Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 291

The meaning of Serium’s words, which had been difficult to grasp until the very end, became clear the moment I arrived at our destination. The intense smell that assaulted my nostrils as soon as I opened the door was the key. The pungent, sour stench was unmistakable, leaving no doubt as to its source. Nor was there any question about the identity of the person huddled under the covers.

“……Asel.”

It had been a while since I’d spoken his name, having had no reason to call for him. But there was no response. He didn’t seem unconscious, but neither did he seem aware of his surroundings.

*Well, he deserves it after drinking this much,* I thought with a groan, slowly surveying the room. I hadn’t seen him for days, but I never imagined he’d be in this state. I wondered how much he’d consumed, judging by the number of empty bottles scattered across the floor. A quick count easily exceeded ten. The overwhelming scent of alcohol almost felt insufficient to mask the underlying problem.

“He’s insane,” Sibelius said, clicking his tongue as he followed me in. He seemed equally disgusted by the state of the room. I made my way toward the pile of blankets in the corner, wanting to check on Asel hidden beneath them. Carefully lifting the blanket, I found Asel cowering like a frightened animal. Even with his head buried between his knees, he clutched a bottle tightly in one hand.

“Asel?”

Perhaps because I called him from so close, he reacted this time. His shoulders twitched, and he slowly raised his head. Beneath his messy, disheveled hair, his face was flushed with drunkenness. His once vibrant cheeks were sunken, as if he hadn’t eaten in days. His eyes, once sharp and intelligent, were now dull and hollow. He looked more like a street vagrant than the Crown Prince’s aide.

“Asel. Can you hear me? Asel?”

“Hieeek!”

When I gently shook him, he screamed and began to tremble violently. Tears welled up in his wide, green eyes.

“N-No! Let go! Let goooo!”

“Huh? Uh, wait a minute. Asel?”

“Let goooo!”

I had only touched his shoulder, but his reaction was far more intense than I expected. Startled by his frantic resistance, I released him and stepped back. Immediately, Asel retreated under the blanket, this time lying face down and covering his ears. Even then, I could hear him muttering. It sounded like he was reciting a prayer, though I couldn’t discern which religious order it was from. Witnessing all of this left me dumbfounded. Asel’s condition was far more serious than I had initially thought. I couldn’t imagine how much someone had to drink to end up like this. I turned back with a hardened expression, and Serium, meeting my gaze, sighed with a complicated look.

“He won’t listen to anything you say right now. He does enjoy drinking, but he’s been unable to control himself lately. I usually leave him alone, but I thought he was going to die. Can you fix him, even in that state?”

“Um, yes, I can heal him.”

“Really? Haa, that’s a relief.”

Serium’s strained face finally relaxed a little. He took a deep breath, visibly relieved.

“I couldn’t tell His Highness or anyone else. I’ve been making excuses that he has a cold and is sleeping, but I was so worried he’d suddenly kick the bucket [die].”

“You must have had a hard time. He’ll be okay now.”

I fully understood the anguish and worry Serium must have felt before coming to me. The conduct of Asel, his aide, was directly tied to the reputation of the Crown Prince he served. He must have hesitated to reveal Asel’s broken state to me, someone aligned with the Crown Prince’s rivals.

I placed my hand on Asel’s head, still covered by the blanket. I could feel him flinching at the touch. But perhaps because he didn’t have to look at my face, he didn’t resist as violently as before. As I poured in healing power, the trembling in his body, which had been vibrating as if in convulsions, gradually subsided. When I removed my hand, Asel’s breathing was completely stable. The muttering of prayers had also ceased. Lifting the blanket, I saw him sleeping soundly. The alcohol fumes seemed to have dissipated, and he had fallen into a peaceful slumber. After confirming that the redness in his face had completely disappeared, I had him helped onto the bed. Serium, rushing over to assist, looked amazed to see Asel’s complexion return to normal.

“He really seems to be okay. Thank you. I don’t know how to thank you enough.”

“It’s nothing. But why did he drink so much?”

That’s why I had purified the negative energy in this room. I remembered Asel’s violent vomiting on the first day I arrived at the Count’s mansion. The way he was mindlessly gulping down alcohol seemed quite unusual, so I paid special attention to purifying this room. But it didn’t seem to have helped much.

“……You should ask him directly when he wakes up. I don’t know what to say.”

Serium grimaced as if he were in trouble. His hastily averted gaze showed a firm determination not to answer any questions. But I had no intention of letting it go.

“His Highness must be quite active. He must have felt suffocated being confined to the room?”

Serium looked up in surprise at my casual remark.

“Yes? What do you mean…….”

“Asel wouldn’t have wanted to go outside if he could help it. If he was forced to move, it must be related to His Highness. Where did he go? After all, it’s been snowing so much that he couldn’t have left the mansion.”

“Uh…… it wasn’t anything special. He just went to the indoor garden or the library. He got permission from the owner of the mansion. He didn’t do anything impolite either.”

“How long would he be gone when he went out?”

“Almost all day…….”

*Oh dear, that’s why he’s in this state.* I clicked my tongue softly. Spending most of his time in other places meant that purifying the room was completely pointless. I should have looked into this situation sooner. I thought he wouldn’t have any reason to leave the room since he had to stay inside the mansion, but that wasn’t the case. I had underestimated the range of indoor activities in a large mansion.

“I think he went out at night too?”

It was Sibelius who spoke this time. Serium, already flustered, flinched and looked surprised.

“H-How did you know…….”

“Ugh, he went out at night too?”

The influence of negative energy is stronger at night. Even people who can’t see it start to be affected, so it must be even more painful for Asel, who *sees* it. Sibelius and I are strong enough not to be swayed by such energy, but Asel, being human, wouldn’t be. It must have felt like torture for him. It was like forcibly inducing symptoms in someone with allergies or phobias. Perhaps sensing my accusatory gaze, Serium desperately defended himself.

“To be precise, he didn’t go out at night. He came back around that time. When His Highness is focused on a book, he forgets about the time…….”

“Did he just come back?”

“Uh, um, well, I did go to the kitchen for a while to get him a meal or a snack. He also wanted to see the indoor garden at dawn, so we stopped by there too. But that was only once or twice. Really.”

He really made the most of it. The number of times didn’t matter here, but it was no use scolding him for what had already happened. I shook my head.

“Anyway, he was wandering around at night. No wonder his condition is a bit worse than just being drunk. Did he start drinking until he was drunk after that?”

“That’s true, but…….”

While nodding earnestly, Serium looked like he didn’t understand the situation itself. Leaving his confused face behind, I turned to Sibelius.

“It seems like it would be very painful if he’s always like this, even though we’re here now. Is there a way to close his spiritual eyes?”

“I can try, but he could become blind or disabled if I mess up. It would be better to learn a defensive spell?”

“Defensive spell? There’s such a thing?”

“Originally, spells were created based on this side [the spiritual realm]. They’ve become more diverse as magical forms have been mixed in, but basically, it’s the power to handle yin energy [negative or dark energy]. Defensive spells themselves are techniques to counterattack spells, but once you learn them, your resistance to yin energy itself becomes stronger. At least you won’t be affected or captured by negative energy.”

“Ah, I get it! In game terms, it’s like a passive skill or stat points?”

“Um, I don’t know what that is, but think of it as increasing your basic stamina.”

Sibelius smiled with a strangely pleased expression. It was the expression he made whenever I used unfamiliar words or terms here. To be precise, it was the face he made when he discovered traces of ‘El.’ Then, as if realizing it himself, I felt him reflexively pause. I pretended not to notice and moved on.

“Then Sibel, can you teach Asel that defensive spell?”

“Huh? That guy?”

“Don’t want to?”

“Um. I don’t really feel like it, but…… alright. Looking at him, he’s going to die a miserable death soon if I leave him alone. I’d have nightmares if I ignored him here. I’ll just save one poor kid.”

“Good thinking. Serium, it’s late now, so we’ll head back. I know it’s a bother, but could you contact us when Asel wakes up?”

*It won’t be easy to find time to train while we’re marching, so I should create a situation where we can stay here longer. Should I make it snow more?* As I roughly planned the schedule, I turned to Serium, but the answer that should have come back didn’t. He was staring blankly at us like a dazed person.

“Serium?”

“……You guys, you were real. You really understand Asel.”

“Pardon?”

I was briefly taken aback by the absurd words, but I soon understood what he meant. He had treated us like scammers when we first met, but it seemed like he was finally starting to believe what we said back then.

“It’s a really strange feeling. No one has ever believed Asel’s words until now. Everyone laughed at him or treated him like a madman. To be honest, I wasn’t any different. I thought Asel was a good guy, but I thought he had some mental problems.”

He began to ramble.

“Honestly, he keeps saying he sees strange things, he’s in strange places, and he drinks until he can’t stand it. It doesn’t seem normal for him to act strangely all the time. You know those kids? The ones who are intoxicated with themselves and think they’re special. There are quite a few of those kids among astrologers. Asel was a prominent figure in that field, so I naturally assumed he was one of them. His Highness also took Asel’s side, but I think he felt the same way I did.”

“Asel was an astrologer?”

“Didn’t you know?”

“I’m hearing it for the first time.”

I only knew Asel as the Crown Prince’s aide. In fact, I don’t even know what the person in front of me does. Judging by his bandit-like appearance and build, he seems like a knight, but I don’t sense the unique discipline or spirit of one. Still, judging by how well-trained he is, he must be a top-notch warrior…….

“Ah, I’m a scholar. I work as a lecturer teaching alchemy at the academy that His Highness attends. I’m probably fired now since I left without permission.”

“…….”

Serium immediately replied, as if he knew the meaning of my gaze. It was the most unexpected answer among the things I had been pondering about him. “It doesn’t suit you at all.” He made an embarrassed expression at my unintentional remark.

“Ahem, anyway. There hasn’t been anyone who has said they believe Asel who was actually decent? They either intended to laugh at Asel or use him. Most of them were one of the two. I thought you guys were like that at first…… but it doesn’t seem like it. Well, no matter what, I still can’t believe in nonsensical stories like unicorns.”

Sibelius, who had his identity denied in front of him, frowned slightly. “But I don’t think you’re ordinary people. Especially you,” Serium added, staring at me calmly. He had a look that he wanted to ask many questions, but he held back. He seemed curious but afraid to confirm the truth. He was a wise man in that he only stepped as far as he could handle. I smiled brightly, and he scratched the back of his head with an awkward expression.

“Anyway, thank you so much for your help today. As you said, I’ll contact you when Asel wakes up.”

“Yes, please do.”

After a light greeting, Sibelius and I turned around. Soon, I heard a soft voice from behind us as we completely left the door.

“Asel, you must have been really special. Maybe those people are the place you were looking for. If that elf is really a unicorn, then what you said about being the brother of your ancestor is also true. You have blood relatives now. That’s really good.”

It was what Serium muttered to the sleeping Asel. It was a voice so small that an ordinary person wouldn’t have heard it, but it was enough for me to understand. The same would have been true for Sibelius. I glanced at Sibelius, but he had a blank expression that made it impossible to know what he was thinking. Only his deepened eyes showed that he was deep in thought.

“But if he’s the ancestor’s brother, isn’t the relationship too distant? What should you call that elf? Little ancestor grandfather? Little ancestor?”

“…….”

He frowned at the next words.