Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 141

141.

My hunch was right. Endil’s face contorted as he sobbed even harder. The realization, freshly acknowledged through someone else’s words, seemed to unleash a torrent of sorrow.

“Hic, it’s my younger sister, Cecil. She’s been frail since childhood… and it’s been getting worse… The doctors can’t help… The priests say it’s incurable… So…”

“You thought the Spirit King could heal her?”

Nod, nod.

With each nod, fat tears plopped down. Where could such a small body hold so much water? I was starting to worry about dehydration. After a long bout of sobbing, he muttered with a self-deprecating look.

“Yeah, right, as if. As if I could ever meet the Spirit King. How dare someone like me…”

“…Endil?”

His voice was so hollow, as if he were about to fade away, that I looked at him anxiously. Then, as if snapping out of it, Endil quickly wiped away his tears with both hands.

“Haha, I didn’t mean to do that. Sorry, Your Holiness. Is that how you address the Pope? I’ve made things difficult for you.”

“No, it’s okay… Are you alright?”

He didn’t look alright, but I asked out of courtesy. He gave a faint smile and nodded.

“When I think about it, it’s only natural. I’m not a spiritist anymore. The Water King was kind enough to send Cyciel, but instead of cherishing him, I treated him carelessly. I was so focused on immediate gains that I didn’t realize what was truly precious. If I were the Spirit King, I wouldn’t even want to look at someone like me. Maybe that’s why he took Cyciel back.”

Endil stared blankly at his hands. His open palms were soaked with the tears he had just shed.

“You know what? In the past, looking at my hands made me feel like they were filled with something fulfilling. But now, it’s all gone. I didn’t realize it when it was there, but I guess that was Cyciel’s energy.”

“…”

“To be honest, I was hoping that if I met the Water King, Cyciel might come back. No, actually, that’s what I wanted most. It’s a bit shameless, isn’t it? But it was so unexpected. You know how it is? The Spirit King is such a distant being that it feels impossible to meet him. But Cyciel was by my side. So, after meeting him, I couldn’t imagine a life without him… That’s why it still doesn’t feel real.”

His muttering faded as he reached the end. His eyes, staring blankly at his palms, trembled like a rippling lake.

“So, I’ll never see him again.”

“…”

A brief silence fell, and the surrounding air grew heavy. But that moment didn’t last long. Endil sighed deeply and then, as if nothing had happened, smiled and changed the subject.

“Haha, what’s the point of complaining when it’s all my fault? Sorry for the long rant. Please forget what I just said.”

“…What are you going to do now?”

“What else can I do? I’ll have to go back to how I was before. It’ll just be a little inconvenient. I’ve been too greedy until now.”

“Now that I think about it, I heard you’re living outside the village.”

“Huh? Oh, right. It’s been about ten years, I think. To be precise, I only left the village, but I’m still living inside the Elven territory. Humans can’t access that land.”

“Then who takes care of your sister while you’re away?”

“No one. Cecil is alone.”

“Huh? But she’s sick.”

“Yeah, but… she can still move around if she takes her medicine. I’ve set up precautions so that wild animals can’t get in.”

“Still, it’s dangerous… Wouldn’t it be better to leave her with someone?”

“I don’t have anyone to leave her with. The elves don’t associate with us siblings. I messed up a bit when I left the village, so they’re not fond of me.”

“Hmm, then what about human friends?”

Uh oh, did I say something wrong? Endil gave me a slightly uncomfortable look. Then, he sighed and answered resignedly.

“…You’re a priest, so I’ll tell you this. Humans are more dangerous to Cecil and me than wild animals or monsters.”

“Huh?”

“I’ve been targeted by slave hunters a few times. It was only thanks to Cyciel that I wasn’t caught and living as a slave to some unknown noble right now. I probably won’t be able to set foot in human territory for a while after this trip. The rumor that my spirit contract was broken will spread throughout the village. I need to be careful for a while.”

“That’s terrible. The guard…”

“You think the human guard will protect an elf?”

“…”

When I fell silent, Endil smiled bitterly.

“And you saw it too, Your Holiness. I don’t get along well with humans. My personality is like this, so I don’t earn anyone’s trust easily.”

“…You seemed popular in the village.”

“That’s the spiritist Endil. Since the harbor village’s livelihood depends on the sea, it helps that I can predict the weather. Personally, no one wants to be friends with me, an ordinary elf. They actually dislike me. You can tell by the sailors’ attitude, right? Most of them have known me for a long time. But no one believed me. I’m not particularly upset. It’s always been like that.”

“Why…”

“It’s just because I’m a different race. Elves are said to be exclusive, but humans are just as bad. They keep me around for the benefits, but in their hearts, they think I’m someone they can’t trust. Well, that’s why I sometimes scam them just to mess with them.”

“…You mean colluding with the temple to lead the purification ritual?”

“Ugh, how did you know that? Does the Pope have clairvoyance or something?”

“I saw you getting paid.”

“Oh, no, you caught me. My score must be low with you, Your Holiness.”

“…”

His bitter smile reminded me of my companions. The way they always looked at me with kind and gentle eyes.

If Endil had people like that by his side, he wouldn’t have had to live so harshly. Just like my friend Taejin was my only support during my countless wanderings in the distant past.

Back then, I wanted to become that kind of person someday. Someone strong and upright enough to cover up other people’s weaknesses and dark sides without a second thought. Someone who could be a source of hope for others.

‘So, that’s why.’

Now I understood why Cyciel had lingered by Endil’s side. It wasn’t just vague sympathy. He wanted to heal Endil’s scarred heart, as well as his difficult situation. Just like the wish I had in the past.

Come to think of it, spirits are said to originate from the Spirit King. I felt like I had finally found the answer to a complex formula that had been bothering me.

‘Oh, geez.’

I can’t just stand by now. I sighed deeply and then grabbed Endil’s hand. He blinked rapidly, surprised by the unexpected action. I felt like an old man harassing an innocent girl. I gave a wry smile and quietly channeled healing power through his hand.

“…Huh?”

Endil, who had initially resisted, stopped and stared at me with a bewildered expression, as if he felt something. He must have suddenly felt lighter. I smiled again and said.

“You suffered internal injuries during the reverse summoning, right? And you haven’t been able to rest properly since then. I thought you’d just neglect it if I left you alone, so I healed you.”

“Ah, thank…”

“And I’ll tell you this because I think you’re misunderstanding a lot of things. It’s not really your fault that the spirit contract was broken. It was just an accident caused by a weak bond from the beginning.”

“What do you mean… bond…?”

“In short, the connection with the spirit was weak. To be honest, you’re not qualified to be a spiritist. No, not just unqualified, but the worst. You barely managed to make a contract thanks to Cyciel, but he was never someone your body could handle. You were trying to fill the ocean in a vessel that couldn’t even hold spring water, so of course the bond would be weak. The spirit was forcibly holding on, which is why it lasted until now. If that weren’t the case, it would have broken long ago. In other words, it was bound to happen sooner or later.”

At those words, Endil, who had been listening blankly, contorted his face. It seemed my explanation was too direct. His lips began to tremble, as if he were deeply shocked.

“S-so what? You’re saying I was never qualified?”

Even his tone changed. No, to be precise, it had returned to normal. He had been unusually polite, but as soon as he got upset, his true nature seemed to emerge again. What a simple guy. I shrugged and replied.

“I’m sorry to say this, but that’s the truth. And while we’re on the subject, one more thing. You said the Water Spirit King gave you Cyciel as a gift? That’s also a lie.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“Just what I said. You became a spiritist because Cyciel planned and carried it out on his own, regardless of the King’s will. He lied to you. I guess he thought you’d be happy if he said that.”

“Hah, don’t just say whatever you want. Just because I treated you like the Pope doesn’t mean you can look down on me.”

“I’m just telling the truth. Because I don’t remember sending him to you.”

“What does that…”

He glared at me coldly, but then his expression turned blank at the words that followed. It seemed to take him a while to understand what I meant. But he did understand, as his mouth slowly opened. Watching the horror gradually seep into his slowly blinking eyes, I grabbed Endil’s hand tightly.

“So, this time I’ll really give you one.”

“…Huh? Wait?”

“Sorry, it’ll hurt a bit.”

“Th-!”

Endil, who was about to say something, soon gasped. Because I was ruthlessly pouring water energy into his body. It was a similar method to when I helped Peris, but in his case, I was only drawing out his latent affinity, while with Endil, I was forcibly breaking through a blocked path to lay the foundation. Naturally, the latter was more difficult, and the burden on the recipient was greater. It was like completely changing his physical functions. It wouldn’t be as painful if I took my time and did it slowly, but I was doing it all at once, so it would probably be quite painful.

When the time was right, I stopped the infusion that had been pouring in almost to the point of overflowing. Endil, who had been gasping for breath, staggered and sat down. His whole body was soaked in cold sweat.

“Huk, huk! What, what was that?”

“I changed the nature of your body. It’s not really a big deal. I just created the basic framework.”

“…Basic framework?”

“The bare minimum foundation needed as a spiritist. If there’s no well, I have no choice but to forcibly draw a water vein to create one.”

With that answer, I pressed my thumb firmly on Endil’s forehead. Then, the water droplets that burst out seeped into his skin, beginning to engrave a bluish pattern. No, to be precise, it wasn’t engraving, but restoring the existing one. It was faster and simpler than going through the process from scratch.

Soon, when I took my hand away, clear evidence of the contract appeared on his forehead. It was the Water Seal, proving that he was a high-level spiritist.

“Okay, all done.”

“…What is all this?”

“What do you mean? I said I’d give you Cyciel. I revived the spirit contract you had with him.”

At my words, Endil blinked blankly a few times, then slowly stroked his forehead with one hand. He didn’t seem agitated or questioning, but just calmly accepting it. I was the one who was disappointed by his unexpectedly calm demeanor. I thought he’d be overjoyed to become a spiritist again, but his reaction was so lackluster. I didn’t do it for a reward, but I felt a little let down.

“However, even if the contract is revived, it will be a little different from before. In the past, Cyciel alone bore the responsibility for the contract, but now you will share it with him. From now on, you will need more power to summon spirits. Instead, even if you consume mana to the limit, the contract will not be broken. Actually, what you had until now was abnormal, and this is normal.”

“Normal…”

“It means you’ve become ordinary. You’ll need some training to adapt to the changed flow for a while. Especially since you forcibly created the path, it may take even longer. Summoning Cyciel from the beginning will be too much, so try summoning Naias for a while and gradually adapt.”

“…Huh? Naias?”

At that moment, Endil, who had been listening silently, was startled and raised his head. I frowned and looked at him.

“What, are you unhappy about starting with a low-level spirit? But that’s what other high-level spiritists do, right? Who uses only ultimate moves every hour?”

“Ah, no, that’s not it… You mean I can summon Naias? How?”

“How… Don’t tell me you didn’t know? If you contract with a higher spirit, you can just summon lower spirits. In your case, you’re a high-level spiritist, so you can even call Undine [a type of water spirit]? You can also increase the number of summons as long as your mana allows.”

“…Wasn’t that just a rumor?”

“A rumor?”

“B-but I… I couldn’t do that until now…”

Ah, I understand now. Because he became a spiritist by luck, his abilities hadn’t been complete all along. Since it was a contract unilaterally supported by Cyciel, it would have been impossible to summon other spirits from there. I chuckled and said.

“That’s why I said it would be different now. The previous contract was incomplete, so there were that many restrictions. You can do it from now on. Want to try it out? Say it once now. ‘Naias, summon.'”

“…Naias, summon?”