Max got back to the Summoner Academy without issue. Instead of his room, the first place he stopped was the cafeteria. Ignoring all the stares he was getting for his appearance, probably for multiple reasons, Max asked the cafeteria staff with clipped words if he could buy to-go meals separately. The answer was yes.

He also inquired whether he could buy bones left over from food preparation. The answer to that was a much more hesitant yes, but he would have to come back in a few days. They would set aside a few bags for him. Good enough for me, thought Max.

In the back of his mind, Saliron was chuckling, his volume and tone randomly changing. It was creepy whenever the spirit did that, but Max was growing used to it.

He ate while ignoring the looks and outright stares directed at him. Just in case someone might get a wild hair and come talk to him despite his destroyed clothing, used sword, and small splatters of blood, he also scowled. His “do not fuck with me” vibe was turned up to the max ,and luckily, everyone seemed to get the hint.

When he was done, he took his piled-up boxes of food back to his dorm. Despite still being tired from his ordeal, and a fight with Territ Mond, a two star mana body was a wonderful thing. He didn’t need to sleep yet, so he spent the rest of the day blessedly doing nothing. During this time, Slick and Lavinia showed Saliron around the dorm, at least he assumed so. This assumption was proven correct later on when Lavinia sent Max a quick mental note that the bone-obsessed spirit seemed to particularly enjoy the dark room.

Max decided that as soon as he got some bones, maybe he could throw some in a corner of th dark room to keep the eccentric warlord-rank spirit happy.

When sleep finally came, it came hard.

Bliss.

It felt wonderful to sleep in a real bed again.

After waking up, Max immediately fell back into his old habits, training and working on his various Paths. He’d discovered that meditation was helpful for the Summoner Path, so he devoted the first half-hour of the morning, while he was waking up, to thinking about everything he had learned about spirits. He pondered his own spirits in particular.

This meditation time also allowed him to recall everything he’d learned about spirits so far. Max’s perspective on the Summoner path was that a great deal of how strong a Summoner could be, their potential, was at least partially based on their ability to understand spirits.

It could actually be mentally taxing trying to put himself in the shoes of a spirit like Saliron, though.

When he was done with his meditation, he felt accomplished, ready for the day. This entire turn of events also made him realize how much time he could save in the Quartet if he stopped going to the cafeteria for every meal.

He looked at his current account balance and grinned. Even after burning through so many mana units in the dungeon, the rewards had been astronomical. Max had made more units than he had initially gone in with and was currently sitting on a substantial amount.

He had plenty of money for food, especially if the two school headmasters he had been dealing with followed through on their agreement. As if she could sense his thoughts, Lavinia appeared before him. "We need to talk," she said.

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Max nodded. "I knew this was coming."

He sat in one corner of his bedroom, where he had a table that he had been using as his eating area. Lavinia took a seat in mid-air, not even pretending to be substantial.

"I've been with you every step of the way, and I've heard and seen everything, so I can pretty much already grasp your thought process on this agreement to work for the Quartet," she said.

"Uh-huh," said Max. He nodded and waited for the spirit to continue.

"I've been wrestling with whether all these new developments go against anything that we agreed upon when I first formed a contract with you…and I’ve decided it doesn't."

Max nodded again.

"You don't seem surprised or showing any kind of reaction at all," Lavinia observed.

"It’s something I’ve considered. I’ve already thought about this. Do you think I would have made a decision that important without considering my relationship with my spirits, especially you? You were my very first spirit and, more importantly, you've been a guide for me as I have been navigating this new world. Of all the relationships in my life now, you are probably my most important friend."

"Oh." It could have been a trick of the light, but it almost looked like the ghost girl was blushing. "That's, uh, good to hear."

"Like I said, setbacks. I thought about the outcome of all this stuff, if it goes the way it's supposed to, and concluded the same thing you probably did. If I succeed in making a good showing at the inter-Quartet competition, it means summoners will definitely not be seen as weak anymore. Even if I'm viewed as an extreme outlier, there will always be a caveat when people in universe discuss Summoners being weak. More importantly, I plan to iterate on and improve your original summoning enhancement circle and eventually share it with other Summoners. It's way too dangerous right now, especially after my experience meeting Saliron."

This time it was Lavinia's turn to nod. "That's true. A weaker summoner, or just even a weaker person–like maybe your friend Lance–would have likely been destroyed."

"My thoughts exactly," said Max. "I haven't forgotten anything from our contract. So you know what else I haven't forgotten? You promised that you were going to share secrets with me after I upheld some part of our bargain. And I have definitely done so. If there's one thing I feel like I'm lacking right now, other than power, it's information."

Lavinia sighed. "I will admit I have been thinking about that too, and you're right. However, some of the secrets I have to share are not only mine. There are certain preparations I need to make before I can tell you, or maybe show you."

"I have no idea what that means, but keep me posted," said Max. “So I think we understand each other.”

"It does seem to be that way. I should probably just never doubt you again, huh?"

"That would probably be a fair bet." Max smiled at Lavinia as she faded from sight. After she was gone, he said to the open air, "But that doesn't mean you can spy on me in the shower again."

"I never did that," said a whispered voice in his ear, and he felt an invisible hand gently push the side of his head.

Max grinned. "Whatever. We both know the real score."

He snorted. There were pros and cons of being a Summoner. It took some getting used to, the idea that he was never really going to be alone again. But there were advantages, too. He wouldn’t ever have to keep his own council again, not really.

No wonder spirits were so picky about who they contracted with. If a Summoner and spirit had a bad relationship, it’d likely be awful for both of them.

Max felt like he’d just had a decent insight, so he cat down to meditate for a few minutes. Enlightenment was just on the tip of his mind, but it eluded him. The sensation was sort of like needing to sneeze and then not being able to.

He shrugged and got up, deciding to move his body. A bit of exercise might be good to let him think, too. He put his swords through their paces, contemplating what kind of blade he wanted to get from the weapon stores in the central area if and when he heard back from Mong Hao Han. As for the other freebie, either armor or gear, he already had a pretty good idea of what he was going to be searching for.