Elqueeness Chapter 31

The Cerberus went straight for Irial. It made a split second decision, and it decided to attack the weaker of the two people first. The distance between the monster was too short, and it was moving too fast. She didn’t even have the chance to swing the weapon grasped in her hand before she was hopelessly bowled over. Then the sharp monster’s teeth descended towards her. It was a rough situation where it didn’t seem like she would survive.

Puk- Crunch- Kwaaaaahk!

“Kyahhhhhhk!”

The sound of the skin tearing, and the sharp scream rang out…. However, it wasn’t Irial’s figure that was revealed. Harold’s figure came into view. His shoulder and stomach was a bloody mess as the monstrous teeth was embedded in him.

“ ……. ”

“ ……. ”

It was as if time had stopped for a moment. The only movement that could be felt was the blood falling slowly to the floor. Matthew and Hosane had just defeated their monster, and they turned around in a hurry. Sherry’s face had also stiffened. Irial, who was pinned beneath Harold, was frozen as his blood fell all over her body.

However, this only last for a moment. As if she couldn’t believe what had happened, she slowly raised her gaze, and she spoke in a trembling voice.

“H, Harold?”

At the same moment, the other party members finally woke up from their stupor, and ran in. They stabbed the Cerberus, which was still biting into his skin. Accompanying a dull sound, the monster fell lifeless to the floor, but they didn’t even look at it.
Everyone was staring wide-eyes at Harold, who was in a miserable state.

As soon as the embedded teeth dislodge itself, the amount of blood flowing out was increasing visibly. His shoulder was crushed, and the bone was sticking out. He also had a large hole near his stomach. His thigh was shredded by the claws, and his lacerated wounds was fountaining forth endless amount of blood. When the large weight disappeared from him back, Harold had fallen onto the floor. However, he was still conscious, and after a long while, he was able to mumble in a strained voice.

“C, cough. Are you…ok, witch?”

‘What, what are you saying! It isn’t time to worry about me, you idiot! Why, why did you…!!”

“How…how was I? Am I good enough for you now…cough. Didn’t I make sure to protect you? Are you still disappointed?”

“ !!! ”

How could he playfully smile in such a situation! In this situation, it wasn’t about how much his wounds hurt, but it was more about the sorrow he felt at his death. Harold already knew he was going to die. He didn’t erase the smile around his lips, and he arduously opened his mouth.

“Now…what are you going to do, witch? I bet you won’t have as much fun without me? It won’t be easy finding someone, who’ll willingly take your abuse…. Cough.”

“Stop speaking! Don’t you know the basics of first aid treatment? More blood will come out as you move more! Close your mouth, please!”

“Chet. During the Witch’s wedding ceremony, I wanted to grab the groom… I wanted to make fun of him….”

“Why are you spouting such nonsense! I told you not to talk?”

However, Harold couldn’t stop speaking even as she begged. He knew this was his last moments. His face indicated he wanted to say everything he had held inside.

“Once he get to know you, he’ll see your bad temper. I bet he would marry you after looking at your face? He’ll most definitely regret it. I really want to tell him on the day you guys have a lover’s quarrel, it will probably be his death sentence?… I also…”

“Stop speaking, please stop speaking! You idiot, do you want to die?”

” …I would beat him up for taking someone I had eyes on….”

“ !!! ”

Huk. My god. Perhaps, Harold liked Irial?? He couldn’t see Irial’s shocked expression. He couldn’t hang on any longer, and his body sagged like a sick chick. His closed eyes had no indication of opening again. Irial yelled as she swallowed back the tears that filled within her eyes.

“You stupid bastard! Don’t die! I won’t forgive you if you die! Wake up!!”

“Irial, calm down! What will yelling accomplish?”

“Priest-nim! Quickly look after him, quickly!”

It wasn’t apparent whether he had lost his consciousness or he was dead. Hosane grabbed onto Harold, who didn’t move an inch, and Sherry yelled at Mr Kai.
Mr. Kai hurriedly ran towards their side with a white complexion. I wanted to follow him, but strangely, I couldn’t put strength into my body. I couldn’t move from my current location. My hand started to shake, and it felt like all my energy in my body was being sapped.

My heart beat crazily, and there was a turmoil inside my head. I had no idea what I should think. I shook my head vigorously, and I walked toward Harold, while supporting myself with shaking legs. It felt like my legs weighed a ton.

Until now, I had seen a lot of monsters being killed, and I have also seen a lot of injured people. However, this was the first time I saw a person’s body be ruthlessly pierced. Moreover, the dying man had been one of my comrades, who had been laughing and talking not too long ago. I had a hard time believing what had happened. As I arrived, my breathing was rough as if I had climbed a cliff. Mr Kai had already poured all of his holy power into Harold’s wound, but the complexion of the party members became darker as they looked on.

“This doesn’t make any sense… Are you sure you are healing him? What is happening, priest-nim?”

“…I’m sorry. This is the limit of ability. I’m continuously using my healing spell, but I don’t….”

“That, that can’t be! It shouldn’t be impossible for a wound of this size to be healed! Don’t give up, please!!”

Irial hung onto him as if she had gone insane. However, his depleted holy power wouldn’t suddenly replenish itself. As Hosane looked at Harold’s face, which was becoming steadily paler, he bowed his head with a sad expression on his face.

“Please I beg of you, priest-nim. This guy- Even though he is causing trouble all the time, he is still my precious team-mate. Please save him.”

“Whew. I’m trying my best. I’ll see this through the end, but I would advise you to ready your hear in this situation.”

“Hoo-ook- Hoo-ook!(TLN: crying noise) This can’t be. This doesn’t make any sense! A stupid guy like that wouldn’t die like this! Harold! Wake up! I’m telling you to get up!!”

As they watched the crying Irial hang onto Harold, her previous image of being a stuck up was shattered into pieces. She was only filled with sadness and regret over this one man. From her side, Sherry tried to calm her, but she wasn’t easily calmed down. He had been hurt to this extent trying to save her. Even in such a state, he gave a ambiguous confession to her in the end. There probably wasn’t any way to calm her until she fell from exhaustion.

As I stood there absentmindedly watching Harold, I suddenly looked towards Tromwell, who stood by my side. The gaze didn’t hold any meaning. I didn’t looked at him expecting something from him. I looked at him without any thought, and our eyes coincidentally met. At that moment, I saw his head slightly nod , and I felt a cool sense of refreshment in the corner of my heart. Soon, I was able to understand his meaning without much difficulty. Ah ah, I understand. I… I wanted to heal Harold… I had unconsciously tried to receive permission from Tromwell.

I could do what I want, but in this situation, I was afraid of ignoring his warnings. I didn’t want to disappoint him. I was afraid he would say I was pathetic, and that I was only a bowl of certain quality.(TLN: it’s a saying that doesn’t translate well, basically he’ll think less of him) I was an idiot. He wouldn’t do that, but….

Anyways, his face was bright with approval, so I hurriedly sat next to Mr. Kai. He had already used his holy powers continuously in multiple attempts, and his face had turned pale. Despite this, he was starting to chant the healing spell again. I grabbed his arm, and I stopped him from using his healing spell.

“…El? What are…”

The party members stared at me in confusion as I should have been trying to encourage him, but instead, I stopped him. Even so, no one stepped forward to object, and say ‘What are you doing.’ They probably thought I was stopping Mr Kai, because I had decided that the probability of saving Harold was non-existent. However, the words I spoke made them have a confused expression on their faces, including Mr Kai, .

“I’m sorry, Mr. Kai. I know you did your best, but…”

“Ah ah. I understand. I don’t think Harold…”

“I’ll heal him from now on.”

“….what?”

I ignored their shocked gazes. First, I had to check if Harold was alive, so I put my hand over his heart. Fortunately, Mr Kai’s holy power hadn’t all been for naught. There was a faint beating tempo, and a faint breathing noise was being maintained. However, he was in a dangerous situation. Even though, a vast amount of holy power had been poured in, he wasn’t getting any better. I carefully closed my eyes as I looked over the shredded body.

“E, El? Wait, what are you…”

【 Recovery 】

-Pahhht!

“ !!! ”

I couldn’t see it directly, but I could guess that a blinding light had wrapped around my body, and Harold’s body. It wasn’t too hard to predict based on my previous experience. The energy that was flowing through my body started to concentrate on the body lying on the floor. I guess he had been severely injured. An enormous amount of power was consumed, which couldn’t be compare to healing a small wound.

The sudden power consumption made me bite my lips. However, I didn’t give up and I stood firm. Still, the energy consumption was less than pouring energy into Isana, so I tried to console myself with this fact.

How much time had passed? The energy that had been circulating around my body wasn’t being transferred to Harold. When I realized this, I opened my eyes to start checking on his status. Fortunately, the healing had taken hold. Except for the ripped cloths, there weren’t any wounds. He was whole, and his complexion was perfectly fine!-Harold had fallen asleep with a peaceful expression. The tempo of his heart, and his breathing had stabilized. It had returned to normal.

Instead of being relieved like me, the surrounding people had a pale faces as if they had seen a ghost. The most memorable sight was Mr Kai’s surprised face. He always seemed like he would be a person who would be unflappable, but he was staring at me with his mouth open. Even though, I knew it was rude, I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Kook kook. Everything is fine, Irial. Harold is safe.”

“He, he really looks fine! How could this be? El, are you also a priest?” (TLN: priestess? )

“Moreover, you used a more perfect healing spell than Mr Kai-! How?”

As if they had just woken up, they started to hurriedly check Harold’s status. After they confirmed, and realized he was completely fine, their eyes started to turn round. The reaction was within my expectation, but I didn’t have a suitable cover story. I made a hopeless expression, and I laughed lamely as my words trailed off.

“Mmm… This is only my special ability…”

“Special ability? Are you saying your special ability is healing? It really must mean you are a priest?”

They asked me with a flustered expression on their faces. I hesitated for a moment deciding on what to say. Even though, I had built a friendship with them, I couldn’t rashly reveal my identity. The situation I was in had a lot of complications. If I revealed myself as a Spirit King, then Isana will be revealed as the first human contractor of Elqueeness. He’ll be the focus of the collective gaze of the group. As he had worried before, the identity of ‘Matthew’ might be revealed. He could be associated with me as someone who knew me from the past.

Should I just insist that I was a priest? If they questioned me about the god’s crest, my lie would be revealed. Still, I decided to deal with the current danger first, so I was about to open my mouth. However, a voice from an unexpected source came to rescue me.

“So that’s how it is. I’m very sorry for only recognizing you now, El. You are also Elwien’s priest.”

“…eh?”

I turned my head with a surprised expression. Mr. Kai’s face had already returned to his composed face, and he looked at me with a warm smile. The other party members made expressions that said, ‘So that’s how it is!’, and their complexions started to brighten. It was said by none other than another priest, so they implicitly believed it. His tone, which was filled with conviction, made me so surprised that I spoke to refute it.

“What, what have you seen from me that makes you think so?”

“Ah ah, I’ve heard some manifest their god’s ability first, then they go to the temple to receive the Crest of the god. Moreover, you have already received the divine revelation from Elwien-nim, so there is nothing to misunderstand about you. You really have an amazing holy power. The high priest will be really surprised.”

This was an ideal and clean end to the conversation. It sounded like an answer prepared for a situation like this. It was so much so, that one might be suspicious of it. However, the party members didn’t realize cold sweat was running down inside me, and they accepted it as the truth. They were happy that Harold was all better, and the atmosphere brightened as if there would be a festival soon. Irial reeled me in for a hug, and she gave me a kiss on the cheek. Then she shouted in a voice filled with tear.

“Ah ah, you pretty thing! Thank you, El! Thanks to you, Harold is alive! I’m really thankful!”

“Ooh, ooh-aht! I, Irial~”

“Hoo-ook, hook hook…(TLN: crying sfx) If it wasn’t for you, that bastard would be dead. He would have left me like an idiot. I’m really thankful, El. Hoo-ook…”

It was only then Irial started to relax. Irial started to weep into my neck, while she was hugging me. No woman nor another person in my entire life had hugged me like this. I had never experienced it, so I had no idea what to do. For a moment, I made a helpless expression, but soon I started to smile. Then I patted her back. She must have been really surprised, so I didn’t want to leave her until she calmed down. The other party members could only look on, while laughing.

The defeat of the two Cerberus caused more of a fuss than I expected. Those who requested the subjugation and the population of the city came out to watch. They looked on with faces filled with admiration. Only a few hours ago, the hideous beasts had tried to threaten the lives of people multiple times. However, before one day could pass, a group of seven that could be considered mercenaries had brutally slain it. The rumor didn’t even have a chance to be stalled, and it had already spread across the entire city.

Moreover, the brave party members who returned didn’t have a single mark on their body! (Of course, they had no idea a priest had healed them.) This worked in their favor, and the fame of the Champagne mercenaries shot through the sky by lunchtime as they returned with the corpse of the monsters.

However, the actual people who became famous didn’t care too much about it. They were too tired, and they wanted to sleep all day inside the inn. At that moment, I was moving the fainted Isana to bed when I heard a knock.  I looked up with a quizzical expression.

-Knock knock.

“…Yes?”

“Excuse me, El. Could you give me a moment of your time?”

The one who came to see him was Mr. Kai. I had felt Kai had intentionally covered up my identity from the other party members, so I felt a bit guilty. I opened the door in surprise. His atmosphere was more serious than usual, and when he met my eyes, he spoke in a small voice. He seemed to mind the others hearing him.

“It’ll be difficult to talk here… Let’s go to a secluded place.”

*Nod nod*

This was why they moved to the small garden located behind the inn. There were a big mound of fire wood stacked up for winter in the corner, and the pieces of wood was in a neat pile. It was not a conspicuous location, so there weren’t any people walking by there. However, as if he didn’t want anyone to hear them, Mr. Kai started to look around the surrounding.

When he determine no one was there, his next action took me by surprise. Without saying anything, he got on his knee, and he started bowing towards me.

“Oh, I have met the noble Water Spirit King, Elqueeness. Please forgive me for not recognizing you until now.”

“ !! ”

In a flash, I felt a chill go through my head to the ends of my toes. How did he find out? My face became rigid, and I had a hard time keeping myself together. However, I had to assess the situation, so I was barely able to open my mouth. Was it because I was trying too hard to stay calm? Even to my ears, my voice had a wooden quality.

“Please get up. I had no reason to be treated like this by you.”

“It isn’t so. You rule over the water in nature, and healing. Of course, Elqueeness is fit to rule over every human. Moreover, Elwien-nim has decreed for us to treat you with respect. As his follower, it is my duty.”

“…how did you find out?”

He hesitated on how to say it, but soon, he replied in a clear voice.

“It was when you healed Harold. Truthfully, even if the high priest tried to heal the wound, he would have a hard time healing it in its entirety. Amongst the beings who could do such a feat, I thought of you, Elqueeness-nim. Excuse me, the lad that accompanied you, who is named Rai, might he be the emperor Isana of this empire?”

“ …! ”

When my eyes became slightly round, Mr. Kai realized he was right. Then he started to calmly explain the reasons why he came to such a conclusion.

“Previously, when the large downpour happened every 3 days, there was a rumor stating the Emperor Isana had made a vow to Elwien-nim. However, I was suspicious of the existence of the Spirit Kings. As a high ranking priest, it would be remiss of me to not recognize Elwien’s history. However, there was one possibility left. I had come to the conclusion that Elqueeness-nim, who rules over water, had assisted.”

“…so you kept an eye on those who fit the conditions?”

“To be accurate, it was from the time Elwien-nim gave out his divine message. He had told me guide the person, who he had hoped to meet. I had guessed the person he wanted to meet was someone high enough that humans didn’t dare to look up at him. Later, I followed the events, and I merely put the pieces together.”

“ ……. ”

So basically Elwien was the culprit! Of course, Mr Kai wasn’t the type of person to gossip around, but I kneaded my forehead as I felt a sense of dismay. I felt like ending everything, even the vacation. As if he sensed my darkening mood, he bowed his head and he spoke rapidly.

“I’ll never tell anyone about it. I do not dare do anything that will go against Elqueeness-nim’s intent. If you want, I’ll keep my mouth shut until my deathbed.”

“…ho-oh. Are you serious?”

“Yes. Please believe me.”

He didn’t have to say anything else. I felt my heavy heart lighten a little bit. Also, didn’t Tromwell say I could trust his words? He didn’t look like someone who would go back on his word, so I decided to trust him.

“Ok, Kaitein. I’ll trust you. This might be too shameless for me to ask, but please keep my identity a secret from the other party members.”

“You shouldn’t say such a thing. It isn’t shameless. I swear on Elwien-nim that I won’t utter a word about what we talked about today.”

When his calm voice ended, we looked at each other and smiled. It was the birth of my trustworthy accomplice.