Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 439

Chapter 439

The knight commander’s face grew grim when no one readily answered. He stared at me, almost glaring.

“Ah, I’ve confirmed it.”

But suddenly, an unexpected answer came from the back. A crew member at the very rear raised his hand, blinking in confusion as the Crown Prince asked with a slight frown.

“You confirmed it?”

“Yes, it was a young lady of similar age.”

“A young lady… Not particularly robust?”

“No, she was slender and frail.”

“…What was her hair color? Not black?”

“Blonde with blue eyes.”

A conversation I didn’t understand began. The knight commander, who was persistently questioning about my group, even went as far as verifying the crew member’s identity. But none of it seemed to yield the desired answer. The Crown Prince and the knight commander exchanged glances and shook their heads slightly, their faces filled with disappointment. Of course, I was the most bewildered here. A blonde woman with blue eyes? I had no idea where this nonexistent companion had come from. However, I had no intention of showing any confusion, so I managed my expression as best as I could. I stared back as if asking what the problem was, and the knight commander, taken aback by my demeanor, looked embarrassed.

“It seems there was a misunderstanding. Excuse us.”

In the end, unable to press further, they quietly left the cabin. I was relieved, but as he exited, the Crown Prince’s gaze brushed against mine. His lingering look seemed to hold a hint of regret, which made me feel uneasy. Fortunately, the door closed before my face could contort.

The train remained stopped for quite some time afterward. It was long before I saw the Crown Prince and the knights disembarking at the station. They seemed to have searched even the first-class section thoroughly.

“What on earth is going on?”

I never imagined knights would suddenly barge in like that. Even for a Crown Prince, such behavior would surely provoke considerable backlash, but the fact that he was doing it regardless meant it must be something serious. Judging by the way they searched the bags, they must have lost something. It seemed they were looking for someone, specifically a robust man with black hair. I wouldn’t have thought it was Trowel before, but now that I know he can assume a youthful appearance, I can’t be so sure.

‘But who did that crew member mistake for my companion? Given those people’s intensity, they would have checked who that woman was, even if they had to search the restroom. It’s strange they haven’t come back. Did they only confirm her appearance and not check the cabins separately?’

I almost made eye contact with the Crown Prince as he turned back, so I quickly ducked below the window. For some reason, that man made me feel unpleasant. He hadn’t exactly exerted any power or acted rudely, but a warning bell rang, telling me there would be no good in encountering him. Though, I probably wouldn’t meet someone of the Crown Prince’s status again anyway.

Soon, the train started moving again. In the receding scenery, I saw the knights flying back into the sky on their wyverns [dragon-like creatures]. They seemed to be returning to their original location, going in the opposite direction of the train. I thought this chaotic incident was over, but then the door suddenly opened, and a blonde girl appeared.

“Here it is.”

“…Who are you?”

Without knocking, the door burst open, and an unfamiliar girl entered. She was dressed in black from head to toe, looking more like someone about to commit a burglary than a traveler. I stared at her in bewilderment, and the girl, after looking at me intently, muttered something in a low voice. It sounded like a curse or a prayer. Then, with a determined look, she sat down in the chair opposite me with a solemn air.

“Hey, who are you?”

“I’m your companion.”

“What nonsense…”

“They said you would help me if I said this.”

“Who did?”

“I don’t know.”

“…Are you kidding me?”

To my bewildered question, the girl sighed instead. Then, she took out a necklace from her pocket and checked the locket hanging from it. The inside of the locket was filled with a deep yellow color, without any pictures or patterns.

“Two pieces of 6 o’clock. It will be released soon.”

“What…”

At that moment, a faint light flickered from the girl, and her appearance began to change. Her physique rapidly grew, her frame broadened, and her hair color changed. The vibrant blonde turned into a deep black, and her blue eyes turned purple. When I came to my senses, the girl had completely disappeared, and a robust man was sitting there. Even I couldn’t hide my surprise at this moment. The girl, or rather, the man, calmly opened his mouth.

“I heard it was a temporary transformation magic. The duration ended, so I returned to my original form. It’s the first time I’ve seen a transformation magic that shrinks the physique, but I don’t know the details either. I thought you would know, but looking at your expression, you seem to know even less about the situation than I do.”

“…Who the hell are you?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be getting off soon.”

“No, what I’m worried about isn’t that…”

“You’re going to Seik’s capital, right?”

“How do you know that?”

“Will you do me a favor?”

We weren’t communicating at all. The man seemed determined to say only what he wanted to say. He took out something else from his pocket and handed it to me. It was a rather thick envelope.

“When you get to the capital, there’s a hunter guild called ‘Dawn’s Bow.’ I want you to take this there. Once you arrive at the guild, find a man named Chris right away. If you tell him it’s from Davian, he’ll understand.”

The moment I heard that, I intuitively realized that this was what the Crown Prince and the knights were looking for. As I frowned, the man forcibly pushed the documents into my arms.

“It’s best not to look at the contents. This isn’t because I’m in trouble, but for your sake. If you know what’s inside, the kingdom won’t leave you alone either.”

“Hey.”

“Just take it to Dawn’s Bow. Then they’ll take care of everything. I promise they’ll pay you handsomely.”

“No, who said I would do this…”

“I wouldn’t normally do something crazy like this either. But the situation is so urgent that I want to grab at any straw I can. In the midst of this, a strange force guided me, so I have no choice but to have hope. Whether you’re a demon, an angel, or something else, it doesn’t matter. Please. This must be delivered.”

The man’s words seemed more like a self-affirmation. I had no idea how things were turning out. My head was throbbing with words I couldn’t understand. I didn’t know who this man was, why he was asking me for this, or what he knew and didn’t know. At this point, I felt like giving up, so I sighed and nodded. It seemed like the conversation would be stuck in the same place forever unless this part was resolved.

“…Okay. All I have to do is take this to the hunter guild called Dawn’s Bow, right?”

Then, the man’s face, which had been dark all along, brightened. It seemed like emotion was finally visible on his robotic face.

“Thank you.”

“Enough with the thanks, now explain properly. Who ordered you to do this?”

“As I said, I don’t know who it is. All I know is that he wore a black hood.”

“A black hood?”

The explanation that followed was this. The man had sneaked onto this train last night. After finishing a job and fleeing, he had been running away from pursuit when he happened to find the train stopped and secretly boarded it. He didn’t dare to go inside, so he was just barely holding on between the cabins. But then, a person wearing a black hood suddenly appeared before him.

He said that to the bewildered man and immediately pointed to a cabin, telling him to find the boy there. If he asked him for help, he would be able to achieve what he wanted. He handed him a potion that temporarily changed his appearance and even specified the time to do what he had to do. Part of that task was to deliberately run into the crew member and let him know that he was a guest in this cabin.

“I even faced the kingdom knights right before coming in. I heard the Crown Prince is a mage, but he didn’t recognize the transformation magic at all. This is the first time I’ve ever seen such a drug.”

While explaining, the man seemed slightly excited. Even in a world full of magic, everyone was similarly fascinated by special powers.

“Didn’t you ask that person why he was helping you?”

“I asked.”

“What did he say?”

Then, the man, who had been answering without hesitation, made a troubled expression for the first time.

“…He said it looked fun.”

It was an answer that made it clear why he had hesitated. It looked fun, so it was no wonder he was talking about angels and demons. Although I didn’t know him, I could easily imagine how embarrassed the man must have been. He must have seen me as one of those things, so it wasn’t unreasonable for him to say strange things as soon as he met me.

“I understand the situation, but why would you trust the words of someone you don’t know? What if I said I wouldn’t do it?”

“I trust you.”

“Do you even know who I am? We just met a little while ago?”

“I don’t know, but I think you can do it.”

“Wow, you’re really hopeless.”

“I’m sorry.”

I was dumbfounded, but I didn’t feel like scolding him anymore. He must be so desperate that he blindly trusts someone he doesn’t know. If the Crown Prince was moving, it was understandable.

“Honestly, I don’t know what’s going on. I don’t even know if it’s right to help you. But since I’ve decided to take it on, I’ll definitely deliver this. Don’t worry.”

“Thank you so much.”

“What are you going to do now?”

“I’ll be the bait.”

“The bait…”

“They’ve retreated for now, but if I delay, they’ll follow this train again. So I’m going to lure them in another direction.”

“Then are you getting off at the next station?”

“No, I’m getting off now.”

“Now?”

The man showed his answer with action. He opened the window and jumped straight off the moving train. When I looked down in shock, there was no trace of where he had gone. I decided not to think about whether he had died. At least he must have been confident in his survival to jump off. Only then did I realize how absurdly I had been caught up in this situation.

“Ah, what on earth is going on?”

I clutched my chaotic head and repeated the lament I had made earlier. Let’s sort things out. Someone incited that man to come to me and made him hand over a document that looked suspicious to anyone. That someone seemed to have guessed the man’s story without asking and knew that I could solve it. He also knew that I was staying alone in the second-class cabin and where my final destination was. Thinking this far, there were only a few people who came to mind. In the first place, I didn’t have many acquaintances here.

I stared at the chair where the man had been sitting just a moment ago. Now it was just an empty seat that anyone could see. …Surely not. That’s what I thought in my head, but it wasn’t easy to shake off the suspicion that had crossed my mind.

When could I see spirits? The first time was when I deeply submerged my face in the cold river water. The second time was when Ellyuen engraved the seal of water on my forehead. Did the water touching my face have an effect? But I had been in contact with water many times besides that. When I summoned Ellyuen, I was completely submerged, but I didn’t see a spirit at that moment. There must be some other condition, but I couldn’t think of anything that could be called a common point. Especially the first time was really extremely ordinary. I had a nightmare. It was the memory of when Lapis died. I submerged my face in the water to wash away the cold sweat, but thanks to the suffocation, I regained my senses….

‘Ah, is this it.’

I had just woken up from a dream, so my sense of reality was momentarily dulled. When I received the seal from Ellyuen, I felt the water completely and felt like I was completely melting into it. Looking back, both times were moments when I unconsciously forgot my current self.

Feeling like I had caught a clue, I summoned Naias to test it out. Naias, who was summoned, immediately circled around me. I mainly called him when washing or doing laundry, so he seemed to be trying to clean me without being asked.

“No, thank you, but that’s not it this time.”

I smiled and shook my head, and Naias blinked in confusion. He looked slightly uneasy. I held out one hand towards Naias.

“Can you sit here for a moment?”

Naias tilted his head and awkwardly landed on my palm. I felt a refreshing and moist sensation seeping into my body. In that state, I concentrated as much as possible. I tried to forget my current self as a human and think of myself as still being the Spirit King, Elquines. Then, whether it was the right answer or not, a blurry figure gradually began to flicker before my eyes. The more I concentrated, the clearer the figure became. Someone was sitting in the opposite seat with their legs crossed. It was the figure of a boy I knew better than anyone else, a figure that was all too familiar.

‘As I thought….’

Trowel, it was you.

Tension slowly drained from my shoulders. A hollow laugh escaped on its own. To be honest, I had already expected to reunite with him. He was curious enough about me to come and meet me in person, and he hadn’t been able to resolve anything before parting ways. I thought he would reappear soon to confirm my identity. But to think he had been watching right beside me all along.

He was observing me with a slightly frowning face. He seemed to be trying to figure out my thoughts, wondering if it was strange that I had suddenly summoned a spirit. Naias, with a nervous face, was desperately trying not to be aware of him. It seemed that he had been looking uneasy all along because of this. It was pitiful and cute to see him unable to tell me the situation and just watching my every move. The Spirit King was watching with terrifying eyes, so it was only natural that he would be uneasy.

‘…Should I pretend not to know for now?’

Humans seeing natural spirits is something that can easily cause antipathy. Ellyuen was displeased even by accidentally seeing them, so if he found out that I could intentionally see them, I didn’t think Trowel would just let it go. After making a quick decision, I was about to tell Naias that he could go back now. But was I just unlucky? It just so happened that I made eye contact with Trowel at that very moment. I turned my gaze away as naturally as possible, but I could already feel him pausing. A cold aura flowed from him as he remained silent for a moment.