Rolten was following suspicious figures wearing robes in a deserted alleyway.
‘They’re fearless. Loitering around here of all places.’
Through various rumors and gathered information, he had finally reached this border village within Kerthen County. According to his sources, the people he was pursuing were supposed to conduct an important transaction here.
‘What kind of deal are the royal family’s people trying to make all the way out here?’
After keeping a close watch on their movements, they had finally made their move today. Rolten continued to tail them, maintaining his distance while erasing his presence as carefully as possible.
‘I should hide.’
The figures suddenly stopped and looked around, double-checking to see if anyone was nearby. After verifying their surroundings several times, they ventured deeper into the alley.
‘…Given how their alertness has increased, the important location must be from here on out.’
Rolten followed them into the narrow path. The way stretched between old, dilapidated buildings. As he passed through, a large open space appeared along with a building that looked incredibly suspicious. Unlike the surrounding structures, this one was in good condition, meaning it was being actively maintained.
‘This is their hideout.’
Rolten continued his pursuit. Just then, a familiar boy walking out of the building’s entrance caught his eye. Rolten’s eyes narrowed.
‘Is that boy named Beron? Why is he here?’
He was a survivor of a village where a Heresy Purification had previously taken place. As an important witness, he was being moved under guard when the group was attacked, leading to his disappearance. Beron was now being led somewhere, his body bound tightly with rope.
However, Rolten could not follow them any further.
“When did you realize we were here?”
A group of robed figures gathered around Rolten, surrounding him.
“If you knew, you should have said something earlier. You’re making this quite a hassle.”
Rolten maintained a relaxed smile as he drew the sword from his waist. In response, the suspicious figures in robes raised their assassination daggers.
“I was just passing through. Couldn’t you just let me go?”
Without bothering to respond to his joke, they launched a preemptive strike. One person approached Rolten and swung a dagger.
*Clang!*
Rolten easily parried the dagger and stepped back. However, the others immediately followed up with their own attacks.
*Clang! Clack! Clang!*
A relentless barrage of attacks from multiple people swirled around him. Rolten drew upon his Mana. While forming an Aura Blade, he struck back against their assault even more fiercely.
*Slash!*
He managed to inflict a fatal wound on one of the attackers. The man clutched his waist and retreated. Seeing how strong Rolten was, the others hesitated to rush in blindly.
However, the situation was not favorable for Rolten either.
‘I shouldn’t let this drag on. I have no choice but to break out before their reinforcements arrive.’
Rolten watched for an opportunity, planning his escape.
***
Evan gave orders to the elves. It was a large-scale construction project for the full-scale fortification of the area.
“The path here needs to be made as narrow as possible. Even if it is difficult, think of it as a way to block those bastards.”
The path stretching down into the valley was gradually shrinking. The elves had summoned Earth Spirits, Gnomes, to begin altering the terrain. The Gnomes, looking like mud golems about the height of a person’s waist, worked hard to carry rocks and soil.
This was not a small task; it was a massive operation carried out by scores of spirits, moving like a line of ants. It was not easy for the elves, either. Consuming a large amount of Mana for spirit arts, some of them grew exhausted and sat down on the ground one by one.
“This area doesn’t look easy either.”
Helena approached from behind Evan.
“Is the work on your end finished?”
“Yes. It’s nothing much for High Spirits.”
As she smiled, two cute girls appeared behind her. They were Noeanen and Seleana, the High Earth Spirit and the High Fire Spirit.
Seleana, who possessed a fiery personality, could not contain her curiosity and flew toward Evan.
“Human! You have a nice scent!”
Coming closer, Seleana grinned and hugged Evan tightly.
**[Affinity with Flame has increased]**
Helena spoke to Seleana in a panic.
“It’s dangerous! Get back right now—”
She was unable to finish her sentence. Evan was standing there perfectly fine, as if nothing had happened. The aura of fire emitted from Seleana’s body was something an ordinary human could not withstand. In fact, High Spirits themselves were a great burden to humans.
“What happened? Are you alright?”
At Helena’s question, Evan nodded and stroked Seleana’s head.
“I’m fine.”
But Seleana was not the only one; Noeanen had also approached at some point and was standing by Evan’s side.
“You smell like the forest…”
Unlike Seleana, Noeanen was shy and simply stayed near him without any other action.
‘Is it because of the influence of my Affinity with Flame and Forest Affinity?’
He had managed to gain great favor from the spirits.
“You are truly mysterious. Not only does the forest like you, but the spirits as well… And for them to be High Spirits, you must have incredible talent.”
Evan asked her, “Then, can I also form a contract with spirits?”
Helena looked back and forth between the spirits and Evan, appearing deep in thought.
“Spirit contracts depend heavily on an individual’s capacity, so it won’t be easy. Furthermore, these are High Spirits…”
However, seeing how well they followed Evan despite it being their first meeting, she wondered if it might be possible. Seleana, who had been rubbing her face against him, spoke up.
“I like this human! I’m okay with a contract!”
“Me too…”
First and foremost, the most important factor—the spirits’ approval—seemed to be settled. Regardless, contracting with High Spirits using a human vessel was no simple feat. But such an opportunity was rare. She decided to give it a try for Evan’s sake.
“I’ll try to proceed. Please hold out your hands.”
“Yes.”
As Evan held out his hands, Helena began to chant an incantation.
*Flash!*
A magic circle formed beneath her feet. A moment later, Noeanen and Seleana’s bodies began to glow. The energy of earth flowed out from Noeanen’s body, and the energy of fire flowed out from Seleana’s. Those energies were then sucked into Evan’s hands.
“Ugh!”
“If it becomes too much for your body, pull your hands away immediately.”
“No. I’m fine.”
Evan gritted his teeth and endured. As he tried to contract with two High Spirits, two massive forces of nature rampaged through his body. However, it was bearable. Evan’s body had already undergone massive transformations once or twice before. Through the event at Kalaone and the Head of the Household’s test, his physical body had transcended its limits.
‘I can do this.’
Evan calmly accepted the two energies. At that moment, transparent tattoos were engraved on the back of Evan’s hands.
**[You have formed a contract with the High Fire Spirit, Seleana]**
**[You have formed a contract with the High Earth Spirit, Noeanen]**
Helena finished the contract magic, dripping with cold sweat.
“I can’t believe it’s actually possible…”
She looked at Evan with an expression of disbelief. Honestly, she had strongly suspected it would fail.
“In all my years, I have never seen a human form a contract with their own body. You are truly amazing!”
Seeing Evan’s power, Helena felt that he was more than capable of leading the elves.
“Is it finished now?”
Evan steadied his ragged breathing. The aftereffects of the contract still lingered.
“Yes. With this, you are now able to use spirit arts. Try to use your Mana while feeling nature. Then you will be able to summon the spirits.”
Evan nodded and looked at the spirits.
“Human! We really made a contract! How many thousands of years has it been since something like this happened!”
“Wow! I’ve contracted with a human too! It’s so strange.”
Evan chuckled and asked the two of them, “Can you lend me your strength? I want to test it out for a moment.”
With this, he could now directly participate in the fortification of the Elf Village. To gauge the extent of the spirit arts’ power, he decided to put it to use in practice immediately.
“Of course! Should I burn everything down for you?”
Seleana recklessly released her fire energy around her body. Evan scanned the valley and spotted a cliff area, pointing toward it.
“Melt the rocks on that cliff and narrow the valley below.”
“Understood! Something like that is basic!”
Seleana flew off to flaunt her power. Just then.
**[The High Fire Spirit, Seleana, has begun using her power]**
**[80,000 mana has been consumed]**
As several spheres of flame were created around Seleana’s body, Evan’s Mana was rapidly drained.
“Ugh!”
Evan felt dizzy from the excessive Mana consumption.
‘The Mana consumption is astronomical.’
When Evan staggered slightly, Helena supported him.
“Are you okay? High Spirits consume a massive amount of the contractor’s Mana, so humans shouldn’t use their power lightly.”
Despite her concern, Evan shook his head.
“I’m still fine.”
After saying that, he watched Seleana. He wanted to see just how great the power of a High Spirit was. A powerful wave of fire was generated from the spheres of flame floating around Seleana.
*Whoosh!*
The wave of fire, flying in a straight line, began to melt the rock face. Molten lava formed and began to flow down the cliff. In an instant, the entire rocky area had melted away.
“Seleana, stop!”
Evan shouted mid-action. He had to stop her because she was using her power indiscriminately out of excitement. Seleana tilted her head and asked Evan.
“Huh? Why? Is there a problem, human?”
“No, that’s enough. I’ve seen plenty, so stop now.”
Since she had melted more than necessary, a vast amount of lava had formed.
‘The power is certainly strong. But because of her personality, she seems difficult to control.’
Evan clicked his tongue and looked at Noeanen this time.
“This won’t do. Noeanen, I’ll need your help this time.”
At this rate, the flowing lava was on the verge of completely blocking the valley path. Evan decided to move the flowing lava using Noeanen’s power.
“Yes. Please leave it to me.”
Noeanen stretched out both hands.
**[The High Earth Spirit, Noeanen, has begun using her power]**
**[20,000 mana has been consumed]**
**[13,000 mana has been consumed]**
Inevitably, Mana was drained from Evan’s body once again. However, unlike Seleana, Noeanen’s Mana drain occurred in portions, as if she were being considerate of her contractor.
If Seleana had an impulsive personality that wanted to handle everything at once, Noeanen seemed to have a gentle and calm nature. Evan provided the Mana while feeling less burdened than before.
The energy of earth was released around Noeanen’s body. It was a silent but powerful force hidden beneath the surface. The ground in the vicinity began to move. She carved out a path for the flowing lava, guiding it to run elsewhere.
‘The control is good, and it’s not excessive.’
Evan wore a satisfied expression as he looked at Noeanen.
“Good job.”
At that, Seleana puffed out her cheeks in jealousy.
“What! That girl didn’t even do much!”
“You did well too, Seleana. I’ll be borrowing both of your strengths in earnest from now on. I’m counting on you.”
At Evan’s greeting, Seleana nodded her head, and Noeanen gave a bright smile. There would be much for them to do in the future. They would complement his firepower, which was a weakness of his swordsmanship.
‘It’ll be great for large-scale sieges or when strong firepower is needed.’
It was while Evan was having such thoughts. A bird flew toward him from somewhere.
“Hm?”
The bird, which flew right in front of Evan, soon transformed into a scroll.
“A Messenger Bird?”
It was not a real bird but one made of magic, a Messenger Bird commonly used by the Count Kerthen Household. As long as one wore the family ring, they could receive these birds anywhere.
“What’s going on?”
Evan unfurled the scroll and read the contents. Soon, his brow furrowed.
“…Darn it.”
It was news that Rolten had gone missing while pursuing information regarding the royal family.