Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 74

Chapter 74

I put a few sets of clothes into the bag as a test and had Isana lift it. As soon as he picked it up, he looked at me with a surprised expression.

“How is it?”

“Wow—it’s really light, El. It feels like there’s nothing inside.”

The merchant chuckled at Isana’s exclamation.

“Didn’t I tell you? It’s quite useful, isn’t it? Since you seem like young customers, I’ll give you a reasonable price.”

“Really?”

“Of course. Actually, it wasn’t selling well, so I was wondering how to get rid of it. I don’t know what’s wrong with the people in this country; they don’t seem to be interested in magical items at all. If they just used them once, they’d realize how convenient they are. Well, I didn’t know these things existed until I went to the Carters Empire.”

“Carters Empire? Are there many of these there?”

“Of course. It’s the land of sages and wizards. Magical items are everywhere. They even carry communication devices as portable items. Can you believe it? They communicate with people far away on the streets without a second thought!”

I nodded without much excitement at the merchant’s words. Having lived in the 21st century, in a world where you could use your phone to access the internet, there wasn’t anything particularly amazing about that. However, Isana couldn’t take his eyes off the backpack, seemingly greatly shocked.

“If that’s true, it’s amazing. The civilization of the Carters Empire is that advanced…”

“That’s right. I heard that the Carters Empire spares no expense in fully supporting magic at the imperial level. Compared to that, our empire is far behind. Well, there’s been a civil war raging for years, so who would have time to properly look after the country? People are too busy trying to make a living, so magical items are just treated as luxury goods…”

“……”

While the merchant clicked his tongue as if he felt sorry, Isana didn’t say anything. He was probably blaming himself again. I looked around the stall to change the subject.

“Are all the things here magical items?”

“Yes, that’s right. Come to think of it, are you guys traveling? I have a magical item that’s perfect for adventurers. Would you like to see it?”

I nodded, and the merchant immediately picked up an item from the stall. It was a golden bracelet with a transparent bead in the center. Judging by the mana imbued in it, it was definitely a magical item, but it was hard to guess its purpose.

“It’s a protective bracelet.”

“Protective?”

What kind of function could such an ordinary bracelet have?

Puzzled, I asked again, and the merchant proudly turned the bead on the bracelet. Then, with a click, the shape of the bracelet instantly changed into a dagger! Surprised, I stared at it, and the merchant wore a proud expression.

“If you turn the bead to the right, it becomes a dagger, and if you turn it to the left, a small needle comes out from the inside. If you stab someone with it, it temporarily paralyzes their whole body. How about it? It’s quite a useful item, isn’t it?”

“Wow, that’s really good. I’ll buy that along with the backpack.”

“Will you? You have a good eye, young customer. You’ve made a really good choice.”

Even though it was said to be cheap, the backpack and bracelet were quite expensive because they were magical items. The merchant looked a little surprised when I paid without saying anything. He seemed intrigued that ordinary (even gloomy) looking boys were carrying a large sum of money.

Come to think of it, I heard that this village wasn’t very safe. Hyusen’s advice, which I had belatedly remembered, made me feel alert. Isana’s wanted posters, which were plastered everywhere we went, were undoubtedly spread throughout this village as well. It didn’t matter if we got into a fight, but we had to avoid Isana’s identity from being revealed in the process.

“Then, please sell a lot. Lai, let’s go.”

“Ah, okay.”

I quickly pulled Isana away from the stall, worried that it might cause unnecessary problems. I kept looking around as we walked, but fortunately, there didn’t seem to be anyone following us.

As we left the downtown area, the number of people walking along the streets began to decrease rapidly. We stopped walking quickly only after we reached a somewhat secluded place. The stall was already far away and out of sight.

“Isana, hold out your hand.”

At my words, Isana looked puzzled but obediently held out his hand. I grabbed his arm and fastened the bracelet I had just bought on his exposed wrist. He looked flustered, as if the action was unexpected.

“Huh? You’re giving this to me?”

“I bought it for you from the start. You heard how to use it, right? Don’t forget and never take it off your body.”

“T-Thank you, El. I’m sorry. I feel like I keep receiving things from you.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m doing it because I want to.”

He didn’t know what to do again at my smiling reply. He was born into a noble status and must be used to being taken care of, but he was still awkward about being treated like this. Perhaps this was his nature. Unlike someone else, he was truly kind and had a good heart.

‘……Yes, completely different from that red lizard.’

When I think about it, I’m really lucky. If it weren’t for Isana, my first contractor might have been Lapis. And I would probably be stuck in the lair, filling the lake with water. Just imagining it gave me goosebumps all over.

Isana kept fiddling with the bracelet. He looked complicated, as if he was lost in other thoughts while being curious. Perhaps it was because we had spent quite some time together, but I could roughly tell what he was thinking just by looking at his expression. I casually asked.

“What kind of place is the Carters Empire, Isana?”

“Huh? Ah… It’s just like the merchant said earlier. It’s a mecca of intelligence and learning that has prospered based on magical culture.”

“A mecca of intelligence and learning?”

“Its history is shorter than our Swalt Empire, but it has achieved cultural development in a short period of time. Especially in the field of magic, it’s the most famous on the entire continent, unrivaled by others. It’s said that most of the well-known sages and wizards are from the Carters Empire.”

“Hee, is that so?”

“The first emperor who founded the Carters Empire was a wizard, so he was very interested in academics and magical culture. The academy founded in his name is so famous that even the nobles of our empire go there to study. I knew that Carters was a powerful empire, but I didn’t honestly know that there would be such a difference. Magical items are used as everyday items among the people. Compared to that, our Swalt Empire is…”

Was it a counter effect? Isana lowered his head with a gloomy face, as if he had lost his energy while explaining. I quickly patted his shoulder and said.

“Don’t worry about that. You’re just getting started. When you go back, you can develop this place as much as that empire.”

“……Can I really do it?”

“You can do it. If you want to. What can’t you achieve if the emperor wants it? Besides, you’re younger than the emperor of that empire.”

Isana smiled faintly at my words and nodded. He seemed a little better, but his face was still filled with anguish.

“Ah, come to think of it, I heard that the crown prince of that empire is the same age as me.”

“Crown prince?”

“Yes. So I’ve often been compared to him since I was young. The crown prince of the Carters Empire is said to be very intelligent and has outstanding talent in magic. He’s a publicly recognized genius who completed all basic magic at the age of five and became an intermediate expert at the age of ten.”

“Hey, don’t envy that. Rumors are bound to be exaggerated than reality, and how can you confirm if he really has such talent? Rather, it’s more of a shoulder-raising thing for you. You’re doing better at the same age.”

“I-Is that so?”

“Of course. No matter how outstanding he is, the crown prince is ultimately subordinate to the emperor. Besides, you’re no match for him in terms of talent. You seem to have forgotten, but you’re the first human to summon the Water Spirit King, right?”

“Huh? The first?”

“Oh, don’t you remember? Trovelle told you before. You’re my first contractor.”

Isana tilted his head with a dazed expression. He always mentioned it briefly, so it seemed like he had forgotten everything. I scratched my cheek, feeling awkward.

“You were too nervous to hear properly. You’re the first contractor. Have you ever seen a record of anyone summoning Elquines before?”

“Ah, no.”

“That’s right. What’s a magical prodigy? You’re more special in terms of rarity.”

“Hee, is that so? ……I see.”

Now Isana seemed to be completely in a good mood. Even though he was wearing a hood, I could clearly feel his excited mood. Such a simple guy. I coughed unnecessarily to suppress my laughter. I wondered if it was okay for the emperor of a country to be like this, but what did it matter? Rather, I felt good that he seemed to be showing his true self more and more compared to his overly rigid past.

“Amazing, El. Your words seem to have a magic that gives me courage. I was really anxious until a little while ago, but now I’m fine.”

“Really? It’ll get better and better in the future. So don’t ever be pessimistic about anything easily. Bad thoughts always lead to worse thoughts. Hope starts with believing in yourself.”

“Yes, I will! I’ll try!”

Isana replied more vigorously than ever. It was as if light powder was sparkling on his brightly lit face. We looked at each other and smiled brightly. Then Isana raised his head as if he had found something.

“Oh? Look over there, El. It’s a cat with a unique color.”

“Cat?”

The place Isana pointed to was a small wall behind me. I could see a cat with sharp golden eyes sitting on it. It was a shorthair, and its fur color was a bit unique, as Isana said. The other parts were plain silver-gray, but only its face had a dark red stain. Moreover, the stain was so flashy that it looked like a pattern someone had deliberately drawn. It didn’t look like a stray cat that could be commonly found on the street.

“Meow.”

When our eyes met, the cat nimbly came down from the wall and approached us. Judging by the fact that it wasn’t wary of people, it must have been raised in a house.

“Where did it come from? It looks like a cat with an owner.”

Isana bent down in front of the cat with a delighted expression. I said to him as he tried to stroke its head.

“Wait! Don’t touch it, Isana.”

“Huh? Why?”

“It feels a little strange.”

I usually like animals. If it were normal, I would have been more interested because of its unique fur color. But for some reason, I wasn’t so happy about the appearance of the cat this time. Rather, I felt uneasy as it got closer.

Isana looked puzzled but withdrew his outstretched hand. At that moment, the cat, which had been quietly, suddenly opened its mouth and rushed at him.

“Ugh!”

“Isana!”

Surprised, I shouted, and the cat quickly ran away, climbing over the wall. I quickly checked Isana’s condition. There were deep fang marks on his hand, as if he had been bitten.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, it just bit me a little.”

“Ugh, you’re bleeding. Let’s treat it first.”

“There’s no need. It’s just a little scratch.”

“Don’t say that. You have to be careful when you’re bitten by an animal, no matter how small the wound is. You might get infected with bad germs.”

“Ah, I see.”

I carefully treated Isana’s wound. As his skin became clean, he looked at the wall over which the cat had run away with a dazed expression.

“I guess the cat wasn’t in a good mood. I didn’t know it would suddenly attack like that.”

“Is it really a cat?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“It looked a bit strange for a cat. It felt like it appeared to attack on purpose, didn’t it?”

“Hey, there’s no way. That’s too much of a thought, El.”

“Hmm, I guess so?”

Well, even I thought it was a ridiculous idea. Even though we were being chased, I was even wary of passing cats. It was clear that I had become too sensitive because I had been hiding all this time.

“Let’s go back, Isana. It’s almost the end of our free time.”

“Yeah, let’s go.”

Before turning around, I looked at the wall where the cat had disappeared once again. As expected, there was nothing there.