I guess I never really stopped to consider Rose’s opinion on all this, huh…

I’d assumed she’d be eager.

After all, she’d always held a quiet admiration—maybe even a hint of idolization—for Lavine.

At least, that’s how it seemed.

But just because you respect someone doesn’t mean you want to learn from them.

Not directly, anyway.

Maybe it was pride.

Maybe it was something more personal.

But whatever the reason, it was obvious—this wasn’t going the way I’d hoped.

Still… knowing Rose, if they spent enough time together, she might eventually come around.

After all, it takes a genius to truly understand another genius.

Lavine leaned forward slightly, her tone growing a touch more pointed, less amused.

“Look here, little Rose. This isn’t an opportunity you should toss aside so carelessly. I could teach you more about celestial magic than any master alive. Not a single book could come close to what I can offer you—not even the ones you’ve likely studied from. Technically, they all came from me anyway.”

“I don’t care,” Rose replied coldly. “I don’t want a master.”

Lavine blinked.

“…Do you have any idea how rare this is? This is the kind of chance people would kill for!”

She turned to me, clearly expecting backup.

“Hey, child—bring some sense into your girl!”

But I just gave a small shrug, glancing over at Rose, who still hadn’t budged.

“Well… if she doesn’t want to, then that’s fine.”

“…Wait, what?” Lavine’s tone cracked with disbelief. “What about your plan? Weren’t you hoping I’d at least indirectly interfere?”

“I was,” I admitted. “But not if it means forcing Rose into something she doesn’t want.”

Lavine stared at me like I’d just wasted a thousand-year opportunity.

I smiled slightly.

“Besides… I trust her. I know what she’s capable of she’ll probably reach your level in due time…”

In truth…

She doesn’t need a master to reach her level.

In fact, in the near future from now., once she hits her second awakening, her control over magic surpasses every archmage in the world.

And that includes Lavine.

Though it’s a bit disappointing I can’t speed up the process without Lavine’s help.

Lavine’s brow twitched.

“And as for the matter of your interference,” I added, shifting my gaze to her, “if you truly can’t involve yourself directly… then that’s that. I won’t push it.”

Lavine fell silent for a long moment.

There was no anger in her face—just a strange, unreadable stillness. Almost like… disappointment.

“You stubborn little kids…”

Lavine muttered under her breath, more to herself than to us.

“Hm? Did you say something?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Ah—damn it!” she huffed, throwing her hands in the air. “Fine, I’ll help you out. Freely. You win.”

Before either of us could react, she floated up, gliding smoothly through the air as if walking on invisible steps.

In an instant, she was face to face with Rose. Her hands reached forward—

Smack!

—not harshly, but with enough force to squish both of Rose’s cheeks in her palms.

“W-What… are you doing?” Rose mumbled, her words muffled and barely coherent as her face was squished like dough.

Lavine leaned in, her expression serious despite the playful act.

“Do you really think I’d just walk away from a gem like you? Hah. Letting a rough diamond like this go unpolished would ruin my mood.”

Magical light began to flicker between her fingers.

Intricate celestial runes shimmered faintly across Rose’s cheeks, glowing with a soft radiance.

The mana in the air thickened instantly.

Sensing the build-up, Rose’s golden eyes flared with instinctual resistance.

“Let go of me.”

But she couldn’t move.

“Lavine.” My hand slid toward the hilt of my sword. “What exactly are you doing?”

Lavine didn’t flinch.

She simply turned her head toward me with a lazy smile and a spark of amusement in her eyes.

“Relax,” she said calmly. “I’m not doing anything dangerous. And trust me—whatever you’re planning to do with that sword? It’s not going to work here, child. So be a good boy and sit down.”

My grip tensed, but something in her tone, in the sheer authority laced in her words, told me she wasn’t bluffing.

“I’m simply helping her out a little,” she continued, her voice softening. “Think of it as… unlocking a few sealed doors. But just make sure she doesn’t open them all at once. My knowledge can be a little drowning if she’s not ready for it~”

Still uncertain, I could only watch as the runes flowed from Lavine’s fingers and danced their way into Rose’s skin—markings so refined, so ancient, they felt like something that shouldn’t exist in this era.

Rose’s body stilled.

Her gaze was hazy, dazed again like earlier, her consciousness drifting somewhere far away.

And then—

Flash.

It ended in an instant.

The magic vanished.

The air lightened.

Lavine’s hands pulled away.

Rose, her body limp, slowly tilted forward—her head resting gently against my shoulder.

Her breathing was calm, steady. Like she had fallen asleep.

I blinked, looking down at her.

Her expression was peaceful.

Serene, even.

“She’ll be fine,” Lavine said, brushing back her own silvery blue hair with a smirk. “It’s a lot to take in, but she’ll adjust… eventually.”

Then, a pause—before she added, almost wistfully, “Let’s see how your little genius handles a taste of true magic.”

I gently brushed a strand of hair from Rose’s face, letting my fingers rest on her cheek for a moment.

Her expression was calm—almost too peaceful, like she had just fallen into the kind of sleep you didn’t want to wake from.

There was no sign of strain, no tension in her breathing or mana flow.

Everything seemed stable… except for one thing.

I could feel it now—Lavine’s mana.

Subtle, refined, buried deep under Rose’s natural flow like a hidden current beneath a still lake.

If Lavine was telling the truth, then there was nothing dangerous about it… but even so, it felt invasive.

“Thanks… I guess,”

‘I got what I wanted in the end huh?’

“You don’t have to thank me, child,”

Lavine replied, casually waving a hand.

“Ultimately, it’s up to that sleeping girl to make something out of what I gave her. Whether she surpasses my expectations or crumbles beneath them… well, that’s her burden to bear.”

She floated lazily in the air again, her tone turning self-satisfied.

“Normally, someone like her would have to pass several trials—arduous ones—just to earn the privilege of receiving even a sliver of my knowledge. But today, as humble and incredibly generous as I am, I’ll give it to her for free.”

“She didn’t exactly need it—”

“Hoho?” Her eyes sparkled with mock amusement. “Care to finish that thought?”

“…It’s nothing.”

She let it slide.

Probably because she already knew what I meant.

Still… this wasn’t what I originally planned.

I’d fully intended to get something valuable from Lavine during this meeting—some knowledge, leverage, maybe even a mythical-grade item or two if I pushed my luck.

But the moment Rose got involved, things shifted in a direction I didn’t foresee.

Now Lavine had already given more than I could’ve asked for—just not to me.

It seems Rose was precious enough to warrant her attention.

To give her this much which was a good thing…

But if I was going to make the most of Lavine’s presence… I needed to adjust.

No more relying on luck.

I’d have to come up with a proper deal—something that would benefit both of us.

But what could I possibly offer someone like Lavine?

She wasn’t just some high-tier mage or a relic of a bygone era—no, if the game’s description was to be believed, she had transcended the limits of mortality.

A being who once stood on equal footing with gods… and lived to tell the tale.

A walking paradox.

A force of nature.

Someone who had likely brushed shoulders with divinity and come out untouched.

In this sealed realm—this dimension of her own creation—she reigned as an absolute monarch.

Time and space bent to her will.

The laws of reality were more like suggestions here.

Even if the world outside collapsed into chaos and ruin, would it even matter to her?

Probably not.

Not when eternity was her playground.

Trying to strike a deal with her felt absurd.

Even if I pulled out a contract now, what terms could I possibly offer that wouldn’t sound like a child trading pebbles for a kingdom?

Power?

She had more than I could ever hope to match—not just raw strength, but the kind of ancient, layered power that twisted the rules themselves.

Wealth? Irrelevant.

Influence? Laughable.

Time? She was time.

But then again… maybe there was something.

Lavine wasn’t human anymore.

She hadn’t been for a long time, if ever.

Her form now was more spirit than flesh, her body little more than a projection.

An echo, clinging to this domain.

Maybe she’d grown used to the weightlessness, the freedom of it.

But maybe, just maybe, she missed being real.

A physical body—tangible, grounded, living.

Something to walk the world with again.

To touch, to feel, to act outside this artificial plane she’d been tethered to.

If I offered her a contract through me—tied her presence to my summons—she could roam the world again.

Not as Lavine the myth, but as Lavine the living.

That freedom alone might tempt her.

Still… would it be enough?

“Hnng~ I think you should go now, little kids,”

Lavine said, stretching her arms back and letting out a soft yawn.

“Staying here for too long would start affecting your souls. I’ve been suppressing my presence this whole time, but even I get tired trying to keep it contained after a while…”

She smiled lightly, as if dismissing the danger like it was nothing more than an inconvenient draft in the air.

But as I looked at her—really looked at her—a strange realization began to form.

“Lavine…”

“Hm?”

That subtle sadness behind her eyes… I had noticed it from the start.

The quiet loneliness that never seemed to leave her, no matter how much she laughed or teased.

It wasn’t weakness—no, far from it. It was something else.

Something older.

Deeper.

The truth hit me like a whisper too loud to ignore.

“You want to leave this world… don’t you?”

“Huh?”

Her eyes flickered—just for a second. Her tone was casual, but I saw the way her gaze hesitated.

A tremor of emotion passed through her expression, too fleeting for most to notice.

But I did.

Of course she wanted freedom.

But not the kind most people dreamed of.

Not the thrill of roaming new lands or escaping some literal prison.

It was the kind of freedom that meant peace.

Quiet.

Closure.

A body… experience… knowledge… nostalgia—these were things that might seem enticing to someone trapped in a realm like this.

But not for her.

Not anymore.

That wasn’t what she truly longed for.

Not what she had been quietly aching for behind that timeless gaze.

I understood now why she felt familiar.

Why, from the moment we met a year ago and even now, a sense of déjà vu clung to her presence like a fading scent.

She reminded me of… me.

The me from before.

From a time, no longer existing.

A soul wandering in search of an end—not because it was tired, but because it had already seen too much.

But unlike me who found [Hero’s Legacy] that sparked the life within me once more…

‘Lavine had nothing’

“Come and form a contract with me,”

I said quietly.

“Whatever burden you’re carrying… I’ll share it with you.”

Now I truly understood a portion of her….

She wasn’t just a character I knew from a game.

She wasn’t just some legendary archmage sealed in a forgotten world.

She was someone like me—someone who had tried everything and still ended up searching for a final door to close.

Everyone, whether they realize it or not, ends up yearning for it.

Whether they chase it consciously or not.

The end.

Peace.

My soul stirred. And I let Erebil’s mark flare.

[Blessing of Death] – [Activated.]

A gentle dark glow wrapped around me, cool and silent.

“I’ll give you the freedom you deserve,” I said, stepping forward, my voice firm. “And also… the eternal rest you’ve been searching for.”

She stared at me for a long moment.

Then slowly, she reached out.

Her hand brushed against mine—delicate, trembling.

And in that brief contact, I saw something I had never seen in her before.

Life.

Real, unfiltered life in her eyes.

A light that had been buried under centuries of silence, finally flickering back to the surface.

Sparks flew—flecks of light igniting like stars—and I felt her energy sweep through me like a tidal wave.

Foreign, overwhelming, yet not hostile.

It wasn’t trying to consume me.

It was trying to bind itself to me.

Her essence curled inward, folding seamlessly into the edges of my own, as though two long-separated fragments of something ancient were finally coming back together.

She said nothing aloud, but her actions left no doubt.

This was acceptance.

A silent agreement.

A contract forged without ceremony—just mutual understanding.

The sensation reminded me of the first time I resonated with Raijin.

That strange feeling of your soul brushing against another, aligning like two gears finally locking into place.

But this… this was deeper.

Sharper.

More refined.

[Warning: User is forming a contract with a being far beyond current skill level!]

[Notice: Re-adjusting Familiar parameters to match user level…]

[Soul Synergy detected. Soul resonance will now offset Skill Level Disparity.]

[Familiar Slots Available: 1/3]

[Slot 1: Tempest Wolf – [Raijin] – [?????]

[Slot 2: …]

[Slot 3: …]

[Resonance Stabilizing…]

ZING!

A sharp jolt ran through my spine as the contract took hold—an invisible thread tugging gently but firmly, linking me to her.

The system finalized it in a soft pulse of sound.

[Congratulations! You have successfully formed a Resonant Contract with a higher being.]

[Contract Stability: 50/50]

[Note: Due to equal contract level, user authority over the contracted being is limited.]

[Contracted Familiar Registered:]

[Name: Lavine Chronos]

[Rank: EX]

[Species: Ascended Human]

[Type: Celestial]

[Category: Mystic]

Lavine stood before me, her expression unreadable for a moment—then soft.

She looked… lighter, somehow.

As if a burden she’d carried alone for centuries had finally shifted, even if just slightly.

Then, with a voice quieter than wind, she said the words I didn’t expect—yet somehow understood too well.

“Riley Hell… once our contract ends… please kill me.”

There was no fear in her tone.

No despair.

Only certainty.

A tired wish made by someone who had lived far too long and seen far too much.

I didn’t flinch. I didn’t question it.

Instead, I smiled—gently, honestly.

“Sure.”

It wasn’t a promise born out of duty or pity.

Because I knew.

Only I could keep such a word….

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep