The Branded Female Fencer

"Think a little and you'll see. Humans have a shorter life span than other species. That's why I'm able to live hard and die. Life is just long enough to be a little remorseful. Where humans lived for hundreds of years, there would be nothing good about it.

Besides, our spirits can be part of a great power when they return to nature by becoming long-lived, but humans are just chunks of flesh when they die. Just die with a little nutrient on the ground, the same as compost. No, it takes a lot of time for the bones to return to the soil, so that's inefficient. Humans are the source of the plague unless they're cremated, and they're worse off than normal creatures. "

"Pignom, you wouldn't have to say that"

Diore embarrassed me gently, but they're not going to stop pignomes.

"It's also rare for creatures to have nothing more connected to nature than humans. I guess that's why I don't feel anything about hurting nature and driving it away. It cuts through the forest, buries the river, chops up the mountains and even changes the wind flow. No creature can do that, even if it's much more powerful than a human being. Don't be afraid. You guys are happy.

But at the same time man is unhappy. You people are the ones who die flinging shit without any ideas or attributes to give in. What do you think? Where I've had such a poor life forever, you have something good to say?

"Pignom!"

Diore embarrassed the Spirit with a strong tone. Did you just think it was too much, or are you tired of talking? The pignom wore his hat deep into his eyes and remained silent.

Diore sighed, apologizing to Aerial and Wintier.

"I'm sorry. Roots are good, but mouths are bad. And I don't like humans. I think I made you feel bad, forgive me."

"No, sometimes I think the same thing since I left the prairie. I'm not uncomfortable with normal people, either. I feel the same way that I shouldn't live with it forever. I just want to help Alphilis. When it's over, I'm going to give back my strength and go back to being human."

In the words of Aerial, Pignom looked alternately at Diore and Wintier's face. Diore turned away looking ill-decided as the pignome gave him a harsh look. The same is true of Wintier.

"You guys haven't explained the terms of the Spirit Knight properly?

"Ugh, I'm sorry. I never thought I'd be so hard-willed."

"It's the same. Because Aerial has never been so obsessed with anything so far, and I think it's helping Alphilis enough. Human beings have the right materials. Even though I may have no place to use it if I ask for more strength."

"Oh, you mean that? Then we have to explain it properly."

The pignom turned to Aerial dissatisfied. I could see a color in that look that was neither disgusting nor pitiful, but apparently it conveyed that it was an action in view of the Aerial thing.

"You know the terms of becoming a Spirit Knight?

"It would be to be approved and covenanted by the superior Spirit, wouldn't it?

"Roughly, yes, but not exactly. You just have to let the Spirit approve, so you can actually force it.

He once entered into an effective relationship with the Spirit, calling him who exercises his power a spiritual use, and scorned him who forcibly uses the Spirit in some way as an elite slave. That's another story, but it means there are other ways to do it, if only with the help of the Spirit.

Then what is a Spirit Knight? Do you understand that?

"... that there is something like a pledge to be fulfilled?

Pignomes nodded at Aerial's remarks.

"That's right. Spirit users can help, but spirits don't shred themselves to help. Serving therefore cannot exercise great power, and if one tries to lend a power that is compatible with the Spirit and too great, problems sometimes remain beyond the operator's own tolerance. Actually, it's very user-friendly.

So a way was developed to force the Spirit into slavery. But naturally, the Spirit shreds himself to death. And the Spirit, separated from nature, loses his power, so forcing him to subordinate will eventually lead him to the end of his life. And the spirits who guarded humans eventually stopped speaking to humans. The humans who noticed this scorned and forbade the elite servants. This is the mainstream magician today.

The Spirit Knight, by contrast, is one form of covenant. exercise stronger power by multiplying each other's constraints and pledges. The forms of constraint vary, but the first thing that is crucial to man is that he does not age, and that the flesh, instead of being able to keep its climax, cannot terminate the contract without self-determination. This is the same even with mutual agreement between the Spirit and man. There are other things like not being able to leave a certain distance, or having to see each other every other for a certain amount of time.

And a pledge... "

The pignom looked at Diore in the slightest, but he doesn't even intend to block the story of the pignom.

Continued