"Monica, actually, you and the souls within machines... forget it, let's call them Machine Souls."
"Your way of getting along with these Machine Souls is wrong."
Monica glared viciously at Theus, feeling deeply upset—she had summoned those Machine Souls herself, so why did they all seem closer to Theus?
In the end, Theus had found her and brought her back. Though it was embarrassing to run off crying, she still couldn't stop worrying about the souls she had summoned. She hadn't gone far, merely waiting anxiously for Theus to come find her.
Theus softened his voice.
"You have a good relationship with sea serpents. You know how to please them. But Machine Souls are something entirely different."
"What's different about them?!"
"This is only my guess, but I think the core of this spell isn't 'the souls you summon.' It's that 'this kind of thing develops a soul.'"
"What difference does that make?"
"Of course it makes a difference. You used mana to summon sea serpents; they have the souls of sea serpents. You summoned a soul into a Steam Engine—does that make it the soul of a sea serpent too?"
D
"Think of it from another angle. The Steam Engine answered your summons, and a soul was born within it. That is why I call it a Machine Soul—it truly is the soul of a machine."
"Steel and machinery aren't living creatures. You shouldn't try to please them the way you would living beings."
Monica's emerald-green eyes widened. "Then how should I please them?"
"It's simple. Just treat them as actual machines. Repair their damage, replace their parts, apply grease for lubrication... perhaps talk to them about your dreams and your life."
"That's enough?"
"Yes. They don't need to be touched. They don't need you to keep them company