Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 440

440

“Can you see me right now?”

No, El. Don’t answer, no matter what.

I felt a cold sweat running down my back as I leaned against the chair. I fixed my gaze on Naias and forced a smile. I desperately hoped it looked like I was genuinely interacting with a spirit.

“And it seems you can hear my voice too.”

Damn it, it’s not working.

How did he know I could hear him? Could he read my thoughts now? No, if he could, he wouldn’t just ask. He’s just testing me. I endured, feeling like I wanted to bite my tongue, and then the next words followed.

“Your heart is beating faster.”

“…….”

“If you keep pretending you don’t know, you don’t know what I’ll do next.”

“……Sorry, I can see you.”

Daring to think of escaping in front of him – I must have been dreaming too big. I quickly gave up and raised my head to look at Trowell’s face. Even though he was already sure, he seemed bewildered when I met his gaze. He blinked slowly, then stroked his chin and pondered for a moment. The next moment, his translucent appearance became completely clear. It seemed he decided to take on a physical form since I had already acknowledged him.

It’s already a tense moment, but his presence becoming clearer makes it even scarier. Naias was horrified and trembling. I quickly sent him back [banished the spirit to its realm], straightened my posture, and carefully examined Trowell’s expression. A cold sweat ran down my face at his smiling face.

“You really are an unbelievable child. My abilities don’t work on you, and you can see the spirits of nature. Does Elquines know about this too?”

“More or less…….”

“No wonder Elquines keeps sticking to a human. This certainly makes sense.”

“Um, but I can’t see you all the time. Only when I focus my consciousness on the water’s energy…….”

“You know that’s not much of an excuse, right?”

“……Yeah.”

When I quietly admitted it, his expression became even stranger. He seemed amused, and also dumbfounded. Surprisingly, he didn’t seem to be reacting unpleasantly, so I was about to feel relieved, but then I saw his gaze reach my hand, and I gave up again. Sure enough, an unwelcome question followed.

“What’s that on the back of your hand? I feel a strange energy.”

“……Can’t we just skip this?”

“Why do you make futile attempts? If I were you, I would answer obediently at times like this.”

I wish he would just threaten me outright. I sighed and rolled up my sleeve. The reaction I would get was so predictable that I didn’t even need to prepare myself. As expected, when the mark of the sentence [a cursed inscription] on the back of my hand was revealed, Trowell’s face immediately contorted.

“A Demon God’s mark?”

“It’s fake.”

“But it’s imbued with the Demon God’s energy?”

“……It’s still fake.”

Trowell stared at me silently. His searching gaze swept across my face for what felt like an eternity. If I avoided his gaze here, it would be like begging to be killed, so I tried to look him straight in the eye as much as possible. Perhaps that was quite effective. A strange light flickered in his golden eyes that seemed to see through people.

“……I don’t know what Elquines made a contract with.”

I couldn’t bring myself to tell him that Ellyuen had said the same thing. What was a little unexpected was that Trowell didn’t say anything else after that. Even Ellyuen, who had contracted with me, sent me glances as if contemplating whether to kill me or not, but his gaze towards me was…clean. Of course, he had an intrigued expression, though.

“A Demon God, a Demon God… Well, the Demon God’s intervention is possible.”

Furthermore, I think he misunderstood something a little. I thought it would be better to explain, but I couldn’t figure out what he was thinking, so I chose to keep my mouth shut quietly. Trowell, who was interestingly observing me, who was anxiously rolling my eyes, suddenly cast a sharp gaze.

“Come to think of it, you said something interesting earlier. Your place of origin is Ebas Eden?”

“Huh? Ah, that’s…….”

“How did you know that name? Elquines isn’t the type to tell you.”

“Just, by chance, from a fairy tale I read a long time ago…….”

“Are you telling me to believe that?”

I knew it wouldn’t work. If I had known Trowell was listening, I would never have answered that way. I feel like I’m being punished for something I did to make him suffer. A deep sigh escaped me.

“……Sorry. I’m a bit suspicious, aren’t I.”

“Yes, you are suspicious.”

Trowell readily agreed.

“But you’re so suspicious that I’m actually intrigued. I see why Elquines didn’t kill you. I want to watch you a little longer.”

“Ahaha, that’s a relief then…….”

“Why did you summon Elquines?”

“Huh?”

“I’m only saying this because I’m disappointed. Someone like you could have summoned other Spirit Kings, couldn’t you? It would have been better if I had contracted with you instead of Elquines. I hate humans, but I think I would have contracted with you. At least I wouldn’t have been bored for 3 years.”

Wow, is this really happening? My heart pounded at the unexpected words. It was only a while ago that he was pressuring me to death. But now he’s regretting not being able to contract…it was incredible progress that I couldn’t believe.

But why specifically 3 years? The fact that he specified the number of years bothered me for some reason, so I carefully examined his expression. Then Trowell’s eyes curved softly.

“You certainly have a good sense. The more I see you, the more of a waste it is that you’re human. But it would have been better for you if you couldn’t understand. This makes me want to tell you.”

“What do you mean…….”

“Are you curious why it’s 3 years? It’s because you’ll die after that.”

My body froze reflexively. I stopped breathing and stared silently, and a gentle smile appeared on Trowell’s lips. It was a smile that reminded me of the saying that the more splendid, the more poisonous [beautiful things often hide danger].

“I don’t particularly have any grudges against you. To be exact, it’s not just you who will die, so don’t worry. It’s just that all humans will disappear from this world.”

“……What?”

“I’m planning to eliminate the human race in 3 years. It’s a complete extinction, so there can’t be any exceptions.”

It was a dizzying content, but I wasn’t as surprised as I thought I would be. Maybe it’s because I was already prepared for it, but I just felt like what was coming had come. After taking a deep breath, I looked straight at Trowell. I could read the clear hatred that was entrenched in his clear golden eyes.

Did he say he only knows easy methods yet? Ellyuen’s evaluation of him came to mind. I think I know a little why he said that. Certainly, the current Trowell was honest with his emotions. If it were him in my era, he wouldn’t have revealed his inner thoughts so openly. Even in front of an easy opponent. In that respect, he might be easier to deal with. Everything depends on how you think, and when I thought that way, I felt a little more comfortable.

“Can I ask why it’s then?”

Trowell paused slightly at the question I asked to organize my thoughts. The emotion of bewilderment was reflected in his slowly blinking eyes.

“Is that what you’re most curious about? Not why I’m eliminating them?”

“I know you hate humans. If you wanted to, you could do it right now, but since you’ve specifically set a date, there must be a reason.”

“……You’re interesting as expected. That’s right, I hate humans. But I don’t destroy them all just because I hate them.”

“Then…….”

“The most superficial reason is that a human deceives us at that time. Everyone pays the price together.”

“Deceive?”

“Minerva is betrayed. By his contractor and lover, a human man.”

As expected, that was happening in this era. I felt a groan escaping me because I felt like I knew what was going on. Trowell was leisurely staring at my hardened face.

“That presumptuous human has no idea how much he’s being treated. So he’s even thinking of betraying Minerva. Even now, I can clearly see the actions he will commit. With the eyes that revered Minerva, he dares to look at other women, and with the lips that confessed to Minerva, he praises other women. He stabs Minerva with the power that Minerva gave him for himself, drives him to endless despair, and eventually destroys everything.”

My heart felt heavy at the words that were chilling just to hear. Minerva’s appearance, which was always calm like a breeze, came to mind. Even though it was the same wind, unlike Mine, his appearance remained with a precarious feeling as if he would soon disappear. It’s different from Perdes. It’s not just because of the atmosphere, but because he was actually in a weak state with only half of his power. His remaining power was sealed in a sword and used for others. It was something that Minerva did directly with his own will. Just to give it as a gift to a human.

The story of being betrayed by a lover he loved so much was shocking even when I heard it before. But at this moment, it was reality. Thinking that Minerva would experience those painful moments in the future, the emotions that reached me were different even though I already knew it. I couldn’t help but understand how devastated Trowell, who would be watching that scene directly, would feel. It was natural that he hated humans. But…….

“……Still, there’s no need to eliminate them all, is there?”

Trowell wasn’t displeased with the words I carefully offered. Rather, he welcomed it as if he had been waiting for that to come out.

“Are you scared of dying? Do you want to say that it’s unfair for everyone to die because of one person?”

“It’s not just because of that, but I want to say that too. Of course, I think that man was really wrong and deserves to be punished. But that’s not the fault of all humans. There’s no need to impose joint liability [punishing a whole group for the actions of one],…….”

“No, this is called follow-up measures. It’s a defense to prevent the same thing from happening again. The root of humans is trash, so if I leave them alone, they’ll do the same thing again.”

After saying that, his golden eyes, filled with laughter, sent a meaningful gaze towards me.

“Even you, who think that person is wrong now, will try to use Elquines in a few years. You’ll take what’s given for granted, desecrate the king’s name, and not even realize it. I refuse to see that again.”

“No, I…….”

“You won’t do that? How can I believe that?”

“I will never do that.”

“It’s better not to be so sure. The person who I said would betray in 3 years is now the most devoted and sweet lover in the world.”

My mouth closed on its own at the unexpected words. I see. Since it’s a future event that hasn’t happened yet, it could be a completely different appearance now. Still, to think that he’s a devoted lover. My head was dizzy as if I had been hit in the back of the head. Betrayal itself is based on trust, so it’s natural, but I unconsciously thought that he was a bad person from the beginning, only looking at the result. Trowell was pointing out that naive part.

“The current him reveres and loves Minerva more than anyone else. He thinks he has the whole world just by having Minerva by his side. Since the contract, that feeling has never been shaken even once. But the one who betrays Minerva in 3 years and makes another lover is also him.”

“…….”

“Do you understand what I mean? Even that desperate feeling will eventually fade. All humans change. The pure days are only temporary, and all emotions fade and become distorted. Fundamentally, that’s also the real reason why I decided to destroy humans. Because I can’t trust you.”

I had nothing to say when he said that. I felt like I had to say something to refute, but my head wasn’t organized well, so I just kept opening and closing my mouth. Trowell narrowed his eyes, thinking that it was an expression of dissatisfaction.

“You still have a hard time accepting it.”

“Well…….”

“Well, it’s hard to accept quietly when you’re about to die. Then, would you like to try to change it?”

“……Huh?”

“Fortunately, the future I see is fluid. It’s not an absolute prophecy that must happen. Depending on your efforts, you can change it in a different direction. That’s why Minerva doesn’t take my warnings seriously either.”

His face, muttering like a monologue, looked bitter. Before I could offer any words of comfort, he stared straight at me. I swallowed slightly at the words that followed the next moment.

“In short, it means that as long as the core event doesn’t happen, it’s fine. Prevent him from betraying Minerva. Then I’ll stop destroying humans too. How about it?”

No, that future cannot be stopped. In my era, it had already happened. I can persuade Trowell to stop him, but I can’t stop the betrayal itself. ……No, is that really true? Here, it’s an event that hasn’t happened yet, so can I make a hasty judgment?

When I thought that far, a problem that I had never thought about flashed through my mind. Until now, I only thought that all the flows would move as determined. I don’t know much about the past, but I thought that the little content I knew would proceed in the same way. At least until I heard Trowell’s proposal just now.

Prevent the betrayal. The story I originally heard from Sibelius wasn’t like this. It was a simple flow that Trowell, who hated humans, tried to destroy them all, and I, who found out about it, asked for time to persuade him. I haven’t heard of conditions like now.

Of course, Sibelius said that he didn’t know the details, so maybe he just didn’t know that far. But what if that’s not the case? If the situation could change? Even if I reject this proposal here, can I guarantee that it will flow as I know it? What if the flow changes with my answer now? Then what happens to my original era where I was?