Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 591

591. Summoning (1)

I remembered his ever-smiling, kind face. For an Asian, he had light pigmentation, making his hair and eye color particularly bright. I couldn’t even recall how we became friends; at some point, it felt natural for us to be together. He was popular and good at everything, making me wonder why he was friends with someone like me, but that also made me proud. He was a friend with whom I shared countless memories, laughing and crying together. He was a close friend I had deliberately buried in my memories, fearing it would be too painful to miss him. That Taejin was Ifrit.

My head spun with the flood of memories rushing in at once. So that was it. That’s how it was. Why hadn’t I realized it until now? Ifrit was the same. He was just as kind.

“I will be your best friend.”

“I won’t let you go through hard times alone. Rely on me whenever you want.”

I remembered the words he had given me with his blessing. All the memories of that day must have been erased. He must have forgotten everything about me. Yet, Ifrit had kept his promise. Just as he said, he was a reliable friend who didn’t leave me alone during the most difficult times.

“Now that I see it, you would be a more appropriate example. What was he like when he was reincarnated? Wasn’t he someone you knew, even with all his memories lost and his appearance changed?”

I shook my head quickly. I hadn’t thought about it when I didn’t know, but now that I knew, it was clear. He was the same person. He was the person I knew.

“The things that happen in life may seem like coincidences, but in reality, they are often inevitable. You have formed a deep bond with him, so you will meet again.”

“Really?”

“The threads of fate are complex and intricate, and once they are strongly intertwined, they cannot be easily severed. They say you will encounter each other several times. Maybe if you look, there might be other overlapping connections.”

Ah, I hope that’s true. I felt choked up with overwhelming emotion. Ellyuen, as if reading my mind, said as I barely managed to hold back my tears.

“Isana, and the others you cherished. You will meet them again someday.”

If the connection is meant to be, they will surely return, I had heard that before. But the comfort that I hadn’t felt then touched me differently this time. Hope bloomed like a flower in the empty space that was close to resignation, a resignation which I thought would forever occupy a corner of my heart.

It wasn’t the end. I could meet them again. Everyone had been waiting for me all along, so this time it was just my turn to wait. No, they must still be waiting for me. Thinking that way, the world ahead looked different. With a fluttering heart, I looked up and met the gazes that were watching me. Seeing their smiling faces as if cheering me on, I smiled back.

I should start a new journey.

It was a journey to meet everyone again.

* * *

“I have something to tell you.”

I started the conversation when Sibelius and I were walking in the park. In the national park, which Chancellor Asel had created during his lifetime, stood a white unicorn statue with its wings spread wide. Sibelius, who pretended to complain that it was modeled after him while secretly being proud, blinked slowly.

“What is it, El? Why do you look so serious?”

“It’s a serious matter. Maybe after hearing this, you might resent me.”

“That’s impossible. Why would I resent you, El?”

“You’ll think differently when you hear it.”

Sibelius’s face hardened at my calm reply, as if he was also nervous. Seeing his innocent face, I couldn’t bring myself to speak, but I took a deep breath. It was better to get it over with sooner rather than later; if I had to tell him anyway, the sooner the better.

“Do you remember the restaurant we went to together before? The one where you asked how to make apple pie.”

“Apple pie? Ah, I remember. You mean the restaurant where we ran into Arrell? The apple pie tasted exactly like the one I had when I was young, so I asked for the recipe.”

Sibelius nodded and smiled, looking happy. He seemed pleased to be sharing a memory, but I couldn’t smile back, thinking about the story that would follow. Instead, I took another deep breath.

“Do you know why that apple pie tasted the same as the one you had when you were young?”

“Huh? Why?”

“Actually, Arrell wasn’t the only unicorn we met then. The owner of that restaurant was also a unicorn.”

“What?”

Only then did the smile disappear from Sibelius’s face. He looked at me with a bewildered expression.

“That can’t be. He was a stranger to me. Even if he had hidden his identity, I would have recognized him if he was a unicorn.”

“Maybe it was because he wasn’t an ordinary unicorn. That person, he gave up his power himself.”

“What does that…”

The expression slowly disappeared from his bewildered face. It seemed like there was someone he thought of from the words ‘gave up his power himself’.

“No way.”

I slowly nodded at his muttered groan. Sibelius, who took another breath, covered his mouth with one hand. Watching his face full of confusion, I continued my confession.

“That person recognized you.”

“…….”

“I was wondering whether to tell you at the time, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. He didn’t want me to, but I thought I shouldn’t tell him for his sake. Of course, I also didn’t want to change the future. I’m sorry.”

Sibelius didn’t say anything for a while. He couldn’t figure out what to say. He kept touching his mouth, and after a long time, he barely opened his mouth.

“I see. That person…”

“You can curse at me.”

“No, El. It’s not like that.”

Sibelius gave a bitter smile and shook his head.

“You did well. Your judgment was right. If you had told me the truth there, we don’t know how the future would have turned out. And I had been resenting my brother who abandoned me and left me my whole life. If I had known then, I wouldn’t have been able to accept it as calmly as I do now. I would have poured out all sorts of harsh words to him. I’m glad I didn’t know, thanks to you.”

He said in a low voice that it would have been more painful if that had happened, and his face was genuinely relieved.

“I don’t remember anything about my brother. Now I have a memory to cherish. Thank you, El. For protecting that day so that it could remain a good day.”

The image of the brothers sitting face to face at the table and talking came to mind. Rigleo seemed happy every time Sibelius took notes of the recipe and asked questions. He couldn’t take his eyes off his brother’s face as he spoke. It was as if he was engraving this moment in his eyes so as not to forget it. Sibelius didn’t seem to know that gaze.

“That person left a message for you.”

Sibelius, who paused, stared at me with curious eyes. Watching his expression, which was a mixture of anticipation and fear, I carefully opened my mouth.

“He said he loves you very much. He asked me to tell you that.”

A deep breath was heard. His eyes widened slightly, and soon tears welled up. In that state, Sibelius laughed as if in vain.

“He’s really too much to the end. I really can’t resent him if he does this.”

He grumbled complainingly, but his face wasn’t blaming. Longing, regret, and remorse filled his expression. He swallowed the many emotions that came up at once, and then took another deep breath. Still, he seemed to have sorted out his thoughts to some extent, and when he raised his head next time, he looked much more relieved.

“El, actually, I have something to show you too.”

“Show me?”

The next moment, his appearance changed before my eyes. His skin became whiter, and the shape of his ears became rounder. Conversely, his silver hair began to be dyed in a darker color – a clean brown color with a strong autumn feel. His blue eyes also turned green. It was the same color that reminded me of Asel from some time ago, and the same color that Rigleo had.

His silver hair and blue eyes were the symbol of Rune. So even when he became a human, the color did not change. Sibelius laughed, saying that he knew I would recognize him, as I was embarrassed.

“It’s been like this for a while.”

“…What’s going on?”

The explanation that followed was surprising. It seemed that Lusef had given him the authority to decide on the issue of continuing the Rune bloodline in the future. In response, Sibelius chose to eliminate Rune itself. “So now I’m not Rune anymore,” he smiled awkwardly, his face relieved as if he had put down a long yoke.

“You made a big decision. It must have been a more difficult decision since you awakened the power of Rune.”

“I can’t say I didn’t have any desire for revenge. Everyone was so obsessed with Rune, so I thought it would be a relief if it disappeared altogether. A little childish, right?”

“No, not at all.”

Sibelius was qualified enough to make such a decision. No one else could dare to say anything about it. Sibelius’s expression brightened even more at my firm reply.

“That hair color suits you well too.”

“Really? I’m glad. Actually, I’m still awkward, so I’ve been keeping a spell on it.”

“No, it really suits you.”

Sibelius was pleased, saying that he should go like this from now on, as I repeatedly said he was cool. I agreed that it was a good idea.

“You’ve had a hard time, so I hope only good things happen now.”

“That’s right, El. Let’s make a lot of fun memories together, so that there’s nothing to regret even if we look back on it later. So that we can only think that it was really fun back then.”

“Yeah, please take care of me again, Sib.”

“Me too. Take care of me, El.”

We shook hands and smiled at each other. The time that had been going astray, when we didn’t even know what was the beginning and what was the end, had finally come together in one place. Now was the real beginning.

So what happened after that—.

“I thought you would be traveling together for several decades when El said that.”

Mine said to me, who was floating upside down in the water. At first, I thought it was okay, but after doing this for two days, he looked at me with pity.

“Isn’t it too short to quit after only two years?”

That was true. I started traveling around the world with Sibelius, but I came back without seeing everything. I sighed deeply at the look that asked why I quit if I was so bored.

“I wanted to play with you more.”

“Then?”

“Asga was too upset. He’s a demon king, but he’s staying in Arkadon with us and doesn’t think about going back to the demon world. The demon world is the busiest time right now.”

“Ah, that was the problem.”

“If that wasn’t enough, Deron even sent a bloody letter? The demon who brought it was trembling so much. I couldn’t bear to see him. So I just sent him back with Sib, what.”

He insisted that he would never go back alone, so I couldn’t help it. He was a precious and cute godson, but this time I really hated him. Sibelius, who was grinding his teeth with a face that wanted to punch him, had no choice but to give up. We promised to play together again once things got busy to some extent, but it was unknown how many years that would be.

In the meantime, Ifrit and Trowell started playing. Ifrit was living as an aristocrat, and Trowell was running an information agency. They both looked busy, so I couldn’t ask them to play with me. Thanks to that, I was clinging to Mine, so his sighs were getting louder day by day.

“Mine, I’m bored.”

“Why don’t you go to your contractor?”

“I don’t want to. Lamias keeps making strange breathing sounds when he sees me.”

“That would be definitely unpleasant. Then, why don’t you go play with another dragon? You’re also acquainted with Diagon, right?”

“That’s true, but it’s a bit awkward because we’ve only seen each other once here. And Diagon won’t be in the mood to play right now.”

“Ah, that’s right. Is it still the same after that?”

I nodded at Mine’s words. A small earthquake occurred in Lantasha’s lair a while ago. It wasn’t a natural phenomenon, but a change in Lantasha’s sleeping body. It was said that Diagon was very worried because he didn’t know whether it was a sign that he was about to wake up or whether he was entering eternal sleep.

“Anyway, stop calling me and go out and play with anyone. It’s getting annoying.”

“That’s too much.”

I drooped at his harsh words, but Mine didn’t care. Still, if he was really annoyed, he would have already gone back, but seeing him stay by my side, he didn’t mean it. I chuckled to myself for no reason and looked back at Mine, who was sitting quietly.

“But Mine, aren’t you playing?”

“Well, I’m waiting.”

“For what?”

“For a human to summon me.”

This was another unexpected answer. I straightened up and sat up straight, raising my body that had been stretched out in the waves.

“Do you want to make a contract with a human?”

“Yes, I was actually jealous of El.”

“Huh? Me?”

“Playing is just playing, so it’s closer to feeling like I’m acting. Everything I see in it isn’t the real me. On the other hand, even if it’s the same play, making a contract with a human and mixing into their life feels a little different.”

The moon-like silver-white eyes contained a calm light and stared at me.

“Being involved in one person’s life, crying, laughing, grieving, frustrated, and longing with them, and finding hope again. All of those things looked beautiful. I thought that you could have genuine communication even with beings from different worlds. Of course, it was also thanks to El being in a special situation, but I also want to experience those emotions.”

“Hmm, it sounds grand when you say that.”

“It is grand. It’s not an experience you can easily have.”

I laughed awkwardly because I couldn’t deny it. I realized it more during my travels in recent years. I didn’t know at all when I was with Isana or when I became a human, but it felt completely different when the three of us traveled together. First of all, everyone didn’t have a base in this world, so I felt more like I was watching from a step away. Surprisingly, no one approached us. It was in stark contrast to when I was human, when I was often caught up here and there.

I didn’t know that such a difference would occur even if we were traveling in the same way. I don’t think I’ll be able to get out of this state much even if I play. It’s probably because the worlds we actually belong to are different. I thought that if I made a contract with a human, I would be mixed into their fate and be affected together. It’s like when you get along with locals when you travel, you get to know more diverse and deeper aspects of that country.

“Ah, now that you say that, I want to make a contract with a human too. I wonder if anyone will summon me again.”

Mine sent me a look of sympathy as I muttered while lying down. Yes, I know. That this is an absurd idea. Isana alone had a lot of luck, but there was no way such a miracle would happen again.

“I wish even a dragon would summon me, let alone a human. Isn’t it a bit much to have only one contractor?”

“Are they still looking at the elder’s face?”

“That’s what I’m saying. Lamias insists that he’s not, but I’m sure he threatened me. Why does this only happen to me?”

“Cheer up. Someday, someone brave will summon you.”

“So when is that?”

Dragons get stronger as they get older, and Lamias is the oldest. He even takes very good care of his health, so he said he would live for thousands of years to come. How can I be so unlucky with contractors? I was grumbling, staring at the empty air, when Mine, who had been silent for a while, poked me.

“El, excuse me, but I think you should check.”

“What?”

“Isn’t that a summoning magic circle floating in front of you?”

“Huh? What did you say?”

I was flustered and jumped up. There was no need to ask what he was talking about because I could see it right in front of me: gorgeous golden patterns appearing from the water with white bubbles, drawing ripples.

And even the voice calling me.

I couldn’t believe it, so I swallowed hard. There was no doubt about it. It was a summoning circle.