Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 229

229.

At noon, four hooded figures teleported into Duke Clemore’s heavily guarded mansion. It was a sudden raid using teleportation magic. Duke Cael, who had been reading in his study, looked surprised to see the intruders suddenly appear before him. Simultaneously, a loud alarm bell rang out, triggered by the mana detection magic spread throughout the mansion.

“It’s the study!”

“Protect the Duke!”

The echoing alarms stirred the mansion’s inhabitants. Seeing soldiers rushing in, the intruders quickly locked the study door. One of them rapidly inscribed runes on the closed door with a finger. The rumbling vibrations ceased, and the surroundings fell silent.

“It will only last 10 minutes.”

“That’s enough.”

Another intruder responded to the one who locked the door. He produced a piece of paper from his pocket, spread it on the floor, and began drawing an intricate magic circle. All of this was done swiftly and efficiently.

“Who are you? What are you doing?”

The Duke, who had been standing stiffly, questioned the intruders warily. Initially, he had observed without much concern, but when the outside stimuli were completely blocked, he realized the situation was dire.

*Saying we came to save you wouldn’t work, would it?* The intruders—no, we exchanged glances.

The identities of these daring intruders who broke into the Duke’s mansion in broad daylight were none other than my small group. Actually, we hadn’t intended such a conspicuous entry, but the Duke refused to leave the mansion. To undo the curse on him, we needed to perform a purification ritual, which required direct contact.

The reason we didn’t raid at dawn, as one might expect, was the mana detection magic. Teleportation was the only way to infiltrate instantaneously, inevitably triggering the alarm. We figured that if there was going to be a commotion anyway, we might as well target the time when people were active. It was simply an attempt to skip a troublesome process, but seeing the Duke’s frozen expression, it seemed to have caught him completely off guard.

“Your Grace.”

Isana, at the front, pushed back his hood and stepped forward. This was their first direct meeting since arriving in Clemore. Personally, it was a somewhat poignant moment. I knew everything he had endured to reach this point—not only the journey through the distant desert but also the recent hardships, which were no less severe, perhaps even worse in some ways.

April’s horrified cry still echoed in my ears. It was her immediate reaction upon learning that Isana would join the group to lift the Duke’s curse. In fact, not only April but also the Duke’s retainers opposed the decision. The emperor, recently returned from abroad, was attempting to go to a dangerous site again, and everyone vehemently tried to stop him. He could have ignored them, but since they were acting out of concern, there was no need to hurt their feelings. To overcome their objections reasonably, Isana had to persuade them.

The most convincing argument was that ‘the Duke might recognize me.’ Even under the curse, Duke Cael was only worried about the Emperor, a fact known to everyone. By exaggerating this, Isana misled them with acceptable reasoning. He argued that if the Duke, with his deep loyalty, ‘of course’ recognized him, he could be persuaded, making the purification ritual much easier. He also questioned why they should ‘deliberately’ complicate things when they could proceed more ‘comfortably.’ It was persuasion in name only, essentially asking if they didn’t trust the Duke. It seemed plausible enough that his opponents could no longer object. Continuing to dissuade him after such words would imply doubting the Duke’s loyalty, leaving them no choice.

According to Isana’s persuasive logic, this was the moment of truth. However, even while looking at Isana’s fully exposed face, the Duke’s wariness didn’t dissipate.

“I don’t recognize you. Why are you calling me Your Grace?”

“…I see you don’t recognize me after all.”

Isana gave a bitter smile at the expected reaction. In reality, despite his words, none of us truly expected the Duke to recognize Isana. If he couldn’t recognize his own sister, it would be absurd to recognize Isana. It was too obvious, so I wasn’t particularly disappointed.

But I couldn’t help feeling upset. I glanced at Isana, who was fixated on the Duke. He maintained a calm expression, but his face was shadowed, perhaps feeling complicated after directly confirming the Duke’s condition. Seeing him more listless than usual, I wondered if we should have heeded the advice and left him out of this.

Actually, Isana didn’t need to be involved. I understood his feelings, but I also understood the position of those who opposed his involvement. Wanting to keep the person you want to protect in the safest place is a natural feeling. Isana himself had prevented Alisa from following him, citing danger. He forcibly gave her a Fire Buster [a magical artifact], even ordering the sword to protect her. Actually, it was closer to monitoring her so she couldn’t do anything foolish (like secretly following him). Even so, he wouldn’t give up his insistence on going himself.

I remembered his serious words. Not being easily overconfident and not trying to pass responsibility on to others can be considered an advantage. Still, sometimes it would be nice for him to rely on others and act spoiled. It was a little sad that the weight of his position and life seemed to overshadow even the rights he should have enjoyed at his age.

“It’s okay, Your Grace. I’ll make you better soon.”

Even though he must have been more upset, Isana comforted the Duke instead. Or rather, it might have been to reassure himself. The Duke frowned, still guarded.

“Make me better? You speak as if I’m sick.”

“That’s right. You’re sick right now, Your Grace.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’ll find out soon enough.”

As if growing impatient with the incomprehensible conversation, Duke Cael’s eyes flickered. Suddenly, the Duke, who had been frozen like a wax doll, moved his hand quickly, trying to draw his sword. If he, a Sword Master [a master of swordsmanship], started rampaging, even an easy task would become very difficult.

I quickly summoned water to bind the Duke’s body.

“Kuh! Wh, what are you doing!”

His face contorted in shock as he was not only denied the opportunity but also easily subdued. Of course, I wasn’t entirely comfortable suppressing him either. As if to prove he had reached the realm of swordsmanship, his resistance was stronger than I thought.

“Are you ready?”

“Almost done.”

Raphael, who had been drawing the magic circle, replied without looking up. He was the one who had taught us how to undo the curse, and now he was taking full responsibility. Which meant he was cooperating quietly without complaining.

“Muzzle him so he doesn’t hurt himself.”

At Raphael’s instruction, Isana nodded with a determined face. He took out a handkerchief and put it in the Duke’s mouth, and of course, the Duke struggled even more.

“I’m sorry, Your Grace. I’ll release you soon, so please bear with it for a moment.”

“Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!”

His eyes, glaring fiercely, were bloodshot. If he could cast a curse with his eyes alone, he would have done it several times over.

“…Doing this makes us look like villains.”

Sibelius, guarding the spell on the door, muttered with a troubled expression. Hearing those words, I suddenly wondered how this scene would look from someone else’s perspective. Not only did we break in without permission, but we also forcibly tied his arms and gagged him. …It was a situation where there was no room for rebuttal.

“What’s wrong with being a villain?”

Around that time, Raphael, who had completed the magic circle, massaged his neck lightly and stood up. He calmly met the Duke’s eyes, which were gleaming with hatred.

“A healthy method is only for those who can understand it. When necessary, we use force. If it’s going to be noisy later, we just have to make sure the other person can’t say anything. Then it’ll be like it never happened.”

“…That line sounds like a real villain.”

“Hmph, it’s a hundred times better than being taken advantage of. But in this situation, that expression is wrong. What kind of villain would go to such lengths to help? To me, it looks like a pushover.”

“That’s also extreme. Isn’t there a middle ground?”

“Is this the time to worry about that? Anyway, if you want to finish on time, lay that guy down on the floor. I’m starting right away.”

Raphael gave instructions again, and I, who had nothing else to do but suppress the Duke, obediently followed his words. After strongly pressing down on his struggling body to immobilize him and laying him straight on the floor, the Duke’s face contorted horribly. I had a feeling that even if he regained his sanity, he wouldn’t easily get over this.

Of course, Raphael didn’t care at all. He spread the paper with the magic circle drawn on it over the Duke’s abdomen and covered it with his palm as if to embrace it.

“Activate.”

A word containing a strange resonance was uttered from his mouth. Then, a bright blue light burst forth from the magic circle. The drawing, clearly drawn with ordinary ink, began to sparkle blue along his touch.

“Reverse. Purification. Circulation.”

Short words were uttered in succession, and Raphael took out a dagger from his pocket. It was the magic sword he had received from me in advance before starting the plan. The Duke’s eyes wavered as the sword came closer. When the tip of the sword was placed straight on the Duke’s stomach, even I, who was watching, flinched.

“Ra, Raphael?”

“What.”

“Th…what are you doing now?”

Raphael frowned, looking annoyed as if telling me not to interrupt.

“I’m trying to purify the curse.”

“I know that… but why are you holding the sword like you’re going to stab him?”

“Because I’m going to stab him.”

At the light reply, Raphael plunged the magic sword into Duke Cael’s abdomen. It was exactly the position that pierced through the center of the magic circle.

“Kuh!” The Duke’s face contorted with a short groan. Isana, who was surprised, gasped loudly. I was also flustered, but I was able to calm down quickly as I realized that it was one of the processes of undoing the curse.

*I can’t do anything about the pain right now, but if I treat him immediately after it’s over, it shouldn’t be life-threatening.*

However, the next situation was even more difficult to watch calmly. He wasn’t just stabbing him, but he was starting to push the magic sword deeper and deeper into the Duke’s body.

The paper with the magic circle drawn on it was clearly visible, soaked in red blood. The more he pushed, the stronger the light that burst out from within.

“Kuh… Ughaaaaaack!”

“Y-Your Grace!”

A suppressed scream burst from the Duke’s mouth, unable to bear the pain. Isana’s face turned completely pale.

“Th-there. Is this really okay?”

When I asked with a worried heart, Raphael gestured as if he was too lazy to answer. I frowned at the perfunctory answer, but the sight that followed blocked all complaints. Even though Raphael had taken his hand off, the magic sword continued to enter the Duke’s body. It was as if his body was swallowing the sword itself. No more blood came out either. Isana also discovered the sight and swallowed hard. Sibelius had a face as if he knew it would happen but instead admired another part.

“Amazing. I didn’t think you’d really succeed in time. To complete the purification spell so quickly. Usually, it takes dozens of minutes just to draw the circle.”

In fact, he had only cared about one thing since he participated in this plan: whether he could complete the perfect spell within the limited time. Of course, the concern was also based on a basic distrust of Raphael. But Raphael did it too casually as if it were natural.

Even if he didn’t show it openly, Sibelius seemed quite surprised. Whether it was an opportunity to see him from a different perspective, the eyes that used to spark whenever they met held a gentle light for the first time. But that moment didn’t last very long. True to his personality, which doesn’t readily accept goodwill, Raphael snorted.

“It’s nothing special.”

“…Wow, is that bragging right away? You’re really not cute.”

“What would I do to look cute to you? Do you want me to act cute?”

“Ew! I imagined it! Don’t say such terrible things!”

“Huh? You started it first, you blue elf.”

“What? A blue elf?”

“Because you’re blue, you’re a blue elf.”

“It’s Blue Elf! Use the right title! No, more than that, I’m not even an elf in the first place?”

“Shut up, a blue elf is enough for someone like you.”

“Ell! Did you hear that? He’s calling me weirdly!”

“…Both of you, stop it.”

Seeing the two people arguing without getting tired even at times like this, I couldn’t help but sigh. Still, if they really didn’t like each other, they would have ignored each other completely. Seeing them bickering, I might have to say that they’re actually on good terms.