Tl-cosmo
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A Second Encounter, Part Two
The creatures humans formed contracts with were known as magical beasts.
Through those contracts, they granted humans magical power.
The stronger the magical beast—and the stronger the link between beast and master—the greater the power that would flow into the contractor.
It was a tale known to all: The story of how the dragons, who first bestowed the magic of the Contract, made pacts with humanity, helping those who lived in fear of monsters to build nations.
Thus, a magical beast’s worth is judged not only by its own inherent strength, but also by the amount of magical power it can provide.
Beyond that, other factors are considered, such as high intelligence for building a relationship, and a personality compatible with humans.
The Silkbird is weak and does not possess much magical power.
Though classified as a magical beast, it was docile and avoided combat whenever possible. Its fighting ability was negligible.
By these standards, it was a failure.
But Zeke didn’t see it that way.
While the common definition of a “success” was a magical beast that granted a great deal of power, in the slums, anything could be useful depending on how you used it.
The most obvious career path for someone with a contracted magical beast was to become an adventurer. But that depended entirely on one’s goals.
It was a profession that required combat strength, but a flying beast, even one not strong enough to join a battle directly, could contribute through reconnaissance. A smaller beast would be even better suited for it.
With enough effort and a strong enough link, one could command their beast even from a great distance. That opened the door to messenger work—delivering letters and documents with impressive speed.
If the beast was intelligent enough, even a weak link might suffice to direct it.
At the highest end of employment, one might even find work with a wary noble, who could hire them for surveillance.
Of course, it was hard to imagine a noble hiring someone from the slums.
Still—not impossible.
A noble who contracted such a beast would likely be too proud to take on such jobs. But for the jobless of the slums, any work at all was a blessing.
Whether such jobs actually existed was another matter—but to Jike, a weak beast wasn’t worthless. Not for a child from the slums.
The contracts proceeded one after another, but the results were far from impressive.
Most were small, weak magical beasts, and the official watched on, looking bored.
Even nobles don't always contract strong beasts, so what hope do the poor have?
He was likely thinking.
Officially, the Magical Beast Contract wasn’t influenced by social status. And yet… nobles did tend to summon stronger beasts.
Perhaps it was because many of today’s nobles were descended from those who either had great magical power to begin with or had managed to contract powerful beasts.
“Oh, finally my turn!”
The contracts were performed like an assembly line, and at last, the turn of the boy next to Zeke—Rau—had come.
Having eagerly awaited his moment, Rau strode forward without waiting to be escorted by the soldier. He fearlessly placed his finger on the knife and let a drop of blood fall.
“What I seek is a pact of friendship, to form an eternal bond and live together. Answer my call!”
A brilliant flash of light burst forth—so bright one’s first instinct was to shield their eyes—a light unseen with any of the other children.
The soldiers, whose duty it was to protect everyone from the rare event of a beast going berserk, all pointed their spears as one. Before them stood a single tiger.
It had golden eyes and a sleek physique. Its back was orange, its belly white, and its body was marked with black vertical stripes.
A faint crackling sound emanated from it, the magical energy leaving no doubt as to the tiger’s attribute.
It was a monster commonly found in the Delfa region—commonly known as the Delfa Tiger. Most of them possessed a specific, powerful attribute and were also known as Thunderlight Tigers.
Indeed, it was a lightning-attribute magical beast.
It was, without a doubt, a hit. The beast itself possessed high combat power and would grant its contractor a great deal of magic.
Its personality might be difficult to call compatible with humans, but it was intelligent. A fitting partner, Zeke thought, for the man who would one day become a centurion.
The Thunderlight Tiger stared directly at Rau, and Rau stared right back.
Tension ran through the soldiers.
If it lost control and rampaged, there was no one here strong enough to stop it.
The official, his boredom vanished, now watched Rau with keen attention.
Some of the children’s eyes shone with innocent wonder as they gazed at the Thunderlight Tiger, but they wouldn’t be thinking that way if they understood what it was.
The ones who did have sense were keeping their distance in fear.
Zeke felt nothing in particular, as he already knew how this would end.
The first time, he had been so shocked by the sight of such a powerful beast that he hadn’t looked closely. Seeing it again, he could appreciate that this Thunderlight Tiger was truly majestic and beautiful.
Even among intelligent beasts, there was hierarchy. The Thunderlight Tiger Lau had summoned was no ordinary one. It was a rare, high-ranking individual—powerful and breathtaking.
The moment felt long, though only a few seconds passed.
Then, the Thunderlight Tiger approached Rau and licked his face with a great swipe of its tongue.
Rau, his expression one of pure shock as the rough tongue nearly sent him toppling, was watched by the Thunderlight Tiger with what looked like a satisfied, toothy grin.
At the very least, it had accepted its master, so the fear of a rampage was gone. The soldiers let out a collective sigh of relief.
“Did you see that, Zeke?! I summoned something totally awesome!”
Rau ran over to Zeke, wiping the drool from his face. It didn’t smell, but Zeke still wished he’d keep his distance.
The Thunderlight Tiger followed leisurely from behind, causing the other children to scatter, leaving a wide, empty circle around them.
It was cool to look at from a distance, but terrifying up close.
Zeke couldn’t help but stare, and his eyes met the tiger’s.
A jolt of tension shot through him, but the Thunderlight Tiger simply glanced away, seemingly uninterested.
“You’re up next!”
Elated at having summoned such a fine beast, Rau clapped Zeke on the shoulder and Laughed, oblivious to what was to come.
With the tiger standing there, the soldiers seemed hesitant to approach, so Zeke walked to the magic circle on his own. One of the soldiers let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Not all who become soldiers are exceptional.
In fact, most soldiers assigned to duties like this had neither skill nor influential families.
The one overseeing the children near the magic circle had clearly lost his nerve. He wore a stiff expression now.
He must have thought it a simple, uneventful task, but the appearance of a powerful magical beast right before his eyes had surely sharpened his senses.
He must have been reminded: If a beast went berserk, the ones closest to the magic circle would be the first to suffer.
Zeke was given a magic stone and offered his left hand. Last time it had been his right, so he switched it on a whim.
He let the soldier lightly cut his fingertip, dripped the blood, and began the incantation.
“What I seek is a pact of friendship, to form an eternal bond and live together. Answer my call!”
Any other child would either be dreaming of a powerful beast they had heard stories about, or they would be starting the contract without any real understanding.
But Zeke… if he could be permitted this… he had wanted to meet him one more time. Even if this was all a dream.
Even if it was a dream he would one day wake from, this time he would understand him. This time, they would connect their hearts and live together.
A light, brighter than he remembered, flared from the magic circle.
Once again, tension ran through the soldiers.
For a brief moment, he had thought he might not see it again. But as his eyes, blinded by the light, began to adjust, the form of the magical beast came into clear view.
A smooth, blue, translucent form with a black core visible within. A certain infamous monster—a slime—had been summoned.
It rushed—or rather, hopped—towards him, and he caught it.
At this time of year, it should have been cool to the touch, but it was faintly warm.
Unable to stop them, tears began to flow freely from his eyes.
“How pitiful. That boy will never escape the slums.”
The official muttered the words with a face that held no pity at all.
The man, who had never wanted the job of administering free Magical Beast Contracts to slum children in the first place, had been observing the proceedings with a cold gaze.
Tl-cosmo
PR - Badboy
Read at asmotoon.com
