Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 373

Chapter 373

“Unicorn? Are you talking about Sibelius?”

I asked, taken aback by the sudden instruction, and Trowell nodded. His body was almost completely disappearing. As I frantically grabbed his outstretched hand, he spoke quickly.

“He woke up at a vague time, in a precarious state. He doesn’t know his own condition right now. If that person recognizes him…”

“What are you…”

“The runes… a vessel… if it becomes…”

Trowell’s voice failed to continue properly from the middle. It seemed to break off mid-sentence, and then his figure turned into dust and scattered into the air in an instant. He had completely departed for the Spirit Realm. I stared blankly at my empty hand before slowly exhaling.

“Ugh! Cough, cough!”

“Lord!”

Almost simultaneously, a commotion arose nearby. I turned around in surprise to see Diagon vomiting blood while collapsed on the ground. It seemed that Trowell’s reverse summoning had caused deep internal injuries to his contractor. Even as I rushed to heal him, I couldn’t sort out my complicated thoughts. I could barely understand what Trowell had said, but one thing was certain: something was happening to Sibelius. And even if I didn’t know exactly what it was, Karian, that person, shouldn’t recognize it. I felt my face stiffen with tension, so I took a deep breath. Perhaps because of the sudden situation, the approaching threat felt very real.

“Ugh, I thought all my internal organs were going to be severed. So this is what happens when a Spirit King is reverse summoned. Trowell, you could have at least warned me.”

Diagon, who had suddenly been caught off guard, looked pale even after the treatment. It seemed to take him some time to calm down, as it wasn’t just internal injuries but also a reversal of mana.

Until he dusted himself off and stood up, my mind was filled with nothing but the thought of finding Sibelius. The only reason I couldn’t act on it immediately was because of the unfinished magic circle. I was only one water circle away from completing the four magic circles that needed to be set up in Arkadon. Judging from the situation so far, it took an average of three to four days to complete one magic circle. If I didn’t participate, that period would increase exponentially. But if I waited to leave after completing the magic circle, I was worried about what might happen to Sibelius.

“I’ll take care of things here, so go.”

It was Ellyuen who resolved my endless 고민 [worries]. Surprised, I looked at him, and he gave me a light nod as if to encourage me.

“Are you sure it’s okay?”

“If we bring in more people, we can manage somehow. It will take more time, but it’s not something we can’t handle. …I don’t feel so good that he seems to be ‘staying put’ as he wished.”

I was puzzled by the incomprehensible words for a moment, but soon I had a guess. The short phrase written in divine language on the magic circle’s blueprint. It was definitely meant to say, .

‘So that wasn’t graffiti, but a message to Ellyuen.’

The question I had when I first heard it seemed to be resolved in a new way when combined with what he just said. I thought it meant not to cause trouble, but maybe it was just a literal meaning. No matter what happens, don’t leave the magic circle. …Even if I had to go somewhere else and become distant.

Thinking that far, another interpretation followed. Maybe Kanos wanted me and Ellyuen to be apart. Was that why he bothered to leave the Demon God’s mark to prevent me from contacting Ellyuen? I couldn’t easily judge a god whose sincerity and jokes were indistinguishable. I couldn’t shake the feeling that something I didn’t know was going on. It was a strong premonition that I shouldn’t ignore.

* * *

The season when the severe cold began to recede was slowly embracing warm air. It was a time when the fire and earth spirits, who had been cowering all winter, were actively moving and freely emitting their vitality. It was the beginning of full-fledged spring. The change was evident even on the campus during the day. As I walked along the open corridor, pleasant sunlight streamed through the branches of newly sprouted trees. Even the air that brushed past me seemed sweet. I closed my eyes and fully enjoyed the sensation. But that leisurely time was forcibly ended before long. It was because something collided with me roughly. The boys who were running and chatting from the opposite side hadn’t noticed me and collided.

“Ah, sorry! Are you okay?”

The flustered voice and dull sound rang out simultaneously. Looking down, I saw several books crumpled. It seemed they had dropped them the moment they collided with me. I picked them up and dusted off the dirt.

“Here.”

I smiled and handed the books over, and the boys, who had been a little stiff, stammered and took them.

“You shouldn’t run in the hallway.”

“Uh-huh, I’m really sorry.”

“It’s okay. Just be careful next time.”

The boys, having heard my words of caution, bowed their heads and hurriedly turned around. They didn’t run like before, but their pace was very fast, as if trying to avoid an embarrassing moment. Even so, they kept glancing back, perhaps out of curiosity. “Who is it? Seems like someone I’ve never seen before,” “I don’t know. They’re wearing a school uniform, though,” “A transfer student?” “They’re really pretty. Are they a boy or a girl?” “Which country’s noble are they from?” The sound of them whispering among themselves, lowering their voices as much as possible, continued. Listening to all those sounds with one ear, I came to only one conclusion.

“The students here run in the hallway too.”

I had heard that it was a school only for geniuses, so I thought the students would all be mature, but it doesn’t seem to be the case. Perhaps students are all similar no matter where you go. When I was Kang Ji-hoon, I often bumped into kids running in the hallway. Similar situations were happening in a similar environment, so I felt like I had returned to the past for a moment. A strangely peaceful feeling that tickled my heart? Maybe it’s because I’ve experienced so many extraordinary things lately. It was hard to believe that this was once a normal part of my life until recently.

“Should I go back to school when this is all over?”

I didn’t have any lingering attachments to academics, but it wouldn’t be bad. An academy like the one I went to before would be too much, so a more moderate academy would be good. It would be fun to enroll with Alisa. Asdo is still young, so wouldn’t it be okay for him to go to school here for a while? I should recommend it to Lapis and Sibelius too. They would probably hate it, but I had a feeling they wouldn’t refuse, so I felt good just thinking about it.

By the time the glancing boys had completely disappeared beyond the hallway, I shed the form I had been maintaining. The school uniform I had tried to imitate after seeing the passing students was changed back to my original traveling clothes. I had enjoyed my nostalgic school days enough, so this short escape was over. It was time to return to my original form as a spirit.

It wasn’t difficult to figure out the location of Yan Academy. Diagon had explained the general scenery, and it was such a large and noticeable place that I could easily get information from the spirits. But even after arriving, I couldn’t find Sibelius. Considering that the scene Trowell saw was in the future, it seemed that he hadn’t arrived yet. Considering the distance from Swalt to the Carters Empire, it was a natural result. It would take a long time just to get to the border, and Yan Academy was located in the capital, the northernmost region of the Carters Empire. It was generally a distance that would take several months.

At first, I tried to track Sibelius’s location again to find his group. It took quite a while because the range was too wide, but I managed to find them. But there were unexpected people mixed in with the group. Knights of the Swalt Empire, including Alex of the Royal Guard. At first, I thought Isana had sent them because she was worried about Alisa, but it didn’t seem to be the case. They happened to be having a conversation, and the content was quite serious.

“You mean there was a secret passage in that academy? Yan Academy might have the same structure. Then we should check the underground waterway first. Secret passages are usually connected to that side.”

“We’ll break into the hall and the president’s office.”

“Crown Prince, please check the atmosphere of the imperial family. We will track Danimel’s movements.”

“I will.”

From what I could gather, it seemed they were dividing up the roles after arriving at the academy. I wondered why they were suddenly moving, but it seemed they had something to do here.

What surprised me most was the fact that they all disappeared at once. Only after hearing reports from the spirits later was I able to find them again in a place quite far away. It seemed they were shortening the period by using 이동 마법 [teleportation magic] from time to time. Considering the remaining distance, they would probably arrive in a day or two at most. So I thought I would just wait for them quietly inside the academy. The 이동 마법 [teleportation magic] is safer the fewer targets there are to move. If I had to come back here anyway, I didn’t think it was necessary to join them in advance and add to the burden. Of course, I had to prepare for anything that might happen in the meantime, so I decided to constantly track Sibelius’s movements and receive reports from the spirits. Taking the failure during the coup as a lesson, I entrusted all of this to সিকুएल [Sikuel – a high-level spirit]. A high-level spirit wouldn’t be easily deceived, and at least they would quickly notice any sense of incongruity.

In the meantime, I used the information I obtained while wandering around the campus to figure out the building structure. I also found out the location of the dormitory rooms used by Raon Hwigen and Asel. Among them, I decided to wait in Raon Hwigen’s room. There wasn’t any particular reason, it was just that his room was a private room. Moreover, perhaps because it was the Crown Prince’s room, it was located in a secluded place far away from others, almost like a detached building. If they had secretly escaped from the school, they would also return secretly, so I had a feeling they would definitely come here.

The prediction was correct, and the next dawn, I could feel a strange mana wave in the room. I felt the air ripple, and then a deep blue magic circle appeared on the floor. Sibelius and his party appeared right above it. They had a rather solemn atmosphere, as if they had braced themselves. Until then, I had deliberately not revealed myself and was watching. It had been a long time since I had seen them, so I was planning to surprise them at the right time. Soon, the magic circle disappeared and their figures became completely clear. However, the joyful reunion I had planned did not take place. Because the next moment, they all collapsed.

“Ugh, ugh!”

“Uuuugh!”

“…!”

Lying on the floor, they were busy retching without even looking around. They didn’t seem to be throwing up anything because their stomachs were empty, but it certainly wasn’t a pretty sight. It didn’t seem like they had any health problems as a group, but it seemed they had suffered from severe motion sickness. Thanks to that, I missed the timing to reveal myself. The retching subsided before long, but I couldn’t readily find another opportunity because I wondered if I should appear here. It felt like they would be more embarrassed if I showed up at a time like this. They didn’t know about this situation, so as soon as they calmed down, they began to complain one by one.

“Ugh, I’m going to die. I can’t seem to get used to this no matter how many times I experience it.”

“I feel like I’m going to throw up all my insides.”

“I’m never going to travel with a magic scroll again.”

Following the knights’ lament, Alisa’s firm declaration followed. Then, there was one person who was noticeably discouraged in the corner. It was Raon Hwigen, who seemed to be the most intact among them. It seemed that this method of transportation was the method he had suggested. Asel, conscious of the infinitely shrinking Crown Prince of a country, awkwardly smiled and comforted Alisa.

“Still, scrolls are currently the fastest means of transportation. We’re lucky. It’s thanks to Lord Rajen being able to make 이동 마법 [teleportation magic] scrolls that we can use this precious thing so lavishly. How expensive is it to buy this? Even nobles use it sparingly.”

Even the Crown Prince made it himself?

He was complaining about the performance in front of the manufacturer, so it was understandable that he was sulking. Raon Hwigen’s neck was slightly strained, as if he felt a little better at Asel’s praise. However, Alisa, who was certain of everything, didn’t care about such circumstances at all.

“But the motion sickness is too severe. It doesn’t seem to be a good method for long distances. The 이동 거리에다가 장소도 한정되어 있으니 멀리 가려면 무조건 여러 번 써야 하는데 그때마다 이런 멀미에 시달리는 건 너무 고역이야 [The teleportation distance is limited, so you have to use it multiple times to go far, and suffering from motion sickness every time is too much of an ordeal].”

“Well, that’s definitely a disadvantage. But I think I can endure this too once I get used to it. Isn’t it better than seasickness?”

“Well, I don’t know because I’ve never been on a ship.”

“Excuse me? You’ve never been on one before? You must have used the sea route once or twice when you went from your hometown to the Swalt Empire?”

“Ah, there was no need for that. The Demon God moved me.”

“…You don’t mean someone whose name is the Demon God, do you?”

“The name is Kanos. Don’t you know the name of the Demon God?”

“No, I know. It’s just… I feel like the scope is getting bigger and bigger to the point where I can’t handle it anymore. Yes…”

The soul seemed to be gone from Asel’s face as he answered. The other members of the group all seemed to be half-lost. Seeing them say such things comfortably, have they all learned all the circumstances by now? The situation was becoming interesting, so I decided to postpone revealing myself and watch them a little longer.

“Anyway, I didn’t get motion sickness even when I moved that far at once back then.”

“Well, with the power of God, that’s understandable.”

“No, I was fine even when Lapis used 이동 마법 [teleportation magic] to return later. So I thought all 이동 마법 [teleportation magic] was like that. As expected, the realm beyond humanity is amazing.”

“…Alisa, you seem to have a knack for dart games. Your skill in sticking them where you stuck them again is extraordinary.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s nothing. I just remembered what an old sage said. The truth without malice is sometimes more cruel than malice. Ah, I didn’t mean to say that for anyone to hear.”

He didn’t specify a particular target, but there was no way not to know who he was aiming at. Raon Hwigen was glaring at him with fiery eyes. Seeing that, I felt a little sorry for some reason.