Memories of an Unexpected Alliance

"Master, must you wake me nearly each night? It's quite tiring, you know," Complained a voice.

"Don't start again, I've told you many times before, it's your choice to sleep here, and you know well and good how my nights are likely to go," I replied with a sigh.

"It's still irritating getting woken up, and you know I sleep best if I'm close to you, Master," the voice retorted.

"I won't deny that I appreciate your company, but you're always complaining during my distress," I said, trying to reason.

"And I always end up being the one to comfort you right afterward," The voice added.

I glanced down at my feet in the dark room, the faint moonlight seeping through the curtains. Merlin lets out a sizable yawn before standing up to stretch, he walks towards me from his preferred place to sleep, namely, next to my leg. Merlin's immaculate white-beige-black fur coat shone in the dim light, and his golden eyes stood out the most. He walked over to me and settled down on my stomach.

"You should be most grateful, Master. There aren't many Grand-Mythical beasts that would allow anything or anyone to pet them, even with a contract in place," Merlin remarked.

"Don't act all tsundere with me, Merlin. I know how much you enjoy being stroked. In just a few seconds, you can't help but purr. And could you refrain from lying on my chest? You're a little too heavy for that," I replied, teasing him.

Without responding, Merlin slid down on the bed between my right arm and my side, closing his eyes. I ran my fingers through his silky fur coat, making sure to scratch under his chin and down his mane since I knew he enjoyed it. Shortly after, he started purring softly. I stared up at the canopy of my bed, slowly drifting back to sleep, I found myself thinking about how I first came to know him.

Eight years ago, in the deep forest in late spring...

"Take that! Ha! Kyah!"

Thud, thump! Hmph!

I swung my wooden sword with determination, striking the enchanted tree in front of me.

"I won't give up and let a dumb tree like you win over me."

I gathered my strength, preparing for another strike, but the wooden sword broke upon impact.

"Tsk! This dumb wooden sword... none of them are durable enough," I muttered in frustration, throwing the broken sword onto the growing pile behind me.

Glancing at the enchanted tree, I noticed the shallow cut I had made around its trunk during the weeks since I found it. If only my wooden swords could last longer, then maybe I could make some serious progress in cutting it down.

Pulling out a fresh sword from my item box, a magical storage dimension, where its size depends on the mana capacity of the conjurer. It seemed to be common among high-class nobles to conjure an item box.

Attributes, I thought to myself as I was holding the fresh sword. The inhabitants of this world call this the “attributes box” due to their limited learning. But because of my past life I have my own name for it, the attributes “screen.”

The attributes screen shows me the swords durability, its attack power within my hands, it's overall crafted quality and the rarity of it.

I inspected the swords attributes. The wooden sword had copper rarity, but good crafted quality, and attack power that exceeded its durability limit. Like all the other swords I had used on this tree, this one would break after just a few hits too.

"It's so stupid. Why must this enchanted tree have resistances towards everything but wood?" I grumbled.

Suddenly, I heard a loud explosion in the distance. Intrigued, I swiftly and quietly made my way toward the source, hidden among the forest canopy. As I reached the open area, I saw a wide, shallow crater on the forest floor, with a seemingly lifeless animal at its center.

I cautiously surveyed my surroundings, searching for any signs of what could have caused the explosion. Finding nothing, I approached the crater to investigate the creature within. It was a feline, larger than a normal cat and not belonging to any predatory species in the forest.

"This can't be a regular cat. What is this creature doing here?" I wondered aloud.

With my guard up I slowly slide down into the crater, the feline reacting to my noises with some twitching of the legs.

“Hrrrooaaak”

I threw myself to the ground out of instinct.

“Machine gun? In this world?” I whispered to myself in disbelief.

As I was lying on the ground not far from the feline. A bird the size of a shed, with a wingspan of several meters flew above circling the crater. The bird’s shadow jolted awake the feline, who, to my surprise, spoke to me in a sharp tone.

"Human child! Why are you here?"

Too stunned to respond, I gazed at the feline, amazed that it could talk.

"Get to your senses, human! That's a shoebill bird, and like me, it's among the Grand-Mythical beasts. The danger we're in far outweighs the fact that you're talking to a cat right now," the feline warned.

The shock grew larger, knowing I was next to not one but two grand-mythical beasts, and one seemingly friendly. I shook my head realizing the words of the cat beast, I pulled out a reinforced bow from my item box. It was a gift from my father after all the regular bows I had used in training had broken. However, my arrows were only meant for training.

"Human child, even you should know those arrows can't harm a Grand-Mythical beast," the feline remarked.

"It's all I have, Mr. Cat. Unless you have some arrows hidden somewhere, this is my only option," I replied, determined to defend myself.

“It’s not Mr. Cat! I am known as Merlin, the Grand-Mythical Maine Coon.” The feline rudely introduced himself as.

"Now is not the time for name sharing." I snarked back at Merlin.

“Hrrrooaaak”

Before I knew it, the Grand-Mythical shoebill bird descended from the sky, snatching Merlin with its talons. As Merlin struggled to break free, I noticed something sparkling on the ground. I picked it up and realized it was a claw from Merlin's paw.

Thinking quickly, I check the attributes screen, it’s definitely from a grand-mythical beast with these stats. Rarity of mithril, exceptional quality, incredible damage, and durability.

I fastened the claw to one of my training arrows, nocked it onto my bowstring, and pulled it back with all my strength. The bird was in my sights, and without hesitation, I released the arrow.

"Twang!"

With incredible force, the arrow soared through the air, catching up to the Grand-Mythical shoebill. Unable to see the arrow, I anxiously watched for its impact.

"Hit, come on! Hit!" I urged silently.

The bird's altitude dropped, and it screeched in pain. Seizing the opportunity, Merlin wriggled free and fell toward the ground.

"Boom!"

Wounded, the bird fled as I rushed to where Merlin had landed. I found him lying in yet another shallow crater, motionless. Worried, I slid down into the crater, making my way closer to Merlin, I knelt beside him and placed my hand on his body, feeling a faint breath but no signs of him waking up. A fall like this, especially twice, must have been serious, even for a Grand-Mythical beast.

With my hand still placed on his body, I concentrated my magic towards my fingers. Healing magic, an uncommon and greatly sought after ability in this world. I had managed to keep this hidden from even my father, and here I am, using it on a beast best left alone.

A strong green glow appeared on each fingertip, slowly increasing in size, it looked like flowing liquid not bound to the rules of gravity. The light embraced Merlin, healing his wounds before dissipating.

I sat by Merlin's side, waiting for him to wake up. In my mind, I recalled the warnings of countless people about the dangers and unpredictability of Grand-Mythical beasts. Even so I ignore their advice to leave them be.

"Human, what is your name?" Merlin spoke gently as he regained consciousness.

"Haruki," I replied.

"Haruki, you have impressed me today. Seeing a child like you chase away a Grand-Mythical beast like that shoebill, and knowing you possess healing magic... How old are you?" Merlin asked.

"I'll turn ten in a few months, precisely on the 15th of July," I answered.

"Haruki, you saved my life today, and for that, I offer you the chance to contract with me. Do you accept?" Merlin proposed.

I recalled my teacher mentioning contracts, where humans could form bonds with creatures or beasts they captured, saved, or befriended. The method of contracting determined the relationship and commands between the contractee and the contracted. The strongest bond occurred between a saved beast or creature, as they considered their savior their master.

"Do humans often contract with Grand-Mythical beasts, Merlin? Has it ever been done before?" I inquired.

"Such contracts are rare, reserved for exceptional humans. Savior or friend contracts are the only ones that work on Grand-Mythical beasts. As my savior, I request a contract between us," Merlin explained.

"I accept, Merlin. Please contract with me," I agreed in disbelief of the events that had just unfolded.