Although she couldn't stop completely due to inertia and the lack of friction, the speed finally dropped after she adjusted the gear to first.
“What do you mean?”
Lan Qingyou turned to look at Susie.
“I mean the pattern that appears when you activate the Magic Eye skill. Like this.”
Seeing that Lan Qingyou genuinely didn't seem to understand, Susie activated her Magic Eye. Lan Qingyou watched as a white skull appeared in the other girl's crimson eyes!
And it was a simplified line drawing, no less!
“Wait, why do you have such a cool special effect?”
Lan Qingyou felt indignant.
She was the Origin Witch, the source of all witches, for goodness' sake. Why did others have cool effects while she didn't?
No! She couldn't jump to conclusions just yet.
Maybe this was a unique effect that only Susie's specific Magic Eye could produce?
After all, the Magic Eye was the Eye of Heart's Image. A thousand witches could have a thousand different eyes based on their unique thoughts.
However...
“It's not just me; every other witch has one. That's why I was curious why you didn't.”
Susie's words made Lan Qingyou's expression stiffen even more.
Curious? She was curious too, dammit.
Although she was complaining inwardly, Lan Qingyou showed nothing on her face—mostly because it was already frozen.
“Is... is that so? Maybe it's because I'm the first witch, so I'm special.”
Using her status as an excuse was nothing more than a desperate attempt to save face.
But Lan Qingyou didn't have a better explanation right now.
“How about you use it again? I was too far away to see clearly before, but I should be able to see it from this close.”
“Alright then.”
To be honest, she hadn't paid attention to this when using her Magic Eye. She had assumed her eyes turning red was the only sign.
So, Lan Qingyou used her identification on Susie.
Fortunately, her stats were average for a witch, though her constitution was slightly higher.
But considering she worked with poison, she must have tested plenty of toxins on herself. A higher constitution made sense.
Otherwise, she might have poisoned herself to death long ago.
“Oh! There is a pattern!” Susie exclaimed after staring intently into Lan Qingyou's eyes.
“Huh? What is it?” Hearing she had one too, Lan Qingyou perked up immediately, losing interest in studying Susie's attributes.
“It's very faint, like another eye forming right in the center of your pupil.” Susie leaned in, squinting her eyes as she observed closely.
“Like an eye?”
“Yes, a very simple line drawing. And it's vertical. Very unique.”
An eye, a line drawing, vertical.
Lan Qingyou suddenly thought of something. She took out a pen and paper and sketched a pattern.
“You don't mean something like this, do you?” After finishing the drawing, she held it up for Susie.
“Yes, yes, exactly like that!” Susie nodded immediately, though she couldn't help but feel a bit confused.
“That's strange. Didn't you say you didn't know? How did you draw it then?”
“This? It's essentially like a personal identifier.” Seeing her confusion, Lan Qingyou realized the crux of the matter.
“By the way, judging by your reaction, you haven't received the Familiar Contract magic circle yet.”
“Familiar Contract magic circle?”
“Yes. It's a supportive magic circle I developed for witches. It allows a witch to form a contract with a monster.”
As she spoke, Lan Qingyou produced four rolled-up pieces of monster hide.
Susie opened them. Good heavens, it was more knowledge she hadn't learned yet.
Although she knew about magic circles—the Supreme Council had sent transcribed versions—Susie felt she hadn't even reached the 'vaguely knowledgeable' level in alchemy yet, so she hadn't touched them.
Golems, magic circles, alchemy... this Origin Witch really knew her stuff.
“Actually, you should try learning magic circles. After all, an alchemy circle is a type of magic circle. Understanding them will help with your potion-making and other tasks.”
“...”
She hadn't even mastered alchemy yet, and now she was told to learn magic circles too? And that it would help with potion-making?
Susie didn't want to study, she really didn't.
But truth be told, magic circles and alchemy circles were indeed very similar.
“So, you're saying an alchemist with experience in drawing alchemy circles would find learning magic circles much easier?” Susie found a very specific angle.
And her choice of words was deliberate. She didn't say “witch,” but “alchemist.”
“You could say that. However, since the Witch race has a skill correction for alchemy, we might be a bit faster than other alchemists.”
“Furthermore, magic circles are divided into attack, defense, and support types. Learning them is a way to improve and protect yourself.” Lan Qingyou nodded.
Having said all that, Susie naturally understood.
Magic circles represented a boost in strength for the entire Witch race, so learning them was mandatory.
“And this? Does it also increase a witch's strength?” Susie raised the monster hide in her hand.
“Yes. You can take a monster you like or one that has good compatibility, place it on the magic circle, and activate it with mana. This will force a contract, making it your familiar.”
“Won't it attack me?” Susie was startled.
“That's why you need to find juveniles. Who would try this on an adult?”
“Besides, once the contract is signed, you'll be heart-to-heart with your familiar. While they can't speak, you'll be able to vaguely understand their general meaning.”
“This mark will appear on the familiar's head after the contract is established. Mine is an eye; if I'm not mistaken, yours should be a skull.” Lan Qingyou gave her a look and continued her explanation.
“Can a witch sign with multiple familiars?”
“Yes, but it's very taxing. My two familiars consume about two-thirds of my mana pool.”
“Is it a one-time cost?”
“A one-time cost.”
“But don't be greedy. Every familiar adds a burden to your spirit.” Worried that Susie might want to sign many familiars, Lan Qingyou felt she had to give a warning.
“I see. I basically understand now.” Susie nodded.
Now, Susie fully understood what familiars were.
Based on Lan Qingyou's explanation, familiars were essentially a type of support. While one could choose an attack-type monster as a familiar, Susie felt that would be a waste.
Of course, finding one that could do both attack and support seemed like a good idea.
Furthermore, if raised from a young age, it seemed like they could be taught many things.
It was the same principle as training a dog.
While other monsters weren't Blue Star dogs, the metaphysical connection of being heart-to-heart made such training possible.
In fact, Susie already had her own ideas about what kind of familiar she wanted.
Rate on N.U.
