Helmut: The Forsaken Child - H.F.C Chapter 69 (Part 1):

Alea’s eyes lifted.

“But it looks like Sian just dropped off without a word. Isn’t that suspicious?”

“It didn’t seem like his doing.”

Helmut added his own speculation.

“Until we got to the site, he seemed clueless about what it was.”

“It could be an act, but let’s assume it’s not. Then it must be a spirit so troublesome that even a spirit mage with high affinity would avoid. Something that likes freedom, perhaps. The Greta Academy is a place rich in various energies, suitable for spirits to live in. Putting aside the cause, it’s a good place for them to stay once they’ve appeared.”

“Why would a spirit reveal itself in front of people?”

It’s kind of an unwelcome visitor. Shouldn’t it be living quietly? Given its frequent appearances, it seemed to be careful about its own safety, not appearing in front of mages.

“A sense of mischief? Spirits like to play tricks. Just look at the light spirit that follows Sian around.”

Alea’s brows furrowed slightly. Helmut noticed that Alea had been tricked by the same type as himself.

“I see what you mean.”

After pondering, Helmut asked.

“Do spirits have a home?”

Many animals prepare a certain home. If the suddenly appeared spirit did too, finding its home might help them find it.

“Spirits stay by the side of the spirit mage who summoned them. A spirit mage full of magical power becomes the dwelling place for spirits on the ground. So, it must have a dwelling. But it’s unlikely to be the place it appeared. It’s quite a cautious being, after all.”

Alea crossed her arms and asked.

“But even if you find the spirit, you have no way to capture it. What if it runs away and changes its dwelling?”

“My task is to solve the anomalies occurring at the Academy. Whether by attacking it with Vis or however, I just need to solve the problem and report. Capturing the spirit wasn’t part of the request.”

Catching a supernatural being wasn’t something expected of a mercenary.

“It seems to me, you’re interested in capturing that spirit.”

“You know well.”

Alea slightly smiled. Her smile was so beautiful that it almost brightened up the surroundings.

“Alright, let’s look for a place suitable for the spirit to reside. That guy is mine.”

Alea’s violet pupils shone. They sparkled like jewels but looked fiercely intent, as if she was already imagining how to experiment with it once caught.

“Show me the map.”

Helmut and Alea sat on a bench near the Academy, laying the map between them. Passersby glanced at them, but neither paid them any mind. The Greta Academy was vast, stretching beyond Baden. On the wide map, the spirit’s appearances were mere dots. They likely had a dwelling in a place rich in energy, but it was unclear where that might be.

“Even if we spread a search magic over the entire Academy, it’s hard to catch it in such detail. The concentration of energy is almost uniform. There might be places with slightly denser energy, but not significantly so.”

Alea’s brows narrowed, but his pupils were brightly lit. The eyes of a mage who had found a research topic. The pursuit of the unknown. It was the instinct of a mage. As Alea murmured and delved into thought, Helmut suddenly had an idea.

“Do you know Sian’s movements? Since Sian didn’t know of its existence, it must be away from his route. A spirit mage would be able to sense its presence. That could narrow down the search, couldn’t it?”

“You…!”

Alea looked at him admiringly. However, perhaps annoyed that he had thought of the method before she did, her face quickly turned sullen.

“That’s a method.”

Then, she unfolded the map and said.

“The appearances started last November. Sian has a wide range of activities. Being a spirit mage, he often enters the forest connected to the Academy. Spirits like the energy of the forest. If it’s a place he wouldn’t go.”

Alea’s finger stopped at a certain point on the map. It was a hunch. Looking up, she locked eyes with Helmut.

“The swordsmanship department?”

“There’s a large library in the academic department, housing vast books. The magic department shares quite a few subjects with it. Since I frequent there, Sian, being the second-best in the magic department, likely does too. The swordsmanship department side seems promising.”

‘Second-best, huh.’

Helmut hadn’t seemed the type to excel in studies, but this was unexpected. However, the current concern wasn’t that.

“But most witnesses were from the swordsmanship department. According to what you said, it wouldn’t appear near its dwelling, right?”

“Then there must be a place it hasn’t appeared that mages from the magic department don’t frequent.”

“The swordsmanship training grounds?”

The answers came swiftly, unlike before when there had been no progress. They supported each other’s thoughts. Helmut felt deep immersion and pleasure. In the Forest of Roots, Helmut had never shared his thoughts equally with anyone.

Elaga was an impatient beast and Helmut’s guardian. Not an ideal conversational partner. Darien was Helmut’s mentor. Helmut was too young and ignorant to converse with him. From them, Helmut learned and followed. It was fundamentally a hierarchical structure.

He had never brainstormed with Finn from the Pace Mercenary Corps. He was essentially below Helmut, a debtor and someone to be cared for. There was no exchange of opinions.

Communicating with someone. It gave Helmut a feeling he had never experienced before. His world, once isolated, felt connected and expanded to another.

‘Did Darien want me to feel this?’

But it seemed slightly different. Helmut thought it was because he had no one to share thoughts with.

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