Following A Mi, the Elf Lina’s delicate eyebrows furrowed tighter and tighter, her soft boots, which were spotless on the ground, carefully avoided the mud and puddles.
The surrounding trees grew sparser, and the scenery became increasingly desolate, completely unlike the orderly and aesthetically pleasing Elf Academy district she was familiar with.
When she saw the dilapidated Tree House built on that gnarled Ancient Tree, which looked like a strong gust of wind could completely dismantle it, blowing away the resident along with it, she finally couldn't help but speak.
Her tone carried unconcealed astonishment and a hint of instinctive disdain:
“Um… such a run-down place, this is where your Spirit Master lives?”
A Mi seemed not to hear her assessment, or rather, all his focus at that moment was fixed on the injured maiden inside the Tree House.
He didn't even turn his head; his figure flickered, and with a nimbleness utterly incongruous with the dilapidated surroundings, he sidestepped and squeezed into the pitifully low and narrow entrance of the Tree House.
Completely ignoring Lina and her unfinished words, along with the glamorous world she represented, he shut the door on them.
Hey! I’m at least—
Lina subconsciously took a step forward to protest, but as the words left her mouth, she suddenly realized she was wearing the knee-length skirt of her academy uniform, and squeezing into that dog-hole-like entrance without any regard for appearance like A Mi was simply unthinkable impropriety.
She abruptly stopped, her fair cheeks flushing a faint red from annoyance and a touch of embarrassment.
She stomped her foot in irritation, the pearl-inlaid heel of her shoe lightly tapping the exposed tree root.
The Flower Demon of Morning Dew hovering beside her, its small body composed of vines and delicate blossoms, trembled slightly, emitting a series of crisp, bell-like giggles laced with teasing undertones.
What are you laughing at! Lina angrily flicked her finger, lightly tapping the small, faintly glowing head of the Flower Demon. It’s not like I wanted to come here… If it weren't for curiosity about which… Ugh, forget it!
She retreated a few steps unwillingly, rising slightly onto her toes, trying hard to peer through the gaps in the Tree House to see the "scenery" inside.
But the dim light and narrow view only allowed her to catch a glimpse of A Mi’s blurry silhouette, and a smaller shadow curled up on the straw bedding.
The space inside was suffocatingly cramped; she had no doubt that if she forced herself in, the result would either be getting stuck in the doorway or causing the entire "house" to fall apart.
Inside the Tree House, A Mi carefully handed the ointment, wrapped in clean paper he had obtained from Lina, to Xiao Ye, while pointing outside and explaining the source of the medicine and the conflict at the street corner earlier in a very low voice with simple gestures.
Listening, a flicker of worry crossed Xiao Ye’s Black Eyes, which immediately transformed into deeper gratitude.
A moment later, the barrier made of broken wooden planks at the Tree House entrance was gently pushed open from within. Xiao Ye weakly leaned against the rough doorframe, struggling to stick her upper body out.
A grateful smile was forced onto her pale face. Her Black Eyes, carrying innate timidity and reverence, looked toward the Elf Maiden standing below the tree—a figure so radiant, as if condensed from moonlight, that she was utterly discordant with the desolate woods.
“Th-Thank you very much, Lady Elf…” Xiao Ye’s voice was as faint as a mosquito’s buzz, still weak and breathless from her injuries, “Thank you for the medicine, and… for helping Mr. A Mi earlier.”
Lina looked at the Crow-person Maiden, who was so frail she looked like she could snap in half, adorned with ominous purplish-black markings and obvious wounds, and her surprise was even greater than when she first saw the Tree House.
She had originally thought that a Spirit Master capable of successfully forming a Contract with even a D-Rank Contracted Spirit, no matter how down-and-out, must possess some distinguishing feature—perhaps a hidden eccentric or some extenuating circumstances—but she never expected such… direct poverty and frailty.
“No need to thank me, it was just a small favor.”
Lina waved her hand, her tone maintaining the polite yet distant cadence characteristic of Elven Nobles, as if granting aid and accepting thanks were merely procedural formalities.
But looking at Xiao Ye’s pitiful appearance, as if abandoned by the world yet trying hard to express goodwill, a faint spark of curiosity and sympathy was touched beneath the Pride stemming from her Race and talent.
She couldn't help but ask one more question, tinged with inquiry:
“By the way… how did you form a Contract with him? Do you know the basic Rules after a Contract is established?
For instance, how to invoke the System Panel to check your Contracted Spirit’s status?”
Xiao Ye was momentarily stunned by the rapid questions, shaking her head blankly. The few strands of upturned black Down Feathers that served as her ears twitched slightly, making her look helpless and innocent.
“The, System Panel? I… I don’t know.” She answered honestly, her voice growing softer, “The Elders in my clan never told me about these things… and no one else taught me the others.”
She lowered her head, unconsciously picking at the rough splinters on the doorframe with her fingers.
“They… they don’t like me getting close; they think I bring bad luck.”
Upon hearing this, Lina’s face instantly displayed an exaggerated expression of "I am truly done," her emerald eyes widening.
She held her smooth forehead, as if she had heard something that challenged the limits of her understanding: “Heavens! You don’t even know the most basic System invocation?
After forming a Contract, both the Spirit Master and the Contracted Spirit automatically activate their respective System Panels; that is common knowledge!”
Without System assistance, how do you monitor your Contracted Spirit’s status in real-time? How do you allocate resources? How do you plan growth directions? Do you rely on… feeling?”
Her look of heartbroken distress, typical of a Top Student facing a complete academic failure, made even A Mi, who had remained silent and guarded like a shadow beside her, glance over, finding it somewhat exaggerated.
Although her face was etched with "I can't stand it" and "I can't carry this," Lina still took a deep breath, as if making a difficult decision.
With a noticeable impatience, yet mixed with an unmistakable eagerness to teach, she walked a few steps forward, stopping beneath the Tree House, and looked up at Xiao Ye in the doorway.
“Forget it, forget it, considering you’re injured… and genuinely ignorant…”
She tried to make her tone sound stern, but she couldn't hide that instinctive desire to be a mentor:
“Concentrate your mind, clear your thoughts, and imagine that an ‘Interface’ or ‘Light Screen’ capable of displaying all your information—status, Skills, Contract Link—exists deep within your consciousness…
Yes, stop looking around, feel it like that… Then, try to ‘call’ it with your mind, command it to ‘appear’…”
Under Lina’s guidance, which was tinged with disdain yet meticulously clear in its steps, Xiao Ye clumsily yet earnestly tried.
She kept her eyes tightly shut, her brow furrowed in concentration, and several failures caused fine sweat to bead on her forehead.
Finally, just as Lina was about to lose patience, a semi-transparent System Interface, slightly flickering and unstable at the edges but with clearly legible content, slowly unfolded in the air before Xiao Ye.
Xiao Ye opened her eyes in surprise, the flowing light on the Interface reflected in her Black Eyes, like an oasis suddenly appearing in a barren desert, opening a door to a new world.
At the same time, taking advantage of this opening, A Mi finally had the opportunity to calm down completely, sinking his consciousness into his mind to carefully review his own personal Panel, which was now fully unlocked and detailed:
【Name: A Mi 】
【Race: Unknown （??? ）】
【Level: 1 】
【Comprehensive Rating: D 】
【Strength: C 】
【Speed: C 】
【Endurance: B 】
【Luck: D 】
【Mana: E 】
【Magic Tool: None 】
His gaze swept over the line below that had just appeared, the word representing "Skill." Before he could click to examine them one by one, he caught sight of entries such as 【Yellow Creation Artifact 】, 【Unyielding Blood （Passive ）】, and the somewhat abrupt 【Imitation Analysis 】.
Looking at the glaring "Unknown" in the Race field and the string of data that was entirely mediocre save for one, A Mi understood, even feeling a sense of "as expected."
Except for the slightly better Endurance, everything else was indeed unremarkable, especially the E Mana and the empty Magic Tool slot. Among Contracted Spirits, this was likely the bottom tier, no wonder Lina, who pursued excellence, discarded him without hesitation.
Judging by the state of this Panel, perhaps any Contracted Spirit would possess at least one Magic Tool?
His empty slot was practically a congenital disability.
A Mi could only offer a wry, helpless smile as he looked at the Magic Tool slot that showed no change no matter how he clicked it.
“Hey… Miss Lina.” A Mi finally decided to speak, breaking the brief silence. He wanted to confirm something about the Skills.
Lina, who had just finished the basic instruction: →_→.
“Speak,” her tone was concise, carrying Elven coolness.
“I wanted to ask, those Skills… are they different for every person, every Contracted Spirit?
I feel like mine… well, for example, one called ‘Imitation Analysis,’ doesn't sound particularly rare? Do many Contracted Spirits have similar abilities…”
“Hey, hey!”
Lina interrupted him almost instantly, glaring at A Mi with the look one reserves for prehistoric fossils or someone with severe brain damage. The satisfaction she had felt moments ago was instantly replaced by shock and speechlessness.
“Are you genuinely stupid? Or is your common sense as pitifully barren as your initial rating? Information concerning one's own trump cards and uniqueness is not something you casually share with outsiders?!”
She couldn't help but put her hands on her hips, her tone becoming stern as never before, like scolding a stubborn student who refuses to learn.
“You and I are not going to be comrades fighting side-by-side in the future; we might even be competitors! Don't casually tell others your Skill names, effects, or even Magic Tool intelligence! Idiot!”
She extended a slender finger, almost poking A Mi’s nose.
“Without a Magic Tool, you are inherently at a significant disadvantage, and survival is already difficult!
At times like this, you should be hiding your Skills as your last trump card, not advertising them everywhere like a child showing off a new toy! Retaining your trump card can save your life at a critical moment!
This… is… common… sense!”
Both A Mi and Xiao Ye were stunned by her sudden, rapid-fire scolding.
A Mi was reacting based on the relatively open, information-sharing habits from his previous life, while Xiao Ye was purely ignorant because no one had ever taught her these survival rules; her world consisted only of exclusion and coldness.
Looking at this pair—a Contracted Spirit anomaly lacking common sense, and a Crow-person Maiden abandoned by her kin and utterly ignorant—Lina felt a deep sense of powerlessness wash over her, more mentally exhausting than exhausting a Contracted Spirit’s reserves in a single day.
She shook her head, as if trying to shake off this troublesome feeling.
Finally, she glanced at the Tree House, which was swaying slightly in the wind and looked ready to fall apart at any moment, then swept her gaze over the two figures before her who looked like their future was entirely bleak, practically wearing the word "Trouble" on their faces, and waved her hand with waning interest.
She was speechless, and tired… She felt she had forcefully instilled the most basic and crucial "common sense."
As for the rest, whether it leads to fortune or disaster, they would have to figure it out themselves.
“This is as far as I can help.
I’ve told you the most basic operations and life-saving principles. How you fare from now on, whether you survive or quickly dissipate, depends on your own fortune and effort. I suppose I have… done my utmost.”
“Farewell for now…”
With that, she turned around decisively without any lingering attachment. The Morning Dew Flower Demon circled her lightly once, scattering specks of faint light.
She departed with the elegant and light steps characteristic of an Elf, her pale gold hair tracing a trajectory that grew fainter and eventually vanished deep into the woods amidst the dappled, broken light and shadow, as if she had never set foot in this desolate place.
Only A Mi and Xiao Ye remained standing there.
One watched the direction Lina disappeared, his eyes thoughtful, his fingers unconsciously rubbing together, as if recalling the Skill names he had just seen on the Panel;
The other was still somewhat lost and helpless, her hands nervously clasped in front of her, her broken Black Wings slightly drawn in, appearing fragile and uneasy.
Quietness returned to the front of the Tree House, leaving only the monotonous rustling sound of the wind blowing through the sparse leaves, and the distant, irrelevant clamor faintly drifting from the city.
A Mi withdrew his gaze, turning to the weak but still clear-eyed Xiao Ye beside him, who looked at him with dependence. He once again felt the weight and faint hope brought by the "Unknown" Race label deep in his consciousness and the Skill slots that urgently needed exploration and careful study.
The difficult path belonging to the two of them—the "underdogs," the discarded remnants of their respective worlds—filled with omnipresent danger and deeply hidden secrets, had truly begun at this moment.
And the first step might be to help Xiao Ye apply the medicine, and then, to thoroughly figure out what secrets this "D-Rank Trash" possessed.