Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 114

114.

Through the wide-open double doors, a bedroom draped with red curtains came into view. Just below, a woman leaned against the cushions, almost prostrate. She looked like she had stepped out of *Arabian Nights*, with Arabian-style clothing and dazzling decorations that suited her perfectly.

Her skin was as white as snow, and fiery red hair cascaded down her exposed back like flames. She was probably Ikana, the head of this trading company.

Good heavens.

The only word that came to my mind when I saw her was, “Wow.” Seeing my frozen expression, the woman wore a deep smile on her face.

“Eldran, you can leave now.”

“Yes? But…”

“It’s alright. I have important business with these people. Once we’re done, I’ll call you, so don’t let anyone in until then.”

“Understood.”

Eldran answered respectfully, sending an anxious glance our way (as if worried we might harm her), and slowly turned and left. As soon as the door closed, she smiled and said,

“Now we can talk comfortably. I thought I heard your voice, and it really was you? Long time no see, El. How have you been?”

“……!”

Kaitem was taken aback by the sudden informality and looked at me with a bewildered expression. But the most bewildered person at this moment was me. No matter how much I rubbed my eyes and shook my head, the result didn’t change. A woman so captivating that she could bewitch anyone at first glance. She was undoubtedly the Fire Spirit King, Ifrit.

“What, you! Why are you here!?”

At my shocked question, Ikana, or rather, Ifrit, yawned languidly. The way she twisted her body fluidly was just like a cat.

“What else? As you can see, I’m amusing myself. Your ability to assess the situation is as slow as ever, isn’t it?”

“Who doesn’t know you’re amusing yourself? It’s because you suddenly appeared like this!”

“You should watch your words. It’s not that I appeared, but that you came looking for me, right?”

“Then are you really Ikana?”

“That’s right. Ikana, the immortal woman who, despite being in a woman’s body, young, and even a foreigner, seized control of the commercial districts of major cities in an instant with her innate business acumen! That person is none other than yours truly!”

To boast about herself so grandly, this one must be of the same ilk as Lapis. Ifrit leaned her upper body forward as if to show off. At that moment, I inadvertently noticed something and was horrified.

“Wh-what. Don’t tell me you even made breasts?”

“Of course. It would be strange if this body didn’t have breasts.”

“What about your skin color! How did you do your skin color? You weren’t originally white, were you?”

“I used light reflection to make it look white. How is it? Doesn’t it suit me quite well? I think it’s pretty good, but what do you think?”

“What do you mean, what do I think? About what?”

“How dense. I’m asking if Ellyuene would pounce on me looking like this.”

“Puhah! What?”

“Cough! Cough!”

At the same time as my exclamation, a coughing sound erupted from behind. It was Kaitem, who had been standing quietly like a sack of potatoes while we were talking. He was so surprised that his usually calm face was disturbed for the first time.

“Are you crazy?”

“Why are you having a fit? It’s not like I’m happy to be thinking about this either. Why else would I be doing this? And since when have you been calling your mom ‘you’? It hurts your mom’s feelings.”

“Keuk, M-Mom……?”

“Ahem!”

This time, a groan of shock burst out from behind. No! It’s not like that! I’m innocent, okay?! I desperately shook my head, turning to look at the pale-faced Kaitem.

“Ah, really, don’t say things like that! My companions will misunderstand!”

“What if they misunderstand? It’s going to be true anyway.”

“If you keep acting like that, I’m going to sabotage your wedding?”

“See, even you think we’re going to get married.”

“Keup!”

I was speechless at her brazen reply. Then, the words Ellyuene had told me just before meeting this one suddenly came to mind. He said that the person I would meet suddenly would reveal an unexpected identity. Could that have been referring to Ifrit? The expression ‘looking foolish’ bothered me a bit, but I felt like he was the type to say that.

“Pour out a barrage of curses.”

I swallowed hard. To be honest, even when I first heard that instruction, I didn’t really intend to follow it. But this time, I thought it might be okay to be a good son who listens well.

“S-Sea cucumber!”

“What?”

“Sea squirt! Sea anemone!”

“What are you even saying right now?”

“Eeeh! Idiot!”

“Do you want to die?”

“……I’m sorry.”

Yes, I know. I know I’m being pathetic.

By the time the conversation was somewhat over, I was quite exhausted as a result. Kaitem, who had been calmly standing there from beginning to end while watching that embarrassing scene, seemed almost great to me.

“Um, El? Just who is that……?”

“Hmm, I’m sorry. I’m too late to introduce her. So, this person is… the Fire Spirit King, Ifrit… I guess.”

“Yes?”

I thought he would have guessed to some extent, but he was more surprised than I had expected. It seemed he hadn’t even suspected it once. Well, the Fire Spirit King and the head of a trading company weren’t a very fitting combination. Besides, we had just had a childish argument until just now. I offered a short apology to him, who had stiffened.

“Sorry. This is what a Spirit King is like.”

“What? What do you mean, ‘like this’?”

“Shut up. You just scratched pure innocence.”

Ifrit looked at me as if I had eaten something wrong. Then, as if belatedly coming to his senses, Kaitem politely greeted her.

“It is an honor to meet you, Spirit King Ifrit. My name is Kaitem, and I am traveling with El.”

“What? Ah, you don’t need to be so formal. I’m Ikana here, so just call me Ikana.”

“Yes, I understand, Ikana.”

Even with her rude tone, as if speaking to a subordinate, he nodded without any displeasure. Then, Ifrit looked at him with a strange gaze.

“Your name is Kaitem? Now that I think about it, you’re a priest. And looking at the emblem on your wrist, it seems to be Ellyuene’s symbol…….”

“That’s right, he’s a priest of Ellyuene.”

Feeling proud for no reason, I shrugged my shoulders and answered. But what was the problem? Suddenly, Ifrit glared at me with a sulky face.

“Hmph, so you’re the protagonist of that rumor.”

“Huh? What rumor?”

“The Pope’s emblem that appeared in the Order of Punishment. That’s you, isn’t it?”

“…….”

At the sharp gaze that poured down on me, I quietly avoided her eyes. Even though she was in human form, I felt like I could see a blazing fire behind her.

“You’re so unfair! You left me behind and met Ellyuene all by yourself!”

“Ellyuene called me! And I didn’t even know you were here?”

“Ah, I don’t care! Anyway, you’re really annoying!”

No, what did I even do? I looked at Ifrit in disbelief, but the woman, already blinded by jealousy, didn’t seem to have any intention of considering my unfair position. I watched her huffing and glaring with obvious resentment, feeling half resigned.

“Anyway, you’re really capable. When did you say you couldn’t play around? In the meantime, you’ve even made a contract with a human. And even an emperor, no less?”

“Oh? You knew?”

“Wouldn’t it be strange if I didn’t? The Naiads [water nymphs] are so talkative. The rumor has already spread throughout the Spirit Realm. It’s not that great of a deal that the King is playing around, but they chatter all day long about what our King did. Anyway, the King and his subordinates are all half-wits.”

“Yeah, yeah. Go ahead and insult me all you want. I’m the bad guy.”

Only then did Ifrit’s expression soften a little, as if she had relieved some of her anger. Seeing that she didn’t seem to be about to lash out any further, I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. It felt like I had been caught in a rough storm.

“But what brings you here? Eldran told me earlier that you came to trade for jewels.”

“Ah, that…….”

“If you’re thinking of raising capital, you should look elsewhere. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but our trading company doesn’t handle Bria’s jewels. You know why, right?”

Of course, I knew. That was something I could get plenty of in the Spirit Realm, so there was no need to buy it separately. I was reminded of the gatekeeper’s boast that he had a separate supply source for high-quality jewels. At the time, I just thought she was a resourceful head, but it turned out that it was the Spirit Realm. I wondered what kind of expression the gatekeeper would make if he knew this fact.

“The truth is, coming to trade for jewels was just an excuse. I originally came to meet Ikana.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, I had a favor to ask.”

“Hmph, really? What is it?”

“I need information about the Demon Sword.”

“Demon Sword?”

To the bewildered Ifrit, I briefly explained what had happened. From meeting April here by chance to learning about her situation in the process. Most of it was information that Ifrit already knew, so it wasn’t too difficult to get her to understand the situation. Perhaps that’s why even she, who had been listening absentmindedly at first, seemed to be quite interested.

“Hmph, so you were protecting that noble lady? That’s good. I was worried she might get caught. Now I can rest a little easier.”

“Hee, were you very worried?”

“Of course. Do you know how much the information I gave that woman was worth? I invested everything in the trading company, and then it all disappears in an instant. How frustrating do you think that would be?”

That’s more like it. I was a fool to expect even a shred of warmth from that witch. Of course, if I revealed these thoughts, it would surely lead to disaster, so I didn’t show it at all. Even a Spirit King only has one life, after all. Damn it, why are there only people like this around me? I want to meet someone easygoing too!

“Anyway, tell me more. So you’re going to find the cave with the Demon Sword to lift the curse on the Duke?”

“Ah, uh-huh, April said that you know about that place, is that true?”

“Well, if that cave is the one I know, then probably.”

I was relieved by her answer. I was worried about coming all the way here for nothing, but fortunately, it seemed like I had come to the right place. Ifrit’s expression seemed strange, but I thought it was just my imagination and didn’t pay attention.

“But if it’s in that cave…… no, it’s nothing.”

“What were you about to say?”

“I said it’s nothing. Anyway, you want to know the location of that cave, right?”

“Yes! Can you tell me?”

“Well, what should I do?”

Of course, that’s how it would go. I wondered when she would answer me so readily. I frowned at her eyes, which were openly teasing me.

“Are you really going to be like this?”

“Do you want to know? Then call me Mom.”

“……Goodbye.”

“Alright, alright. I’ll tell you. I don’t know why it’s so hard for you to say just one word.”

Ifrit clicked her tongue and grabbed me as I turned away without hesitation. Behind her, the bedroom wall was filled with numerous drawers. Ifrit opened one of them, took out a bundle of leather, and threw it in front of me.

“Here, catch.”

“……What is this?”

“What else? It’s a map to the cave.”

As soon as the answer was given, I quickly picked up the leather and unfolded it. The curves drawn haphazardly on the thin leather represented a complex terrain, and one part of it was marked with red ink like a brand. It seemed to indicate the location of the cave.

“The Baron Desert? Is there a cave in this place?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“But this map…… doesn’t seem to be a map of the Swalt Empire?”

“It’s the Alphonse Empire. You’ll have to cross the sea to get there from here.”

“Hee, I see. It’s farther away than I thought. But can I really have this?”

“You’re so suspicious. What are you going to do with someone you can’t trust so much?”

That’s all because of you!

Ifrit glared at me in disbelief. Since there was no point in protesting, I chose to quietly take the map. Feeling sorry for me, she said generously.

“Well, the truth is, it wouldn’t be bad for me if the Duke regained his senses. I’ve been having too many headaches because of the Demon Followers lately.”

“Huh? Why? Ah! Is it because you helped April?”

I was also concerned about that issue. It was the part that April was most worried about before coming here. If Ifrit, who wouldn’t even blink at ordinary things, said she had a headache, the damage must have been greater than I thought. Ifrit couldn’t hide her unpleasant expression.

“They’re really annoying guys. Didn’t you feel that the atmosphere of the trading company was a bit strange when you came in?”

“Hmm, a little. The luggage was scattered around too messily.”

“That’s all the Demon Followers’ doing.”

“Huh? The Demon Followers?”

After nodding in agreement, Ifrit bit her lip. It was as if she would burn the Demon Followers to ashes if they were in front of her.

“They come several times a day, rummaging through the luggage to see if people are hiding inside. Thanks to them, I haven’t even been able to properly organize the supplies that need to be ready by today. To be honest, it’s a complete nuisance. It’s beyond *yeong-eop banghae* [business obstruction].”

“Ugh, that’s too bad.”

“Right? You think so too, don’t you? So you have to solve it somehow. Either make the Duke come to his senses or get rid of all the Demon Followers.”

“Huh? Me?”

“Why are you so surprised? Wasn’t that what you were going to do anyway?”

“That’s true, but…….”

Even if it’s something you have to do, it’s a different story when it becomes an obligation. Ifrit’s eyes flashed as if she had noticed my hesitant thoughts.

“Did you think I gave you the map for free? Do you know how expensive that is! It’s so valuable that treasure hunters will pay anything for it! But I thought about my loyalty as a fellow Spirit King and gave it to you with a big heart!”

“Ah, I understand. I’ll do something about it. I can do it.”

“Really? You promised?”

“I got it.”

As I sighed and nodded, Ifrit smiled brightly. It was the brightest smile I had ever seen on her face.

What is it, that meaningful smile?

Usually, when you see someone’s joyful face, you feel happy too. But strangely, I felt repulsed by Ifrit’s smile. Even though there was clearly nothing to be wary of, I felt very uneasy, like I had been caught in a trap set by a hunter.

I guess I’ve been taken advantage of too much lately, so I’m having a conditioned response. Thinking that, I suddenly felt pathetic about my situation.