Jiro Tanaka, age 28, married.
Wife: Suella Henderberg.
Memoria Tris.
Occupation: Dungeon Tester (Full-time employee).
Magic Aptitude: 9 (Quasi Demon Lord Class).
Position: Warrior.
“Spirit of Time and Space, huh? That’s a word that really sparks a child’s imagination.”
“Is that so?”
Time had passed since the explanation of the spirit ritual, and I unconsciously repeated the name of the spirit Mait-san had told me, as if trying to recall it.
“Children react to words like ‘strongest’ or ‘amazing,’ don’t they? Especially boys.”
“That might be true. Little children probably dream of making a contract with a special spirit at least once. I have memories of that too.”
“Right?”
“Yes.”
Suella spoke as if recalling someone she knew from the past. I myself knew one or two childhood friends whose ultimate dream was to be a hero. It was expected that the spirit I was scheduled to contract with would have such high specs.
If I thought about it in the past, I would have felt like sighing and suffered from a headache, thinking I might have to fight something that could be described as a conglomeration of convenient plot devices…
“Jiro-san, you seem happy.”
“Is it because of those instructors? I no longer feel aversion to fighting itself; instead, I’m starting to feel the excitement of challenging the strong.”
Now, I didn’t feel that way. On the contrary, just thinking about battles gave me even a slight sense of exhilaration. I never thought I was such a battle junkie, but it seems I had the aptitude for it. I want to fight, even if I know I’ll lose. Not for the sake of becoming stronger or for contracting with a spirit. The instructors would probably say in unison if they saw me like this that my spirit had been tempered to the point where I could challenge things without feeling pressured. And then, they would gladly remove one of the restraints on the power I’ve been holding back.
“A normal Dark Elf would break out in a cold sweat just hearing Valse’s name, but Jiro-kun seems different.”
“Yes, some of them even straighten up just by hearing ‘Special Class’.”
Mait and Smilasta, sitting opposite me, nodded in admiration.
“Let’s just say it’s the result of education.”
I decided to gloss over the fact that it was likely due to the experiences I’d had, which felt like stepping into the third circle of hell.
“More importantly, I wanted to ask you about Valse.”
“Well, I’d like to say that, but I myself don’t know much about Valse. Or rather, it’s safe to say that very few in our clan know of its strength.”
I decided to try changing the subject, but unfortunately, that attempt ended in a miss. For me, who wanted to gather even a little information, Mait’s answer was quite disappointing. I felt like I had been hearing the word “regrettable” repeatedly, but I couldn’t blame Mait, who looked apologetic.
“A few people challenge it every year, but all of them are turned away without fully grasping its nature. All we know is that attacks are ineffective, defenses are useless, and it’s invisible. That’s why it’s considered one of the strongest spirits. Perhaps my father, seeing Jiro-kun’s magic aptitude and growth, is suggesting it with that in mind.”
He says “perhaps,” but Mait likely has a sense of certainty about it. He believes his father would definitely recommend me to contract with that spirit. Normally, it would be customary to seek out that spirit oneself, but there are occasionally cases where intermediaries are involved. In such cases, the contracted spirit is usually the one recommended by the intermediary.
“Or, it might mean ‘If you’re going to marry Suella, at least try to do something like that’,” Suella added.
“If it’s Father, that’s possible,” Smilasta said.
“I’m starting to think that’s the more likely reason,” Suella said.
Mait implicitly conveyed that it might be to add prestige, and I could only agree. I had come to think of him as someone who would do something like that in this short period. I had forgotten, given our initially friendly encounter, but it wouldn’t be strange for him to impose such a trial.
“In that case, I will respond to that with all my might.”
“We’re looking forward to it too.”
“Yes.”
I believe the difference between pressure and expectation is simply the difference between feeling burdened or not. This time, it’s the latter. I honestly want to meet the expectations of Suella’s parents. Therefore, I think I’ll spend the time until the contracting ritual by training diligently or challenging dungeons. Thinking so, I suddenly felt thirsty and reached for my coffee cup, only to find it empty. I couldn’t get a refill, as there was none prepared. I’d have to make it from scratch again.
“I’ll go,” Suella said.
“Right, please do.”
“Suella, I’ll help you too.”
“Thank you, Mother.”
I was about to head to the kitchen, but Suella got up ahead of me and headed towards the kitchen with the cup. However, realizing that four cups would be a lot for one person, Smilasta also stood up and headed to the kitchen. The sight of two similar-looking faces working in the kitchen was exactly like a mother and daughter. Seeing them, a question I hadn’t asked before suddenly came to mind.
“Um, Mait-san.”
“Yes?”
“My and Suella’s child, will they be a half-breed too?”
When a Japanese person has a child with a foreigner, that child inherits blood from Japan and the country of the spouse. While the proportions may differ, half-breeds exhibit the characteristics of both countries. If that’s the case, wouldn’t the child of a human like me and a Dark Elf like Suella be the same? However, things had been so chaotic that I hadn’t had the chance to ask, and I had put the matter aside. Now seemed like a good time to ask.
“Ah, Jiro-kun, so you didn’t know about the children of different races?”
“Shamefully, I was judging based on the common sense of this world.”
Even the knowledge I had here was merely a prediction based on the settings of a fictional world; it wasn’t a realistic scenario by any means. My thoughts, stemming from that knowledge, were not even in the realm of prediction, but merely a personal assumption. Mait smiled and let my ignorance pass with a sympathetic “it’s understandable.”
“In Isal, children are basically born with the race of the mother.”
“The mother’s? Do half-elves or anything like that not exist?”
“What you’re referring to as half-elves would be beings that possess traits of both humans and Dark Elves, but in conclusion, such beings do not exist. With very few exceptions, descendants will be of the same race as the mother. There are theories that this is decided by God, but the full truth is unknown. There are rare cases where the father’s race is inherited, but the probability is about one in a thousand.”
I don’t understand the reasoning, and when it comes to genetics, it’s beyond my expertise, so I could just throw my hands up in surrender. I guess I’ll just think of it as the mystery of life. So, our children will also basically become Suella’s or Memoria’s race.
“There are no strange complications or anything like that, right?”
“No, as long as your body and Suella’s body are healthy, there’s no problem. In this world, marriage between different races is not uncommon. We have plenty of experience and measures in place for such things.”
“I see.”
With my doubts resolved, I now had even more reasons to achieve the spirit contract. Leaving only my wife and child behind to die of old age would be too lonely. As I solidified my resolve, the bedroom door opened.
“Good morning.”
“Good morning, Memoria, though it’s afternoon.”
“Heh, good morning, Memoria.”
As it was approaching noon, I smiled wryly at Memoria, who had just woken up, and pointed towards the clock which indicated it was late morning. Suella also greeted her from the kitchen.
“What about Milul-san and the others?”
“They’re still sleeping. Father and Mother are naturally nocturnal, so they stayed up a bit late yesterday, and they should wake up soon.”
“I see.”
With that, Suella smoothly sat down next to me, on the opposite side from where she had been sitting.
“So, what were you talking about?”
“Ah, it was about the spirit I’m going to contract with. I thought I’d gather some information if possible, but unfortunately, the one who can provide it seems to be quite special.”
We also talked about children, but I felt it would be odd to bring that up with Memoria, who wasn’t pregnant yet, so I switched to the previous topic. She nodded in understanding, and I told her about Spirit of Time and Space, Valse.
“I’ve heard the name before, but as for details…”
“I guess so.”
“Haha, it’s a spirit that hardly ever comes up in conversations even within my clan. It’s strong, but tends to be obscure.”
It seemed like Memoria, being of a different race, hadn’t heard much about it. While I understood, Suella was now preparing lunch since Memoria had woken up, so it would take some time before she returned.
“You know, I heard something a long time ago about a ritual that vampires perform when they marry someone of a different race. Is that true? Ah, you don’t have to talk about it if it’s a secret art.”
It wasn’t so much about providing a topic of conversation as it was about piquing the curiosity of Mait, the researcher. He brought up the topic to Memoria, as if confirming the truth of something he’d heard in the past.
“Are you talking about the ‘sharing of blood’?”
“I don’t know if that’s it, but I heard it’s a sacred ritual where you share your lifespan and spend time together until death parts you.”
“‘Was’ meaning it’s not done anymore?”
“It remains as a formality, but it’s rarely seen nowadays. Marriages between different races have also become less common, and the ritual itself is difficult. Moreover, preparing the necessary tools for the full ceremony is costly.”
“I see, so it’s not something that can be easily done.”
This was clearly about the expenses involved, unlike the spirit ritual. It made sense that it wasn’t performed often, but I was also curious about its effects.
“By the way, Memoria, what happens if you perform that ritual?”
“It’s quite simple.”
I asked her directly.
“You can become a vampire.”
Jiro Tanaka, age 28, married.
Wife: Suella Henderberg.
Memoria Tris.
Occupation: Dungeon Tester (Full-time employee).
Magic Aptitude: 9 (Quasi Demon Lord Class).
Position: Warrior.
Today’s Word: Preparations are steadily progressing.
This concludes today’s chapter.
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