6

It had been several days in the Astrea Estate since Leo had come back from visiting the Mathers domain, and despite the reveal of his secrets his days had managed to continue on just like before. It hadn't taken long for him to adjust and find a new normal in his new life of waking up and having breakfast with Reinhard, Felt, and Cecily before having a sparring session whilst having literacy lessons that would take up most of the afternoon.

It was his free time that he continued to struggle to fill, however. When in a world where technology wasn't a thing all of the most immediate options were suddenly an immediate impossibility, and there was little recognizable sport either, and nor were there many people to play with either.

He could have tried teaching some of his own world's sports to Flam, Grassis, and Cecily yet he didn't know what would work well enough as substitutes for things like the balls, goals, bats, or whatever equipment they would require.

Instead, he simply found it easiest to fill the void of boredom with more studying, something he continued to become more and more proficient in doing on his own as his literacy improved.

It was hardly that he was an avid student, but more his final option of having something to do aside from napping. Yet, it wasn't purely a last resort either. Unlike his previous world, his current still contained many mysteries that continued to amaze him, mainly the phenomena of magic.

Unlike his studies back in his home world where he either breezed through all the work or simply paid just enough attention to the lessons to get by, the possibility of learning and performing the previously impossible had him fully invested. There was an immediate wall in how worthwhile it was to learn magic, and how rewarding it felt to do so when there were affinities and varying mana pools, but it was something that made Leo feel even luckier in comparison.

He had three types of magic, a rare one at that, and Cecily mentioned by sharing her gate he could also access fire magic despite it being referred to as spiritual arts instead. The only thing that was potentially holding him back was his capacity, something that he still didn't show was good or bad but he could only hope that it was the former.

It was yet another day when Leo woke up with Cecily beside him, the two quickly greeting the morning as they got dressed away from one another before heading to the dining hall with Flam and Grassis before they received news that would change their expectations for the day.

"Sorry Leo, but there are matters that I must attend to today, and it is imperative that I collect something properly in person." Reinhard with a troubled expression towards his friend, having brought up the news when breakfast was coming to a close.

"There's something you've got to do?" Felt grumbled in response, leaving Leo not all that sure about just how much she believed Reinhard or not.

"Yes there is, and it takes importance above all else, I likely won't return until the end of the day. I apologize for any inconvenience that it may cause." Reinhard swiftly replied, not at all bothered by Felt's attitude toward him.

"Well, don't worry about it. It doesn't mean that there's no training I can do, maybe I'll take the day to focus on magic instead." Leo replied with an easy smile that helped relax Reinhard as he saw his friend's indifference about the situation.

"Then I'll get to be the teacher today!" Cecily cheered out until a better idea struck her mind. "Wait, you can practice the spiritual arts instead!"

"Are they and magic not the same thing?" Leo asked but Cecily shook her head in an overly exaggerated manner.

"The spiritual arts are calling upon spiritual companions for their abilities or drawing mana from the atmosphere," Cecily replied. "When you have a contract with a spirit, they become much easier to use with them. If you wish to use my gate for all the spells, I can use then you're going to need to learn it."

"So big bro will be able to do even more than before, you just came here some weeks ago and you're already showing up a lot of people! Don't you think you're a little unfair?" Felt quipped with a smirk but Leo only smiled back in response.

"Are you worried that you'll never be able to beat me?" He teased back but it only lit a fire in Felt instead.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that, I've lived my whole life in danger, I'm sure I can take you down any day!" she shot back, even beginning to get out of her chair for a little bit.

"You don't need to go adding in the unfortunate parts to your story now, do you?"

"Meh, who cares. It's all about living strong, and I did!"

"Well, origins and viewpoints aside, I'm only this capable already because of Reinhard and Cecily. I would be a wreck without em." Leo said, settling the conversation between the two whilst the mentioned individuals had rapidly different reactions to his praise.

"You honor me too much; you have made fine progress yourself," Reinhard replied.

"Yay! Master is realizing my own amazingness!" Cecily happily cheered, "But Master is also so incredible because he always had potential."

"You sell yourself short Reinhard, it really is much closer to what Cecily is saying, although I thought I told you a few times to drop calling me 'Master', people are really going to treat me harshly if you do…" Leo replied with a tired expression at the spirit. It had been far from the first time that he had asked her to change her name for him, yet she never wavered with her decision much to his dread.

"So that's what you're into huh?" Felt said all too smugly.

"No, it's not! It's a real problem, dammit!"

"Now, let's calm down now." Reinhard interjected as he attempted to pacify the room, preventing things from quickly getting out of hand, "It's good to hear that you find my assistance helpful Leo, and while you are free to do what you as choose today, I will be able to assist you with sword training once more tomorrow. Perhaps you might be able to show me then what you learn today?"

"I dunno what I can do in that time but I'll try to gain at least one new trick," Leo said.

"Tomorrow, you'll be facing a proper spirit knight!" Cecily proclaimed to the faint shock of Reinhard as the familiarness of such a title hit him before bringing out a warm smile instead. It would be true, and it also made him wonder what his and Julius's first meeting would be like having a common trait such as that between them…

"Is this good enough?" Leo asked as they finally came to a stop in the middle of a forest at Cecily's suggestion about what she would begin teaching him. Both he and her, alongside the ever-present Flam and Grassis had spent the last hour and a half walking to the forest where Leo had been brought to by Reinhard when he needed to replenish his od.

Back at the Astrea manor, it had barely been a minute of Cecily beginning to teach Leo until she suddenly stopped and began thinking to herself as she came to the conclusion to 'do things from the beginning.

She had refused to elaborate on what she was thinking about doing even after she said that they needed to relocate, but despite his annoyance, Leo had chosen to trust his contracted spirit as she led the way out of the manor and through the town.

It wasn't like he was without expectations however as they walked along. Considering that it was Cecily she was likely going to teach him magic, or the spiritual arts as they had talked about during breakfast, yet either way, Leo knew that it meant that the spirit was going to be involved and utilizing her power.

'Thinking of it like that, it might actually be a pretty good thing that we left somewhere empty, from the kind of power that Cecily's Akra alone had, I'm pretty sure she could easily cause a lot of damage…' Leo thought to himself as they finally settled down in a small clearing the in the woods and Cecily turned out, looking like she was finally about to begin teaching.

"OK!" She exclaimed with a cheery smile. "I'm going to teach Master everything about the spiritual arts, from start to finish!"

"Ok, whole new frontiers then." Leo replied with a smile, 'So this will be how I work as partners with her then?' he thought.

"The first thing you need to do, contract a spirit!" Cecily mentioned. "You do this by gaining a spirit's trust and affection by interacting with them enough, we might be contracted Master but with your affinity, I'm sure you could easily contract another spirit!"

"Only fully developed spirits like myself have physical form and can therefore communicate via speech, however, so if you wish to speak with a spirit then you need to spread out your mana and converse with them that way. You should try it out now!"

"Huh? But I thought that we were having these lessons so we are able to work together, you never mentioned anything about other spirits…" Leo said, shocked at the sudden turn in the lesson's direction.

"You don't want another spirit partner?" Cecily asked as she tilted her head in confusion, not at all understanding her contractor's way of thinking.

"Sir Leo, if we can say something, it would be impressive for you to manage to contract another spirit even if it isn't a great spirit. Doing so would also potentially give you access to more types of magic if they happen to have an affinity that you don't." Grassis spoke up as she approached.

"Yes, if you are forming a contract with a qazi-spirit then the contract likely won't go beyond the exchange of mana and access of their gate. You likely have nothing to lose upon doing so." Flam then said as she added on her option, the two of them silently hoping for Leo's continued growth as they took the chance to encourage him to follow Cecily's lead.

"Would it mean springing another mouth on Reinhard to feed?" Leo asked.

"It wouldn't, spirits have no need to consume anything and only great spirits can even do so. When they do it is solely for leisure and pleasure, but even if they did, I am most certain that Sir Reinhard would happily be most accommodating." One of the little maids replied with a smile.

"A quazi-spirit can easily hide on your person, it's quite unlike having another great spirit with a physical form like Lady Cecily follow you everywhere." The other one added on.

"It was mentioned that it takes hundreds of years for them to evolve into a great spirit so it's pretty slim that that's going to change…" Leo mumbled to himself as the three girls eagerly watched him, awaiting whatever answer he would come to. "Fine, I'll be willing to have another partner."

"Yay!" Cecily happily cheered, "Alright, you need to begin to exude your mana, it's how you attract and talk to spirits. Just like with people you form bonds over time but I'm sure that your affinity will be irresistible!"

'I planned on working with her instead of learning from her but… it's something important.' Leo thought to himself, swallowing down his feelings about effectively being taught by such a childlike individual.

Cecily's instructions weren't something that he didn't struggle to understand either as compared to how he would have felt since he first came to the world. He had taken some time to begin to get a grasp on the concept of magic but with casual reading of basic magic books and the occasional little experiment he had begun to find his way through the subject.

To the onlookers, nothing had changed as Leo began to focus on the spot, allowing mana to begin to exit his gate without giving it any particular form so that it merely entered the atmosphere. Eventually, a blue hue took over the area as numerous blue floating lights began to appear in the air as they continued to hover back and forth, seeming conflicted at the idea of getting closer to Leo or not.

"Is this a good result, Lady Cecily?" Flam asked as they continued to watch the behavior of the spirits around Leo, unable to work out how they would best describe it.

"Um, they seemed bothered by something." Cecily replied with a troubled expression before she began to focus herself, "I wonder if it's what I think it is…"

"They keep making a fuss about a great spirit," Leo replied, the twin maids instantly realizing what the issue was the moment that they heard him.

"Do they feel troubled because you're contracted to Lady Cecily? I don't fully understand how respectful spirits are to ones of higher evolution." Grassis said, silently hoping that such an issue wouldn't completely prevent their master from beginning to form new bonds with other spirits.

"Mm, it depends on our reputation really. But a great spirit isn't well known then they are simply treated courteously because becoming like us is a major achievement." Cecily answered, "I haven't been a great spirit for long, especially when compared to others so I'm rather unknown."

"And so their behavior to Sir Leo is an extension of their treatment of you." They summarised to which the spirit nodded back in response.

"I'm happy with you talking with Master! In fact, please get to learn about him, he's the most amazing person to a spirit!" Cecily then said aloud with a beaming smile toward the cluster of lights that froze in place for a few moments whilst she spoke, clearly listening to her despite the fact that it wasn't even her verbal words they were listening to.

The moment that Cecily had made the statement, several spirits suddenly found the confidence to fly much closer to Leo as they began to circle him, inspecting him for whatever they were looking for. Over time, more and more spirits began to appear and observe from varying distances, whilst some completely made an approach.

In no time at all, the clearing in the forest was completely filled with shining lights of spirits, all having come in the curiosity of the new intriguing entity that they could detect. "I've never seen so many spirits in one place before!" Flam exclaimed as she admired the sight of their master standing in the middle of it all.

"That's because of his high affinity, only that Subaru guy could likely attract more." Cecily explained, "And quasi-spirits are showing up!" she then exclaimed, pointing out to a red and green spirit that had arrived on the scene.

"Lady Cecily, do you know how many spirits contracts Sir Leo's affinity would allow him to have?"

"I don't know, he might also cause jealousy by having too many spirits without reaching his limit," Cecily answered as her smile dropped slightly at the thought. There was always the extra impressiveness of someone who had multiple spirits because it was more than they had managed to befriend multiple, but their relationships were formed in a way that they didn't mind sharing the same contractor.

'I'm fine with Master befriending lots of spirits but… would I feel the same all the time?' Cecily thought to herself with a troubled smile. She already felt proud to be contracted to Leo, and she wanted to be able to continue to flaunt his greatness with ever-greater achievements yet she couldn't deny that she already held a sense of wanting to keep him to herself. To be the sole spirit contracted to such a great person.

If the spirits better knew about Leo, then they would realize there was a myriad of reasons both to stay with him or keep away, not that they no longer affected a spirit that had already made her choice.

On one hand, he was from another world and held onto so many points of interest that there was no way any long-lived being would be able to ignore the new wave of something new to investigate and enjoy in their long lives. His spiritual affinity was beyond being something merely rare to come across and there was even the chance that with his authority, it would make him someone they would never have to painfully part from. In fact, he was likely one of the best bets any spirit would have to become a great spirit if they wanted.

Yet, it didn't change the fact that he was a warlock. One who could fit into the same role of the greatest evils of the world, something that was by no means something to be overlooked. And a contract with someone who potentially could live forever would mean a contract they would be stuck with longer than any other. Stuck in a contact with a warlock of all things.

Cecily didn't regret her choice but she did still acknowledge things that she had brushed off before. There was nothing to fear about her contractor, he was the best that she felt she could ask for despite the downsides.

But it never stopped the potential of the good turning bad over time…

She knew how cruel time could be, she had plenty of time herself to witness the change in people when misfortune struck them. 'But master has me! And I'll never let anything like that happen to him!' she thought to herself, holding a sense of resolve to herself. 'And in that thought, Master contracting another spirit or two would make it easier that he remains the same! He would always have us with him!'

The twins that were watching the great spirit were left in utter confusion at her sudden behavior with her inner monologue, the pair of them wondering just what was running through her thoughts yet they didn't choose to pursue asking her. If the great spirit was keeping it to herself then there was a good chance that she simply wasn't willing to share whatever it was.

"I'll make sure that Master gets to contract more spirits!" Cecily suddenly with a gleaming determination with a beaming smile, looking just like a child that thought they had just come across a brilliant idea.

"Cecily, where is this coming from?" Leo called out to her in confusion, now catching onto her odd behavior. "There's no way that I could hope to form another contract with any spirit so quickly is there? Even you took the better part of a few days of stalking me until you decided you wanted a contract."

"But you're not just that anymore, you're already chosen by me to be contracted with, which means a lot to other spirits. And there's something else." Cecily said with a knowing smile as she stepped forth, all of the spirits respectfully making way for her as she approached. "Does anyone want to try forming a temporary contract with Master for a few days?" she suddenly proposed, communicating her words both aloud and telepathically to the spirits.

"Temporary?" Leo repeated, wondering what she was getting him into again.

"Yup, think of the contract that we have, but it only lasts for a total of however many days you wish. You can think of it like a trial period for both you and the spirits!" she explained,

"So it's basically what you could have tried instead of stalking me?"

"Well… maybe…" Cecily hesitantly replied to Leo's slight amusement.

Meanwhile, the spirits around them were visibly excited over the news as they continued to move about the place, completely full of energy. All of the lesser spirits that filled the air had begun to back away whilst the few quasi-spirits that filled the air took their place as they approached with completely renewed interest in Leo.

"What are they doing?" Leo asked as the colored spirits continued to fly all around him, quicker than he was able to keep up with.

"You should be trying to communicate with them yourself, but they're inspecting you again. It seems that they're actually interested in the offer I made." Cecily explained with a pleased smile at the reaction she had triggered. "The only negative thing about you that they could notice is some of your miasma, aside from that I wouldn't see a reason for them to decline."

"Ah, so spirits in general can pick up on it?"

"Miasma is something like corrupted mana, since spirits are purely made from mana it's natural that we can detect it. Unlike other creatures, it doesn't cause illness for us but it can cause other… adverse effects…" Cecily answered, "It's pretty important for them to decide around."

"Are you going to be affected by… whatever adverse effect's it can cause?" Leo asked in alarm but the spirit easily shook her head.

"You would need a lot of it to corrupt a spirit but I think you would deliberately attempt to do so. I'm already becoming immune to it since I've gotten used to being around you, and your contract to protect me helps. But for weaker spirits, they might be reliant on a contract like that to keep them safe from the effects."

"I can 'corrupt' spirits?" Leo repeated, "Do you mean, I can influence your way of thinking for the worse? Or do you mean something else?"

"Well, spirits are made of mana, and you exude miasma which is like corrupted mana. I don't know of any spirits in history that got too heavily influenced by miasma but I'm sure that they wouldn't be themselves anymore." Cecily replied until an idea struck her mind. "Maybe you could create your own spirits from miasma?"

"First of all, I think that's impossible for me. Second of all, it sounds like a horrible idea." Leo interjected, shooting down the idea as quickly as possible. "It sounds like I would just make some rampaging evil spirit at that rate."

"Probably." Cecily promptly agreed. 'I wonder if any of the witches in the past used their miasma against spirits?' she couldn't help but think before finally shaking off the thought, believing that the idea was better ditched.

"Excuse me." A voice suddenly responded in Leo's mind that he immediately knew wasn't his own as he turned towards where he felt the telepathic speaker was to notice a crystal blue orb floating before him.

"Are you the spirit?" Leo replied, doing his best to replicate the communication that the spirit had established with him.

"I am," The spirit replied, briefly pulsing with a brighter light that just as quickly settle down. Its 'voice' didn't hold any indication of its gender, and in general, didn't hold any kind of emotion to it either and yet Leo couldn't help but feel that the thing was holding a sense of concern alongside curiosity. "Did the great spirit that accompanies you speak the truth? That you are willing to establish contracts with us?"

"Well, I am willing, yes. But I didn't think that anyone here would be actually willing to form one with me."

"You are bonded with a great spirit and hold a remarkable spiritual affinity; you certainly are an impressive human but… your miasma…"

"I can confirm that he isn't like that! He is kind, interesting, amazing and so much more! I even confirmed it at a distance before I formed a contract with him!" Cecily suddenly chimed in as the thoughts resonated with both the other spirit and Leo.

"I held no doubt, great one, your presence is most certainly supporting the thought, but still, I hold reservations alongside desire and curiosity." The spirit replied, lowering itself to Cecily's height instead. "I am torn, between seeing what a great spirit has acknowledged, but the risk he poses…"

"There are temporary contract's remember?" Cecily reminded the spirit as if it was obvious.

"Excuse my rudeness, but the nature of his kind is still not so easily trusted… the powers of a witch, what says you are not influenced by whatever powers he possesses?"

"Now, first of all, I can't be a witch, do I look like a woman to you?" Leo quickly cut between the spirit's conversation as he noticed Cecily puffing up her cheeks in a huff, clearly getting upset again at the accusation thrown against him. "Secondly, it's a valid point. I'm told that all authorities defy what's thought as possible, but there's something that I want to ask you."

The spirit didn't respond to Leo, nor did it begin to leave him. It was hard getting a read on a literal floating orb of light but its behavior was enough that Leo guesses that it was waiting for whatever point he was about to make.

"If I managed to clear all doubt that you have of everything relating to my miasma… what would your decision be?"

"The only question would be your nature, yet a great spirit has taken a great liking to you. Therefore, there would be none more worthy of being my contactor." The answer immediately and decisively came. "But how would you propose doing that?"

"The temporary contract that Cecily spoke of, I propose that I won't do anything of ill intent, I won't harm you, I won't influence you with powers, I'll tell you nothing but the truth for whatever you ask, I'll even protect you. And I won't ask for anything in return for as long as this temporary contract lasts, and you can leave whenever you like."

"You would be willing to go so far to prove yourself?" The spirit replied with a hint of shock, clearly not having expected such a potential offer to come from Leo himself.

"It's because he's just that amazing of a contractor, he has nothing to hide either and I'm certain that you'll see how amazing he is as well to stop judging him by his misfortune." Cecily chimed, pleased that the spirit seemed to be beginning to see where it had been wrong.

For a few moments, there was no response from the spirit as the two likewise remained in silence, giving the spirit the chance to think for itself before it finally replied. "Very well, I agree to those terms. I shall stay with you for a week before making my decision on you."

Instantly upon hearing the spirit's agreement Cecily hastily grabbed hold of Leo's hand, lifting it up for him so that the spirit could rest in his open palm for a few moments before floating back up. "I hope to learn more about you in this coming week, oh, but what's your name?"

"I have yet to be in a contract that would bestow me with such a thing, despite our contract being temporary, you may give me a name should it make things easier."

"I don't think I'm great at names but… how do you feel about Kou?"

"I feel it to be an acceptable name, you may feel free to refer to me as such." The spirit replied, yet Leo struggled to feel at ease or happy about its words as there was frighteningly little else to even hint at its true feelings.

"You successfully contracted another spirit!" Cecily happily exclaimed, breaking Leo out of his thoughts. "But since it's a temporary contract that hasn't agreed upon lending you its gate yet you can't perform the spiritual arts with them yet. But we can still continue if I help you instead!"

"Sir Leo managed to form another contract?" Flam asked with an amazed smile

"Oh, it's more like it's on a trial period. It's interested in me but my miasma is making it uneasy…" Leo replied with an awkward smile, whilst the twins' exchanged glances with one another.

"We have faith that you will be able to gain the spirit's trust, you'll be able to make a proper contract with it soon," Grassis said with a smile until the sound of fake coughing caught their attention. Leo didn't have enough time to see that Cecily had opened his hand and held onto it with strength one wouldn't have expected from her appearance.

"We're continuing!" She stated before calming down, "With our contract, you can use my gate to use magic instead, but you will only be able to use the magical attributes that I have instead."

"So light and fire magic?" Leo said, recalling what Cecily had told him before when they had first properly met.

"Yup!" Cecily cheerily agreed. "Physical contract makes it easier, and I can make it even easier by directly supplying mana but you should try requesting it and doing it yourself."

"But how do I do that?"

"Try focusing on my presence and attempt reaching out to my gate, our contract should give a level of intuitiveness to it. Try casting the fire spell goa to make sure that it's my gate that you're using." Cecily instructed whilst pointing towards a tree that had some distance between them which Leo assumed was supposed to be a target for him.

"But what does goa look like? Envisioning the spell is important right?"

"Goa is a basic fireball, but thinking about it isn't so important when it comes to the spiritual arts since I can assist at any point. Now try the spell!"

Upon hearing the explanation Leo felt a slight bit of hesitance as he tried to comprehend just what he had been instructed to do. The problem with magic was that it was something akin to a natural function and therefore was hard to explain the exact manipulation of, akin to telling someone how to move their hand in a particular way.

'But… it should still be something like this then?' Leo thought hopefully as he continued to focus on Cecily's presence, trying to simply gain access to her gate by will alone. Finally, he began to feel the familiar sensation that he always felt as he tried to cast magic as hoped that it was successfully Cecily's mana instead of his own.

"Goa!" Leo commanded with an outstretched hand. Upon stating his desired spell flames began to appear and swirl in his hand as they quickly enlarged into a small fireball that shot off at high speed before exploding and leaving a small field of flame behind as the tree began to burn down.

"You did it! But with a bit too much mana." Cecily exclaimed as they watched the forest begin to burn down, yet despite the concern of Leo and the maids, Cecily was completely relaxed at the sight instead. She didn't even say a word as she lifted her hand before a wave of ice rushed forth from her, quickly extinguishing the flames and instead covered the tree with frost instead.

"A little late of a thought but maybe we should save the fire for being away from the forest," Leo said as he looked at the trouble that they had caused. "Didn't want me trying an ice spell instead huh?"

"Everything will be fine, the tree wasn't special, was it?" Cecily happily replied.

"Usually when people are learning magic or the spiritual arts for the first time, they typically don't have such destructive prowess…" Flam said as they approached, likewise looking at the horrible state of the tree. "But not many learn the spiritual arts with a great spirit as their partner."

"I just hope that no headaches come from this…" Leo sighed.

"The most that come through these parts are spirits, wildlife, and sometimes stray mabeasts. Your worries are unnecessary." The Kou's voice rang through his mind whilst the spirit floated back towards him, making his presence known. "What is more important for you two to be focusing on is your ability to control mana as you struggled with a reasonable output. If you continue like this then you will waste mana and become a danger to not only others but yourself as well, especially if you have a large mana capacity."

"That… makes sense… I'm really only a beginner in magic so I'm not surprised that my control is poor…" Leo replied to the spirit. "But, do you know how to test a person's capacity for magic?"

"As a water spirit, I would not mind checking your gate later."

"That would be apricated."

"We're finally back in town, talk about taking a hike just for some training." Leo sighed as they were finally walking back through the royal capital after having decided to wrap up their training in the forest.

"But you likely would have found any spirits near the house though, and you needed some space on top of that," Cecily replied as she walked along, side by side with her contractor whilst Flam and Grassis had both opted to walk on Leo's other side, keeping up with them.

"But we found one another in the city, couldn't we have gone somewhere at least a little more local?" Leo asked.

"Mm, maybe," Cecily said with half a thought.

"When it comes to finding and communicating with spirits then there would be little reason to need to leave the city, but I still think that it was a good decision. Considering the amount of power that you unleashed with the spiritual arts." Flam mentioned.

"I guess that might be enough to start catching people's attention, and then the guards…" Leo thought aloud, his mind already simulating the possibility that could have happened.

"It would carry a level of disturbing the peace, yes," Grassis confirmed with a nod.

"Excuse me." A gentle voice called out to the group which filled the group with a sense of hesitance as they realized just who had reached out to begin talking with them before Leo started to question what the overall kindness of the world was like.

It had been nonother than a knight that had stopped them as he stood before them with shining confidence and a gentle smile, yet despite his appearance, Leo knew that there was a chance that he was merely hiding his suspicion towards them if he had begun hearing their conversation form a bad point.

Just like Reinhard, the knight wore the fancy royal knights' attire but had rather well-kept violet hair and shining yellow eyes that calmly looked back at them, inspecting the whole group at he did so.

"Is there something we can help you with?" Leo asked on behalf of the group.

"My name is Julius Juukulius, spirit knight of the royal guard. I'm terribly sorry for disrupting your day but there were some questions that I was hoping you would be willing to answer." The knight said with an elegant bow that shocked Leo with the sheer chivalry that he was experiencing.

"Wait, Julius? Isn't that?"

"It's the guy Emilia mentioned!" Cecily exclaimed before him as she pointed a finger almost accusingly.

"Emilia? Do you perhaps mean Miss Emilia who is resident to the margrave's domain?" Julius asked in shock, to which Leo quickly nodded in confirmation.

"That's her, ran into a bit of a… skirmish together, but after that, I guess you could call us friends." He replied with a nonchalant smile, not knowing why he felt somewhat pleased with the sight of Julius being thrown off his game at the revelation.

"I see, would that perhaps mean that you are under her lead as a follower of her?"

"Hm? No, we're just friends, but I am someone who knows of her situation if that's something else that you're wondering. The margrave already gave his shot at recruiting me to their side but I couldn't give them an immediate answer, I already have another promise to uphold first before I start picking sides." Leo quickly explained with a smile as a new dawn of understanding finally began to show on Julius's face.

"I see, I don't know who you are but to be recognized by the margrave to join Miss Emilia does suggest plenty about your capabilities," Julius replied with a gentle smile. "But in fact, may I hear your names and relation to one another? I must admit that a site like all of you walking together is a bit new to me."

'Was that… was that a way of hinting suspicion about us at first? Suspicion of me?' Leo couldn't help but think, stunned by the thought that had crossed his mind. It was the only idea that came to mind that would be able to explain just what about the appearance of their group would be so eye-catching to him.

"Sorry, we should have done that sooner. My name's Leo, it's nice to meet you." He said whilst offering his hand that Julius took with a smile, the two sharing a firm shake before letting go again.

"My name is Flam." "And my name is Grassis." The two twin maids quickly introduced themselves next as they made a respectful bow. Leo couldn't help but notice the sudden lack of warmth in their voices, with them almost having turned monotone as they had slipped into an almost business-like mode. "We are the maids in service to Sir Leo."

"And I'm Cecily! Master's contracted spirit!" Cecily then declared whilst puffing out her small chest with pride.

Upon hearing the introductions of all the girls, Julius looked more than simply blown away as he struggled to absorb the information before finally snapping back into reality and immediately taking action on what he believed to be most important.

"Please excuse my negligence, great spirit, as a spirit knight of Lagnica I should have realized sooner. I apologize for my previous lack of respect." Julius immediately proclaimed as he instantly dropped to one knee, bowing his head in Cecily's direction whilst the spirit seemed shocked at the overwhelming change in behavior from Julius.

"No offense taken." Cecily managed to reply without a stutter.

"If I may ask, did you refer to Leo here as your contractor? And your Master?" Julius asked as he remained completely conflicted expression. "May I ask what kind of relationship you have with one another for contractor and spirit?"

"Please don't judge me, she keeps doing it of her own choice despite me asking her to stop…" Leo sighed, not liking the turn that the conversation was taking.

"He's my contractor, and the best that a spirit could ask for! I think our relationship is normal, right?" Cecily proudly stated before looking at Leo with a questioning gaze, prompting him to talk if he knew any better.

"Why would I know, you're literally my first spirit. You should be telling me based on your previous experiences." Leo replied before noticing Julius's once again overwhelmed expression. "And you seem like your head's about to burst with questions, you know?"

"Ah, well I can't deny that there is some truth to your words. I first came because of the unusual sight and the strong presence of a spirit, but I never imagined that I would be coming across anything like this today."

"Wanna try standing for a bit? I know it isn't easy to stay like that forever."

"But the great spirit,"

"You can stand." Cecily interrupted the knight with a cheery smile, something that Julius froze at for a few moments before following her words and rising to his full hight once more.

"I must admit my respect to you, as someone who has earned a partnership of great spirit it is no small feat." Julius said with a smile, "Can I ask if you are contracted to any other spirits?"

"Well, sorta. I have a temporary contract with a quasi-spirit but hopefully, we'll form a proper contract soon enough. I heard that you were a spirit knight however, what spirits are you contracted with?"

"Ah, they may not be great spirits but I am still most proud of my little buds either way," Julius replied with a warm smile as he lifted up an open palm where six different colored spirits quickly gathered in his hand. "These quasi-spirits are contracted to me, and they go by the names of La, Kua, Alo, Ake, In, and Nes. We've been partnered for more than a decade now."

"Your certainly a senior to me there then," Leo replied as they looked down at the spirits but it wasn't long before some of them began to circle Leo whilst remaining weary and respectful of Cecily all the while.

"It seems that you possess a rather high spiritual affinity, it's been a long time since I've last seen them warp up to a person so quickly." Julius noted, "But perhaps that isn't something so shocking considering you have a great spirit that travel's with you."

"His affinity is more than just high, it's one of the greatest that I've felt! I meant it that Master is the best that a spirit could ask for!" Cecily stated with pride as Julius's spirits finally returned to his side, seemingly satisfied with their inspection of Leo.

"There might be little that can be done to boost one's affinity, but I shall ever strive to do my best to become closer to the praiseworthy heights that you say Leo has achieved for my own buds."

"I'm sure if you're willing to try so hard then you've certainly not bad by any means, not that I think my word means much here…" Leo replied, but Julius shook his head in response.

"Not at all, I am honored to hear that you think such a way of me as well." He replied with a smile that soon faded, making Leo wait with expectance for another question as he could tell something else had popped into the knight's mind that had left him bothered. "Before, your maids referred to you as 'Sir', yet that isn't a title typically given to simple masters of the staff, but instead knights. Yet, despite knowing everyone in the royal guard you still do not come to mind."

"Oh, that…" Leo said with an awkward expression. "It's not so much that I am a knight but rather training to be one. It wasn't like I told them to address me that way either, it was their own choice to do so."

"You wish to become a knight in the future?" Julius asked with interest.

"I mean, there was someone who saved me from potential trouble that you couldn't imagine, and he continued to offer assistance to me by giving me a potential path in life of becoming a knight. It's not the most admirable reason for becoming one, but I think if I am to take that route I would want to fulfill my personal description of a knight before actually becoming one." Leo answered with a sense of shame that had him unable to resist looking down at the ground.

Leo didn't need to know Julius any longer to be able to tell that he was someone that took his knighthood with the utmost seriousness, the overwhelming chivalry that he displayed even when greeting a seemingly ordinary enough citizen was proof of it. It was the gap in noble reasonings for their desire for their roles that couldn't help but leave Leo feeling a sense of inadequacy in comparison.

He had been treating it as little more than getting a job, compared to Julius who took it like it was his life's purpose, upholding the image far more than he would have thought any of the knights to actually be like. Even Reinhard failed to keep up with the sheer knightliness that Julius had, not that it meant Julius currently had any chance of showing up Reinhard's pure kindness, however.

"Then what would your personal definition of a knight be?" Julius asked, intrigued at Leo's way of thinking.

"Someone who wields the blade to protect another with everything they have, that they are a type of people to use their power for the aid of those without it." Leo calmly answered before waiting for what Julius thought of his answer.

The knight just smiled back at him, completely satisfied with the answer he had just heard. "I think that is a most respectable reason for holding the sword. I at least would be most accepting of someone with such ideologies continuing the path of the knight."

"And I'm glad to hear that, I'll continue to work towards it then." Leo smiled back.

"He's going to do more than become a knight, he'll become a spirit knight even better than you! I'm sure there are no heights that my contractor can't reach!" Cecily pridefully interjected as the two men looked at her with faint shock. "Don't be surprised on the day he surpasses you!" she added on with a cheerily little grin.

"I look forward to such a day where we might come close enough to consider one another rivals, but I shall not be taking it easier either, especially if a great spirit is working with my competition," Julius said with a small bow towards Cecily. "I apologize once again for having disrupted your day; I hope that you enjoy the rest of it for this is where I must finally say goodbye for I am still on duty as of this moment."

"It was nice running into you, now I've gotten to know the spirit knight people have been mentioning in person!" Leo said as he flashed a quick smile.

"As was it meeting you, it warms my heart to learn of another aspiring spirit knight. I bid you farewell and may you have a fine day." Julius replied with a gentle smile of his own, giving another brief bow to the group before taking his leave, walking away as Leo and Cecily saw him off waving, the group watching him vanish into the streets.

And when he was surely gone and out of earshot, Leo released a heavy sigh. "Like hell I'm ever going to end up like that… it would be too exhausting to even just keep up with his demeanor."

"Sir Julius is often referred to by another title of the finest knight because of his unrivaled chivalry and skill and is viewed as a role model to all other knights. We most certainly understand how one would feel it difficult to keep up with his manners." Grassis explained with a smile.

"You don't need to behave anything like him, you're better than you are now! We just need to make sure that we're way stronger than him!" Cecily explained, pumping a fist into the air.

"I'm not saying he's like it but… if he started to look down on me then I don't think I could tolerate it at all. I'm certainly going to reach a respectable level before we meet him again." Leo added on, gently ruffling the spirit's hair affectionately to her enjoyment.

"Sir Leo, I think that we should resume making our way home as well. Lunch will be beginning soon." Flam then said.

"Right, I don't want Felt going off at me again so let's hurry." He replied with a smile before the four of them resumed their walk back to the Astrea Manor with the memory of the spirit knight Julius now sitting in the forefront of their memory.

When they finally arrived back at the manor, lunch was already in the middle of being served whilst Felt had taken the initiative to sit at the head of the table where Reinhard usually sat, taking advantage of the knight's continued absence whilst acting with a sense of pride.

Yet despite the lack of Reinhard, the remainder of the day held little difference as both Felt and Leo were brought to yet another lesson for the day. No longer did Leo have any notable issues with reading and writing the languages despite the multiple scriptures and neither did Felt as both of them were instead driven to learn more and more complex and diversified language.

They had begun to become lessons that Leo knew that he no longer needed to attend as he had already gained the skills that had been his sole reason for attending, but despite the fact, he still continued to attend.

"I don't get why you're still showing up. I would have thought you would have made use of your freedom now." Felt commented as they walked down the corridor together, the short blond doing so in an unscrupulous manner with her arms supporting the back of her head.

"Well, I wonder, perhaps I'd receive a beating from you in jealously otherwise?" Leo replied large smirk as she glared back at him. "But I suppose it's because I've gotten used to it, that and I wouldn't just start leaving you to go through it on your own."

"Huh, what's that supposed to mean?!"

"Would you rather that I was gone?"

"No… at least you get to understand the stuff that they're forcing me through!" Felt said with a huff as she broke all eye contact with Leo. The two continued in silence as they continued through the corridor until finally arriving at Leo's room, yet despite Leo entering his room, Felt continued to wait for him to open the door and follow him in as if it was only natural.

"So, I'm in for another night with you?" Leo said, already moving to sit down at his desk whilst Felt threw herself onto the bed, landing beside Cecily's figure that had been resting there.

"Don't make it sound like that," Felt replied, not sounding all that bothered despite what she said.

"Make it sound like what?" Cecily asked as she began to sit upright on the bed, not phased by the sight of Felt laying down whilst kicking her feet in the air next to her.

"Nothing you need to worry about." Leo nonchalantly told the spirit. "So, what are you crashing here for? I doubt you going to allow me to do my own thing." He then said, addressing Felt instead.

"You would spend the time reading about magic, I don't get how you can be so studious. I wouldn't have taken you to be the type." Felt said with a sigh as she rolled over in boredom until an idea struck her mind. "Oh, yeah, you said that magic didn't exist to you before, right?"

"That's right, imagine that you're suddenly introduced to a whole new concept, previously thought impossible, that can do seemingly anything that you can imagine."

"I couldn't imagine it," Felt replied.

"Leo," A familiar voice in his head sounded as a small orb of light emerged from his clothing, "It raises a question for me that I can no longer turn a blind eye to."

"Oh hey, is that a new spirit of yours? Is that where you went today?" Felt asked the moment that she noticed the small presence emerge from him.

"Uh, we have a temporary contract currently but you could still think of it as a companion of mine. But now it wants to ask me something." Leo replied without even looking at the girl as the spirit that now rested in his hand.

"Why do you know so little of basic concepts of the world? Your appearance would not suggest illiteracy and yet you had to learn, you make it seem that magic didn't exist despite its impact on all lives, and your idea of keeping time was different from anything I'm aware of." The spirit asked, striking Leo hard as he hadn't expected the spirit to ask about it so soon.

"Well… it basically doesn't understand certain things about me which all stem from the fact that I'm not from here," Leo replied as Felt and Cecily suddenly increase the amount of attention that they gave him, the pair of them silently getting across their curiosity in his willingness to tell the spirit. "It's a part of our contract that I can't lie to it, so via that, it can be believable."

"How much about you is it asking for? Is there any reason for you not to? I mean your story isn't like it would believe no matter who's telling it, only if there's a lie detector to listen to you."

"Everything would be quickly explained if I did…" he mumbled to himself whilst the girls looked on, waiting for his decision whilst Kou continued to patiently wait in his hand.

"I think you should tell." Cecily eventually spoke up, even raising her hand into the air like a school kid wanting the teacher's attention. "You have nothing to be ashamed of, it's actually amazing that you come from beyond the great waterfall."

"Beyond the waterfall?" Kou spoke up in Leo's mind as he looked back at the spirit in shock.

"I thought you couldn't hear spoken words…" He replied to the spirit, utilizing the same mana communication that he had been taught by Cecily.

"I am a developed enough spirit to be able to listen to enough human speech and understand, however, I would be grateful for you to utilize this method of communication when you can," Kou explained with what Leo could call matter-of-fact tones despite the lack of emotions that the spirit could effectively express.

"Noted."

"But may you be willing to explain what the great spirit had mentioned? Is it true that you come from beyond the great waterfall?"

"It's true… I honestly have little idea on the details of how I got here but… I think I was teleported by an individual of currently untrustworthy origins. She never explained anything, she just thrusted a witch factor upon me and threw me out into the capital."

"That is a tale that not even a child would believe…" Kou replied before going quiet for a few moments. "But it is our contract that prevents you from lying, there is no need to further convince me…"

"Um, is something going on with big bro and his spirit?" Felt eventually asked after feeling awkward about watching them with seemingly little to no development occurring.

"Yup, he's currently talking with it a still explaining himself. It's shocked and trying to process everything I think." Cecily promptly explained as neither of the girls took their eyes away from the silently conversing two. "Oh, and you should start calling it Kou, Master was its first contractor so he got to name it!"

"I see…" Felt hesitantly replied, not sure how to take the conversation. "I don't know about anything going on, it just looks like he's staring at it dammit." She eventually said, her patience beginning to run out. At the very least she wanted to be able to listen to whatever they were saying yet it was impossible for her who didn't know the slightest thing about anything spirit-related, she didn't even have the groundwork of knowledge that Leo already had before beginning.

Yet despite her frustrations, she did her best to keep her calm as she waited for everything to end, not wanting to get in the way and ruin things for Leo.

"I can tell you the important things if you like." Cecily offered with a smile.

"It's better than nothing." The thief replied, beginning to relax on the bed once again whilst they waited.

"The cause of your miasma is the dark power you gained upon arriving here… what are your feelings and intentions about the one who forced it upon you?" Kou continued to ask.

"Well… I have no idea who she is or where she is. She mentioned that she would come to see me again at some point and I guess I'll try getting answers from her when she does…" Leo replied whilst sinking into thought. It wasn't something that he had thought about before as, since that initial meeting, there had been nothing to keep her parting words in his mind. "I understand that she's highly suspicious, but she sounds like there's something that she wants me to do. If I can learn more about it when she makes the request then that should give me a better idea if it's good to help or not."

"Do you understand the potential danger that you risk getting involved with?"

"I don't think I can avoid it. If she can teleport me from my world, what's stopping her from bringing me to her location at any time? The best I can do is prepare myself for a fight, or stay on her good side."

"You raise valid points… I suppose you yourself are within a troubling predicament. Is that why you wished to form a contract with me and the other spirits of the forest?"

"Not really, I was just supposed to be learning the spiritual arts with Cecily until she had the idea to teach everything from the beginning, including forming another contract. Even contracting Cecily wasn't done with that in mind, in fact, she was the one who proposed the contract to me."

"You are a complete enigma. But I suppose such things might be a part of why a great spirit took such a liking to you." Kou replied in an evaluative manner.

"How do you feel about it?" Leo couldn't help but ask.

"That you would be a rather dangerous individual to form a contract with, even should you prove to be a good person." Kou immediately answered without a trace of hesitation. Upon hearing the spirit's decisive answer, Leo couldn't help but feel a sense of disappointment as he looked down at the spirit in his hand, his mind already guessing at how their relationship would likely turn out.

"You think that I would leave you so promptly now," Kou said.

"You certainly made it sound that way, and I can't argue against the point you made," Leo replied, keeping his emotions out of their talk.

"It's not there is no reason for me to stay, you are one recognized by a great spirit, have an incredibly spiritual affinity, and simply might be a person I would enjoy being bonded with. I haven't made my decision yet."

"Does that mean?"

"I shall stay with you until the week is up, and I will make my decision then." Kou restated. "Until then, I shall be by your side."

"Thank you." Was all Leo could say as a smile took over his expression until everyone in the room flinched at the sound of knocking at the door.

"Sir Leo, may we come in?" A familiar yet muffled voice came through the door whilst Kou once again made sure to hide on Leo's person.

"I just finished things up, feel free." He replied which promptly went followed by the doorknob beginning to twist open to reveal Flam and Grassis as they walked into the room, shutting it behind them.

"Miss Felt is also here? Was there something that you were doing together?" Grassis asked as she immediately noticed the two blonds that were sat together on the bed.

"Not really, I was barely here for a few moments before big bro's spirit came out and started asking him a few questions apparently." Felt nonchalantly explained to the pair. "But why did you two come here? Are you helping big bro with something?"

"We wondered if he was continuing his studies in magic like he usually does before bathing and going to bed, if he wished then we would be willing to lend what assistance we could." Flam calmly explained, "But if Sir Leo isn't learning magic and is instead spending time with Miss Felt and his spirits then should we leave instead?" they then asked, politely turning their attention to Leo who remained at his table.

"You don't have to go if you don't want to, although at this time of night I don't know what anyone would want to do in my room…" He replied with a smile.

"It's obvious the kind of thing that we want!" Felt snapped back with a grin. "You can start telling us more of those stories of yours, I've been beginning to think that they're from your world you know!"

"Is that true, Sir Leo?" Grassis asked with gleaming eyes, her interest seemingly having been fully grasped.

"It's correct, I haven't really read any kind of novel here so I couldn't say any," Leo said with an awkward smile as he noticed the small maid's keen interest. "Are you interested in it? My world and its stories?"

"Ah, um…" Grassis began to fumble on the spot, seemingly embarrassed that she had exposed such a side to her master.

"Come on, you can spit these things out. And don't think you're the only one with some interest in other worlds. Come over here again, big bro can start explaining his world to us!" Felt said whilst patting beside herself on the little spare space on the bed whilst the twins looked at one another as if to check on what the other was thinking before coming to their answer.

"If you do not mind our presence," Flam said as they quickly made their way over, joining the other two girls on the bed as they all began to wait with excitement and expectation for whatever stories Leo had to tell them as he sighed in response.

'Is this what my nights are becoming?' Leo thought to himself before collecting his thought about where to start amazing the girls. "Are there any requests to know things, out of what little you've already heard?" He asked.

Immediately Grassis and Cecily raised their hands with brimming excitement, each of them filled with eager curiosity. It had been no short night for any of them as the girls felt continuous excitement, interest, and shock about the many different things that Leo continued to tell them, thinking of anything and everything that contrasted their current belief as much as possible…