The Scientific Alchemist

What would a being known as a spirit like? What would Elias even offer for it to accept the deal of becoming his contracted.

Apparently, nothing.

Before he could start naming terms or even the benefits that he was willing to offer, now that he thought about it, he truly had nothing to offer.

The fox stood, limped towards him and pressed her forehead on the back of his hand.

"...What are you—"

Before he had the chance to say anything more, the crystal on it started glowing, causing him to feel a quick sting and the fox finally stepped back.

"Ouch!"

Elias flinched, instinctively pulling back, but the sensation wasgone as quickly as it came.

He stared at his hand and noticed that, at the exact spot where the crystal had touched, a faint, almost imperceptible mark had appeared.

This....was the mark of contract, which meant they had become bonded without him offering anything.

He looked at the fox and noticed something else, even though it was only looking at him, he could somehow understand exactly what it wanted.

Slowly lifting his hand, Elias rested it on the creature’s head and watched it close its eyes in satisfaction.

"Why the hell did you choose me?" He couldn’t help but let out as he pet the fox, "you do know I was about to sell you, right?"

It opened its eyes, looked at him for a second before closing them again and enjoying the pets.

It almost seemed as if it didn’t care....or rather, it didn’t truly believe that Elias would sell it.

....

After a few moments of patting the creature’s head, a voice was suddenly heard in his head.

"Name."

No, it wasn’t truly a voice was it?

It was more accurate to say that he just understood what the fox wanted.

"You want me to name you?" He asked and the creature immediately affirmed.

Julian might have been a genius, but his naming sense was terrible.

And while looking at the fox, all he came up with was... nothing.

After all, even he was self-aware enough to know that you couldn’t just name your contracted spirit fox Bob.

Especially given that it was a she

He frowned slightly, fingers still idly running through its soft fur as he continued thinking, trying to at least come up with something half decent.

"Lira," the name just escaped Elias’ mouth, coming from a memory that belonged to the original one.

Someone he had adored in his childhood.

"You like it?"

The fox, Lira, shifted slightly, pressing her head more firmly into his palm.

That was answer enough.

A small, almost imperceptible smile formed on his lips.

"Good."

He withdrew his hand slowly, but Lira didn’t move far, choosing instead to remain close and within reach.

Elias then turned toward the puke at the corner of his room and lab, before letting out a sigh and muttering, "let’s get this place cleaned up."

The fox was about to follow, but he immediately called out to it, "Lira."

Her ears twitched at his call.

"Stay there. Don’t move unnecessarily. Your condition isn’t stable yet."

She looked at him, a bit disappointed but she chose to listen and stay put.

***

It took a while, especially because of his frail body, but Elias eventually had the room cleaned up.

And with a clean lab, he could finally get back to work.

He reached for the herbs he had previously identified, separating them more carefully now.

Elias clicked his tongue softly as he looked at the herbs.

"Last time was too aggressive."

His body had reacted violently, and although that had been effective, but inefficient. If he pushed too hard again in his current state, he might not recover from it.

So this time, he reduced the quantity even further.

"Lower dosage means slower reaction and less strain to my body."

He then got to mixing the herbs, this time in lower amounts, and crushed them until they became paste-like.

He then added just enough water to thin it into a drinkable solution, swirling it gently.

"Better."

With that, he lifted it to his lips again, and without hesitation, he chugged it all down.

Elias’ stomach twisted but didn’t revolt immediately.

Elias leaned against the table, gripping it tightly as he focused on the changes, noting that they were not as intense as previously, which was a good sign.

He let out a cough and covered his mouth instinctively but this time, what came out wasn’t that thick, foul fluid.

Just a small amount of darkened salivawhich caused him to grin.

"I guess I’m not dying after all," Lira, by the side, looked at her contractor and immediately noticed the difference in his energy.

He now seemed a lot healthier than when they first met, though there was no change in his body size just yet.

"First thing’s first," Elias muttered as he placed down the jug when he had made the concoction, "this body needs a whole lot of nutrients if I want to stop looking this disgusting."

Which meant he had to go out and stock up on food, since the previous owner of this body had given up on that, the closer he got to his death.

He turned toward Lira.

"Stay here," he said, already reaching for another robe, a clean one this time, "I won’t be long."

Lira immediately shook her head, making her refusal known.

"You want to come?" Elias looked at her as he understood her intention thanks to their contract.

She nodded in response, letting out a small sound.

Elias stared at her for a second... then exhaled.

"Fine."

He stepped closer and, without much ceremony, carefully picked her up.

She didn’t resist.

Instead, she shifted slightly in his arms, settling into a more comfortable position.

"Don’t move too much," he muttered, adjusting his grip and positioning her in a way he wouldn’t hurt her, "I’m not exactly in peak condition either."

With that, he stepped out of the hut.