Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 236

236.

“I really can’t stand it. How can you be so calm and chatty in this situation? Do you think we’re on a picnic or something?”

“Look at them bringing a naive little girl along. It’s like they’re treating war as a joke.”

Murmurs rippled through the crowd, their glares sharp. They lowered their voices, trying to avoid being overheard, but Nana and the others (except Alisa) possessed far from ordinary hearing, catching every word clearly.

“Honestly, these mercenaries…”

I smiled wryly at the disapproving comments.

Duke Cael and his inner circle only knew us as freelance mercenaries. We had an agreement with those who knew our true identities to keep them secret. From the start, our journey had begun almost as a game, and there was no need to reveal who we were and attract unnecessary attention, especially since I didn’t need to present myself as the Spirit King. Except for Sibelius, everyone else appeared human, so there was little risk of exposure unless we spoke up. Deron’s demonic features were subtle enough that ordinary people wouldn’t notice. Thanks to this, we had been living relatively normal lives ever since arriving at the Duke’s residence. But sometimes, these kinds of unnecessary conflicts arose.

The Duke’s people weren’t particularly welcoming to our group. This was partly due to the generally low opinion of mercenaries, but the main reason was our casual treatment of Isana. We didn’t use honorifics or address her as ‘Your Majesty.’ From their perspective, it seemed disrespectful to the Emperor, who held an almost divine status for them. So, no matter how significant our contributions were, they couldn’t see us in a favorable light. Isana had asked them not to interfere, but they couldn’t hide their disapproval, and murmurs followed us everywhere.

It wasn’t threatening, and we could easily ignore it, so it wasn’t a major issue. But it was still unpleasant to hear negative comments constantly. After considering what to do, I deliberately stared at the whispering group. Those who noticed my gaze immediately flinched, disbelief spreading across their faces as they anxiously turned away. I gave them a bright smile and pointedly covered my ears. The faces of those who had been gossiping paled.

“Now that they know we can hear them even from this distance, they’ll probably just gossip from farther away.”

Sibelius chuckled, watching the people who had pursed their lips tightly. Even I doubted they would choose to stop gossiping altogether. It was amusing that they had so many complaints but wouldn’t openly confront us.

The one person whose thoughts remained a mystery was Duke Cael. Perhaps because our first meeting had been so intense, he maintained a cautious distance, unlike his aides, who seemed to bristle whenever they saw us. He didn’t pry into how we had met or try to investigate us. Even now, he only glanced at us briefly before quickly looking away.

However, he sometimes stared at me with a strange expression. Lapis and Sibelius were the ones who had been most prominent at the time, but it was unsettling that he seemed particularly focused on me.

“Was the shock of being subdued by me that great?”

The process of subduing the Duke had been a direct contest of strength. Defeating a Sword Master [a master of swordsmanship who has reached the pinnacle of their art] with pure strength was rare, so it might have been bewildering for him. In fact, the Duke hadn’t said a word about the other members but had asked Isana about me specifically, inquiring about what kind of person I was.

As an aside, Isana, flustered at the time, had ended up saying that I was a water spiritist [a magic user specializing in water-based spells], so I unintentionally became labeled as one. It was a result of being overly conscious of the fact that I had used water when binding the Duke. The Duke himself hadn’t even seen what had bound him (since he was bound from behind, of course). Anyway, I heard that he hadn’t seemed entirely convinced even after hearing that explanation.

“That might be part of it, but it’s not just that,” Lapis muttered, as if to himself, while I was lost in thought.

“Then what’s the reason?”

“He’s watching your relationship with Isana.”

“My relationship with Isana? …Could he have noticed our real relationship? Or found out that Isana is a spiritist?”

Ironically, because I was labeled a spiritist, Isana, the real spiritist, couldn’t reveal her abilities. It would seem unnatural if there were two (or three, including Peris) high-level water spiritists, so we decided to keep it a secret for the time being. But a Sword Master has senses far more developed than ordinary people, so he might have discovered the truth that Isana hadn’t told him. If he had figured that out, it wouldn’t be impossible to deduce that I am the Spirit King. Just as those thoughts were coalescing, Lapis shook his head.

“That’s not it. Spiritists are just more attuned to nature, so it’s not easy to recognize them unless you’re a spiritist yourself. Even with a good sense, you’d only get a slightly unusual feeling.”

“Then what on earth is it?”

“…Are you genuinely unaware, or are you just trying to avoid reality?”

“What?”

I blinked, confused, and Lapis gave me a look of pity. The expressions of the other members also seemed uncomfortable.

“Aren’t you and Isana about the same age?”

“We appear to be.”

“You’re always with Isana, right? Isana’s knights use extreme honorifics with you. You’re probably the most respected person among this group.”

“That’s because they know my identity.”

“Right, so why don’t you think about it? In this situation, how do you think you and Isana look to people who don’t know you’re the Spirit King? Have you ever considered how you appear to others?”

“How…? Like same-age friends or siblings?”

I asked, wondering what else there could be, and Lapis sighed softly.

“Did you even tell them you’re a man?”

“Who goes around announcing their gender?”

“…Okay. I understand you want to avoid reality like that. But if you don’t want to be bothered later, you should clarify it. Most of the guys here probably think you’re a woman.”

“Cough, what?”

“And when they see a man and a woman together, they usually only think of one thing.”

“…!”

My mind went blank for a moment. Ah, right. So they thought I was a woman. So they saw Isana and me as a close couple? Because we’re always together, they assumed we were in that kind of relationship… is that it? Hahaha, no way. There’s no way!

“Are you kidding me?”

“Does it look like I’m kidding?”

I turned around in shock, and every member I made eye contact with gave me a pitiful look. Alisa even gave me an envious look, which made me even more upset. I became genuinely depressed and stared intently at Lapis. The owner of a face that could be described as ‘beauty that could launch a thousand ships,’ a goddess of beauty who could bring down any nation, noticed my gaze and reacted indifferently.

“What.”

“Why? You’re the one with the more glamorous face! Why aren’t you getting these misunderstandings?”

“I don’t have a woman’s face.”

“…Straight to the point, huh.”

“Why are you so shocked all of a sudden? Your identity is male, but you admit that your face looks like a woman, right? If you didn’t know, should I tell you properly? Hey, blue elf. Tell me honestly. When you first saw El, did you think he was a man or a woman?”

“Don’t call me a blue elf! And why are you asking me that all of a sudden?”

Sibelius jumped up in surprise as the attention suddenly shifted to him. Lapis once again hit the nail on the head without a care.

“I thought you definitely saw him as a woman.”

“What do you take me for!”

“Ah, no? Can you swear in the name of God?”

“N-no, who said no? Of course, I did! But that was because of the scent, not just the appearance! No, I don’t mean El smells like a woman!”

“Did you hear that?”

“…Thank you so much for making me face reality.”

“You’re welcome.”

Should I just throw him into the lake? Seeing his smug face made my blood boil. If we weren’t facing a serious battle, I would have definitely done it. I couldn’t cause a scene in front of everyone, so I was grinding my teeth when a blunt voice interjected.

“What’s wrong with having a woman’s face? If someone as strong as El-nim has a woman’s face, it can induce the opponent’s carelessness, so isn’t that a good thing?”

The speaker of the calm statement was Deron. He was stubbornly carrying around the egg, saying he had to show the future ruler the war. He often said strange things, but I had often been comforted by that side of him, so I asked with some expectation.

“Does that mean it’s easy to gain people’s favor?”

“Well, there are some aspects like that. But the most advantageous thing is during battle.”

“Battle?”

“You can pierce the belly of a fool who approaches you lightly and watch their face contort in shock.”

“…”

“Not just anyone can see that.”

“…”

“I miss it. When I was young, I had many opportunities to have that experience. After growing up, opponents don’t let their guard down, so the fun of trampling them has diminished.”

I need to end this pointless conversation quickly. Watching Deron’s eyes become wistful, as if he was lost in reminiscence, I immediately came to a conclusion. It seems like there’s no one normal in this group. I was filled with a sense of futility about my fate.

* * *

Even after the battle began, the situation remained in a stalemate for several days without much progress. The biggest reason was that the lake prevented close approach. Although it was stagnant water with no current, the distance was somewhat far to swim, and the water was too deep to be safe. Moreover, they had released alligators and other ferocious fish, so entering with bare bodies was no different from suicide. They had prepared rafts, but the attacks from the fortress became too severe as soon as they reached a certain distance, so they couldn’t even think of approaching further.

In response, Duke Cael’s side devised various methods, such as creating a sturdy cover like a shield on the raft and using illusion magic or fog to obscure the view. Secret operations were also initiated in the middle of the night. However, despite various strategies, none of the attempts yielded significant results. The cover was useful for dealing with arrows, but it couldn’t stop cannonballs, and sneaking in was detected as if by magic as soon as they entered a certain distance, no matter what method they used. According to Lapis, there was a high-level magic that detected people’s biological reactions, like infrared detection. It seemed like they had a quite capable magician on their side. The faces of the Duke’s top executives were grim, as if they hadn’t realized that before.

The only things that could be tried in the area not under attack were cannonballs and spirit magic. But in this case, the barrier and magic defense array installed in the fortress became a problem. The defense array was a wall that blocked not only magic but also all intangible forces coming from the outside—more precisely, processed mana [magical energy]—and here, even though they had a tangible form, cannonballs were also included in that category. This was because they were closer to a form of condensed magic power than gunpowder, created by magicians and alchemists. Spirits were also blocked by the defense array because they used the contractor’s mana when summoned.

Moreover, it was said that even divine power and the aura of a Sword Master didn’t work on this defense array. Thanks to this, even Duke Cael, the biggest force (on the surface) on this side, couldn’t play a significant role. It was true that a Sword Master was a powerful weapon that could be worth hundreds or thousands of soldiers, but they couldn’t break down castle walls or iron gates with their bare hands without aura. In the end, the fortress’s barrier was effectively neutralizing all the offensive power here. I could see why the two lords hadn’t surrendered and had confidently decided to hold out.

As the situation stood, our side’s top executives focused on breaking the defense array first. They ordered the rafts to be driven to the edge of the attack range and fired cannonballs, hoping that it would eventually fail to withstand the constant barrage, like steel breaking under repeated hammering. But it didn’t seem to be having much of an effect right now.

“Is a magic defense array that hard to break?”

I asked Lapis as I watched the stalemate continue with little progress. Lapis shrugged.

“It depends on who makes it. But in the first place, not just anyone can create a barrier. With a magic circle of that size, it couldn’t have been done by one person. It would have taken several high-level magicians several years to create, so it won’t break easily.”

“Hmm. How long do you think it will take?”

“Well, it seems to be about the firepower of a mid- to low-level magician. At this rate, about a week? If they start reinforcing the defense array from the inside, it will take even longer.”

“…That’s basically saying it won’t be broken.”

We were already using cannonballs without holding back, exerting all our strength. It was realistically impossible to sustain this state for a week. Not to mention the effort involved, the price of cannonballs was expensive, so our finances would start to suffer.

“It’s a more elaborate barrier than it looks. It doesn’t seem to have been made for humans.”

“If not humans, then?”

“What else could it be but dragons.”

“Dragons?”

“There are some people like that sometimes. They seem to have fantasies that dragons might attack someday. They make it in preparation for that time.”

“Then can’t you break it with your power?”

When I asked in surprise, he smirked.

“Do you even need to ask? Of course, I can break it.”

“R-really?”

“You keep trying to compare me to those mediocre guys. Not all dragons are the same, you know? Do you think I can’t break a defense array made by mere humans?”

“Ah, I see. Well, you even created a barrier to trap me. This level is obviously a piece of cake for you.”

“You know it well.”

“You’re supposed to apologize at times like this, you know? Do you know how much I suffered back then?”

“I suffered more damage. Do you know how much the materials cost to make that? My body and mind were completely wrecked.”

You shouldn’t have trapped me in the first place!

I guess this is what they call being shameless. I was tired of arguing, so I vaguely brushed off the situation by giving him a blank stare. Still, I was a little comforted that the other members were glaring at him along with me. I had never told them about my bizarre encounter with him, but it seemed that the fact that I had suffered more damage was conveyed just by the conversation we exchanged.