Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 290

290. Episode 290

“El, what’s wrong? Is something bothering you?”

The fact that my sour mood didn’t escalate into a childish squabble was thanks to Sibelius’ timely intervention. Seeing the worry etched on his face, I must look strange right now. Three hours was definitely a long time. I jumped up from my seat and sat up straight. The gazes of the two people who were already watching me became even more pronounced.

“Listen to me, both of you. I found out something by chance today. It seems like a strange spell is becoming popular among people these days. It’s a spell to summon a witch who grants wishes.”

“It reeks of something fishy just listening to it, doesn’t it?”

“Right? Want me to tell you something even more suspicious? To complete the spell, the blood of a High Priest of the God of Destruction is needed.”

Lapis and Sibelius, who had been listening leisurely, changed their expressions at those words. They immediately understood what I was trying to say.

“Is the Duke moving?”

“Probably. I have a feeling.”

“Didn’t you say there haven’t been any suspicious movements recently?”

I nodded at Sibelius’ question. I had been keeping an eye on the Duke’s movements since I parted ways with Kanos. After learning that there was a problem in the Demon World, I watched even more carefully. So far, there hasn’t been anything particularly noticeable in the Duke’s actions. Contrary to his notorious reputation, he had been quite well-behaved. Once, I was horrified when he took the children to perform a ritual, but it really ended with just praying, leaving me feeling empty. He didn’t seem to be contacting anyone suspected of being the Demon King either. However, since I haven’t completely grasped his plans, I might have missed something. In fact, I didn’t even know when he sent Prince Laon Hwizen here.

Associating the Duke with anything involving a High Priest of the God of Destruction might be excessive worry. But given the timing, no other interpretation came to mind. Frankly, I felt like it was just something that was bound to happen, so I wasn’t too shocked. I didn’t think the Duke would just stay still anyway, and I fully expected him to be deceptive. Sibelius and Lapis didn’t seem to take it too seriously either.

“A summoning spell… Did they lay a trap to have humans summon them since their own bodies are bound?”

Lapis’ muttering was also the first thought that came to my mind. The witch’s identity is likely a demon helping the Demon King, or the Demon King himself. He might be using a method of taking sacrifices directly without going through the Duke. However, how should I put it? There was a strange sense of unease in just thinking that way. That’s why I’ve been agonizing over it until now.

“Sibyl, do you need the power of a High Priest of the God of Destruction to summon a demon?”

“Well, it’s more advantageous to have it. It acts as a signpost.”

“A signpost?”

“Usually, not many demons can cross dimensions on their own. The summoner opens the door and paves the way, but even then, it’s said to be difficult to pass through. I don’t know the details, but it feels like entering a dark, invisible space. But it seems they can sense the power of a High Priest of the God of Destruction, even faintly. Having that makes it easier to find their way.”

“So, if there’s no need to cross dimensions, or if a signpost isn’t needed, then it’s not really necessary?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Hmm, I see…”

“Why? Is something bothering you?”

“If I had to say, something is bothering me. There’s something I don’t understand.”

“What is it?”

Recalling the worries I had been repeating since earlier, my brow furrowed involuntarily.

“The ingredients that go into the ritual… Why does it have to be the blood of a High Priest of the God of Destruction?”

If such a condition is included, people will naturally look for the clergy of the God of Destruction. In such a situation, if someone goes missing, it will inevitably attract attention. Perhaps the risk of being discovered is greater than the methods used so far. Thanks to that, I was able to consider the connection with the Duke, but it was actually considered quite poor for a covert operation. I wondered if it was an unavoidable requirement for the summoning spell, but it didn’t seem to be the case. No matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t grasp the intention.

Come to think of it, it seems like the spell has been popular for quite some time, but there hasn’t been any talk of missing people. The boy who told me the rumor was looking at the superstition with disdain. If there had been any unsavory incidents, he would have mentioned them together, but there was no such mention, so there might not have been any particular incidents. If that’s the case, there’s no reason to make an issue of it.

‘Did I set the wrong premise? Maybe it’s not something the Duke is involved in.’

Not all trends are caused by someone’s intention. Sometimes, trends just start spreading without any meaning. It’s hard to believe, but that might be the case. But even after coming to a conclusion, the uneasy feeling didn’t go away. Then, a cynical voice followed from the side.

“What’s there to worry about? That itself is the purpose.”

The person who spoke was Lapis. I looked back at him, bewildered.

“That itself?”

“The blood of the High Priest of the God of Destruction, I mean. They mentioned it openly from the start. Sometimes the answer is in the simplest place.”

“Uh… but… why the blood of the High Priest of the God of Destruction…?”

“The Demon King has the God of Destruction’s restraint left on him, right? The curse of the God of Destruction can be offset with the same power. If used well, the divine power of the High Priest of the God of Destruction can become closer to the power of the God of Destruction than the demonic energy of demons. It would be an attractive bait for the current Demon King.”

I was jolted awake by the nonchalant reply. I felt like I had been hit in the back of the head. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought that far. If that was true, it was a ruthless but most plausible interpretation. I opened and closed my mouth several times before finally managing to speak.

“Um, but if that’s the reason, there’s no need to look for it this way, right? If they need a High Priest of the God of Destruction, they can just go to the temple. There are plenty of High Priests of the God of Destruction around the Duke.”

“Well, can the priests who serve the Duke really be called true priests? How many of them are properly maintaining their divine crests [a symbol of their faith and connection to their god]? I think there are many who didn’t have them from the start.”

“……!”

Again, I couldn’t find the words to say. Yes, come to think of it, Kanos had said that. That there were no priests of his left by the Duke’s side. That only those who couldn’t hear the voice remained.

At the time, I took it to mean that there were only low-ranking priests with weak abilities, but now it seemed that wasn’t even the case. There wasn’t a single priest among them who had the true qualifications. Either they were unqualified from the start, or they had the qualifications but lost them.

“Good heavens.”

Why hadn’t I realized it until now? It was said that very strict standards were required of priests. That they would lose their qualifications or die if they used the name of God for personal gain. The sins that the Duke was committing were so great and heinous, so the High Priests of the God of Destruction who were acting as his limbs couldn’t possibly be free from that sin. The very fact that they were still alive meant that they were no longer priests.

“Then what they’re looking for now is…”

“A true priest with a divine crest. You seem to think that all High Priests of the God of Destruction are on the Duke’s side from the start, so why don’t you break out of that frame? There must be some proper High Priests of the God of Destruction somewhere. Like one who is about to be discovered.”

“About to be discovered?”

“A priest’s divine crest appears around the age of ten. It could suddenly appear even if it wasn’t there yesterday.”

“……”

Listening to the explanation, I felt like my insides were burning. Taking a deep breath didn’t help at all, so I rubbed my chest several times. The tangled stories were being sorted out one by one, but I wasn’t happy at all. I couldn’t let go of the last bit of attachment and asked.

“Um, but there was no talk of missing people. I never imagined they were targeting the High Priests of the God of Destruction, but anyway, if priests had disappeared or died, it would have been a problem. Wouldn’t it have been known right away?”

“There’s no way it would be known. Because the ones who died were priests.”

“…Huh?”

“There’s no way a sane priest would be swept up in such a low-level superstition. Most of the time, the people around them are trying it, right? And the goal of those who try that spell is one thing: ‘To fulfill their wishes.’ What does that mean?”

“Could it be…”

“There are many humans who don’t care about sacrificing others to fulfill their own desires.”

I quietly swallowed my breath at Lapis’ mocking words.

“Are they concealing the death of the priest… in exchange for fulfilling their wishes?”

I asked for confirmation, but I felt like I already knew the answer without hearing it. Already, my mind had come to no other conclusion. Even if they didn’t want to conceal it, the Demon King might have created a situation where they had no choice but to do so. Either way, it would be a tragic ending.

“The priests wouldn’t just listen to anyone’s request. So in the end, they’re going to die because of the people close to them. Those bad guys.”

“That’s exactly what they’re aiming for.”

“What?”

I tilted my head in a daze, and Lapis shrugged.

“I told you earlier. If you use the divine power of the High Priest of the God of Destruction, you can get closer to the power of the God of Destruction. That’s one of the methods.”

“Methods? You mean dying because of someone you know?”

“Well, something like that. But there will be a few more things added.”

“What…”

“…The dark spell of swallowing the tears of a fallen angel.”

It was Sibelius who took over the conversation. He muttered in a quiet tone, and Lapis nodded as if to agree. “What is that?” I asked cautiously, but the two of them closed their mouths as if they had made a promise. But looking at Sibelius’ stiff expression, I could tell that it was a pretty nasty spell.

Knock knock!

I couldn’t urge them any further because there was a knock on the door from outside. I swallowed the many words I had, and first checked who had come. But when I opened the door, there was someone completely unexpected standing there. My bewilderment made the heavy feeling that had been weighing on my chest disappear. I blinked for a moment and then slowly lowered my gaze from top to bottom. I could feel the other person feeling awkward at the staring gaze, but I couldn’t help it. It was such an unexpected person.

“Um, so… you were Serium, right?”

He was a man named Serium, one of Prince Laon Hwizen’s entourage. Dark gray hair, black eyes, and a somewhat aggressive, sharp impression—everything was the same as I knew him. However, the problem was that there was no reason for him to come to us.

He also looked very embarrassed and flustered. He scratched the back of his head, unable to make eye contact and constantly avoiding my gaze.

“What brings you here?”

“Um, well… there’s something I want to ask you…”

“A favor? From me?”

What could this person possibly want to ask me? I was bewildered because it was surprising that he had come suddenly, but the request was even more unexpected. I couldn’t understand it even more because we hadn’t had a proper conversation since our first meeting.

“El, what’s wrong? What’s going on?”

Then Sibelius approached, stopped when he saw Serium. Serium was also flustered and restless. Sibelius cast a cold gaze at him, who was visibly showing his dismay.

“Who are you? What business do you have with El?”

“Ah, well… um… Ugh, this kind of thing really doesn’t suit my personality.”

“What is it?”

“No, I’m just talking to myself! No, I’m not! Um, I’m sorry for coming here so suddenly. The situation is a bit urgent, but can I ask for some help?”

As if he had made up his mind, Serium, who had been hesitating all along, shouted quickly. He was looking straight at me, so I pointed at myself with my finger. As a sign that he was talking to me, he nodded his head vigorously.

“What kind of help?”

“Um… that thing. The one you did back then.”

“Back then?”

“That… healing… thing?”

“……!”

He glanced around and raised the end of his sentence without confidence. Only then did all the questions get solved. It seemed that he remembered that I had healed the prince before and came looking for me. To have dragged it out like this because it was difficult to say that one word properly. It was absurd, but on the other hand, I felt calmer, wondering how desperate he must have been to come to me.

“Did someone get hurt?”

“Um, well, it’s like this. It’s not that they’re hurt, but, well, they are hurt, but it’s not an external wound. But it’s not an internal wound either. That’s the thing.”

“Pardon?”

I couldn’t help but tilt my head at the difficult way of speaking. Sibelius looked like he couldn’t take it anymore and was about to get angry.

“Hey, what are you doing from the beginning?”

“Hoo, sorry. No, I’m sorry. I really don’t know how to explain this. But… yeah. There’s no point in hiding and concealing it after coming all the way here.”

Serium, who took a deep sigh, repeatedly washed his face with both hands. When he raised his head again, he had a very bitter expression on his face.

“…Can you also do detoxification?”