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The three spirits showed slightly differing emotions, but they all seemed genuinely happy so Mira smiled seeing everything was resolved.

「Thank you so much for rescuing me!」

When Sanctia heard what Mira had done, she turned towards her and loudly thanked her, before hugging her tightly.

「Ah, sure. I’m just glad you’re okay.」

Sanctia was a spirit residing inside a weapon, so that influenced her attire giving her an armor similar to a valkyrie, so the hug only pressed Mira against her solid iron breastplate, which mixed some disappointment into her reply.

「I’m Sanctia. I’ll never forget what you did!」

After hugging Mira for long enough, Sanctia took a few steps back and bowed while expressing her gratitude again. Sanctia wore armor that mostly looked white, with some pieces of blue fabric and golden ornaments. She heavily resembled a holy knight, her blonde hair cut short emphasizing that solemn appearance. But her personality was much more cheerful, which caused a mismatch to her calm appearance. Though in a way that only helped make her worry free smile all that more notorious.

「I’m Mira, and this really was no big deal.」

Mira waved off her insistent gratitude, but her eyes were focused intently on her, studying the first holy sword spirit she had seen while gently scratching her chin.

「No really, thank you. I don’t know what we could ever do to repay this favor, but if there’s anything we could do for you, just ask.」

Worthramble was also quite overjoyed, walking to Sanctia’s side and speaking with an enthused voice.

「Hmm, if you insist…」

Mira muttered, mulling over anything she could ask for.

「Could these be of any use? They all possess a valuable historical value.」

A voice came from deeper in the room, and from there came Anlutine carrying a heavy looking box. She placed the box in front of Mira and opened the lid, saying 「You can take them if you want.」 The interior was filled with gold and silver in all shapes. It was the spitting image of what anyone would imagine hearing the word ‘treasure chest’.

「Ohh, that’s quite something. This could easily be worth more than a hundred million…」

Mira was taken aback seeing that marvelous and luxurious treasure shining brightly in front of her. But it was just mere treasure, shapes of gold and silver. There were no artifacts with interesting properties, or equipment Mira could viably use during her adventure, so Mira had no use whatsoever for the treasure.

「Hmm, if you want to give me some form of treasure, I’d be more interested in the holy sword.」

Looking through the contents of the box, Mira looked up and turned towards Sanctia. Mira’s eyes were burning with interest, which surprised Sanctia as she reacted by saying 「Eh, me?」 while tilting her head.

「I thought you’d say that. She owes you her life, so I guess it’s just fair to demand that much.」
「That’s true. You were saved thanks to her, so that’s the least you can do.」

Worthramble and Anlutine looked desolate, but they had already expected something like that would happen, so they both hugged Sanctia.

「Make sure you don’t cause trouble for Mira, don’t follow strangers around, and never be picky.」
「Sansan, good luck. Just don’t forget about us.」

They muttered to her, tears slowly flowing from their eyes. In a way, they resembled an old country couple seeing their daughter off as she left for the city. Anlutine continued giving her advice while Worthramble walked towards the pedestal, grabbing something from there.

(Hm? What’s happening?)

Mira had trouble understanding the scene unfolding in front of her, but when Worthramble approached her with the item he picked up she finally understood.

「Please take good care of Sanctia.」

Saying that, Worthramble offered the scabbard he was holding to Mira. It was exquisitely made, had the same colors as Sanctia’s armor, and was clearly a befitting vessel for a holy sword. Mira silently looked at it. If she took the scabbard, that would mean accepting to become the next bearer of the holy sword. But she was a summoner, she had no use or skills for a holy sword. So there was but one way to respond.

「Ah… no, I’m just a spellcaster. I don’t need a holy sword.」

Hearing Mira refuse the sword, Worthramble stared vacantly, his brain struggling to comprehend Mira’s words.

「Huh? But earlier you said you’re more interested…」

He stuttered, slowly repeating Mira’s earlier words trying to find what he had misunderstood. Anlutine and Sanctia, a few steps behind, also tilted their heads with quizzical looks, question marks almost floating above their heads.

「I get it now. So that’s what you thought I meant. My apologies, I didn’t word that correctly. What I meant is, I’m way more interested in the spirit of the holy sword, in other words, in Sanctia herself.」

She finally understood what they were thinking from Worthramble’s actions, so she apologized before looking at Sanctia again. Between a holy sword resting in an underwater shrine, or just the spirit living in said sword, as a summoner, Mira held the most interest in the latter, even though it was her first time seeing either of them.

「Sanctia herself, you said?」

Her speaking manners aside, Mira was a very beautiful girl. Becoming aware of that, Worthramble began imagining a certain garden of lilies filled with feminine love, plunging his mind into a territory he had never thought of before.

「Eh, me? But… why… though mm, just be gentle please.」

The subject of the matter had also reached that same conclusion, her cheeks flushed red as she nodded in a surprisingly submissive manner.

「Did you hit your head too hard inside the sword?」

Mira glared at Sanctia, who was looking at her with longing eyes, before sighing in exasperation and starting to explain everything.

「I’m a summoner, and you’re the spirit of the sword, correct? But you’re also a type of spirit I’ve never encountered before.」

Mira walked closer to Sanctia as she spoke, standing right in front of her with glistening eyes, her eyes lips twisting into a smirk.

「You don’t want to test if we can form a contract? I’m really curious to see if I could summon the spirit of a holy sword. You wouldn’t want to find out yourself as well? I know you do.」

She was seeking her agreement, or rather, she was forcing her to agree as Mira bombarded Sanctia with questions.

「Err… I’ve never done that before, so I don’t know, I guess…」
「There’s a first time for everything. This is truly interesting. Are you not intrigued yourself?」

Mira’s mind was too far gone, holding Sanctia’s shoulders firmly prodding her with a really wide smile.

「You’re starting to scare me!」

Mira was much more passionate than anyone else when it came to summoning related topics. Overwhelmed by Mira’s intense passion, Sanctia hesitantly turned around, seeking help from her friends. But Worthramble and Anlutine increased their distance from the two, washing their hands off the matter saying it was Sanctia’s opportunity to repay the favor.

「Look, it’s like fate brought us together here. Let’s just see if it works or not. It’s worth a try, right?」

Maybe it was impossible to form a pact with the spirit of a holy sword, but they would never know unless they tried first. Thinking of the possibility, Mira kept urging Sanctia to try it for the first time in her life as well.

「Okay… let’s do it. I don’t know if it’ll work out well, but I’ll try my best!」

Sanctia still could not understand why Mira was so insistent about it, but seeing she would not back down, Sanctia decided to give in and nodded with a nervous look on her face.