Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 96

The next morning, we awoke to a world transformed, blanketed entirely in white. The sight of pristine snow covering the entire village was a spectacle to behold.

However, before I could truly admire it, a sense of dismay washed over me. I hadn’t paid close enough attention, assuming it would be a brief snowfall. In the meantime, the accumulated snow had risen past my knees, reaching my thighs. While Lapis and I could manage, I doubted Isana, being human, could safely navigate this snowy path up the mountain.

“Sorry, Isana. I think the Naiads [water nymphs] got a little too excited. I should have restrained them if I’d known it would turn out like this.”

I sighed and confessed preemptively. It was supposed to snow here anyway, but the excessive accumulation was entirely my fault. The Naiads, overjoyed by the king’s visit, had been more active than usual. It was a common occurrence wherever I went, so I hadn’t thought much of it and let them be, but that turned out to be a problem. I had overlooked the fact that snow, unlike rain, accumulates.

“I’m fine, El. I actually like it. The capital is warmer than here, so I don’t get many chances to see snow piling up like this,” Isana said, smiling to comfort me. Thanks to her, my briefly lightened mood sank again due to the disgruntled voice that followed.

“Like it? What’s so good about it? I’m already annoyed by the cold, and now I have to drag along those sticky snowballs? Why do you make things so difficult? And why are you only apologizing to that guy? Am I invisible?”

Unsurprisingly, the voice belonged to Lapis. I bristled, but feeling guilty, I couldn’t openly get angry and mumbled an excuse.

“Well, it’s because Isana, being human, will have the hardest time with this much snow. You’re a dragon, Lapis.”

“Hmph, do you think dragons are okay with everything? I hate snow too, you know?”

“You’re fine with water, but you hate snow?”

I asked, puzzled, and he replied with a matter-of-fact expression.

“Of course, I hate it. What’s good about being slippery, wet, and cold? The temperature drops drastically when it snows. Don’t you know that the Red Dragon clan and cold are incompatible?”

“Water is incompatible too, though.”

“…Well, to be honest, I’m not a big fan of water either.”

What? Then why did you make a contract with me?

I felt like I’d been struck over the head with his unexpected confession. He bothered me so much to make a contract, and now he’s saying he doesn’t like water? What kind of guy is this?

My feelings must have been written all over my face. Lapis frowned for a moment before reluctantly explaining.

“I’m talking about ordinary water. Not you.”

“But that ordinary water is me, isn’t it?”

“No, it’s completely different. You’re not just water, but the essence that constitutes it.”

“Essence?”

“Like how people who hate the heat can’t live without sunlight, you’re a source and indispensable existence that transcends everything. Among the creatures on Earth, there can be nothing incompatible with you. Except maybe Ifrit [a powerful fire spirit], who shares the same source.”

“Hee, is that so?”

It sounded plausible enough that I nodded without realizing it. Gaining confidence from that, Lapis’s face became arrogant again.

“I’ve been looking for it since I was a kid. The water that dominates even the blood flowing beneath this skin, the water that is close to the essence of my body. It wasn’t hard to realize that it was the Water Spirit King Elquines. It’s not like I just liked any water.”

“…So, you hate any water that isn’t me because it’s incompatible?”

“Yes, exactly.”

“Then why do you have a lake at home?”

If I hadn’t remembered the past at that moment, I might have been fooled by his words. But fortunately, the Spirit King’s memory was good. I still clearly remembered his previous request. In fact, I couldn’t forget it even if I tried. How could I forget his absurd wish to admire a beautiful lake while living in a lava zone?

If he didn’t like water, there would be no need to bring in a lake. It was an action that could only be seen as contradictory, so I expected him to be at least embarrassed. But Lapis answered without changing his expression.

“That’s just a hobby.”

“A hobby?”

I asked, dumbfounded, and he looked at me as if wondering what the problem was. I forced a smile, trying to hold back my rising blood pressure.

“Excuse me, you just said that you don’t like just any water.”

“That’s right, but it’s okay to look at it. The refreshing feeling is quite nice.”

“That’s exactly what it means to like any water!”

What was even more absurd was his next reaction. He nodded as if he was reluctantly agreeing!

“Alright, alright. I’ll just say I only like you from now on. You’re a Spirit King, yet you’re jealous.”

“What? Why is the conversation going that way! That’s not the point I’m trying to make…!”

“I get it. You don’t have to say it twice. I’m more perceptive than you are.”

How is that perceptive! Do you perhaps know the meaning of perception and dullness in reverse?

I was beyond dumbfounded, and my neck even stiffened, but I couldn’t argue any further. Lapis, having said what he wanted, opened the door and left.

“Hey! Where are you going! Stop! I’m not done talking yet!”

I shouted urgently, but my voice only returned as an empty echo. The firmly closed door showed no sign of reopening.

That jerk, is he doing this on purpose?

At that moment, I felt a hand patting my shoulder as I stood there bewildered. The person there was Isana. When our eyes met, he smiled awkwardly and said.

“Um… El, I don’t know what you think, but that conversation earlier felt a bit like that.”

“…It felt like I was jealous?”

Seeing my hardening face, Isana looked even more apologetic. That alone was enough of an answer.

“Hang in there, El.”

“…”

Is there no one on my side in this world?

I suddenly missed Trowel. Very, very much.

* * *

Mount Oren, where Eluien’s temple was said to be, was more famously known as the Perpetual Snow Mountain to the locals. As the boy who first gave us the information said, it was winter all year round.

What was unusual was that it was like that from the entrance of the mountain, not just the summit. A long, long time ago, it was said to be an ordinary mountain where flowers bloomed and trees flourished, but from some point on, it turned into an icy mountain where only white snow fluttered.

The problem was that the mountain was very high. I had somewhat anticipated it from the information the boy gave me, but as I got closer to the mountain, I couldn’t help but be daunted. The huge peaks soaring into the sky continued endlessly. Just looking at the towering mountain made me feel like my soul was leaving my body.

“…Eluien’s temple is supposed to be here?”

Isana also muttered with a dismal expression. It was hard enough just being high, but having to climb through rocks and snow that were no different from ice, it was natural to feel overwhelmed.

“What is this crude place? Does it want to be a suicide spot instead of a temple?”

And Lapis fueled the already uneasy feeling. But this time, I couldn’t bring myself to refute his words. The mountain seemed very deep and dangerous to that extent. Then Isana said with a face that seemed to recall something. White breath scattered like mist from between his parted lips.

“Come to think of it, I heard it once. Eluien’s temples are only built in harsh places.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, I think they said most of them are in dangerous cliff areas. I heard that’s the biggest reason why the sect doesn’t grow even though there are many priests with high divine power. Could this also have some meaning?”

‘It’s just that Eluien has a bad personality.’

I couldn’t bring myself to answer that and smiled awkwardly. In fact, he was a god who would have deliberately chosen such a place to avoid troublesome followers. If the number of followers increased, there would be more things to manage. From his point of view, he already had a mountain of work, so he wouldn’t want to add more work to it.

After that, we began to enter the mountain in earnest. As expected, the inside of the forest was completely covered with frost and ice. The sloping floor was uneven, and there was a narrow path that barely allowed one person to pass between the trees, which were painted white to the pillars. It seemed to be a path that was naturally created by people going to and from the temple.

With Lapis at the lead, we slowly walked along the path. I was at the very back so that Isana wouldn’t be left behind in the middle. How long had it been? Suddenly, I began to feel strange. It was as if I had entered a completely different space. I don’t know exactly from where, but from a certain point, the flow of air surrounding my body was subtly different. It felt like some indescribable, foreign energy was slowly taking over the surroundings.

‘What is it? Is it the influence of the temple? But it feels different from divine power…’

Nothing had changed even when I looked around. But the uneasy feeling was too strong to simply dismiss it as a mood.

“Um…”

I raised my head to ask for other people’s opinions. In my eyes, I saw Isana’s back, his shoulders hunched up. Was he wrapping himself up more than before? It was a natural phenomenon when you feel cold, but somehow he seemed to be shaking more and more.

“Are you okay, Isana?”

“Yeah, it seems too cold because it’s inside the mountain.”

“Really? I don’t think the temperature difference between the outside and the inside is that big.”

The moment I inadvertently grabbed Isana’s hand, my face stiffened. His tightly hardened hand was as cold as ice. It felt like I was touching ice, not a person.

“How long has it been like this?”

“Um, I don’t know. Suddenly it got cold from some point…”

Isana couldn’t stop trembling and breathed heavily. His parched lips were already blue.

It’s a problem if a person’s body temperature is too high, but it’s also dangerous if it’s too low. Isana’s body temperature was already much lower than normal. At that time, Lapis stopped walking and looked back, sensing that we were falling behind.

“What’s wrong?”

“Lapis, I don’t think it’s possible to climb the mountain with Isana. His body is like ice.”

“What? At this temperature?”

He made a blatantly dumbfounded expression. To be honest, I was a bit embarrassed too. It was a low temperature, but it wasn’t so severe that people couldn’t bear it. But it was clear that his body temperature had dropped, and above all, Isana wasn’t the type to exaggerate about such things. He must be affected by something I didn’t know.

“…Ah, could it be because of that?”

“Because of what?”

“I’ve been feeling a strange energy since a while ago. Should I say it feels like the space has changed? The air currents feel a little different from outside the mountain…”

“Air currents?”

Lapis tilted his head in doubt. And the next moment, his expression changed rapidly. He frowned deeply and clicked his tongue softly.

“Damn it, what kind of idle guy is doing this useless thing…”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“You said that only this place feels like the space has changed, right? That’s right. Someone cast a spell on the entire mountain.”

“Magic?”

“It’s a type of space domination magic. It makes the season of the space where the magic is cast all winter. Usually, only the Silver Dragons would do something like this. They like living in snow and ice. But judging from the fact that I don’t feel any dragon energy at all, they must have moved their lair a long time ago. They didn’t undo the magic when they left.”

“Gasp! That’s ecosystem destruction!”

I was amazed that such a thing was possible with magic, but I was more shocked by the fact that they deliberately made the mountain unusable. Lapis chuckled lightly at my appearance.

“What do you expect from a Spirit King? Are you taking care of the natural environment first?”

“Of course! That’s my duty too!”

“Well, don’t worry. This kind of magic doesn’t actually change the weather, it’s just a kind of illusion that makes you feel that way. It won’t particularly affect the ecosystem. No, in some ways, it will block human access, so it may be the best environment for plants.”

“Illusion?”

“Yeah, and the level isn’t very high either. The fact that you and I weren’t affected by the magic is proof of that. It’s winter now, but if you came in the summer, you wouldn’t even understand why this place is called the Perpetual Snow Mountain.”

“Hee, I see. Oh? But it seems like the temperature is lower than usual here, right?”

“That’s probably the same everywhere, not just here? Thanks to whose spirits poured snow all night yesterday.”

“…”

I closed my mouth for a moment, feeling like I had been stabbed in the back. It felt like I was digging my own grave. I quickly changed the subject to hide my embarrassment.

“Ahem, anyway, the reason why Isana is feeling excessively cold is because of magic, right?”

“Yeah, he’s been hypnotized by an illusion. Humans are greatly affected by mental strength. Maybe the reason is that he thought too much about being cold. Most of the guys who froze to death here are probably like that.”

“Ugh, what should I do then?”

“What do you mean what should you do? The phenomenon caused by hypnosis can be stopped by undoing the hypnosis. It’s a simple problem that can be solved once you realize that this is an illusion. But it’s not easy for humans to break out of hypnosis with their own willpower, so in this case, there’s only one solution.”

“What is it?”

“This time, give the suggestion that it’s getting warmer. By overlaying a stronger suggestion, you can eliminate the existing suggestion.”

“How do I do that?”

“…Really, you’re a troublesome companion. Wait.”

Lapis sighed slightly and lightly snapped his fingers. Then, a bright blue flame instantly blazed on his hand. Red Dragons are a race born with fire, so it seemed they could freely control fire. The next moment, he suddenly thrust it in front of Isana’s eyes.