EP.30 Old Relationship (2)
“What are you trying to become?”
To that question, I looked at the man in front of me.
An elf with silver hair and yellow-gold eyes.
Cardi.
There were only a few facts I knew about this silver-haired elf. From the first time I met him, he was special. He never gave away anything about himself.
-Please call me Cardi in moderation.
-I gave up things like baptismal names a long time ago.
He introduced himself like that.
-There are some conditions.
-One thing, it would be nice if you didn’t use honorifics. I’m thinking about old times, and I don’t feel very good.
-Two, don’t ask about me. Even if you ask, I can’t answer.
That’s what I asked for.
I kept the request, and Kyle did not. Then Kyle was no longer able to meet Cardi.
‘Kyle didn’t even remember about Cardi.’
The day Kyle asked Cardi about her identity.
From that day on, Kyle could no longer meet Cardi. She stopped remembering.
I don’t know the principle.
It just started like that at some point.
So, I erased my doubts about this elf. Just a unique elf. I decided to think so.
‘All I know about Cardi…’
An elf who has lived for a very long time.
He is a person related to the old kingdom that was reduced to ashes.
And, being an alchemist.
There were only these three.
And now, one was about to be added.
‘curse.’
Cardi clearly said so.
I haven’t explained anything yet. However, Cardi brought out the word curse, referring to my heart.
‘You must be saying you know something.’
I narrowed my eyes.
“You seem to know something.”
“You can’t not know. “It is something that must not be forgotten.”
Cardi’s gaze is still sharp.
“Answer me, Raniel. “My attitude toward you will change depending on your answer.”
I gave a short answer to that question.
There was nothing to explain at length.
“I met the devil and was cursed.”
“···what?”
Cardi tilted her head.
“It’s not a contract or a deal, but it’s caught?”
“Why are you talking as if I made a deal with the devil?”
“···is not it?”
When I asked that question calmly, my eyebrows furrowed.
‘What on earth are you talking about?’
Were you someone you could communicate with in the first place?
At least it wasn’t the demon lord I saw.
‘How can I talk to that monster, damn it.’
Whether it’s a contract or a transaction, doesn’t it have to be communicated through words?
“No, how do you do business with that nonsense lump of trash? “Even if I could, I wouldn’t have done it.”
“…You said you couldn’t communicate?”
“What are you really talking about?”
It feels like the conversation from earlier has gone out the window.
I sighed and slowly opened my mouth.
“Hey, Cardi.”
“···What.”
“I’m only going to say it once, so listen carefully.”
I opened my mouth and spoke.
That I met the devil and was cursed.
He used the scales in front of the Demon King to escape.
The curse was stimulated by the Succubus Queen.
‘At the end, it ended up looking like this.’
I told it all without leaving out a single word. At the end of the story, I turned to face Cardi.
Those eyes were trembling slightly.
It looked unfamiliar.
‘This is my first time seeing you.’
This snarky elf looks embarrassed.
“···that is.”
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Cardi opened her mouth. Like her eyes, her voice also seemed to tremble.
“That’s possible?”
“what.”
“You suppressed the curse by turning the mana into a curse? By drawing a circuit? No, that fog in the first place… “You hit back?”
“Because you did it, wouldn’t I be here?”
“Say something that makes sense, Raniel. “How is that…”
I guess it would be quicker to show it.
I took off my robe and showed Cardi the circuit engraved on my chest.
“·····.”
Cardi looked at the circuit as if fascinated by something. For a long time. He slowly raised his hand. It covered his own eyes.
“under.”
And then, he burst out laughing.
“Ha, aha.”
He let out a helpless laugh and wiped the corners of his eyes.
“···Nonsense, that doesn’t make sense.”
A weak voice.
Cardi muttered helplessly.
“Yes, I really, really think so.”
“···I don’t understand what you’re talking about earlier, so can you please explain?”
That’s what I asked.
“I’m sorry. “I can’t say that.”
The response is the same as always.
It was a tone that seemed to draw a line.
“I came here for no reason.”
“···I didn’t come here for no reason. “I could probably give you some medicine.”
Cardi shook off her laughter and stood up.
“I don’t know how to change that body. However, there is a solution to the curse.”
Eventually, he returned with several potion bottles.
“You just need to take it once a month. “If you run out, you can come visit me any time.”
“···What does this potion do?”
“It is a potion that prevents the erosion of the curse. “If it works with the circuit you carved, the curse won’t eat away at your body any longer.”
Of course, he added.
“It is not a fundamental solution.”
“I guess so.”
In the first place, I didn’t even expect that much.
‘There’s no way it will be resolved that easily.’
Because it was a curse placed by the devil himself.
“Hmm…”
I touched the potion bottle and was deeply impressed.
Honestly, I didn’t think it would work.
I thought that no matter how good an alchemist he was, he would not be able to make a medicine that would work against the Demon King’s curse.
‘So, I was caught as if I was being deceived.’
This was an unexpected harvest. If Cardi can say this, the effect must be clear.
“hmm.”
I took my eyes off the potion.
I raised my head and looked at Cardi.
“So, what should we pay for?”
“…I don’t really need a price.”
“Just by looking at it, it looks like a lot of effort was put into it. “Why don’t you at least run errands like in the old days?”
“Hmm…”
Cardi, who was smoothing her chin, soon opened her mouth.
“The past few days, I’ve felt like something is crawling in the underground waterway.”
“Underground water?”
“It’s a waterway located underground in a slum. “It doesn’t seem to have been used properly since it was reduced to a slum.”
He pointed to the floor.
“Lately, I keep feeling like something is crawling on me.”
“So, do you want me to clean it for you?”
“Yes, thank you. “I’ve already sent one of my students, but it looks like it will be difficult to finish it within today.”
···student?
I tilted my head at that word.
“Did you take on any disciples?”
“To be exact, I am closer to a nanny than a teacher… but it is true that I taught him magic.”
“It’s no big deal.”
I don’t think you taught me anything.
As I was looking at him like that, Cardi shrugged his shoulders.
“Because you were already finished. Moreover, I had gained a greater teacher than myself.”
“···That’s right.”
When I met Cardi, I had already come under Master’s control.
“If you’re interested, I guess you’re pretty talented.”
“Well, he may not be able to compare to you, Raniel, but he has quite a unique talent. “If you meet me in the waterway, I hope you take good care of it.”
I nodded.
“What’s your name?”
Cardi responded.
“Belnoir.”
2.
Kwasik.
The undead that was writhing beneath my feet soon became limp. Belle Noah rubbed the soles of his shoes on the floor a few times.
Squeak, squeak.
Green blood came out.
‘There’s no end to it.’
It seems like two or three hours have passed since I came down to the underground waterway. Just accumulating the undead that we have caught so far is enough to fill one side of the waterway.
Even though I caught it that much.
There is no end in sight.
“······.”
Belnoa looked at the waterway in silence.
A dark underground waterway. I can’t even guess where it started and how far it continued.
‘It’s not a good idea to finish it today.’
I keep sighing.
I can’t believe I have to spend my long-awaited holiday in an underground waterway like this. If all goes according to the original plan, Belnoir would be touring the city center with Chloe by now.
‘That old man is real.’
When I went to see Chloe, she immediately asked me to clean the underground waterway because it seemed like something was crawling on the floor.
‘I thought it would make some noise.’
When we arrived at the underground waterway, not only were there rats, but there were undead crawling around.
-Gwaaaaah.
Belnoa sighed and cast a shadow on the body of the rushing undead.
‘Why on earth are there undead crawling in the waterway?’
Did a crazy wizard conduct an experiment?
Belnoir muttered as he took in the shadows.
“Anyway, a strange inspiration.”
Even while grumbling, Belnoa was silently cleaning the underground waterway. Whatever it was, I owed that old man a lot.
It was the old man who saved Chloe and herself from starving to death in the corner of an alley. It was that old man who taught me the basics of magic and witchcraft.
A person who can be called a gift.
Since it is a request from such a person, it cannot be taken lightly.
“Whoa.”
Belnoir took a deep breath and rolled his shoulders. Even though I have a holiday until the day after tomorrow, I was planning on finishing it today.
‘Because I have an appointment with Chloe tomorrow.’
Belnoa snapped his fingers.
‘Shall I use it?’
Even if you cut off one or two of your ten fingers, there will be no problem. There was still a bottle of the potion the old man gave him.
‘And, efficiency also increased.’
In recent years, understanding of witchcraft has increased rapidly. It wasn’t difficult to guess the reason.
Rania van Trias.
The first meeting was the worst, thanks to the teachings of a strange professor.
‘Fountain of Mana.’
After being forced to endure there for a minute, Belnoa’s mana control was completely different from before.
‘And… that, public lecture.’
Belnoa recalled the lecture he heard in the main auditorium.
A scale scattering brilliant platinum light, and a series of transaction processes through that scale.
Libra, the source of sacrificial offerings.
The process of manifesting a spell through it.
Watching the flawless mana trading process, Belnoa gained enlightenment. She was now able to manipulate the sacrificial offerings in a slightly more detailed manner.
‘Normally, I would break my fingers…’
Wow.
Now, it is possible to make offerings by splitting the knuckles of one’s fingers. It’s still unfamiliar, but it’s something you’ll get used to little by little.
‘Offering.’
The tip of the little finger is offered as an offering.
Soon, the shadow wrapped around Belnoa swelled.
“Whoa…”
The moment you take a short breath and try to take a step.
Kang.
A noise was heard from somewhere.
Kang, Kang.
It’s a noise like a nail being hammered in.
“······.”
The noise gets louder little by little. Coming closer. Belle Noah held her breath and narrowed her eyes.
‘The sound of footsteps.’
The sound of someone’s footsteps echoed through the underground waterway. It doesn’t seem like he’s trying to hide his presence.
The sound of footsteps mixed with the sound of metal.
Assessing the distance and gap between the noises, Belnoa raised his arms. A shadow forms on the tip of his finger.
This is an underground waterway that has been abandoned for a long time.
In Belnoa’s opinion, there were only two people worthy of setting foot in a place like this.
‘They are either remnants of the Twilight who went into hiding for illegal transactions.’
Unless it is.
‘He is the one who released the undead into the waterway.’
It was most likely the latter. Even more so if you see them making footsteps so openly.
Soon, someone’s silhouette caught Belnoir’s sight. Belnoir unleashed a spell stocked at his fingertips. There is no hesitation in the process.
It doesn’t matter whether it’s the former or the latter.
Because there was no repercussions when killed.
Shadow-Needle.
A shadow strengthened through sacrifice is emitted.
As a spell specialized for assassination, the dagger is buried in darkness. There is no noise. Quietly pierce the target.
Kwasik!
However, contrary to Belnoa’s expectations, the shadow dagger made a loud noise. It sounds like something is being crushed.
“···uh?”
The reason was immediately apparent.
The target that the shadow dagger should have pierced.
Crackling, crackling.
A spell is held in the target’s hand.
A spell is seen sparking and losing its shape. Belle Noah widened her eyes.
‘Gotcha… ‘You said?’
With bare hands, a shadow dagger?
There is no time to be surprised.
Someone who caught the spell lightly stamps their foot. It hits the ground with a clanging sound.
“ah.”
When I noticed it.
‘This is crazy.’
It’s already just around the corner.
There is no time to respond. Someone approaches and extends their hand. The movement is smooth.
A hand that swings downwards from above.
That grip blocks Belnoa’s vision.
What you see is a pure white palm.
And, it has five thin fingers.
Mana trembles at the fingertips. Mana that seems like it could pierce her at any time. However, her fingers did not come any further.
“Uh, what is it?”
voice.
“Was it you?”
Belnoir blinked.
It was a voice I had heard before.
‘This voice.’
Belnoa slowly turned his head.
A woman with gray hair was standing in front of me.
“···Professor Rania?”
