"So you're our Master? You seem pretty average... but if you were chosen, then you must have some potential."
"…Sorry for being average."
"Even your response is average."
The girl spoke with a bored tone.
Ugh.
What the hell?
I was expecting something more mysterious and majestic, but she's surprisingly down-to-earth.
"…Anyway, where the hell is this? Were you training in this cramped space or something?"
She asked, clearly unimpressed with her surroundings.
"…Huh? Training?"
What was she even talking about?
I got caught in a dungeon manifestation, that's all.
"Well, it would make sense. There's no way someone could summon me without any training… Wait—don't tell me, is this the Skill Book chamber?"
She cut herself off mid-sentence and turned to confirm with me.
"Huh? Oh, yeah… I found the Skill Book here, and when I used the summoning spell, you showed up."
Upon hearing that, the girl fell into thought for a few moments, then spoke again.
"…I see. Hard to believe, but it seems like you're not just some regular human after all."
"So… spirit-san, what can you do? Can you get me out of here alive?"
"'Spirit' is a race category. I have a name—Snow White."
She looked rather displeased.
"Alright then, Snow. What can you do?"
"'Snow'… well, fine. You're my Master, after all. But since I still don't understand the situation here—excuse me for a moment."
With that, Snow glided toward me and brought her face close to mine.
Huh? Snow-san?
Isn't this moving a bit fast for someone I just met?
Though… I mean, she's a beautiful girl. I'm not exactly against it.
I shut my eyes and braced for impact, and then—something cold pressed lightly against my forehead.
"Wuh?"
I opened my eyes—and her perfectly symmetrical face was right there.
"Wah!"
I reflexively jumped back.
That's when I realized—she had pressed her forehead to mine.
She looked at me with an expression of mild exasperation.
"What were you expecting? I was reading your memory."
"You can… read memories? Seriously?"
"Even if it's a temporary contract, you're still my Master. If we're linked, that kind of thing is easy. Anyway, I got the gist—you were just wandering around when a dungeon appeared and you got sucked in."
"Sorry for wandering around, I guess."
"Well, whatever. Let's get out of here."
With that, she turned on her heel, her white dress fluttering as she walked off.
"W-Wait. Even if we're escaping, I can't fight, you know!"
"I do know. I saw your memories, remember? I'm not expecting much from you right now."
"I don't know how much you saw, but nobody has ever gotten out of a dungeon alive without preparation. And you… don't look like you're carrying any weapons either."
"Relax. I've known about dungeons since before I got here. As for weapons—well, I don't need them."
"You… don't need weapons?"
That finally clicked for me.
Right—Snow is a summoned spirit.
The power I gained was Summoning.
Summon a spirit to fight by your side.
Of course she can fight.
I called out to Snow, whose beautiful form was striding confidently ahead.
"…By the way, can we really make it out? I mean, there are probably monsters, right?"
"As long as we don't bump into a boss-tier enemy, we'll be fine."
"And if we do run into a boss?"
"We'll both die."
She said something terrifying with complete calm.
Still, she walks without hesitation. I was thinking that when she suddenly stopped.
"A fork in the road. Master, which way should we go?"
"Can you stop calling me Master? It makes me feel itchy all over."
"Then, Yuma. Which way?"
She went straight to using my name. On second thought, I'd been calling her by name too.
Still, considering she calls me "Master," we're probably in some kind of formal bond… but I'll try not to overthink it.
"In situations like this, manga taught me you always pick the right path."
"Hope that series comes back from hiatus."
You know about that!?
Maybe spirits are more worldly than I thought…
So we went right—and shortly after, Snow suddenly veered toward the left side of the corridor.
Curious, I looked to the right side—and saw four goblin statues, or at least what looked like them, completely frozen in ice.
"…What the heck? Ice sculptures?"
They were extremely realistic.
"They were alive a moment ago. I froze them."
"What?"
She hadn't made any motion at all—just walked as usual.
She froze those goblins effortlessly, as if it were no different from breathing.
Snow White.
With a name like that, I guess ice powers make sense.
We kept walking in silence.
"..."
"..."
"…Snow, have you been in dungeons before?"
I couldn't bear the silence and asked.
Her calm demeanor and how she handled the goblins suggested experience.
"A few times, yeah. I've conquered a couple. But they were in other worlds."
"Other worlds? You mean, like, a spirit realm?"
Alternate dimensions or something like that?
"…Something like that."
"In this world, anyone who conquers a dungeon is treated like a hero. The current world record is just two dungeons."
"I see. Then you'll be breaking that record soon."
She said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"…Me? Not a chance."
"You've got us with you. Unless we're taking on something insanely difficult, conquering one or two dungeons will be easy."
That reminded me of something.
"…Earlier, you said 'us.' Are there other spirits besides you?"
"Of course there are."
"Are they all beautiful girls like you?"
"…Haa?"
Snow stopped and looked back at me, her expression stiff.
…Or so I thought—on closer inspection, her cheeks were tinged red.
She was embarrassed.
"Well, aren't you kinda adorable."
"You're such an idiot. Honestly."
She turned back around and resumed walking.
Even from behind, I could see her ears had turned red too.
So she knows famous manga, blushes at compliments… Spirits might not be so different from humans after all.
We kept walking—until, suddenly, Snow stopped in her tracks.
I looked ahead. No fork in the path. Nothing seemed off.
"What's wro—"
"Stop."
She motioned for me to freeze in place.
All the easygoing air around her was gone. Tension radiated from her entire being.
A bad feeling crept up my spine. Still, I asked carefully:
"…What's wrong?"
Her answer was short.
"Choosing the right path… was a mistake."