Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 535

535.

“More importantly, what are you two going to do now?”

If I remembered correctly, Ayra and Edith were still hiding here to rescue the kidnapped priests of the Demon God. Even during the skipped period, the Crown Prince and the merfolk continued to attack the priests and kidnap them from all over the continent. Most of those kidnapped were brought to the Empire. The Crown Prince mainly stayed here, and the continental Empire was easier to transport to than the island nation. It was also advantageous that there was no problem in openly bringing in the priests of the Demon God because they were at war with the Demon God Church.

In this regard, Lamias—Duke Sepion—made an agreement with the Demon God Church headquarters to cooperate in rescuing the priests. It was a secret agreement that even the Emperor didn’t know about, and Edith and Ayra were dispatched as representatives of the temple in this agreement. I seemed to have participated in related operations quite a few times. The situations at that time flashed back like watching a movie.

But now the war is over. With the princess dead, the Crown Prince would no longer have a reason to stay in the capital. Besides, Davian, who had been cleared of false charges, safely returned to Umbra and was gathering evidence of the rebellion, so he was likely to be arrested soon.

“We already received a call from the headquarters. Since the princess died, the merfolk’s morale has greatly declined, and they have all scattered. We will return to the headquarters for now and monitor future trends.”

“So, you’re going back now.”

“Yes, it’s all thanks to El. We owe you a lot for everything.”

Edith and Ayra smiled gently. Although they had been doing well, it was a period where they couldn’t let their guard down even for a moment. They both looked very excited to finally be able to return to the church. I also felt relieved. Even if the Empire retreated, the war with the merfolk would not end, but since the merfolk’s biggest center of power had been shaken, I wasn’t too worried about what would happen next. For now, the major issues seemed to be settled.

…Perhaps it was a problem that I celebrated too early.

On the way home, I sighed as I saw a group suddenly blocking my path. Seeing the face walking out from among them, I couldn’t help but sigh even more. The man who appeared with a grim face was Crown Prince Luciel, who seemed to have withered in the past few days.

“What’s your business?”

“You’ve been up to some very interesting things.”

The Crown Prince smiled coldly, his eyes bloodshot. It was the same face he had when he realized he had lost his precious sister in vain and was badgering the unconscious Ain Idris, consumed by anger.

“I can’t believe you were also a contractor of the Spirit King. You told me to end the war in exchange for making the Crown Prince healthy, right?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“…Yes, the problem was that I always let that pretending-not-to-know attitude slide.”

The Crown Prince chuckled. But his frosty eyes weren’t smiling at all. I stared at his face, which clearly showed the shock of being deceived and the regret of not getting rid of me sooner, without any particular emotion. It was a little funny that those who were close to me accepted it comfortably, but he, as an enemy, was acting as if he had been betrayed.

“Do you think I’ll end like this?”

The distance closed quickly. The smile that seemed to be forced was completely gone from his face, which was almost touching mine. A blue light flickered in his eyes, filled with madness.

“No. I can never end like this.”

The low whisper seemed more like a vow to himself. The Crown Prince, having said what he wanted to say, turned around. I swallowed a bitter feeling as I watched the people receding like the tide.

Those who were close to the epicenter of the explosion during Minerva’s rampage hardly recovered their bodies. The same was true for the princess, so I heard that the funeral would be held with an empty coffin. I had never liked the Crown Prince. Rather, he was always someone I disliked. But I felt sorry that he lost his family in such a way. Even I would be out of my mind in that situation, so I didn’t feel offended by him acting like a madman.

I sighed again. Anyway, it seemed that wearing a hood was definitely useless.

* * *

The Crown Prince’s sincerity in not ending like this could be clearly confirmed the very next day. The news of the Crown Prince’s arrest was printed in large letters on the front page of an emergency extra edition, so I couldn’t help but know.

“……Seriously.”

I didn’t know whether to say he kept his word well or that it was too bland for such a topic. Was it because he was cornered and in a hurry? I thought it would take a few more days, but as soon as he left me and returned, he immediately tried to kill the Emperor and occupy the Imperial Palace. Perhaps he was trying to catch them off guard.

It was said to be a total offensive involving the Umbra Captain and even black magic. But Duke Sepion’s response was faster. The Crown Prince’s group, which raided the Emperor’s bedroom, had to face the Imperial Guards and Aegis agents who were lying in wait, and they were caught after a fierce battle. Because they were caught on the spot, there was no room for excuses or false accusations.

“My noble chef’s magic defense barrier played a big role. Every time the Crown Prince tried to use black magic, it was blocked. You should have seen the look on his face when he was out of his mind.”

Lamias, who was explaining the situation at the time, had a look on his face as if a tooth had been pulled. After realizing that the Crown Prince was plotting a conspiracy, he had been waiting for a chance to gather evidence, and it had finally come to this. It wasn’t that long ago for me, but it was almost two years for Lamias. He must have felt relieved that the long-standing issue was finally resolved.

“Did Sibelius help willingly? You seem to have become closer.”

“There’s no way. Of course, he sold you out.”

“…….”

“He did it without saying a word because you asked him to? So, match your words later. You advised him first and then asked him to do it. Got it?”

“You know you’re really going too far, right?”

“Hey, I wouldn’t have done that if I had a choice. There wasn’t enough time to explain the situation to you first and ask for your cooperation. Black magic is tricky for me too. Honestly, it would have been a little difficult without that.”

It was a poor excuse, but it was true that the situation was urgent. I didn’t expect him to move so suddenly. The Crown Prince probably didn’t think he would fail either. He had been so good at recruiting that 11 noble families were involved in this. Their mistake was that they didn’t know that Duke Sepion was a dragon, so they mistakenly believed that they could deceive Aegis’s attention, and even if they were caught, they mistakenly thought they would have the upper hand. Anyway, all the participants were caught, and their punishments would be decided according to the severity of their crimes.

One unfortunate thing was that the Jinhon Guild had safely escaped this situation. Thanks to switching sides right before and reporting the treason as if they had accidentally found out, they were able to secure their safety. He wasn’t just a master for nothing; he was a quick-witted guy.

“Umbra will be completely reorganized this time.”

The Emperor was said to be very shocked that a traitor had emerged from Umbra, who was no different from a loyal dog. It was even the betrayal of the captain, who was the closest to him. All the evidence that he had manipulated the former captain and agents to lose their memories was also found. Those who followed him had already been detained, and it seemed that the death penalty would be carried out without trial. However, since that number accounted for the majority of Umbra’s personnel, it seemed that they would be creating a completely different organization rather than just reorganizing it.

“What about Davian? Will he be promoted for his contribution?”

In fact, the person who contributed the most to this incident was Davian. It was thanks to him that I learned about the Umbra Captain’s betrayal, and it was also he who found the evidence. Thanks to Davian, who was closely monitoring the captain, grasping Umbra’s suspicious movements, it was easier to respond to this raid. Perhaps he would become the new captain of the reorganized Umbra. But Lamias answered with an awkward face.

“That’s what should have happened, but things have become a bit strange.”

“Why?”

Surely they weren’t nitpicking about the false charges from before. Just as I was about to frown, an unexpected answer came back.

“The person who was supposed to be promoted quit today.”

“……Huh?”

Davian quit his job? Lamias shrugged his shoulders at me, who was blinking in embarrassment.

“He said he’s not going to do Umbra anymore.”

* * *

I met Davian again, who had submitted his resignation and left, at Chris’s house. I went to see if Chris knew about this, but the person who said he didn’t know where he went after he left was sitting blankly on a chair in the living room.

“Oh, you’re here.”

“You’ve arrived.”

I stared at their faces, which greeted me nonchalantly, in bewilderment, and sat down in the seat opposite him.

“What happened? I heard you quit your job?”

“Yes, I resigned today.”

Davian’s face, answering with a calm smile, looked very comfortable. I wondered if there was any external pressure, but it seemed that he quit because he wanted to.

“I think your promotion was also decided, aren’t you sad?”

“Not really. I originally returned to find evidence of Captain Pavel’s betrayal. I was going to quit when he was removed from his position.”

“I see. It’s for the former captain, right?”

Davian nodded slowly. Her name was Neksia, wasn’t it? I heard that the former Umbra Captain was like a benefactor to Chris and Davian. She was a teacher and a parent to the two who entered Umbra in a young and helpless state. In particular, she was the first person to understand Davian’s difficult situation and support him without any prejudice. It was only natural that Davian would burn with revenge since such a person had become no different from a disabled person overnight.

“How is she doing?”

“Thanks to your concern, she’s doing well.”

“She’s not just healthy. She’s flying around very well. It seems like her old personality is coming out more and more. Seeing this, I guess it’s true that personality is innate.”

Chris, who had joined in with a smile, joked. Neksia’s symptoms didn’t affect her brain function, but all the things she had learned had disappeared. It was like the storage was intact, but the things inside it had disappeared. It was more like a sequelae [a condition that is the consequence of a previous disease or injury]. It was difficult to regenerate these lost memories even with Elquines’s healing power, so there was no choice but to learn them again from the beginning. Still, thanks to steady rehabilitation over the past few months, she seemed to be much better now. Originally, Chris was going to bring her to his house, but Neksia had a devoted lover, so there was no need. Instead, he seemed to be visiting and checking on her steadily.

“I feel sorry for El. You worked hard to restore my honor, but I don’t think I showed you a 모습 [Korean word meaning ‘appearance’ or ‘image’] that met your expectations.”

“What are you talking about? It doesn’t matter if Davian decided because he wanted to. That’s what I expect.”

When I answered, waving my hand, Davian smiled more gently, blinking his eyes.

“Thank you so much, El.”

“I told you, you don’t have to say that anymore.”

“But no matter how many times I say it, it’s not enough. I only have things to be grateful for to El. Being freed from the curse, being cleared of false charges. I wouldn’t have been able to do it alone without El.”

A slight tremor was felt in the voice that answered quietly. I smiled with an unavoidable feeling as I looked at his reddened eyes. I didn’t help to show off, but I felt proud to see him grateful.

“What are you going to do now?”

“I don’t have any particular plans yet.”

“Hey, you said it well. I was trying to get you to join our guild anyway. El, you help too.”

Chris joined in again. His eyes toward Davian were sparkling dangerously and thickly. It was a gaze that felt like a determination to recruit talent no matter what. Davian smiled awkwardly.

“You’ve endured that much, isn’t it enough? Why don’t you just pretend you can’t win? You quit Umbra, so you don’t have any more excuses. You know our guild is popular these days, right? Everyone is eager to join. The requests for joining are overflowing, so now there’s even a screening process. It’s not a place where just anyone can come in, you. But I’ll give you an executive position?”

“No. You’re just trying to use me.”

“What? Hey, you can’t misunderstand me like that. How can you treat this pure and affectionate sincerity for you, who is no different from a brother, so heartlessly…….”

“Hide that mountain of documents piled up behind you and talk.”

Davian’s eyes, narrowed, reached Chris’s room, which was visible from the front of the living room. Inside, there were literally mountains of documents piled up. It seemed that he couldn’t handle it all at the office, so he brought it home, but that itself was proving the reality. Chris, with a flustered expression, glared at Davian with a forced smile.

“Shouldn’t we share these hardships together to be true friends, Davian?”

“I’m wondering when being a friend meant being a slave.”

“Aren’t you sorry for this hyung [Korean term for ‘older brother’ used by males] ?”

“Who’s the hyung? I’m a year older than you.”

“I’m older in mental age, so I’m the hyung.”

“Really?”

“It’s true? What does that expression on your face mean right now? Huh?”

Seeing this, it seems that the two are really friends. I shook my head, looking at the two who were starting to engage in a childish fight from some point.

“More than that, it’s a pity about the Jinhon Guild. They escaped very cleverly.”

“Oh, it seems so. Theo has always been a genius at standing in line.”

Chris, who would have been the most upset, was reacting without much concern. There’s no way his desire for revenge has faded in the meantime. I wondered if he had a plan, so I looked at him, and he smiled meaningfully.

“I applied for a guild war.”

“A guild war?”

“Yeah, it’s a formal duel under the association’s supervision. It’s innocent to kill there, and the winner can demand anything from the loser’s side. I bet on dissolving the Jinhon Guild and confiscating all their assets. So, I’m counting on you, El. Sword Saint and contractor of the Spirit King! Our guild’s signboard!”

“I don’t care…… but will that be approved?”

The application conditions for a guild war are very strict. The scale and power of each other must be similar, and there must be a suitable justification, but even so, the association rarely approves it because it’s a structure that loses money no matter which side wins. Besides, the association’s favoritism for the Jinhon Guild is so famous that it’s sickening. They would never approve a guild war that we applied for now. But there was an unexpected twist.

“The association president and executives were also heavily involved in this rebellion conspiracy.”

“……Ah.”

“Theo seduced them all and only they ran away, what. Anyway, everyone is being replaced, so all the positions are vacant. So, it seems that someone else has temporarily taken over as the association president. But who do you think that person is?”

“Could it be…….”

“That’s right, that person you’re thinking of. Our fair and just Duke Sepion.”