Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 480

Chapter 480

“This wasn’t supposed to happen. I was careless. I was too careless…”

“Well, it happens. Looks like it’s hard for you to move right now? I don’t think it’s a good idea to keep you here, so I’ll finish this.”

“The situation isn’t good…”

Ain Idris, who had been wearing a blank expression, looked at the monster again after hearing those words. The rigid surface he had faced earlier had returned to its original, slimy texture. However, something that looked like an ember was appearing and disappearing, repeating the process. It was generating heat to evaporate the water. It seemed he could freely change his body according to the situation. In fact, steam was rising, and the water that had trapped him was evaporating quickly. Sicuehl was holding out well, but his mana was draining exponentially.

“Now I’m your opposite element. You saw me earlier, but Sicuehl can’t handle it alone.”

“Well, it’s okay because Sicuehl isn’t going to do it alone.”

When I raised my sword, Ain Idris and everyone nearby wore dumbfounded expressions. Among them was the master of Requiem.

“What are you going to do with that sword…”

The master of Requiem couldn’t finish his sentence. That was because a blue aura rose from the blade of the sword I swung down at that moment.

“Sword energy…”

Leaving someone’s dazed voice behind, I ran straight ahead and leaped over the monster. As if waiting, Sicuehl removed some of the water that had trapped the monster, revealing its surface. Then, he created a new stream of water, froze it into ice, and slammed it down on top of the monster. It was the exact same spot where I had struck when descending.

‘Aura doesn’t have elements. The weakness to opposite elements will be the same for this thing.’

A monster dies if its core is destroyed. I had already identified the area where the energy was concentrated. I began to cut through the body, aiming for that spot, and soon I felt something catch on the tip of my sword. I gave it all my strength and completely dug in, and I felt a cracking sensation along with a breaking sound. Then, the monster, which had been throbbing greatly, soon slumped down.

“How is it?”

“It’s dead.”

Ifrit, who had glanced at it, gave a light judgment. Only then was I completely relieved. I pulled out the sword that was deeply embedded inside and slowly raised my body. It was almost like jumping into sewage, so my whole body was dirty, as if covered in ink.

As I clicked my tongue and shook off the sticky liquid, Sicuehl, who had strode over, helped me wipe it off. My hair, which had turned almost black, was washed with clean water and returned to its original blonde color. As I swept back the flowing hair, I belatedly realized that my hood had come off. It seemed to have fallen back during the leap.

The surroundings were strangely silent. Everyone I met had a lost expression on their faces. The master of Requiem, whose eyes met mine, swallowed hard.

“I didn’t know you were a swordsman who had reached the level of… Sword Aura.”

At the following words, I couldn’t help but let out a burst of laughter.

“Which one didn’t you know? That I’m a swordsman? Or that I’m at the level of Sword Aura?”

“……Excuse me?”

“It’s strange that you didn’t know. Before I froze tens of thousands of troops with ice, didn’t you hear that I was running around with a sword? I thought you would know that better.”

“Wh, what are you talking about…”

Yes, you’ll have to pretend you don’t know again.

When I smiled, the faces of the people watching became even more rigid. I raised my sword and struck it down right in front of him. The master of Requiem, who had stiffened, only rolled his trembling eyes to check below. A tentacle of the monster, pierced by the sword, was wriggling in front of his feet. It seemed that some of it had popped out during the capture process.

“Be careful. It’s dangerous.”

When I whispered lowly, he twisted his lips with a pale face. His face, trying to force a smile somehow, was almost pitiful. But you’re confirmed for the underwater exploration. I’ll give you a very exciting experience, so just wait a little. After sending a gaze filled with deep meaning, I turned my head to the side and saw Ain Idris. Looking at his dumbfounded expression, a bitter smile came out on its own. If it’s such an intense prophecy that it’s hard to change even if I try, then this much is okay.

“You should look around you more.”

“……Excuse me?”

“Don’t worry Minerva too much.”

Ain Idris’s face twisted strangely. After letting out a sigh, he raised his head, and someone’s figure was faintly visible among the crowd in the distance. He was covering his appearance with a cloak and hood, but I couldn’t fail to recognize that unique, elegant atmosphere. It was definitely Minerva.

The moment I felt that our eyes met, she immediately avoided it. She turned around and left the scene. Ifrit, who had followed me quickly, put a candy in my mouth to cheer me up, but my troubled heart did not improve.

* * *

“You amazing and wonderful guy. What kind of amazing thing did you do this time?”

Chris, whom I met separately at a quiet teahouse the next day, had a haggard face as if he hadn’t slept for a month. I heard the news that reporters had stormed the guild office because I had caught the monster yesterday. He had been suffering until dawn, and the dark circles under his eyes were all black.

“If you’re going to curse, just curse.”

“I do want to curse, but it’s an exclamation of admiration, so that’s why.”

He threw the newspapers he was holding towards me. When I glanced down, I could read the headlines and related content on the front page at a glance.

“Enough my ass. Theo must be so upset that he’s going crazy.”

Chris chuckled like a devil.

“How can you be so wonderfully active in front of the Requiem Guild, you wonderful guy? Oh, it’s so satisfying and exhilarating. I feel like ten years of indigestion have gone down. I’m so happy and excited that I couldn’t sleep a wink yesterday. I’m going to collect all the newspapers today and keep them forever. No, I’m going to make them a guild heirloom.”

Wasn’t being unable to sleep a wink because of the reporters, but because he was excited? Anyway, he was giggling like a madman and carefully stacked the newspapers back into the box he had brought them in. It seemed that he had already kept all the newspapers containing his previous achievements, and he had taken up a new hobby.

“By the way, did you take off your hood yesterday? There’s also mention of your identity?”

“What mention?”

Then, Chris seemed to hesitate for a moment and unfolded a newspaper. I wondered why he was showing it to me like that instead of just giving it to me to read, but that thought disappeared from my head the moment I started reading the letters that came into my eyes.

“……Give it to me right now.”

“No. I’m going to keep this too.”

“Chris.”

“It’s no use calling me so scary. Anyway, it’s already been spread throughout the empire. It won’t work if you just stop me.”

“Okay. Where’s that newspaper company?”

“You know that hunters can’t attack journalists, right? By the way, you can’t destroy the press either.”

“……I can do it without them knowing it’s me.”

“How can they not know it’s you?”

When I clicked my tongue, Chris quickly closed the lid of the box and hugged it tightly. He was determined to protect this one to the end, even if all the newspapers in the world disappeared. The sight was so solemn that I couldn’t forcibly take it away.

I should be glad that there is no internet in this world. Thinking that it wouldn’t have ended with just a newspaper article if it were Korea, my mind became calmer. More than that, all memories of me will disappear when I go back, but I don’t know what will happen to these records. Will this all disappear too? Thinking about how Chris would wonder why I had these newspapers later, I felt amused and a little bitter.

“Oh, and one more good news. The appendages of the monster you caught yesterday. It was all recognized as belonging to our guild.”

“Really?”

“Originally, this kind of thing is the property of the person who caught it. You caught it all by yourself, so Requiem had nothing to say.”

It was definitely good news. Monsters, though not as much as magical beasts, were sold for a fairly high price. In particular, the core, even if it was destroyed, was a part that had energy in its own way, so it was a material that couldn’t be sold without it. This one was large, so anything was bulky, so it was worth looking forward to the profit.

The magical beast Aquilla that appeared before was recognized as belonging to the Requiem Guild and was sold for an enormous price. This part was also in the point where Chris considered this incident refreshing. He was upset that he had missed it right in front of his eyes, but he had returned it as it was.

“We’re already getting contacts from various places. After this is done, I think we’ll start getting designated requests for major cases in earnest.”

“I hope so.”

“Of course it will. Where is it common to have a spirit master who catches large monsters alone? Even the noble lords who are picky because they protect their noble pride will all be interested? At least they are interested in your face. Maybe they’ll send you an invitation to see your face.”

“……I hate even hearing it.”

“Well, I’m against you getting caught up in that kind of attention, but anyway. If you go, your recognition will increase even more?”

“I’m never going.”

When I answered firmly, Chris chuckled again. After that, small talk continued for a while. He was also suffering from interview requests, so it wasn’t easy to match the time with each other. Just unraveling the stories that had piled up while we couldn’t see each other, the time flew by.

“But why did the monster appear again? Did the Demon God really do it?”

“It seems that there is still no clear evidence. This time, I don’t think I saw anyone suspicious. Still, everyone is convinced, well.”

“Does Chris think so too?”

“Well, it seems to be too deeply connected to say no. Anyway, the phenomenon of cracks itself is something that the Demon God can cause.”

If even Chris, a believer of the Demon God, said this, the other public opinions were obvious. I wonder if this will be properly clarified later. The situation with the mermaid is urgent, but the crack problem should not be left unattended any longer. I don’t know how long the Demon God Church will stick to closing the door.

“How is Davian?”

“He’s still the same. But I think he’ll be able to get the surgery to remove the seal soon.”

“Really? It’s faster than I thought. Didn’t you say you had to find out in the underworld?”

“How much experience have I picked up here and there? If I couldn’t solve this much, I wouldn’t have been alive until now.”

It was a joke, but it was full of bones. Considering that he was the only survivor among the top management of the Dawn Guild, even more so. Still, it seems that there is some progress on this side. There were many things I wanted to ask when Davian woke up. But now, I just wanted him to come to his senses quickly, even for Chris.

It was on the way back to the accommodation after parting with Chris that I encountered an unexpected situation. I was waiting for the carriage when I suddenly caught sight of a person passing by on the opposite street.

‘That person……!’

I recognized who it was right away. He was wearing a long cloak, but there were parts that were specific enough to identify at a glance. His tall stature, the slightly exposed dark skin color, and the sword he was wearing on his waist had been seen before. It was definitely Ira.

Ira was looking around as if looking for something. Even in his fast pace, his anxious expression was clearly visible. What happened? Is he being chased by a mermaid again? I had a bad feeling, so I moved my steps to chase after the disappearing back. Ira was walking mainly on the main street with many people. It wasn’t easy to narrow the distance as he mingled with the crowd. In the meantime, his steps stopped as he almost collided with a person coming out of the alley.

“Ah, I’m sorry!”

“No, I’m more… El?”

My name was heard from the other person who was apologizing urgently. Surprised, I raised my head and saw a familiar face. A man with bright brown hair and black eyes, with soft features overall, had a surprised face.

“Ah, Nev!”

“As expected, it’s El. I was surprised to hear your voice.”

Nev smiled with a happy expression. Behind him, other familiar faces were running in a hurry. It was Simon and Della.

“Hey, Nev! Don’t go too fast alone, come with us…!”

“You two, come quickly. I met El here.”

“What? El?”

“Oh my god, El!”

The two people who recognized me hurriedly ran over and made a happy face. I was just as happy to see everyone. It’s already been almost a month since I received forced leave. I met Chris occasionally, but in the meantime, I was only contacting the other guild members for their safety.

“I heard everything about your performance yesterday. I thought it would be more difficult to meet for a while, but I ran into you here. Where are you going?”

“Ah, I’m….”

I glanced back. It was obvious, but Ira was already nowhere to be seen.