Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 313

313.

“…I have to eliminate the cause.”

He asked himself and arrived at a conclusion. He wasn’t sure if it was truly *his* conclusion, but he couldn’t think of any other way. He had to eliminate the cause tormenting his lord as soon as possible, right now. Then, he would return his lord to his original self—his former strong and beautiful self, the noble monarch loved and respected by everyone.

“So, I must kill the Emperor.”

But what did he look like? He seemed to have blonde hair and blue eyes. How old was he? If he remembered correctly, he should be in his late teens now.

Caribdis rose as if possessed and staggered forward. He didn’t even know where he was going. He didn’t realize he was holding a sword in his hand, nor that the sword’s blade was emitting a chillingly white light.

*Everything is to protect you.*

*I don’t want you to be sad.*

*I’ll do anything for you.*

…Right, Minerva?

* * *

“Ah.”

The steps she was taking came to a halt. The woman, who had been following the one walking ahead, stopped and turned around. But behind her, there was nothing but the path they had walked. It felt like someone had called her, but was it just her imagination? The woman tilted her head.

“What’s wrong?”

The man in front noticed the woman’s pause and asked. The woman hesitated how to explain, then decided to be honest.

“…It felt like something was calling me.”

“Ah.”

The man seemed to understand the situation immediately and nodded.

“From now on, you’ll keep feeling that way for a while. Because priests are being born under your influence.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Yes, high-ranking gods have a great influence, so the number of priests receiving their calling is also that much greater. That’s why I’ve heard that they struggle to adjust to that sensation in the early days of their term. You should be prepared for that as well.”

With those words, the man took another look at the woman. Skin as white as milk, without a single blemish. In contrast, her long hair, reaching down to her shoulders, was as deep black as the night sky. Beneath her elegantly drooping eyelashes, her clear and sparkling eyes resembled lavender. Her well-shaped lips held a pink hue cleaner than a ripe peach. It was a combination that perfectly revealed her elegant and dignified nature, the man—Arehis—secretly thought to himself.

“Perdes.”

The woman’s expression became awkward at the unfamiliar name. In fact, not only the name but everything that made her up felt foreign. Until recently, she was more accustomed to being called by a different title—Minerva, the Spirit King of Wind, one of the highest-ranking beings governing nature, and one of the four kings ruling the Spirit Realm. Having lived for a time close to eternity for humans, she had seen and experienced quite a lot. Even so, becoming a god was a first for her, so she couldn’t help but feel strange. Unlike her, who was nervous because of this, Arehis, who was in charge of guiding her, had a constantly beaming face.

‘Perdes, the Goddess of Death and the Dead.’

Reborn as a god and given a new title, she was assigned to the Underworld, befitting her designation. As a high-ranking god from the Spirit King, her position was naturally higher than Arehis, a mid-ranking god. For him, it meant an increase in superiors to serve, but right now, he didn’t care about such things.

“Those from Minerva are mostly assigned to the Underworld. For a Spirit King whose term ended to be Minerva at a time like this… You have no idea how happy I was to see you. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the Underworld is desperate for any help right now.”

“It seems there’s quite a lot of work.”

“You have no idea. It’s always been busy, but recently it’s been really serious. You probably know the reason, Perdes. It’s related to the delayed birth of the current Elquines [a prophesied savior figure] and certain events.”

In response to the more serious tone, Perdes nodded heavily. During her last remaining term as the Spirit King, she had spent all day in the realm of wind, rarely associating with anyone, but she hadn’t completely closed her eyes and ears. She had some understanding of the major events gripping Arkadon [the world they inhabit] and the situations happening to her colleagues. Arehis had directly explained the missing parts after she arrived in the Underworld.

“Is an evil god really being born?”

“I don’t know the details either. However, the situation doesn’t seem very good. For now, the Supreme Gods are cooperating with the high-ranking gods to construct a capture and sealing formation.”

“A sealing formation, not annihilation?”

“The primary goal is to capture, purify, and then eliminate it. If that fails, they’ll create an annihilation formation.”

“I see.”

“We’re hoping that what we’re preparing now will work. Annihilating an evil god would be a huge loss for us as well. I’ve heard that one high-ranking god would have to be sacrificed.”

“…That can’t be.”

“That’s why there was a meeting recently to select a suitable candidate in case of emergency. The Goddess of Fate presided over it herself and narrowed down some of the conditions. Even so, many things are unclear because they’re so abstract.”

Arehis’s expression darkened rapidly as he explained. Perdes was puzzled by the look on his face, which seemed to recall a bad memory.

“Arehis?”

“Ah, I’m sorry. I was just lost in thought…”

“Is something wrong?”

“No, it’s not that…”

“It’s probably because the condition ‘father’ is included among the suitable candidates.”

The answer came from another voice. Surprised, Perdes turned her head and found a man standing behind a pillar. He was a tall, well-built god in many ways. His jet-black hair, slightly covering his shoulders, and even darker black eyes were so intense that he seemed to stand out even from afar.

“K, Kanos.”

Even if Arehis hadn’t shouted in surprise, Perdes would have recognized his identity immediately. The terrifyingly immense divine power felt throughout his body. Only a Demon God could possess such great power.

“A new high-ranking god, I see. Nice to meet you, Perdes.”

“…Nice to meet you.”

Perdes responded to the pleasant greeting. She had heard that the Demon God Kanos rarely went out, making him difficult to meet. To see him as soon as she arrived in the Divine Realm was quite bewildering. She couldn’t understand what he had said a moment ago, but Kanos continued his business faster than she could ask about it.

“Sorry to ask as soon as you arrive, but I’d like you to lend me some strength.”

“Pardon?”

“You’ve heard the situation, right? The divine power needed for the sealing formation is quite lacking.”

“Hold on a moment, Kanos! Surely you don’t mean that even Perdes, who has just been born, has to join?”

Arehis hurriedly interjected, guessing the unfolding situation. They had already lost a lot of manpower to that sealing formation. Just when he thought he could finally take a breather with Perdes’s appearance, he was about to lose even that.

“That’s how it is. You should have persuaded the previous Spirit Kings to become gods. Then we wouldn’t be so short on high-ranking gods.”

“But it wasn’t something we could recommend back then. Who knew the situation would suddenly turn out like this?”

“If that’s not possible, gather the scattered ones now.”

“Gather them! Are you telling me to forcibly erase the life records of the divine souls in the human realm and bring them here? How am I supposed to handle that resentment!”

“Can’t you do it?”

“Of course not!”

“Then there’s no choice. I guess we’ll have to agree to take Perdes after all.”

“… !”

It was an undeniable defeat for Arehis. Kanos grinned at Perdes, who was looking at the staggering and collapsing Arehis with pity.

“So, what will you do? Will you help?”

“…I understand. If it’s something I can do.”

“Good girl. I’m glad you’re cooperative. Well, you would have had to anyway. I don’t want to waste time on unnecessary things because my patience is short these days.”

He meant he would have dragged her away by force if necessary. Perdes couldn’t help but make an awkward expression because she couldn’t miss the intention in those words. She already knew the Demon God’s high reputation, but seeing him in person, she had a feeling that he might be more dangerous than she thought.

“Then I’ll take over this admirable and seemingly useful Goddess of the Dead. You can go now, Arehis, who is not particularly useful. The Underworld has lost the most manpower, so you must be very busy now.”

“How can you do this when you know that? You’re really too much.”

“Hmm. You seem to be forgetting, Arehis. Shannon is the one making the core of the sealing formation right now, isn’t she? If we take her, it’ll be easier for her. She’s almost dead now, do you want to send her completely to the grave? Well, in a way, the prophecy is coming true.”

“…Then Perdes, please take care of everything.”

Arehis bowed deeply and turned around to walk away. Perdes couldn’t help but be bewildered by the quick change of attitude. Soon, she realized who ‘Shannon’ was and understood. Along with the Demon God Kanos, the Heavenly God Iowen, and the God of Fate Radeka, she was a god of the Underworld that one couldn’t not know. There were several other high-ranking gods belonging to the Underworld (the proportion of high-ranking gods assigned was the highest), but Shannon was a symbol of the Underworld, so everyone in the Underworld admired and revered him. Seeing Arehis’s attitude now, it seemed certain.

“You thought you were being very devoted to your superior just now, didn’t you?”

“Yes? Ah…”

Perdes raised her head at the laughter-filled voice and flinched as she met Kanos’s gaze. Was it because his impression was cold? His expression was soft, but it didn’t feel very gentle. Even the smile he was wearing seemed only a means of hiding his true feelings. In addition, his innate aura was so sharp that she felt like she was being cut by a blade every time she met his gaze. If he was like this as a high-ranking god, it would be difficult for others to even speak in front of him. Arehis, who had been arguing back and forth until just now, felt amazing. To suppress the uneasy feeling, Perdes had to sort out her thoughts several times. Seeing her hardened expression, Kanos smiled strangely.

“I seem to be making you uncomfortable.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. I’m the one who should be sorry. I haven’t been feeling well lately, so I can’t control my energy as well as usual. I’d appreciate it if you could understand.”

He was asking for understanding, but it was the kind of tone that implied, ‘What can you do if you don’t understand?’ Perdes wanted to point that out, but she didn’t want to argue, so she calmly endured. She didn’t know it, but that was the attitude that Kanos welcomed most.

“That’s why I like Minervas. They don’t escalate things beyond what they can handle. Arehis inherited that nature, so he’s quite perceptive.”

“…Inherited?”

“You didn’t know either? That guy Arehis has quite a bit of courage for a mid-ranking god, doesn’t he? It’s all because he has something to believe in.”

“What…”

“He’s Shannon’s son.”

“… !”

Perdes opened her mouth without realizing it at the unexpected fact. It was the first time she knew that Shannon had a son, but it was even more shocking that the son was Arehis. Then she began to understand what Kanos had said when he first appeared.

“So, the condition ‘father’ is included in the suitable candidates…”

“It’s said to be the last item indicated by Radeka’s Clock of Fate [a powerful artifact]. Although it’s ‘father,’ it probably doesn’t specifically mean gender. Those who correspond to someone’s parents must all be feeling uneasy now. And so are those who have someone as their parents. But there’s also a damn guy who doesn’t care about that at all.”

“…?”

It couldn’t have been Perdes’s imagination that she felt a deep personal feeling in the last sentence. Puzzled, she raised her head and saw Kanos’s face, which had turned cold. The smile he had been consciously wearing as if drawing it had disappeared.

“You’re a Minerva from the same era as Eluien, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Do you know that he’s left to find El?”

“…Pardon?”

“El is as good as the being most closely tied to the evil god. That guy went to protect El. With that unyielding personality, he’ll surely do anything.”

“What does that mean…”

“Being a parent doesn’t necessarily mean only a blood-related relationship.”

Perdes’s eyes trembled as she quietly stopped breathing. She seemed to know what Kanos was trying to say. And that it was probably the result that El wanted the least.

“That’s not allowed. El will be greatly hurt. What is Eluien thinking…”

“Be sure to tell him that when you meet Eluien.”

Kanos smiled and ruffled Perdes’s hair. Perdes frowned at the attitude of treating her like a commendable little child, but she didn’t continue with a protest. It was because of the low voice that followed.

“There’s no need to worry. I won’t let it happen like that. I don’t intend to lose any more.”

The whispering voice was so small that it was hard to hear even when she strained her ears. It was just a soliloquy, not a word intended to be conveyed to anyone in the first place. It was like a vow to himself.

“…Kanos?”

At the cautious call, he smiled bitterly. His gaze toward the sky was empty as if it were hollow.

“I’m sick of losing things now.”