Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 396

396.

“Are you very uncomfortable?”

At Mine’s words, Anea was momentarily puzzled before realizing she had been rubbing her chest. It seemed her hand had moved unconsciously due to the strain on her body from enduring the Purification Circle.

“It’s just that I’m not quite used to the faster mana circulation than usual. It’s nothing to worry about.”

“You haven’t been awake from your dormancy for very long, and you’re suffering without even having time to adjust to the changed environment. I’m sorry.”

“If you put it that way, Mine has it worse. You’re dealing with an Evil God as soon as you’re born.”

“In that regard, it’s alright because I have companions.”

“Companions? Ah, come to think of it, the Water Spirit King wasn’t born that long ago either, was he?”

“Yes, he missed his original birth time because of the Evil God. He’s an even worse victim than I am.”

Anea had learned later that the Water Spirit King hadn’t been born for a while. She wasn’t surprised that the world was almost destroyed while she was asleep, but she was quite shocked that someone had interfered with the Spirit King. Moreover, they used a method of delaying the birth by taking advantage of the generational shift. It was a crime that couldn’t have been planned without understanding the influence of the Spirit Realm on Arkadom, as well as its closed-off nature. He was quite remarkable in many ways for pinpointing the blind spot.

Historically, this wasn’t the first attempt to become an Evil God, but there had never been a situation where a Purification Circle had to be created so earnestly. No matter what the evaluations were, it seemed undeniable that he was the one who had most greatly manipulated the gods. Perhaps that’s why, even now that the Purification Circle was being completed smoothly and functioning normally, she felt uneasy.

“Anea, are you really alright?”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

“You’re touching your chest again.”

At those words, Anea was once again taken aback. As pointed out, she was unconsciously rubbing her chest again. She thought she would adapt to some extent once she was aware of it, but it seemed her body still couldn’t keep up with the changes in mana. Moreover, now that she was aware of her condition, she felt even heavier than before. It was a strange sensation, as if something was slowly digging in and binding her whole body.

‘Yes, like… being caught in a spiderweb….’

At that moment, a chilling sensation swept over her from the top of her head. Anea shuddered without realizing it.

“Anea?”

If it hadn’t been for the voice that followed immediately, she wouldn’t have been able to hold onto her fading consciousness. She seemed to have lost her mind for a very short time. Only after feeling the hand supporting her did Anea realize that she had curled up her body.

“What’s wrong, Anea? Is there a problem?”

“Mine, I feel strange. It’s like someone is watching me.”

“Ah, that might be the Spirit Kings. They must be patrolling around the barrier. I’m also looking around, but there are no threatening elements that could be a problem.”

“No, that’s not it.”

Anea shook her head. Her body trembled uncontrollably. To calm her trembling contractor, Mine held Anea’s hand tightly.

“It’s not from the outside, but from the inside.”

“Inside?”

“The Purification Circle, the connection of the Purification Circle has become strange….”

At that moment, Anea’s expression became blank. Her lips parted, and the light seemed to disappear from her eyes. Mine’s face hardened as she recognized the unusual phenomenon.

“Anea?”

Fortunately, Anea responded to the name she called out cautiously. She slowly turned to Mine. It was as if she was staring with an intense gaze, like a newborn child recognizing objects for the first time. Just as Mine was about to ask if she was alright, a faint smile appeared on her lips.

“…The Wind Seal was indeed with Minerva.”

“Yes?”

“It would have been disappointing if you weren’t here. I needed you to make things a little easier.”

“……!”

This isn’t Anea.

Mine reflexively shook off the hand she was holding. No, she tried to shake it off. But it didn’t budge. It felt as if it was stuck to something viscous. Mine stopped breathing slightly. Black water was rising from the part Anea was holding. Her body, already sensing the crisis, cried out in burning pain. She could also feel the mana surrounding her gradually reversing. It was a sign of reverse summoning [a magical process that forces a summoned being back to their original realm].

‘He deliberately targeted me.’

Mine clenched her fist. The reverse summoning of a Spirit King has a significant impact on the contractor as well. However, it wasn’t enough to shatter the firmly built Purification Circle. Of course, judging from the method of attack, that part wasn’t very promising either. In any case, the fact that he specifically targeted her meant that there was another purpose. It was probably about another part she was in charge of.

Mine gathered her remaining strength and poured it into Anea’s body. Then, the light returned to Anea’s eyes, which had been murky. Fortunately, it seemed she hadn’t been completely swallowed yet.

“Mine?”

“Are you conscious, Anea?”

Anea wore a bewildered expression, not understanding the situation for a moment. But soon, she discovered the phenomenon occurring to her and Mine and hardened her face.

“W-What is this….”

“There’s no time. Listen carefully.”

Even at this moment, the reversal was proceeding at a rapid pace. In a state where her body was slowly scattering, Mine spoke as calmly as possible. Anea’s eyes widened. She also recognized Mine’s condition at a glance.

“I believe you’ve realized the situation. The Purification Circle is ruined, so give up. Otherwise, you’ll be eaten again, and I won’t be able to stop it this time.”

“Mine, what is this….”

“There’s another problem. The Wind Barrier will break. It means the army of demons that was bound will be released.”

“……!”

“I don’t know what he’s trying to do, but there must be a reason he’s aiming for it. As you can see, I won’t be able to move for a while. It’ll be tough, but please respond as soon as you recover.”

“M-Mine.”

As the explanation continued, Anea’s complexion grew paler. Looking at the eyes of her contractor trembling in shock, Mine smiled gently.

“This isn’t your fault.”

And Mine’s body completely scattered. Anea’s screaming cries echoed through the rushing wind.

* * *

I raised my head at a strange premonition that suddenly flashed through my mind. It sounded like something was cracking above the sky. Or was it a tearing sound? I couldn’t express it exactly, but anyway, it felt strangely uneasy. It was as if my instincts were whispering that I shouldn’t just let it pass.

I was already getting impatient because I couldn’t find Yukarte. I had searched around the barrier with the power of not only me but also Ellyuen and Trowel, but there was no particular gain. Feeling such a bad omen at this time, I felt extremely sensitive and nervous.

“It’s not a good flow.”

When I turned my head at the muttering sound, Trowel was staring at the sky with a stiff face. He must have felt the same thing as me. It seemed that it wasn’t just a simple delusion. To find out the identity of the constantly rising sense of incongruity, I closed my eyes for a moment and focused on the air currents. A smooth flow continued without any obstacles, but that made me think it was even stranger. Come to think of it, the atmospheric conditions shouldn’t be normal these days. Because there was a space that Mine had deliberately twisted. Of course, it was a very subtle difference that I could feel because I was a Spirit King, and I couldn’t even grasp the exact location, but I could read that something was being hidden somewhere anyway. But now that I don’t feel any obstacles….

“Has the barrier that Mine spread out disappeared…?”

“Yeah, it seems so.”

It seemed that my guess was correct since Trowel also agreed. The disappearance of the Spirit King’s influence usually meant two things: Either she withdrew it herself, or it was forcibly released by external pressure. In the latter case, the damage the Spirit King receives from that pressure must be so strong that it almost leads to annihilation. Realizing that far, my heart sank. Of course, if Mine had been annihilated, I would have felt it right away, so that couldn’t be the case. However, the fact that she had received a blow so strong that it almost led to annihilation was by no means reassuring.

“Mine must have withdrawn her power, right?”

Feeling anxious, I turned around, and Trowel smiled bitterly.

“Well, I wish that were the case, but I don’t think so. I looked at the Spirit Realm just now, and the Wind Domain is closed.”

“That means….”

“It seems like she’s entered forced recovery.”

Why is it that bad premonitions always come true? I unconsciously swallowed my breath and clenched my fist tightly. Mine was hurt. The thought that she had received such a dangerous attack that the influence she exerted on Arkadom was released made me feel overwhelmed.

“She wasn’t hurt in the main world, was she?”

“That can’t be. Mine had come down to Arkadom again after my recovery was over. She was probably with her contractor.”

“Mine’s contractor….”

“I know she has contracts with several dragons, but there’s only one place she could be at this point.”

“Could it be….”

“That’s right, the Silver Dragon Anea Dalis. She’s the dragon in charge of the Wind Axis in this Purification Circle.”

I could feel my face hardening. It was a problem that Mine was hurt, but the fact that the place was one of the axes of the Purification Circle… No matter how I thought about it, it was a situation that couldn’t be interpreted well. I reflexively stared at the screen that was regenerating in the air. The spirit screen that Ellyuen had created was still functioning. There was still no significant change in the appearance of Karyuan that it was showing.

“Does that mean there’s a problem on the Wind Seal side?”

“…Yes, there’s a problem. But the source seems to be somewhere else.”

It was Lapis who answered. I wanted to know the detailed meaning of what he said, but I couldn’t continue the question. It was because Lapis’s face, which I saw as soon as I turned around, was frowning. He looked like he was enduring something.

“Lapis?”

“Ah, shit.”

I doubted my ears at the harsh curse that followed. I could be confident that I had seen Lapis get annoyed a lot, but he had never uttered such a high level of profanity.

“Why, why is that, Lapis? Does it hurt somewhere?”

“Don’t come near me.”

“What?”

I was embarrassed and asked back, but I was horrified as it was. That’s because Lapis vomited blood as it was. No, when I looked again, it wasn’t blood. It was closer to a black mass. It was like he had vomited mud from the mud flats.

“Lapis!”

“I said don’t come near me!”

At the rough voice, the steps I was about to take towards him stopped on their own. But even faster than that, Ellyuen stretched out his arm and blocked my way. He was staring at Lapis with a cold face. Trowel also watched him without moving with an expressionless face.

It was a little more time after that that Lapis, who had been vomiting black mass in a prostrate position, calmed down. When I felt that the paroxysmal vomiting had stopped and the intervals of breathing were gradually becoming less frequent, he took a long breath.

“Did I block it?”

“You blocked it.”

Lapis answered Ellyuen’s question, which I couldn’t understand the meaning of, with a tired voice. It was also an answer that was difficult to understand the meaning of. In a short time, Lapis looked like he was soaked in cold sweat. It was also the first time I saw him so tired, so I kept swallowing dry saliva. I wanted to use healing magic on him, but I couldn’t approach him because Ellyuen was still blocking me.

When I raised my head, Lapis had a greatly angry face. His eyes, which had already been red since he became the axis of the Purification Circle, were burning even more red. That gaze was directed exactly at Karyuan in the screen.

“That damn bastard, how dare he try to swallow me?”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“I told you that the barriers of the Purification Circle were connected to each other. That bastard tried to swallow me through that passage. Ah, damn it. It’s still disgusting.”

“……!”

Lapis rubbed his mouth roughly with a annoyed face. The black masses he vomited were burning the floor with a sizzling sound. If that had been inside his body, Lapis’s insides wouldn’t have been okay either. I was about to go to him, thinking that I should heal him, but Lapis raised his hand.

“Don’t come yet. I succeeded in defending, but I’m still within the sphere of influence. If you make a mistake, you’ll be reverse summoned too.”

“Me too?”

“It seems like Mine was attacked like this.”

It was Trowel who interpreted it for me. However, it was more urgent to recognize the situation and be horrified than to be moved by that kindness.

“Wait a minute. Are you saying that Karyuan is now attacking us through the Purification Circle? How is that even possible? It’s a Purification Circle?”

“That Purification Circle is contaminated. The source is the Water Seal.”

“……!”

“It seems like Okal was eaten.”

What flashed through my mind was the neat and elegant impression of the blue-haired boy. He said that he unintentionally provided the cause for the situation to become like this. I felt sincerity in the way he apologized for what happened and carefully looked at me. I was very embarrassed that he had become the cause again.

“My expectations were wrong. I can’t believe he found out the location of the barrier so quickly. There must have been an ungrasped variable.”

Trowel also had a bitter expression.

“I took measures, but it was useless.”

“You took measures?”

Lapis raised his tail sharply at Ellyuen’s words, which he muttered briefly with a sigh.

“I had set up a barrier just in case. It was a barrier that would prevent it from being recognized unless Okal contacted the outside.”

“Are you saying that the damn bastard contacted the outside?”

“Probably.”

“Then you would have felt it the moment it broke. Why didn’t you say anything in advance?”

“Because it didn’t break.”

“What?”

“He took out only the target without touching the barrier. It was a foreseen event at the time of detection anyway, since it was a minimal defense barrier to hide the location.”

“To pass through someone else’s barrier, you have to be stronger than that, right?”

“It wouldn’t be surprising that his power is stronger than mine now, would it?”

I swallowed my breath again. I knew that Karyuan had become as strong as the Supreme God. But the fact that it meant he was stronger than Ellyuen felt somewhat unrealistic. I clearly recognized all the returning situations in my head, but somehow all of this felt like it was happening in a dream.