Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 304

304

“Isana, are you very busy?”

“Hmm? Ah, no. I’m okay, El. Come on in.”

Isana put down the documents in his hand only after I spoke to him and he realized I was at his tent. While he hurriedly tidied the table, I sat on the offered chair and slowly looked around. In fact, there wasn’t much to see, just a small space of about six square meters with a large table, a chair, and a sleeping bag. It wasn’t my first time visiting Isana’s tent, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that it seemed too simple every time I came. It was similar to the structure of tents used by ordinary soldiers, so perhaps it was only natural. No one would ever think this was the tent of an emperor. The problem was that Isana himself wanted it this way, so there was no one to blame.

Originally, Sibelius was planning to make a more elaborate tent for him, but Isana refused. When staying in castles or mansions, he would use good rooms out of consideration for the host’s reputation, but he wanted the simplest tent possible when traveling. It was because he didn’t want to live comfortably, at least during this war. He had a lot on his mind as he was seriously competing with his uncle. It seemed to be his way of dealing with his complex feelings.

“Sorry. Isn’t it too messy inside?”

“No, it’s fine. But why are there so many documents?”

“Just organizing the resolutions from the meetings and a few other things. Fortunately, I’m still only reviewing reports, so it’s not too overwhelming. The ones who are really suffering right now are my brother and my sister in Clamore. They must be swamped with war budgets and everything else.”

“Hmm, this one was sent by that brother, right?”

I noticed the Duke’s name at the end of a document placed in front of me. I picked it up without thinking, then realized I had made a mistake. It might be a confidential document, and I shouldn’t be looking at it carelessly. I quickly put the paper back down.

“Sorry, Isana. I didn’t mean to……”

“Huh? What?”

“I almost saw the contents of the document.”

“Why? It’s okay if you look at it. It’s you, El.”

His casual reply made my breath catch. I closed my eyes and opened them again for a moment.

“Uh… you’re saying it’s okay to just look?”

“Yeah. What do I have that you can’t see? Whether it’s private or public. You can look at anything you want without my permission.”

“R-Really?”

“Of course. It’s you, El.”

“……”

“El?”

“Ah… no. It’s nothing.”

I quickly smiled, but inside, I was a mess. The fact that someone else’s things were freely open to me was something I could never have dreamed of in my previous life. There, I had no rights that were simply given to me. The living room, which was naturally open to my brothers, the kitchen and my parents’ bedroom, which they frequented as if they were their own rooms. Even the bathroom and toilet. Everything around me was a forbidden area that I couldn’t dare to trespass. So this moment felt very strange. How should I describe it? It was a very odd feeling that couldn’t be explained in a single word.

Although my position and circumstances were different from then, my essence hadn’t changed. The fact that someone was giving me unlimited trust was unbelievable and touching. I had only wanted a summoning contract to travel the human world, but I never expected to feel such warm stability and belonging. To hide the ticklish feeling inside, I quickly turned my gaze to the documents. I was so glad I was a Spirit King and could skillfully hide my expression. If I were human, my face would have turned as red as a tomato.

“Oh, umm. It says you should return to the central army. You were only planning to stop by here for a short time, right?”

“Yeah. It seems my brother is getting anxious because my schedule here is longer than expected. There have been quite a few surprise attacks on the central army lately. But the Tales Castle’s defenses are strong, so there doesn’t seem to be much damage.”

“The central army is still at Tales Castle? Then won’t there be a delay in the joining schedule?”

“The advance here has slowed down too, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Ah, I see.”

It wasn’t just slowing down. Recently, it had almost stopped. Because of that, many people expected to be caught up by the central army within a few days. But if they were slowing down as well, that wouldn’t happen. In the end, the entire schedule was being delayed. Wars rarely go according to plan, so it wasn’t exactly surprising. As I was thinking that, I suddenly felt uneasy.

‘I feel like I’m missing something……’

“By the way, El, didn’t you have something to tell me? I don’t think you just came to hang out.”

“Huh? Ah……!”

Something was about to come to mind, but the voice I heard interrupted my thoughts. Now that I thought about it, I had completely forgotten the reason I came here because I was lost in thought for a moment. I straightened my posture and began to tell the story I had intended to tell.

“Hey, Isana. If someone is an academy student, does that mean they are a talented individual?”

“Well, I guess so. It’s usually a place only the most gifted can enter.”

“Then what if one of those talented individuals is looking for a job? They have a good personality and very admirable ideals, but they can’t pursue their ambitions in their own country.”

“Hmm, if possible, I’d want to make them one of my people. If they’re someone who suits me, I could keep them by my side and support everything they want to do.”

“I knew it!?”

“Yeah, but are you perhaps talking about someone named Asel?”

“Gasp! How did you know that?”

I was so surprised that my eyes widened without me realizing it. I was just about to bring it up, but he figured it out right away. I don’t know what’s going on. Seeing my bewildered expression, Isana smiled as if he were asking an obvious question.

“Well, the only academy students you’ve been in contact with lately are the Crown Prince and his aide. I doubt it’s the Crown Prince, so I figured it must be the aide.”

“Heh……”

“And I heard that Asel is a descendant of the Unicorns, right? I thought he was someone you’d be concerned about.”

I could feel an unfamiliar dignity from his relaxed reply. They say the growth of a boy is frightening. Was Isana always this perceptive? Or am I just too easy to read? As I couldn’t hide my confused feelings, Isana asked me a question.

“But is that person worried about their career path? That’s a bit unexpected. I thought the Crown Prince cherished him quite a bit. Was I wrong?”

“Uh, no. You’re right about that. It seems the Crown Prince wants to keep Asel by his side.”

“Then I don’t quite understand. Unless something unexpected happens, it’s a foregone conclusion that the Crown Prince will be the next emperor of the Carters Empire. Is there a reason to hesitate when there’s a clear path ahead?”

“It seems that the path isn’t as smooth as you might think. Unicorns can see what ordinary people can’t, right? Asel is the same. He can control it now, but he couldn’t before, so there seem to have been various misunderstandings.”

“Hmm. I see. I understand the situation roughly.”

Isana nodded lightly and fell into thought. He seemed quite interested, and his face was quite serious as he pondered. That appearance looked as sharp as a honed blade, and I was surprised again.

He always seemed like a shy child, but lately, he was wearing the face of an emperor more often. It felt like he had suddenly grown up. Now that I thought about it, he had gotten taller and his shoulders had broadened. His frame had also become much sturdier, and he had muscles that he didn’t have before. He used to look like my younger brother no matter where we went, but now I would believe it if someone said he was my older brother. The differences I hadn’t noticed were clear when I looked closely. It was strange that I hadn’t noticed until now.

“Isana, you’ve gotten taller.”

“Oh, really? My legs have been hurting a bit lately.”

Isana’s face brightened quickly as if it were a welcome topic. That side of him was still very much a boy, so I chuckled.

“It must be growing pains. At this rate, you’ll catch up to Lapis’s height soon, right?”

“Really? I hope so. I want to grow a lot. I want to be at least as tall as my father.”

“How tall was your father?”

“I don’t know exactly, but I think he was taller than Lapis. But they said my father had a good physique since he was young. Compared to that, I’m on the smaller side……”

“Well, you seem to be growing well now, so I think you’ll be fine. You don’t have to worry too much.”

“Yeah. Thanks, El.”

His face, which always smiled gently, felt different than before because the atmosphere had deepened. He was definitely growing in a desirable direction. Even if he grew up more than he is now, I probably wouldn’t stop treating him like a younger brother and being overprotective, but I might have to restrain myself in front of people. That made me feel very proud, but also a little sad.

* * *

Asel and Isana’s relationship didn’t change much after that. They didn’t show any noticeable interest in each other, and there weren’t any more points of contact than before. I had only made a recommendation, and the decision was entirely up to them. You can’t expect to be full on the first bite, so I didn’t particularly regret that there wasn’t any progress, as I thought it was enough to have created an opportunity for them to be aware of each other.

But in fact, changes had already begun to occur since then. One day, I heard small noises from early in the morning. When I went outside, there were several hundred people gathered in front of the camp. They were all unarmed civilians.

“Excuse me, what’s going on? Who are those people?”

I grabbed a soldier who was nearby and asked, and he readily told me the situation.

“They’re refugees from the vicinity. They heard that the Imperial Army was stationed here and came looking for us.”

“Ah.”

I quickly understood how things were going.

As the Grand Duke’s army repeatedly lost in sieges, they began to resort to desperate measures. Before the Imperial Army arrived, they would trample and burn all the granaries and food storage in the villages along their path so that no one could use them. As a result, many residents who lived in the existing villages were driven out and became refugees.

The refugees who were created in this way would come to the Imperial Army in search of food. It was ironic that they had to get food from the army that they had lost because of the army, but it was an unavoidable choice from their point of view. The only place that was steadily supplying food during the war was the army. And every time, the Imperial Army was always in trouble. Hungry refugees often flocked in without order, and the size and form were inconsistent. The Imperial Army tried to accommodate them as much as possible, but it was always difficult to control them. They couldn’t give all the food that the army had to use, so they always had to set an appropriate level, but that wasn’t easy either. So the day refugees came was like another war. It seemed that today was that day.

‘It’s going to be hectic again today.’

Moreover, the refugees who had flocked this time were the largest ever. After inwardly clicking my tongue, thinking that there would be a huge storm, I wandered around to check the situation. What greeted me was a surprisingly well-organized and pleasant scene. I expected a large-scale pandemonium that resembled a marketplace, but unexpectedly, everyone was standing in line in an orderly manner. I wondered what was going on, and I saw soldiers busily walking around and directing the scene. When I watched quietly, I saw that they weren’t just lining people up in order. They seemed to be separating the mixed groups according to specific criteria, and then subdividing them systematically. And I was able to find an unexpected face among them.

“Oh? Asel?”

“Ah! El-nim, you’ve come out?”

Asel, who was talking to the soldiers, smiled brightly when he found me. Those who recognized that I was Alisa’s escort also bowed politely. After bowing back, I quickly approached Asel.

“What are you doing here?”

“Ah, it seemed like people were having trouble because they were flocking all at once, so I was giving them advice.”

“Was it Asel’s idea to have people line up?”

“I thought it would be more efficient this way.”

“Heh……?”

“This person is really amazing. I was so out of my mind, but when I did what this person said, order was quickly established.”

The soldier next to him said as if he were proud of his work. He seemed to be quite close to Asel, and his attitude toward him was quite friendly. The other soldiers were the same. I knew that Asel was good at making friends with people because of his sociability, but somehow I felt a deeper bond between them. At least it didn’t feel like they were talking for the first time today. It turned out that Asel had been going around the camp lately, helping the soldiers with their work. Originally, Asel had not shown any interest in the situation here, perhaps because he was conscious of his position as an outsider. Even if he got along well with people, he kept a distance with an invisible line. It was unprecedented for him to be involved in this work in any way. I couldn’t help but wonder what was causing the sudden change in attitude, so my expectations rose.

“Not bad. What criteria did you use to divide them?”

At that time, a familiar voice was heard from behind. When I turned around, there was a blond boy standing with armed knights. It was Isana and the Imperial Guards. He also seemed to have come out to grasp the situation after hearing the news that refugees had come. The surroundings stirred at the sudden appearance of the emperor. Asel also couldn’t hide his surprised expression, but he soon returned to a calm expression and explained.