As the pages of the 'Magica Encyclopedia' turned, they stopped right on a drawing of a creature.
Luna looked at it in awe; she had never seen anything like it. On the top middle side was the creature's name: "Water Spirit," commonly known as "Water Dragon." Below, the whole page was filled with a painting of it, painted in fine lines and beautiful colors.
From the depths of the water rose a monstrous serpent, its body plated in jagged, sapphire scales that shimmered with streaks of crimson. A crown of sharp spines framed its cold, wise eyes, while long barbels jutted downward from its maw, dripping with riverwater. Every movement sent ripples racing across the surface, as if the beast itself commanded the waters.
"Is this the spirit you were talking about?" Luna asked.
Niva gave one glance at the page before turning and saying, "Yes. Are there more pages dedicated to him?"
Luna turned the page back, faced with only a wall of text. She turned it forward, seeing only a few pages with a description of the creature and a few more after a cover, marking an end to the book. "No?"
"Ah. Then they only captured its physical form," Niva answered.
"Only? What do you mean?"
Niva looked at Luna. Her face lit with curiosity, eyes glimmering in excitement—a face screaming, 'Please explain it to me!'
Niva turned his back to Luna and, in a low voice, mimicked to the best of his ability while nodding slightly,
"Yes. Spirits have a physical form whenever they are not contracted—in other words, tamed.
"When they are tamed, they take on a more spiritual form, like I have now. As you know, I am a giant wolf emanating snowflakes from my body, but whenever I am in my spiritual form, I just have my front body visible, with the rest turned into mana floating around."
Turning right to Luna, he cleared his throat, his voice back to its normal, enthusiastic self. "Is that well explained?"
Luna nodded, saying, "Yes!" and immediately turned to look at the right page where a brief description of the spirit was written.
One glance at it, and Luna couldn't help but read it out loud to Niva. With a steady voice, she read: "It was no monster, but a Water spirit! The water itself bowed to its will as it rose, a vision of living sapphire armor veined with lightning-crimson.
"A crown of spines framed the eyes of ancient, chilling wisdom. I did not merely see it; I witnessed a myth made flesh, and the river trembled in reverence. A sight that has forever ruined the ordinary for me."
Luna turned the page looking for more, only to see a pile of words on how the author met and where he met such a spirit.
"Well… good things end eventually, right? I'm not reading that… hehe."
Niva looked straight at Luna with drooped eyes and said, "Where did your enthusiasm go?"
Luna answered with a grin from ear to ear. Niva just looked at her and followed up with, "He's not really that important. No spirits will be, really, so there's no need to seek them.
"Rather than help, they will be a nuisance—at least they were back then… but that's not important.
"See? There is nothing about me! Didn't I tell you? I told you that I, o' great Ice spirit, have been hiding well, just for you!"
Sighing, Luna closed the book and leaned back into her sofa. "Niva, I trained a lot of endurance. Is this much training enough for my abilities?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk." Niva clicked his tongue while shaking his head from side to side. "No. Train for at least a week or two. You know how this power is straining on your body; you experienced it yourself.
"This much training will only allow you to have the ability active for no more than 5 seconds, which is pointless for training.
"Last time you activated it, you immediately fainted, so we are not taking any chances. Understand?"
Looking straight at Niva's muzzle, she reluctantly nodded while pouting. "Alright, I'll do more training."
She stood up and cracked a joint in her neck. "This training is really wearing me out…"
"Anyway, Niva! Since you are mine, you have to help me with endurance training!" Luna said enthusiastically while turning towards the door.
"Ehh, what is there to do with you? It's just running rounds around the garden… But well, since I'm so great, I'll keep you company while at it."
"Hehe! Then come! Or I'll leave you behind," Luna chuckled as she ran through the doors and down the corridors, with Niva slowly following her from behind, floating midair.
As he passed the frame, it surprised him that Theo was not guarding Luna's door. He looked at the place where the man always stood in the shadows. Work is really piling up, huh?
Thinking that, he sped up after Luna.