Water, Fire, Earth, Air.
“These four are referred to as the Elemental Spirits.”
Fate, Chaos, Emotion, Luck.
“These four are the Primordial Spirits.”
Oh. I know these!
The moment the thought crossed my mind, shining letters popped up in the air.
[The Emotion Spirit King ‘■■■’ clears their throat with an ‘ahem’.]
[That’s right, it’s me. Me!]
[The ◇◇ Spirit King ‘■■■■■■’ shyly waves a hand.]
[Those currently present in are Water, Fire, Earth, Emotion, and also ◇◇ and ○○.]
[Who could the Spirit Kings hiding without revealing their element be? Let’s find them! ⁽⁽*( ᐖ )*⁾⁾ ₍₍*( ᐛ )*₎₎]
Ah, they must be the shy ones!
I was burning with curiosity about the Spirit King peeking out, but as I looked between the chalkboard and the glowing text, my head started to spin.
“The Primordial Spirit Kings are Chaos and Fate. It is said that when those two first joined hands, Emotion was born. Soon after, when life first stirred in the world, the Spirit King of Luck came into existence.”
“…….”
Still, the teacher’s story was fun. Before long, I was completely absorbed in the lesson.
“To form a contract with a Spirit King, one must discover the King’s True Name. According to ancient records, there is a place where each Spirit King’s True Name is hidden.”
True Name?
I tilted my head, casting a glance at the floating squares of light.
‘Ah, those must be the names!’
But I’m not very good at riddles. Can’t you just tell me?
[The Water Spirit King ‘■■■■’ sighs sincerely, saying that is not possible.]
[The Fire Spirit King ‘■■■■■’ cheers you on, saying there are many hints, so look for them.]
[The ◇◇ Spirit King ‘■■■■■■’ carefully recommends a book.]
That’s right, there are many stories in books. I know all the difficult words, so I should be able to read them.
‘But where can I find books?’
There weren’t any in my room. Thinking about this and that, the class ended before I knew it. While the grumbling kids were filing out of the classroom, I stayed until the very end because I had something to ask.
“Teacher, um.”
“Yes, Young Lady?”
“Where are the books?”
“Books? Why, they are in the library, of course.”
The library? There were only a few books on a shelf at the daycare, and I’d already finished those.
‘I’ll have to ask Lina where the library is later.’
Oh! Now that I think of it, I didn’t ask what Bijou was. Seeing the teacher wasn’t looking my way, I let out a sigh of relief.
Just then, the teacher grabbed my shoulders.
“Young Lady, could you possibly make that cookie again?”
“Cookie……?”
“I beg of you. Think of it as saving a life. Please.”
No, about that.
‘I want to make some for Chu too…….’
As I walked out of the classroom, I held my head with my tiny hands.
‘I used up all the sugar!’
What should I do to get more Orca Sugar?
* * *
Towards the end of the class, in Diegon’s office.
Carmine took a small box out of his pocket.
“Ahem-hem.”
Carmine, making a sound somewhat like a nasal humming, slid the box in front of Diegon.
“Hmm-hmm-hmm.”
He added another strange noise. Eventually, Diegon, who had been setting down his scissors, frowned.
“Get rid of it. The smell of sugar is overwhelming.”
An ugly cookie sat in the box. It looked so sweet that even smelling it was an ordeal. As Diegon waved his hand, Carmine quickly closed the lid and tucked it into his uniform pocket.
Then, the corners of his mouth twitched.
“Oh my. Could it be… you didn’t get a cookie?”
“A cookie?”
“The Young Lady gave them out before going to class, but it seems you didn’t get one. Hehe.”
Thud.
Diegon’s hand stopped. After processing what he had just seen for three seconds, Diegon realized that he had never once seen that shape or smelled that scent of snack before.
At the same time, a crease formed between Diegon’s brows.
“Why don’t I have one?”
“Well. It seems the Young Lady likes me better.”
“…….”
Crack.
At that moment, the quill he was holding snapped. However, Diegon didn’t understand why. He didn’t feel particularly offended. It didn’t really matter to him, after all.
“Oh dear, you didn’t even get called ‘Dad’… and you scared her at your first meeting. That’s why the Young Lady won’t open her heart to you, ‘Admiral’.”
Carmine grinned. It was a look that made Diegon want to slash his salary. But how could he, as an Admiral?
Diegon stood up quietly.
“…My Lord?”
Carmine called out in a trembling voice, but Diegon merely drew his sword with an indifferent face.
“It’s been a while since we sparred.”
“…Excuse me?”
“The training grounds. I’ll give you five minutes.”
“Th-that’s unfair! You’re so petty!”
“Three minutes.”
“Aaaah!”
As he walked out, Diegon glanced at the desk. The crab-shaped paper he had been cutting out until just now fluttered tauntingly.
* * *
When I returned to my room and was playing with blocks, I suddenly realized that it had become dark around me.
‘Is it already night?’
Then I have to eat dinner! No wonder I was hungry.
Thinking that, I lifted my head and was startled.
“Admiral?!”
“Yes, it’s me. What were you making?”
“A house!”
Lina had brought me the colorful wooden blocks. Sitting flat on the carpet, I had worked hard to build the house, and my arms and legs felt stiff. The Admiral, who was standing crookedly, reached out and caught me when I swayed.
“I was told you were taken to class.”
“Hehe. Today, Teacher held my hand tightly and walked with me.”
“…Did you listen well in class?”
“Yes!”
But Admiral, why are you here? Could it be…….
‘Are you going to give me a snack?!’
I brightened up, but after checking the Admiral’s hands, I immediately grew sullen.
Hing, there’s nothing.
My legs were tingling, so I sat back down. The Admiral looked down at me silently and tossed a word.
“Don’t you have a cookie for me?”
“Ah! Um.”
I looked at the Admiral with a blank expression. Then, I rummaged through my pockets and pulled out a cookie I had wrapped tightly in a handkerchief.
“There’s one for Chu. There’s only one left.”
I’d forgotten I had this. I’m hungry, should I have one bite? While I was thinking that, the Admiral stared intensely at my teddy bear cookie. No, really. His gaze was enough to break the cookie.
“Do you want to eat it?”
Eh, the Admiral said he didn’t like snacks. I only asked thinking it was a joke, but surprisingly, the Admiral nodded.
“Why don’t I have one?”
“That’s because you said you hate snacks.”
“I said… ah.”
“And you said you’d go ‘waaah’ if I didn’t listen.”
I replied listlessly and glanced at the teddy bear cookie. I want to eat it so, so much! But the Admiral always gives me lots of food, pretty clothes, and shoes. So I can yield.
Taking a deep breath, I made up my mind. That was when—
“If you give me that cookie…….”
“If I give it to you?”
“I will give you a new name in return.”
A new name?
At the tempting offer, my grip on the cookie loosened slightly. At the same time, the shining letters poured out.
[The Water Spirit King ‘■■■■’ hits their forehead, saying, ‘Oh, Dad…’.]
[The Fire Spirit King ‘■■■■■’ shouts that it’s underhanded.]
[The Emotion Spirit King ‘■■■’ sends a whisper to you.]
[Give him the cookie and get a name, little one. If you shake your head ‘no’ here, Diegon might cry ‘waaaah’.]
*Gasp.*
I imagined the big Admiral crying loudly for a moment and turned pale.
‘This house might get washed away.’
The Mister is big, so wouldn’t he cry longer than my daycare friends? Hesitating, I finally held the cookie out.
The teddy bear cookie, wrapped neatly in a handkerchief, was a bit crushed with crumbs falling off it; even one ear had snapped off.
“But this one is ugly.”
“It’s perfectly pretty.”
“Chu saved only the ugliest one because I was going to eat it…”
“If you’re the one eating it, you should pick the prettiest one. Why would you choose the ugly one?”