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Chapter 472: The Keeper of Rings

The next morning, I awoke to find that Leowynn was still enjoying Vision Expanse. On the screen, I could see that her character was some form of magic knight, and that she was traveling with a small group of friends. Given that, I didn’t want to disturb her. It wasn’t often that she was able to simply play around like this when we descended.

Accalia? I questioned as I began to change into a clean set of clothes for today. Just a simple tunic and leather pants, showing that I wasn’t really planning to hunt for the time being.

I put them in a chest in the attic. A bundle of feathers from a level eight hundred Starlight Sparrow rarely found in the mountains east of your position. It’s a bit of a journey, but it is plausible for Clover to have kept such precious materials. In an adjacent chest is a branch from a six hundred year Immortal Oak.

I nodded my head, more than satisfied with the materials. I wasn’t sure what sort of angel would be summoned if we used these ingredients, but it should at the very least succeed in ensuring the proper type. What about the incantation?

Second drawer of your desk, I put a book containing all of the discovered incantations for different familiar types. That method seemed more plausible than simply having a paper specifically for angels.

That struck me as a rather smart move, so I thanked her mentally. By the way… are angels and demons a part of this world’s mythology? I can’t imagine Desbar taking it too kindly to know that demons are seen as evil, manipulative beings in Kione.

There was a long sigh at that, before Accalia answered. They are… different sorts of demons. Demon is just a very broad term. It’s like the difference between Judeo-Christian demons of hell, and the Japanese Oni of your world. Technically, oni is the direct translation of the word demon, but the two types of demons are too far removed to consider the same breed.

To differentiate them, the residents of Kione have two different words to classify the demons of Kione and the demons of myth that the familiars take after. Of course, because of your auto-translate function, both words would simply register as ‘demon’ to you.

That cleared up some of my concerns. I was worried that there would be hidden tension between the lycans of Kione and Desbar if they were branded under the same name as evil beings of local legend. I’ll need you to fill me in on what kind of angel Lydia summons later. That way I’ll be able to help her, and display the sort of knowledge expected of someone who has lived here.

After saying that, I grabbed the book from my desk and began to flip through it. The rituals were neatly organized, with the page on the left containing the materials for a particular summoning, and the page on the right containing the incantation. Each one was marked to specify the intended race that was being called on.

It only took me a few moments to find the pages containing the information on summoning angels. Once I did so, I grabbed a pen and paper from my desk, and began to transcribe the incantation to pass to Lydia. At the same time, I made sure to note down the particular details of the ritual itself.

Thanks to my scan of the previous day, I knew that there was a room in the cellar for performing the ritual. With that, everything was taken care of. After finishing the chant, I stood up and walked to the attic to gather ten feathers and some of the bark that I required from the branch. Only then did I move to the room I had placed Lydia in, knocking on her door.

Almost the same second that I knocked, the door flew open. Lydia was wearing a simple white dress today, and her face seemed far more excited than it had been the night before… if a bit tired. At a guess, she hadn’t been able to sleep due to the thought of finally getting her familiar, and the one of her dreams at that.

“Is it time?” She asked quickly when she saw that I held the necessary materials. I simply laughed, passing her the incantation and nodding my head. After reading over it, Lydia reached forward to wrap me in a warm hug. “Thank you, Mister Kyr.”

“It’s fine, Lydia. Let’s go meet your new partner, alright?” I separated her from me after a moment, and began leading her down to the ritual room. Once we were inside, I moved to the ritual circle, and placed the ten faintly glowing feathers along the outer rim. According to the book, the bark itself went at the center of the circle.

After I finished, I stood up and moved to stand along the wall, gesturing Lydia to step forward. For the first time today, she looked slightly nervous, looking to me for support as she clung to the paper in her hands.

After taking a deep breath, she held one hand out towards the circle. “Light that dwells within my soul, carried on the wings of righteousness. Appear and take form, bring your splendor unto the world. I swear to uphold the heavenly laws, and be all that is good in the world. Eyes of the heavenly goddess, bear witness to this pact.”

Unlike the silver flames I had seen in the old ritual, the flames that emerged from the ten feathers and piece of bark were pure white. Otherwise, the process seemed fairly similar to what I knew.

“I call forth the one who has been chosen for me. If you heed my will, descend from your heavenly abode.” Soon, I was able to see a figure shifting within the portal, looking like a small child. When they stepped through, I saw that their hair was short and golden, their body wrapped in a white cloth. Above his head was a golden ring of light, another one around each of his wrists and ankles. Similarly, his eyes seemed to glow a faint blue.

This is an upper class angel, Dale. It’s known as the Keeper of Rings. They are said to be the overseers of love. As a familiar, they gain two abilities at the third tier. The first is to bind targets with those rings of light. The second ability is to detect any form of magical pact.

I gave a small nod, looking over the familiar. I wasn’t particularly surprised that Accalia had given me the materials needed for a higher class of angel. If anything, I’d have been surprised if she didn’t. It would have even made sense if what she gave me had allowed Lydia to summon whatever the pinnacle level of angelic familiar was.

“Very good, Lydia.” I exclaimed with a smile towards her, nodding my head and explaining the information about the familiar that Accalia had given me. Hearing that she had gotten such a good result, Lydia’s eyes brightened.

She looked at the boy who seemed a bit younger than herself, and walked forward to hug him. Behind him, the swirling void vanished away into nothing, showing that the ritual had truly ended. From this point, a familiar would experience a heightened growth period, reaching maturity in no more than five years.

If Lydia diligently trained, the growth should be even faster. However, I had no intention to urge any of that. She would train at her own pace, for better or worse. I hadn’t chosen to take her in to cultivate a powerful weapon, only to save an unfortunate child.

“What are you going to call him?” I asked, seeing Lydia leading the angelic youth over.

“I think… I think I’ll call him Elijah. Is that okay, Mister Kyr?” The name clearly held deep emotional meaning for her by the way her eyes went to her familiar. It didn’t take much for me to guess what that meaning was.

It’s her father’s name, isn’t it?

Yeah… Accalia responded promptly, and I nodded my head.

“It’s just fine, Lydia.” I told her in a soft tone. “For now, how about we get us something to eat?”

“Oh, let me!” Lydia called out, running out of the room. I vaguely recalled her saying that she had learned to be a good chef from watching her father, so I turned and followed her out.

By the time I came up to the kitchen, I saw Lydia lifting a large pot over her head, taking it towards the stove. She had placed a chair in front of the stove, which she climbed up on. Surprisingly, she seemed quite well balanced. When she set the pot down, I heard the sloshing of water inside.

“You don’t have to do that you know.” I tried to assure her, but she shook her head heavily. I could see her tail, which had previously been drooping, now wagging happily.

“I want to, Mister Kyr! Daddy always says that we have to repay kindness for kindness!” After adjusting the temperature of the stove, she jumped down and ran over to the fridge. Looking through it, she gathered a few spices, some meat, and vegetables. Maybe it was a feature of the chef class, or just a part of her own training, but she did not seem to have any doubts about the materials she was grabbing.

Seeing how determined she was, I simply sat down and waited. After I did so, I noticed the chair next to me was pulled out, and Lydia’s angelic familiar had chosen to sit with me. His eyes alternated between glancing at me and Lydia, before settling on the latter.

When it looked like the stew that she was making was almost done, I called out mentally to Leowynn. If you can find a good spot to log out for now, we’re about to have dinner. Lydia’s cooking.

It only took a couple of minutes for Leowynn to descend the steps and join us, after which we had a nice breakfast together. For a little while, it was as if all the terrible things that had happened to Lydia were just a lie, and she was able to return to a happier time. She gave a bright smile as she looked at me, and a warm gaze to Elijah.

When I saw that, I knew even more clearly that I had to act against the demonic sect. If I was not able to do this with the life of Clover Kyr, then I would come back with another life, and another.

“Have you located the next sacrifice?” An aged voice spoke up from beneath a black hood. A seductive woman with black skin, her frame hugged by strips of carapace, stood next to him as they watched another robed figure approach.

Accompanying the second figure was a man with four arms, parchment seeming to hand from his limbs. The rest of his skin was covered in shifting letters.

“I have, your Holiness.” The second figure spoke up in a more youthful voice. “There is a local adventurer who has reached quite a high level. His Armored Maiden has already reached the third tier, though his focus is as a ninja.”

“A ninja, is it? The Shadow King has yet to sample a powerful ninja’s essence. Very well, it sounds as if he shall make a fitting addition indeed. Perhaps even the final touch that we need. The time to meet our king is close at hand, so take care.”

“Of course, your Holiness. I have dispatched the Sisters to bring him over.” Beneath the hood, the younger figure smiled as he said that. “They have yet to fail us.”

“If they had failed us, then they would no longer be in our employ.” The elderly figure spoke dryly. He had already sacrificed multiple of his own followers as a punishment for failure, which served to… encourage those that remained.