Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 448

448.

‘I should ask Father or Trowel to break it.’

No matter how strong it is, it can’t beat the power of a Spirit King. Just thinking about the pathetic looks I’ll get already makes me feel terrible. They might already be watching nearby. No, I really didn’t expect this to happen. Who would think someone would suddenly put a bracelet on me? If I’m guilty of anything, it’s trusting people! Of course, Trowel would say that’s the biggest mistake.

“I’m really sorry. If you go to the magic tower’s workshop, there might be a way to remove it. The process might be a bit complicated, though.”

“Yeah, well, I’ll figure out how to remove it myself. Just consider this bracelet as something you threw away. I can’t compensate you for it.”

“Of course. Either way, even if you go to the workshop, the only option would be to break it.”

It seems there’s really no way to open it with ordinary methods. How could he put on such a tricky bracelet without checking it? I glared at Chris again, and he avoided my gaze, sweating.

“Oh, right, El. By the way, are you going to participate in the subjugation?”

“Subjugation?”

“It’s almost Quanzel [a period in March when rifts open and monsters appear]. The association will probably be recruiting a monster subjugation force.”

His eagerness to change the subject was so obvious that I decided to listen. In March, when rifts occur on a large scale, Quanzel is the time when monsters and magical creatures appear. Because of this, subjugation forces are formed in various places during this period. In the capital, it seemed they were forming four armies, centered around the Royal Guard, in the east, west, south, and north. Usually, the areas where rifts occur are somewhat fixed, but the exact locations change every year, so the magic scholars pinpoint them anew.

“Guilds in the capital are required to participate, so areas are forcibly assigned. But our guild isn’t registered yet, so it shouldn’t matter. If you want to try it, you can just apply as an individual in any area. It’s a rare event, so you should participate if possible. You get a share of the profits based on your contribution, and you can take what you catch.”

“Hmm, monsters must be rare, right?”

“Of course. Plus, if you’re active there, it’s a great way to make a name for yourself, you know? I can’t do it this time, so you should be active instead. Wouldn’t it be great? When everyone’s trying to scout that amazing spiritist, I’ll appear like a comet and proudly announce that you’re a member of our guild.”

“Yeah, if I can remove this bracelet before that happens.”

“……Sorry.”

I chuckled, watching the man shrink rapidly again. Monster subjugation, huh? It definitely wasn’t bad. Even if it’s a guild in the capital, you need to be somewhat known to connect with high-ranking nobles. Especially since the Bow of Dawn was disassembled and then recreated, I needed to give the impression that it was still intact. If I catch a monster, I could use the corpse as a bargaining chip.

“Okay, I’ll participate.”

“Oh, great. I’m really glad you thought about it.”

After that, Chris spent some time teaching me how to deal with monsters. As a veteran who had participated in monster subjugation every year, he knew the minor weaknesses and habits of the monsters that frequently appeared.

“And I’ll be away from home for a while. I might not be back until next week.”

“Where are you going?”

“Um, I have some business to take care of. Someone’s been waiting for news, and they finally contacted me.”

I instinctively knew it was related to the confidential documents. Is he handing them over to someone else? I was curious, but since it was out of my hands, I didn’t show it and forcibly suppressed it.

“Okay, then. See you when you get back.”

“Yeah. I’ll contact you.”

He gave me a soft look, as if grateful that I didn’t ask anything. I smiled lightly in return.

When I came out of Chris’s house, the sun was setting. After stopping by the association to apply for the subjugation force, I took a light stroll around the nearby shopping district. Browsing the shopping district on days I went out had become a small hobby since coming to the capital. I’ve gotten quite used to it now, but I still enjoy looking at the culture of this world. Since it’s a place where people gather, rumors spread quickly, and it’s also good for understanding various ecosystems, so it also serves the purpose of gathering information. ……Actually, right now, it was closer to trying to postpone the time I’d get nagged by Ellyuen and Trowel as much as possible. I knew in my head that I needed to solve the bracelet issue first, but the thought of the two Spirit Kings looking at me with cold faces made me reluctant to head back to the inn.

It’s better to get it over with sooner rather than later, but I still didn’t want to. Anyway, while I was looking around, I planned to pick out some decent gloves. I was wearing gloves for the back of my hand right now, but they were too thick and stiff, which was really uncomfortable. I wanted to get something lighter, but there weren’t many ready-made products here, so finding something I liked depended on luck. Ordering a custom-made one in the desired shape would be the simplest, but I wanted to avoid showing my bare hands to measure the size if possible.

‘The gloves that Sibelius made were really comfortable.’

They were so thin they were almost see-through, yet highly elastic, and the patterns were perfectly hidden. They were so perfect that they couldn’t be any better. The color was also pretty and luxurious, so they suited any occasion. He said it was made of mermaid scales. If I could get them, it might be worth trying to get just that.

“How much is this?”

“Those gloves are only thirty Lua [currency].”

Still, there was something to gain today. It was a glove for the back of the hand made of young deer leather, and it had the best shape and softest material I had seen so far. Happy, I was about to finish the calculation when I suddenly saw a long sword stuck in the corner. It was a clothing store, so it wasn’t for sale, of course, but the layer of white dust made it clear that it had been neglected for quite some time.

“Why is that there like that?”

“Ah, so that was there. Someone exchanged it for clothes.”

The owner, who turned around, clicked his tongue and answered. He had a look on his face that recalled an unpleasant memory.

“They said they’d come back to get it, so I trusted them and exchanged it, but they never came back in the end. I tried to sell it off, but it’s all rusty and very old, just junk. I hated the sight of it, so I just stuck it away.”

“Can I take a look at it for a moment?”

“Go ahead.”

I carefully picked up the sword and examined it. I would have just passed by it normally, but it strangely caught my attention. For some reason, the handle seemed similar to a sword I knew, but it must have been my imagination.

It was very stiff to pull it out of the scabbard. As soon as I pulled it out with force, dry clumps of dirt and rust fell off in droves. The sword itself was pitch black, but it was hard to tell if that was the original color or if it was because it was covered in dirt. Like the owner said, it was a dirty and old sword that anyone could see.

“See? It’s really junk, right?”

I calmly nodded at the question that followed as if he had been waiting for it. But my head was so complicated that I couldn’t come to my senses. I thought only the handle was similar, but when I pulled it out, the shape was also similar. No, it wasn’t just similar, it was the same. No matter how much it was covered in dirt, it couldn’t hide the subtle energy within.

‘Fire Buster?’

Why is it here?

It was definitely Fire Buster, although the energy was much weaker than what I knew. Come to think of it, didn’t it also fall into spacetime once? Was this that time? Then how long has it been since it fell?

“Um, would you like to sell this to me?”

Putting aside the many thoughts that flashed through my mind, I turned to the store owner. All I could think about was securing Fire Buster first. He looked surprised at my suggestion.

“What are you going to do with such a piece of junk?”

“It looks usable if you clean it up well.”

“Huh, it seems even that kind of sword has a match. Then just take it. I don’t want to hear that I sold junk.”

“No, if the owner comes looking for it later, it’ll be troublesome for you, so I’ll pay for the clothes they exchanged it for.”

“Well, I’d be grateful.”

The store owner’s face brightened considerably. The clothes that the sword’s owner had exchanged were not worth as much as I thought. He probably didn’t know the value of this sword either. Thanks to that, I had a windfall.

After paying for everything, I left the store and moved as far away as possible. I went into an alley and made sure no one was there before examining the sword again.

“Fire Buster? Can you hear me?”

But there was no answer. Well, if it could talk, it wouldn’t have exchanged itself for clothes in the first place. I don’t know if it’s just silent or if it’s due to some other influence. More than that, is it okay for this guy to be in my hands? Since Sibelius didn’t recognize it, it must mean he’s never seen it before. I was thinking of taking it back to the inn and cleaning off the dirt when.

“Aaaaaaah!”

Suddenly, a piercing scream was heard from somewhere. Surprised, I went out of the alley and saw people running in a frenzy. The goods on the stalls were scattered everywhere by the movements of people running without looking ahead. But the merchants selling those goods were also running after them. They had no choice. A huge monster with horns on its head, with a body the size of a house, was rampaging.

Khaaaaaa-!

The moment the monster raised its head and roared, a piercing tinnitus rang in my ears.

“What is that……”

“M, a monster! A monster has appeared!”

Buried in the buzzing noise, the screams of people rang out again. Thanks to that, I understood the situation, but I still didn’t understand it.

‘A monster, but it’s not Quanzel yet?’

Perhaps I wasn’t the only one thinking this, as those watching nearby also had confused expressions. The monster was destroying everything in sight as if it had decided to obliterate everything. Every time its heavy feet slammed down, buildings and the furniture inside were uprooted as if caught in a typhoon. It was a very high-ranking monster at first glance. A few who were frozen seemed unable to decide what to do and just stood there awkwardly.

“Everyone, get out of the way! What are you doing not running away!”

Then, after hearing someone shouting nearby, they screamed and ran back. Conversely, I approached the monster. It was in a crowded downtown area, so the aftermath was too great. Someone would come soon since there was such a commotion, but I had to quickly contain it so it wouldn’t rampage further.

“Sicuel!”

But for some reason, I didn’t feel anything. Oh, right, I haven’t removed the bracelet yet. I belatedly realized that I couldn’t use spirit magic right now.

“Aaaaaaah!”

“No! Neb!”

At that moment, someone was seen falling and being dragged in front of the monster. It was one of the group who had rushed to stop the monster. Judging by their armed appearance, they seemed to be hunters or mercenaries, but they were helpless in the face of the giant monster’s power and couldn’t resist at all. It was obvious that they would be crushed by the descending claws.

“Damn it! Why now!”

There was no time to be thinking. I ran as hard as I could and jumped in front of the fallen person. Still, it’s a spirit sword, so it wouldn’t break, right? The moment I held Fire Buster with both hands and lifted it up, a heavy weight struck down. It was an enormous pressure that made me want to curse. It was only because I was strong that I could withstand it, but if it had been an ordinary person, they would have been crushed along with it, let alone block it. I could feel the person underneath me looking at me with a dumbfounded face.

“Get out of here now!”

“Neb!”

Fortunately, his companions ran over and quickly pulled the fallen person out. But the moment my eyes met theirs, I forgot the situation and couldn’t help but be embarrassed.

“Huh?”

“Gasp?”

The other person also widened their eyes and gasped. The two people, a man and a woman, were faces I knew. It was Simon and Della, the hunters I had met at Lanci’s house.

“You……!”

No, why did I have to meet these people here of all places? It was clear that today was an unlucky day. But I didn’t have time to pay attention to them because the monster moved immediately. The weight being applied disappeared, and this time the monster swung its other foot. I tried to respond immediately, but my arm didn’t move properly. It seemed like it was broken.

I clicked my tongue and quickly jumped to the side to avoid the claws. The claws that barely grazed me tore the hem of my clothes mercilessly. The unfortunate thing was that the monster had targeted me. As soon as I rolled down, huge teeth followed right after. The speed was so fast that I didn’t have time to dodge this time.

“Father!”

It would really hurt a lot if I got bitten. Am I going to die here? That short moment of closing my eyes was a moment when so many thoughts flashed through my mind. It felt like I was seeing a panorama of my life.

Kwaang!

But what followed was a huge noise and wind instead of pain. When I opened my eyes, I saw the back of someone standing in front of me. Black hair fluttered in the swirling wind.

……I’m alive.

A sense of relief washed over me at the familiar sight. The person standing with one foot raised in a slightly tilted posture was Trowel. He had come to help. In the distance, the fallen monster was seen writhing with foam in its mouth. It seemed he had blown it away with a single kick.

The people didn’t seem to have grasped what had happened yet. Soon, people who had come out after confirming that the monster had fallen, and hunters and soldiers who had heard the news late, were gathering. Some of those who had been focusing all their attention on the monster turned their heads towards us. But they probably couldn’t confirm it. It was because Ellyuen, who had spread his hand at the right time, had spread a thick fog around him. Afterwards, he moved indifferently through the gap where nothing could be seen. It seemed he was planning to avoid this place.

‘Monster……. What a waste.’

Of course, I, who was hanging on to him, had no choice.

It was a forced return.