Chapter 30: Signed…Wrong?

“This is my Exclusive Mark. As long as you accept it, Mr. Dragon, that will be enough.”

Watching the Magic Rune Array appear on Petty’s hand, Zheng Yichen scratched his head. Honestly, this was the first time he had ever seen a perfectly circular Magic Rune Array. At its center was drawn a miniature dragon shape.

“Just accept it? I don’t need to do anything else?” Zheng Yichen eyed Petty with suspicion.

Seeing that Zheng Yichen seemed to have misunderstood something, she quickly explained, “No. Once you touch my Exclusive Mark, you will understand the contents of the Equal Contract. After that, you can agree to it. The Equal Contract is the kind of contract that is hardest to deceive with.”

“Oh.”

Nodding, Zheng Yichen gently tapped the Exclusive Mark floating in Petty’s palm. A stream of information entered his mind. It wasn’t much—just the details concerning the Summoner’s Equal Contract. The gist was that through this contract, Petty could summon him, but whether to agree to the summons was entirely Zheng Yichen’s decision.

Beyond that, there were clauses about neither party directly harming the other. Because it was simple, its binding force was also not very strong.

He also understood what Petty meant about it being hard to deceive. Upon touching the Exclusive Mark, he clearly sensed Petty’s good intentions. Furthermore, this contract had no intention of affecting the soul. It was like a special kind of Magic Rune Array; even if it was engraved into one’s Mental Consciousness, it could be erased at any time.

Only after confirming there were no problems whatsoever did he fully accept the contract. The Exclusive Mark, which had been floating in front of his forehead all this time, impossible to touch, slowly merged into his forehead after Zheng Yichen agreed.

The process was slow. Every single detail of the contract’s formation was directly felt by Zheng Yichen. During this entire process, if he noticed anything amiss, he could still instantly stop the contract from being completed.

Observing the additional Exclusive Mark now in his Mental Consciousness, Zheng Yichen gave a slight nod. This contract’s stability wasn’t particularly strong, only a bit higher than a regular Magic Rune Array. If Zheng Yichen wanted to, he could simply erase it. By focusing his attention on this Exclusive Mark, he could sense Petty’s presence.

“Alright, your classmates have probably waited long enough. Hurry back. Remember to find a chance to summon me somewhere with no people around.” Zheng Yichen waved his hand, signaling for Petty to leave quickly.

After confirming that Zheng Yichen was completely fine, the teacher in charge decisively led Petty and the others away from the Forest of Illusions. Everything that happened here today would be completely buried once they left. Even if new students were to come to the Forest of Illusions for willpower training, they couldn’t reveal a single word about it.

Not even vague hints about there being “particularly” dangerous things here were allowed!

“Let’s go back.” Zheng Yichen said to the Ghost Maid. With the Ghost Maid leading the way, Zheng Yichen’s return was quite easy. When he saw the Castle again, Loris was waiting for him at the entrance.

Seeing her, Zheng Yichen hesitated a bit. “So, uh, that Equal Contract I signed… it’s nothing bad, right?”

“You should have signed an Enslavement Contract.”

“Enslavement… Huh!?” Zheng Yichen opened his eyes wide in confusion, looking down at Loris. Was she trying to push him into a pit of fire?! Was she angry?

“An Enslavement Contract with you as the master.”

“Huh? That would work too?!” Zheng Yichen’s mouth opened slightly. Then he shook his head. Even if it was possible, what he ultimately chose was still the very ordinary-sounding Equal Contract. Petty, though not old, could be considered a young beauty. Her future potential as she grew up wasn’t small either. An Enslavement Contract sounded just plain evil.

“Aren’t you curious why I made that Equal Contract?” Zheng Yichen asked somewhat puzzledly, watching Loris walk back inside.

After a moment, Loris’s voice came back. “That’s your business.”

This… she really wasn’t angry? Zheng Yichen grinned wryly, feeling a bit tangled up as he walked into the Castle.

Three days later, at Olin Academy.

Petty’s roommate, who had been watching Petty drift into silly, happy states by herself ever since they returned, couldn’t help but shake her head. She suspected Petty might have been mentally affected by the illusions in the Forest of Illusions, leading to her current slightly abnormal state of mind.

Regarding the sudden outbreak of the illusions they had picked up, because they had signed that Confidentiality Contract, they couldn’t ask others for help to figure it out. They could only think about it slowly themselves. They had followed all the precautions exactly.

No open flames, no Mages or Warriors specializing in fire magic… The reasons for a major outbreak of illusions contracted in the Forest of Illusions pretty much came down to a few possibilities.

Encountering creatures active in the Forest of Illusions and being affected by their hidden tricks. This possibility was low. After all, the creatures there were very special, deeply loved by illusion-type Mages, and their direct combat power wasn’t strong. Therefore, such creatures were always targets for capture; their value was high.

When they went to the Forest of Illusions for training, they had even wondered how much money they could get if they caught a Magical Beast from there.

The Magical Beast possibility wasn’t very high. They hadn’t ventured very deep into the Forest of Illusions, so it was difficult to encounter such beasts. Another reason was being attacked by an illusion-type Mage. That was one possibility. The final possibility was someone igniting the plants within the Forest of Illusions!

The plants in the Forest of Illusions, soaked in special power year-round, had all mutated. Even a blade of grass had a slight hallucinogenic effect. Of course, this mutation only applied within the Forest of Illusions. Anything taken out would quickly become ordinary plants.

There, the scent produced by burning trees had the greatest influence. For those already affected by illusions, it greatly enhanced and strengthened the hallucinations…

All three situations were possible. But now they couldn’t investigate on a large scale. They couldn’t even make a fuss about it. They could only take it slow, to see if it was an accident or if someone had wanted to harm them!

“Should we go find a Priest or a doctor to get checked out?” Petty’s roommate kindly asked.

“Ah? No, no, I’m perfectly healthy!” Petty quickly shook her head. She wasn’t sick, why would she need a Priest or a doctor? Her distracted state these past few days was from excitement!

Even now, it still felt a bit unreal to her—she had actually formed a Contract with a Dragon. If other Summoners found out, they’d be green with envy… No, she couldn’t let them know!

There were too many Summoners better than her. If they found out, they would definitely try to poach him… Pettyng her own cheeks, she rallied herself. She needed to work even harder from now on. Only by becoming stronger could she truly gain That Dragon’s approval, right?

When they formed the contract, she had sensed it. Zheng Yichen forming a Contract with her wasn’t because he saw potential in her, but because he had some need for it. This wasn’t approval. A Contract without the summoned being’s approval might be dissolved someday.