Chapter 60: Chapter 60 – Mauve Dreams (5)
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Chapter 60 – Mauve Dreams (5)
"I…um…uh…"
It sounded like the girl was trying to speak but was struggling.
"Well…sorry…I guess I was mistaken…"
After a brief awkward silence, the girl spoke again in a slightly deflated voice.
"Um, so, how did you learn spirit magic…? Miss Evangeline said I was the only spirit mage of this generation…"
"You don't need to know. And how did you know I would come back here? Did you spend all day waiting here?"
"What? Of course not. I have classes to attend."
At my question, Eugenia frowned as if she heard something completely ridiculous.
In the meantime, I continued to struggle against the bonds, but the girl seemed uninterested in my actions.
"This is my friend. Isn't she cute? I asked her to follow you!"
Suddenly, a green fluff ball that looked exactly like Eugenia appeared above her head.
"I wanted to talk to you, but I didn't have the chance at the academy… But this little one told me you were coming here, right? So I came here first and waited. Hehe…"
The spirit danced merrily above her head, but when I glared at it, it flinched and hid its body in her hair.
"…Actually, I was a bit surprised myself. I didn't know it was you, the one I tried to help…"
"…You know me?"
"Of course I do. You're that troublemaker… Sorry. Anyway, you're Edwin Reed, right? The one who got punished for fighting with Eugene last time. I've only heard your name before; this is the first time I've seen you properly. I don't think I saw you well last time. It was dark…"
What did she mean last time? Did she just see me passing by at the academy? I don't remember seeing her green hair up close. But then again, she could have seen me from a distance. Maybe she heard about me from Eugene.
But she seems quite friendly, despite all that. Didn't she hear the whole story?
"…But you seem really close to the girl you're with. There's something going on, right…? When you're together, it's clear to anyone that she is not being dragged around forcibly…"
Eugenia's words left me feeling a bit dazed.
It seems she just kept the spirit with me all day. Why would she bother with such nonsense?
"Sigh…"
As I sighed deeply, Eugenia flinched slightly and looked at me.
"Um… sorry. I didn't mean to pry. It's just… you two seem so close, and I… got a little jealous…"
Eugenia, who had been hesitating for a moment, suddenly took a deep breath. And with a face that has made a firm decision, she looked at me and said, "Hey, let's be friends with me too."
"…what?"
"Hehe. Wouldn't you like that? We're both freshmen. We don't have many friends. And most importantly…we're both spirit mages! This is unbelievable…"
"No."
She's a naive child. How can I be friends with you? If I become friends with you, then what about Eugene? What about the others?
"Uh, uh…?"
As if she didn't expect my refusal, Eugenia widened her eyes in shock.
"You don't want to…? Why…?"
"Is there a reason for not wanting it? I just don't want to. And in nicer terms, please release this restraint…"
Why don't you want to…? You're so close to that girl, why not me..?"
"I don't have an obligation to explain. And I hope you never do anything like attaching a spirit to me again. Seriously, it's… not right."
"…Is it so wrong to want to be friends? Why are you only like this to me…why am I the only one…"
Eugenia, hearing my refusal, bowed her head deeply and continued to mutter something.
As I struggled to break free from the still-binding restraints, a feeling of dread crept up my arms.
"Why only to me…why only to me…"
…..I have a bad feeling about this. I need to get out of here.
Eugenia continued to murmur unheard words, and her voice, now low and thick, spread out in all directions; and now, as if visually amplifying this ominous aura, the colors of all the spirits gathered around her began to pale.
"What is this…"
As the colors of all the surrounding spirits faded to pale, a powerful energy amplified through them emanated from her and the previously quiet landscape suddenly erupted into chaos.
And now, it wasn't just a feeling; the air around me began to ripple; a sharp wind swirled with a tearing sound, and countless thick raindrops fell from the sky.
Though Eugenia's surroundings seemed calm, as if she was in the eye of the storm, she still kept her head down and muttered something.
"Ha…"
Though the restraints were now released, I sighed softly as I looked at the desolate scene.
It was my first time seeing it in person, but I knew exactly what was happening.
This was… resonance.
* * * * *
Resonance, a phenomenon where the emotions of a spirit mage merge with surrounding spirits, magnifying their negative energy manifold.
Of course, this would not happen in a normal situation, so once resonance occurs, it means that the load on the spirit mage's mind has exceeded its limit.
Certainly, while such incidents have occurred a few times in the original work, it's still not the right time for this. Why would such an event happen now, just because I rejected friendship? Surely, there must be something more to this incident that I'm unaware of.
Even as I pondered, Eugenia's rampage intensified, the surrounding landscape breaking apart; earth cracked, rocks shattered. The lost raindrops formed small streams and trickled down the slopes.
Once resonance begins, it cannot cease without external intervention. While there have been no instances of a full-blown rampage in the original, leaving this unattended would undoubtedly lead to dire consequences.
At that time, Eugene used the power of the holy sword to absorb the negativity and stop the resonance, but now there was no Eugene and no holy sword before the prophecy was given.
"Phew…"
This mighty aura that now filled the surroundings was not purely Eugenia's, but was amplified through the spirits that were sympathetic to her.
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If I could free these spirits from her influence, perhaps I could pacify the chaos.
But right now, I was not even capable of communicating with spirits, let alone controlling them. There was no time. What the hell should I do…
Wait.
'Maybe…'
Like a realization that comes after suffering, a thought suddenly crosses my mind.
Abilities often surfaced in extreme situations, and the idea that had materialized in my mind felt akin to such manifestations.
There was no time for lengthy contemplation; action was imperative.
Without hesitation, I extended my arms, palms open, and directed my raw mana toward Eugenia and the resonating spirits.
My mana, which was shaped like a long string, lightly dug into a ball of cotton that was aligned with Eugenia.
Then, the pale color of the spirit gradually began to return to its original appearance.
'That's it…!'
After confirming that the method I had in mind worked, I continued directing mana to the surrounding spirits.
And as the number of spirits I controlled increased, the abnormal phenomena around me gradually calmed down, but as their number exceeds dozens, my body begins to feel the strain.
"Haah…already like this…"
There were still as many spirits left around Eugenia as I brought. But if I stopped halfway, they would return to her control. I gritted my teeth and continued to take control of the spirits from her, and eventually I was able to bring every last one of them under my control.
And once that happened, I could feel all the sensations that the spirits were feeling. It seems that the way to properly communicate with spirits was to infuse them with your own mana.
Eugenia, having exhausted all her strength, was now on the verge of collapsing. I approached her, caught her, and gently laid her down on the fallen leaves.
The fierce wind calmed down, and the raindrops pouring down as if a hole had been opened in the sky began to stop gradually.
I, too, was on the verge of exhaustion after pouring out all my strength, but I couldn't just collapse here. Who knows what would happen to the spirits if I lost control of them?
…Will the spirits obey me now?
As a test, I lightly waved my hand, and the spirits floated in the air as if riding a wave. It works. I have control…
I repeated this gesture several times, sending the spirits as far away from us as possible. Even with such a small movement, I could feel a huge amount of energy draining away.
"Phew…that's done…now I can't…"
With the dispersal of the spirits, tension ebbed, and my reasoning blurred.
Squeezing out the last remnants of strength, I carefully lay down on the damp leaves.
And almost as soon as I felt the damp earthy scent of the leaves, my consciousness drifted beyond the abyss.
What lay beyond, I could only wonder.
—— End of chapter —–
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