Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 207

207

I urgently grabbed Kanos, who was about to turn away after saying what he had to say. From his perspective, his business might have been finished, but we still had unresolved issues. I was talking about the rest of the group who had been sidelined throughout the conversation.

“Is everyone okay?”

They were still frozen in place, unable to even get up. If they had tried to match Kanos’s speed, they would have been left behind.

“Ugh, I haven’t understood a word you’ve been saying since earlier.”

“Sorry, Alisa. I’ll explain everything later.”

After appeasing the grumbling Alisa, I checked on Isana. His eyes, which had been cloudy with deep thought, gradually focused as he noticed my gaze. He must have been shocked to learn that the oracle that had completely changed his life, and the fact that the Archduke was a priest, were all fake. He must be feeling troubled in many ways, but it was a relief that he seemed more stable than I had expected.

“Are you okay, Isana?”

“Yeah, it’s actually a good thing.”

“A good thing?” I asked, puzzled. Isana smiled weakly.

“When I thought the oracle was real, I always doubted if I was wrong. I wondered if striking him was really the right thing to do, or if it was heaven’s will for me to quietly step aside.”

“Isana…….”

“But it wasn’t my father’s fault. It wasn’t heaven’s will either. Rather, he was the one who was wrong. Now I feel like I can face this fight without any distractions.”

The determination in his eyes had deepened. It was incomparable to when we first started our journey. I suddenly wondered what kind of presence his real face, hidden beneath the glamorous magic, would project. He carefully gazed at me as I looked at him with a sense of overwhelming emotion.

“So, El. Things have changed a lot, but would you still leave him to me?”

“Huh?”

“I know it’s a selfish request. But I want to end his story in my own way.”

I felt like I knew why Isana was making this request. It was a journey that started to accommodate him, but now that we knew everything, the Archduke was a public enemy threatening this world. With the possibility of the Evil God’s awakening increasing, we couldn’t just leave him, who was cooperating with the Demon King, alone to complete the ritual. If I, as the Spirit King, stepped in, it would be over faster. In fact, I had been planning to do just that until just a moment ago. However…….

‘Human affairs should be handled by humans.’

Kanos’s words echoed in my head again.

It was a slightly different meaning from what he had said, but I could understand a little why it was determined that way.

This fight had to end in Isana’s hands. It might be simpler if I solved everything, but I had a feeling that he would never be able to stand properly for the rest of his life. He would be haunted by the regret of not avenging his father’s unjust death with his own strength. The stubborn Isana would blame himself until the moment he died. This process was a necessary step for him to take forward. As I calmly gazed at him, Isana clenched his fists and held his breath like someone who had made up his mind. Seeing his extremely nervous face, I couldn’t help but chuckle. I looked straight into his eyes and said.

“What are you so worried about, Isana? Did you think I would say no?”

“……! S, so you’re leaving him to me?”

“I told you, this journey is for you. You started it, so it will end the way you want it to. Avenge and win as you wish. I’ll be watching you from the side.”

“……Thank you, El.”

Isana’s eyes wavered as if he hadn’t expected me to agree. His golden eyes filled with tears, and he lowered his head as if he couldn’t bear it. I chuckled and hugged his head, patting his back.

“Let’s go find the sword first. To defeat the Archduke, we need to save your cousin first.”

“Okay!”

After nodding, Isana stood up energetically. Alisa seemed to have given up on understanding the situation. She silently brushed off her skirt and asked, glancing sideways.

“What about that side?”

“That side?”

“I’m talking about Sibel.”

‘Ah, come to think of it, Sibel…….’

My body naturally tensed as I recalled the most troubling issue. Sibelius had been left alone since I gave him time to himself. By now, he would have sorted out his thoughts in his own way. I glanced back and saw that he was looking at us too, and our eyes met. But as soon as he met my eyes, he quickly turned his head away. It seemed he still couldn’t easily look at my face. Watching his back as he tried not to look back, I sighed inwardly.

Now that El’s existence itself had become an illusion, I didn’t know if we could ever go back to the way we were before. To be honest, no matter how positively I tried to think, I couldn’t foresee a hopeful ending. Was it too greedy to wish that we could go back as if nothing had happened? As much as I wanted to be friends with him, I felt very sorry about this situation.

“Aha~ So that problem was still left, huh?”

Kanos, who had been watching the situation from the side, now seemed to grasp the problem. Then, in the next moment, the situation changed rapidly. Kanos walked over to Sibelius with hurried steps and began to forcibly drag him over.

“Come on, come on~ How long are you going to stay like that, our noble Saint? Stop sulking and get up!”

“W, wait a minute! What are you doing?”

Sibelius was flustered and showed his opposition, but Kanos wasn’t someone who would listen to that. As if looking at a rebellious child, Kanos scanned him with a look of disdain.

“It’s because you’ve been digging into the ground so hard. Don’t you feel sorry for the kids who are so worried? You’ll be punished for making good children cry, you know?”

“Ugh! Whose fault do you think this is?”

“Well, I wonder whose fault it could be?”

“Do you really not know? If you hadn’t deceived me in the first place!”

“You? I’m a Demon God, you know? I’ve been holding back since earlier, but you’re being too rude?”

“……Damn it!”

What was unexpected was that Sibelius immediately shut his mouth, even while shouting harshly. They said he was from a race that originally lived in the Divine Realm, so the presence of God must be significant. In the end, he was forcibly pushed in front of me by Kanos. When I looked at him, Sibelius made a complicated expression and then lowered his head. Unable to bear the terribly awkward atmosphere, I was the first to speak.

“Are you feeling a little better?”

“……Yeah.”

“Well, I’m sorry about what happened with El. I’m sorry I can only say this much.”

“Ah, no, it’s okay. Thank you for caring.”

He didn’t meet my gaze, but there was no unpleasantness on his face as he obediently answered. Rather, he seemed more embarrassed. Seeing that, I mustered a little more courage and asked.

“Have you decided what you’re going to do from now on?”

His entire clan had left for the Divine Realm, and he had lost his friend El, so Sibelius really had no ties here anymore. But for some reason, I didn’t think he would return to his clan. As expected, Sibelius slowly nodded and said.

“I’m going to travel the world and look for El, continue to.”

“Look for El?”

“Even though he’s been erased, he still remains in my memory, so he hasn’t been completely erased. There might be a way to find El somewhere. Even if it’s just the traces he left behind. I’ll find him no matter what.”

Seeing his determined expression, it seemed he had already made up his mind. So, this is how we’re going to part ways. Even though I had expected it, the shock was greater than I thought. I stared at him for a moment and couldn’t resist the impulse to say.

“Let’s go on that journey together.”

“Huh?”

“You don’t have a set place to go right now anyway. Why don’t you join us, at least until you find a clue? It would be better for you than wandering alone in an unfamiliar world.”

“But……are you serious? Even if it’s someone else, you…….”

“Me what?”

“……Aren’t you……angry at me?……I said a lot of harsh things to you.”

So, he knows.

As I stared at him with a strange feeling, Sibelius fidgeted and avoided my gaze. It seemed he felt sorry, even in his own mind. Even so, the sparkling look in his eyes revealed his true feelings, which he couldn’t hide until the end. He must have wanted this outcome, but he couldn’t be honest because of what he had done to me.

‘He’s really hopeless.’

I held back the laughter that was about to come out.

“Well, it was a bit too much, for sure.”

Sibelius’s shoulders twitched noticeably at my muttered words.

“Just blindly protecting El, and having to give him everything, whether it’s names or connections, to be satisfied. Not even trying to think about my position. Would anyone who’s not a friend even want to live? I didn’t say it, but I was really very upset. I thought we were pretty close. But it turned out you were just being nice because I resembled another friend? Wow, this is really the first time I’ve been treated like this since I was born as a Spirit King.”

“S, sorry…….”

The intensity of the twitching in his shoulders increased with each grumbling word. His face was ashen, and it looked like he would really dig into the ground if I left him alone. I decided to stop here and reached out my hand to him.

“So, let’s be friends now too.”

“……Huh?”

“Apart from ‘El,’ you can be friends with me too. Then you’ll have both of us as your friends, so there’s no need to compare us? I’ll forgive you for everything with that.”

That was what I had wanted to say to him all along. If possible, I wanted to be friends with him too.

For a while, Sibelius stared alternately at my outstretched hand and my face with a blank expression. I was taken aback by what followed. Tears began to fall from his eyes.

“S, Sibel?”

It seemed he didn’t even realize he was crying until later. He blinked blankly, touched his cheeks with his hand, and distorted his face as if in pain.

Sibelius’s trembling hand grabbed my hand.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry, El.”

“……Huh?”

Did he just call me El? My eyes widened involuntarily because I didn’t expect him to call me El again so easily. Seeing me like that, Sibelius made an expression that was hard to tell whether he was crying or laughing.

“It’s so clear, it’s been consistently the same from the beginning……Why was I so foolish to doubt you? You clearly said it. That even if I couldn’t recognize you, we would still be friends. You definitely said that…….”

“Huh?”

“Thank you for being my friend again. I’ll never make this mistake again. I’m sorry for hurting you. I really am, El. Thank you. Thank you so much.”

Words of apology and gratitude flowed out one after another, filled with sobs. Thick tears were falling on the back of the hand he was holding.

Most of the words that were pouring out were difficult to understand, but I seemed to know one thing. I don’t know in what part he felt that way, but it seemed he had decided to regard me as the reincarnation of ‘El’ after all.

Well, he kept getting confused even when there was a fake ‘El,’ so it would be difficult to separate us so easily. I looked at Sibelius with a troubled feeling and patted his head as I had done with Isana.

In fact, I wouldn’t have thought of accepting it so easily before. I had already had a terrible experience and suffered wounds that were difficult to erase. It wasn’t that I didn’t feel resentful towards Sibelius, who seemed to be opening up a new relationship but ended up thinking only in his own way. But now, the feeling that it didn’t matter anymore was greater.

Ellyuen had acknowledged me, so I was no longer anxious about anything.

Now that I had a newfound sense of ease, I became more generous in dealing with Sibelius. Time heals all wounds, doesn’t it? I would spend as much time with him as I had with ‘El,’ or even more. It would be a little difficult at first, but I believed that Sibelius would soon accept it.

Clap, clap, clap, when we looked at each other and smiled, applause was heard from somewhere. It was Kanos.

“Good, good. A very beautiful ending.”

The warm atmosphere cooled down in an instant at his frivolous tone. Whether everyone looked at him with a frown or not, he muttered with a face full of intoxication.

“Such a broad-minded Elquines. I’m really touched. I couldn’t even refute the claim that all Elquines have had dirty personalities for generations, but it was possible for an Elquines who seemed to be the epitome of healing and peace? Now I can save some face.”

“Why do you need to save face?”

“Huh? Didn’t I tell you? I’m also from Elquines.”

“…….”

“I was also the first Elquines.”

“…….”

I don’t know what kind of story I just heard. My heart was desperately denying reality, but my head was grasping the situation more calmly than ever. Come to think of it, the Demon God was a High God. And it was said that High Gods must go through the term of Spirit King. So, that means the Demon God was once a Spirit King.

Why did I only realize that now? Even while recognizing that he was a High God, I couldn’t even associate it that far. Even now that I realized the truth, I couldn’t imagine his Spirit King days. He was even the first Elquines. In short, that person is like my ancestor? Is that so?

When our eyes met, Kanos smiled brightly. ‘Call me senior.’ I quietly turned away from his teasing face.

I should just pretend I didn’t hear that story. Yes, I didn’t hear anything. I tried to repeatedly mutter with the intention of casting self-hypnosis, but the already recognized information became clearer the more I did so.

What should I say? I felt like I was tasting the bitterness of life for the first time in a long time.