Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 213

213

“I see. Alisa and Isana……”

Scenes that had fleetingly passed by in the past now struck me with renewed impact. The intense gazes they exchanged when they first met, Isana stepping forward without hesitation to help Alisa when she was in a tight spot, and even the smiles they often shared.

Perhaps our coming to this empire was an arrangement prepared for their meeting. The parties involved might not be pleased, but it was exciting to watch. However, my elated mood quickly subsided when Kanos poured cold water on it.

“Well, don’t get your hopes up too much. Whether those two will truly come to fruition is something we’ll have to see. There’s no guarantee it will go smoothly.”

“Huh? Why? Shouldn’t the stars of destiny be together?”

“Usually, yes. But unfortunately, there are two stars of the emperor born in this era.”

“Eh?”

“In other words, that girl has two choices to pick from.”

“……!”

The implication was clear. I reflexively looked at Alisa, made eye contact with her, and gave an awkward smile. The brief moment I endured as she looked at my stiff face with a puzzled expression felt incredibly heavy.

“……Are you saying there’s a possibility of a love triangle?”

Only after Alisa’s gaze had shifted did I ask in a small voice. Even as I asked, I hoped I was misunderstanding, but Kanos shook his head all too easily.

“I told you they attract each other. It’s not just a possibility; you should assume it’s inevitable.”

“That can’t be……”

“Prepare yourself. It won’t be just cute child’s play.”

“What, what does that mean?”

Kanos gave me a mischievous smile, and I was greatly dismayed by the story he told me afterward. Hundreds of years ago, there were also two stars of the emperor, and the war they waged resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of people. The cause was a dispute that began over claiming a partner, which escalated into a war of conquest.

At the time, the empires that produced the two emperors were the Alponph and Carterus Empires. The two emperors, born under the stars of destiny, were attractive men without any shortcomings, but that was precisely the problem. Because both were so outstanding, their partner couldn’t decide between them. In the end, the two emperors waged war incessantly during their reigns. ‘During their reigns’ is putting it nicely; it was a long, drawn-out period of over 60 years. The bitter war barely ended after the partner died, but in the meantime, the lives of the people were unspeakably devastated. That’s why the two empires still live like enemies.

As I listened to the explanation, I felt the blood draining from my head, and I kept groaning. Human history repeats itself endlessly, and in similar situations, the possibility of recurrence is even higher. In other words, this was as good as saying that Isana would face a similar situation in the near future.

“W-Who is the other star of the emperor, and where are they?”

“Well, I don’t know. Like before, they could be in another empire, or they could be in the same empire.”

“Haaa……”

Surely it’s not the Archduke, is it? The thought alone made me feel terrible, and I couldn’t help but sigh. It would be a problem if it were the Archduke, but even if it wasn’t him, the situation wouldn’t be much better.

Why is Isana’s fate so harsh? He has to fight for the throne, and now he has to compete with someone else for his destined lover. It would be one thing if it had never been given to him in the first place, but it was even more heartbreaking to see him unable to fully enjoy what he should naturally have.

“……Hmm, in that case, should I push for their marriage early on, before they meet the other one? I feel like I could reel her in while Alisa doesn’t know anything.”

Kanos chuckled as he watched me seriously contemplating. “That expression just now was quite like a Spirit King.” His words, which I couldn’t tell if they were a compliment or not, made my face furrow involuntarily.

“Anyway, I’ve given you my advice, so do your best. Ah, to tell you about future disasters in advance. I’m too unnecessarily kind as a god.”

“……Thank you so much for only increasing my worries. It would have been even better if you had told me who the other star of the emperor was.”

“What would you do if you knew? It’s not like you could find that person and eliminate them in advance with your personality.”

“Ugh, that’s true, but…… I could at least delay their meeting.”

“I told you, you can’t avoid it. Instead of worrying about that, have your contractor capture that young lady’s heart. That way, there’s a much higher chance of it working out well. From their perspective, the fact that they missed their chance is already enough to make them angry, right? Unlike your dull contractor, they are quite interested in the stars of destiny.”

“You know who it is, then?”

Kanos just smiled silently at my dissatisfied gaze. Well, he is a demon god, so he probably knows that much. I quickly gave up on trying to get an answer from someone who had no intention of giving one. As he said, there was nothing I could do even if I knew.

But I can’t push Isana like Kanos said. He already hates things related to fate, and if he knew this, he might even try to push Alisa away. It would be fine if he was okay with that, but if it was something he could easily reject, it wouldn’t have been determined by the name of fate in the first place. In my opinion, Isana was already giving Alisa quite a bit of his heart. If he rashly pushed her away, there was a high possibility that he would regret it when it was too late. So, it was better for him not to know right now.

Still, it’s fortunate that they had a connection early on. It seems like their feelings for each other have already begun to sprout, so if we can continue this good atmosphere, it might be possible to subtly push for marriage. Of course, Alisa is still young, so it’s still a distant story. I don’t know who the other star of the emperor is or where they live, but I just hope they appear only after the two of them are together.

* * *

While lingering in one place, the day had gradually turned to dusk. As if he had become somewhat accustomed to the outside air, Fire Buster began to reveal his true nature in earnest. When his urging grew longer, Isana tried to soothe him in a gentle voice, but it had little effect. Eventually, Alisa, unable to bear it any longer, stepped forward.

“Hey, be quiet! What hero? Don’t force Isana-ssi [term of endearment].”

“Why am I an outsider? I’m Isana-ssi’s friend!”

“What? What’s with this sword? So what if you’re a spirit sword? So what if you’re a spirit sword!”

“Ha! Look at this! I’m not an ordinary person either! I’m an earth spiritist with limitless talent! Why are you discriminating against people here?”

The argument that started lightly had turned into a battle of pride. I said firmly to Isana, who was fidgeting between them.

“Let’s just leave it behind.”

Of course, ‘leave it behind’ meant the sword. At a time when he should be trying to impress Alisa, he’s doing something that’s actually costing him points. I was more than willing to throw a sword that muddies the waters into the dungeon right now if I could get his consent. Fire Buster, somehow sensing that, screamed in horror.

“Your opinion doesn’t matter.”

I ignored the rising voice mixed with resentment. He was always whiny, but it seemed to have gotten worse since he found out my identity.

It wasn’t like I had told him my identity. After accepting Isana as his master, Fire Buster realized it on his own. The same was true for the other members of the group. Among ego swords, there are those that share information with their master, and Fire Buster seemed to be that kind.

Of course, knowing that I was the Spirit King didn’t make his attitude more respectful (he’s a daredevil who acts recklessly even towards demon gods, so I didn’t expect it). But since he knows himself as Ignis, he was much more favorably disposed towards me than others. The problem was that it was too much, leading to even more whining.

“I didn’t deceive you. I just didn’t say anything.”

“Shut up. You’re the one who’s being too much. You said you’d follow quietly, so why did you change your mind?”

“That’s your problem.”

“If you make any more noise, I’m really leaving you behind.”

At the threat, which was full of sincerity, Fire Buster became quiet while sobbing. I glared at the sword, which had become quiet as if it had never made a sound, with a displeased feeling.

“I wonder if it’s really okay to take that thing with us. I’m sorry, Isana. You ended up taking on a strange guy because of me.”

“Haha, no. I’m okay. Fire Buster is a good sword, even if he’s a bit talkative.”

“Are you saying that sincerely?”

“Yeah. I think I know for sure after holding it myself. The energy itself is different from ordinary swords. No matter how much you search for a great craftsman, it won’t be easy to get such a great sword. I think it’s an honor as a swordsman.”

“Well, if that’s the case, that’s a relief.”

He said it was a strong sword, so it’s useful after all. Actually, I still don’t have an eye for good weapons, so Fire Buster’s greatness didn’t really resonate with me. Still, if Isana is praising him that much, he must be a pretty good sword. Anyway, he seemed to have pleased his master, so there seemed to be no fear of being kicked out in the future. Still, I needed to seal that chatter for sure, so I warned him again.

“Anyway, don’t think about breaking the promise you made with us. Stay quiet as if you don’t exist. And don’t treat Alisa or the other members of the group carelessly. Keep in mind that there’s no one here you can treat rudely. Got it?”

Fire Buster replied in a disgruntled voice. It was still an impudent tone, but he seemed to be much more subdued.

“El, when are you going to contact that guy Lapis?”

At Sibelius’s question, I lightly looked around. As the day was turning to dusk, the colors of the bushes, which had been piercingly clear, had changed to a lower tone.

“I think it would be better to do it after we get out of here.”

“Yeah, this place is a bit much.”

He nodded in agreement with my words. He seemed to be aware of the same thing as me. The hell spiders, the local bullies of this area. In fact, the reason was that a large number of murderous auras were being felt nearby. They weren’t recklessly attacking, but they were gradually building up their forces and blatantly showing signs of attacking soon. There seemed to be at least several thousand of them.

They wouldn’t normally think of touching us, but they must be quite hungry to be recklessly attacking like that. Well, with so many of them, there must be a shortage of prey. It’s been quite a while since it was designated as a forbidden area, so people’s footsteps must have stopped.

Anyway, it was clear that we would be surrounded in an instant if we stayed in place. Even if I sent a message to Lapis right now, I had to consider that it would take some time for him to arrive. I didn’t want to have an unexpected battle after coming all the way here (it would be annoying because it seemed like I would have to go all the way to extermination once I started), so I thought it would be better to move to a safe place and then contact him.

Before that, I first put the demon’s egg in my backpack. Even though it doesn’t break, I was worried that I might lose it if I just carried it around.

“What are you going to do now, Kanos-nim [a title of respect]?”

When I looked back at Kanos after finishing the series of tasks, he shrugged lightly and replied.

“I have to go back to Lukareum and continue what I was doing. Are you guys waiting for someone to come pick you up?”

“Yes, it would be great if I could teleport everyone, but it’s inconvenient because I can only move myself with the language of the spirits.”

“Spirit Kings can do it too, though.”

“Huh? Really?”

At the unexpected words, he smiled and nodded.

“You can learn magic. Well, spirits can’t use magic in the first place, so you can’t learn it in the usual way. But I’ve heard that you can learn it by using a trick. If you’re curious, ask your father.”

“Father? You mean Ellyuen?”

“Yeah, among the Spirit Kings, he probably had the highest level of magic. He could probably teleport.”

Huh, was that so?

I think Ellyuen was said to be the strongest Elquines of all time, but I never thought he would be proficient in magic as well. Is he the kind of being that people are talking about when they say he has everything in the world? Anyway, one thing was certain, no matter what else, ‘surpassing the master’ was a word I could never dream of in my life.

Maybe it’s because I knew the difference from the beginning, but I didn’t feel particularly miserable. Rather, I was glad that I seemed to have an opportunity to learn easily. At least Ellyuen wouldn’t scratch my pride like Ifrit while teaching me.

‘I should ask him to teach me later.’

If I learn magic, I’ll be able to give Isana even more help than I can now. After firmly resolving that in my heart, I looked at Kanos, intending to see him off. He smiled strangely, as if he knew what I was thinking, and said,

“Come to think of it, didn’t you have a place to stop by on the way back?”