BSS 08

chapter 08

“Just give me one beaker… that’s all I need. I’ll trade you my yellow frilled ribbon. How’s that? You liked it, didn’t you?”

“Ah, really? Wasn’t that your birthday present?”

“My brothers gave it to me—who cares. They gave me yellow even though they know I hate yellow. Doesn’t that mean they wanted me to use it for something else?”

“Hmmm… but with one beaker, I can run at least three experiments. What are you going to do with that much?”

A single beaker of concentrated mana extract was enough money for one person to live off for months.

“I have a use for it. And in exchange, I’ll add a pinch of fairy dust and my pink apron with the ribbon. I’ve only worn it twice. How about that?”

“Fairy dust, huh… I do have some I never use. Hm.”

When Mia leaned her chin on her hand with a serious face, clearly thinking hard, I silently ground my teeth.

She pretends to be easy to deal with, but she’s a master negotiator.

“Okay! Okay. Then how about one more box of candy? A fresh one! It’s still sealed! If you still won’t trade, I’ll just ask Iruje. I bet Iruje will help me.”

“Ah! Not Iruje! Don’t hang out with Iruje!”

“Then will you trade?”

“…Fine. But the ribbon, the apron, and a box of candy… you’ll really give them to me?”

“Of course. Right now.”

I quickly looked around like we were making an illegal deal and motioned for her to hurry.

Mia made me promise several times that I’d really give her everything. Only after firmly hooking our pinkies did she hand over the materials.

Without realizing it, a satisfied grin crept onto my face. I admit—it was a little villainous.

“Hehehe.”

Tonight, history would be made.

If I didn’t do it now, I’d be ignoring a perfectly rich opportunity. All the rare materials I needed were within arm’s reach—and friends were the easiest source to steal them from.

Time to move on to the next target.

My plan was simple:

I’m going to become a Spirit Contractor and start living my lazy, comfortable life ASAP!

***

Late at night, after everyone had fallen asleep, I quietly climbed off my bed.

My room—small, furnished with almost nothing—was the perfect workspace.

After roll call, we weren’t allowed to leave the dorm, so this was my one and only place to commit the crime.

I lit a candle to brighten the room, rolled up the rug in the middle, and propped it against the wall. When I finished, I could hide everything again by covering the floor.

Because tonight, I was carving a spirit contract circle into the dormitory floor.

“My preparations are perfect.”

I was planning to contract a spirit all by myself.

If that’s not the brilliance of a genius, what is?

Ignoring the teacher’s guidance—no, going beyond it and discovering my own way.

I’m carving out my own destiny!

If Teacher Iael knew what I was doing, she would definitely be furious—but she was the one who made me impatient in the first place.

And honestly, she wouldn’t be able to scold me in two particular cases:

One: If I attempted the ritual secretly, failed, and no one ever learned about it.

Two: If I actually succeeded in summoning and contracting with a real spirit.
Then instead of yelling, she’d have no choice but to praise my genius.

I decided to use a very old-fashioned method to summon a spirit.

Because every book I could get my hands on only described this outdated, ancient method. Practically a relic from centuries ago.

Teacher Iael must have predicted my impulsive personality. Just like adults hide dangerous objects from children, she kept all the modern summoning scrolls far out of my reach.

She must’ve known I’d try something like this if left unsupervised.

“She knows too much about me. And now, I’m really doing it.”

Whether old or new, I didn’t care.

All I wanted was proof that I could contract a spirit on my own.

That I was more than capable.

“Okay!” I nodded firmly and pulled out the magical carving knife I’d borrowed earlier that day from under my pillow.

It was enchanted so that even the hardest surface would carve like tofu. Essential for engraving a contract circle into stone.

I borrowed it from a classmate who specialized in magic circle research. She was absent today, so I couldn’t tell her yet, but I’d do it later. I planned to return it eventually.

I did leave a note though, very responsibly:

“Borrowing this.”

Now that I think about it, I don’t think I wrote my name.
…Well, too late now.

Next was the summoning diagram.

I unfolded the parchment where I’d traced the old spirit summoning circle.

My drawing skills were terrible, but even a preschooler could trace something by placing oiled paper on top.

I lit the candle on the ceiling-mounted lamp and hung the traced paper beneath it.

The important part was adjusting the shadow so the diagram projected perfectly onto the floor.

If the circle was too small, the mana wouldn’t flow and the spell wouldn’t activate. Bigger was better.

Old method or not—its effects were simple and certain.

“Perfect. I really am a genius.”

A genius of trickery, yes.

This was easy.

Using chalk, I carefully traced the circle projected onto the stone floor.

If even one tiny dot was off, the spell wouldn’t activate, so I had to be meticulous.

Even breathing too hard made the candle flicker and the shadow shift, so I held my breath.

It was extremely delicate work. I showed rare dedication.

For about five minutes.

“Ugh, I can’t do this!”

That was when I threw the chalk at the wall.
But then I picked it back up, crouched on the floor again, and finished tracing the circle anyway…

Magic circles were a nightmare of insane patterns—circles inside letters inside circles again, and swirling lines and symbols forming chaotic, meticulous formulas.

“This is exactly why I don’t want to be a mage. Who could do this every day for life?”

My temper was awful, and my patience was worse.

This kind of spirit-stupid work didn’t suit me. I wanted to quit about fifty times, but eventually I finished the traced outline.

Just the outline.

Now I had to carve the lines into stone.

I already wanted to die, but I’d come too far to give up—and my pride wouldn’t allow it.

More than anything, I wanted to surpass my teacher as soon as possible and escape her lessons.

My passion for freedom surprises even me sometimes.

***

I didn’t know how long I’d been crouched on the floor carving. My legs were numb, and sweat dripped down my forehead.

Measuring every angle and carving each letter perfectly—I felt like a sculptor.

Maybe I was born to carve stone, not summon spirits. Not that I was a real spirit contractor yet.

It was obvious why this summoning method died out—too much physical labor.

Afraid of slipping outside the lines, I eventually just lay flat on my stomach, carving carefully.

Definitely not because I was exhausted.

Eventually, my stomach growled.
So I must’ve been working for hours.

“Done!”

I whispered a tiny celebratory cheer to myself and retrieved the concentrated mana extract I got from Mia.

Pouring it carefully into the carved grooves made my mouth twitch with excitement.

Some got on my finger—so I wondered if I should wipe it on my clothes… or drink it to raise my mana… but I didn’t want to die young, so I let my skin take it.

The mana extract was a disgusting green color—not something for eating.

On the stone floor, the dark green contract circle came to life. I checked again to make sure there were no mistakes, then sprinkled fairy dust generously over it.

Golden fairy dust glittered beautifully as it spread across the room.

The mana-soaked grooves reacted instantly with the fairy dust, bursting into bright light.

It was as bright as dozens of candles.

That meant I’d drawn the circle correctly—exactly as the books described.

If the summoning succeeded, a spirit would appear.
If it failed, nothing would happen.

If nothing happened, it would be humiliating, so I decided nobody would ever know. I’d take the failure to the grave.

I took a deep breath and read the long incantation I’d written down earlier.

It was an ancient language.

I didn’t understand half of it—I just pronounced the words as written. Some recognizable words appeared thanks to my studies with Teacher Iael, so it wasn’t totally wasted learning.

My quiet chant echoed through the room: