Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 28

Chapter 28

“As time passes, you will watch humans, born later than you, grow old and die much faster. Each time, you will be deeply hurt and struggle. If that repeats, your mental world will inevitably collapse quickly. Did you know? If a Spirit King cannot overcome mental shock, they will go berserk.”

“Berserk…?”

“Yes. Unable to feel or realize anything, unable to control even their own power. When that happens, the only options are to seal them until they calm down or forcibly eliminate them. Otherwise, the world becomes too dangerous.”

Come to think of it, I seemed to have heard something similar before. A Spirit King can only subdue another Spirit King when they judge that he is harming the world.

The thought of that event, which hasn’t even happened yet, felt like it was right in front of me, and I was scared. As I unconsciously clenched my fist, Trowell gently covered it with his hand and said,

“Of course, it’s quite rare. But I hope, even if it’s just in case, that Jihoon doesn’t have to go through such a sad thing. In that sense, I believe Ellyuen’s choice is right. When you are lost in a sense of loss and struggling, he will be a great strength to you. A ‘father’ who will never die, never betray you, and always watch over you from one place.”

‘Watching over me…….’

I don’t know why I suddenly teared up at those words. As I bit my lip to hide the surging tears, Trowell gently pulled me into his arms and let me rest my head on his shoulder.

“Accept it. Even if Jihoon doesn’t think so, you need someone to rely on. It can’t be us, the other Spirit Kings. We are, after all, equal beings to you. Maybe you yourself know that, so you can’t rely on us as much as you’d like.”

“……But, is it really okay? What if Ellyuen was just joking and I’m the only one taking it that way…….”

“No, that must have been sincere. He wasn’t one to make empty promises, not even when he was Elquines.”

“Re, really?”

“Yes, and he used to be endlessly generous to anything he had decided to take responsibility for. So, next time you meet him, feel free to act spoiled. He’ll probably accept it all.”

“…….”

“Hey, you don’t believe me? Really?”

Seeing that I was giving him a look of disbelief, Trowell blinked his eyes exaggeratedly. Seeing that, I wondered if it was true, but I decided not to inflate my expectations any further.

Because I was already enjoying a feeling that was too overwhelming to believe.

“It’s true, Jihoon. No matter what you do in the future, no matter what incidents you encounter, Ellyuen will never turn away from you. So don’t be afraid of anything. He will be there to help you start anew.”

“…….”

A new beginning…….

I thought being born as a spirit was a new beginning enough. I guess I still have a lot to resolve.

Feeling a sense of clarity in my head, I quickly raised my head.

“Hey, Trowell, I have a favor to ask.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“About my name……. Would you call me Elquines again?”

“Huh?”

“Um, sorry. I know it’s a bit awkward to say this after I asked you to call me Jihoon first. But if I keep using that name, I feel like I won’t be able to escape from that time. Now, as your companion and as another Spirit King, I want to give my value again.”

At those words, Trowell blinked in surprise, then smiled brightly.

“Okay, Elquines. It’s not hard to change the title. This is more familiar anyway.”

“Th, thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Ah, right. How about this? Shorten Elquines to ‘El.’ Like a nickname.”

“El……?”

“Yeah, cute, right? I think it suits you well.”

“Cough, cough! Cute, you say…….”

As I coughed in embarrassment, Trowell burst into laughter. At his laughter, many sylphs [air spirits] who were sleeping on the petals far away tilted their heads with curious faces.

The small sparks floating in the air were Casas, the lower spirits of fire. The Casa, shaped like butterflies, danced among themselves, embroidering the night sky with patterns more beautiful than starlight.

Someday, there will come a time when I take all of this for granted. And at that time, I will no longer feel lonely. It was like a spell that pushed me into dizzying happiness. Beloved friends and colleagues. And a name that is still awkward…… Father.

“Congratulations again on your birth, El. Welcome to the Spirit Realm.”

* * *

Since I got the nickname ‘El,’ my daily life began to change rapidly. Around that time, what I did was follow Trowell and Minerva to reorganize the nature of Arkadon. Arkadon, which I witnessed for the first time since I was born, was more desertified and desolate than I had expected. Fortunately, thanks to the many water spirits that were born, it had been raining steadily these days, but it seemed that there was a limit to rapid recovery with that alone. Now it was the turn of the Spirit Kings to take action in earnest.

When I first came down to Arkadon, I felt like my limbs were too heavy, and I couldn’t adapt properly. It is said that when you come to the human world, you can only exert one-third of your original power, and it seemed to be one of the effects caused by that. As time passed, I gradually got used to it, but it seemed that it would take quite some time to adapt for a while.

Then I learned one thing: the civilization of Arkadon was quite similar to the Middle Ages on Earth. It wouldn’t be exactly the same since dragons and elves coexisted, but the building style and the shape of the forest reminded me of the scenery of medieval Europe. The clothes of the humans I occasionally passed by were the same.

“Wow, look over there! Trowell! It’s a person!”

“Hehe, are you that amazed?”

“Can I go take a look?”

“Well, it doesn’t matter, but. They won’t recognize us anyway.”

As Trowell said, they didn’t recognize us at all. It was the same even when I went closer, waved my hand, and poked them.

“The people here are very tall?”

“Really? That’s normal here?”

“Wow! They look like they’re at least 180cm tall [approximately 5’11”], and that’s normal?”

“The Atlicians originally have large frames.”

“Atlicia?”

“Human civilization was destroyed once after going through the ancient golden age. Atlicia is the name of the new race that was created after that. At first, there were very few of them, but as they mixed and mixed, most humans now have that blood flowing through them.”

“Hee, I see.”

“Do you know what’s funny? Atlicia is the name of a dragon.”

“Huh?”

“It is said that it started with a dragon who polymorphed [changed form] into a human and married a human woman who survived the destruction, and that’s who humans are now.”

That was his explanation for why there were so many humans with a talent for magic. Now, their ancestor, the dragon Atlicia, has died of old age, and his blood has been diluted a lot, but sometimes great archmages or spiritists are born.

‘Magic…… It’s a completely different world from Earth after all.’

But another thing about the humans here was their hair color. Like my and Ifrit’s hair, vivid colors like those seen in cartoons or movies actually existed here. Since their natural hair color was so colorful, people’s appearances felt more colorful as well.

“Okay, let’s start working now.”

At Minerva’s words, I nodded.

Most of the work given was a joint effort by the three Spirit Kings. When I purified the dirty seas and springs and made waterways in the desertified land, Minerva stirred up a whirlwind and scattered the seeds she had obtained from the gods of flowers and trees on top of it. Trowell helped the scattered seeds settle on the ground and provided them with sufficient nutrients. Amazingly, sprouts sprouted right away the next day.

I had always been amazed that even barren and desolate places would sprout when it rained, but it was all thanks to the unsung efforts of these supernatural beings.

After about two or three months of this work, clean rivers and green lands spread wherever I went. All that was left was to wait for the restored nature to return to its former prosperous days on its own.

We returned to the Spirit Realm and held a small celebration in Ebas Eden. The host was Trowell, who took out all the liquor and drinks he had been saving and opened them all. They were all made by him, and Trowell’s liquor was so delicious that it was treated so preciously in the divine realm that it was impossible to obtain.

In particular, the special brew made from honey spring water and diamond lilies, which only existed in this spirit realm, was quite delicious even for me, who didn’t know the taste of alcohol. The only problem was the excessively high alcohol content, but even in this case, the influence of ‘water’ didn’t really apply to me, so it didn’t matter.

“This is really good, Trowell.”

“Really? Drink as much as you want. I can make more if it runs out.”

Trowell smiled and filled my glass whenever it was empty. Minerva, who was silently drinking next to me, also had a rare smile on her face.

“It’s been a while since I’ve had your special brew.”

“Ah, come to think of it, special brew is the only liquor you like, Minerva. I couldn’t make it all this time because the honey spring was dry. Is it already 10 years since I brewed it again? I have to make a lot again now.”

“The gods will like it.”

“Hmph, there’s no share for those guys.”

Trowell, who answered unlike himself, filled his empty glass with special brew again. Next to him, Ifrit was gulping down his glass one after another without saying a word.

“Anyway, it’s been a really long time. Now I can finally rest easy.”

“You’re right. You’ve worked really hard, El.”

“No, you guys have suffered more than me.”

The atmosphere was very friendly.

But then, an unexpected uninvited guest’s voice cut in.

“El, you say?”

“Waaack?”

I doubted my eyes for a moment at the appearance of the outsider who suddenly appeared. A tall man with dazzling platinum blonde hair and sky-blue eyes. It was none other than Ellyuen.

“Oh my, Ellyuen?”

“You…… No, why is Ellyuen here?”

Ifrit’s surprised shout and my shocked voice echoed at the same time. Then, he frowned slightly and asked back as if he was wondering.

“Is there anything wrong with me coming to see my son?”

“Co, come to see? Me?”

“You’re stating the obvious. Otherwise, there’s no reason for me to take the time to come all the way here.”

No, I don’t even understand that reason?

Trowell and Minerva were just as embarrassed. They looked at Ellyuen with curious faces and couldn’t help but be amazed.

“It’s really the former Elquines. The face is the same.”

“I heard you became a god, so that was true.”

Of course, the most excited of them was Ifrit. He ran out in one step and greeted Ellyuen very happily.

“Welcome, Ellyuen! You came just in time. Come and sit down. We were having a celebration among ourselves for the first time in a while. Would you like to drink with us?”

“Special brew, is it? A nostalgic liquor.”

“Hehe, right? You used to drink it often.”

“Ah, then I’ll bring more glasses.”

“I’ll have to bring more liquor.”

While Ifrit was guiding Ellyuen to his seat, Trowell and I immediately got up to prepare the rest. In the meantime, Ifrit was busily sitting next to him, constantly chattering about this and that. Anyone could tell at a glance that he liked it.

Seeing that, Trowell hugged the newly taken out liquor jar in one arm and wore a look of new emotion.

“Hmm, Ifrit really liked the former Elquines. It’s surprising to see it in person.”

“You really didn’t know at all? Trowell, you can read other people’s thoughts.”

“As I said, all abilities don’t work on beings of the same level as me. Besides, spirits don’t lie, so I naturally thought it wasn’t. But when I think about it, they don’t lie, but they *can’t* not lie. It’s definitely not a good habit. Spirits don’t lie, so they often assume that others will naturally do the same, and they often suffer.”

“Um, but it’s not wrong to trust others. I think it’s good.”

“Is that so? But there are quite a few inconveniences, like in Ifrit’s case now. Ah, right. Shall I tell you an interesting episode related to that?”

An interesting episode?

When I nodded, he began to speak in a low voice.