"Poro? Is that its na? Such a cute na!" Mira's eyes sparkled as she looked at the furry little creature with delight.
Rhodes also thought Poro was cute, but... what's the point of just being cute?
What he wanted was a powerful, formidable, unstoppable summon!
With a sigh, Rhodes lifted Poro up and stared directly into its round black eyes, searching for even a hint of combat potential.
Can this thing even fight?
In response, Poro happily stuck out its oversized pink tongue and lunged forward—going straight for Rhodes' face!
With quick reflexes, Rhodes dodged, narrowly avoiding the sloppy "face-washing" service.
Makarov stroked his beard. "Do you recognize this creature? Does it have any special abilities?"
"It's called a Poro, and it cos from a very cold place," Rhodes explained, recalling what he knew.
"As for abilities..." He thought for a mont.
"It eats. A lot. If it eats enough, it grows bigger. If it eats too much... it explodes. Other than that, it can... uh, look adorable?"
Mira clapped her hands. "Wow! That sounds like an amazing summoned creature!"
Rhodes drooped like a deflated balloon. "Ah, thanks for the encouragent."
Makarov chuckled. "I see, so it's more of an ornantal creature? Don't be discouraged! Even among Celestial Spirits, so are purely for companionship—like Nikora, the Canis Minor."
"Besides, having a cute summon like this isn't a bad thing, is it?"
As if sensing Rhodes' disappointnt, Poro's tiny curved horns drooped, and its big tongue retracted, making it look like a pitiful, abandoned puppy.
Rhodes let out a sigh and scratched Poro's fluffy chin. "Well... I guess I'll just treat it as a pet."
"Wooo~" Poro let out a contented trill, rubbing against Rhodes' palm with its fuzzy little body.
Its horns perked back up, and its big round eyes sparkled once again.
Rhodes, still feeling a little defeated, absentmindedly pinched Poro's horns, fluffed its fur, and rubbed its soft, heart-shaped belly.
'Okay, maybe it wasn't so bad.'
Poro, completely relaxed, flopped onto the counter, tongue lolling to the side in bliss.
"It looks like a little lamb, but its personality is more like a puppy," Mira giggled. She picked up a small slice of apple from a nearby plate. "Do you want a snack?"
Poro's ears twitched instantly.
Before Rhodes could react, the little creature flipped itself over and launched toward Mira's outstretched hand like a fluffy bullet.
Its flexibility was astonishing.
Rhodes watched in disbelief.
'Does this thing even recognize people, or does it only recognize food?!'
Makarov cleared his throat, drawing Rhodes' attention back to him.
"Regardless of Poro's strength, I want you to focus on sothing else." He looked at Rhodes with a knowing gaze.
"When you opened the summoning gate just now, did you feel sothing draining from your body?"
Rhodes blinked, processing the question.
"Now that you ntion it... yeah, I think I did."
Makarov nodded. "That was your magic power being used."
"In general, when a Celestial Spirit Mage opens a gate, they also need to use magic power to maintain their summon's existence."
"I imagine it's the sa for you."
Makarov nodded in approval. "Now, ditate using the thod I taught you. Focus on the magic slowly flowing out of your body. Find its source, observe it carefully, and see the true nature of your own power."
"Got it!"
Rhodes sat down on the spot, closing his eyes as instructed. He took a deep breath, allowing himself to concentrate on the faint sensation of magic trickling away from his body.
Slowly, the bustling noise of the guild faded into the background.
The cheerful sounds of Mira laughing and Poro's playful chirps grew distant.
The world around him beca silent.
And then—
Rhodes suddenly saw himself sitting cross-legged in a vast, endless darkness.
Around him, faint wisps of blue light flickered like mist, swirling gently in the air.
A little further out, he noticed a thin, glowing thread of the sa blue light extending from his body.
It drifted to the side, leading toward a familiar presence—Poro.
'So, this is the connection between a summoner and their creature.'
Intrigued, Rhodes shifted his focus inward, observing the flow of magic within himself.
Among the countless floating particles of blue light, sothing caught his eye—
A tiny swirling vortex sat at the center of his chest, slowly rotating like a miniature galaxy.
He could feel it absorbing magic from outside his body, while at the sa ti, magic was seeping out from it.
It was a continuous cycle—magic was being used and replenished at the sa ti.
Rhodes easily sensed this balance.
He could even tell how much magic was being drained to sustain Poro's presence and how quickly his body was recovering it.
If he had to put it into ga-like terms:
MP -1
MP 99
In other words, his magic recovery rate far outpaced his consumption.
The extra magic would likely go toward replenishing what he had lost when he first opened the summoning gate.
After realizing that Poro's magic consumption was practically negligible, Rhodes completely gave up any hope of it being useful in battle.
At best, it was a pet.
With that disappointnt pushed aside, Rhodes turned his focus inward once again, carefully observing the flow of magic within his body.
He began experinting—directing the tiny glowing specks of magic, trying to control their movent.
It felt a little awkward at first, like learning to move a new limb, but—it worked.
Slowly, he guided the glowing strands of energy, shifting them at will.
Back in the Real World.
As Rhodes manipulated his magic, a subtle phenonon occurred.
His hair swayed gently, as if an invisible breeze was passing through it, shifting from left to right.
The guild tavern was noticeably quieter than usual.
Not because it was an especially peaceful day but because Makarov was watching.
Every ti soone so much as looked like they were about to start a fight, the Guild Master would slam his palm onto their head, imdiately shutting them up.
Even Natsu and Gray (who normally fought at least three tis a day) hadn't dared to throw a single punch.
When Rhodes finally opened his eyes, he was t with Makarov's approving smile.
"Not bad."
The old man nodded in satisfaction. 'This kid had talent.'
"That's enough for today's magic training," Makarov said, stretching his arms. "Now, you should probably check on Poro."
Rhodes blinked. "Huh?"
Makarov continued, "Celestial Spirit Wizards normally have to sign a contract with their summoned beings and build a good relationship with them. For you—" he chuckled, "—you'll have to figure it out yourself."
"Understood. Thanks, Master."
Rhodes stood up, instinctively looking toward Mira—only to realize that Poro wasn't with her anymore.
Mira smiled and gestured across the room. "Over there."
Rhodes turned to look and imdiately lost all confidence in his own social skills.
It had barely been an hour, and yet Poro had already made more friends than he had.
The little creature bounced between tables, wagging its pink tongue as it brushed against people's legs, its soft, fluffy body rubbing affectionately against anyone who gave it attention.
Whenever soone picked it up, Poro would imdiately snuggle into their arms, blinking big, round puppy-dog eyes at the food on their table.
A clear, shaless plea for snacks.
Rhodes watched, completely dumbfounded.
The most shocking thing about this little guy wasn't just how adorable he was, it was how ruthless he was when it ca to food.
The mont he got a treat, he would imdiately scurry away, completely abandoning the person who fed him and heading straight for his next target.
Like a fluffy little con artist, he mastered the art of looking cute and collecting snacks in record ti.
Within minutes, almost everyone in the guild knew about this strange, round creature.
But only a few—thanks to Mira and Laki's introductions actually rembered the na of its owner.
Rhodes sighed and waved his hand.
Poro imdiately turned and sprinted toward him, only to trip over his own legs, tumbling like a fluffy ball of yarn before rolling straight to Rhodes' feet.
Instead of getting up, he simply flopped onto his back and exposed his belly, his pleading eyes saying:
"Rub ."
Rhodes helplessly rubbed the soft, heart-shaped fur on his belly again before picking him up and placing him on the counter.
"Can you understand ?" he asked.
"Woo woo woo~!" Poro tilted his head and made a valiant effort to nod.
Rhodes continued, "Do we need to sign so kind of contract?"
Poro shook his head so vigorously that he nearly fell off the counter.
Rhodes hesitated. "If you go back to where you ca from, will I still be able to summon you next ti? There were a ton of Poros in the Howling Abyss, right?"
At this, Poro nodded. Then he shook his head.
Then he tilted his head with a pleading look that scread: Please don't send back!
Rhodes hesitated for a mont before making a guess.
"You will be the one I summon next ti... but you don't want to go back?"
Poro's tiny horns perked up, his tail wagging furiously.
Rhodes turned to Makarov, looking slightly unsure.
Makarov chuckled. "As long as your magic can sustain it, and both of you agree, you can keep him here as long as you like."
"However," he added with a small smile, "if he starts interfering with your ability to summon more creatures, you might have to send him back."
Rhodes nodded. "Alright. If you want to stay here, then you can."
Poro let out an excited squeak and happily spun around in circles.
Mira leaned in and smiled.
"Why don't you give him a proper na?"
Rhodes blinked. "But... his na is Poro."
Mira giggled. "But isn't Poro just a general term? Like calling sothing Dog or Cat? He needs a na that's special to him!"
Poro looked up expectantly, tail wagging eagerly.
Rhodes scratched his cheek. "Uh... I'm really bad at naming things."
He stared at the fluffy little ball, thinking hard.
"How about... Snowball?"
Poro's horns drooped.
"Puff?"
No reaction.
"Uhh... Fluffball?"
Poro let out a small whimper.
"Dumpling?"
The little creature looked absolutely betrayed.
Rhodes scratched his head, turning desperately to Makarov and Mira.
"Uh... Any suggestions?"
"How about calling him Warm?"
Reviews
All reviews (0)