Elqueeness - Chapter 22

he summoning process wasn’t any different from when Isana summoned me, but in comparison, there was nothing I liked about this fellow. Isana called out in a pleading voice, hoping to obtain my aid.

Even if that was the case for this person as well, I had no intention in accepting him as my contractor. Once I meet him, I plan to refuse him and then come back.

Because I had already planned everything out, my anxiety disappeared as it was replaced by a sense of calm.

After hardening my resolve, I slowly reached out and touched the Summoning circle. As soon as my hand made contact, an irresistible force began pulling me in like a suction. To avoid letting out a cry of surprise, I clamped my mouth tightly shut. Damn it. Not this again!

I don’t know who you are, but I swear that as soon as I see you, I’m going to give you a wallop!

Perhaps it was because this was the second time, I was able to retain my calm.
The next time I opened my eyes, I found myself staring at a pond and a collection of trees surrounding it.

The moonlight that was reflecting off the water put me in a state of euphoria, but I planned to leave soon so I scoured the area to look for my summoner.

However, to my surprise, unlike when I found Isana in that sorry state, he was staring directly at me without a single change in expression. His age seemed to be one or two years above mine.

Without any material to bind his crimson hair, it flowed all the way down to his waist. As if he had exercised consistently, he showed off a slightly muscular form that seemed to be a pleasant mix with his slender appearance.

Adding on to his flawless complexion, he looked even better than Elwien.

If he had not been visibly breathing, I would have thought of it as a human sized mannequin.

His eyes, redder then the color of his hair, were fixed on mine. Seeing his expression, I immediately tense up and met his gaze equally.

As if he felt that something was wrong, he wore a slight frown.

“Are you really Elqueeness?”

“What am I supposed to say when my own summoner asks that?”

Since he seemed to be my senior, I unconsciously used honorifics. However, he seemed to be even more displeased as his flawless features turned ugly.

“What the hell? What’s with the honorifics? Something is wrong… This aura is definitely that of Elqueeness… but that appearance… Strange, a Spirit shouldn’t be capable of undergoing transgender surgery…”

“What?? You sound like you already know me? Have me met?”

“Hah? Have we met? Are you really going to play dumb? This is the 32^nd time I’ve summoned you. Are you going to act like we’ve never met? What are you planning? After halting the supply of water, you finally showed up in Arkadon and healed nature..”

“…What….!!!! Perhaps… Are you a dragon? ”

As if I had said something that was obvious, his frown deepened even further. Now I finally understood what was going on.

Jesus Christ… Is this Elwien’s stalker, ‘Lapis Lazul’? The being who showed extreme interest in my existence is this guy? Hoping that this was a misunderstanding, I carefully asked.

“Pardon me, but is your name Lapis Lazul?”

“… Is this a joke? Even if you play dumb, it’s no use. I have no intention of letting you go this time.”

So it was him. This is that damned dragon. The one who became love-struck at first sight with Elwien, the one who went on a rampage because he was rejected and sanctioned Elwien from being summoned. He’s that bastard!

To think that he was still left in the dark about the generation change for the Spirit King of Water. Rather than nasty, he seemed a bit more pitiful.

Isn’t this what you would call unrewarded, one-sided love? Perhaps it would be best if I treated him more gently from that respect.

“My deepest apologies, I am not who you think I am.”

“What’s this nonsense you’re sprouting? No matter! Anyways, your physical appearance changed way too much. What happened? Unless my memories are wrong, Elqueeness was definitely a male oriented Spirit. How did you, in a span of a few years, turn into a female?

Well, it honestly doesn’t matter to me either way.”

“Ack!! I’m not female Spirit!! No, I mean… Ahem… So, what I mean is that you have the wrong person..”

“What?”

As if he finally realized that something was wrong, that soft glint in his crimson eyes turned sharper than blades.

At the sudden change in attitude, I unconsciously tensed up.

“This is our first meeting. My name is Elqueeness. My predecessor has already passed through the gates of death and turned over his responsibilities to me, who was only born recently.

The one you are looking for is already gone.”

“….. Just now, what did you say?”

Eek… If eyes could kill, I would be dead right now. Flustered, I backtracked. Seeing my nervous state, his eyes became even colder.

“Don’t make me laugh! Are you trying to chase me away with such a method? I’ll say this again Elqueeness, you are mine.

If I need to summon you dozens of times, then I’ll do it. Until the Dragon Heart in this body runs dry, I’ll summon you and summon you again!!!

But I can’t allow you to pretend to be ignorant! I won’t allow it! Since I knew that you were annoyed, I gave you a period of rest and didn’t summon you for several years!”

“Aha… I know it’s hard to believe, but if you remain that stubborn..”

“That’s my line!”

I began to doubt that he could believe whatever explanation I had. But such a reaction is expected since the person he liked so dearly is dead.

But the truth is unavoidable, inescapable.
“Elqueeness’ death is the cause for the 10 year calamity. My birth was late, so the natural waters of the world dried out. If you still can’t believe it, you should ask your fellow dragons.

There should be a few who are contracted to other Spirit Kings and have learned the news from them.”

“!!”

“To be honest, my vacation was on halt because of you. You forbid other dragons from making a contract with me, right?  I heard that they feared incurring your displeasure, so they never made an attempt to summon me. Ah yes, you could also summon Spirit Kings as well. Why don’t you try Ifrit? Since we were quarrelling ever since the beginning of my birth, you guys should get along fabulously.”

At my cold words, he looked as if he was punched in the gut. Damn, his expression of shock would make a first class portrait as well.

“He… Elqueeness is dead?”

“To be more specific, he has reincarnated into the God realm. So from now on, there should be no reason for us to meet.”

His face turned ashen from my confident reply. It was too bad for him, but the misunderstanding should have finally been cleared up. I no longer had any reason to face him.

As I prepared to make my exit, Lapis, who looked contorted, suddenly had a change in his expression.

“Then, I shall take my leave. I actually already have a contractor, so this trip puts me in a bad spot. I forgot that Dragons were capable of overlapping summons. Before the humans notice I’m gone, I must leave.”

“….. Where do you think you’re going?”

“Huh? Back to my company, of course..”

But from that moment on, I could no longer speak. Shaking his head as if he didn’t want to listen, he began shouting with a powerful voice.

“I believe I said this already. Don’t make me laugh! Elqueeness is something that I wanted for the first time since the day I was born! I endured humiliation and mockery over and over again. Yet, you’re telling me to give up? If the previous Elqueeness is dead, then I’ll make a contract with this generation’s Elqueeness!

I am more than qualified to make this contract!”

That was true. Anyone who was capable of summoning a Spirit King definitely had the right to form a contract.

Since Elqueeness was a unique case, people seemed to have the fantasy that he will always form a contract.

But his overly confident voice left an unpleasant taste in my mouth.

“What? Y… Weren’t you in love with the previous Elqueeness? Isn’t that why you kept summoning him? Why would you want to make a contract with me?”

“Ha? Love? What the hell are you talking about? Do I look like a homosexual? I just enjoyed the unique aura that the Spirit King of Water possessed. So I wanted him, is that wrong? You seem to see that as love. Enough talk and form the contract!”

He was being too bold. My control over my anger started to slip. The superficial sense of sorrow I had for him vanished as if it had never existed.

“Do you think a Spirit King is some kind of object? What the hell do you mean you want him?! I’ve already said that I have a contractor. I have no intention in forming a contract with someone else!!”

“Are you planning to reject me with the same words as the last Elqueeness? Don’t make me angry. I’m warning you, don’t try to test my patience!”

If you were me, would you agree if I was the one who said that? Swallowing back the curses that was itching to escape my throat, I gave Lapis Lazul my fiercest glare. I think I now understand why Elqueeness avoided him like the plague.

As someone with such a strong sense of pride, Elqueeness would never allow anyone to treat him like an object. I myself felt ashamed that I pitied someone like him. My words, in response to my anger, became cold.

“What can you do if I were to refuse you?”

“Then you will have to give up your freedom in this round. I won’t stop summoning you and you won’t be able to escape from my claws. Don’t you think that Dragons live with such luxury? Unlike humans who must risk their lives to summon a single Spirit King, my kind can easily summon you whenever we please.”

“You really are an arrogant bastard. Are all Dragons like you?”

I no longer desired to show him any respect. When I asked without withdrawing my icy glare, he did not even flinch and lazily replied.

“As I am a supreme existence, I don’t care even if you call me arrogant.”

“Ha… The supreme existence? Dragons? That’s something new. Then why does an almighty figure such as yourself have so much trouble dealing with a lowly Spirit King such as myself?”

“I’ve already told you. I like Elqueeness’ aura.”

As if he had not noticed my sarcasm, he did not show any sign of being offended. He truly is formidable in a sense…

“I have no interest in you. First of all, your nature is fire and mine is water. We are polar opposites, so is this your fetish of some kind? Don’t drag me along into your hobbies.”

“.. You don’t listen.”

“We have something we could agree on.”

As I refused to give in, he seemed almost amused as his lips curled. Despite being displeased as I was, that simple action made him even more glamorous.

“Should I tell you the reason why I have not made an attempt to summon Elqueeness for so long?”

“What?”

“After failing to form a contract even after summoning that arrogant Spirit King of Water dozens of times, I still wanted to have him even if I had to do it by force. If I can’t form a compromise, then why not just use power? So for several years, I researched magic like a lunatic. I searched for a way to imprison Elqueeness like a bird inside a cage.”

“You… What are you planning?”

I no longer knew what to do when I heard such absurd words. A feeling of calamity took over my gut instinct. I had a feeling that if I did not escape this place soon, I would be placed in danger. Yet despite my heart screaming at me to escape, my body was frozen solid.

“However, it was truly difficult to find a method to seal the most powerful force of nature. So, I decided to lower my expectations and made it so that you could only return to the Spirit World.”

“O… Only?”

“To be clearer, you can have your freedom while you’re at the Spirit World. But once you come to the Human Realms, you’ll always be sealed in the location I designated. Rather useful, right? Setting up the spell alone took over 5 years even for me, who is called the Genius of Magic among all creatures of Magic. However, I have finally completed it. Now, all I need to do is cast the spell.”

“Wait- Stop!!!”

But I could no longer open my mouth. Without even giving me a chance to react, he immediately activated the spell.

<Thou shalt not vanish, Thou shalt not escape, BIND!>