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Dinnertime.
Shika, who was reading some manga while relaxing on a chair, heard a knock on the door.
“Please enter.”
Rather than the maid whom she expected, the person who entered was a handsome boy.
Seiji smiled. “Shika-chan, I’m here to eat dinner together with you.”
Shika paused in surprise for a moment, before a smile slowly bloomed on her face.
“Thank you…”
“There’s nothing to thank me for; I just wanted to eat together with you.”
Seiji brought two trays of food over and placed them on the table.
“I… haven’t eaten together with anyone for a terribly long time,” she informed him in a soft voice.
Seiji’s hands paused in midair upon hearing this.
“That’s why… thank you,” Shika said, gazing directly into his eyes.
Seiji turned around and patted her on the head.
“I’ve received your gratitude, but starting from next time, there’s no need to thank me anymore. We’ll be eating together quite often in the future.”
Seiji retracted his hand and smiled warmly at her after patting her twice on the head.
“Okay…” Shika nodded as an indescribable light flashed through her eyes.
Their dinner was emitting an appetizing aroma.
They sat diagonally across from each other and began enjoying their succulent meals.
Seiji watched her as he ate.
Shika took tiny bites and ate slowly, giving him the impression that she was a small animal.
Shika blinked and returned his gaze when she noticed him watching her.
‘How cute…’
Seiji couldn’t help but recall the way she ate during her bout of amnesia. While she also took tiny bites, she ate quickly with a sparkle in her eyes.
Which of the two was cuter if he did a comparison?
Both were really cute!
*Ding!* Sis-con rating increased by 5 points.
Seiji imagined hearing such a sound in his mind.
“Brother Seiji, what’s the matter?”
“Nothing… I just felt that the way you ate is really cute.” A trace of red crept into Shika’s face upon hearing this. “Brother Seiji… you look really cool when you eat as well.”
Seiji was rendered speechless at this unintentional comeback.
He suddenly realized how embarrassing it sounded!
Why did it feel so embarrassing when the target being praised was switched to him!?
He had only felt it was a normal exclamation when he was talking about her… Was what he said actually something so embarrassing after all?
Seiji’s face also reddened.
Shika was still looking directly at him.
Unable to take it, Seiji averted his gaze.
Shika continued to look directly at him.
“Er… why do you keep looking at me? Eat! Let’s eat!” Seiji panicked a little as he lowered his head and focused on chowing down.
Shika’s mouth arced upwards as she finally stopped gazing at him and lowered her head to eat as well.
After a period of silence.
“Shika-chan,” Seiji started, “do you know how to increase Spiritual Power?”
Shika’s movements paused for a brief moment.
“Yes, I know… why do you ask?”
“Do I even need to say it? Of course it’s because I want to increase my strength and become a Yin Yang Master,” Seiji stated calmly.
‘I will become strong’ was what he promised her.
Shika blinked in realization. ‘I see. He’s… already beginning to work hard for his goal.’
“Increasing Spiritual Power… The most basic and most common method to increase Spiritual Power is called ‘Visualization,’” Shika said in a soft voice.
[Visualization]! Excellent, the first question was right on the mark.
“What is ‘Visualization?’”
“To explain it roughly, it means observing and imagining. In Visualization, you must observe a ‘Spirit Image’ and imagine it wholeheartedly. If it’s done properly, your consciousness will temporarily reside within the image and experience it.”
“What’s a ‘Spirit Image?’”
“It’s an image that’s drawn using Spiritual Power. There are various images used for cultivation, used in casting spells, and also spell formations…”
“For ‘Visualization,’ it would have to be a cultivation-type Spirit Image; do you happen to have one?”
“Yes, only one… They’re considered really valuable.”
“Oh…” Seiji took another bite of food.
A valuable cultivation tool… Shika obviously wouldn’t carry it around with her.
“I was thinking that I could borrow one from President Yoruhana and attempt cultivating… Er, will it use up the Spirit Image if I cultivate with it?”
Shika shook her head. “No, Spirit Images only have time limits on when they expire, but they won’t be used up.”
“So it doesn’t matter if it’s used or not, as it will become ineffective once it reaches its use-by date?”
“Yes.”
“Then I won’t feel bad about borrowing one.” Seiji continued shoveling food into his mouth. “Oh, right, about Mana… just what is the difference between Spiritual Power and Mana? I only know that Yin Yang Masters also require Mana…”
Shika seemed to consider the question he posed.
“To use an analogy, Spiritual Power is like a bowl.” She pointed to her own food bowl after thinking about it. “And Mana is like rice. In order to contain rice, you need a bowl. The larger the bowl, the more rice it can contain, but the amount of rice in each bowl is different for each person.”
“For two identical bowls, some people have more rice, while some people have less. If a small bowl has enough rice in it, it can equal a large bowl that doesn’t have much rice in it…”
“The normal situation is that larger bowls have more rice, and smaller bowls have less rice.”
Seiji attentively listened to her analogy.
It didn’t seem too difficult to understand, at least in his mind.
Spiritual Power was like a vessel, while Mana was the substance which filled the vessel. The vessel itself determined the maximum storage capacity, but not everyone would reach their maximum capacity. There would be those with high Spiritual Power but low Mana.
Usually people with higher Spiritual Power would possess a larger amount of Mana.
Seiji made an educated guess. “To cast spells, it costs rice to cast them… whoops, Mana, right? And Spiritual Power won’t be used up… and the stronger your Spiritual Power is, the faster your Mana will regenerate, is that right?”
Shika nodded in response.
It seemed that his guess was correct, so his understanding of it must be correct as well.
“Spiritual Power is the foundation that must be raised first, and mana must be raised as well… so how do I increase my Mana?”
“You have to wear a ‘Mana Cultivation Outfit’ and perform a ‘ritual.’”
Yep, he heard some vocabulary words that he wanted to hear again.
“‘Mana Cultivation Outfit’ seems like it’s really easy to understand. It’s just like it sounds: a special outfit which helps you cultivate, right?”
Shika nodded again.
“Are they also as valuable as Spirit Images?”
Another nod.
“Will it be used up after a ritual?”
Yet another nod.
“This seems like it will be more difficult to borrow.” Seiji rubbed his chin. “What does the ritual involve, then?”
“It’s… actions, breathing, incantations, spirit… everything combined.” Shika seemed to think of something as she put down her chopsticks and suddenly stood up. “It’s difficult to describe, so let me show you.”
After walking a moderate distance away from the table, she stood up straight, turned her palms upwards, placed them in front of her, and closed her eyes.
Seiji was instantly able to detect a change in the atmosphere.
It almost felt as if something invisible was gathering here.
Was it… the Mana present in the environment?
Before he could finish his thoughts, Shika began her movements.
Her hands began moving about in seemingly gentle yet steady movements… it gave Seiji the impression of shadowboxing.
“Ee—” A sonorous sound came out of her mouth. “La—So—La—Yo—”
The words didn’t seem to have any particular meaning; they were just musical notes that were connected together by tones.
In combination with her hand movements, this definitely seemed ritualistic.
Her feet began moving as well.
Again, her feet were moving in light yet steady movements. It was akin to a dance.
Her hands and feet kept waving and weaving as she sang her mysterious incantation. It seemed like she was both dancing and practicing martial arts at the same time.
The feeling of something invisible coalescing in the air became even stronger.
Shika was at the eye of the storm.
Seiji slowly started to get absorbed in her performance.
So beautiful…
It wasn’t a dance, yet it resembled one… Watching such a mysterious performance by a beauty like Shika was a type of enjoyment in and of itself!
Finally, Shika stopped her steps, drew a circle with her hands in midair, exhaled lightly, inhaled, and her breathing returned to its normal rhythm.
She opened her eyes and looked back at Seiji.
What she saw was his smile as he began applauding.
“So this is a ritual… it seems so beautiful when you perform it, Shika-chan!” Seiji praised her sincerely.
Shika’s face turned red once again at hearing this.
Even redder than before.