Hearing his name get called, Aventine's head whipped excitedly towards me. The dejectedness in its posture disappeared in an instant.
But he was shocked to discover an unfamiliar figure staring back at him.
—Hiss?
He stuck out his tongue with innocent curiosity. He gazed at me with his topaz eyes and tilted his head.
Aventine was questioning who I was and what I was doing here. He was also probably questioning how I knew his name.
"Intelligent little one, how are you faring?" I asked as I took off my hood and allowed him to see my face.
—Hiss..?
Aventine tilted his head further, almost turning it upside down. He then assumed what seemed to be a snake's thinking posture. He lowered his head down into his coiled body and stuck out its tongue once more.
'How cute,' I couldn't help but have such a thought.
"I'm asking you if you're okay,"
I crouched down to meet Aventine at eye level.
"You just lost Cheri, and I know for a fact that losing one's parents hurts... I want to know how you're feeling.
—Hiss...
Aventine wilted upon hearing my questions. He must be reminiscing on his life with the royal mage.
I thus extended a finger and rubbed the top of Aventine's head in a manner that Cheri had done many times before. The serpent expressed comfort and seemed to be asking for more.
"If you don't have anywhere to go, you can come with me." I let out a gentle smile, "If you help me, I will stay by your side forever."
I needed this special existence for my path forward.
Aventine wasn't just a simple serpent, after all. He was more than that. He was a Beast Weapon Spirit. He was capable of taking the form of weapons that he had swallowed in the past, creating effects that were unique to his weapon form.
Moreover, it can be said that in a way, Aventine was just like me. He was a being who came from a different world.
Surely, we would have great compatibility as Spirit Wielder and Beast Weapon. And although these were concepts foreign to Emerallia, it was possible to import them into this planet without issue.
After all, the most basic rules of the universe were fundamental and universal.
"So what'll it be?" I kept a pleasant smile as I awaited an answer.
Out of nowhere, I felt a certain connection form between me and Aventine. A gold light shone in both of our irises as Aventine accepted my offers without any hesitation.
I was pleasantly surprised. I didn't expect things to go this smoothly.
Through this connection, I could feel Aventine's immense desire for revenge and the heartbreak he was currently experiencing.
His emotions wafted over to my heart, desiring sympathy and comfort.
I thus walked towards the desk and held out my arm. Aventine released himself from his grip on the wand and climbed my fingers, making himself comfortable. He wasn't any bigger than my palm when fully coiled.
He was about a foot in length, and his body was translucent when viewed up close.
'Beautiful,' I thought, and Aventine expressed happiness from receiving such praise.
"Aventine, did you know that you can turn into weapons?" I asked as I took out my straight dagger.
"Try using your powers to swallow this dagger here,"
Aventine looked at me, confused. He did not know what I was trying to make him do.
It only made sense. Cheri probably wasn't aware of what a Beast Weapon Spirit could do, and thus she never made use of all his abilities.
"Follow your instincts," I said, hoping that Aventine would understand.
Cutely, Aventine tilted his head and alternated between looking at me and looking at the dagger.
After a minute of thinking, Aventine finally found the feeling that I wanted him to find.
Whooosh—!
A small black dot that warped the space around it appeared in front of Aventine's snout. It was a miniature black hole, and it was one of Aventine's abilities.
[ Devour ].
Aventine swallowed the dagger in one gulp. He wrenched the blade from my hand with great force and devoured it all.
Amazement sparkled in his eyes at this moment. He was surprised to see that he had such an ability.
"Now, turn into the dagger. Follow your instincts again. I know you have it in you," I said, hoping that the little serpent would understand this too.
After half a minute of even more thinking, Aventine eventually figured this one out.
As such, there was a flash of golden light.
A dagger was once again in my hand, but this time it looked ever more intricate than before. Instead of a simple straight dagger, Aventine's characteristics had bled into the weapon.
The dagger was thus composed of a wavy golden blade with scaly patches sparsely covering its length. The hilt of the blade had vivid patterns of snakes writhing and curling around each other. The handle was a beautiful leather black, and the pommel bore a suitably-sized topaz gem that gleamed in the dim lighting of the study.
With Aventine in hand, I finally had a weapon to call my own. And since Aventine could turn into any weapon he devoured, I had a lot of options in the future.
Though, there was a limit, as all things were supposed to have. Currently, as Aventine was still a juvenile Beast Weapon Spirit, it could only assume the form of this dagger. As he grew older, however, he would have the strength to assume more forms.
He could even give his weapon forms certain powers. Poison and corrosion were among his specialities.
When Aventine reached adulthood, he could fight on his own as a powerful serpentine beast. He would slither across the lands, devouring all things in its path. It would be a wonderful sight to see.
I even had a theory that I want to try. If I could somehow make him evolve through Emerallia's methods, I bet he could even become a much greater existence.
A legendary dragon or a mythical basilisk. A winged serpent or a hydra.
It all depended on how I would raise him.
I just didn't know for sure. As originally, no one was aware of Aventine's special traits. They simply raised him as a tamed beast.
What a waste, no? That in itself was quite the saddening event.
All that talent... all those possibilities.
Wasted by ignorance.