Rourke let out a pained groan.
Gareth called out to him, ready to intervene at a moment’s notice, his magic sword at the ready. Beside him, Owen also prepared to open the barrier if necessary.
“Master!”
“What’s wrong!?”
But the response they received was unexpected.
“I can’t understand what this thing is saying!!”
“I don’t understand what *you’re* saying either!?”
Owen immediately shot back at Rourke’s shout. What did he mean by “I can’t understand”? Owen was just as confused and wanted a clearer explanation.
“Ever since a moment ago, these incomprehensible words have been flooding my mind! What is this!?”
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