Familiar and True Name

"Grandpa Odell, are you sure this is my sister's magic wand?"

After observing the small black kitten, which was still peacefully sleeping in the old man's palm and had a cute snot bubble on its pink nose, for a while, the impatient Alice couldn't help but blurt out her question.

Although the magic world featured all sorts of oddly shaped wands, a cat-shaped wand seemed too absurd; how was one supposed to cast spells with it, by swinging it around by the tail every time?

Alice shivered at the thought of her sister swinging a cat by the tail as a wand in the future.

The image was too bizarre; she didn't dare think about it anymore.

However, Dorothy herself didn't seem to mind; she curiously reached out and took the small black kitten from the old man's hands.

As soon as she held it, a wave of inexplicable affection washed over her, softening her gestures as she gently stroked the kitten's fur and smiled slightly.

It was a very beautiful kitten, its pitch-black fur marked with golden stripes, especially the small 'king' character on its forehead, which didn't look menacing at all but rather gave it a robust and adorable appearance.

Perhaps stirred by her teasing, the little one's snot bubble popped with a snap, and then it opened its bright golden vertical pupils.

"Awoo~~ Meow"

She looked around warily; her hair bristled as she let out a ferocious roar that was hard to describe as anything but "super fierce". However, it didn't take long for the little one to notice Dorothy holding her, which seemed to reassure her.

She wobbled to her feet on Dorothy's palm, then rubbed her head against the palm before joyously hugging Dorothy's finger, which felt like a colossal pillar to her tiny size.

Dorothy was amused by the cute action and was about to pull out her finger to tease her further, but before she could, she saw the little one open its mouth.

"Crack…"

It sounded as if something had shattered; bitten Dorothy felt nothing, yet the biting little one was already teary-eyed with pain but stubbornly refused to let go.

Dorothy: "..."

This little creature seemed not very bright.

She turned to the shopkeeper, wanting to ask what was going on.

The old man spoke before she could ask.

"This is the psychic magic wand. Having just changed its body, this little one's spirituality has greatly increased. It has successfully transformed into a form of the Spirit race and recognizes you, Miss Dorothy, as its master. It is trying to draw some of your blood to form a contract with you."

The old man said with a smile, though he was somewhat surprised as he glanced at the seemingly delicate, fair finger of his client.

"You are indeed a powerful witch. This little one may look weak and young, but its strength is similar to that of the Soul-Nourishing Wood used for its body, which is much stronger than typical steel alloys; it couldn't even break the defense. You might as well give her a drop of your blood willingly."

Ah well…

On hearing this, Dorothy felt a bit uncomfortable. With a thought, an invisible layer of scale armor around her dissipated, and then a drop of scalding hot blood emitting astonishing warmth was forced out of her body.

The kitten didn't mind the heat, so it happily released the barely hanging grip of its mouth, ran over, and licked the blood drop with its tender pink tongue.

Shortly thereafter, a brilliant pentagram formed beneath the little one. The next moment, Dorothy could vividly feel a new connection between them; she could clearly sense the little one's feelings of happiness, admiration, and affection, mixed with a touch of grievance.

"Isn't this a Familiar Contract?"

As a top student on the path to full-time dedication, Dorothy easily recognized the origin of the beautiful Magic Array that had just flashed by. She looked at the old shopkeeper with some confusion.

"Well, psychic magic wands are truly living beings, so it's only natural to use a contract meant for living things rather than for inanimate objects. They are more like familiars, and a Familiar Contract suits them better."

The old man explained patiently.

Hearing this explanation, Dorothy suddenly understood.

Familiars are also a very important component of a witch's combat power. Skilled witches always have a group of variously functional familiars around them, who would be the most loyal and useful companions for the witch.

However, excellent familiars are usually hard to find, something stumbled upon rather than sought, and the first familiar often holds special significance for witches. They invest more emotions, after all, everything is always more impressive the first time.

Therefore, Dorothy, being somewhat picky in this regard, had yet to make a contract with a familiar.

Sea Moon Floating Island, being a minor city, was somewhat rustic. The familiar shops in the city only sold the most common and lowest-tier familiars, with no rare species, so she had originally planned to check the shops at the Witch Academy after enrollment.

However, she no longer needed to fret about this now, as the small creature in her hand was now both her Magic Wand and her first familiar.

"Now, please give her a name, Miss Dorothy. Afterward, call out her name, and you will truly see your new Magic Wand."

The old shopkeeper urged.

This made Dorothy slightly conflicted as she was not very good at naming things.

In her previous life, she had raised some cats and dogs, but she often named them casually; a white one would be called Little White, and a black one, Little Black.

But now, as her first familiar, she could not be so casual with this little creature in her hands.

After all, in this magic world, a name often contains great strength. Naming someone, especially giving a True Name to one's familiar, is a very serious matter.

In this world, the first name any creature receives is known as its True Name. The recipient typically shares some of the namer's power, but at the same time, they are bound by the True Name.

The True Name is both a blessing and a binding, hence, keeping one's True Name secret from others is basic common sense in this world.

Since the True Name is so important, it naturally must be chosen carefully. This name usually contains the namer's blessing, and some names even influence the recipient's fate to some extent. If Dorothy carelessly gave her small creature the True Name "Little Black," it could potentially ruin this precious psychic magic wand.

"Tsk, if it can't be called Little Black, then what should it be? Let me think, did I have any nice cat names in my past life that also had some special blessings?"

Dorothy pondered deeply and after a while, she lifted her head in surprise.

She had thought of a name, perhaps the most suitable name for a cat.

However, she didn't intend to say it out loud, after all, True Names are meant to be kept secret; ideally, only the namer and the recipient should know.

Luckily, having just signed the Familiar Contract, Dorothy closed her eyes, and through the link of the Familiar Contract, she conveyed the True Name to the small creature.

"I, your master Dorothy, bestow upon you the name Sekhmet Mut Wadjet Bastet. Now, show me your power, Bastet."

In their psychic connection, as soon as Dorothy finished speaking, a piercing cat's meow sounded, but increasingly it turned majestic, soon transforming into a roar like that of a tiger.

"Meow~roar~"

When Dorothy opened her eyes again, she was holding a beautifully ornate Long Wand in her hands.