Chapter 321
Chapter 321
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 321
Chapter Title: We Still Have Some Settling Up to Do
-----------------------------------------------------------------
There had been a brief commotion.
"I'm sorry."
Sylphid placed a hand on her chest as she calmed her energy.
She took a shallow breath, slowly erasing the memory from that day.
"I got a little excited remembering that time. Right, the important thing is to resolve her grudge and summon her soul."
"You called it a monster earlier, didn't you?"
"That's right."
Sylphid nodded.
"There's a monster guarding the Crystal of the Heart's Depths in that sector. It has an aura similar to that bastard Noas, so we call it the Earth Dragon."
Earth Dragon...
An earthworm?
Sylphid flashed a faint smile that seemed to flicker in and out of existence for a moment, then let out a long breath.
"Yes, Yuisa lost her life there."
"......!"
"I... with my own hands... I half-killed that damned thing, but it wasn't enough."
She continued, suppressing her emotions.
"In the end, the Earth Dragon's claw crushed Yuisa's abdomen, and its sharp fangs pierced her throat..."
The sorrow of losing a loved one right before her eyes.
The rage toward the Earth Dragon that had taken everything from her.
Those emotions tangled complexly, permeating the entire area.
Earth Dragon.
Sylphid must want to tear it to shreds.
But it was impossible.
Spirits couldn't enter the central depths.
"If Yuisa has any lingering grudge, it'll be one of two things."
Sylphid said, biting her lip hard.
"The most likely is that she couldn't contract with all four Spirit Kings."
I agreed with that one the most.
In Korean terms, it was like studying your ass off through middle and high school, finally tasting the fruit of being number one on the CSAT... only to die in an accident the day before.
'Ugh.'
Just imagining it was horrifying.
"Or revenge against the Earth Dragon."
That was possible too.
The thing that took your life was an arch-enemy, after all...
"Then the answer's clear."
I nodded.
The answer the Wind Spirit King, Sylphid, wanted.
"I'll go."
That central sector depths or whatever.
If I went there and took down the Earth Dragon, that'd be it, right?
I had to go there anyway to get the 'Crystal of the Heart's Depths' (SSS Grade).
Our Demir.
Time to make him a constellation.
My beloved subordinates.
Time to give them their precious weapons too.
"You'll really do that...?"
"Of course."
"But it's dangerous. You're not a spirit contractor, are you? You don't plan to face the Earth Dragon bare-handed, do you?"
"You saw it earlier. I can fight on par with Sylestin to some extent."
"...Hmm, the Earth Dragon is no pushover."
"I figured. So, how do I get to the central sector?"
Ignoring Sylphid's warning entirely, I asked my question.
"......"
After a brief silence.
She opened her mouth, her expression a mix of reluctance and gratitude.
"Sylestin can guide you, but... it's quite a distance. The spirit realm is vast. The central sector especially so."
"Oh, really?"
I turned my head.
My little sister Sua and her big sister Jea.
The two sisters were still looking my way.
Heh.
I smiled.
"Then we've got that covered."
"Hm?"
"Mind if I have those two guide me? All the way to the destination."
"No problem. Would that work for you?"
"Yes."
"Good."
Sylphid gestured with her mouth and chin toward the two Sylestins.
They knelt and responded.
- We shall obey!
- We will escort you safely!
Perfect.
Just right.
Sua, was it?
We still have some settling up to do, don't we?
Ah.
The spot where that Sylestin hit me earlier was still throbbing?
* * *
After leaving the Palace of Wind, on the path leading to the central sector.
Hiccup!
Big sis Jea hiccuped.
"Uh, uh......"
A low groan leaked from Sua's mouth too.
Th-this wasn't it.
How did things end up like this?
The man's eyes, approaching with a sinister grin, were like those of a beast.
A starving beast with prey right in front of it.
"W-wait a second. Hey."
Sua stretched out both hands, desperately trying to stop the man.
"Wait, let's talk! Yeah, let's talk, us!"
Sua shook her eyes wildly as she spoke.
But the man didn't stop walking.
Whoosh!
Rather, as if reacting to her words, he even pulled out a club in one hand.
While smiling brightly, no less.
Sua learned for the first time that a person's smile could be this terrifying.
"Talk, huh. Sure, talk. Non-violent communication has the advantage of smoothing interactions with others."
The problem was.
Sua hadn't tried to resolve things with talk from the start.
"S-Sylestin!"
- C-Contractor.
Sua's top-grade spirit was sweating bullets.
"B-block him. You're not just gonna watch, are you?"
- W-well... The Spirit King said touching this one is the same as touching herself...
Right.
No matter the contract, how could a top-grade spirit defy the Spirit King's command?
- No choice, contractor. I hope you reach an amicable agreement...
"S-Sylestin! How could you?!"
Sua wailed at her trusted spirit stabbing her in the back.
Then she quickly looked at the man.
What power did a spirit contractor have without her spirit's help?
She had to block him somehow.
Whoosh, whooooosh!
But.
The man was loosening up, swinging his club expertly.
"Th-that earlier was..."
"Don't worry. I'll kill you gently, for your sister's sake."
"Th-thank... Huh?"
What did he just say?
Kill?
Gently?
Kill means kill— what was "gently kill"?
At that moment.
Screeeeeam!
Sua could only watch as the club flew toward her stomach at tremendous speed.
The moment that solid-looking red club thudded heavily into her belly.
BAMMMMM!
It felt like colliding with a massive carriage, the shock ripping through her entire body.
Her breath caught from the immense pain, veins bulging across her face.
Then.
"Gyaaaaaaah!"
She clutched her stomach and rolled on the ground.
She could confidently say she'd never felt pain like this in her life.
Until now, Sylestin had always defended her somehow.
"Tch, what? Just one hit?"
Devil.
The man was a devil.
"How many hits did I take earlier? Hundreds at least, roughly speaking... I'm the type who repays favors double and grudges tenfold."
"Eeek! I'm sorry!"
"You're sorry?"
"Yes! Yes! It was all my fault!"
"Yeah? Then take it."
Screeeeeam!
The man's club began to dance once more.
* * *
"Ugh, ugh, waaaaah!"
Sua bawled pathetically.
Her whole body was already covered in ugly bruises, soaked in sweat and tears.
Had she ever been beaten this miserably in her life?
More than that.
'This is unfair.'
It was so unfair.
Did her actions warrant getting beaten like this?
At first, they'd barely secured the 'Wind Waterfall' after a hard fight, and this guy showed up, pissing them off.
At that moment.
The guy uttered the taboo word, "Yuisa," and Sylestin got agitated, so they'd tried to take him down.
Honestly, it was self-defense.
The guy had been about to harm the entire wind sector.
"Waaaaah, huwaaaah!"
So she cried bitterly.
She knew it too.
The reason she was still alive after this beating was because the man was showing some mercy.
"Tch, crying over this much pain? What a wimp."
"......"
"Seriously. I didn't even do 10% of what the old folks' massage is like, and you're bawling."
Old folks' massage?
What the hell was that?
Did they do massages with beatings in his world?
The club struck precisely at the channels where blood and energy flowed, the pain indescribable.
How bad was it?
It still felt like a full-power iron fist was embedded in every part of her body?
"Huwaaaah."
As Sua cried pitifully, the man approached.
Then he whispered.
"...This is only because of your sister. Without her, you'd be dead already. Got it?"
"......"
"Didn't get it? Hmm, maybe I went too easy?"
Gasp.
Shake shake!
Sua shook her head like mad.
Any more beatings and she'd really die.
Not from the hits, but she might bite her tongue and end it herself.
Better to give up life than feel more of that pain.
"Huh? Shaking your head? Means you didn't get it?"
No!
I've been hit enough!
"F-for my sister."
Her mind cleared in a flash, tears vanishing as Sua shot to her feet.
Then she knelt and bowed her head.
"Thanks to my sister, I lived! Thank you!"
For now, grovel.
Grovel and do whatever he says.
That was the only way Sua could survive.
* * *
Sua knelt in a wretched state.
I sat leisurely on a rock in front of her.
Did I feel sorry for her?
Not in the slightest.
If I'd been weak, or if the Spirit King hadn't appeared right then.
I'd be the one beaten to death.
'I've actually gone easy on her.'
If Kim Jin-ah, Arin, or any of my other subordinates had been around?
It wouldn't have ended like this.
She wouldn't have even shed a tear.
Her head would've been off before that.
"Now, explain."
Anyway.
I'm surprisingly cool-headed.
With this, I'd wipe the slate clean with her and focus on awakening the bone sphere.
That's what mattered.
"......Y-yes?"
Sua lifted her head with a dumbstruck look.
Jea beside her stared at me with the same lost expression.
Oh.
I didn't say what to explain.
"Tell me about this spirit realm. What spirits there are for each element, how the sectors are divided. All that. Everything you know."
"I'll explain it to you!"
Jea stepped up.
"I'll start with the sectors. Divided into four from the central sector: east is fire, west is earth, south is water, north is here, the wind sector."
For about an hour, she spoke.
From spirit realm sectors to spirit types, rivalries, and more.
She laid out her knowledge of this place coherently.
Among it, the spirit types boiled down to this.
[Fire]
1. Fire Spirit King, Sallion.
2. Fire Top-grade Spirit, Salleana.
3. Fire High-grade Spirit, Salaim.
4. Fire Mid-grade Spirit, Salist.
5. Fire Low-grade Spirit, Salamander.
[Water]
1. Water Spirit King, Elaim.
2. Water Top-grade Spirit, Elestra.
3. Water High-grade Spirit, Endairon.
4. Water Mid-grade Spirit, Undaine.
5. Water Low-grade Spirit, Undine.
[Wind]
1. Wind Spirit King, Sylphid.
2. Wind Top-grade Spirit, Sylestin.
3. Wind High-grade Spirit, Sylairon.
4. Wind Mid-grade Spirit, Sylape.
5. Wind Low-grade Spirit, Sylph.
[Earth]
1. Earth Spirit King, Noas.
2. Earth Top-grade Spirit, Noe Anen.
3. Earth High-grade Spirit, Noes.
4. Earth Mid-grade Spirit, Noim.
5. Earth Low-grade Spirit, Gnome.
They said power levels were roughly similar across ranks, differing only by attribute.
Also, fire and water didn't get along.
Wind and earth didn't either.
Two beings popped into mind.
[The essence of water says you're the noisy one.]
[The essence of fire says you're the noisy one.]
Yeah.
No such thing as mutual antagonism for nothing.
The world worked the same everywhere.
Anyway.
I'd heard enough explanations.
Now, just one thing left I was curious about.
"Contracts?"
"Yes?"
Jea, mid-explanation, paused and looked at me.
"Contracting with spirits. How does that work?"
Spirits.
I wanted to raise some too.
I smacked my lips.