"There's one more thing about Luminita..." the Master said, placing a white stone in the corner of the board.

"Give up on becoming a Hoshiwatari. It's not feasible for her."

Libel responded with his next move. "You've already learned about the five major abilities of Phasmanicus at the academy, haven't you?"

"Yes... Transmitting, Receiving, Enhancement, Phenomenon, and Borrowing."

"Exactly. The most important of these is Receiving. If you can't perceive the existence of spirits, you can't interact with them or protect yourself from their dangers. From my perspective, you siblings are particularly weak in Receiving. Especially Luminita—it's hopeless. Before you even think about using Phasmanicus, you should consider how to live in Plato. But..." The game continued steadily.

"To tell you the truth, there aren't many people who are good at Phasmanicus these days. In ancient Almatria, Phasmanicus was far more powerful than it is now. But humanity has almost lost it twice. About 1,700 years ago during the Great Confluence War and 50 years ago after the Almatrian Union War. It's said that humans tried to use Phasmanicus as a weapon of war. They suffered severe backlash from the spirits. Nowadays, we barely manage to interact with them using tools and rituals. Will humanity ever regain Phasmanicus? Perhaps, perhaps not. We all have to think about how to live."

"Do you mean to live within our means?"

As soon as he said it, Libel realised he had let his dark feelings slip out and apologised, "Sorry."

"It's important to accept the reality. But this is just my opinion as a teacher of Phasmanicus." The game was nearing its end, and they were in the final stage of arranging their territories and deciding the winner. "And this is my opinion as a friend living in the same village… No one really knows what's right. So, Libel, you should be the one to believe in her."

---

The cold air grew even more intense, and Libel's fingers began to tremble. He realised they had little time left.

"Thank you, Libel. I'll try one more time," Luminita said, as she took off her backpack and tried to take out the censer and tools. Libel stopped her hand. He then pulled her close and wrapped her in a blanket. At the same time, he quickly reviewed all the knowledge he had learned from Master and the academy. Many people struggle with Receiving in Phasmanicus. Those people use external help to compensate for their weakness. The important factors are tools, location, and mindset…

Libel recalled the old woman Mara and the Fenton couple he had seen in Alderwick. Keeping the river clean, worshipping at the shrine daily, the emotions they held… it was 'respect.' Could it be possible to achieve something by showing respect? Humanity nearly lost Phasmanicus due to two great wars. Because we used spirits for destruction, spirits came to hate and curse humans. After all, we were nearly torn apart by a tornado and nearly froze to death in the forest. The relationship between humans and spirits has entered a new era. By showing respect, we can 'achieve' something… to 'use' spirits more effectively as tools! Even if it is only for show!

"Libel, you know…" Luminita's soft voice brought Libel back to reality. "I want to become friends with the spirits. To sing together, draw pictures, chat... To eat the lunch made by Hestel under the cherry blossoms in spring, while Clara keeps drawing pictures, and you, Libel, read a book and take a nap. Listening to the sound of the flowing wind and being captivated by the dancing petals. Then we travel, experiencing the beautiful scenery of the world and the kindness of people. Sharing those memories with everyone. If that happens…”

Luminita touched Libel's cheek, then stretched his cheeks with her cold fingers. "If that happens, you won't have to make such a scary face, and we can laugh together more, right?" Luminita looked into Libel's eyes and smiled. It was a beautiful smile, like a flower blooming in the winter night sky, Libel thought. Her kindness painted over his dark and guilty feelings with warm colours, like watercolours spreading in water.

Luminita closed her eyes and started singing something. It was a whale song, one she had sung since they were in the orphanage.

In the biting cold, the moment Libel heard that song, he felt a strange warmth. After feeling like he was floating in the air, Libel slowly landed on the ground. It was a strange sensation, as if it had lasted a moment or a few minutes. A soft warmth spread to his fingertips.

Luminita had already finished singing. As Libel lowered the blanket that had wrapped her and tried to fix her messy hair, he noticed something at her feet. "Luminita… come here slowly."

Luminita tilted her head. Libel quietly moved his hand behind his belt and grasped the handle of the knife stored there. He wasn't sure if it would be effective, but it was better than nothing. "Libel?" "Come here."

It looked like a small creature, hiding its yellow head against Luminita's foot and swinging its green beak-like feature from side to side. It resembled a bipedal bird. Surprised by the creature he had never seen before, Libel raised the lantern he was holding to examine it and witnessed a bizarre scene.

Something slithering with vine-like whips, crawling around with a glossy, tubular body. An orange, rough spherical body with short limbs running around. A white cylindrical shape, about the same height as Luminita, moving side to side while spinning. Unidentifiable beings that could neither be classified as creatures nor objects surrounded them.

There were more than just a few. Even with just a visual count, there were more than ten of these 'things' of various sizes encircling Libel and Luminita. They were already surrounded.

Libel advanced slowly, ready to draw the knife in his hand at any moment.

At that moment, a giant white cylinder approached Luminita. There was a horizontal slit at the top. It was a mouth, about to attack Luminita. Libel hesitated and then rushed forward to draw his knife, but in that moment.

"Libel, wait! This child is trying to communicate something." Luminita leaned her ear close to the slit in the cylindrical shape, which seemed to be a mouth. "Look, come here and listen!"

Stunned by her actions, Libel froze. As Luminita pulled him closer, he heard something muttering from the slit in the white object. He barely made out the word "rain," but couldn't form a clear sentence in his mind.

"Here, too!" Luminita squatted down and brought her face close to a cylindrical creature entangled around her feet. "Luminita, it's dangerous! We don't know what these things are, let's leave immediately." "Don't be afraid, look."

When Libel tried to grab the creature entangling Luminita, she stroked its side with her fingers. The creature wiggled its body and waved its tendrils up and down. It indeed looked like a small animal enjoying being petted.

As Libel stood speechless with shock, an orange sphere running around nearby approached his feet. It moved its disproportionately short limbs vigorously and circled around Libel. Its movement resembled a sheepdog herding sheep.

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Upon closer inspection, the other creatures also seemed to be running around, dancing wildly, and making nonsensical movements without showing any signs of harming Luminita. At some point, the sphere came close to Libel and patted his foot with its short hand.

"But... what on earth is this..." "That child says it's hungry," Luminita said, patting the orange sphere on the head. "Can you understand them?" "Yes, sort of… this one says it's cold." The orange sphere rubbed its body against the ground in response to Luminita's words, as if trying to burrow into the earth. "What does the beak-like one over there say?" Pointing at the green bird-like creature, he asked. "That one says… something is flowing. Maybe it's talking about the soil." "And the bird-like creature perched on the tree?" "That one… I don't know. Maybe because it's far away. It's just staring at us."

A graceful bird with snow-white plumage was watching them from the tree. Its gaze seemed intelligent.

Realising that these creatures were unlikely to cause harm, Libel gradually calmed

down. "Could they be spirits?" Luminita said excitedly. Libel had also considered the possibility. However, none of the sketches he had seen in the academy or literature resembled these beings.

Libel took a deep breath and looked around again, confirming the beings gathered there. There was one with a green body, a green beak, and a yellow head. There was one with an orange, round body and short limbs. There was one with a white, towering body moving slowly. There was one with a tubular body and vine-like appendages...

"Libel, these children seem to be in trouble. Let's listen to what they have to say." A green vine-like creature was tugging at Luminita's clothing. The orange sphere was spreading its short limbs wide, making gestures. As her words, Libel certainly begun to look like him sighing and saying, "oh dear."

As Libel's understanding of the beings in the around there, memories of the tornado they encountered when they were children with their siblings flashed in his mind. Flying pieces of iron, rusted swords, unseen forces... He still occasionally had nightmares about it. Cold sweat ran down his forehead.

When Libel's resolve started to waver, the surroundings gradually brightened. The clouds covering the night sky drifted, and the moon began to appear. Under the moonlight, it became clear that there were more beings than they had initially thought.

Besides those around Luminita's feet, there were others further away, looking at them with concern. They varied in size; some were knee-high green beaks, while others were small orange spheres the size of a palm, seemingly playing tag. Taller green cylindrical ones, reaching up to the height of their waists, gathered in groups, shivering. Libel was taken aback by the mystical scene.

When Libel glanced at Luminita, she also seemed captivated by the moonlit scenery. Her pale green eyes shone with wonder and reverence for the unknown, filled with bright hope for the beauty of the world.

Taking a deep breath, Libel looked at the beings again. He noticed a pair of white giant beings. One taller than Libel and another shorter than Luminita, huddled together, looking at them. They had cylindrical bodies with limbs sprouting from them. They seemed to be the same kind as the one that had first approached Luminita. Upon closer inspection, the larger white being seemed to be protecting the smaller one, holding hands tightly.

And its hands were tightly linked together, just like the scene he saw one day.

Libel made up her mind and locked eyes with Luminita. Siblings exchanged glances and slowly nodded.

---

"Luminita, welcome back. Let me see your safe face first." Elder Seron said in a slow yet resonant voice. It was said he was at least over 90 years old, but most of the residents of Alderwick didn't know his exact age.

"Thank you, Grandfather," Luminita said, kneeling before the elder and bowing respectfully. Then she took Seron's hand and placed it on her cheek. Libel did the same. Seron gently embraced the two. A nostalgic scent, reminiscent of willow, faintly lingered.

A day and a half had already passed since Luminita's rite at the Fourfold Grove. Luminita and Libel, having returned to Alderwick after completing the rite, visited Seron's house to report the details.

"Children, I heard you witnessed something extraordinary. I apologise for not noticing the danger," the elder said, turning to Luminita and Libel. It was said that Seron had almost entirely lost his vision. However, his grey eyes seemed to see through their hearts. "I'm truly glad you're unharmed. I've heard the general story. Could you provide the details?"

"Of course, Grandfather," Luminita said, straightening her collar and recounting the events at the Fourfold Grove.

"Most likely, they are forest spirits..." Master murmured as the report touched on the beings encountered in the forest. "Their appearance..." The words were picked up by a tall, thin man with a pale face. Wearing an embroidered cloak rarely seen in Alderwick, a moon-shaped pattern could be seen on the back of his left hand. His sharp eyes exuded a cunning rather than an intelligent gleam, giving off an unapproachable aura.

Noticing Luminita's curious gaze, the man slightly raised the corner of his mouth and nodded. "My name is Silas, young lady. I have been under Elder Seron's care since a few days ago. To put it simply, the spirits we know generally fall into three categories. Those that resemble humans, those that resemble wild animals, and those with characteristics of both. The appearance of the beings you encountered seems to differ from any of these. If your story is true, that is."

"That's based on Dionysus' 'Encyclopedia of Spirits,' right? It's almost 30 years old, and there's criticism that the survey records are biased towards the spirits of Plato," Master countered.

"Indeed, a typical opinion from a Phasmanicusian of Vernal. Have there been any reports or records of similar spirits found in the same ruins?"

"...None," Master said without meeting Silas's eyes.

"Discovering unknown spirits. This is astonishing. Young lady, you must be a very talented Phasmanicusian."

"Eh... thank you," Luminita blushed, not realising Silas's sarcasm.

"What differences did you notice compared to the spirits you've seen before?" Silas asked.

"I... have never seen a spirit before. Not even once."

"Not even once? Then why do you believe the beings you encountered in the forest were spirits?"

"Well, they were round and cute, just like the spirits I imagined," Luminita said.

Silas showed a moment of surprise, then burst out laughing.

"The report is about that," Libel interjected, and Silas looked at him appraisingly. Elder Seron calmed the situation, "Everyone, please settle down," and then prompted Libel to continue.

"The beings that appeared at the Fourfold Grove, we believe they are four different types but one spirit."

Silas refocused on Libel and quietly said, "Interesting."

"Luminita was the one who communicated with the spirits at the ruins. But I will report to provide an objective account. The beings we encountered at the ruins indeed had unusual appearances. Like Luminita, I also have difficulty perceiving spirits. However, I can read existing materials and records. In my research, I found no records of beings similar to the ones we encountered (I have read Dionysus's 'Encyclopedia of Spirits'). So, with Master's help, I reviewed folk tale studies from Vernal. We found similar beings. They are called 'Yokai,' spirits from Vernal."

"Even if these spirits are from Vernal, why would spirits from another country appear in Plato? Most spirits are local and tied to the land. Natural phenomena, plants, animals, and minerals give birth to spirits."

"Historically, Vernal has close ties with our country. As you know, about 250 years ago, during the 'Cherry Blossom Round Table' trade talks, over 200 cherry trees were gifted to our country by Vernal. Several dozen of these trees were planted in Alderwick, and they bloom beautifully every spring. If spirits are tied to the 'land,' it wouldn't be surprising for Vernal spirits to appear here, where Vernal plants have taken root."

Seeing the personality on Silas, Libel intentionally referred to Plato as 'our country.' To effect, Silas remained silent, listening to Libel's explanation.

"If the beings that appeared at the ruins are Vernal spirits, there must be natural phenomena or objects that gave birth to them. Let’s review their physical characteristics. Despite their varied sizes, they can be categorised into four types. Yellow heads with green beaks, vine-like whips on tubular bodies, orange spheres, and giant white cylinders."

"They sound like monsters," Silas said, pressing his forehead.

When Libel glanced at Luminita, she nodded and continued.

"They are not. If you look closely, they are very cute. They move their little hands and feet energetically... They are not scary. They are the plants we often see. With the spirits' permission, we took them from the forest in the ruins. They were few in number due to the season."

Luminita took out a flower from her bag. A white flower with a vibrant yellow corona in the centre. Its small petals were protected by sturdy green leaves standing tall. It was a daffodil.

"The yellow-headed green-beaked bird is a daffodil spirit. The green vine-like one is a cucumber spirit, the orange round one is a pumpkin, and the big white one is a turnip. They are born from these flowers and vegetables."

No one immediately responded to Luminita's words. Everyone's eyes were on the flower she held.

"Daffodil, cucumber, pumpkin, turnip, these are all seasonal plants. So, the beings that appeared at the ruins are spirits representing the four seasons," Luminita concluded.