Chapter 110. Why Are You Opening Your Eyes Like That?
As Caron struggled to dispel the darkness, the regent stepped in, offering advice.
"Spirit Magic always begins with communication," she explained. "A spirit and its summoner are not master and servant, but companions. If you treat your spirit as a friend, it will, in turn, accept you."
A spirit was not a summoner's weapon. It was a lifelong partner and a constant friend. The elven approach to Spirit Magic started from this fundamental truth. Instead of a one-sided relationship, the goal was to build a mutual bond where both parties supported each other.
Caron nodded, signaling his understanding, and said, "A friend. Yes, I can work with that."
He reached up, gently lifting Pluto from his shoulder with both hands. Potent mana radiated from the small creature, a tangible force that tingled against his skin.
Meow!
Pluto let out a high-pitched cry, seemingly content. Tendrils of darkness continued to seep from the spirit, yet they felt oddly comforting, not oppressive. Caron even found himself relaxing, as if the presence of the darkness itself lulled him. It was almost enough to make him feel... sleepy.
"Owner! Mana depletion!" Guillotine called out mentally.
"Oh, it was mana depletion," Caron muttered, shaking his head.
It wasn't sleepiness. Dizziness set in, worsening by the second. This little creature consumed mana at a staggering rate. Compared to wielding Oceanwolf Sword Arts Form 6, this was on an entirely different level. His mana was draining out of him like water from a broken vessel.
"Make a request to your spirit," the regent advised Caron. "If you ask sincerely, your spirit will naturally respond to your requests."
Caron grinned, turning his attention to Pluto, and said, "All right, buddy. I'm asking nicely. Please, let's wrap this up."
This spirit had fallen into his lap like a blessing from above. Its overwhelming power had already proven its worth, arriving just when Caron needed it most. But his satisfaction didn't last long.
Meow?
Pluto tilted its head, golden eyes wide with confusion.
This little rascal... Caron thought.
The Spirit's golden eyes gleamed with a mischievous light. Despite Caron's polite request, the darkness didn't recede. If anything...
Whoooosh!
The darkness expanded, spreading outward as Pluto siphoned even more mana from Caron's core.
Watching the scene, Guillotine spoke in a low, amused tone. "Looks like it wants to challenge you."
Guillotine seemed right. Pluto didn't avert its gaze, staring straight at Caron with an unflinching intensity. It was a standoff.
Meeting Pluto's eyes, Caron smirked, the corner of his mouth tilting upward. He remarked, "Oh, so that's how you want to play it?"
"Caron Leston, calm yourself!" the regent interjected urgently. "You need to treat your spirit as a friend—"
But Caron cut her off with a sharp grin, saying, "This is how I treat my friends."
Whoosh!
The Azure Mana within Caron began to surge outward, flowing freely into the surrounding air. Even within the depths of darkness, the dark blue glow of his mana shone brilliantly.
Hissss!
The Azure Mana pressed down on Pluto with unrelenting force, wrapping around the spirit's entire body. Pluto thrashed, letting out a sharp, defiant hiss in Caron's direction.
But Caron didn't loosen his grip. Holding Pluto firmly, he offered the spirit a bright, almost teasing smile.
Whoosh!
Caron's mana intertwined with Pluto's darkness, colliding and churning to create powerful ripples in the air. Two opposing forces clashed, evenly matched in their intensity.
"You're pretty strong, aren't you?" Caron remarked, his tone both impressed and amused.
Meow!
Pluto let out an excited cry, its golden eyes narrowing as it glared at Caron. The darkness around them pulsed violently, and even the ocean seemed to shudder in response.
However, Caron adjusted his mana with practiced ease, countering Pluto's darkness without missing a beat. The oppressive darkness that had swallowed the area was now being torn apart by Caron's oceanic energy.
As the raw battle of strength dragged on, sweat began to drip down Caron's forehead. And yet, despite the strain, a grin lingered on his lips. Now this is fun, he thought.
To the untrained eye, perhaps it would seem like a crude contest of brute strength. But in reality, it was far more intricate.
The clash wasn't confined to a single point; it unfolded across every place where the ocean and darkness met. In mere seconds, countless exchanges of mana took place, each one demanding precision and control.
Not even in his previous life had Caron experienced such an intense and primal battle of mana. His grin deepened, excitement flaring in his eyes. I should add this to my training routine, he mused.
The constant balancing act of mana distribution and control was sharpening his abilities in real time. With every passing second, he could feel his mastery over his own mana growing stronger.
"I've got it now," Caron said.
Meow?
"But let's end the rebellion here," he warned. "Push any further, and this will stop being fun."
The ocean swelled once more, its waves crashing with renewed vigor. The delicate equilibrium between their powers shattered in an instant. Caron's mana surged forward, consuming the darkness with ruthless speed.
Watching the scene unfold, the regent gasped in shock. She whispered, "This... This is impossible."
On the surface, it seemed as if their powers were simply colliding chaotically. But she saw the truth behind it. The resonance overload is stabilizing, the regent thought.
The discordant energy that had been raging moments before was smoothing out. The once-violent waves of Caron's mana now embraced Pluto's darkness, merging in harmony.
But this... This was a process that could hardly be called Spirit Magic. The way Caron subdued Pluto, forcing it into submission with sheer power, was far from the principles of balance and partnership that defined the discipline. If anything, it resembled a brawl. It was like watching two rabid dogs fighting to claim dominance, each trying to rip the other apart.
By all conventional standards, the contract between Caron and Pluto should have dissolved the moment they began to clash. But instead, the opposite was happening. The more their powers collided, the stronger the bond between them seemed to grow.
...This is definitely not Spirit Magic, the regent thought.
It felt as though the Spirit Magic she and the elves had painstakingly refined over countless years was being completely invalidated.
Swish.
At last, the darkness was fully consumed by the ocean.
"Did you have fun?" Caron asked, still holding onto Pluto.
The Spirit of Darkness wiggled its front paws slightly and nodded.
Meow!
The expression on Pluto's face was one of pure satisfaction, almost absurdly cheerful for a spirit that had been exuding such savage energy only moments before.
The regent stared at the scene, her face slack with disbelief. "I can't believe this barbaric method actually worked..." she muttered.
Caron chuckled and gave Pluto a playful shake as he replied, "This is how friendships are made—through a good brawl. A little contest of mana here, a few stabs there when we're bored... Ah, this takes me back. That guy Halo, his stabs were something else."
The regent could not understand what kind of person thought of friendship in such a way. Even more shocking was the fact that Pluto, listening to Caron's nonsensical words, nodded in agreement as if it all made perfect sense.
...They say spirits are drawn to those who resemble them... the regent mused. She let out a soft sigh as she gazed at Caron's pale, exhausted face. A mad spirit had chosen a madman. Perhaps the saying "birds of a feather flock together" had never been more suitable.
"By the way, Regent," Caron said, grinning as he turned to her. Even though his face was ghostly pale, his brilliant blue eyes gleamed with a strange vitality. He asked, "All things considered, doesn't this mean I managed this contract entirely on my own?"
"I'll concede that," the regent replied reluctantly.
"Good. Then four drops," Caron said.
"...Excuse me?" the regent asked.
"I'm asking for four drops of Dew. I've even knocked one off the price, especially since your advice was helpful," Caron said.
Upon hearing those words, the regent couldn't help but let out another sigh. Is the fate of our people truly in the hands of this lunatic? she thought worriedly.
For the first time in her life, she felt a twinge of resentment toward the World Tree itself.
***
The unexpected commotion at the shrine of the World Tree came to an abrupt conclusion.
"You trusted me enough to pay the reward upfront, so I'll make sure this mission is a success. Don't worry about anything, Regent!" Caron declared with a confident grin.
"...Yes... You'd better..." the regent replied with a heavy sigh.
In the end, the reward had indeed been set at four drops of Dew of the World Tree.
Having successfully wrested the Dew from the regent, Caron beamed and said, "I swear on the honor of the Ducal Family of Leston, I'll see this mission through. If I fail, you're welcome to hold the entire house accountable."
Selling out the family name without hesitation, Caron showed not an ounce of shame.
Leo, who had arrived late to the scene, whispered to Leon, "Leon, Caron's using the family name again."
"It's just Caron being Caron," Leon replied, barely sparing him a glance.
"Shouldn't he be stopped?" Leo asked.
"And who's going to do that?" Leon countered.
"...Oh." Leon quickly realized that there wasn't anyone present who could rein Caron in. At the very least, they'd need Sir Zerath to handle this situation.
While the two cousins exchanged exasperated looks, the conversation between Caron and the regent continued.
"There's something I'm curious about," the regent said.
"Please, feel free to ask, my esteemed client—no, Regent," Caron replied.
"What do you plan to do with Mother's Dew?" the regent asked.
The Dew of the World Tree was a treasure so precious that a single drop could stir the entire continent. The very idea of releasing four drops into the world at once was unimaginable.
Caron's response, however, was startlingly simple. He said, "We'll use it, of course."
To those who wielded mana, the Dew was an elixir among elixirs, beyond price and impossible to acquire through any amount of wealth.
"There's a saying," Caron added with a smirk. "'If you're going to die, you might as well enjoy yourself first.'"
The regent's expression soured and asked, "Are you suggesting you'll drink it and die?"
"...It's just a metaphor," Caron replied.
"Yes, I understand it's a metaphor," the regent said.
"Then why—" Caron began.
"I found you so outrageous that I was merely teasing you too. Consider it elven humor," the regent said dryly, cutting him off.
Caught off guard, Caron was momentarily speechless. The regent, having scored her point, took her time observing Caron's companions. One was from the giant tribe, and two relatives of the Ducal Family of Leston. She already had a good idea why Caron had demanded four drops of the Dew.
"You plan to give the Dew to them, don't you?" the regent asked.
"Leave out the giant," Caron replied dismissively. "They can't properly harness mana anyway. What use would the Dew of the World Tree be to them?"
Utula thumped his chest indignantly and said, "That hurts, Caron Leston!"
"Should I make it not hurt?" Caron asked.
"I'm sorry!" Utula answered.
With Utula swiftly subdued, Caron turned his attention back to the regent and asked, "By the way, just out of curiosity... What would happen if I drank all the Dew myself?"
It was a thoroughly Caron-esque question.
The regent frowned and replied, "If it granted limitless power, we elves would have already conquered the continent. The effects you're imagining can only be experienced once in a lifetime."
"I was just asking. I only seriously considered it once, I swear," Caron said.
"You could expect some healing effects, but nothing more," the regent said.
"The World Tree really doesn't make things easy," Caron remarked.
"Mother stands at the center of harmony and balance," the regent explained calmly.
Caron hadn't expected an elixir of this caliber to come without restrictions. If what the regent said was untrue, the elves would already have produced an unmatched champion by now.
Even so, there was no denying the Dew's immense value. For a mana user, a single drop was enough to overcome their current limits entirely.
It's a bit disappointing, but it is what it is, Caron thought.
Helping his comrades grow was rewarding enough, so he decided to be satisfied with that.
If I guide them, they should be able to absorb the Dew in about a week, Caron figured.
If they were going to use the Dew of the World Tree, they had to maximize its effects. So with a slight nod to himself, Caron turned to his comrades.
Leon shuddered and asked, "...Why are you looking at us like that?"
"Let's train until we die for a week," Caron said with a grin.
All the blood drained from their faces.
"Don't worry, people don't really die that easily. I even got you all the Dew of the World Tree, so there's no way you'll die," Caron reassured them.
None of them dared argue. Caron's hand was already resting firmly on the hilt of Guillotine, and none of them had the courage to challenge a tyrant wielding a sword.
And so, a week of grueling closed-door training was set in motion.
"It'll be over before you know it," Caron said.
True to his word, the week passed in the blink of an eye.