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Faulty Contract
Chapter 2 – Nonexistent Statistics
---
The next morning, a strange command appeared on the academy's electronic notice board:
> [Abnormal Summoning – Council-Level Inspection Required]
Rei's name (零) was framed in red.
---
The inspection chamber lay deep beneath the academy.
The ceiling was inlaid with crystals that read statistics.
The floor was a high-level magic circle designed for soul analysis.
At the center, Rei stood still.
He was not bound.
There was no need to bind him.
"Do you understand the purpose of this inspection?" a Council member asked.
"To determine my usable value."
The phrasing made several people frown.
Elias stood behind him, silently observing.
"Raise your hand."
Rei complied.
A ring of light swept across his body.
> [Analyzing biological structure…]
[Complete]
[Result: Normal]
A murmur spread.
"Normal?"
"That's impossible."
They switched to scanning the magic core.
The blue light shifted to red.
> [Magic core detected]
[Capacity level: …]
[ERROR]
[Unable to quantify]
"What does 'unable to quantify' mean?"
The system continued.
> [Summoning circle compatibility: Not applicable]
[Species classification: Not present in database]
The air grew heavier.
Elias spoke for the first time.
"The contract remains stable."
One member looked at him sharply.
"Stable does not mean safe."
---
They activated the third layer of analysis: soul reading.
The magic circle beneath Rei glowed deep violet.
Normally, souls reflected corresponding colors:
Humans — silver light.
Spirit beasts — blue.
Demons — dark red.
Rei—
Did not glow.
Nor was he dark.
Just a faint empty distortion, like static.
> [Warning: Soul data does not match standard lifeform structure]
One member whispered:
"The system does not recognize him as 'human.'"
Elias looked directly at the status panel.
"But he has a human body."
"The body does not determine classification," the other replied.
---
"Emotional response test."
A crystal projected images before Rei.
A battlefield.
A crying child.
A wounded person begging for help.
Emotional fluctuation was normally displayed through micro mana disturbances.
With Rei—
The graph line remained flat.
"It's not that he has no emotions," one mage said quietly.
"It's that there is no reaction."
Rei looked at the images.
Analyzed.
Evaluated threat level.
Found none.
Ignored.
---
"Are you afraid of death?" the Council asked.
"No."
"Are you afraid of killing someone?"
"No."
"Then what are you afraid of?"
Rei paused for one second.
"…Failing to complete a mission."
The answer left the room silent.
It was not survival instinct.
It was contract compliance.
---
Elias stepped forward.
"That's enough."
A Council member frowned.
"Are you protecting him?"
"I am protecting my contract."
The statement followed regulations.
Emotionless.
Not violating the rule of "no personal binding."
Yet the shadow beneath Elias shifted slightly.
Rei noticed.
Memorized.
---
The Council moved to a combat test within a simulated environment.
Space distorted around Rei.
Gravity tripled.
Temperature dropped sharply.
The floor tilted into a slick slope.
A normal student would collapse within seconds.
Rei dropped to one knee for a moment—
Then his body adjusted automatically.
Muscles thickened slightly.
Heartbeat stabilized.
Breathing frequency changed.
His biological readings began to… adapt.
"What is that ability?"
"No magical activation."
"No incantation."
After two minutes, Rei moved normally as if the environment were standard.
By the third minute—
He began walking against the direction of gravity.
Not because he was stronger.
Because he had calculated the optimal balance angle.
The system recorded:
> [Ability: Spatial Adaptation – Automatic]
[Classification: Beyond summoning standards]
---
When the simulation ended, a Council member spoke quietly.
"If he were thrown into a real battlefield… after three minutes he would be nearly impossible to defeat."
"Which makes him even more dangerous."
---
Finally, they attempted one last procedure.
"Proceed with contract separation."
Elias showed no outward reaction.
But the mana in the air grew heavy.
The contract dissolution circle activated.
The thread between him and Rei became clearly visible.
A mage cut into it with a blade of light.
The instant the blade touched—
The magic circle erupted with light.
Not a destructive explosion.
But a recoil.
The crystal readers all cracked simultaneously.
> [Warning: Link does not follow standard structure]
[Cannot be separated through system methods]
Elias lowered his hand.
"I told you. It's stable."
The Council fell silent.
Rei looked at the contract thread.
"Is this link mandatory?"
"Yes."
"Is it beneficial to me?"
"You are granted the right to exist within the academy."
Rei thought.
"Accepted."
Not for Elias.
Not for gratitude.
Only for survival optimization.
---
When the inspection ended, a temporary decision was issued:
> Rei (零)
Status: Special Observation
Privileges: Restricted
Contract Termination: Temporarily Impossible
---
On the way out of the chamber, Elias asked:
"Are you dissatisfied?"
"Because of the inspection?"
"Yes."
Rei shook his head.
"If I were them, I would inspect as well."
An answer so reasonable it felt cold.
Elias glanced sideways at him.
"You don't feel like you're being treated as an experimental subject?"
Rei stopped walking.
"I was originally a tool of war."
A moment of silence.
"A tool does not need recognition."
Elias's shadow stretched longer.
This time the shadow did not waver because of mana.
But because of something very small—
Something he was not allowed to keep.
---
On the hidden status panel, a new line appeared:
> Subject: Rei (零)
Soul Classification: Incompatible with the "Human" filter
Suggestion: Update system or remove subject
---
In the deepest layer of the summoning system, a piece of data began writing its own note:
> "Unknown error."
"Cannot delete."
"Monitoring."
---
And in the darkness beyond the academy's observation—
A signal had just been sent.
Something outside the standard framework had appeared.