“Dark-element summoning starts with drawing a magic circle and summoning a target. What gets summoned is purely random — they say it’s influenced by the caster’s mana and quality, but whether that’s actually true, who knows.”
In Silver Moon’s back garden, Yumina was sketching a large magic circle on the ground. Book in one hand, she etched the intricate pattern in chalk. The chalk was apparently made from compressed shards of magic stone.
“Then if you can form a contract with what you summon, it’s a success — but the contract requires accepting the other side’s terms. From easy to seemingly impossible, depending. The condition for these wolves was feed me until I’m full.”
Yumina finished the circle and stroked the head of one of the silver wolves she’d called up. The one with the cross marking on its forehead — that’s the silver wolf with the contract. The other silver wolves she’d summoned the other day were its subordinates, following this leader. Name: Silva. Could’ve put more thought into that.
If you contract with a higher monster, you can also use its subordinates. The lizardman-handler who attacked Sue probably had a contract with the leader of that pack.
“If the conditions aren’t met, the summoned creature departs. And it never appears for the same person again. You only get one chance.”
I see. One-and-only kind of thing. …Bit different?
“No danger? They don’t suddenly attack?”
“Without a contract they can’t exist outside the circle on this side, so it’s fine. Ranged attacks are blocked by the circle’s barrier as well. But it’s different if the summoner enters the circle. Some demand fight me, prove your strength.”
Mmm — risky. Well — if I’m challenged when I clearly can’t win, I can politely send them home. Wasteful, maybe.
“The summon you get isn’t tied to the caster’s actual magic skill?”
“Right. Plenty of stories of beginners summoning very high-tier monsters.”
Then I have a chance too. Pure luck, but.
“All right — let’s give it a go.”
I stood in front of the completed circle, clapped my hands together once for focus, then concentrated dark-element mana, gathering it into the circle’s center. Black mist gradually filled the inside, and then — explosively — a massive presence flared.
”…Was it you who summoned me?”
Before I knew it the black mist had cleared, and inside the circle stood a great white tiger. That voice — this guy? Sharp eyes, a heavy presence. Sharp-looking fangs and claws. Whoa, what a serious one came out… I felt the prickling pulse of mana. Not just a tiger.
“This presence, a white tiger… no — the White Sovereign…!”
“Hoh — you know me?”
The tiger fixed its glare on Yumina, who was crouching behind me, hugging Silva. Silva curled his tail and laid back his ears, frightened. Of course — being glared at by a tiger is scary. Hey — right now I’ve got “the tiger ahead and the wolf behind”! Unrelated, though.
“Could you not glare so hard? She’s scared.”
”…You stand calm. To take my gaze and mana and remain on your feet… interesting.”
“It surprised me at first. Once you get used to it, it’s not so bad. So, what’s the White Sovereign, Yumina?”
Yumina, watching me, was trying to say something in a trembling voice. But it wouldn’t come out. Probably the pressure from that mana.
“Come on, drop that. Conversation’s not moving. Threatening the weak isn’t really praiseworthy, is it?”
”…Very well.”
When I objected, the pressure released — gone. Hm. Reasonable guy.
“So — Yumina. White Sovereign?”
“Of all that can be summoned, the four highest-class beings — and one of them. Guardian of the West and the Great Way, king of beasts… not a magical beast. A divine beast.”
Trembling still, Yumina answered haltingly. Divine beast, huh. If it turned out to be a god’s pet, that’d be a fun twist.
“So — what do I have to do to contract you?”
”…Contract — me? You make light of the situation.”
“At least say it. If it sounds impossible, I’ll give up.”
“Hmph…”
The tiger fixed me with a stare, sniffed the air, and tilted its head slightly.
“Strange… I sense some odd power from you. The blessing of a spirit… no, higher than that… what is this?”
Spirit’s blessing? Sorry — no spirits among my acquaintances.
”…Very well. Show me the quality and quantity of your mana. To contract a divine beast, half-baked mana is no use.”
“Show you my mana?”
“That’s right. Touch me and pour your mana in. Until you’re nearly drained. If you have at minimum the quality and quantity, I’ll consider a contract.”
Hmph, the tiger seemed to smirk. Consider — not commit?
Quite the dangerous demand, this tiger. Drained mana — like MP at 0 in a game? Probably means I can’t use magic for a while. Nearly drained means down to MP 1?
Speaking of — does mana actually decrease at all? I’ve never felt it. Linze said before that my mana pool was unusually large. Maybe that’s why.
I walked up to the circle and laid my hand on the white tiger’s forehead. Ohh — fluffy.
“I just channel mana like this?”
“That’s right. All in one push. I’ll judge your mana. Be advised: if you collapse, no contract.”
Mm — I don’t want a contract that badly. If I start feeling sick midway, I’ll just stop.
“All right — here goes.”
I focused mana and slowly fed it from my palm into the tiger. Yeah — no weird sensation.
“Mn… what — what is this clear, pure mana…!?”
The tiger said something. Linze said the same thing once. Whatever — feels fine, so let me just send it all at once. I bumped up the flow.
“Nguh! Wha — what!?”
Mmm — I really can’t feel mana decreasing. Should I push more? I increased it again.
“Hguh… th-this is… w-w-wait —!”
Still can’t tell. Bumped up again.
“Wai… wait, please… no more… aughh…!”
Bumped up again. …Ah, getting a little heavy now, maybe. So this is the “mana decreasing” feeling.
“…n-no… stop… please…!”
“Touya-san!”
Yumina’s voice snapped me out of it. I looked at the tiger — it was twitching, foaming at the mouth, eyes rolled back. Legs trembling, but still standing — head somehow stuck against my palm, forced upright.
I yanked the mana flow off and pulled my hand back. The tiger dropped sideways to the ground.
“Huh?”
Did I screw up? Should I cast healing on it? It’s twitching with its tongue lolling out.
“Light, come — peaceful healing — Cure Heal.”
Recover it for now. As light returned to the tiger’s eyes, it tottered to its feet and approached me.
”…One question — at the mana level just now, did you still have room to spare?”
“Hm? Well, room… barely lost any, honestly. Or rather — already recovered.”
“What…!”
The tiger went speechless. Ahh — that’s why I didn’t feel mana being consumed. It was being recovered faster than I was spending it. Got it.
“So — about the contract…”
”…May I ask your name?”
”? Mochizuki Touya. Touya for the given name.”
I gave the tiger that suddenly-changed-tone a quizzical look; the tiger lowered its head quietly.
“Lord Mochizuki Touya. I find you a master worthy of me. Please — grant me a master-servant contract.”
Oh — White Tiger joins the team.
“How do contracts work?”
“Give me a name. That becomes the seal of the contract. The wedge that anchors my existence in this world.”
“Name, huh… mmm…”
Tiger. White tiger. Right then…
“Kōhaku. Amber — how about that?”
“Kōhaku?”
“Like this.”
I traced 琥珀 on the ground.
“This is tiger, this is white, and the one beside is the character for king.”
“The white tiger that stands beside the king. Truly a fitting name. Thank you. From now on, please call me Kōhaku.”
Apparently the contract was complete. Lazily, Kōhaku padded out of the magic circle to my side.
”…Incredible, Touya-san… contracting the White Sovereign…”
“Maiden, I am no longer the White Sovereign. Call me Kōhaku.”
“Ah — yes. Kōhaku-san.”
Kōhaku — formerly the White Sovereign — addressed Yumina, who was murmuring in a daze. Behind Yumina, Silva was still cowering — and at Kōhaku’s glance, hurriedly slipped into Yumina’s shadow and vanished.
“Master, I have one request.”
“What?”
“That you allow me to remain on this side, always.”
”? What does that mean?”
“Normally, when a caster summons us and we maintain presence here, we draw on the caster’s mana. So if we remain too long, eventually the mana runs out and we vanish. That is the standard. But your mana, Master, has barely decreased throughout. In which case, perhaps remaining permanently wouldn’t be a problem — so I humbly suggest.”
Ah — probably my natural mana regen exceeds the upkeep cost of holding Kōhaku here. If there’s no inconvenience, fine, but…
“Permanent presence is fine — but a big tiger walking around the streets would be a bit…”
“Hmm… then I’ll change forms.”
“Eh?”
The instant he said it, poof — Kōhaku changed into a child tiger. That’s a thing he can do too.
About small-dog size. Short, thick legs, thick tail. Imposing-presence: minus 100%. Cuteness: plus 100%.
I scooped him up reflexively at the sheer cuteness. Uahh — fluffy. Summoning Kōhaku really was the right call, I genuinely thought in that moment.
“In this form I won’t stand out, I think.”
Whoa — talked. Cuteness up further.
“You’ll stand out a little, but it’s fine.”
“Thank you. Then in this form I’ll — gufh!?”
“Kyaaaa — cuuuuuteeee!!”
Yumina snatched Kōhaku from my hands and crushed him in a hug. She rubbed her face against him, Kōhaku flailing.
“Wait, hey — let me go! What is with you!?”
“Ah — I haven’t introduced myself, have I. I’m Yumina. Touya-san’s bride.”
“Master’s wife!?”
A surprised tiger face is rare, that. Not yet a bride, by the way.
For a while, Kōhaku was thoroughly petted by Yumina, looking exhausted, but I had him bear it.
Maybe Kōhaku felt bad refusing the girl who called herself the master’s wife — eventually he stopped resisting and accepted his fate.
When Yumina was satisfied with the fluffiness, Elze and the others appeared, and the previous Yumina-state replayed. Triple petting this time.
“M-master! Please, do something!”
“Endure it. It’ll pass.”
“That’s noooo!”
And so we got a new companion. Or, alternately, mascot.
Once everyone was satisfied with the fluff, I’ll get my turn too.
Listening to Kōhaku’s cries of distress, I looked up at the sky. Nice weather again today.
God’s in his heaven — all’s right with the world.