Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 530

530

How could I have lost track of several years after regaining my senses?

I had a similar experience before, when I was trapped in a dungeon. I thought I had only been there for a few days, but when I came out, a month had already passed. They said time inside the dungeon was stopped. That was Kanos’s doing back then, too. I didn’t think much of it, assuming it was in the realm of the gods, but if I had known something like this would happen today, I would have asked more questions.

The surroundings were chaotic. The explosion didn’t just affect the people inside the mansion. Those around the exterior were caught up in it, and even nearby buildings collapsed. Groans and cries of survivors could be heard everywhere. It was a neighborhood famous for its beautiful scenery, but now it was a living hell.

I stared blankly at the horrific scene, then rubbed my throbbing eyes. I still don’t know what happened to me. All I understand is that Kanos fast-forwarded time, picking only the events I was trying to change, to the point where everything was over.

Of course, I wished that everything would be over when I closed my eyes and opened them again. I even thought the result would be liberating, whichever way it went. But this is too much.

“Do you remember the terms of the bet?”

Trowell asked. His low voice was as emotionless as his face.

“I said you would be the first to die if you couldn’t change the prophecy.”

His halted steps resumed. Barely breathing, I watched him approach me. In the close distance where I could feel his breath, his eyes, like bare winter trees, met mine.

The outcome of this bet was predetermined. So, I thought I could do anything when this day came. Whether it was excuses or persuasion, I thought I could comfort him somehow. That was the past I knew. But now, standing before Trowell in this moment, I couldn’t speak. He looked like he would break at any moment, like a crumbling sandcastle that would fall apart at the slightest touch.

Beneath the guise of indifference was a profound sense of emptiness. Not even when Minerva disappeared, or when he cried on my shoulder, did he wear such an expression. How arrogant I was. I was mistaken in thinking I knew everything, when in fact, I didn’t understand the pain Trowell had suffered at all. He was hurt just as much as Minerva was. Blood had been flowing from his torn and wounded heart for a long time, but I hadn’t noticed.

“It won’t hurt.”

So, I couldn’t avoid his hand touching my neck. I reflexively flinched, and I felt him ease his grip, which made my heart ache even more. Even in this moment, he is kind.

“Hey, you crazy bastard, Trowell…”

I could see Ifrit panicking, unable to settle down. Trowell didn’t turn around.

“I’ll end it quickly, considering all your efforts.”

I closed my eyes without realizing it. What would happen if I died here? Complex thoughts flashed through my mind, but I didn’t feel like resisting. My fingertips twitched for a moment before digging into my skin. The sensation of my neck being pressed gradually rose. But before it became too painful, a cool voice was heard.

“Get your hand off him.”

The tense air shattered in an instant. It felt like emerging from deep water, all senses becoming clear. The pressure on my neck loosened. It was Ellyuen who had commanded with a warning. I opened my eyes and turned to see him staring fiercely. Trowell, who had been holding his breath, took a ragged breath and turned to him, biting his lip.

“This is a promise between him and me. Why are you interfering?”

“Is there anyone who would just watch their contractor being killed before their eyes?”

“You knew this would happen, didn’t you? You even agreed to wait three years.”

“That was on the premise of ending the contract.”

“Then you can just break the contract right now. Wasn’t that what you were planning to do anyway?”

“I’ve changed my mind.”

Trowell’s eyebrows twitched at the calm reply. He gave a low laugh, looking incredulous.

“You’re really unfamiliar, Elquines. How could you change so much? Did playing house become more appealing than you thought? You act like you’re really this kid’s father, following him around like a chick calling you father?”

“You’re still a child, acting without thinking.”

“I’m a child?”

The face asking back finally distorted. Golden eyes, like sparks, flared fiercely, and his hand gripping my neck tightened again. A chilling light flickered in Ellyuen’s eyes. At that moment, Ifrit rushed in and forcibly pulled Trowell away from me.

“Stop it, Trowell! Are you really going to do this?”

“Don’t interfere, Ifrit.”

“Sorry, but I’m on Elquines’s side right now. I was just watching, thinking it couldn’t be true, but if you’re serious, it’s a different story. You can’t touch a single hair on El’s head from now on. Don’t waste your energy and give up.”

“Ifrit!”

“Yeah, Trowell. It’s rare to see you lose your reason, but I really can’t stand to watch it. Don’t act like a fool, look at the sky. Are you going to leave Minerva like that?”

Only then did Trowell’s aggressive stance falter. He bit his lip and looked up. Even at this moment, the wind emanating from Minerva was creating a fierce vortex. The black sky couldn’t withstand the strong wind and was undulating. It was like a stormy night sea was crashing above.

“If that bursts, it’s over. This is the only chance to stop it. Do you understand? There’s no time for this.”

“……”

“Well, do as you please. If you leave it like that, humans will definitely be wiped out, just like you wanted. Not just humans, but the entire Arkadon will be destroyed, but sometimes that’s not so bad. And Minerva will be destroyed too, but what does it matter? Another Minerva will be born anyway. Right?”

“……Don’t make me angry.”

“If you understand, do what you need to do now. Don’t take it out on an innocent kid.”

The gazes of the two men facing each other collided. Ifrit’s gaze was as stern as Trowell’s, who couldn’t suppress his anger. Watching them, I opened my mouth.

“I’m sorry, Trowell.”

Trowell, startled, slowly turned his gaze like a broken machine. My pale face was reflected in his wavering eyes.

“I’m really sorry.”

“……”

I don’t even know what I’m apologizing for. Whether it’s for accepting this bet knowing the outcome, or for ultimately disappointing him. Or for this situation where I can’t even fulfill my promise. Or maybe it’s for representing the humans who hurt him. It was just the only thing that came to mind.

Trowell, looking at me with a confused face, turned away. His tightly clenched fist seemed to be forcibly swallowing countless emotions. Immediately after, his figure disappeared from sight. To be exact, he had shed his human form and returned to his true spirit form. I saw him, now translucent, flying towards Minerva. Ifrit, who patted my shoulder once as if to comfort me, followed after him.

Soon, red and golden energies began to erupt from the two spirit kings facing each other. Two streams of energy intertwined in a spiral, enveloping Minerva. It seemed they were trying to forcibly suppress her power.

—Minerva!

—Get a grip, Minerva!

The urgent cries vibrated in all directions. But Minerva, with her eyes tightly closed, didn’t react at all. As the suppressing energy grew stronger, the colors emitted by the two spirit kings changed from moment to moment. I stared blankly at the scene, then turned to Ellyuen, who was standing with his arms crossed.

“Aren’t you going, Father?”

“Why would I?”

…I don’t know if I should say that’s just like him, or if it’s amazing that he’s still like that even at times like this. I was taken aback, but seeing him so calm even with the end of the world approaching made me feel calmer. It’s also reassuring to have someone by my side right now.

“Are you okay?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. I’m fine.”

I rubbed my neck, feeling awkward. It wasn’t a touch filled with murderous intent in the first place. There was no way there would be any scars, let alone marks. Ellyuen lightly clicked his tongue.

“I’m not asking about your body, I’m asking about your feelings.”

“Ah… I’m fine with that too.”

“How can you be fine? The guy you considered a brother was strangling you, and you’re saying you’re okay with that?”

“Well, I’m not really okay, but the situation is what it is.”

To be honest, I was so busy keeping up with the flow that I didn’t have any thoughts. Would this moment have been more difficult if I had taken things one step at a time? No, I don’t know. No matter the situation, Trowell would still be hurt.

Ellyuen looked somewhat displeased. “Your understanding is as vast as the sea, I don’t know who’s the spirit and who’s the human,” I heard him muttering sarcastically to himself.

“Hey, Father. More than that, don’t you notice anything strange?”

“What do you mean?”

“Like the memories of the past two years are hazy. Or something doesn’t quite fit.”

“What?”

Looking at his expression as if I was talking nonsense, he doesn’t seem to feel any sense of incongruity. But he’s quick to catch on, so he immediately realized why I asked this question.

“You, do you have a problem with your memory?”

“Oh, no, it’s not that…”

“Tell me what you did yesterday. What did you do a week ago?”

It seems I chose the wrong person to ask. I should have chosen someone moderately dull, but I chose the final boss from the start. What do I say now? Can I answer that Kanos seems to have turned back time? If it were a normal human, they would just be flustered, but I don’t know how the spirit kings will react, so I’m scared. Until now, no matter how suspicious I acted, they were just glossing over it, but they won’t just let this pass. Even this seems to be swayed by Kanos’s will, so I was troubled, but I had to deal with this situation right now. There was no way ignoring the watchful eyes would work, so I pondered what to say. But at that moment, a strange memory suddenly popped into my head as if waiting for it.

“…Yesterday, I went to see the market. The traditional night market opened after a long time. I spent a week ago normally too. Oh, Lamias brought a new soul stone, but it wasn’t the one I was looking for this time either.”

Things I had never experienced were vividly drawn as if they were real memories. Even in this situation, I still can’t find Lapis; it even has unnecessary plausibility. Perhaps because my expression hardened, Ellyuen didn’t stop suspecting me.

“Do you remember what I said then?”

“Oh, um. You told me to go over the clues again. Why were we there when we first met?”

“And then what?”

“I answered that the person who told me to find the soul stone sent me by space travel. Calculating the location where what I was looking for was likely to be, sending me to the place with the highest probability… Oh, so… that’s what’s there?”

My head went blank at the conclusion I reached by just following the memory. What, now. Could it be that Lapis is there? The place where I first fell? That forest where I first met Langsy and Simon’s group? I thought the place with the highest probability just meant this world itself, but that wasn’t it? I raised my head with a dazed feeling, and Ellyuen, who met my gaze, stared at me intently before sighing.

“You’ve realized it. I thought you had no thoughts at all back then.”

“Ah, no, wait! Wait a minute! Then how did this all happen? What have Lamias and I been doing until now?”

“That’s what you call nonsense.”

It hurts to the bone because the right words are too accurate. Meanwhile, other memories came to mind. The forcibly emptied period of 2 years. In that memory, I succeeded in chasing Karyuan into the Demon World and started with a safe return. After that, it was a daily life of trying to win the bet with Trowell, but failing and being frustrated every time. Like someone who had completely forgotten about the plan to change the future. Situations that I, who had not decided anything, would experience were plausibly filled as if filling in the gaps. Were other people’s memories filled in this way too? Or have I been manipulated in this way for the past 2 years? Either way, I felt a chill and hugged my arms and rubbed them.

‘Kanos. I have to meet Kanos.’

I have to meet him again and hear whatever he has to say. Even if it’s already irreversible.

At that time, I heard a groaning sound nearby. I saw a person wriggling in the rubble. Only then did I finally come to my senses. Come to think of it, this wasn’t the time for this.

“Father, survivors! Healing! We have to save people!”

Already dozens of people had died in the explosion a little while ago. Judging from the range of the aftermath, at least hundreds of people seemed to be injured. But Ellyuen’s reaction was dry.

“Why?”

“Why do you ask!”

“It was humans who made Minerva like that. Why should I have mercy on them?”

For a moment, I couldn’t think of a rebuttal. From a human’s point of view, they are separate beings, but there was no way a spirit would care about that. Trowell even turned a continent into a desert because it was the land where Ain Idris was born. In any way, the human race of this era will have a hard time avoiding joint responsibility.

“Leave them alone. If we can’t stop the rampage, they’ll all die anyway.”

The continuing cold voice was also a clear reality. I took a deep breath and slowly looked around again. I looked back at the sky still roughly crashing and the spirit kings fighting, and the people groaning below.

“Sorry, Father. But I’m still going to save them.”

Leaving Ellyuen, who was frowning, behind, I hurried towards the groaning person. But after getting close, I couldn’t easily rescue them. I had to remove the stones, but they were piled up so randomly that it was hard to figure out where to start. It was obvious that it would be more dangerous if I touched it wrong and it collapsed.

“Pull it out as it is! Hold on a little longer!”

“Push it this way! No! The left! You have to be more careful!”

The voices of people who were actively rescuing from a distance rang out. People who were lucky enough to avoid injuries were urgently rescuing survivors who were visible. Right now, they were struggling to pull out a person whose lower body was buried in the rubble of a building.

Should I help them first?

I felt like I could get them out quickly if I went to help, but it wasn’t easy to make a decision because the person right in front of me also seemed to be in urgent need. I could send a spirit, but if Elquines, the king, decided not to help, the spirits wouldn’t follow.

But then it happened. A strange energy seemed to be spreading quickly, and suddenly all the rubble around began to float into the air at once. The eyes of the people who were struggling with the stones that wouldn’t budge no matter how hard they pushed widened. I was just as surprised. I swallowed my breath and turned to see Ellyuen standing with a crooked face.

“Father…”

“Humans should be grateful that you are of the same race as them.”

It was a voice that seemed to be grinding his teeth for some reason. At the same time as that word, the floating debris turned to dust and scattered. As some of it mixed with the wind, the surroundings became hazy for a moment. People from other places appeared after the sandstorm had almost subsided.