Rinslet appeared to be enjoying herself, a faint smile on her face as she glanced at Claire and said, "Claire, you're too loud. I'm just disgusted by you."
Claire extended her hand, ready to argue with Rinslet. Roa wanted to step in to stop them, but at that moment, a hand grabbed his sleeve. Roa paused and followed the gaze to see a girl dressed in a maid outfit.
"Who are you?" Roa asked, puzzled as to why the girl was stopping him.
The girl wore a black and white maid outfit, with a white headpiece. She had a cute appearance, with long, smooth black hair and black eyes, but she gave off a lazy vibe.
The girl yawned and said, "I'm Carol Nastassha; you can just call me Carol. As for those two, this is just their way of showing goodwill, so it's better if you don't interfere."
Roa looked skeptical and turned his gaze back to the two girls, who were ready to fight. He said to Carol, "But they look like they're about to throw punches."
Carol remained calm and smiled at Roa, saying, "They always do this; let them have their fun for a while, and they'll stop."
However, as the situation escalated, the two faced off, each chanting a series of Spirit spells.
"—Guardian of the Red Flame, Sleepless Guardian of the Hearth, fulfill the blood contract here, heed my command—"
A swirling vortex of flames spun and finally converged, summoning a fire cat. Compared to the previous summoning, this fire cat appeared much more transparent.
With the successful summoning of her contracted spirit, Claire felt more confident and said to Rinslet, "Are you looking for trouble?"
"The one looking for trouble should be you! Don't think you're the only one who can summon spirits!" Rinslet's body emitted a ghostly blue light as she chanted in Spirit: "—Fierce Icefang Beast, merciless forest hunter, fulfill the blood contract here, heed my command—"
Snow and wind swept through, and the chill spread from Rinslet, culminating in a white wolf wrapped in ice and snow appearing before Roa, who looked on in astonishment.
The beautiful white fur shimmered in the sunlight, revealing yet another high-level spirit.
Carol smiled and explained, "This is the lady's contracted spirit, named the Ice Spirit—Fenrir."
High-level spirits are those that exist in the form of beasts, magical beasts, or ferocious beasts.
Like Claire's fire cat spirit and Rinslet's Ice Spirit.
These beast-shaped spirits are typically high-level spirits.
However, the current situation was quite dire. After hesitating for a moment, Roa looked at the girls, who were eagerly watching, and couldn't help but say, "Aren't you going to stop them, Miss?"
The girl, who seemed to be a servant, should normally intervene at this point, but instead, she stood by watching the spectacle.
"It's fine; they always do this. They won't actually fight."
Roa couldn't understand Carol's logic, but he began to advise, "If they start fighting here, they'll quickly attract that Ellis over, and then there will definitely be a scolding."
Upon hearing Ellis's name, Claire's expression of disdain intensified, but the two did not continue to fight.
It seemed that Claire and Rinslet had often clashed with Ellis.
The two glared at each other, snorted, exchanged harsh words, and finally stopped.
Carol showed a regretful expression, and it was this expression that made Roa's mouth twitch. He couldn't help but say, "You really want your lady to fight with Claire, don't you?"
Carol blinked and denied, "No, I didn't think that. Don't say nonsense."
Roa ignored Carol, as Claire was now walking toward him.
Carol glanced at Claire and said with a smile, "Their relationship is still as good as ever."
Claire snorted, "Who has a good relationship with that girl?"
Rinslet stepped forward and pulled Carol back, addressing the two, "So, are you here to invite me?"
Claire rolled her eyes at Rinslet and casually said, "I was going to invite you, but now it seems like it's better to forget it."
The atmosphere between the two became tense again, and at that moment, Carol interjected, "Actually, the young lady really wants to join."
Rinslet's expression froze, and she shouted at Carol, "What are you talking about, Carol! Who would join such an unwanted team?"
Carol ignored Rinslet and continued, "The young lady has been feeling lonely about the team lately."
Rinslet's face showed a mix of embarrassment and anger as she covered Carol's mouth, saying, "That's not true! I'm very popular!"
Roa commented, "A truly popular person wouldn't say that, would they?"
Carol translated Rinslet's words, and Roa began to understand the meaning behind the golden-haired girl's tsundere attitude.
It seemed she was actually quite willing to join but couldn't bring herself to say it due to her pride.
Well, Roa realized that one was a golden-haired tsundere, the other a red-haired tsundere, and there was also a blue-haired tsundere who was not straightforward.
It turned out that this entire academy was a gathering place for tsunderes.
Not wanting to comment on this, Roa planned to leave the academy directly after Rinslet and Carol finished discussing matters.
Standing aside, the quiet Est grabbed Roa's sleeve. He bent down to look and saw a silver-haired little girl who was a head shorter than him.
The girl wore a noticeably oversized academy uniform, and due to her lack of a chest, Est's outfit looked a bit odd.
However, it gave off a soft and cute vibe.
Roa looked at Est and curiously asked, "What's wrong?"
Est raised her gaze, her light golden eyes fixed on Roa. He was puzzled, thinking she would say something important, but Est said, "Master, you have a strange smell, just like before."
Roa frowned and sniffed his body, not detecting any odor like sweat. In fact, it had been a long time since anyone had said something like that to him.
Not getting an answer, Roa directly asked Est, "Is it a smell of sweat? Or what kind of smell?"
Est walked around Roa, circling him twice, and said, "It's not sweat; it's a kind of fragrance, a very special smell. It feels very enticing."
Roa was confused. He grabbed Carol, who was watching the scene, and asked her, "Do I have any strange smell? Like sweat or fragrance?"
Carol yawned and said, "Nope."
After Carol's denial, Roa turned his gaze back to Est, suddenly recalling something. He asked Carol, "You didn't choose me for this reason, did you?"
Est didn't deny it this time. She pondered for a moment and said, "Maybe that's part of the reason, but more so, it's an instinct."
"An instinct?"
"Yes, an instinct."
Roa wanted to continue the conversation with Est, but she didn't seem inclined to speak further, so he didn't press the issue.
In fact, Roa could roughly guess what was going on; it was likely due to his special talent.
He had previously tested that the Pure Body had a strong attraction to spirits, and it seemed that this effect extended not only to low-level spirits but also to high-level humanoid spirits like Est.
Carol finally turned her gaze to Roa and said, "Are you the legendary Roa? I heard you used special means to get the academy head and the knight captain on your side. Quite impressive, huh? Oh, who is the girl next to you?"
Wait, what do you mean by "getting them on your side"? What kind of statement is that?
Est turned her gaze to Carol, her expression still cold. The girl said indifferently, "I am Terminus Est, the Master's contracted spirit."
"Contracted spirit? It seems the rumors are true; you really contracted the sealed spirit from the holy land?"
Rinslet's face showed a strong sense of surprise.
Roa keenly sensed the implication in Rinslet's words; the phrase "rumors" was worth considering. How was it that someone was spreading news about him?
Moreover, Est had only been contracted yesterday, and now such rumors were circulating; it was too coincidental.
Only Greyworth and Claire knew about this matter.
Greyworth probably had no interest in spreading his affairs, so there was only one truth.
Roa's gaze turned sharply toward Claire, who appeared a bit guilty and averted her eyes, not daring to meet his gaze.
So it was you who did this?
Rinslet grabbed Est's hand, her face filled with admiration as she said, "You are the legendary holy sword that defeated the Demon King?"
Est nodded, "That's right, it's me."
Rinslet excitedly asked, "Can I see your prowess up close?"
Est replied indifferently, "Sure."
Rinslet stepped forward and poked Est's cheek with her finger. Est expressionlessly dodged and then said with a hint of annoyance, "Only the Master can touch my face."
Rinslet showed a regretful expression and, upon hearing Est's words, cast a jealous glance at Roa.
Ignoring Rinslet, Roa decided to leave with Claire after the two reached an agreement.
Declining Carol's invitation to stay, Roa took Claire to the Spirit Forest to continue teaching her the Blade Dance.
However, compared to the previous sessions, this time there was an additional contracted spirit present. Although Est's expression remained unchanged, there was a hint of curiosity in her eyes.
Especially upon learning that Roa was going to teach Claire the Blade Dance, her curiosity intensified.
The Blade Dance was undoubtedly very important, especially for a spirit.
"Is it the Master's Blade Dance?"
Est's eyes held a glimmer of hope as she looked at the two.
As usual, Roa began by demonstrating the moves without using Est; he still wielded the knight's sword.
Even with Est present, the knight's sword still had its uses, especially in situations like this.
The spark ignited, and brilliant flames rose, illuminating the surroundings, making the air feel hot.
After executing the final strike of the Breath of the Sun, Roa reversed his grip on the sword, and applause sounded beside him.
Roa turned toward the sound and saw Est, her expression still indifferent.
"Master, that's amazing."
Est sincerely admired him.
Although her expression didn't change, Roa could hear the surprise in her words.
Being recognized by her own contract spirit, even Roa couldn't help but feel a sense of pride.
Roa wore a faint smile on his face, scratched his head, and pretended to be humble, saying, "It's not a big deal."
Claire's gaze remained fixed on Roa, watching the knight's sword engulfed in flames, lost in thought.
Teaching is a long process. Claire was not slow to learn, but she certainly couldn't be called fast either.
Time passed little by little, and in the end, Claire had familiarized herself with all the sword techniques, remembering most of the moves.
However, even if she learned all the techniques, whether she could execute them in the end remained a question. Moreover, even if she could execute them, it didn't necessarily mean they would suit Claire. What Roa hoped for more was that Claire could gain deeper insights from the Breath of the Sun.
Due to skipping lunch and practicing for a long time, Claire always gave Roa a somewhat tired feeling.
Although Claire didn't speak, her movements were not as nimble as before.
Not wanting to continue making Claire practice, Roa went to the stream, caught a few fish, and started grilling them on the spot.
In his haste, Roa didn't bring any seasonings, so he specifically returned to the academy to grab a few bottles of spices.
The time it took to prepare the grilled fish wasn't long. Roa was quite skilled in this area, quickly gutting the fresh fish.
At first, Claire's expression showed some reluctance, but once she smelled the aroma of the fish, that last bit of reluctance vanished.
Eating this not-so-exquisite lunch, Roa felt a bit nostalgic about his clumsiness in cooking, but the two quickly finished off the grilled fish.