Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 536

536

Putting aside whether Lamias was fair or not… At this point, the Soul Requiem Guild had essentially set up a stage for us to demolish them ourselves. The bewildered feeling quickly vanished, and I started to laugh. Chris was chuckling too. Davian sighed.

“It’s painful to watch, so don’t laugh so deviously.”

“El laughed too, you know?”

“Anything looks good on El, so it’s fine.”

“Wow, look at this blatant favoritism! So, El even looks pretty when laughing deviously, is that it! This is why lookism [prejudice or discrimination based on physical appearance] is a problem!”

Davian didn’t even blink at the barrage of criticism. Chris, who had been pounding his chest like an angry gorilla, was the first to tire and collapsed onto the sofa. Just looking at this scene, I could already picture what things would be like after Davian joined the guild. Chris seemed to expect he could pass work onto Davian, but whether it would go as planned was another matter.

“Why that expression?”

When I looked at him with a somewhat pitiful gaze, Chris flinched and twitched his eyebrows. I don’t know what kind of face I made, but it must have been quite unsettling. I shrugged, smiling nonchalantly.

“What are you talking about?”

“You were looking at me with such a pitiful face just now.”

“Chris, really. Why are you misunderstanding like that? Oh, by the way, about what you were saying earlier. Are there really that many people wanting to join the guild?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, there are. It seems like there are over a dozen a day. Simon and Della are in charge of receiving applications, and they’ve been working overtime lately.”

Fortunately, Chris didn’t press further and continued the conversation. As if he had been wanting to talk about it, he immediately started complaining.

“Honestly, it’s a bit of a headache. There are genuine applicants, but there are also quite a few who are just nosy out of curiosity. Some reporters even try to come for interviews with fake IDs, so just filtering them out is a lot of work. Who even forges Hunter IDs? Are they all crazy? Do they think they’ll get to see you during the screening… Oh, right, El. Was it okay getting here?”

“It was the same as usual. I pretended to go somewhere else and shook them off.”

“It’s getting worse and worse. What about that magic tool that obscures your presence? Can’t we borrow it again?”

“Lil is busy for the time being, so I can’t meet her.”

“I already returned the one I had… I’m sorry.”

Davian apologized, looking dejected. He said that he had returned the one Lamias lent him when he quit his job. I already knew, but Lamias said she had a lot of use for it for the time being, so we couldn’t borrow it.

“Why is Davian apologizing? We can’t rely on the magic tool forever anyway. It’s nice that it makes me less noticeable, but it’s inconvenient to go to restaurants and such. They don’t come to take my order. I also feel sorry for startling people every time.”

Besides, these days, reporters even use tools like magic detectors. They find formulas that are always included in specific magic, so their accuracy is quite high. In the end, it was tiring in one way or another. I didn’t have to worry about this in my time, but the development of civilization and technology wasn’t always a good thing.

“Having an appearance that stands out no matter where you go isn’t a good thing in times like these.”

“So, I’m thinking of dyeing my hair and cutting it short.”

“Huh, are you serious?”

“I already bought the dye. I think blonde hair stands out, so I’m going to change it to black.”

“…Do you think that will work?”

The two people looking at me with skeptical expressions seemed very doubtful. I felt like I had received this kind of look before.

*Thump!*

At that moment, a loud noise rang out. It was the sound of someone banging hard on the front door of Chris’s house. The friendly atmosphere instantly stiffened.

“I know you’re in there! Open this door right now!”

A rough male voice shouted. Chris, his face hardened, immediately looked at me. “You’re wearing a hood.” At the quiet words, I nodded and pulled the hood down deeper. As Chris got up and approached the door, Davian also stood up and stood in front of me.

“Who are you? What business do you have at my house?”

Chris opened the door just a crack and asked through the gap. The man outside the door asked in a surly voice.

“Are you Lachein Chris?”

“That’s right.”

“I have no business with you. Go get Nepas.”

Davian’s body flinched for a moment. I could feel a different kind of tension from his stiff back than before.

“Nepas?”

“It’s no use pretending you don’t know. I know he’s here.”

“What are you even talking about…?”

“Nepas Yuba Raspo! How long are you going to keep mocking your father! Open this door right now and appear before me!”

Chris’s face, which had been bewildered, hardened in an instant. I frowned as well. The word Raspo sounded familiar, and seeing everyone’s reaction, I realized where I had heard it. Davian’s biological father was someone called Marquis Raspo.

He had been the Minister of Foreign Affairs, but after the Crown Prince was cursed and collapsed, he was pushed out of various power struggles and had now resigned. The businesses he had started were also failing one after another, so he had lost almost all of his wealth and moved out of the Grenan district in the 1st Ward, where he used to live. He roughly pushed aside Chris, who was blocking him, and glared at Davian.

“It’s hard to even get a glimpse of your face.”

“…What brings you here?”

“I came to hear the truth. I heard some news that I can’t believe, no matter how much I think about it. Is it true that you quit Umbra?”

“Yes, it is.”

“I heard that you made the greatest contribution to stopping the traitor. You were waiting for the rewards and promotion that His Majesty the Emperor promised, but you rejected them all and quit?”

“Yes.”

“Yes? You said yes? Do you know what you’ve done? You threw away the chance to elevate the family name with your own feet! It was a golden opportunity to become a meritorious subject and be reinstated!”

Compared to the Marquis, who was raging, Davian’s expression remained calm. Chris glared at him with a dumbfounded look.

“That’s his achievement, so why is it the family’s achievement? What has the family ever done for him?”

“As long as Nepas bears the name of Raspo, he is a member of my family. He has a duty to uphold the family’s honor!”

“That’s nonsense.”

“What, what did you say?”

“You’re the one who abandoned that honor the most. Who are you to hold him responsible now? And he’s Davian, okay? Nepas? He’s never been called or used that name even once. Don’t try to sneakily attach yourself to him.”

Marquis Raspo’s face turned red with anger. Then, his fiercely raised gaze suddenly landed on me.

“Who is that?”

Davian, who had been standing like a silent tree since facing the Marquis, showed his first sign of agitation. Chris’s face also hardened.

“Wearing a hood indoors, they’re a very suspicious person.”

“It’s none of your business what someone else does. Why are you suddenly picking on an innocent person? They’re my guest, so don’t interfere and leave if you’re done with your business.”

“Judging by your reaction, they must be quite important. There’s only one person among Lachein Chris’s acquaintances who would be hiding their appearance these days. Could that person be the Spirit Master El?”

Despite the urging to leave, Marquis Raspo remained steadfast. Moreover, he had figured out my identity, which was a headache. When silence fell, Marquis Raspo chuckled as if he knew it all along. He glared at Davian with accusing eyes.

“When I asked if you knew the Spirit Master El, didn’t you say you didn’t?”

“…….”

“When I asked you to introduce me to him, you clearly said you didn’t know him. But to have a private meeting here, you must be quite close.”

What, that happened? Davian didn’t say anything. Then, a sharp sound rang out. It was the sound of the Marquis slapping Davian’s face.

“You bastard! How dare you mock me!”

“Davian!”

Chris, horrified, quickly supported the staggering Davian.

“What do you think you’re doing!”

“I’m making him realize his place as a bastard!”

“You son of a bitch! Are you done talking?”

“How dare a mere Hunter use such vulgar language to a noble? I’ll take you away for insulting a noble!”

“Marquis!”

Davian, horrified, raised his head. It was the first strong reaction he had shown, having been obediently like a sinner all along, but Marquis Raspo didn’t care.

“What are you all doing outside! Come in here right now and drag this guy out!”

Hearing his command, the attendants who had been waiting outside moved. Chris shouted back, not backing down, as if he thought anyone would be scared. The situation was turning into a complete mess. I couldn’t just stand by and watch any longer, so I sighed and opened my mouth.

“It seems like you have business with me, so let’s talk.”

“El!”

“Chris, calm down for now. Marquis Raspo? Please have a seat, since I’ll listen to what you have to say. The reason you came all the way here isn’t to drag Chris away, is it?”

I offered him the seat in front of me and took off the hood I was wearing. Only then did the Marquis pause and stare at me, soon raising his hand to the attendants to step back. He sat down confidently in front of me, looking triumphant as if to say, ‘Why didn’t you do this from the start?’

“I’m sorry for showing such an embarrassing sight. The process of governing a family as its head is not easy, so sometimes rough words are exchanged. I hope you’ll understand.”

“…I see. What’s the reason you wanted to meet me?”

“I heard that your Spirit King healed His Highness the Crown Prince’s health.”

My face twisted at the way he spoke as if referring to a possession. Davian and Chris’s gazes also turned cold. The Marquis had a leisurely expression, not noticing anything (or perhaps he noticed but didn’t care).

“So?”

“As you know, many people were seriously injured when the Spirit King Minerva went berserk. My eldest son is among them.”

“Eldest son?”

My gaze unconsciously turned to Davian. Davian calmly accepted it, but the Marquis’s face twisted.

“I’m talking about the real eldest son born to my legal wife. The rightful heir to the family.”

“Ah, I see…”

I swallowed the chuckle that was about to escape. The fact that the Marquis had Davian take the curse instead to protect that rightful eldest son was also brought to mind. Chris cursed under his breath.

“My son is in very critical condition right now. He received treatment from a priest, but they said he will live as a cripple for the rest of his life. For the heir to the family to be a cripple, what a terrible thing that is! I want you to heal him.”

“Why would I?”

“Are you asking for a reason to heal someone?”

“It’s not like your son is the only one who got hurt, so there’s no reason to give him special treatment.”

I leaned back in my chair, answering with a smile. This kind of request wasn’t just a one-time thing. Quite some time had passed since the incident, but most of the seriously injured had not yet been discharged from the hospital. After the rumor spread that the Crown Prince had recovered, they all wanted Elquines to heal them as well. The more they had, the higher their status, the more people there were who couldn’t accept that only the Crown Prince had been healed. Even now, I was steadily receiving related letters every day. I didn’t expect that Marquis Raspo’s son would also be involved. In this case, should I say that I had proven to people that God was alive? The Marquis’s face turned red and purple, as if he hadn’t expected that I would calmly dismiss it.

“If healing only my son is special treatment, then you can just heal everyone.”

“You’re making unreasonable demands. What right do you have to demand such a thing?”

“Unreasonable? It’s only right that everyone who was hurt in this incident should be healed, isn’t it?”

“Why is that?”

“Isn’t it because of the Spirit King of Wind that things turned out this way in the first place! The same Spirit King should take responsibility!”

…Wow, I couldn’t help but laugh. Chris and Davian, who had been watching with dumbfounded faces, also gasped. Marquis Raspo was a truly unlucky person. If he really wanted to receive the help of a Spirit King, he should never have said those words right now, especially at this moment.

“That’s quite an interesting argument.”

Ellüen, who had been sitting next to me in his natural form, revealed himself. Marquis Raspo stopped breathing at the sudden appearance of the Spirit King. Chris and Davian were also stiff. Their faces, wide-eyed with surprise, were filled with shock. ‘When did you get here?’ Chris asked with his eyes, and I answered with my eyes, ‘From the beginning.’ Chris’s complexion turned even paler.

“You said that the same Spirit King should take responsibility?”

Ellüen smiled coldly and slowly stood up. The flinching Marquis Raspo tried to step back, but he couldn’t move because he was sitting on the sofa. He looked like a sewer rat in front of its natural enemy.

“Humans are the reason the wind became like that. Then you must be willing to take responsibility as a human.”

“Th, th, that’s!”

“That’s not a bad idea either. Take that responsibility now.”

The moment Ellüen’s gaze landed on him, Marquis Raspo trembled. His face turned white, and then he slumped down. A strange gurgling sound leaked from his panting mouth.

“When asking for help, start with a humble attitude. There won’t be a next time, though.”

The advice continued, but the corpse, already lifeless, couldn’t answer. The surroundings became abruptly silent. The Marquis’s attendants, who had been standing pale-faced at the door, scurried out. Soon, the rumor that the Spirit King had killed the Marquis would spread like wildfire. I could see the situation that would unfold in the future, and a sigh escaped my lips. I didn’t know anymore.

“Are you dissatisfied?”

“No, no. Honestly, I feel relieved.”

It ended too easily for the crime, though. While I was muttering in a daze, Ellüen turned his gaze. His eyes were fixed on Davian, who was frozen. He was staring down at the Marquis’s corpse with a stiff face.

“Are you saddened by the death of your family?”

“…No.”

Davian, exhaling a trembling breath, answered calmly. The light in his eyes, which had been full of agitation, had already calmly subsided.

“Excuse me, but the word ‘family’ is also not accurate. He was never my family.”

Ellüen, who had been quietly watching, reached out his hand towards him. The swollen cheek healed instantly with a light touch. Davian, who had been wearing a determined expression, raised his head with a blank face.

“If you’re a Water Spirit Master, don’t let yourself get hit so easily.”

“Ah, I’m, I’m sorry. I’ll never get hit again. Ah, no. I can’t say I won’t get hit, but I’ll try my best not to.”

The face that had been frozen white turned rapidly red. He seemed to be in such confusion that he didn’t even know what he was saying. Ellüen chuckled.

“El, where did you pick up someone like that?”

No, what did I do?

While I was grumbling with a sullen feeling, I raised my head at the sudden feeling of being watched. Lamias was standing at the door with a face as if she had lost the world. I didn’t know anything else, but I knew one thing. Davian’s life was going to be quite difficult from now on.