The clinking of cutlery echoed through the silent hall. The usual lively aura that the dining hall gave was nowhere to be found. A loud clank was heard as William threw down his fork on the plate.
"Licht," he begins. "This matter can no longer be ignored. We need an explanation." William, Lyra, Roslyn, and Leonhard all look to Licht, their eyes silently demanding an explanation. Licht looked up at them with eyes that gave away no emotion, and they each prepared themselves for the worst.
What if he really is a monster; Roslyn, and Leonhard both thought.
Maybe he purposefully tampered with the ceremony; Lyra pondered.
Maybe my son is just a late bloomer, William mused.
Licht opened his mouth and stated in a confident voice, "I don't know what you are talking about. I think I may have been possessed." The shock was clear on each and every one of their faces. Spirits were definitely rare, but would a spirit go that far to save them?
William kept and evaluated the thought and soon accepted it. So to say, it would be impossible to say that a 10-year-old child defeated a 5-meter-tall monster.
"I guess that is a reasonable answer. Since you were newly awakened, the spirit must have felt that you would have the least resistance against it amongst all of us." Licht gave a noise of approval; he didn't need to worry about the details. They can do all that themselves.
Lunch was over and Licht had been dismissed. His mother seemed a bit weary letting him go on his own, but she knew he would find a way to eventually escape their sight.
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Day after day, William had been teaching Licht the basics of swordsmanship. It had been just a little, but this had greatly decreased Licht's spare time to hunt and it irritated him. Licht had tried not to overwhelm his father and siblings, but he still didn't know what was called normal.
"Dammit! I can't believe I've already emptied out the cave!" Licht yelled out impatiently. He had found a cave that was rich in mana, which produced mana crystals but it seems that he was too busy with [Alchemy] to realize that he didn't have any more materials. A few weeks passed and Licht still hadn't found a good enough cave to replace the previous one. And today, he had decided to venture even deeper into the forest.
The forest became even denser, the deeper you go and so did the mana. It had reached noon, and Licht still hasn't found a decent cave or material source. He kept walking and tripped over a weird-looking log. He rolled down the hill he was on, crashing into bushes, and landed on a cold surface.
Licht clicked his tongue in annoyance as he dusted himself down. Healing himself briefly, Licht looked around and a small sound of joy escaped his lips. He walked up to some magic crystals and before he could touch it, a loud and intimidating voice boomed from deep within the cave.
"Puny human! You dare to come within my territory. Do you wish f-for death?" Using [Detection Magic], Licht had found that the voice belonged to a dragon. But hearing the slight stutter in its words, he became skeptical of the power the dragon in front of him possessed.
"Hmm. I guess I level up easily with a dragon. Maybe I can try my luck. It is maxed out after all." Licht called out loudly and the dragon froze up in fear.
It had heard someone come into its lair, but as it went for the kill, a wave of fear washed over it. It had quickly composed itself and tried to check the small child's status, but it couldn't see a thing. All information about the human had been blurred out.
The dragon soon felt nauseous, "P-please spare me!" It wailed and Licht amazed at the shamelessness of the dragon. He decided to continue to tease it, "And why should I spare someone who threatened to kill me, hmm?"
The dragon soon trembled as the feeling of death overcame him. What he had felt was Licht's killing intent and it knew it. Terrified, the dragon searched mentally for a way to keep its life.
"I can offer a contract. The contract would give you a portion of my powers depending on the percentage shared." It said shakily. Licht contemplated the idea; he didn't see a reason to refuse so he agreed to the idea.
"Okay. I accept the contract, but how do you prepare it?"
"There is no need for you to know. It's a race-specific skill that needs the approval of both parties so rest assured."
Licht nodded and watched the dragon carefully. He had tried to check the status of the dragon using [Appraisal] but all the information was blocked. It seems that the system considers him weak since he doesn't have a figure-specific level.
Mana gathered around the dragon as it chanted its ancient language. A piece of blank and golden parchment appeared and came within eye level of Licht.
"I, Draywein, the last of the race of Supreme Dragons, swear to assist this human with a 50:50 contract." As the dragon stated this, the words he had said were written on the paper. But after a few seconds, it disappears.
[This contract cannot be assigned due to Draywein's low level]
Licht looked at the system message with a raised brow, he assumed that the system saw him as a weak player but it seems he needed to review his guesses. Draywein wasn't so shocked. He had offered a 50:50 contract in hopes of keeping his dignity as a Supreme Dragon but he had just made a fool of himself.
Draywein cleared his throat, "I, Draywein, the last of the race of Supreme Dragons, swear to assist this human with a 40:60 contract."
[This contract cannot be assigned due to Draywein's low level]
The same message appeared and Draywein was shocked. A mere human was strong enough to inherit 60% of a dragon's power! Such things were unheard of!
He chuckled in uncertainty, "How about a 30:70 contract?"
[This contract cannot be assigned due to Draywein's low level]
Draywein's eyes bulged from its sockets, it was simply impossible. Was he that inferior to a human?
"Then a 20:80 contract?" He offered. Any less than this, and he can kiss his pride as a dragon goodbye.
[This contract cannot be assigned due to Draywein's low level]
"A 10:90 contract has to be the last offer!" He called out anxiously. Licht watching all this chuckled cruelly, "And says who? If this is your last offer and the contract cannot be assigned by the system, then I have no use for you, no?"
[This contract cannot be assigned due to Draywein's low level]
Draywein gulped as tears welled up in its eyes. It was either his pride or his life and he obviously chose the latter.
"Is a 5:95 contract okay?" He choked out.
[This contract cannot be assigned due to Draywein's low level]
"I'm sorry! If I give you all my power, I'll die!" Draywein cried out. Licht clapped his hands together and got the large baby's attention.
"How about a 1:99 contract? Surely you won't die from that." He watched as the sniffling dragon roughly wiped its eyes.
"I, Draywein, the last o-of the race of Supreme Dragons, swear to assist this human in a 1:99 contract." The words write themselves on the parchment and it explodes in a flash of golden light.
[1:99 contract has been assigned]
Licht nodded, but an unfamiliar wave of nausea came over him. He felt heavy and his vision had become blurry.
"What did you...do to me?" He asked Draywein. Draywein was nowhere to be found. Where Draywein once stood, an egg laid. Licht holds the egg in his hands and walks back to the general direction of the village. He couldn't use any of his skills, so it would have been extremely difficult if Licht had not had an exceptional memory.
Occasionally coughing up blood, Licht endured the pain that surged through his body. He was but a few meters from the village when he collapsed. He was losing consciousness, and he had hoped that someone would find him.