Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 550

Weldy turned to him with a blank face. Even Sibelius looked surprised. I was just as surprised by his change. Rigleo, they said, was someone who could help Sibelius, but he probably wasn’t like that from the start. Considering how overbearing he was when I first saw him, it must be that he was influenced by Rigleo and changed his attitude towards Sibelius. The coldest man became the most cooperative person thanks to his connection with the former Rune [a powerful leader or figurehead]. You really never know what will happen in life.

It was true that the atmosphere had changed. I could feel that the sharp energy of the unicorns, which had been in agreement with Weldy, had subsided with that one word. No matter how much they had underestimated him, they couldn’t ignore the symbolism and external status of the Rune. They wouldn’t change immediately when they had been doing things a certain way, but for now, everyone had confused faces, not knowing what to do. As silence began to fall between the people who had closed their mouths one by one, the surrounding air grew heavy. Just as the tension felt suffocating, Sibelius, who had sighed softly, opened his mouth.

“I’m sorry, Weldy. I don’t intend to go back right now.”

“Sibelius…”

“The things everyone is worried about won’t happen. I hope you can trust me a little. Of course, it’s true that I came out impulsively at first. But I’ve gained a lot while traveling the world. The more I learn and realize new things, the more I see the way forward. I think this experience will lead to good results for everyone.”

“Does that mean…”

“Please, Weldy. I want to become a dignified Rune. Not just a Rune in name, but a real Rune that can help everyone.”

Weldy, who had frozen with a pale face, didn’t say anything for a while. Whether he was in pain or sad, he seemed to be swallowing complex emotions on his own, and soon he seemed to be calmly organizing his thoughts. Eventually, his tearful eyes met mine.

“Sibelius, you think this journey will help you become a true Rune.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“It’s not a journey to leave the clan, but a journey to return with dignity. Right?”

Sibelius nodded with a serious face. Only then did Weldy’s expression relax as if he was relieved. I was also relieved that I had been preparing for the worst. It seems that the person who can communicate the most effectively is indeed Weldy.

“But still, I’m honestly worried about you traveling with a woman. Of course, I trust Sibelius. But accidents happen in an instant…”

“Ah, Weldy. You don’t have to worry about that. The truth is, that person is…”

“Yes?”

Here we go again. I turned away, pretending not to notice Weldy’s gaze, who was shocked after hearing Arrell’s whisper. I can’t exactly write ‘man’ on my forehead.

“…Can you show me the relic first?”

It seemed that the situation had been resolved to some extent, so I decided to bring up the original reason. Fortunately, they soon seemed to come to their senses when I got to the point. When Weldy gave a look, the attendants behind him took a small wooden box and walked forward. When I received it and opened the lid, I saw a mirror about the size of a small tray. I didn’t feel anything special from it as a relic, but there was no doubt that it was genuine. It looked like a miniature version of the Mirror of Connection I had seen when I went to the God Realm before.

Thanks to that, I unconsciously touched the surface. I was secretly hoping that it would ripple like it did back then, but it felt hard. Even if the name is the same, the function is definitely different. Maybe it’s because I’m human now.

“Is this the relic?”

“Yes, it’s a mirror that reflects fate.”

“If you hold the handle and reflect your face, the connections you have will appear.”

Weldy’s calm explanation continued as Sibelius and I looked at it with wonder. It seemed that the misunderstanding about gender had been resolved, but the face that looked at us closely still looked complicated. The fact that the Rune of the clan was close to a human probably didn’t sit well with him.

When I lifted the mirror and looked straight at my face, a subtle ripple occurred and something really started to appear. This wasn’t the purpose, but I was nervous because it was said to reflect fate. I was actually excited to see if someone I knew would come out or someone I didn’t know at all.

Soon, a clear shape fully revealed itself. What caught my eye at a glance was the vast sea that stretched out endlessly. On top of the transparent waves where you could see the bottom, dazzling sunlight was scattered like jewel powder. It was a sight that made my heart feel open just by looking at it. But that was all.

“…”

Yeah, it’s water. It’s water. I certainly have a deep connection with water.

No, but isn’t this a bit much? Wasn’t it supposed to only reflect people? Of course, if someone had been reflected, I would have felt complicated, but I was excited for nothing anyway. I must have shown a look of dismay without realizing it. Sibelius asked with a puzzled look.

“What’s wrong, El? What do you see?”

“Hmm? Can’t you see it?”

“It looks like it’s only reflecting your face to me?”

It seems that the mirror only shows it to the person involved. When I recommended it to Sibelius, he smiled awkwardly and shook his head. It was a refusal that he didn’t want to know such a thing. It was a wise choice since there weren’t only good results. Weldy seemed to regret the decision.

“Now that you’ve seen the mirror, is the business over?”

“No, the original purpose isn’t this, so you’ll have to wait a little longer. Let’s move the location for now.”

“Move the location?”

“Didn’t I tell you that I was planning to borrow it for a few days in the first place? We’re going to move to a place suitable for the purpose of use. You don’t have to follow us if you don’t want to. I’ll keep my promise to rent it.”

“No. I’ll go. Where is it?”

“The Demon God Temple.”

I have the sentence [referring to a specific phrase or incantation], but it’s only going to be a headache if I reveal it. Besides, I don’t know what side effects will come with divine possession. Originally, gods have a time limit when they descend to earth. I heard that the impact on the ground when they descend is also great. Kanos appeared without any problems last time, but I couldn’t guarantee that it would be the same when he possessed. To defend against these problems as much as possible, it was better to try in a safe place if possible. If there was a place where a god could descend, it would be the temple.

Weldy’s expression changed noticeably when he heard the destination. The gaze that had been wary was distorted as if looking at something ominous.

“You don’t happen to know about the other function hidden in that relic, do you?”

When I shrugged, Weldy sent an even more confused look. Sibelius, who didn’t know the details, had a puzzled expression, but I didn’t bother to explain.

“That’s impossible. We only found it by chance while looking at ancient books. It’s a rare book that only a few remain in the middle world, and it’s been kept only in our village. None of the owners of the relics, including the dragon Lantasha, knew about that function. But how do you, a human, know about it?”

“Sorry, but it’s hard for me to tell you that. It’s a trade secret.”

While the dumbfounded unicorns were at a loss for words, laughter spread in my head. Lapis, who had suddenly become a trade secret, seemed to find this situation quite amusing. Well, it’s good enough if you’re having fun. I muttered inwardly, put the relic back in the wooden box, and carefully stowed it in my backpack. The unicorns, who were flustered, didn’t know what to do when I put on my backpack and stood up. It seemed burdensome when I really seemed to be leaving.

Come to think of it, I heard that there are many unicorn hunters in this country. The Temple of Punishment was on a mountain peak where no one could reach, but that was only a special case, and temples are usually built on fertile land. So, a village is often formed around it. The Demon God Temple, which I had investigated in advance and made my destination, was in the middle of the village. It was just that I had decided on the closest place, but anyway, it meant that I had to face humans. Everyone looked reluctant, but I didn’t bother to consider their circumstances.

“Then shall we leave now?”

* * *

The Cherba Confederation, formed by the union of three small kingdoms, was a country that used flying birds as its main means of transportation due to its many mountainous areas. It was so common for each household to raise one flying bird that it was also the country that suffered the most damage since the sky was closed. This was because they had only invested in flying birds, so other routes had hardly developed.

The trains were woefully inadequate, and there weren’t many paved roads either. To go to other areas, it was faster to walk across the mountains. The journey to the Demon God Temple was the same, so it took a whole day just to get there.

I could have asked Ellyuen to use teleportation magic, but I stopped when he said that the capacity that could be moved at once was only about four people. After using a large amount of magic, he had to replenish his magic power, and Weldy’s side, who had brought attendants, had a total of seven people. I didn’t want to ask for such trouble for people I wasn’t very close to. Ellyuen wouldn’t listen anyway.

“What, you can’t even move a dozen people at once? The strongest spirit king of all time is nothing special. I can do it.”

‘…It’s amazing that a spirit king uses magic in the first place?’

I looked at Ellyuen, feeling pathetic about Lapis, who was boasting about an area that was impossible to compare in the first place. Come to think of it, I had forgotten that I was going to learn secret techniques from him. I asked him in passing if other spirit kings could learn magic at this opportunity, and he answered unexpectedly casually.

“I guess you can. You just have to make a passage.”

“Passage?”

The explanation that followed was magical common sense that I also knew. Mana permeates the body and is converted into magic power during circulation. At this time, the aptitude of a magician was determined by how much he could quickly convert and accumulate.

“So, the problem is to create a passage that can replace the function of the body. Of course, the function is inferior compared to a real body.”

It’s easy to say, but in short, it’s the logic of creating new organs or blood vessels in the body. I was at a loss for words for a while, then barely opened my mouth.

“…Father, when was that possible?”

“I’ve been trying steadily for about 7,000 years, and it worked.”

Haha, I shouldn’t have asked. It wasn’t going to work anyway, was it? I had to stretch my legs where I was lying down, so I cleanly gave up my vain hope. After all, not everyone can be a genius.

Anyway, the journey that started like that was smoother than I thought. The unicorn party, who silently followed our group walking ahead, didn’t talk much except for the necessary words. In particular, they seemed to be most wary of Ellyuen, who was silent all the time. It may be because he was wearing a suspicious appearance with his hood pulled down, but they seemed to be aware of the presence that was felt strongly even though he was hiding his appearance. Still, because of their pride, they didn’t ask what his identity was until the end. I was comfortable because I didn’t need to explain.

“We’ve walked quite a bit. It seems like it’s time for a meal, so shall we take a break and eat here?”

“Yes, let’s do that.”

Weldy, who had calmly agreed to my suggestion, ordered his party to rest. The faces of the unicorns, who were tired, brightened up, whether it was because they had good innate strength or because they were exhausted from unfamiliar mountain climbing.

“El, are we eating lunch here? Then I’ll prepare it right away.”

Sibelius, who now regarded meal preparation as his destiny, naturally started working. Weldy, who was bewildered by the appearance of various cooking utensils, was greatly shocked when Sibelius started a fire and started cooking in earnest.

“What are you doing, Sibelius?”

“As you can see, I’m preparing a meal.”

“No! Just stay still! How can a Rune do this himself! We’ve also prepared food. Let the attendants do this!”

“Really? What did you bring?”

At those words, the attendants hesitated and took out bundles from their backpacks. What came out of it were several loaves of white bread, and dried rations and jerky.

Sibelius smiled and continued cooking. Weldy’s face turned red.

“That’s enough for a trip!”

“I don’t like it. I’m going to eat properly even if it’s just one meal. It’s the same for the others, so put what you brought back in. Don’t even think about filling your stomach with such poor food when you’re with me.”

At the firm answer, the attendants slipped back into their backpacks. The instinct to eat something delicious seemed to have won over the leader’s eyes. Weldy, who looked back at the scene with a flustered expression, bit her lip. It seemed like she glared at me a little.

“You take meal preparation for granted, how often have you done this while you’ve been away from the village? I heard that you work as a cook in the human countries, but you weren’t really doing that, were you?”

“That’s right.”

“Good heavens!”

“I did it because I liked it. You know I’ve always liked cooking.”

“But…!”

“Is there anything I can help you with? Should I peel these potatoes?”

At that moment, Arrell, who had naturally blended in, changed the subject, and the conversation between the two was stopped. Weldy looked at him with an absurd face at the act that was obviously intentional. It was understandable since the attitude of the person who had been berating Sibelius’s hobby the most had suddenly changed. Arrell shrugged without any embarrassment.

“You can’t help family history, can you? I also like fishing because I resemble my mother.”

“What do you mean, Arrell?”

“Ah, that’s what I found out recently. The former Runes often enjoyed cooking. Ryunen even threw a banquet with food he made himself.”

“Ryu, Ryunen?”

“Yes, it seems like it was before we were born.”

“…I see. Father…”

I wondered who he was talking about, but it was the story of Sibelius’s father. Sibelius, who was muttering, had a very strange expression. Arrell glanced at the scene for a moment.

“The predecessor was also good at it.”

The surroundings were silent for a moment at the added word. Everyone was looking at Arrell with shocked eyes. Karian, who had quickly approached, snatched Arrell and dragged him away. I could hear him whispering, asking if he was in his right mind. Seeing this commotion caused by that one word, I was sure that Rigleo’s existence itself was taboo.