Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 237

237

“Anyway, a dragon defense line? This is going to be a headache.”

Even with situations like this, I can’t just openly solve it. The moment I forcefully break it, I’d be revealing that I’m not human.

Besides, I have a more fundamental problem. Unlike ordinary spirits, the Spirit King doesn’t rely entirely on the contractor’s mana. It’s not that I don’t use it at all, but the amount is so negligible that it’s almost entirely my own power. The Spirit King’s power is nature itself, so it wouldn’t be affected by the defense line. It sounds like an advantage, but in this case, it has an unexpected side effect: since I’m not affected by the defense line, I can’t break it either. Most magical barriers would probably be the same for me.

…Now that I think about it, Lapis was amazing. How on earth did that guy trap me? He kept emphasizing that it took him, a self-proclaimed genius, several years just to design the framework. It must have been a barrier he really put his heart into.

In the meantime, the soldiers who were *投入* [tōnyū – thrown into] in the operation pulled back the rafts, probably because they ran out of cannonballs. The commanders’ faces were as dark as the soldiers’ stiff expressions.

“It’s useless. It’s barely affected. At this rate, we’re just wasting precious cannonballs.”

“It’s difficult. If we could just get close, we could devise another method.”

“Isn’t there a way to nullify their detection magic? Or at least divert it somehow?”

“Should we catch some birds and fly them over to distract them?”

“We’d need hundreds of them. When would we ever catch them all? Besides, detection magic is sophisticated. It can distinguish between the life signs of birds and people.”

“Then what about something that isn’t alive?”

At that moment, Isana, who had been lost in thought, calmly spoke. Duke Cäwell, who was next to her, showed interest.

“You mean something that isn’t alive?”

“I’m saying we should use something they can’t detect. How about loading empty boats with flammable material and sending them charging forward? If we aim for dawn, we could cause a commotion for a while.”

“That’s a good idea, but how do we make them charge forward without someone controlling them…?”

“Ferris, can you create a current with spirit magic?”

At Isana’s question, everyone turned their attention to Ferris. He looked embarrassed by the gazes pouring in from all directions.

“If you want to move the boats, I can do that, but…”

“You can!”

“Yes, but if you want to efficiently divert their attention, you’ll probably deploy the boats in multiple locations. That would widen the range, so I wouldn’t be able to create a very strong current. Using wind along with it would make it a bit faster, but it would still be slower than rowing. More than anything, I can’t maintain that state for very long. I’m ashamed to say that I don’t have enough mana yet to sustain the power used by high-level spirits for long.”

“Then how long can you last?”

“At most, about seven minutes.”

“Seven minutes. That’s too short.”

It was a large lake, so even rowing would take 30 minutes. Even if they towed the boats to a suitable distance with human power, they would need to maintain it for at least 20 minutes, considering how slow it would be. Duke Cäwell muttered with a serious expression.

“Even if another water spirit mage took over, they wouldn’t be able to do it faster than you, Ferris.”

“Huh? Ah, yes. Well, that’s…”

Ferris, who knew that the other water spirit mage was me, wore an awkward expression that was neither smiling nor crying. The people seemed to take it as a sign of affirmation. The faces of the people, which had briefly brightened with hope, were once again filled with worry. My mood, as I secretly watched, was also complicated.

It was something I could easily solve if I just stepped forward. Just because I was annoyed at revealing my identity, I was turning a blind eye to a difficult situation, which made my conscience prick. It bothered me even more because Isana and the Royal Knights were watching. Even if they were okay with it, I didn’t think I would be.

“If it bothers you that much, why don’t you sneak in and take out all the guys on the walls? Wouldn’t that solve it?”

Lapis brushed aside my worries as if it were nothing. I frowned.

“Suddenly it’s quiet, and when they go in, everyone’s already dead? That’s way too suspicious.”

“So what? They won’t be able to grasp the whole situation with just that. They’ll just think it’s a divine blessing and be happy.”

“…I still don’t like it.”

“Why? Does it feel like you’re being robbed of the credit by God? You’re just like Troel in that regard. Are you a Spirit King or what?”

In reality, the bigger reason was that my mental strength wasn’t strong enough to directly harm people yet. I couldn’t honestly reveal that fact because I would definitely be teased.

“Anyway, I don’t like it. Isn’t there another way?”

“If you insist on going around, you could just make the other guys lose their will to fight.”

“Can’t you answer seriously?”

“I am answering seriously. If you want to end the war without anyone getting hurt on this side and you don’t want to kill them either, then the only other option is for them to surrender, right?”

“That’s why I’m thinking about how to do that! It’s not like the world is going to turn upside down, so why would anyone suddenly surrender!”

“Then why don’t you make it turn upside down?”

The moment I retorted, a clear girl’s voice rang out. It was Alisa, wearing a curious expression.

“Huh?”

“That world-turning thing… Can’t you do it?”

“……”

A thought flashed through my mind, and I stared intently at Alisa’s face. Alisa also looked back at me with sparkling eyes, not avoiding my gaze. It felt like we had exchanged countless opinions without even speaking.

“El?”

My companions looked at me with puzzled faces as I suddenly fell silent. I didn’t react to their gazes and instead looked back at Lachen Castle.

“That defense line. It blocks external power, right?”

“Looks like you’ve got a good idea?”

Lapis smirked and asked. Meeting his interested red eyes, I also smiled lightly.

“I wonder how it will react to internal power?”

* * *

“You have a good idea?”

Duke Cäwell looked at the person standing before him with distrust in his eyes. Isana, as well as the people who were with her, were also staring at that person. Most of them were warriors who had trained their bodies all their lives. Since those with already imposing physiques were staring intently while armed, the figure of the person standing alone in front of them looked relatively small. In fact, she was actually small. She wasn’t even an adult yet, after all.

“Yes. Well, that’s… I mean…”

The person standing in front of everyone, biting her lip, was none other than Alisa. I could feel her glancing at me with a resentful face. I had coaxed and persuaded her to step forward when she didn’t want to, so it was understandable.

When I gave her an awkward smile, her eyes became even more murderous. The determination to get even with me after this was clearly conveyed, and cold sweat flowed involuntarily. I had braced myself to hear unpleasant things for a while since I had forced her to do something she didn’t enjoy. But even if I was resented for a long time because of this, I wanted to avoid being noticed by people here. Thanks to that, Alisa, who was also another key member of this plan, had to come forward instead.

“Aren’t you not even of age yet? What can you do with the body of a small, young girl?”

Fortunately, the Duke’s overbearing attitude aroused her fighting spirit. Alisa, who had a reluctant expression, immediately changed her attitude and became serious at those words.

“Age and gender don’t matter when it comes to devising a plan, do they? To try to judge people by their appearance, Duke, you’re someone who doesn’t reflect on the past at all, are you?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Think back to when you were cursed. Was the judgment you made with your eyes correct?”

“That’s because I was cursed…”

“No! It’s because you’re someone who doesn’t usually listen to other people’s opinions! If you were someone who knew how to consider your own judgment, you wouldn’t have believed so firmly in your own thoughts, even if your reason was clouded by the curse!”

At the powerful answer, the Duke and his retainers looked as if they had been hit, and Isana’s Royal Knights wore admiring expressions.

“Y-you dare say such things to the Duke…!”

“So, Alisa. Can you tell me what the method you came up with is?”

Isana naturally cut off the Duke’s retainers who were trying to step forward, belatedly regaining their senses. They wore dissatisfied expressions, but they couldn’t say anything because the other party was the Emperor, and they closed their mouths. Meeting Isana’s softly smiling face, Alisa’s expression brightened as if she felt better.

“Yes! That is…!”

After that, Alisa diligently explained the prepared plan. As a result, Alisa and I were now standing in front of the lake, receiving everyone’s attention.

The number of people executing this plan was just me and her, only two. The fact that something that could only be seen as reckless was accomplished was largely due to the role of Isana and the Royal Knights. It was because they pushed through and overcame the opposition from the Duke’s side (at this time, everyone looked at me with meaningful gazes, which was very difficult). In the case of Duke Cäwell, he wore an unpleasant expression, but he didn’t object. It seemed like he was saying, ‘Do whatever you want.’

“Seriously, even if they’re spirit mages, what can they do with just two people?”

“Since Her Majesty has allowed it, let’s just watch. She explained it so confidently, I wonder how great it will be.”

“It would be fortunate if they don’t come back scared and demoralize the soldiers.”

The Duke’s retainers, who had been vehemently opposed to the plan since they heard it, grumbled with dissatisfied faces. I listened to their chatter with one ear and let it flow out, borrowed Lapis’s mana, and shaped a Ciel. I wanted to summon two if I could, but I had to suppress my disappointment because ordinary high-level spirit mages could only have one high-level spirit. Fortunately, Ciel’s huge size was large enough to carry two adults without any problems. I finished all the preparations by first getting on Ciel’s back and then putting Alisa in front of me.

“Are you ready, Alisa?”

“Yes!”

“Okay, then let’s go. Run as fast as you can, Ciel!”

-Yes, I understand!

Ciel, who answered energetically, rushed to the lake at once. Then, gasps burst out from among the people watching. It seemed like they thought we would fall into the water. But contrary to their worries, Ciel, carrying us, ran straight across the water.

When I glanced back, I saw the faces of the people looking dumbfounded. It seemed like they couldn’t have imagined that they could cross the lake in this way. Since there was little information known about spirits, especially water spirits, it was understandable.

As we ran quickly, the attack started right away from the fortress. I could clearly feel their flustered movements as they were also flustered. But the speed at which Ciel dodged and ran was faster than the speed at which the arrows flew. Nevertheless, I knocked down the arrows that were flying with my quick wits. It was the moment when reflexes and dynamic visual acuity that were superior to humans shined.

The arrows, which were few at first, gradually increased as we got closer, and by the time we reached the end, they were literally pouring down like rain. I got hit by a few splashes of water because of the cannonballs that fell in between. It was fortunate that we were riding Ciel, but if it had been an ordinary raft, it would have already capsized several times just from the pressure of the water surging. Of course, in that case, I wouldn’t have been able to avoid the cannonballs from the start.

In any case, we crossed the lake in an instant. The distance that would have taken 30 minutes even with rowing took less than 5 minutes to run at full speed on Ciel. After arriving, the attack from the sky stopped completely (it was a blind spot, so they wouldn’t be able to attack even if they wanted to), but the killing intent was still felt.

“Hoo, it’s more amazing than I thought. To shoot arrows like this just because two people are crossing over. An ordinary person would never be able to cross, right?”

“I-I thought I was going to die.”

Alisa, who had to pass through the rain of arrows, grabbed Ciel’s fur tightly and trembled. It seemed like she was scared even though I was with her. I stroked her head and then looked up. Soldiers were bustling about on the distant walls. I could feel a rather sharp atmosphere, perhaps because they had failed to stop us from crossing the lake.

There was also a commotion in our camp. I could see the people across the lake who were in a state of chaos. Isana and her companions were smiling softly, and next to them, the Royal Knights were whistling and waving their hands. The Duke’s aides were also shouting something, and when I listened to it, a sigh flowed out involuntarily.

“We really don’t have any credibility, do we.”

“Why?”

“They’re telling us to come back and move the soldiers one by one in the same way?”

“What the heck, are they crazy?”

I chuckled at Alisa’s shocked expression. Anyway, those people would definitely shut their mouths when the next thing happened. More than anything, the one who would stand out in this plan wasn’t me. All those people had to do was realize that fact.

“Shall we start, Alisa?”

At my smiling words, Alisa nodded with a determined face. I closed my eyes and slowly concentrated my energy on the surroundings. I could feel all the water flows connected to the fortress, even to the corners beyond the waterways. It wasn’t difficult to find the part I wanted.

“Here, I think this side will do.”

When I pointed out the right location, Alisa took a deep breath and then concentrated her mind.

“Mulden Summon!”

At her call, the floor shook, and a huge tree suddenly soared up in an instant. As soon as Mulden was summoned, he moved his winding stems when he found me. A voice that only I could hear rang out politely.

-Greetings to the King of Water.

“Welcome, Mulden.”

When I responded lightly, Mulden’s stems moved even faster. He seemed very embarrassed. I glanced at our camp. The Duke’s aides, who had been shouting to look at this side, were quietly holding their breath when they saw Mulden appear. Certainly, the earth spirit seems to have the biggest presence among the four major spirits.

It would have been more chaotic if it was Clay. I swallowed a bit of disappointment as I thought of the high-level earth spirit in the form of a rock giant. In fact, Clay could have solved this situation in a more fun way. He could just pick up a nearby rock and throw it. Since his innate strength itself is so strong, that level wouldn’t use much of the contractor’s mana.

‘Well, still, Mulden is suitable for this plan.’