“Ha ha ha, were you really that surprised?”
“That’s not something to laugh about.”
“I’m telling you, it was really scary a moment ago!”
Hearing Shirud and Helena’s complaints, Luke laughed as if he found the children’s reactions adorable.
“Ha ha ha, how could I just sit idly by while ghosts like that settle in my house?”
“…Really? I thought you would have shoved a ghost into some lab for your research…”
Luke raised an eyebrow slightly at Shirud’s words.
Today, Shirud seemed particularly sharp; all the comments he had tossed out earlier were quite unusual.
Could it be that his growth as a mage has changed Shirud?
If so, that’s a positive development.
“That’s a sharp remark, but no. There’s really nothing to research about ghosts.”
For Luke, there was nothing unknown about ghosts anymore.
The characteristics of ghosts were always the same, and due to their nature as spirit bodies, you couldn’t find any signs of change or growth.
At best, the types of actions they might exhibit slightly vary based on “how they died” or “what their personality was like in life.”
Well, perhaps specialized biologists studying monsters might find those differences significant enough to warrant research, but for Luke, who was exploring the phenomena created by the arrangement of mana, it was hardly an interesting field.
Therefore, in Luke’s eyes, ghosts looked like a constant pattern, the same thing over and over again.
As long as there was nothing to study, ghosts were nothing more than a bothersome pest—nothing more and nothing less.
Why would he even keep something like that around?
After all, he had already dealt with the existing specter.
“Then, was the call I received earlier from your number actually you?”
“Yes, it was me.”
“How did you do it?”
“I just applied a bit of telepathy magic to mimic the magic pattern of the phone, so it transmitted just like a real call. So, it wasn’t the ghost’s doing.”
As Luke answered Shirud’s question, Helena suddenly piped up.
“Then there’s definitely no ghost around, right?”
“Yes, there’s no monster or intruder, including ghosts or banshees.”
As Luke confidently asserted this, Helena pointed out something near him.
“Then… what is that strange blue orb floating next to you, Luke?”
“What?”
Luke was startled at Helena’s words and turned to look beside him.
Py also showed a surprised expression, meeting Luke’s gaze.
Helena shrank back, taken aback by Luke’s reaction.
“Why, why are you so surprised? You said it’s not a ghost…”
“Helena, can you see this child?”
“Well, I’m saying it because I can see it… What is it? Isn’t it some kind of weird magic of yours?”
Still confused by Luke’s subtle reactions, Helena turned to Shirud.
“Hey, can you not see that? The thing floating next to Luke! The blue one!”
“Hmm? What’s next to Luke?”
“Eh? Shirud, can’t you see it? That!”
“Not at all…”
Oh my, Shirud can’t see it at all…?
Helena felt chills creeping up her spine.
“Eh, hey. Don’t joke around. This isn’t funny at all.”
As Helena muttered with a pout, Py seemed even more excited.
It appeared that Py was really thrilled that his spirit form was visible to someone other than Luke.
—Helena can see me!
As Py sang joyfully, Helena immediately jumped up and yelled.
“Ah, that strange singing sound from earlier!!”
At Helena’s intense reaction, Luke also covered his mouth and exclaimed.
“What?! You can hear the sound too?!”
Amidst the sudden surprise, Shirud, who had been completely lost during the conversation, shouted out in a bewildered voice as if asking for an explanation, switching his gaze between Helena and Luke.
“What’s happening, you two? Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”
Helena shouted desperately.
“I don’t know!”
Then, Luke could no longer contain himself and jumped to his feet, striding towards Helena.
Startled by his sudden action, Helena quickly began to back away.
Luckily, Shirud had promptly cleared the tray in between them; otherwise, he might have knocked over the snacks and tea Luke had placed on the floor.
“D-Don’t come near me! I’m scared!”
Helena was sweating coldly, feeling both pressured and frightened by Luke’s rigid expression as she continued to back away, only to be grabbed by the shoulder by Luke, who approached quickly.
“Helena!”
“Ah! What are you doing?!”
The grip from Luke was indeed not ordinary.
As the fear of being unable to escape surged, Luke finally spoke.
“Helena!”
“W-What do you want with me?! Stop it, I haven’t done anything wrong…”
“You have the qualities of a spirit master!”
—Yes! A new spirit master!
“…What?”
At that moment, Helena’s mouth snapped shut at those utterly incomprehensible words.
“A spirit master?”
What on earth does that even mean?
—-
Carried away by Luke’s sparkling eyes and excited expression, Helena found herself seated and listening to his story.
Luke introduced Py to her.
“Ah, I’m sorry for being late. Actually, this little one’s name is Pyris. She’s my sister, but in fact, she’s a spirit too.”
“Hello!”
Pyris waved happily with a bright smile.
“A spirit? A real spirit?”
Helena and Shirud, having only come across spirits in fairy tales or movies, seemed quite astonished as they touched Pyris’s cheeks and examined her.
However, it wasn’t that they found her cute and wanted to pinch her cheeks; rather, it was an impulsive action driven by pure academic curiosity.
‘The texture feels just like that of a child her age…’
“Ugh-.”
When Pyris let out a whine of annoyance at Shirud’s fingers poking her cheeks, Helena quickly grabbed Shirud’s wrist and pulled it away.
At that, Shirud finally understood what kind of rude action he had committed and bowed his head with a flushed face.
“Why are you treating a girl’s cheek like it’s clay?”
“Sorry, I just thought it was fascinating since you said she was a spirit…”
“…It’s fine, just apologize to her.”
“Right, I’m sorry, Pyris.”
Shirud extended a hand for a handshake as a sign of apology, but Pyris turned her head with a huff.
Could it be that Shirud is a typical mage who has great magical talent but very low sensitivity to spirits?
From Pyris’s perspective, she might not be very fond of Shirud, who had recently begun to resemble a mage even more.
Luke chuckled, patting Pyris’s head.
“Ha ha ha. Mages and the will of spirits are always at odds, so most mages don’t really have a good relationship with spirits. It’s unavoidable that you’re disliked by spirits, Shirud.”
As Luke said that, Shirud smacked his lips and suddenly remembered something, picking up a piece of snack from the tray Luke had brought and offering it to Pyris.
“Sorry, I’ll give you my share instead. Will you forgive me?”
This was a tactic Shirud had thought of, remembering how Pyris had an extraordinary appetite at Luke’s birthday party in the past.
Indeed, Pyris eyed Shirud suspiciously with a sharp glance but quickly snatched the snack and shoved it into her mouth.
The way she looked was reminiscent of a wary stray cat accepting treats from a passerby, and Shirud let out a small chuckle.
—Munch munch.
Looking at Pyris chewing like a hamster, Shirud asked, “Are you feeling better now?”
—Nod nod.
It seemed a single cookie was enough to win her over.
That was quite a relief.
Watching that scene, Helena felt a bit conflicted.
This boy was far too skilled at comforting girls than she had expected.
‘What’s up with that? Why is it so natural for him?’
But what made this seem so cool to her?
Helena truly couldn’t understand.
“Ahem, ahem.”
Shaking her head and clearing her throat to stop her wandering thoughts, she turned to Luke and asked.
“Anyway, enough of that, can you explain why I suddenly got to see a spirit? I’m still super confused here.”
“Ah, right. Let’s talk about that.”
Luke began to explain to Helena about spirits.
“Helena, it’s not that you saw it suddenly. You originally had the qualities of a spirit master. However, you simply never had the chance to see a spirit, because spirits in this era are really, really rare. If you lead a normal life, you may never encounter one throughout your entire life. Helena, your spirit affinity is naturally strong enough to see and hear spirits, but you can’t draw in spirits themselves. Therefore, that’s probably why you haven’t been able to see them until now. You haven’t really traveled to places with many spirits, like forests, fields, or the sea.”
“Hmm….”
Luke’s words sounded plausible.
Spirits primarily reside in natural environments like forests, fields, or the sea.
However, Helena hardly ever had the opportunity to travel, spending most of her moving time in a car, and the rest divided between home and school, so she was placed in an environment where she couldn’t possibly run into any spirits.
It made sense that she hadn’t seen them.
“Such a rare ability. How intriguing! That someone besides me can see pure spirit forms like Py… right here, so close!”
Luke murmured in a voice filled with delight and excitement.
That there was someone else who could see spirits besides him meant an expansion of samples.
His own case certainly wasn’t a talent that could be gained in typical situations.
If there hadn’t been materials related to spirits in the substances that made up his body, this transcendent affinity with spirits would never have existed.
But Helena was a being born purely from talent.
A genius spirit master born within the realm of the possible without any manipulation.
Therefore, Helena was a clearer existence as a sample than the chimera that was Luke.
“Helena, you’re truly special, with an incredible talent!”
“E-eh…?”
Helena found herself not entirely displeased with Luke’s reaction.
Who would dislike being praised as being something exceptionally special?
Especially coming from “Luke Irushi,” whom she had felt inferior to at times, showering her with praise like this made Helena’s heart knot in a way that didn’t perfectly upset her.
Helena awkwardly asked, trying to play it cool, “So, what’s so good about being a spirit master? Surely being able to see spirits isn’t the end of it…”
Noticing the excitement subtly seeping into Helena’s voice, Luke smiled gently.
“Fufu, of course, being a spirit master comes with its benefits. And what that entails is…”
In that moment, Shirud raised his hand and interjected.
“Um, sorry to interrupt while you’re talking. But when are you going to teach me magic? I came because I heard Luke was doing interesting magic experiments…”
However, Luke’s response to Shirud was cold.
“Is that magic experiment really that important now that a new spirit master has been born?”
“…Ha ha ha. Isn’t that right?”
Shirud then spoke as if he had resigned himself to the situation.
“Then when you’re done, can you play with me too?”
There was no answer.
Luke had already captured Helena and was pouring out all the information he knew about spirit masters.
Shirud sighed and thought to himself.
‘I knew it would go like this.’
Luke’s so-called “plans” had never seemed to come to fruition.
