Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 428

428.

“You know the Demon God? Really?”

“Of course, really. Would I say I know something I don’t?”

“…That can’t be.”

“Hm? What did you say just now?”

“No, it’s nothing. So, you really know the Demon God?”

“How many times are you going to ask?”

The situation was hard to grasp. How could they possibly know the Demon God? I knew this place was close to the Divine Realm. But the place most influenced by the Divine Realm in the Interdimensional Zone was Arkadom. The humans of Arkadom had all forgotten the Demon God’s existence. They didn’t even remember that such a god existed. I had already confirmed this with Esana and Alisa several times. Even the humans who had been close to him had completely forgotten him, but these people still remembered?

“Ah, right. The name! Do you perhaps know the Demon God’s name?”

Perhaps the Demon God here was different from the one I knew. Maybe a new Demon God had emerged in the meantime. With that thought, I asked hastily.

“Isn’t it Kanos-nim?”

But the name that flowed out as if it were obvious was a familiar name I knew well. The breath I reflexively swallowed made my Adam’s apple bob repeatedly. My mind went blank as if struck by lightning. It was true. They really knew Kanos.

“How do you know Kanos?”

“You’ve been saying strange things since earlier, Priest-nim. It’s a name we’ve been hearing since we were young, how could we not know it? He’s the god with the largest religious following across the Three Continents; it would be stranger not to know him.”

“But…”

“More than that, let me ask something. I’m really grateful that you saved Erina. I am grateful, but it’s too strange. She was poisoned by a monster, and just in time, a priest appeared as if prepared… Moreover, that priest is a Demon God follower who is most skilled in handling demonic energy. Don’t you think it’s a bit unsettling for a coincidence?”

“Pardon?”

“No, I thought you might know something, Priest-nim. I wish you would explain this situation so we can understand it. Could it be related to this rift? Weren’t you trying to summon demons here? Do you have a permit? Summoning demons without reporting to the royal family is prohibited, you know that, right?”

Everything he said was incomprehensible. Of course, even if I understood, I wouldn’t have been able to answer him. My mind was completely filled with other thoughts right now.

“Hey, young Priest-nim. Are you listening to me?”

Simon frowned as if frustrated. He seemed to think I was deliberately avoiding answering, and his attitude became quite fierce. Then, Lansi, who had been watching the situation, stepped forward in front of me.

“Wait a minute, Simon-ajusshi [uncle]. Don’t pressure him so much. El doesn’t know anything. He’s lost his memory.”

“What? Lost his memory?”

“Yes, he doesn’t remember anything except his name. I met him by chance in front of the Renea River.”

“…Is that so?”

Simon’s face became serious. He scrutinized me with a suspicious gaze for a while, then began whispering with his companions. It was a small voice, but not so small that I couldn’t hear them, so all the conversations they were having were clearly audible.

“Could he not be a Demon God follower?”

“No, he’s a Demon God follower. It was a black aura. In the first place, if he wasn’t a priest, he wouldn’t be able to purify the monster’s poison, and among the priests, only Demon God followers have black divine power.”

“What about the possibility of him being a demon? Demons can also handle demonic energy, right?”

“How foolish. Can you say that after seeing his blonde hair and green eyes? Demons all have black hair and red eyes.”

“But something feels strange. Besides, how can he use divine power if he’s lost his memory?”

“If he really lost his memory, he must have done it instinctively. Judging by how easily he purified the monster’s poison, he seems to be a fairly high-ranking priest.”

High-ranking priest.

In that moment, my mind flashed as if struck by lightning. I lowered my gaze and looked down at my hand. All I could see at a glance were five fingers; the part where the back of my hand should be was covered by a long sleeve. Suddenly, the situation when I extracted the demonic energy came to mind. For some reason, the back of my hand was strangely itchy.

…No way.

Even though I knew it was an absurd imagination, my body diligently went through the verification process. When I rolled up my sleeve, the back of my hand that had been covered began to be revealed. Smooth skin and slightly visible blood vessels, a solid frame connecting to the fingers. It was just an ordinary person’s hand.

Yes, if it weren’t for the clear pattern engraved on it.

“…”

I think I let out a groan without realizing it. My heart was beating frighteningly fast. The pure white pattern was in the shape of leather wings spread out on both sides. No matter how much time passed, there was no way I could mistake this pattern. It was undoubtedly Kanos’s crest.

“Oh my god, did you see that? The god’s crest is on the back of his hand.”

“If it’s on the back of his hand, isn’t that super high-ranking?”

“You’re telling me. It’s almost at the level of a high priest, right?”

The surrounding murmurs grew louder. Everyone was staring at the back of my hand, wondering when they had started watching my actions. That meant they could see this crest too. My mind was all in a mess.

What on earth is going on? Why has Kanos’s crest reappeared? This crest had disappeared. I clearly confirmed with my own eyes that it had been erased from the back of my hand after he vanished. The despair and emptiness I felt at that time were still vividly clear, but I have to believe this? Is this really happening in my reality?

Besides, I originally received two god’s crests. I thought they had disappeared because my body had changed, but if there was a crest, Eluien’s should have been there as well. The Demon God’s crest, which had disappeared, reappeared, but only his crest, which had been fine, disappeared; no matter how I thought about it, it didn’t make sense.

‘It’s as if Eluien disappeared, not Kanos.’

Suddenly, the image of myself reflected in the water this morning flashed through my mind. The same face as before, with blonde hair and green eyes. Is it just a coincidence that I still have that appearance that I’ve seen so many times somewhere? Or is it…

It was the limit. I raised my head and looked at the whispering group. Simon, who had been secretly watching, flinched when his eyes met mine.

“Excuse me. Where is this place?”

“Wh-what?”

“Do you know the name of this world? Like Earth or Byton, there must be such a name. Surely it’s not Arkadom… It’s not Arkadom, right?”

Simon blinked blankly, as if bewildered by the sudden question. The turmoil inside me gradually subsided at his clueless expression. That’s right. I’m overthinking it. I don’t know why Kanos’s crest reappeared, but there must be some other reason…

“He’s a priest, alright. You lost your memory, but you remember theology?”

“…Pardon?”

The thoughts that had been continuing were cut off by the voice I heard. Simon gave me a strange look as I turned around blankly.

“Weren’t you just talking about the creation myth?”

“Creation myth?”

“Yes, that thing. Theologians say that this world is made up of four major dimensions and numerous intermediate realms in the middle. I heard that the world we live in is called that. Arkadom that you just mentioned.”

My strength drained from my body. The fact that I didn’t collapse was the result of squeezing out all my strength. However, Simon carefully examined me, as if he couldn’t help but stiffen my face.

“Priest-nim, are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“…This can’t be.”

“What do you mean?”

“This place, is this really Arkadom? Arkadom with spirits?”

“Spirits? Ah, you mean the beings that govern the nature of this world? I’ve never actually seen them, but such beings do exist. Um? Why do you have that expression?”

“No…”

At the questioning gaze, I slowly shook my head. Judging by the fact that they even know about spirits, it seems that this is really Arkadom. After acknowledging that far, my throat was so choked that I couldn’t utter any sound. The hypothesis was becoming clearer and clearer, but it was difficult to accept.

Yes, that really doesn’t make sense. Let’s think more realistically, El. Lapis’s soul popped out into the gap between dimensions, and Eluien just sent me along the trajectory he flowed along. It’s embarrassing that that place is exactly Arkadom, but it could very well be. Maybe the bottom of the lighthouse was just dark.

But is that really all there is to it? No matter how I think about it, this isn’t the world I know. The Arkadom I know didn’t have matches. The job group called Hunters wasn’t systematic, they didn’t use monster guts as firewood, and the Forest of Origin or a kingdom named Epen didn’t exist. I haven’t been to all the countries, but it’s strange that the culture is so unfamiliar.

I looked down at the crest on the back of my hand again. The crest, as clear as if it were painted with watercolors, had a subtle sheen depending on the angle. I felt a strangely clear vitality from that light. If I called him to this crest, it felt like an answer would come back any moment.

“Come to think of it, Della. Didn’t you say you saw a famous spiritist when you went to the Seik Empire a while ago? The wind spiritist who came from the Tara Continent.”

I paused my thoughts for a moment at the voice I heard just in time. Seik Empire, Tara Continent, both sounded familiar, as if I had heard them somewhere. But before I had time to recall my memories, Della’s answer followed.

“Ah, that spiritist. I saw him at the subjugation of the Giant King’s Claw. I didn’t see him active because he was entrenched with the nobles in the rear.”

“Huh? He was only in the rear? Weren’t they brought in with a high price to be active in the subjugation?”

“I heard that’s what they did. But even when the soldiers were being carried out in droves, he didn’t even show his face. Everyone was busy protecting that spiritist from getting hurt.”

“Huh, so it was true that those haughty Seik nobles were groveling?”

“What else could they do? He’s Minerva’s contractor.”

My heart vibrated.

I don’t even know what kind of expression I’m making right now. When I stared blankly, Simon and Della, who felt my gaze, turned around with puzzled faces.

“Why are you looking at us like that, Priest-nim?”

“Did you just say… Minerva’s contractor? Minerva contracted with a human?”

“That’s right.”

“Wh-when? When was Minerva summoned?”

“Huh, it seems you’ve really forgotten everything. To not know such a famous fact, I mean. It’s already been over 10 years since that spiritist summoned Minerva.”

“10 years…”

“El, what’s wrong?”

The voice I heard at that moment awakened my confused mind. When I stared blankly, Lansi, who had called me, had a bewildered expression.

“El?”

Ah, right. El, that’s what I told them.

I didn’t think anything when I revealed that name. I just thought it would be uncomfortable if I said I had lost all my memories, so I just said that I remembered my name. I thought it would be okay to reveal that much.

I reviewed the conversation I had heard a little while ago. Seik Empire and Tara Continent. I clearly remembered why the place names that didn’t exist in the Arkadom I knew sounded familiar. They were all names I had heard from Sibelius. When I had just met him, when his memories were still stuck in the distant past.

“…Lansi, there’s one thing I want to ask you.”

“Yes, please tell me.”

“You said there were mermaids. Then are there unicorns too?”

That was more of a confirmation than a question. I felt like I knew what kind of answer would come back without waiting. As expected. Lansi, who had hesitated for a moment, soon slowly nodded her head. As if answering a very obvious fact.

“Yes, there are. But it’s not easy to meet them. They live in deep forests and are a race that disguises themselves well.”

“…Do you know the God of Punishment?”

“God of Punishment? That’s a god I’ve never heard of.”

I looked at Lansi, who was tilting her head, and then turned my gaze to the people beyond her. They also had puzzled expressions.

“Yeah. I knew you wouldn’t know.”

I laughed in vain. I couldn’t stop the trembling of my fingertips as I swept back the hair that had fallen down. Minerva who contracted with a human. Mermaids and unicorns that don’t exist in the Arkadom I know. People who don’t know the God of Punishment. The reason why Kanos’s crest, which had disappeared, reappeared.

The voice I had heard someday whispered in my ear.

Trouel, is this why you couldn’t say anything in the end? You knew from the beginning where I was going. That’s why you didn’t show any expression at all. Right?

I don’t remember what happened next very well. When I came to my senses, I was walking aimlessly along a forest path. As far as I could vaguely recall, Erina’s consciousness seemed to be starting to return. I heard a faint groan, and the atmosphere instantly became noisy. Taking advantage of the gap where people’s attention was scattered, I quietly slipped out of the house alone. I don’t know how much time has passed since then. As I walked, I saw a quietly flowing river at some point. It was called the Renea River. It was the very riverbank where I met Lansi.

After staring at the surface of the water, which was sparkling in the light, for a while, I slowly bent my knees and sat down, putting my hand in the water. I know very well what I have to do next here. The procedure has become a bit more complicated since I became human, but there was nothing I couldn’t try. The most worrying thing was that the medium was weak, but it seemed like I could compensate for this by making the formula more specific.

“…I ask for permission from the ruler of the beginning. I present the evidence of the contract with the earth, wind, water, and sun, the four major energies as witnesses.”

The spirit summoning formula only reacts when the conditions are met. That condition also includes a connection with the spirit world. No matter how overflowing my talent is, if there are no spirits here, the call will not reach. To be honest, I wasn’t sure until this moment. Half of me was gambling, and I was closer to the thought of not being disappointed even if it didn’t work. But as if to laugh at that thought, as soon as I recited the spell, my strength drained away and a large ripple occurred. I lowered my breath as I watched the waves spread out in a circle. I’m going crazy, is this really working? I recklessly committed it, but when I actually saw it reacting, my mind was quite complicated.

“Here, I dare to hope that one who is qualified will continue the will of water. Today, I wish to welcome the true master of this world. Within the allowed destiny, those who hold noble intentions will surely fulfill their reasonable wishes.”

Soon, a huge golden magic circle floated on the surface of the water. Bubbles formed around it, and the waves began to swirl violently. My breath became noticeably rapid as my energy rapidly drained away. My vision spun as if I was dizzy. I bit my lip, barely enduring the nausea that made me want to vomit. I wanted to pass out, but the formula wasn’t complete yet. I had to endure it somehow.

“You, Elquines, the spirit king who is the source and ruler of all living water.”

Who would have expected that the day would come when I would call this name with my own mouth while I was alive? I was dumbfounded and a hollow laugh came out, but my face was frowning because it was too hard.

“A thirsty person earnestly asks, please answer me.”