Chapter 46
I once read about the Iredemnul sect. I discovered it in the library of House Breio, an ancient book abandoned after an ancient language scholar gave up while translating the preface.
He must have judged it as unimportant.
‘The Iredemnul Sect, which values natural death and refuses treatment, and the Iredem Sect, which strives to overcome death. The choice is one’s own.’
I chose Iredem, not Iredemnul.
Though both sects worshipped the same god, their paths differed so greatly that even the name by which they called their god had changed.
“Iredem, do you know the spirit of darkness?”
—In the beginning, there was darkness. After that, life was acknowledged, and death was declared.
That meant yes. Iredem had a tendency to speak in grand, drawn-out phrases. Perhaps that had been considered polite in the era he lived in.
“Do you think the spirit of darkness will answer my call?”
—That depends on his will. It may not be the Primordial Darkness, but another spirit of darkness may come to you.
After contracting Iredem, I now intend to attempt a contract with the spirit of darkness.
The spirit of darkness, as the name suggested, governed darkness itself.
It could absorb all light in the vicinity, shrouding visibility. It was extremely useful in combat.
—If he’s in the same situation as I was... well, he might... be somewhat pleased.
I let out a quiet laugh at Iredem’s words. Iredem had welcomed me with overwhelming joy.
He had been unable to contain his excitement simply from the fact that he had escaped a world filled solely with death.
Durahan’s skull floated through the air.
It was just a necromancer’s research chamber, and yet, Iredem couldn’t sit still, he was delighted even with that.
I placed my hand on the magic circle I had used to contract Iredem. As I returned the spirit flame to the spirit realm, perfect darkness engulfed the necromancer’s research chamber.
Whoooosh!
It wasn’t a sound, it was a sensation. It felt as though I was being pulled into a deep darkness.
No, it wasn’t darkness. It felt more like the deep sea. No matter how much I struggled, there was nothing to grasp. I couldn’t even see my own movements. It was as if my existence had been erased from the world.
It felt like I had become a wandering spirit.
From within that profound darkness, a deeper darkness began to rise.
I couldn’t see him with my eyes, but every part of my body could feel him.
—In the beginning, there was darkness. After that, life was acknowledged, and death was declared.
I recalled Iredem’s words, and I understood them now. The Primordial Darkness was the womb of both life and death. A being greater than both, a genesis that, together with light, had formed the world.
“I am Louis de Hebron.”
Thankfully, I could still speak.
—……
There was only a presence, no reply to my words.
Still, I was certain the being with me in this contract space was the ‘Primordial Darkness’. A mere spirit wouldn’t be able to command such a contract space.
Even Inferno couldn’t emanate such an overwhelming presence.
‘Is it because my affinity is weak?’
According to <Introduction to Necromancy>, a necromancer could sense a spirit’s presence when forming a contract.
But nowhere did it say one could see or converse with them, like with Iredem.
“Primordial Darkness, I want to form a contract with you.”
—…..
The presence was surely felt.
Each time I spoke, the darkness deepened, blooming like a heat haze.
“The death spirit has contracted with me. I named him Iredem. If you permit, may I call you Dimes? That name comes from Dismenos.”
Dismenos was the god of darkness.
His religion had vanished, but the hymn <Spread the Eternal Night> was still commonly sung among bards.
He was said to have slain the holy and brought disaster to those who sought to kindle flames. In return, he had bestowed boundless blessings upon those who embraced the dark.
Whoooosh!
Just as when I first entered the contract space, I felt myself being pulled into something.
And then, fresh air filled my lungs, and sensation returned to my limbs.
“Did I fail?”
I murmured, and Iredem answered.
—Call upon the primordial darkness. If he responds, you will see his darkness.
“Darkness.”
The spirit of darkness did not reply.
I looked around, then called again.
“Dimes?”
A deep darkness came to me.
‘So you are a spirit too.’
Both Iredem and Dimes needed to consume my aura to remain in the human realm. Because my aura had a fire attribute mixed with the death energy, both spirits absorbed it without hesitation.
“Is Dimes naturally silent? Or is my spirit affinity still lacking?”
—Your affinity is not the problem. The Primordial Darkness is just... a little shy.
“Spirits can feel shy?”
—Emotions aren’t exclusive to humans.
I nodded. Iredem was right. If anything, spirits were likely the first to feel emotions, long before humans ever did.
Iredem had appeared through Durahan’s skull, but Dimes appeared as a dark orb. Just as a light source radiates light, this dark orb devours nearby light, spreading shadows outward like an ink spill in water.
Even when I summoned the Spirit Flame, its light couldn’t penetrate the darkness.
“Dimes, can you darken this area?”
Dimes’ darkness swallowed the flame. The Spirit Flame wasn’t extinguished, I could still feel it feeding on my aura bit by bit, but the light had vanished without a trace.
‘This one’s going to be useful.’
Iredem was harder to use openly. Any careless move could spark rumors that I had dabbled in necromancy.
But if all I did was spread darkness, there were spells in the Darkness school of magic that functioned similarly.
“Iredem, what about the Spirit of Blood?”
The <Introduction to Necromancy> had a warning not to recklessly contract with the Blood Spirit.
Unfortunately, the rest of the explanation hadn’t been translated.
—He’s chaotic and light as air, but sometimes sticky as tar. Once, they called him the source of life itself.
As always, Iredem’s words were vague.
“I don’t like that he feeds on blood rather than aura.”
—That’s not quite right. The Blood Spirit isn’t a mere vampire who craves blood. He feeds on the life-force, the living energy, dwelled within blood.
“Sounds like the same thing to me.”
—To beings with flowing blood, the Blood spirit brings bountiful blessings. He loves all things with flowing blood and desires them endlessly. From what I see, you are more than worthy of his affection. No, perhaps even too worthy. That part worries me a little… But then again, being loved by a spirit is a good thing for a human, no?
Iredem seemed to hold a favorable opinion of the Blood spirit.
That made sense. Blood and death were deeply intertwined, one inevitably led to the other.
I sprinkled blood onto the magic circle. There were no other living beings nearby, so I had to draw blood from my own finger.
‘..…How much more blood do I have to spill?’
Every time a droplet hit the magic circle, it would bubble briefly and vanish.
The Blood spirit was definitely drinking it. So I kept offering more.
Since I had already started, I intended to see it through to the end.
Just as I began to feel the early signs of anemia, a clot of blood began to bubble up, real or illusion, I couldn’t tell.
The clots coalesced, forming a vaguely human shape.
According to mythology, the gods created spirits and entrusted them with nature.
Humanity was merely an afterthought, an addition to an already complete world.
—Blood! Fresh blood! Blood brimming with energy! I can’t believe such a human exists! Oh, magnificent! Exhilarating! You… I will have you! The contract has been made!
It happened in a flash, like beans cooked on a lightning bolt.
Only, the contract hadn’t actually been made.
There was no Spirit Flame, no signs of Iredem or Dimes. The absence of all that told me this was the contract space.
“I never said I wanted a contract.”
—What nonsense is that? You called for me! I answered your call! Didn’t you summon me because you wanted me? And I want you! I desire you so deeply! I’ll feel you all night long! Your blood! That boiling blood! I’ll drink it to my heart’s content!
“That doesn’t quite match what Iredem said… He mentioned you were chaotic and light as air but could turn sticky like tar. He never said you were completely unhinged.”
—Chaotic and light as air? Sticky like tar? The only one who ever described me that way was the Primordial Death.
“Right, the Primordial Death. I named him Iredem.”
The Blood spirit surged forward with excitement.
A wave of thick, metallic scent hit me, not the nauseating stench of a battlefield, but an oddly intoxicating, thrilling kind of blood scent.
—Oooooh! He’s with you? That familiar scent was his, wasn’t it? Excellent! I shall join you too! Let’s go! Let’s go and greet the Primordial Death together!
“…See, that’s what I don’t get. I don’t see why I need to contract with you. Iredem said it would be beneficial for me, but I’m not convinced yet.”
The Blood spirit wavered.
As if in shock, he deflated, then surged back up and asked me.
—You don’t know who I am? I’m the Blood spirit!
“Am I supposed to know you?”
—You… you don’t? Truly? You’re not lying to deceive me?
“See for yourself.”
It was the contract space.
In this space, neither the spirit summoner nor the spirit could lie to one another. At the very least, they could sense if the other was speaking the truth or not.
The Blood spirit scanned my inner self, then shouted.
—Unbelievable! You don’t know me? How could you summon me without even knowing who I am?
Judging by his overly confident demeanor, he must have been pretty famous in ancient times. Probably popular too, seemed like he was used to being summoned frequently.
“I happened to come across a book called <Introduction to Necromancy>. That’s where I found mention of you and a few other spirits. I’m guessing… that might’ve been the last record ever written about you.”
—S-So that’s why no one summoned me! I thought humans had grown tired of me…!
The Blood spirit suddenly clamped his mouth shut.
“So you are aware of your own reputation. Were there that many humans who got sick of you?”
—Ah, no! That’s not quite it… Probably…
“Let me ask again. Why should I form a contract with you?”
The Blood spirit had to switch tactics.
If he failed to persuade me, he would fade back into obscurity, maybe forever.
—I am the Blood spirit, master of the living energy dwelling within blood.
“And?”
—Words won’t do. You, who have awakened me after an eternity, deserve more than mere explanations. I will show you a glimpse of my power.
Suddenly, I felt my blood boil.
No, that wasn’t it. It wasn’t my blood, but the aura flowing through all my veins that reacted.
…Actually, no. That wasn’t right either.
There was a clear shift occurring along my veins, but what I was feeling wasn’t aura.
It was something more fundamental.
‘Living energy?’
An energy completely opposed to death energy. Known only in theory, supposedly undetectable by human senses. And yet, this living energy was now dwelling within me.
And it was amplifying all of my abilities.
Gulp.
I swallowed dryly.
If there truly existed a being that could help me wield power like this… I’d sell my soul to keep him by my side.
—Well? How do you like it? I’ll share this power with the one who makes a contract with me!
“…Dizzying.”
That was all I could manage to say.
I wanted to exclaim in awe, but I refused to let that cocky spirit see how impressed I was.
—Ah… Well, that’s understandable. You’re just about to form the contract, after all.
The Blood spirit drew power through blood as its medium. Though he had absorbed some of the aura within me, he never failed to take blood along with it.
That was why the dizziness kept growing.
I had also bled quite a bit before this contact.
“So, if I want to use your power, does it have to be my blood? Would someone else’s blood not work?”
