To save time, I first removed the ring. No. 9425, the Ring of the Spirit of Frost, a numbered item obtained by tricking an old man who turned out to be the master of the Altemion school.
"Here, it's a case."
"Huh? A ring? Why...?" Missha grabbed the ring without thinking much about it, and her expression soon changed to one of alarm.
"It's a ring I've been saving for the right person."
"But... why are you giving it to me?"
That was because things had changed. I replied succinctly, "Swear it to your guardian spirit. On the condition that you receive this, you will remain with me in the future."
The market value of the Frost Spirit Ring was one and a half million stones. However, since there was no stock available for sale, it was difficult to obtain, even for those who wanted to buy it. If the true value of this ring were known, its price would skyrocket.
"Huh?! Bjorrrn! Have you gone mad?!" Missha shouted and condemned me, but my head was as clear as day at this moment.
Did she think I would simply give her this? I decided to use it for our survival for now, but I needed a promise that she would continue to follow and help me in the future. Of course, this wasn't a one-sided contract. "The moment you receive this ring, I swear on a warrior's honor to stand by your side and help you in the future. Therefore, I want you to do the same."
"Are you being serious...?"
To prove it, I looked Missha in the eye and spoke again. "I'm sincere." A win-win in the truest sense of the word. It was a kind of promise of camaraderie.
Upon realizing this, Missha looked at me for a moment with surprised eyes and soon spoke in a voice devoid of any joking. "…It's very sudden, but I realize you're not saying this to joke with me. To be honest, it's the first time I've received an offer like this, so it's not that I'm not happy!"
"So I..."
"But I'm sorry, Bjorn. I never thought of you that way."
"… What do you mean?"
Missha closed her eyes tightly. Then, she looked at me intently and gave her answer. "I... I like thin men."
"Thin men...? What does that mean? I don't understand..."
"Eeek! That means you have no flesh as a man!"
For a moment, my mind went blank. Was this what it felt like to be rejected before you were even confessing your feelings? One thing was certain. "…You've misunderstood."
"Yeah, let's put it that way. We have to stick together, but this will only make things awk-"
What was this kid talking about? It was my fault for not speaking clearly so I wouldn't seem like a snob. I forgot that we barbarians had our own way of doing things. "What I meant to say is that I want you to make a promise of camaraderie in exchange for this ring."
"Comrade's promise...?"
«Of course, you can terminate the contract at any time if you find another of these rings or give me a profit of 15 million stones. Now do you understand?»
«You think?! What the hell is this ring that costs 15 million stones in the first place?»
«15 million is really cheap for this ring».
«No, I mean, what the hell is this thing...?»
I interrupted her. «This ring can make your long-cherished wish come true».
«... What? Desire?»
«For example, your brother will no longer be able to call you half stupid».
Had he touched something he shouldn't have? Missha stiffened, but after thinking about it for a moment, she smiled awkwardly. «Wow, do you think I'm going to swallow it? No matter how embarrassed you are, you shouldn't lie about...»
«No es mentires».
The conversation stopped for a moment and there was silence. Missha, who had been smiling awkwardly until now, was no longer smiling. Instead, he looked at me with cold eyes. «This is not something to joke about». His voice was cold and hard, unlike usual. «I clearly gave you the opportunity to leave him. But why do you keep lying? Do I seem stupid to you just because I keep laughing at your words?». Missha bit her lips angrily. «...I shouldn't have told you about that».
It was an unexpected reaction, but in fact, it was natural. A wound that had been scalded and scorched all its life was painful at the slightest touch.
«I haven't taken this out to open your wounds. Really...»
«I have never heard of such a thing. How do you know something that not even my clan knows?»
Instead of responding, I kept my mouth shut. It wasn't something to explain in long words, nor did I want to. We couldn't stay like this forever. I decided to finish quickly. «Missha, let me ask you something».
«Forward.»
«If everything I've said so far is true, would you accept my offer?».
«You keep joking!»
The side in seco y the grité: "¡Contestame!".
You just have to answer the question. Yes or no.
As he yelled at her to respond, Missha shuddered and bit her lips again. «...If everything you have said is true, it will not be enough for me to serve you as a benefactor until the day my life ends. But...»
«No buts. Well that's it». I took another step and grabbed her wrist. «Missha Karlstein, it may be hard to believe, but I swear on the honor of a warrior that everything I have said so far is true».
"...Q- What?» Missha looked bewildered. Seeing this, I wondered if it would have been easier if I had used a warrior's oath sooner. Well, now it didn't matter.
«So when you wake up, keep your word too». I pulled Missha towards me and put the ring on her finger.
¡Crack!
I broke the blue crystal jewel in the ring with just the power of my hand.
[The Frost Spirit Ring has been destroyed. The seal of the glacial monster Skadia has been opened].
Like ripples on the surface of a lake, a wave of cold air spread across the ground.
¡Woosh!
A unique effect occurred when the no. 9,425 Frost Spirit ring was destroyed. It was practically a pointless option because it didn't deal any damage, but I was able to make a discovery after several attempts.
[Special conditions have been met].
If the bearer was a beast person, a separate event occurred at the time of destruction.
[The Skadia Ice Beast has offered Missha Karlstein a contract.]
The beast person would forcibly awaken his innate special ability.
***
[The contract has been successfully finalized.]
***
A gust of cold wind enveloped Missha like the eye of a typhoon. When he slowly calmed down, Missha opened her eyes. In his red eyes, there was a complex, but somewhat empty look.
«It's so easy... What I've spent all this time on...». Missha looked at me and spoke. Then, with a treacherous look, he asked: «Bjorn, what the hell is this ring? If something like that existed, why didn't my father tell me about it?».
It was not known if the beast people knew of the existence of this ring, but to give her the answer she wanted, «Maybe he didn't know either».
«... He didn't know?»
«Yeah. It seems that a magician found out recently after researching it for a long time. It's probably not because he didn't consider you his daughter and hid it from you».
This explanation would be better for your mental health. But even with my answer, Missha seemed to be full of questions. «Wait, so how the hell did you know? Where did you get this ring from?».
It wasn't difficult to explain, because I had prefabricated stories. But before that, there was one thing that had to be done. «It would be best to talk after you put on some clothes first.»
«... Clothing?» Missha tilted her head and then turned it down, following my gaze. When you confirmed your current status... «Hey, huh? Hey? W-Why am I naked?!», she shouted as she creaked like a robot.
«I folded them next to you, so let's talk after you put them on».
«Okay...» When I turned around, Missha picked up her clothes and got dressed. «You can turn around now».
«That was quick».
«So should I take my time?»
I turned around and saw Missha in casual clothes, a thin fabric worn within the team. As it fit snugly, the curved lines of her body became more clearly defined.
«Don't you have any equipment?».
«Before that, answer this! Why was she ah, ah, naked?!»
«That's because I undressed you».
«Did I undress you?! Tt-you?!»
«I had no choice. I heard that all the equipment in your body would disappear during this ritual.»
Keep in mind that this was a lie. I didn't listen to it, but experienced it myself. Damn, I worked hard to grow that character, but since the whole team reset, I couldn't do anything.
«... It's-wait! Is that why you asked me that question at the beginning?»
«Question?»
«Whether he was married or not.»
Ah, that. I nodded sincerely. «If you had a spouse, this would have made you uncomfortable». I was a proud Korean Confucian. I could never undress a married woman with my bare hands.
But Missha yelled at me as if that were absurd: «Wouldn't anyone who can think that far away think of telling me beforehand?!».
«I had no intention of hiding it. But you didn't believe me at all».
«Y-yes, but...» When I answered all her questions with reasoned explanations, Missha had nothing more to say.
Now he could speak louder. «Actually, since I had to undress you in a hurry, you can imagine my plight. Tsk. Why do you have to wear so many clothes?»
«...I'm sorry.»
«Before you apologize, isn't there something you should do?». I went around the bush and looked directly at her. The rule is that when the situation arises, you have to be as condescending as possible.
«...Thank you.»
«That's all?»
Missha pondered for a moment and spoke again. «... Thank you very much?»
«Don't try to skip it. Isn't there something that needs to be treated properly?»
«Do I really have to say it?» Missha avoided my gaze with a shy and embarrassed face, but it wasn't like me to let her get away with it. These kinds of things should not be left unsaid.
«Of course». When I responded stubbornly, his gaze changed, as if to say that the playful atmosphere ended here.
As if he had no intention of skipping this from the beginning, he straightened his posture and looked at me. «Bjorn, you know... I... in the past... I tried to commit suicide».
And now what? I had a feeling that would be the case, but for now I just listened to his serious story.
«It was my father who found me then and saved me».
«You should be grateful to your father».
«I wish I could, but... It's not such a pretty story. When I woke up, do you know what was the first thing he said to me? That, if he really wanted to die, he should die in the labyrinth. That I should stop embarrassing our family».
Ah, uh, um... His family turned out to be more shit than I thought. As she seriously contemplated whether she should correct the mistake she had made earlier, Missha calmly continued.
«That's why I entered the labyrinth. Of course, I didn't come here to die like my father said. I just wanted to run away from home. Even though I didn't have a Spiritual Beast, I was hopeful that if I became a great explorer and was recognized, my father would see me differently». In that difficult, restrained voice, he could hear all the emotions he had felt growing up. «Of course, I don't know if my father will accept me with this. But somehow... now I don't dislike it». Then Missha leaned towards me. «...Thank you, Bjorn. I will not forget this grace until the end of my life, and I will engrave it in my heart until I return it to you».
Although it might one day fade over time, there seemed to be no point in doubting Missha's sincerity now. In that sense, enough new wave film. «Do you swear by your guardian spirit?» After hearing his words, I asked a short question.
Missha smiled and nodded. «I swear by my guardian spirit».
Vale, bonito y limpio.
***
Summoning, Strengthening, Special Ability: A beast person who made a pact with a Spirit Beast usually acquired one of these three abilities. Missha's was strengthening.
[The power of the ice beast Skadia permanently resides in Missha Karlstein's body].
Aside from the jump in physical ability, the Freeze attribute was always granted, just like my stomach was cold from this punch.
«Ah! I punched you because you told me, but I didn't know that was going to happen! E- Are you okay?»
My skin was red as if it had frozen. Seeing this, I smiled.
It's a shame it's not a summon or a special ability, but... Still, this is something.
After being hit, he was safer. The long-awaited attribute-based attack method had been created. With this, it was now possible to hit some spirit-type monsters.
«Hey? Wake up, Bjorrrn! Why are you laughing like an idiot?!»
«It's nothing. Let's go. We've been in the same place for too long.»
After tidying up the surroundings, I took Missha out of there. We tried to fight a rank 9 Specter spirit type monster that we encountered along the way.
[Spectre has released Corpse Fire].
Corpse Fire was an active ability that mixed dark and fire attributes. Its power was less than that of a ninth rank spell, and to me, with the dark stamina of a vampire, it only felt hot. As such, most spirit-type monsters had low combat power compared to their rank. At first, it was only difficult to confront them because there was no way to attack them.
[You have killed a Specter. EXP +1]
With my mace splattered with holy water and Missha's two frosty fists, we defeated a group of about fifteen Wraiths.
«Hmm, it feels weird every time I hit something».
The reason he used his fists instead of a spear was simple.
I guess the first stage of awakening doesn't apply to weapons.
Just as there were stages in a barbarian's Soul Footprint, a beast person's Spiritual Beast contract also gradually grew. Still, it was fortunate that Missha was originally a fighting class. He was pretty sure that he used to fight only with his fists until he felt the limitations and switched to a dagger, which seemed the easiest to adapt.
[You have killed a Witch's Lamp. EXP +1]
[Has matado has a Dairouter. EXP +2]
[You have killed a Low Rank Mutant Spirit. EXP +2]
Anyway, after that, we continued wandering through the forest. We slaughtered all the monsters we saw as long as it wasn't pressing. Furthermore, every time there was an opportunity, we rested as much as possible and accumulated energy.
[You have killed a Woodcutter. EXP +1]
[You have killed a Homunculus. EXP+2]
[You have killed an Owl Bear. EXP+2]
About 11 hours passed. We still hadn't encountered any rank 7 monsters, but the lower rank ones weren't difficult to defeat. There hadn't been any dangerous situations either. Contrary to our fears, there was still no sign that that vixen Elisa was coming after us.
Had something happened to them too?
It could be that way, or it could not. Instead of harboring easy hopes, I continued preparing for the opposite while doing everything I could in the moment.
Ha… there was still no essence.
That left a bitter taste in my mouth. With the holy water and the ice beast Skadia, we were able to hunt spirit-type monsters without any problems, but even so, not much had changed.
Around 30%.
That was what I thought our chances were of getting back to the city safe and sound.
[12 hours have passed since you entered the Witch's Woods. Field Effect - The Witch's Woods has strengthened. The Witch's Eye status ailment has been added.]
The real survival has begun now.