Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 470

I slammed down with force, but only a dull echo reverberated, and the barrier didn’t budge. The soldiers, who had been watching with anxious expressions, fearing I might shatter the barrier in one go, finally relaxed.

“Good! Now, the next magic right away!”

The mages soon began weaving hand signs and chanting a long spell. It seemed like a spell that shouldn’t be allowed to activate. However, even with another forceful strike, the barrier didn’t move. It seemed to be structured in a way that couldn’t be broken with simple brute force. The more it resisted, the more confident the soldiers became.

‘I just need to hit it harder. Let’s focus and try again.’

I readjusted my grip on the hilt and took a slight deep breath. I concentrated, focusing all my strength into the tip of the sword. It felt like the sword was resonating. It felt like the sword was responding to my will, which gave me a good feeling. I raised my arm and struck straight down. Then, a distinctly different sensation hit. Crack! Shatter! Along with the feeling of piercing through in an instant, a sound like glass breaking echoed. When I looked up, the barrier was scattering into fragments.

“No way!”

“The shield magic broke so easily!”

The soldiers, who had been relieved, stepped back in shock. The formation was thrown into disarray, and the spell the mages were chanting was forcibly interrupted. It was as if someone had deliberately created a moment for a counterattack.

But just as I was about to jump in, I felt a strange sensation. My hand felt strangely empty. I glanced down and was immediately taken aback. The sword was crumbling into dust.

“Huh?”

I didn’t understand the situation for a moment. It was a brief moment, but it was enough to create an opening. As if sensing an opportunity, the soldiers thrust their spears forward. I quickly dodged and tried to counterattack, but only empty hands swiped through the air. Only then did I realize that the sword was gone.

‘What is it? Magic?’

Was there some kind of counter-spell that broke the sword when the barrier was broken? I couldn’t think of any other reason for it to break, but there was no time to ponder now. The soldiers, realizing I had no weapon, swarmed me all at once.

“El!”

Chris and Neb, who were behind me, gasped. I charged towards the soldiers, signaling that I was okay. After all, what I originally had was taken from someone else. If I didn’t have a weapon, I could just replenish it. I quickly dodged the incoming attacks, approached the nearest soldier, knocked him down, and snatched his sword. The fiercely rushing momentum paused for a moment, and they began to distance themselves again. It was when the atmosphere calmed down for a moment.

Someone approached me at a rapid speed. I immediately blocked and threw him over, then raised my sword to stab his heart. But the face of the opponent I met at that moment was unexpected. The face that should have been unfamiliar was strangely familiar.

“You…”

He was a man with sharp eyes. The vivid purple eyes under the dark black hair were striking. It wasn’t rare, but it wasn’t a common color either. Taking advantage of my momentary pause, the man quickly escaped and stepped back. Watching the man casually raise his sword, I didn’t know what expression to make for a moment. I wondered if I had seen him wrong, but it was indeed the same face I knew. He was someone I never imagined I would meet in a place like this.

“Davian?”

I heard Chris let out a low groan. He, too, was opening his mouth with a face full of bewilderment. Seeing his shocked face, it seemed he was seeing the same sight as me. My eyes weren’t deceiving me. It really was him. The man in black I met on the train leaving the kingdom, the one who handed me the suspicious documents. The person who was Chris’s colleague.

“Why are you…?”

I hadn’t heard from him since he disappeared like that. I thought I would meet him again someday, but I didn’t expect it to be like this. The man’s eyes looked dazed. It was a short encounter, but I knew he wasn’t a man with those kinds of eyes.

“Oh, it seems you know my Servant?”

The merchant lord walked out leisurely from among the soldiers. I hesitated, trying to adjust my grip on the sword to keep him in check. Behind him, the soldiers were dragging out familiar faces. A woman with ashen, short hair and a lithe figure, and a burly man with short, brown hair. Della and Simon. I guess this is what they mean when they say you want to curse [express extreme anger or frustration]. My momentarily wavering gaze met theirs. To avoid showing any agitation, I focused on what I had just heard.

“…Servant?”

“He is my loyal servant. It’s really good that you know him. I can show you something even more interesting than what I prepared.”

“What did you do to him?”

“If you’re curious, I’ll show you from now on. Hey, Servant.”

“Yes, Master.”

Davian, called Servant by the merchant lord’s command, answered faithfully. As I turned around with a confused heart, a thunderbolt-like voice fell.

“Commit suicide right now.”

“…What…!”

“Yes, I understand.”

Unbelievably, Davian brought the sword he was holding to his neck at that absurd command. Reflexively, I knocked his hand away, dropping the sword, and pinned him to the ground. Then, the muscles in his jaw moved unnaturally. It was clear he was trying to bite his tongue, so I forcibly opened his mouth and pushed my arm in as a temporary measure.

“Davian! Stop it!”

“Davian! What are you doing!”

Chris’s horrified voice followed, but he didn’t care at all. He seemed to be so caught up in carrying out the order that he couldn’t hear anything.

“Servant, try harder.”

Even so, he reacted accurately to the merchant lord’s urging words. Davian began to struggle even more violently. No matter how well I blocked him, it was obvious that something terrible would happen if this continued. Knocking him unconscious would be the easiest way, but I hesitated to do so, fearing I might misjudge my strength. I thought it might be possible to eliminate the one who gave the order first, so I threw the sword I was holding towards the merchant lord. However, the sword that was shot towards his face was soon blocked by an invisible wall and bounced off. It seemed he had put up a barrier in the meantime.

“…Unfortunately, even if you kill me, you won’t be able to cancel the order.”

The merchant lord swaggered even with a pale face. At those words, I stopped trying to pick up Davian’s sword that had fallen next to me. Davian was still struggling to push me away. Thinking that he couldn’t bite his tongue, he pulled out a dagger from his leg and tried to stab his side. After blocking that, he stopped breathing on his own. It was so terrible that all this effort was for suicide. I couldn’t watch any longer and glared at the merchant lord.

“Stop it!”

“If you want, I can withdraw the order.”

The merchant lord smiled slyly.

“You know what you have to do for that, right?”

Curses surged to the tip of my tongue. Della and Simon were looking at me with pitiful eyes. I didn’t need to look back to know Chris’s expression. Already, none of the soldiers around me were trying to attack me. Just that alone made me feel like the outcome was decided. With a deep sigh, I threw the dagger I had taken from Davian to the floor. The sound of a small blade rolling echoed in the silent space.

“I surrender.”

* * *

Clang, a cold metallic sound rang out.

At the end of my downward gaze were the thick handcuffs adorning my wrists. Of course, there were also chains and mana sealing devices. Seeing myself tied up again after finally being freed made me feel complicated. It was even more so because not only me but also Chris and his party were tied up again. Looking at them with a sorry heart, they all smiled bitterly as they met my gaze. Their expressions said not to worry about them, which made me feel even worse.

“You were really amazing.”

Just as I was about to sigh, a familiar voice whispered lowly. I raised my head and met the eyes of the soldier who was putting on the handcuffs. I didn’t care who approached, so I didn’t know, but now that I looked again, it was Rill. Under the dull blonde hair, a face with blurry features was wearing a gentle smile.

“Why didn’t you just run away? Thanks to you, I had a good show.”

“Shut up.”

“I was really impressed. You don’t look like it, but you kill people so casually. How can a human move like that? You’re like a god of war!”

“I told you to shut up. I’m not in the mood to deal with you right now.”

I already had a complicated heart, so I had no intention of arguing with a suspicious guy whose identity I didn’t even know. Rill also seemed to have no intention of bothering me, as he chuckled and stepped back obediently.

“Don’t worry about the Servant. He seems like he’ll recover if he rests a bit.”

My body flinched at the following words.

Turning my gaze, I saw Davian sitting among the soldiers. He looked somewhat tired, but as Rill said, his condition seemed fine. No, he wasn’t really fine. At least, it was clear he wasn’t in his right mind.

‘…Why is that man here doing that?’

Another deep sigh flowed out.

It was really a good decision not to knock Davian unconscious. With the surrender, the terrible order was withdrawn, and he finally stopped resisting. Instead of getting up from his seat, he slumped down. He was conscious but only gasped for breath and couldn’t move his body properly. It seemed he had injured his bones by pressing down on him too hard while forcibly suppressing him. When one of the soldiers supported him and lifted him up, he vomited blood on the spot. This seemed to be because of the abdomen I hit earlier.

“Give the Servant a recovery potion.”

The merchant lord looked at me with a disgusted face and said. Honestly, I was shocked too. I knew that I shouldn’t use it carelessly because it was a force that could cut through iron. So, I was trying to control it, but I had to reduce it even more. I didn’t know that the human body was so weak.

When I was the Spirit King, I rarely used my body directly, so I didn’t have much experience with these kinds of problems. Trowell, who hit just the right amount to hurt, was really amazing. From now on, I would have to learn how to control my strength delicately. I felt dizzy at the thought that I almost caught the wrong person.

Of course, it was the first time I had moved with the weight-increasing device released, so it couldn’t be helped. It was just bad luck that I had this happen on the day I was least familiar with it. No, maybe it was good luck in a way. Because I found one more person to save.

I looked at Davian again. Even though his condition had stabilized after drinking the recovery potion, his eyes were still dazed. It was a similar expression to the many people imprisoned in the prison.

Just looking at how he followed the absurd orders like a doll, he must have been brainwashed. I don’t know why he, who had parted ways in the kingdom, became a slave in a place like this, but I could fully guess the hardships he had gone through. Chris couldn’t take his eyes off him with a pale face. He was someone who had to be saved for his sake.

“Isn’t it a coincidental connection? To think that you knew my Servant. It was lucky for us, but it’s a regrettable thing for you.”

The merchant lord, who had been watching me stare at Davian, spoke to me. I was trying to take advantage of the moment he came closer, but unfortunately, he was still hiding behind the barrier. He was unnecessarily cautious. I clicked my tongue in disappointment, and his smiling face trembled.

“Where did you get that man from?”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you that. The important thing is that he is my slave. A very loyal slave who can risk his life at any time with my one command.”

“…”

“The Servant’s life depends on you. If you don’t want him to die, you better stay still.”

…I’m still disappointed. If there wasn’t a barrier right now, I could have finished it without giving him a chance to give orders. If only I had learned the trick to break it in one go.

I lightly clenched and opened my hand. I was sure I had put in a similar amount of strength as when I first broke the barrier, but I don’t know why it just bounced off the second time. Should I try it one more time? As I was about to scan the surroundings to see if there was a sword nearby, the quick-witted soldiers stealthily hid their swords. The merchant lord had already stepped back one more step. He quickly waved his hand.

“Take him away.”

The soldiers who heard the order led my body. Before leaving, Chris and his party, who I turned to look at, had faces that looked like they were about to cry. I sent them a look that said it would be okay, but I wondered if they understood.

When I went outside, gazes poured in from all directions. It seemed like everyone here had come out. It was no wonder since I had made such a fuss. The inside was still chaotic and not cleaned up. Thanks to this, I could see the traces of my actions as I moved. Like the marks left by Hansel and Gretel [a reference to a fairy tale where children leave breadcrumbs to find their way back], there was a long trail of bloodstains along the path I had moved.

The place I was taken to was the red tent I was first imprisoned in. But there were people who had taken their place before me in the space that I thought would be empty. They looked surprised to see me enter. I couldn’t help but be surprised as well. The three unicorns, who I thought had escaped safely, were tied up in a miserable state inside the iron cage where they used to be.

…They were caught again.

The only difference was that the woman had also regained consciousness. Looking at them with a pitiful heart, they all avoided my gaze with gloomy faces. An awkward silence flowed for a moment.

“Get in.”

One of the soldiers opened the iron cage I was in. I quietly went inside, and they connected my neck and legs to tie me up and tightly wrapped chains around my body. Still not feeling relieved, they tied the chains around the iron cage several times.

“It’s all done.”

“Good. Is the morphine ready?”

“Yes, it just arrived a little while ago.”

Another soldier brought a small box and took out a round bottle. It contained an unknown oil. The pungent smell that wafted out when the lid was opened made my head spin. It seemed to be a type that made you lose consciousness. Seeing that I, who was immune to most drugs, was reacting right away, it didn’t seem to be a simple drug. The unicorns also seemed to have realized the situation, as they hardened their faces. Anyway, I had no intention of quietly falling asleep like this.

“I won’t resist, so don’t use that.”

The soldier who was about to put the wick in the oil and light it flinched and turned around.

“How can I believe those words?”

“Do you think I was caught because I lacked strength?”

“…”

“If you don’t believe me, try it. I’ll show you what will happen if I decide to resist again.”

As if to show off, I gave strength strongly, and the chain made a loud noise. The surrounding soldiers drew their swords with pale faces. The docile atmosphere tightened in an instant. I stared straight at the soldier holding the oil.

“At least you will die.”