Having successfully tamed his own spirit, Roa naturally felt delighted.
But as the saying goes, some are happy while others are sad; Claire's expression was far from pleasant.
Not only had she failed to contract the spirit she wanted, but even her companion, Scarlet, had been pierced by the holy sword and dissipated.
Thinking of this, Claire's expression turned very dejected.
What was this? A case of losing more than gaining?
Roa could understand Claire's disappointment, but he thought that letting this little girl suffer a bit was a good thing.
This world was dangerous, and not to mention anything else, just considering her reckless actions, if Roa hadn't been there, Claire would have already been pierced by the Sword Spirit and met her end.
Roa felt the divine might flowing within him and smiled.
Although Claire was unfortunate, his luck was quite good.
While it might be a bit unethical to say so, Roa's mood was indeed quite pleasant.
He just didn't understand why the sword had ultimately given up its struggle.
If it had continued to resist Roa, even if he could win, the time and divine might consumed would far exceed what he had expended now.
Both had their own thoughts as they finally passed through the Spirit Forest and arrived at the academy.
At the Areishia Spirit Academy, in the headmaster's office.
Sitting behind the luxurious desk, Greyworth raised his head and directed his gaze toward Roa and Claire.
In the season where spring and summer intertwined, a gentle breeze blew, causing the greenery beside the desk to sway slightly.
Greyworth's gray-white eyes narrowed slightly as he first glanced at the dazed Claire, nodded, and said meaningfully, "A little failure, I think, is a good thing for you. What do you think?"
Claire bit her lip, looking up at Roa with a resentful expression, but this feeling quickly dissipated.
Now, Claire didn't know how to face Roa. To some extent, he had saved her life, but why did she feel so unhappy?
Feeling unhappy was normal, and a bit of jealousy was also normal. If it were someone else who learned that they had missed out on a legendary holy sword, they would feel quite upset, especially since the holy sword had formed a contract with someone else right in front of them.
However, Claire's nature wasn't bad. She quickly adjusted her mood, snorted, and said to Roa, "It's just a contract with some wild spirit from who knows where. That doesn't mean I'm inferior to you."
Roa showed a helpless expression, as if recalling something, and said to Claire, "Your spirit shouldn't have dissipated, right?"
It was fine not to mention it, but as soon as Scarlet was brought up, Claire's eyes instantly filled with tears.
Claire choked up, "It's already like this, wuwu, it must have left me, right?"
Roa and Greyworth exchanged glances, both showing a hint of surprise.
Greyworth was the first to speak, "You don't know that your spirit is actually a high-ranking spirit, do you?"
Claire's choked voice paused, and then her eyes sparkled.
Greyworth rubbed his forehead and sighed, "You, this guy, your spirit is already very strong. There's no need to look for another spirit. You can fully rely on this spirit to participate in the Blade Dance Festival."
Claire spoke hesitantly, "But, but it clearly dissipated right in front of me."
The young spirit user had not seen much of the world. Claire had always treated the spirit named Scarlet well, and this was the first time she had encountered a situation like today.
Greyworth began to explain, "The essence of a spirit does not exist in this world. Powerful spirits exist in the Astral Zero. Right now, it just cannot manifest, but that doesn't mean it has completely died. After some time, when your divine might recovers, you should be able to summon it again, right? If you don't believe me, look at the back of your hand. Is the spirit imprint still there?"
Claire raised her right hand, and the spirit pattern on the back of her hand was intact. Although it appeared quite dim at the moment, there was no doubt that the spirit pattern was still there, indicating that her connection with Scarlet remained, which meant she had not completely lost it.
The ups and downs of life were too swift, and the joy of regaining what was lost filled Claire's entire being. The girl broke into a smile, revealing a radiant expression.
Like a rainbow after the rain, Claire's smile was surprisingly beautiful at that moment.
Roa couldn't help but remark, "Since you can smile, you should smile more often. It's not bad at all."
The distance between them wasn't far, and the boy's words naturally reached the girl's ears. Claire looked up, suppressing her smile, and glared fiercely at Roa, raising her hand to point at him, "I haven't lost yet!"
Roa shrugged, casually responding to her, brushing off the girl's proud words.
Greyworth watched the interaction between the two with a smile, then said to Roa, "It seems that things are progressing quite smoothly."
Smoothly referred to the spirit pattern on the back of Roa's hand, which had a complex design that gave an extraordinary impression.
"Smoothly? Not really. This time, I also suffered a bit of a loss. You didn't see the holy sword's angry side. If you had, you wouldn't use the word 'smoothly' anymore," Roa said, stroking the imprint on the back of his hand with his left hand.
"The outcome is good, right? As long as the result is smooth, isn't that enough?" Greyworth seemed indifferent to Roa's complaints. He glanced at Claire, who was standing aside, and said, "Claire, you should still have classes, right? You can go rest now."
Claire glanced at Roa, nodded, and left the room. For a moment, the office was left with only Roa and Greyworth.
Greyworth's gray eyes looked at Roa, and he sighed, "Is it really that legendary holy sword?"
Greyworth's question surprised Roa a bit. He looked up at Greyworth and said, "You didn't know?"
Greyworth crossed his arms, resting them on the desk, her exquisite face showing a hint of helplessness, "How would I know? If I had known, I wouldn't have let Claire go. After all, a spirit of that level is beyond her capability to handle. I thought it was just a high-ranking Sword Spirit, but it seems my thinking was too simplistic."
Spirits also have their own will.
Although any pure and innocent priestess could communicate with spirits, forming a contract was another matter. Spirits have the right to choose their preferred master.
Therefore, if there is a deep emotional foundation with a spirit, even a low-ranking spirit user can form a contract with a high-ranking spirit.
Thus, forming a contract with a spirit tests not only the spirit user's ability but also compatibility.
However, it was evident that the sealed Sword Spirit in the shrine had shown significant resistance to Claire.
Not only that, but Claire's initial contact had also caused the holy sword to fall into a chaotic state, directly attacking Claire.
So, Greyworth made a mistake by allowing Claire to directly approach the Sword Spirit.
Without spending much time discussing this issue, Greyworth quickly shifted to the main topic.
"Now, let me teach you how to summon your own spirit."
With that, Greyworth stood up, stretched, and walked toward the door without pausing. As she walked, she said to Roa, "Let's go."
It was still the Spirit Forest, and in a clearing, two people stood facing each other.
Although they had returned to the Spirit Forest, the place they were in now was vastly different from the previous environment.
Compared to the atmosphere of the altar, this area was filled only with pure trees, with a sizable clearing amidst the towering trees that blocked out the sun.
This was also the reason why the two chose this location for their practice.
Greyworth spoke up, "If you want to summon your own contract spirit, the first step is to concentrate your will on the proof of the contract with the spirit, which is the so-called spirit imprint."
After a pause, she glanced at Roa, noticing that he was listening intently. Greyworth nodded slightly and continued, "You need to use the exclusive spirit summoning incantation, known as the contract formula, to establish a connection with the spirits in the Astral Zero, opening a circuit that connects to the Astral Zero, and then call upon the contract spirit to summon it. This is what we call summoning."
Greyworth explained carefully, and it was clear that this was the first time she was so serious; she was also very curious about the legendary holy sword.
Greyworth's explanation was not over yet. She said, "As for the contract formula, you just need to focus your will on the spirit imprint, and you should be able to obtain it."
Following her instructions, Roa gathered his mental energy in his right hand. The scorching divine energy spread through his body, converging in his right hand through his right arm, eventually flowing into the spirit patterns.
His consciousness sank deeper, as if submerged in the ocean, and a different sensation arose.
The divine energy continued to pour in, and finally, at a certain moment, Roa felt a response from a consciousness. He raised his gaze and extended his hand, reciting the response.
"Cold Steel Queen, holy sword that slays demons, transform here into the Steel sword and grant me divine power."
It was still that slightly awkward yet exceptionally clear Spirit language, echoing throughout the forest. Accompanied by the fluctuations of divine energy, it emitted a marvelous wave.
The power of the divine energy surged in like a tide, and at that moment, the dim spirit imprint lit up, sparkling with brilliant light. In that instant, Roa could feel his divine energy converging into a long passage, the end of which led to the legendary Astral Zero.
The spirit imprint flickered, and the passage became increasingly stable, finally opening like a door, connecting this world with that world.
Then, under the expectant gazes of Roa and Greyworth, the holy sword finally manifested.
With a snow-white sword, it shimmered with dazzling brilliance, and its majestic appearance was deeply favored by Roa.
Feeling the icy cold hilt, Roa also smiled.
Powerful, incomparably powerful.
At the moment the holy sword appeared, a subtle connection was established between the person and the sword.
Roa could sense the power contained within the holy sword, a power that could almost rival that of a Magic Sword. No, in some respects, the strength of this sword far exceeded that of a Magic Sword.
While Roa was still pondering, he suddenly felt a gaze fixed upon him.
This gaze puzzled Roa, and when he looked at Greyworth beside him, he found her curiously examining the holy sword in his hand. Roa fell into deep thought.
He looked down at the silver-white steel sword.
Indeed, the feeling of being watched grew stronger.
Could it be that this sword was looking at him?
Moreover, this gaze seemed to carry a sense of curiosity.
Roa tried to speak, "Terminus Est?"
Roa had only intended to test it, but to his surprise, the sword actually "spoke" back.
A consciousness echoed in Roa's mind.
"Master, just call me Est."
Roa's expression turned increasingly curious, and upon hearing Est's words, a smile crept onto his lips.
The voice resonating in Roa's mind was very pleasant to hear; although it was somewhat cold, it was unexpectedly melodious, like a spring flowing down a mountain, echoing in the vast valley.
Clearing his throat, Roa curiously asked, "Can Est take on a human form? I heard that high-ranking spirits can transform into human shapes."
Greyworth looked at Roa with a somewhat disdainful expression and couldn't help but ask, "Hey, what are you trying to do?"
Roa coughed a few times and explained, "I was just curious. Well, it's just that I don't have any strange thoughts."
Greyworth's face showed displeasure as she said to Roa, "Then, why not test her power?"
Roa did not act according to Greyworth's words but continued to communicate with Est.
Est spoke, "Master, as long as you think in your mind, I will know your thoughts; there is no need to speak out loud."
Following Est's suggestion, Roa began to inquire, "How do you feel?"
This naturally referred to Est's current state, as the divine energy consumed earlier was quite substantial for an ordinary spirit.
Est was silent for a moment before replying, "I feel great. There is a warm and pleasant scent about you, Master."
Roa: ???
Roa's face wore a strange expression as he suddenly voiced his confusion, "Was that why you suddenly stopped before? Was it because of this?"