"Mmm..." Leo groaned as he slowly came to. "I did it," he realized, though the pain lingered. He had done it, but it hadn't been easy.
Determined to keep improving, Leo began to meditate. "This feels... refreshing," he thought, surprised by the clarity he felt despite just reaching 1-star. "Is it because of my focus?" An hour later, he could hardly believe what he was experiencing. "My mana pool... it feels like that of a 2-star, not a 1-star," he marveled. It was larger than expected, which both surprised and pleased him.
"This progress is enough for now," he decided, standing up. "Time to get back to physical training... and my spear."
But a question nagged at him. "Why did my spear save me before? And that voice..." The memory was still vivid.
"Spear of Mjölnir," Leo said aloud, and suddenly, a bright light appeared before him. "What the—?" he exclaimed, startled and confused. The light revealed itself to be a lightning spirit—a girl, to his astonishment.
"Are you the one who saved me?" Leo asked, still trying to process what he was seeing.
"Nope." she replied
Who are you?" the Leo asked, equally confused.
"I'm ### I was #####.... wait what? why can't I say my name? ### ####
After a second of confusion the spirit said
"Just searching for new items or equipment in this era," she said casually, her demeanor only deepening Leo's confusion.
"Era? Did you live 200 years ago?" Leo asked, trying to make sense of it all.
"Nope, I lived thousands of years ago," the spirit responded, as if it were the most normal thing in the world.
"Thousands of years...?" Leo was stunned, struggling to grasp what she meant.
"Then why are you here?" Leo asked, still trying to understand.
"You're the one who called me," the spirit reminded him, as if it were obvious.
"But I only said the name 'Spear of Mjölnir.' If you're not the spirit of the spear, why did you come out?" Leo questioned, still bewildered.
The spirit paused as if something clicked. "Ah, so that's why? Okay, I get it now," she said, though she couldn't reveal more.
"I'm a lightning spirit," she continued, introducing herself. "You'll be my contractor."
"Contractor?" Leo asked, struggling to keep up with her words.
"We'll form a contract. You suspect me? Or think I'm weak?" she challenged.
"N-no, I just—" Leo started, but the spirit interrupted him, explaining her power, though it was currently sealed.
"I can't deal with her... she's too noisy," Leo thought, but there was something about her that felt trustworthy. Even if his mind wasn't fully convinced, his body seemed to instinctively trust her.
"I didn't meet her in my previous life, but I think she could be very helpful," Leo thought, starting to accept her presence.
"Now, come here. I'm done with the preparation," the spirit said, snapping Leo back to reality.
"Wait, what? Preparing for a contract didn't even take a second?" Leo marveled. Normally, creating a contract circle with a spirit took an hour, but she had completed it with just a flick of her finger.
"Okay, let's do this," Leo agreed, stepping into the circle. As the contract began, a large black lightning mark formed on his arm, causing intense pain.
"Let's get along, contractor," the spirit said with a smirk.
"Yeah, let's get along," Leo replied, wincing but resolute. In that moment, he realized that this bond could make him more powerful than he had been in his previous life.