Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 473

473.

“W, what is this!”

“Protect His Highness!”

The knights, startled, raised their shields. The Crown Prince’s face was frozen. Among the humans present, he was the one who could recognize that power more acutely than anyone else. He seemed to realize instantly that it was a power completely incompatible with his own.

“Who are you!”

Several knights rushed toward the man. In an instant, the distance closed, and their swords were mere inches from him. However, the man’s next action was even faster. As he reached out, more papers began to unfold around him. Each paper emitted a subtle glow, as if dusted with pearl powder, with red letters inscribed on them.

“Gelu- Aegis [Ice Shield], Manubia- Calypse [Lightning Blade].”

Then, the papers transformed into ice shields, protecting the man. Simultaneously, a massive lightning bolt struck down like a blade. The knights who had charged forward didn’t even have time to scream before they were killed.

“Your Highness! We must leave this place immediately!”

The captain of the guard said urgently, turning to the Crown Prince. He glanced at me for a moment, then bit his lip.

“Retreat.”

At that moment, the merchant seemed to have been waiting for this, as he took out a piece of paper from his pocket and tore it. It was probably an emergency space- 이동 [transfer] scroll. Soon, their figures were enveloped in light and disappeared.

The soldiers and knights who had failed to escape fell one by one while fighting the man. Their deaths were so futile that it seemed better to have run away. Finally, as the last remaining soldier fell, the space, now completely devoid of noise, became eerily quiet. Only then did the man, with a light sigh, push back the hood he was wearing.

The first thing revealed was silver hair that seemed to hold the moonlight. Sapphire-blue eyes emerged from the slightly disheveled hair. It was a familiar color, but at first, I couldn’t immediately recognize him. He looked a little different from how I remembered him. But before long, a change occurred in his appearance. His round ears gradually lengthened, and his white skin gradually took on a bluish tint. After blinking a few times, he had become the figure I knew well.

Celius.

I unconsciously gasped, realizing that my mouth had been open. As if responding to the intensely focused gaze, he glanced in my direction for a moment. Confirming his distinct presence made it even more real.

It’s Celius. It really was Celius.

Oh my god, it was real. I really met him here. I had guessed it might happen, but now that it was a reality, I was just dumbfounded. It was a different kind of shock than when I met Trowel and Eluin.

“Sir Celius.”

If it hadn’t been for the voice calling him first, I might have unknowingly acted like I knew him. As I quickly came to my senses, Celius’s gaze had already passed over me. Seeing that indifferent reaction, which would have been impossible for the modern him, made my head cool down even more.

Okay, calm down, Elle. This is the past. Even the past from four thousand years ago. I know Celius, but he doesn’t know me. Don’t get excited. No matter how glad I am to see him, I can’t act like I am. He’ll definitely think it’s strange.

Fortunately, as I repeated this to myself, my mind soon calmed down. With a slightly more relaxed mind, I turned to the unicorns and saw that a touching reunion was taking place. The unicorns were smiling with faces that looked like they were about to cry. Celius, looking back at them, said curtly,

“Wait.”

This time, he drew his sword and lightly slashed it a few times. In an instant, the bars, now in several pieces, collapsed with a crash. It struck me again how strong Celius was. In the midst of all this, hearing his voice after so long made my heart flutter.

He went inside and quickly cut the unicorns’ bonds. He also brought a piece of paper to the mana sealing device and muttered something briefly, and it quickly broke. As soon as Weldi was freed from the chains, she rushed into his arms.

“Hng, Sir Celius! Why are you so late? I was so scared!”

“…I came as soon as I sensed the signal. More importantly, what happened? I told you to only go to safe areas.”

“It was a safe area.”

“Don’t lie. The area where the first signal was detected was the Land of the Wind Tree. Since when has that been a safe area?”

“W, well, I was just curious about the human festival.”

Celius sighed for a moment at her seemingly sulky tone. It was a sigh that conveyed his exhaustion, which made my shoulders shrink for no reason. But the unicorns, perhaps because of the joy of being alive, didn’t seem to notice.

“It’s better to get out of here and talk. I’ve set up an illusion barrier outside, but it won’t last long.”

“Yes, you’re right. Oh, right, Sir Celius. Please release her too.”

Weldi, nodding, pointed at me. She hadn’t forgotten her promise to release me if she was rescued. Then Celius paused and slowly turned to me. It was the second time our eyes met. Feeling nervous for no reason, I quietly held my breath, and he reacted a little later, after keeping his mouth shut for a moment.

“…Isn’t she human?”

“Yes, she is. She’s human.”

At that moment, Celius’s brow furrowed. It was a subtle reaction, but the difference was clearly felt because his face had been so expressionless before.

“I have no intention of showing kindness to other races. Especially if they’re human.”

The answer that followed was so cold that I flinched without realizing it. Come to think of it, Celius is only kind to those he keeps close. I had forgotten that for a moment because it had been so long.

“But she helped us. I can’t ignore that.”

“…She helped you?”

“Yes, she did. Besides, I already promised to release her.”

At her whining words, Celius turned to the other unicorns. As their gazes, as if confirming the truth, reached him, they nodded with awkward faces.

“We are indebted to her.”

“That human is also a victim. I think it would be good to at least release her bonds so she can escape from here.”

Seeing that even they acknowledged it, Celius seemed to think he couldn’t help it and let out a short sigh. He walked over to me as if he had no choice and silently released my bonds.

“Ah, thank you…”

But something was a little strange. It’s true that Celius is originally the type to only be kind to certain people. But he wasn’t the type to push away or treat strangers rudely for no reason. Especially now, he was likely to see me as a woman. The unicorns are supposed to be kind to women, and he was friendly to Alisa from the start, wasn’t he? But compared to that, he was being excessively blunt now. He didn’t even make eye contact, let alone respond to my greeting. He simply did what he had to do, completely removing the mana sealing device before getting up.

“You…”

By the time I came to my senses, I had unknowingly grabbed him. Celius, feeling the pull, turned to me. Seeing his face properly for the first time, my insides churned. Things that I hadn’t readily noticed in my excitement became clear when I saw them up close. What’s wrong with this guy? Why does he have such eyes?

“Let go.”

A cold voice followed my frozen state, unable to speak. His face was still expressionless from the beginning until now. It’s still strange. The Celius I know is usually expressive. He wasn’t the type to speak so dryly even when he was angry.

Thanks to that, my mind was full of emergencies. I guess I had thought that once I met him, I could live with him like before. I thought I could at least exchange greetings and make a promise to meet again after getting to know each other. But no matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem like that would happen. If I parted ways here, I felt like I would never see him again. No, if I let him go like this, that would definitely be the case. I couldn’t just let him go so futilely after finally meeting him. I hesitated, not knowing what to say, and just blurted out anything.

“Sorry, but do you happen to have anything to eat?”

But maybe that was too much of anything. Celius’s eyes, which I thought wouldn’t budge no matter what I said, wavered for the first time. A slightly bewildered expression crossed his face as he looked down at me. Still, it was better to see some kind of emotion, whatever it was. The problem was that I was starting to feel really hungry. Just as if it had been waiting for this moment, my stomach growled loudly. Celius’s expression became even more bewildered, and I couldn’t help but smile awkwardly.

“Sorry, I know it’s out of the blue. I haven’t been able to eat anything since I was captured here.”

“…”

“I’m so hungry…”

After a brief silence, Celius forcibly removed my hand and got up. Honestly, it was the reaction I had expected, so I couldn’t bring myself to grab him again. Damn it, everything’s ruined. The first thing I say when I finally get to talk to him is, ‘Do you have anything to eat?’ I would have ignored me too if I were him. But honestly, this was the fault of the modern him. He always tries to feed me something whenever he sees me, so now I have the perception that he always has something to eat.

Shame, embarrassment, and a sense of despair about what to do now made me sigh deeply. But after a while, something was suddenly held out in front of me. It was a loaf of bread that looked delicious at a glance. I raised my head in surprise and saw that Celius was holding it out to me. I couldn’t believe it, so I was stunned, and he even took my hand and put it in my hand.

“Oh, th, thank you. I like this bread.”

After greeting him absentmindedly, he paused for a moment. I could see complex emotions in his gaze as he looked down at me. Maybe I could have a proper conversation with him this time. I had a good feeling about it.

“Um…”

“Sir Celius.”

However, the attempt to talk to him again was soon thwarted by another interruption. Hearing Weldi’s voice, he immediately got up and headed towards the unicorns without hesitation. His turning motion was so firm that I felt a little sad, even though I knew it wasn’t the time for that. Weldi, who greeted him with a smile, had a strange expression, as if she was a little relieved and a little uneasy.

“You showed her kindness. You did well. No matter how much you pretend otherwise, you can’t hide your soft heart. That’s why your grandfather is always worried, but I think differently. I think there are great advantages to Sir Celius having this kind of personality.”

“It’s not like that.”

“Yes, it is. By the way, where did you get that food?”

“…I just happened to have it.”

“You didn’t make it yourself, did you?”

At those words, Celius closed his mouth. I naturally assumed that was the case, so I wasn’t very surprised, but it was a silence that anyone could see as affirmation. But the reaction wasn’t very good. Arel, who was listening from the side, quietly sighed.

“You still can’t get rid of that hobby. The elders have told you several times to stop doing things that don’t befit the dignity of a Rune [A noble Elven lineage].”

No, what’s wrong with having a cooking hobby?

I was inwardly bewildered by the content that I couldn’t agree with at all. Isn’t it a rather luxurious hobby? Ingredients are expensive. Especially in Arkadon, where mass production is not common, they were even more expensive. I heard that even baking alone costs a lot. It also requires a variety of knowledge and senses, so not everyone can do it well. Just thinking about these points, it seems like it would raise his dignity rather than harm it. Am I thinking too much from the perspective of a modern Earthling?

But I know one thing that is common in every world. That is, you want to do more when you’re told not to. The fact that the modern him was an excellent cook is proof of that. I shook my head inwardly and took a bite of the bread. The savory and sweet taste filled my mouth, and it seemed to calm my stomach, which had been upset by the black magic.

‘Delicious.’

So this is what it tasted like. I knew it was delicious, but the emotion that came from recognizing it in my head and feeling it directly on my tongue was completely different. I didn’t want it to disappear, so I was trying to eat it as slowly as possible when I felt a gaze. The unicorns, including Weldi and Celius, were all looking at me.

“Ah, sorry. I think I was the only one eating.”

Or maybe they’re just dumbfounded that I’m eating so calmly in this situation. Even just looking around, it wasn’t an environment where you could eat anything. As I awkwardly surveyed the atmosphere, Weldi smiled gently.

“No, it’s okay. Don’t worry about it and eat. It seems to suit your taste.”

“Yes, it’s really delicious. It’s amazing that you made this yourself. I’m embarrassed to say, but I’m not very good at cooking. I think people who can cook are the most amazing people in the world.”

Of course, that was meant to be heard.

As I smiled brightly as if I didn’t mean to, Arel’s face hardened. A strange air flowed between me and him as we stared at each other. Then Weldi, flustered, hurriedly intervened.

“Um, how’s your body?”

“Ah, as you can see, I’m fine.”

“That’s a relief. Still, it would be good to go to the temple first after getting out of here. Black magic leaves a lot of aftereffects. Your soul must have been contaminated, so you must be purified.”

“Yes, I will. Thank you.”

Although I wasn’t contaminated, I nodded without showing any particular expression because I was grateful for her concern. Seeing Weldi smiling gently as if relieved, my heart was a little complicated. Seeing that she hadn’t forgotten about me even in the midst of being busy taking care of herself, and that she even asked about my condition and gave me advice, she was definitely a good person. My words of thanks were also sincere. But I don’t really know why I feel strangely uncomfortable. It didn’t seem to be just because she was the granddaughter of the elder.

“Black magic?”

What was unexpected was what came next. Turning my gaze to the surprised voice, I saw Celius with a slightly hardened expression. Weldi, turning to him, continued her explanation.

“There was someone among the humans who escaped earlier who used black magic. She was almost in big trouble.”

“I see. I felt a strange energy.”

“You didn’t know? I thought you recognized it and helped her.”

“Help?”

“You stopped the black magic, didn’t you?”

At those words, Celius frowned as if asking what she meant. Thanks to that, I was the one who was flustered. I naturally thought he had helped, but seeing his reaction as if he had never heard of it before, it seemed that wasn’t the case. Then who attacked the Crown Prince?

Weldi also seemed to have the same thought, as she had a confused expression. The two unicorns who were her bodyguards also began to look around with hardened faces. It was understandable that they would become anxious since the possibility of another person hiding in the space we thought was only us had increased.