I awoke from a good sleep to see Anna looking down on me, with a new pair of earrings on her ears. Still a little sleepy, I couldn't help but speak my mind.

  " I knew they would suit you."

  " !"

  / Step. Step./

  Anna backed away from me, at that point I realized I was awake. I started to panic again. Thinking I may have put Anna in an awkward position. I scrambled to apologize.

  " Oh, uhm... Anna, I'm sorry I didn't mean to say something that would make you recoil. I won't do something like that aga...."

  / Step!Step!Step!/

  * Grip!*

  Before I could finish my sentence, Anna rushed in front of me and placed her hands on my mouth to stop me from speaking. After spending a few moments to collect herself, she began to speak.

  " I don't hate when you compliment me! In fact, I like it! Don't say something like you won't compliment me. I wore these so you would complement me. I was just surprised from you saying it while I was so close to you, Master! So please, don't ever assume that I would hate you complimenting me! Do you understand, Master!?"

  Anna after making sure I understood her point of view, she began to speak.

  " Ugh... Yes... Sorry I surprised you, I guess?"

  " Apology accepted! Now! What would you like to do today, Master?"

  As I sat there and rubbed my eyes, I thought of the options. I figured it might be best to check in on Sarah today. We were both very emotional last night. So, I think starting the day with greeting her would be a good choice. I informed Anna of my idea and she agreed. Off we went after a breakfast of steak and eggs.

  Anna and I arrived at Sarah's room not too long after breakfast. After I knocked on the door, I was answered by a new face. A Maid, a little older than Anna began to speak. She had brown shoulder length hair with glasses that showed dark blue irises... And again, she's taller than me! Just once I'd like someone to be shorter than me here.

  " Hello, Master John, I am Amanda, the new Exclusive Maid for Master Sarah!"

  " Hi, can I speak to Sarah for a moment?"

  " Yes of course! Allow me to fetch her!"

  With that, Amanda closed the door. I heard mumbles through the door, after the voices stopped, I heard footsteps approaching. Sarah had come to the door. She saw me and blushed, guess she thought about last night. I decided to begin the conversation.

  " Hi, Sarah! I wanted to know if you'd like to spend some time with me today?"

  She looked guilty for a minute before beginning to speak.

  " I'm sorry, John. But I've already made appointments with Asha, Sharon and Cynthia today. Otherwise, I would!"

  " It's ok, just means I came too late. I'll find something else to do, so have fun, ok?"

  Sarah began to smile, I hoped she could relax today. After saying our goodbyes, Anna and I began to walk away. Anna then asked where we would go next. I answered with the most realistic option in my mind.

  " Well, since my Mana is recovering, I think the best thing to do is just Meditate and see what happens. Will you be ok with that, Anna?"

  " Of course, Master!"

  We began walking to a familiar calm field. After arriving, I took to sitting in a cross-legged Meditation position. Anna took out a table blanket from her Mana Storage and placed it in front of me, she then proceeded to sit directly in front of me.

  " Are you going to stare at me the whole time?"

  Anna looked at me with wide eyes, then turned away. She then proceeded to blush while tilting her head and looking at me with an upward glance, she began to speak in a small voice.

  " Am I not allowed to?"

  I gulped out of reflex. I was stunned for a moment. She continued to stare at me. Oh God... She's blinking at me now! Dammit John, calm down! She trusts you as a Friend and as the one she serves! Respond accordingly! I started to speak after my little pep talk.

  " I don't mind, I just think it might be boring to watch a person Meditate for a few hours is all.

  " By no means would a Maid find it boring to watch their Master! You have my word!"

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  She responded to me quite spiritedly. I simply nodded and began to go through the motions. I began to go deeper into the Meditation and began to circle the light. This is familiar to me. I felt this same sensation when I was able to meet Paula. I continued the Meditation and began to concentrate even harder than before. I finally felt the direction of the presence. After an hour of deep concentration, I turned the light to find nothing but never-ending darkness. I went to turn the light, but the moment I left the spot, I felt eyes on me. I turned back to again be greeted by darkness.

  At this point, frustration starts to mount. I don't understand why I can't see the eyes. out of exasperation, I turn the light up. To my surprise, I found a figure staring back at me. As I notice the look of the figure, I was taken out of the darkness and brought into a lush flower garden. I was surrounded by dense foliage, flowers and trees, in front of me, a figure sat on a throne made of many different flowers and what looked like aged, old wood. The highest flower on the throne was a golden rose. Below the rose sat a person, a little shorter than me. It was a woman from what I could tell, with bleach white skin. However, upon further inspection, she wasn't Human. She had what looks like roots integrated into her body, like a doll that plants had taken root in. Her hair was a mix of yellow and red, like a tropical flower back in my World. She was dressed in foliage that seemed to fit onto her like a military uniform. The colors were all mixed. Instead of just green, it was a rainbow of colors. Almost like she plucked a rainbow out of the sky, turned it into an outfit made of flowers and plants. Her bright, light-pink eyes looked at me with coldness. My thoughts were stopped dead in their tracks at her stare. She began to speak.

  " You stand before I, Lily! The Rose Queen of the Spirit Forest. Would you kindly introduce yourself, human?"

  " Ah!? Oh! Hello, Rose Queen, my name is John Ericsson! It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance!"

  Her eyes stared at me with interest, the coldness of her gaze began to dissipate somewhat. She began to speak with a smile on her face.

  " Hm! It seems not all humans were raised without manners! It is nice to make your acquaintance, John Ericsson. Though I must admit, I find it quite odd it has taken so long for you to find me here in My Throne Room. I have been watching you for quite some time after all."

  I was quite confused at her words. I began to ask a few questions because of that.

  " Why have you been watching me? How long have you been watching me? Has it been since I noticed you through my Meditation?"

  " Relax yourself, John. I shall explain it to you. To begin with, I am a Monarch of the Spirit World. This means that I have a Duty to My People. That includes the Dark Pixies, as well as any other Spirit within the Spirit Forest. Having said that, the discrimination that the Dark Pixies have been subjected to has not escaped my notice. So, imagine my surprise when I heard that Paula the Dark Pixie was contracted to a human Summoner."

  " I see, so you have been watching me to make sure I don't mistreat Paula? I completely understand. Having said that, why have you allowed yourself to be found today if you simply want to observe my relationship with Paula?"

  " Well, there can only be one reason why a Spirit would bring a Summoner to their residence! I would like to form a Contract with you, John Ericsson! Not only have I determined you to be a Good Summoner for Paula, but I also believe you have the qualities to be worthy of a Contract with Myself!"

  Lily looked at me like I had achieved an impossible feat. I felt like I won the Olympics or something. Either way, she eagerly awaited my answer. But, before that, I had one question. So, I asked it,

  " What was the action that made you believe that I was worthy of your Friendship, Lily the Rose Queen?"

  " Put simply, there were 4 moments that made me approve of you. the 1st was your anger towards humans when you had heard how they treated Paula the Dark Pixie. The 2nd was the Genuine Friendship you have, not only with Paula, but with the Demons that surround you as well. It shows me that you truly do not care for racial differences. The 3rd was the creativity you and Paula have shown with her Warping Ability. And finally, the actions you had taken yesterday. Not only showing concern those you care for, but also the cunning you have shown in battle and the willingness to act upon them. I find these traits very desirable in a Summoner.

  " I see... Well, if that's the case. By all means Lily the Rose Queen, please become my Friend and form a Contract with me!"

  " I would love to! Starting now, let's get along with each other! Let's see, to start, how about we call each other by our names? You may call me Lily and I shall call you John. Will that suffice to start, John?"

  " Sure thing! I look forward to working with you, Lily!"

  / Creak./

  With my final words said, Lily rose from her chair and began to float towards me, her feet never once touching the ground until she was right in front of me.

  " Finally... Someone shorter than me..."

  " Huh?"

  " Nothing, don't mind me."

  " Right?"

  I couldn't help but mumble my thought out loud. Lily landed on her feet and the top of her hair that was done up in what reminded me of the wife of a certain monster from an old movie from my World. While I thought about the classic monster movies from my World, we finished the Contract Ceremony. It was then that I realized I forgot to ask what Lily's Abilities were. So, I asked.

  " Lily, this is kind of awkward but, well, what are your Abilities like?"

  " Oh yes, I had not disclosed that information yet, have I?"

  " ?"

  / Woosh!/

  " !"

  / Crack! Snap! Woosh!/

  " Wow!"

  Lily turned to her side and raised her hand up. A mass of rose petals formed in a whirlwind, they proceeded to separate the flowers in the garden from their stalks as they passed by. Infront of her hand, a giant fruit tree popped out of the ground! I was surprised, Lily began to speak.

  " My most Fundamental Abilities are 2 simple things. The 1st being my Spellcasting Ability. I have Mastery over Plant Magic. The 2nd is an Ability separate from Magic. Explained in simple terms, if I wish for it, I can Summon any type of plant I wish from Gaia or the Spirit World! Also, as an added bonus, as a Monarch of the Spirit World, I can bestow certain Blessings! Mostly, these deals with Fertility, of land, greenery as well as animals!"

  " What amazing Abilities! They truly are fitting for a Queen of a Forest! I said it before, but I feel it bears repeating. I look forward to working with you, Lily!"

  Lily simply smiled at me. After a few moments I felt myself removed from Lily's dwelling and I was brought back to Anna staring at me. She was closer than I remember, I think? I started to speak to Anna as she seemed to not notice I was back.

  " Anna."

  " !!!!"

  / Thump!/

  She was startled and jumped back. She began to speak.

  " Ma-Master! You're back!"

  " Yup! And I have a new Friend!"

  I began to explain about Lily as Anna began to calm down. I can't wait to share the news with Sarah and the rest!