A cold wind blew through the central area of the village, causing Falia to shiver despite her warm coat. She glanced down at her thin arms that were wrapped around a bag of groceries and frowned. While she felt that smooth skin was more beautiful, she couldn’t help but be envious of the members of her race who had large patches of fur covering their arms and legs.

“If I opened the fourth gate, then I could change my form…or at least that’s how the rumor goes,” the deer girl mumbled to herself. “I wonder if I could also control my hair growth.”

Falia quickly became lost in thought as her mind conjured up several bizarre images about controlling body hair. Eventually, she was pulled out of her stupor when she noticed a relatively unfamiliar figure walking ahead of her on the street. Falia strengthened her grip on her groceries and broke into a trot to catch up to this person.

“Hey Jayce,” she called out in a casual tone. “Where are you headed?”

“Oh, hello…Falia.” Jayce had to pause for a moment, but he remembered her name in the end. “I actually just arrived at my destination.”

“Hmm?” Falia followed Jayce’s eyes towards a signboard in front of an unassuming two-story building. Instead of legible words, the signboard was covered in shifting runes that imprinted information directly into her brain. Falia leapt back as though she’d received an electric shock and looked at Jayce with wide eyes. “W-Why are you going there? Do you need something repaired?”

“No, I’m just vising Marin.”

“A-Ah, alright,” Falia nodded stiffly and stepped past Jayce.

He glanced at her retreating figure and shrugged before opening the door to Marin’s shop and walking inside.

After turning back to see that he had left, Falia thought for a moment before breaking out into a relieved smile. She even skipped a little as she walked.

“So, it wasn’t my fault that I couldn’t attract him. He’s just a freak~.”

---

Inside Marin’s shop, Jayce saw a desolate area with only a front counter and a sign standing beside it.

That sign read: Have a request? Write a note, leave what you need repaired on the counter, then ring the bell.

This wasn’t Jayce’s first time reading that sign, and he had half a mind to ask Marin about her strange practices. At the same time, he felt it wasn’t really his business.

It had been a full day since Jayce became apprenticed to old Verne. He had found the cheapest hotel in the village that night and endured several more losses to Yule’s crew during morning training. After that, he’d done some grunt work for Verne before training again in the afternoon and finally being set free for the day. Jayce had considered going to the library, but he decided to check on Marin’s recovery first.

From what he’d seen of her leg injury, a human on Earth might be stuck in crutches for months before recovering. Marin had told him that she could heal it in a week and insisted that a doctor wasn’t necessary, but he was very skeptical about that. Considering how most people in the village treated her, Jayce saw plenty of other reasons why she would refuse to enter a hospital.

Just as he started walking to the stairway at one end of the room, Jayce heard music coming from the door behind the counter. Closing his eyes, Jayce’s breath caught in his throat when he realized he was listening to rock. He focused and confirmed that the only soul in this building was behind that door.

“Don’t tell me she’s actually working…”

Jayce opened the door and entered the spacious metal room. Inside, he saw various machine parts as well as the very conspicuous shell of a large vehicle, all of which were dyed in yellow light from the glow stones in the ceiling. Near the door, Marin was seated on a patterned cushion next to her large information console. There were several screens floating around her and her eyes were glazed over as she read them with a bored expression.

Once Jayce stepped into view, she stiffened and glared at him with narrowed eyes. Jayce met her gaze, belatedly wondering if it was rude for him to walk in here. To his surprise, Marin just kept staring at him without saying anything. It seemed like she was searching for something in his eyes. After half a minute, she sighed, and Jayce noticed her shoulders relax a bit.

“I just came to check up on you,” Jayce clarified.

“Hmm, that’s nice, but I’m fine,” Marin replied, pointing to her cast. “Then again, you came at a good time. I thought I’d get more business after that incident with the jotun, but no one came and I’m getting bored. Normally I’d be working on the slider, but I would need to haul things around and I don’t want to reinjure myself.”

Jayce pointed to the wheel-less rectangular vehicle in the corner. “That thing?”

“Yea. Some idiots crashed it in the snowfields half a year ago. Even though they were astrals, they didn’t survive. A handful of people from Snowdrift saw the commotion and called the village head, who went out to check the situation. After he saw the crash site, he quickly gathered a group to loot it before any bandits showed up. I was brought to help dismantle the vehicle, but I realized it could still be fixed.”

A bitter look crossed her face as she continued. “The head ordered everyone to help haul it back and then he gave it to me.”

“That’s…an expensive gift,” Jayce muttered as he eyed at the vehicle. Even though it had been damaged, it didn’t look cheap.

“Well, it was more a peace offering than a gift. The elders are more than a little afraid that I’ll leave someday, grow stronger and then come back to flatten this village for shunning me,” Marin initially spoke in a casual tone, as if she were reciting a mildly funny joke, but her voice became heavier as she kept going. “But they can’t risk killing me, or this village really might get destroyed.”

Jayce swallowed some saliva before working up the nerve to ask, “Why would the village be destroyed?”

“Go ask around if you’re curious,” Marin waved him off. “I told you before that my circumstances aren’t a secret.”

Contrary to her aloof expression, Marin’s fox tail was waving in an unsteady rhythm as she watched Jayce from the corner of her eye. It calmed down somewhat when Jayce stood in place without even glancing at the door.

“…Anyways,” Marin eventually continued. “It’s not easy to travel through the snowfields without something like this. Almost everyone who leaves this village makes a deal with passing travelers rather than setting out on their own. Now that I’ve told you that, you can probably guess what the head wants me to do with this vehicle.”

Jayce replied with a curt nod. Even though Marin said that the elders were worried about her returning someday, it didn’t change the fact that they wanted her to leave the village.

“Actually, why am I telling you about this?” Marin sighed. “What I wanted to ask was, do you still have that charm you made earlier? The ice gathering one?”

“Uh, I already used it.”

Marin shot him a look as if to say, ‘How did you manage to use that useless thing?’

“That’s too bad. I wanted to take another look at it. There were a lot of obvious flaws, so fixing it would have been an interesting puzzle.”

Jayce blinked. When he thought about it, the shoddy artifacts he created could be considered ‘broken’ and in need of repairs. If he gave them to Marin, she might be able to turn them into useful items.

“What can you do with this?” Jayce asked, quickly removing the protective bands on his limbs and neck.

Marin opened her hand and Jayce tossed them to her. Something invisible caught them in mid-air and shook them around before depositing them in Marin’s outstretched hand. Then, Marin closed her eyes and examined them carefully. It wasn’t long before her eyes opened in surprise and delight.

“These are really interesting. Did you make them? Who am I kidding? There can’t be two people with this kind of terrible sense for crafting,” while muttering rude things, Marin continued to investigate the Bands of Freedom. She eventually turned and looked up at Jayce while her tail and ears stood erect. “Can you leave these with me for a week or so?”

“Sure.”

‘If improving my artifacts entertains you, then I’ll make sure you’re never bored,’ Jayce thought, suppressing a grin.

“Oh, but you’ll have to pay me if you want them back after I modify them.”

“Huh?”

Marin’s tail swished in a sinister manner and she was about to elaborate when a green light drilled out of Jayce’s chest. The light quickly revealed itself to be a serpentine mass of white feathers with two glowing orbs acting as its eyes. Marin’s tail puffed up and her entire body recoiled in shock. “Spirit!”

Jayce was surprised too. The spirit of freedom had been resting quietly beside his soul ever since he returned to the village. It was still injured after being torn apart and poisoned by Weiss, but it came out every now and then to try and steal/eat Jayce’s Bands of Freedom. He had tried to look up a method to store the spirit safely, but the knowledge handed out by the Federation wasn’t any help. The data files only told him that it was best to get in contact with an official in the pathfinder guild if traces of a spirit were found. It also recommended avoiding contact with spirits if at all possible and reemphasized alerting the Federation or the guild.

Clearly, it was too late to avoid contact with this greedy creature. As for contacting an official, Jayce wasn’t willing to leave something so valuable in the hands of Soest and the other elders. Jayce had hoped that the spirit would rest peacefully while he searched for more information on how to use it, but that was wishful thinking.

The spirit swam through the air in a lazy manner while staring at the bands in Marin’s hand. Jayce noticed that it looked a little hesitant now that it was outside again. Seeing that it wasn’t about to make a move, Jayce relaxed a little.

“What is this thing, exactly?” he probed.

Marin looked at him like he was crazy while using her good leg to scoot herself backward.

“It’s a spirit,” she answered in a serious tone. “I’ve never seen one before, but I’ve read stories about them. They’re technically monsters but it’s better to think of them as entirely different lifeforms. Spirits are comprised of a single incredibly pure aspect and that determines what they like and how they act. All spirits grow by feeding on their respective aspect and they also use emotions from living beings as a supplement.”

“Emotions? This is a spirit of freedom. Does that mean it likes people who want to be free?”

“You’re being too calm here!” Marin hissed. “It means that thing will possess people and force them to act in ways that conform to its aspect. There are horror stories about superior spirits infecting entire cities and causing their inhabitants to go insane. For a spirit of freedom, you might only develop a case of wanderlust but at worst you’ll…”

Without any warning, the spirit suddenly dove into Marin’s body. It had initially been looking at the Bands of Freedom, but after being slapped by Jayce several times, it had apparently decided to deal with their new owner first.

Marin’s eyes glazed over, and she hunched forward like a soulless doll. This frightening state only lasted for a moment before she shook her head and laughed a little. It was a very pleasant laugh that seemed to be free of worries or fear. At the same time, it was completely at odds with Marin’s usual personality.

“A-Are you ok?” Jayce asked while cautiously inching backwards. In the next moment, he froze up and his eyes widened.

Marin glanced at him and smiled as she removed her shirt, exposing her pale skin and black bra.

“What are you doing!?”

“Clothes aren’t freedom,” she replied breezily, her hands moving towards her pants.

Two equally horrible choices of ‘run’ or ‘stay and watch’ swirled in Jayce’s head before they were quickly discarded. He darted forward and activated Soul Strike, moving to slap Marin’s face. This Soul Forger ability converted a physical attack into something that could shake one’s soul. He had always used it to deal with the spirit’s ethereal body and his only hope was that it would be just as effective against a possessed body.

“Your soul…” ‘Marin’ spoke again, causing Jayce to pause. “Ah, when I look at you, some thoughts appear my head. Since I’m free to speak, I’ll just say them. I feel a certain resonance with your soul after spending so much time beside it. The core of your identity is very compatible with me, but it is too brittle. You seek to be free of fear but deep down you don’t feel any hope. You are prey that I’ll devour once I regain my original strength.”

Marin continued pulling down her pants without breaking eye contact. “…Is how I currently feel. Interesting, huh?”

Jayce replied by slapping her in the face. His guess was proven correct when the spirit flew out of Marin’s chest in a daze.

“Disgusting parasite,” Marin muttered under her breath, her voice dripping with a deep malice that made the hairs on Jayce’s neck stand up.

The air around Marin shook and suddenly became dense. Jayce had seen this Flow Controller ability several times, but it was different when he was experiencing it himself. The ownerless mana in the air had completely turned against him. Unaffected by the dense atmosphere, Marin drew several runes in rapid succession and flicked them at the spirit. After being slapped by Jayce and squeezed by the surrounding mana, the spirit failed to dodge and was trapped in a localized sea of white lightning. It writhed pitifully while releasing frantic squawks.

Unmoved by its cries, Marin closed her eyes and thrust out her hands. Jayce watched in shock as Marin’s two arms moved independently of each other to draw two sets of runes.

“Suppress ethereal,” a commanding voice rushed out of Marin’s throat and the surrounding mana responded by gripping the spirit even tighter. The runes Marin drew flew out and burst in front of that mana, creating a barrier that completely isolated the spirit.

“Ugh,” Marin groaned, shaking her wrists. “I’m sure there are artifacts that can permanently trap this thing, but I don’t know anything about them. We’ll either have to call the village head or kill it before it breaks free.”

Glancing at Jayce, Marin saw that his entire body was turned away from her exposed figure. Clearly, he was trying to be polite, but Marin didn’t see it that way. Annoyance flashed in her gaze and her tail bristled as though she’d been insulted. However, this anger quickly fizzled out as Marin’s irate glare was replaced with a melancholic look. “Sorry, I’ll cover up.”

Hearing her despondent voice, Jayce felt a little worried. He turned around just in time to witness the scene of a busty young woman leaning forward, grasping her shirt, raising her arms, and letting the thin sheet of clothing fall into place. While she adjusted her pants, Marin noticed Jayce staring and looked at him quizzically.

“You aren’t disgusted?” she asked cautiously.

“Why would I be?” Jayce replied, genuinely curious. He looked her over again, but this second glance only confirmed what he already knew. “You’re very attractive.”

Marin’s jaw slackened as she stared at Jayce. Quickly regaining her wits, she shook her head slightly and muttered, “I forgot you were an outsider for a moment. Anyways, thanks for the compliment. My figure certainly is excellent.”

‘If you knew, then why act like that?’ Jayce thought, feeling a little cheated by her sudden recovery. His attention shifted back over to the spirit and he frowned. “What happens if we call the village head?”

“I’m not really sure. He might not have a solution either.”

“Then keep it in place for a bit.”

Spirit Nail appeared in Jayce’s hand and he fired it at the spirit. The first nail was empowered by Paralysis Tag, but this ability failed to affect the spirit whose body was purely ethereal. While Marin held it still with her barrier, Jayce shot all ten of his nails into the spirit. As expected, Spirit Nail’s physical and mental inhibition still worked. The spirit stopped struggling and could only twitch every so often. Its eyes looked around, but they seemed to be moving in slow motion. The spirit was fully subdued.

Jayce had used Essence Appraisal against the spirit earlier and he knew it was firmly within the first gate. Despite this, Spirit Nail seemed to be particularly effective against it. According to the artifact’s description, it could turn anything below level 20 into a vegetable, and the spirit’s current state wasn’t far off from that.

Incidentally, Jayce had also appraised Marin, but he only received confirmation that she had opened the first gate.

“You can release it,” he said. “I’ll keep the spirit inside me for now. If it tries to escape in this state, I can block it easily.”

As long as Jayce was prepared, he could trap the spirit with his soulfire and prevent it from escaping. It was too exhausting to do this all the time, but Jayce wouldn’t have to worry now that the spirit was weakened by Spirit Nail. He reflected that this was actually a very lucky situation, as he normally wouldn’t have any hope of hitting the spirit with these nails.

To Jayce’s surprise, Marin assented to his request and released the spirit immediately. He had expected her to ask if he had been possessed or at least question if it was safe to place the spirit inside his body. After he coaxed the spirit back into the mysterious place where his soul rested, Jayce saw that Marin seemed lost in thought.

“Marin, do you know what spirits are used for? I don’t understand what makes them so valuable.”

“Hmm, it’s difficult to get detailed information on spirits. I know that the pathfinder guild and the Federation will pay a lot for them, but it might be difficult to redeem your spirit in a place like this. I also heard a rumor that some powerful artifacts have spirits possessing them. A living artifact that can coordinate with its user would be very powerful, especially since it would be supported by the spirit’s abilities.”

When Jayce thought about how the spirit of freedom went supersonic and even teleported during its fight with Weiss’s team, he decided that he would be very interested in an artifact that could do the same. The problem was that he had no idea how to place the spirit inside a vessel. Even if he did, based on what Marin said while she was possessed, it didn’t sound like the spirit was willing to submit to him.

“…By the way, have you heard of anyone praying to a spirit?”

“I’ve read about people begging a spirit to possess them and accomplish something they couldn’t.”

“So, you still end up possessed…” Jayce sighed. Seeing that Marin still looked out of it, he asked, “What are you thinking about?”

“I…I want to make a deal with you,” Marin admitted after some hesitation. “Don’t investigate me, just stay ignorant like you are now. In exchange, I’ll be your friend.”

“I kind of thought we were already friends. What do I get by making it official?”

Folding her arms, Marin looked more than a little haughty as she replied, “Who wouldn’t want to be friends with an excellent rune technician?”

Jayce raised one eyebrow. “Does that mean you’ll give me a discount on repairs?”

“Ah, money’s been kind of tight recently. How about I just give your orders top priority?”

“You don’t have any other customers!” Jayce retorted before sighing. “Forget it. Is there any chance I’ll be in danger if I don’t investigate you?”

Marin shook her head solemnly. “I promise you, there isn’t. Honestly, I’m not sure what to offer you but I’ll try my best to make sure you don’t regret this decision.”

“I was half-joking earlier; you don’t need to offer me anything.” Jayce explained, extending his hand.

Looking slightly confused, Marin mirrored the gesture. She jolted a little when Jayce took her hand and shook it.

And just like that, approximately a month after being spirited away, Jayce had made his first friend in the Upper Bound.