Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 585

585

“Do you know? Lamias and I met 4,000 years ago.”

“……Huh?”

“I’ll let it slide, considering the bond we had back then. 300 years isn’t a short time, after all.”

The Blue Dragons, who had been momentarily bewildered, finally understood what I said and raised their heads, their faces brightening. Okal seemed to have lost his strength and collapsed to the floor. Only Lamias had a confused look on his face, his mouth agape.

“W-wait a minute! 4,000 years ago? When was that? We met back then? Where? Really? How? No, if we met, there’s no way I would have forgotten that face?!”

*Yes, you completely and utterly forgot.* I replied inwardly, unfolding the contract. All the Blue Dragons held their breath, but Lamias, the person in question, was so focused on what I had said that he didn’t realize what was happening. Trowel, who received his gaze, also feigned ignorance, plunging him into even greater confusion.

“4,000 years ago would be during the Golden Civilization? I was building a ducal family in the Seik Empire back then? Did we really meet then? Are you serious, or are you joking?”

“So, are you going to sign the contract or not?”

“Of course, I will!”

With his answer, his signature was imprinted, and the contract was completed. I placed the energy gathering at my fingertips on his forehead, and the water seal took its place. Lamias, who had been flustered until then, took a deep breath. Judging by his blank expression, he still didn’t seem to grasp the situation. Regardless, my business was done, so I felt relieved.

“Okay, that’s it.”

“Huh? Huh? Huh?”

“I’ll use the mana well.”

“Ah, no! Wait a minute! Elquines?”

“Then, goodbye for real now.”

I smiled brightly and immediately returned to the Spirit Realm, not forgetting to add a warning not to call me for a while since I would be busy.

“Give me an answer before you leave! Where and how did we meet? Huh? Elquines!”

A desperate voice echoed.

* * *

Fortunately, Lamias didn’t look for me again. It seemed he was refraining from doing so, fearing that the newly concluded contract would be broken. It was a dragon-like action, faithfully upholding the contract with the stern and cold predecessor. Leaving his worries behind, I began a journey around the world with Trowel. It was a journey to face reality in earnest.

They say that mountains and rivers change in ten years. Akkadon, after 300 years, was very different from what I remembered. The most common changes were in people’s clothing, food, the architectural style of houses, and the roads. Places where there had been mountains had disappeared and become fields, or rivers had disappeared and villages had sprung up.

On the other hand, there were things that remained unchanged, standing in the same place. First of all, the Swalt Empire was still going strong. The imperial family’s bloodline, which had been solid since Isana’s previous generation, was still continuing. The surprising fact was that Alisa was included in that lineage.

“Really? Isana and Alisa got married?”

Trowel smiled and nodded. Originally, when there are two stars of emperors, a catastrophe is bound to happen, but the two of them were united smoothly without much chaos. Emperor Laon Hwizen didn’t give up until the end, but Alisa’s heart was firm, so it was no use. The bond between the two, built from their first meeting, was too strong for anyone who joined later to interfere. It was admirable and commendable that the two of them walked the path arranged by fate without being swayed by it.

“It drizzled at their wedding. Everyone was very happy that El came to see them.”

Even the cloudy weather became a blessing for the happy couple. In the memories I wasn’t a part of, I felt choked up by the stories of the people who had left my place empty.

They were a harmonious couple who respected and cherished each other without ever arguing. They had one daughter and three sons, and all four siblings were born with the aptitude of spirit mages, playing a leading role in raising the empire’s name. Now, that blood has been diluted a lot, but it seems that even now, one or two spirit mages are born in each generation. There was even a custom of making the child born with the aptitude the successor. Spirit mages had become a symbol and characteristic of the imperial family.

“That guy is the current emperor, Karlian. He’s an earth spirit mage.”

Listening to Trowel’s explanation, I looked at where he was pointing. Although there were more buildings I didn’t recognize, the main palace where the emperor worked hadn’t changed much. The location of the office and the seat where Isana always sat were also the same.

But it wasn’t Isana sitting in that seat, but an unfamiliar middle-aged man. That was a strange feeling. Would it have been less awkward if he had resembled her in appearance? The current emperor didn’t resemble his predecessor in any way. His impression and atmosphere were different, and even his hair color was black. Isana and Alisa both had blonde hair, so it seemed he took after his maternal side.

Thanks to that, I definitely felt the passage of time. The sight of a completely different person filling a place I knew seemed to be telling me to completely abandon even the last remaining attachment.

“There used to be frequent exchanges when their children were alive, but after that, the exchanges gradually stopped. Still, I’m giving the emperor three chances to receive my help. Karlian has already used all three times.”

“You kept taking care of them. Thank you, Trowel.”

“No, I wanted to do that. I didn’t want to show you the Swalt Empire disappearing when you came back.”

The star of the emperor and the companion star. It is said that the descendants who started from the two people of destiny all wisely ruled the country well. But I thought that the empire had been strong for a long time thanks to Trowel’s protection.

“Do you want to meet the emperor?”

“……No, this is enough. I’m just going to leave.”

When I shook my head, Trowel made a face as if he knew it would be like that. I hurried away from that place as if someone was chasing me. I felt sad and happy, affectionate and sorrowful. A dry wind blew in my heart.

* * *

Perhaps because he wasn’t united with his destined partner, unlike the still powerful Swalt Empire, the magic empire, the Carters Empire, went down the path of decline after the death of Emperor Laon Hwizen. The reason was that the emperor who succeeded him began to oppress the mages, contrary to the wishes of the late emperor.

The magic academy, which was the pride of the empire, closed its doors overnight, and countless books and cultures were trampled on. In the process, families who rebelled against the emperor caused a civil war, which lasted for a hundred years.

A country cannot be intact in a war that has dominated a generation. Since then, the empire has been divided into three countries, and the bloodline of Carters has been completely cut off. I wasn’t very close to Emperor Laon Hwizen, but my mouth felt bitter that it ended like this.

However, even in such a crisis, magic was safely passed down, and it had developed to the point where it could dream of a second golden age. Rather, as the mages who had fled the empire’s oppression independently established magic towers and began to train mages, it resulted in a wider spread. The use of magic tools, mainly for everyday magic, had also become widespread, and the field of alchemy seemed to have grown significantly.

Exchanges between races also became active. It was the dwarf tribe, who had lived in seclusion for a long time, who opened the first trade door. It is said that a young dwarf who accidentally strayed out of the territory was caught by a monster, and a human who happened to pass by rescued him. They gradually began to build friendship with each other, and it seems that it led to completely opening the trade door.

Stimulated by this, the elves also began to allow humans to enter their territory, opening an era of full-scale racial trade. Of course, not everyone was allowed, and not all elves were open, but that alone was a great development.

“Could it be that it was influenced by the change of generations of Minerva?”

“I can’t say it’s not at all. In the first place, the reason why the races were at odds with each other was because of that incident.”

Trowel smiled bitterly and replied. It was a problem that couldn’t be resolved when the previous Minerva was still alive, but now that a new wind was blowing, it was possible to bury it as a past event. It was also a sign that an era had completely ended.

In any case, it was no longer an awkward sight to see various races mixed together on the streets. Thanks to that, it was still difficult to shake off the feeling of being dropped into the world of 4,000 years ago. It was even more so when I found someone picking out fish in the shopping district.

“Hey, the fish here are in such bad condition? I know it’s winter, but you’re being too careless with the preservation, aren’t you?”

“What are you talking about? This is pretty good for being inland.”

“No, the capital is even more inland than here, but the ones they sell there are in better condition than this. You should at least use some preservation magic. It doesn’t cost that much.”

“Oh, don’t buy it if you don’t like it!”

The man arguing with the shop owner was a Blue Elf. For a moment, I almost ran over and grabbed him. But when I looked again, his face was completely different. “El, what’s wrong?” Trowel, who was looking back at me with a puzzled expression, checked where my gaze was directed and let out an exclamation.

“The number of Blue Elves advancing to the surface has also increased recently. He looks a bit like him from a distance.”

“Come to think of it, where is Sibel living now?”

“Um, that guy is…….”

Trowel, who had been kindly explaining everything I asked, trailed off for the first time. *Surely Sibelius isn’t dead, is he?* He should still have a long life ahead of him. I looked at him with an uneasy heart, and he hurriedly replied.

“Don’t worry. He’s probably doing well. You’ll meet him soon.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. Oh, it looks like there’s a festival over there, El. Let’s go!”

Trowel hurriedly grabbed my arm. No matter how I looked at it, his attitude was suspicious, but I believed that I would meet him soon and moved my steps. He wasn’t the kind of person who would lie about something like this.

The weather in the middle of winter was colorless no matter where I looked. Perhaps because it was a festival held at this time of year, the place I arrived at was full of ice sculptures. There seemed to be a sledding area and ice fishing as well. It was said to be a traditional winter festival that was a local specialty. I was thinking that I had seen this somewhere when Trowel asked.

“Doesn’t this scene look familiar to you?”

“Um, it does.”

“Then how about that?”

There were trees with lots of ribbons on them where he was pointing. What was unique was that they all had the same ornaments except for the ribbons. They were artificial violets, and they all had three flowers each, as if the number had a meaning. When I realized that, I saw violets in other decorations around me. Again, there were three flowers each.

*Wait, three violets? And if it’s a winter festival…….*

As I blankly opened my mouth at the thought that suddenly came to mind, Trowel smiled, recognizing it.

“Three violets are the symbol of this village. It seems that they were once so poor that people were starving to death. Everyone held a festival thinking that this winter would be the last, but a son of God who happened to stop by gave them three violet-shaped jewels.”

“……!”

“The villagers sold the jewels and used the money to safely get through the winter. After that, the cultivation went well and they got out of poverty. Since then, they have made three violets the symbol of the village in memory of their benefactor. It’s a historic anecdote that has been passed down in this area for 300 years.”

I remember. I couldn’t resist Alisa’s nagging that she wanted to go to the winter festival, so I stopped by a village. At that time, I clashed with the Grand Duke’s army who were harassing the residents, and in the process, I gave them a few violets to compensate for the damaged supplies. I just picked a small flower that was easy to grab, thinking that a flower that was too big would be burdensome, but I never thought it would become the symbol of the village. I was dumbfounded.

“They must have known me as Alisa…….”

“That’s right, that’s how it was known at first. But later, Alisa, who became the empress, learned about the anecdote and directly corrected the misunderstanding. She said that it was not her, but the son of God who had bestowed the grace.”

After that, she visited every time the festival was held. Of course, Isana was with her too. Thanks to that, the village prospered even more as rumors spread that it was a festival frequented by the imperial couple.

I looked around with a feeling that was quite different from before. The well-maintained houses and the streets full of leisure and vitality. The parts that I had passed by without much thought were now seen again. The scenery at that time had changed so much that I couldn’t even remember it, but when I thought that it was all a trace of being with everyone, it was a strange feeling.

“Actually, there’s something I want to show you when this trip is over.”
Trowel’s soft voice continued to me, who had been distracted by the surroundings for a long time.

“Something you want to show me? What is it?”

“Later. It’s still a secret.”

Could it be related to something I did too? I was curious, but I didn’t urge him. There were still many things to look back on.

“Well, shall we go again?”

I nodded at the face that asked with a smile. Just in time, snow began to pour down from the sky. It seemed that the clouds could no longer bear the weight of the Naiads [water nymphs] who had flocked after me. The children who were sledding on the ice shouted with joy at the falling snowflakes. I smiled at those pure laughter. I felt like I could love this world too.

* * *

The next place Trowel guided me to was a duchy called Baikal in the north. It was one of the countries that had been created while I was away, and despite the harsh climate unique to the north, it was quite large and bustling. Most of the residents were active mercenaries or former mercenaries, and it was also the location of the Mercenary Guild’s headquarters. That’s why it seemed to be called the Kingdom of Mercenaries.

“Wasn’t the Mercenary Guild’s headquarters originally in the capital? Did they move to the north?”

“No, that guild went bankrupt. The current Mercenary Guild is a newly created guild. It’s been about 300 years now, so the history is actually longer on this side.”

“Ah, I see.”

300 years, that meant it was founded when I was away. It might be related to Heusen and his group. When I asked with a hopeful heart, the answer came back as expected. It was said that they had broken away and founded a new guild because the persecution of the existing guild had become too great.

“That’s like those people.”

“Isn’t it?”

Since the north was not a good environment to build a foundation, there were many twists and turns at first. Still, they grew as if to show off, and grew to the point of covering up the influence of the existing guild. Later on, it was said that the saying, ‘If you want to become a mercenary, go north,’ was regarded as an unwritten rule.

At the time, they were feeding the poor duchy. Thanks to that, it seemed that it was better known by the name Champagne Duchy than its original name.