The Summoning Ritual had ended. Zephyr was not spoken to. People were not sure of what his familiar was.
A dragon; strictly speaking, a monster, being summoned in its resting form. The dragon already has more affection towards Zephyr than summoners with their tamed beasts have had for decades.
And even now, that very dragon was resting on Zephyr's bed.
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'This dragon is definitely an anomaly,' Zephyr told himself.
The teenager had witnessed things he wished he had not. Things that scar people for lives. Things that emerged from the depths of hell itself...
And such a dragon was not something he could brush off. This dragon of his was different. From the moment he summoned it, Zephyr could feel a deep connection with it.
Not like friendship or love, this connection seemed like something from the depths of Zephyr's broken and corrupted soul. He felt like the two had known each other for years, decades... centuries even.
Zephyr, who was seated on his chair given to him by the academy for his dorm, looked back at the dragon.
The dragon was resting soundly on the bed. But as if sensing Zephyr's gaze, the dragon rose its head. Zephyr's gaze met the hypnotic gaze of the dragon.
Zephyr stood up from his chair and walked towards the dragon, his posture perfected.
"What are you?" Zephyr asked, his voice dominant and powerful.
The dragon looked at Zephyr from head to toe before a violet aura began circulating around the scales of the dragon. It rose one of its claws and pointed at Zephyr's heart with one of its long fingers.
The energy around the dragon's small figure densely concentrated on the finger of the dragon. And in a flash, a powerful ray of violet energy shot towards Zephyr.
A cloud of smoke released on impact. Zephyr emerged from the smoke, unscathed.
"Powerful, it seems." Zephyr spoke.
"Why, thank you," a voice not belonging to Zephyr rang out. "Took a bit of my energy to conjure that attack."
Zephyr looked around his dorm and then at the dragon.
"You can speak?" Zephyr asked, his voice hinting a form of amusement and dominance.
The dragon nodded its head. "Yes," the aura surrounding the dragon finally dissolved. And the tension around the room disappeared along with it.
"Pretty rare to see a monster talk," Zephyr said as he sat down on his bed beside the dragon.
"I expected you to be more amused at that fact," it spoke yet again.
Zephyr placed his head on a pillow of the bed, eyeing at the dragon.
"So what does a dragon with an intelligence as high as yours want from me?" Zephyr asked, his voice calmer.
"Simple," the dragon answered. "I want to form a blood contract with you."
With those words, a magic circle appeared on the floor. The magic circle glowed with a bright violet light, and various Mana formulas had been embedded into it.
Between the dragon and Zephyr, a golden parchment unrolled. Three sentences had been written on the parchment in bold words.
1. Neither the Summoner nor the Summon can harm each other. Both parties must work for each other's wellbeing.
2. If one of the two parties faces death, the other one will be able to revive the deceased party at the cost of a large quantity of Mana.
3. If both parties agree to it, the two may pilot each other's physical bodies.
"Not only can you speak, but you can also form blood contract on your own?" Zephyr said as he read through the description.
"Do not worry, this is from grand magic. The spell is far more powerful than those humans cast." The dragon replied.
Zephyr bit his own finger and left a print of his finger on the parchment. The parchment turned to the dragon on its own.
The dragon used one of its claws to cut open it's other paw. It placed its hand on the parchment and left its own blood on the parchment, sealing the deal.
The parchment and magic circle disappeared shortly after and Zephyr could feel a connection between the two.
"So," Zephyr broke the silence. "What's your name?"
The dragon looked at Zephyr's eyes and Zephyr realised something interesting. The dragon's physical appearance reflected Zephyr's very own.
It had white scales, like Zephyr's hair and blue eyes like Zephyr's.
"My name..." The dragon finally spoke. "Will be Scephyr."
Zephyr smiled and stretched out his hand.
"Well Scephyr, I hope you will be a trustworthy partner." The dragon; now named as Scephyr, stretched out its own claw.
"Likewise."