Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 14

Chapter 14

The question, posed at the height of a successful moment, was enough to break the flow. Ifrit seized the opportunity and immediately counterattacked.

“Th-that’s right! That’s exactly what I’m saying! If it’s negative, it’s negative, so how can it be positive? Living as a human has made you embrace strange ideologies, hasn’t it? You’re just indulging in absurd fantasies. That’s why you haven’t been a proper Spirit King until now!”

“Ugh! Is this Spirit King trying to catch me off guard again? You always ignore me, and your behavior is suspicious enough. If you’re so confident, why couldn’t you answer properly at first? You definitely hesitated when I asked if you liked the previous Elquines!”

“Th-that’s because……”

“See? You can’t say anything again. The very act of trying to make excuses is enough evidence of suspicion. You have to deceive when you can get away with it! Do you think I’m a pushover?”

“Huh? Jihoon, aren’t you water?”

“Kuh-huh! Trowell! Are you doing this on purpose?”

“What did I do……”

They say it’s better to stay quiet, but Trowell went even further, nitpicking everything I said. When I looked at him resentfully, he shrugged, looking clueless.

Fortunately, this time there was no retaliation from Ifrit. He just pursed his lips tightly and hung his head. Anyone could see he was admitting defeat.

Huhu, is this my victory?

But the joy of victory was fleeting, to say the least. Soon, I had to stop talking and shut my mouth at the sight of Ifrit before me. Tears were welling up in his eyes as he glared at me.

“I, Ifrit?”

When you’re joking around, you never imagine the other person will cry. That was the case for me too. Ifrit opened his tightly closed lips, facing me, who had lost my words and stiffened.

“I really hate guys like you.”

“……”

“I don’t even want to see your face. I never want to see someone like you again!”

That was it. He didn’t shower me with curses or insults, nor did he resort to violence. Ifrit, who just shouted in a tearful voice, disappeared in a blaze of fire before I could do anything. It all happened in an instant.

‘This is a disaster!’

I was just trying to gently tease him into confessing. I never imagined things would go so wrong. Then, I heard Trowell clicking his tongue lightly next to me as I stood there blankly.

“Ah, you made him cry.”

“Ugh! Wh-what should I do, Trowell? Was I too harsh?”

I fidgeted and bit my nails. Making a girl cry(?). This is the first time such a thing has happened in Kang Jihoon’s life. Shouldn’t I go and beg for forgiveness right away?

“Beg for forgiveness? What’s that?”

“Um. It’s when you repeatedly apologize while banging your head on a stone…… Trowell, I told you not to read my mind.”

I was about to explain absentmindedly, but I just slumped my shoulders in dismay. Trowell smiled lightly and apologized.

“Sorry, sorry. But are you going to apologize first this time?”

“Huh? This time…… you mean there was a previous time?”

When else did I fight with Ifrit? No, we fight often, but it’s always Ifrit who starts it, and we’ve never had such a serious falling out before?

Puzzled by the subtle question, I looked at Trowell.

“Elquines and Ifrit have always had a bad relationship, right? Before, Ifrit always apologized after a fight. The previous Elquines never backed down first.”

“Hee, is that so? But I’m the one who did wrong this time.”

“Well, it’s not much different. Ifrit said harsh things too. Besides, we never fought because someone did something wrong.”

“Then why did you fight?”

“Just like now, Ifrit would unilaterally pick a fight and get angry, and eventually, when he felt cornered, he would cry and run away. It’s a bit refreshing to see after so long. I’m sure he feels the same.”

“……So, this kind of thing is quite common?”

“Even the last words he shouted were the same.”

“……”

I couldn’t hide my complicated feelings at Trowell’s smiling face. What, so does that mean the tears from earlier were all an act? But he really seemed to be crying?

I stared at Trowell again with a queasy feeling.

“Hey, Trowell. When does Ifrit usually apologize in situations like this?”

“Um, it varies. Sometimes he gets over it quickly, but other times it can take years or even decades. There was a time when he didn’t exchange a single word with the previous Elquines for over five hundred years.”

“Gasp! F-five hundred years?”

“That’s the record. Ifrit was so worked up that he made it a competition to see how long he could last. But he lost in the end.”

“Ugh, even if it’s a competition, how could you endure not speaking for five hundred years? You’re only four Spirit Kings in the world.”

At those words, Trowell looked at me with a strange expression. I hesitated and cautiously watched him, wondering if I had made a mistake.

“Why, why?”

“No, it’s just. I’ve never thought of it that way. Only four beings in existence…… Yeah, I guess you could see it that way. But we’re not social beings like humans. We don’t necessarily need to interact.”

“I-is that so?”

“Yeah, we can automatically fulfill the necessary parts just by existing. So, we tend to have strong individual tendencies. The previous Elquines was especially independent. He always stayed in the Water Territory, so we wouldn’t see him unless we went to find him first.”

“Wow……”

Didn’t they say the lifespan of a Spirit King is over ten thousand years? To spend such an enormous amount of time only in the Water Territory. The previous Elquines must have been a huge outsider.

“To like someone like that. Ifrit has very unique tastes.”

“Huh? Ifrit likes the previous Elquines?”

At that moment, Trowell’s eyes widened as if he had never heard of it before. His reaction only made me feel more bewildered.

“What, Trowell? You heard everything we’ve been talking about. But you’re acting like you’re hearing it for the first time.”

“I heard it. But Ifrit said he didn’t.”

“Huh? Isn’t that just a lie?”

“No way, spirits don’t lie.”

“Gasp! Really?”

“Humans are the ones who aren’t honest with their feelings. We spirits are always true to our inner selves. There’s no reason to hide such things, right?”

Huh, so he really doesn’t like him?

Even if I don’t know, if Trowell, who can see through people’s hearts, says so, I have to think differently. But then why couldn’t he say anything back then? If it really wasn’t true, he could have punched me and asked what nonsense I was spouting?

‘But I can’t ignore Trowell’s abilities either. Ugh, this is really a headache.’

If I believe Trowell, there are one or two suspicious things, but if I believe my intuition, it’s not very reliable. I knew other people’s love lives were complicated, but I didn’t know it would be this much of a headache.

‘Hmm, anyway, let’s apologize to Ifrit for now. It’s my fault for trying to play with his feelings. Besides, if I wait for him to get over his anger first, I don’t think I’ll live to see it.’

At least a few years to a few decades. How can I wait for such a long time? It’s better for me to give in. Yes, that’s right.

I clenched my fist confidently, having made up my mind. But reality was not as easy as I thought……

“Huh? What are you doing, Jihoon? Weren’t you going to apologize to Ifrit?”

Trowell asked with a puzzled expression, looking at me who was frozen in place. He didn’t even say he was going to Ifrit, but knowing that means he must have read my mind, but I didn’t even feel like protesting.

I looked back at Trowell as calmly as possible. If God gave me hope at this moment, it was that he was by my side.

“Hey, Trowell……”

“Yeah?”

“How do I get to the Fire Territory……?”

“……”

A heavy silence flowed between me and him. It was so quiet that I wondered if time had stopped.

Pfft!

The sound of wind tickling my lungs broke the suffocating silence. I quickly turned my head and saw the water spirits standing nearby with wide eyes, craning their necks. They were all busy avoiding my gaze.

You guys, daring to laugh at your superior’s ignorance?

Even the Spirit King Trowell is trembling like this, and you little things dare…… dare, huh? Trembling?

The moment I looked at him, I couldn’t help but stiffen. His body, which was covering his mouth with the back of his hand, was trembling slightly. Besides, when I looked closely at his face, which seemed expressionless, it was clearly tinged with red.

“Trowell……?”

“……Ahem. Ahem, yeah? Why?”

“……You can just laugh if you want to.”

“No, I don’t really…… Pfft! ……Umm. Sorry, Jihoon. Just, just a moment. Pfft! Hahaha!”

“……”

After Trowell barely suppressed his laughter, I had to stand there blankly for a long time until he told me how to use the movement incantation.

I was the unhappiest Spirit King in the world.

* * *

The structure of the Spirit Realm is divided into the territories of each of the great Spirit Kings in a giant cross shape and the beautiful garden in the center.

Unlike the territories, which only spirits of the direct lineage can enter, the garden was a free space where anyone could come and go.

The blue sky and the clouds flowing leisurely above, the meadows and charming trees filling the garden, the clear streams and clear wind flowing through them. In it, spirits of all kinds mingled and played together regardless of status or attribute. That alone made the gods highly value this garden.

But there is another reason why this garden is special. It was the fact that all the plants belonging to this place were made of precious jewels.

Sapphire leaves, ruby petals, forsythia made of pure gold, roses made of red diamonds, carnations blooming with flames, and edelweiss made of platinum.

‘Evas Eden.’

It was the Golden Garden, considered the most beautiful scenery in all four dimensions.

But there was a being who was looking at that beautiful sight with indifferent eyes, sitting in his own space through a video. Flaming red hair and fascinating appearance. It was Ifrit, the Spirit King who dominates all fire and flames.

“……Not fun.”

He muttered gloomily and soon waved his hand to make the video disappear. His head was already full of other things, so whether it was the heavenly resort or the beautiful scenery considered one of the five great sceneries of the Great Dimension, it couldn’t properly catch his eye.

He buried his face between his tightly raised knees and complained.

“Haa…… Why do I always do this? This mouth is the problem, the mouth. What should I do now? Even that guy must be angry this time, right? No matter how good-natured he is, there’s a limit to how much he can endure. I shot him down so coldly, so he might not even want to associate with me ever again……”

The previous Elquines was an existence who didn’t understand jokes. If you acted rudely or stimulated his pride even a little, he would immediately punish you on the spot, and once things went wrong, it was common for him not to associate with you for over a hundred years. Until he received an apology, he would never speak first, even if it was related to official business of Arkadon [a possible reference to a higher realm or organization].

That was so annoying that Ifrit himself retaliated with the same method, but in the end, Elquines was always the winner (of course, his other colleagues called him quits for rushing at him without giving in).

Then, there was one time, just one time, when Elquines simply overlooked the quarrel that Ifrit was making.

Even now, if I close my eyes, the situation at that time comes to mind clearly.

That day also started the same as usual. No, it seemed a little different. Elquines, who always stayed in the Water Territory and never showed his face, was in Evas Eden only that day. It was quite unusual for him, who didn’t enjoy playing or even light walks.

‘What’s that guy doing here?’

In a fit of joy, Ifrit unknowingly approached him and spoke to him. But the reaction that came back was always the same, cold ignorance. At that, Ifrit became angry and ended up getting angry as usual.

“I really hate guys like you!”

“……”

“I really do! Really! I really hate you so much! Just disappear!”

It wasn’t something he said once or twice, and it wasn’t even a curse that was so bad that he felt guilty. But the moment he uttered those words, Ifrit couldn’t help but turn white. Elquines, who always punished even the slightest sign of animosity towards him, just laughed it off at that moment.

It didn’t seem like he was laughing because he was particularly happy or amused. It was just a slight lift at the end of his lips, a wax doll-like smile.