Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 467

Chapter 467

I don’t understand what this man is saying. I can clearly hear him, but it’s like my brain is buffering, unable to process it properly. He’s not one of them? This man isn’t really a slave hunter? It’s all a disguise?

It’s shocking, but perhaps because it’s so absurd, I don’t have a strong reaction. Rather, the more I think about it, the more it makes sense, and my mind calms down. When I think about it, his unusually kind attitude, the way he explained the situation in such unnecessary detail, and how he answered every question so diligently, weren’t the traits of a slave trader at all. Come to think of it, the man never used the word ‘we’ when referring to them. If anything, he was subtly rude. I thought he was objectively crazy when he freely called them trash, but it was just because they weren’t on the same side.

“That doesn’t mean I’m going to save you. This is all I can do. The rest is up to you.”

“…Thank you.”

So, things have worked out well, in a way. As I replied with mixed feelings, a strange light flickered in the man’s eyes.

“Why are you thanking me? Strictly speaking, you were captured because of me.”

“Oh, right. That’s true.”

“Haha, you’re funny. I like you. It would have been better if we hadn’t met like this, which is a bit of a shame. Well, good luck anyway. It might not be as easy as you think.”

The man chuckled lightly, patted my shoulder, and got up, saying he would go first. He also added that whatever I was planning to do, I should do it after he left. I quietly watched his back as he walked out of the bars before asking.

“By the way, what is it that you have to do?”

It was a somewhat impulsive question. The man stopped and turned around. His bright yellow eyes seemed to have a slightly reddish tinge.

“Revenge.”

“……!”

“You don’t need to know the details.”

With those last few words, he disappeared beyond the curtain. I couldn’t take my eyes off the swaying cloth until it settled down. It was the first time I thought the man’s explanation was unkind.

Even after the man, Lil, left, I stayed in place for a while. I realized the problem when I tried to move in earnest.

“Sicueal.”

This time, intending not to be careless, I called Sicueal from the start, but there was no response. I was flustered and tried again, but still, nothing. Silence.

“…Sicueal?”

What, why can’t I summon him? The mana-sealing bracelet is definitely gone. I could clearly feel the mana, which had been stagnant as if bound, now moving comfortably in the direction I intended. But even when I tried to summon him, the gathered power just hovered around me.

Could there be a barrier in this entire space? Come to think of it, major facilities like the Imperial Palace sometimes have defensive barriers to prevent the reckless use of abilities. It was a method used even in modern times, where the level of magic is low, so it must be more common in this era. It was the most reasonable explanation for now, but something felt a little off.

Whether it’s a bracelet or a barrier, these types of things generally have the same basic structure. They prevent mana from gathering, blocking the source itself. So, I shouldn’t even be able to attempt a summon, but right now, there’s no problem with executing it. More precisely, it’s that he’s not reachable even when I call him. If it were Eluien, I would have thought he was refusing, but ordinary spirits can’t refuse a summon. I couldn’t tell if it was a barrier of a type I didn’t know or if there was some other reason.

‘Well, this is going to be a bit difficult.’

The weight-increasing devices are still on, and I don’t have any weapons I can use right now. In this situation, I wasn’t sure if I could rescue the entire group without the help of spirits.

I decided to check the situation first and stood close to the entrance, away from the bars. I slightly lifted the curtain and saw a dim sky. The sun, which had been quite low when I lost consciousness, was now on the opposite side, so it was clear that at least one night had passed.

Next, I saw dense trees. Whether we hadn’t moved far or had moved to another forest, the place itself was still in the woods. Tents of different colors were lined up in a clearing that seemed to have been forcibly created. There were more than ten tents just at a glance. Armed soldiers were stationed around them at regular intervals. The number of patrolling soldiers and workers moving around was also quite large, not something to be ignored.

‘If they’ve set up a barrier, there must be a medium somewhere.’

A barrier set up in this kind of mobile formation can’t be very strong. If I can find the cornerstone that maintains the formation, destroying it itself will be simple. The problem is that I don’t know where it is.

It would be nice if I could ask the natural spirits for help at times like this, but everyone seems to be far away today, so I can’t expect much. If I call out loud, I’ll be heard, and it’s still difficult to communicate my intentions in the way spirits do. I know the method, but since it’s originally a method used by spiritual bodies, there are many tricky parts to doing it with a human body.

But is the sky trying to help me? Just then, something wriggled on the ground, and a round face peeked out. It was a low-level earth spirit.

“Norn! Wow, that’s a relief. Can you help me right now?”

Happy to see him, I quickly bent down and asked for help right away. Norn flinched and stared at me without answering. He must have been flustered that a human was talking to him in his natural state.

“Oh, I’m talking to you. Actually, I’m in a bit of a difficult situation…”

-What are you doing?

I was taken aback by the following answer. The one in front of me was Norn, but the voice and tone weren’t Norn’s. It was even very familiar. It couldn’t be helped. It was Trowel’s voice.

“Huh, Trowel?”

-Why are you in such a state?

I hadn’t misheard. It really was Trowel. It seems he’s using the spirit as a receiver, just like Eluien used to do. I wondered why he didn’t come directly and only sent his voice, but it didn’t matter. Suddenly, all the tension in my body was released.

“Heo-eong, Trowel, I missed you so much…”

-Explain what happened.

I roughly explained to him what had happened so far. From the process of falling into the trap to the moment I was helplessly captured. When he heard that I woke up to find myself in a slave caravan, Norn made a strange expression. I guess that’s the expression Trowel is making right now.

-What do you think I’m going to say?

“I’m sorry for being incompetent…”

-I’m not going to help you. Solve your own problems.

I knew he would say that, but his reaction was as cold as expected. Perhaps because it was no different from what I had expected, I laughed rather than feeling disappointed.

“But Trowel, I can’t summon spirits right now.”

-That’s not all, is it? Can’t you see the water spirits at all?

I was about to ask what that meant, but surprisingly, Trowel seemed to already know. Rather, an unexpected question came back, and I turned around in confusion. Now that I looked, I really couldn’t see any water spirits among the spirits nearby. Considering that spirits of the same attribute usually flock near a spirit master, it was a very strange phenomenon.

“Is there another reason for this? It’s not because of a barrier, is it?”

-Barrier?

“I thought there was a barrier because I couldn’t summon them.”

At those words, Norn slowly blinked. I instinctively felt that Trowel was looking around. “There’s no barrier.” As expected, his calm voice delivered the conclusion. I was relieved by the welcome news. But Trowel’s words didn’t end there.

-But it’s as good as a barrier.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

-Right now, the water spirits can’t cross over to the intermediate realm. All the ones that were here have been forcibly returned. That’s why you can’t summon them. It’s a global phenomenon, so not just you, but all water spirit masters will be experiencing the same situation.

“What is…”

-Ifrit has sealed off the water domain. Elquines is also trapped inside the domain.

It was such an enormous piece of news that my mouth couldn’t help but drop open. What was sealed off, and who was trapped in the domain? Eluien? My father, who is said to be the strongest Elquines of all time?

“…Is that possible?”

-That crazy guy joined hands with a high-ranking god… No. I don’t think I should be telling you this. Actually, I’m not very free either. But I sent a spirit because it’s not completely sealed off. I just wanted to lightly inform you of the situation because I thought you’d be panicking…

Yes, and I greeted you in this state.

Without realizing it, I knelt down politely. Norn didn’t react at all, but I felt like I could hear Trowel sighing.

“Is it very dangerous? Is everyone safe?”

-Are you worried about us right now? In your situation?

“My situation is my situation. Of course, I’m worried. Did anyone get hurt? You’re not pretending to be okay when you’re actually in pain, are you?”

-…It’s not like that. Only the domain is sealed off, no one was hurt, and everyone is fine. Elquines is very angry, so Ifrit won’t be safe soon, though.

“Haha…”

-It won’t take long to fix. Just hold on for a few hours.

With those words, Norn reached out his hand. When his small hand grabbed the ring on my wrist, it broke right away. Norn (or rather, Trowel) also broke all the weight-increasing devices on my other wrist and ankles.

-It’s an emergency, so I’ll allow this much.

It was quite a condescending tone. But it was definitely much lighter on my body once the rings disappeared. No, it wasn’t just that, it was like I had a different body. I felt almost no resistance when I got up. I kicked the floor lightly, and it felt like I was stepping on fluffy clouds. It was like I had returned to being a spirit again. Can I even fly at this point? As I moved my body around in amazement, I heard a voice filled with laughter.

-It’s a good opportunity to gain practical experience. Good luck.

* * *

The communication using the spirit ended there. As Trowel withdrew his involvement, Norn also quickly disappeared. Once again alone, I lightly massaged my body, which I still wasn’t used to, and surveyed the surroundings. First, I was going to go to the warehouse and retrieve Fire Buster.

It was mealtime, so everyone’s atmosphere was relaxed. Perhaps they thought it was okay since everyone was tied up tightly, but the watchful eyes were also lax. After figuring out the route to the warehouse, I turned to look at the unicorns. The horn that had sprouted on their foreheads had disappeared again. Taking them with me would be ideal, but there was no good way to wake up the people who were forcibly asleep. I also thought that Sibelius would come to rescue them anyway, so I didn’t need to step in.

“Ugh…”

But just as I was about to leave, I heard a faint groan from behind. One of the unicorns was waking up. It was the black-haired man who was the largest.

…Even so, it wouldn’t be right to just leave someone who had regained consciousness. My hesitation didn’t last long. I had no choice but to turn back towards the unicorns. The man who was regaining consciousness was frowning with a pained expression. Soon, his eyelashes fluttered, and clear purple eyes were revealed. After confirming that the focus was on his dazed gaze, I spoke calmly.

“Are you awake?”

“……! Who…!”

“Shh, don’t make too much noise. They might hear you outside.”

Fortunately, he was quick to grasp the situation, and the man, who was about to shout reflexively, immediately closed his mouth. He glared at me with wide eyes and then hurriedly looked around. His tense face softened a little only after confirming the others sleeping next to him. But it soon hardened again in a different sense.

“Karian. Karian, wake up. Lord Weldy? Can you hear me? What on earth did they do…”

From the titles, it seemed that the other man was a colleague, and the woman was of higher status. The two still didn’t respond even when the man shook them.

“They’re just in a deep sleep. I don’t think they did anything bad to their bodies, so don’t worry too much. I don’t know if you know, but this place isn’t meant to harm people.”

At those words, the man turned back to me. His gaze was full of hostility.

“But it’s a bit of a problem that you woke up. I was just about to leave alone.”

“…Who are you?”

“Someone who was in the same situation as you.”

When I pointed to the prison where I had been held, the man paused for a moment and then stared at me. I could see the wariness he had raised like thorns fading a little on his face, which was making an expression that he understood.

“You’re… you seem to be human.”

“That’s right. I heard you’re a unicorn?”

The man uttered a low curse. I couldn’t hear it in detail, but it was roughly a lament for the cruel and despicable human world that even kidnapped their own kind. I sympathized with him.

“How did you get out of there? How did you undo the restraints?”

“Well, it’s complicated to explain the circumstances. I think I can undo your restraints too, would you like me to help?”

“…You can undo this?”

He blinked and made a dumbfounded expression. His gaze blatantly swept over my arms and body. He was the kind of person who accurately conveyed what he wanted to say with just his gaze.

I examined his condition in my own way. Unlike me, who only had shackles on, they were restrained at the wrists, ankles, and even the neck. On top of that, they were wearing mana-sealing tools, so it wasn’t a situation that could be called okay even as a polite remark. Still, I didn’t feel any particular worry. I had already confirmed that the chains were the same kind that had been on me. It was ordinary iron, and there was no resistance magic on it. If I was in a state where my strength was overflowing like now, it was worth a try.

“It would be impossible to remove all the spheres [mana-sealing tools], but I think I can break the chains.”

“I don’t know what kind of reckless talk you’ve been saying since a while ago. Can’t you see the thickness of this lump of iron?”

“Excuse me for a moment.”

I thought it would be better to prove it with action than to argue, so I approached him, and the man flinched. Ignoring the wary gaze he sent me again, I grabbed the joint of the chain attached to the shackle. When I pulled it strongly, a rough sound rang out, and the connection point began to open. Unfortunately, it was still difficult to break the main body itself. But even that made the man’s eyes widen.