Chapter 113

Idril engraved the information Quilbion had conveyed into his mind before asking.

“That really is valuable information. It could bring changes to how we deal with curses.”

“If efficiency increases, that wouldn’t be bad.”

“Um……”

Before he could finish, Quilbion’s mouth opened.

“Why are you telling me this?”

Idril nodded.^[1]

“I don’t feel the need to monopolize what I know. As for ordinary people, I leave them be since there’s no benefit for them to know, but since you hunt goblins, Mr. Idril, it’s good to share.”

“As expected, Mr. Quil is……”

“More than anything.”

This time too, Quilbion cut him off.

“Because I need more people like you, Mr. Idril.”

“Like me?”

“Yes. I like good people. People who give up their own things and still care for others, like you, Mr. Idril. Power should rightfully go to such people. That way society becomes peaceful too.”

After grinning at the compliment, he realized this wasn’t entirely something to smile about.

“Is there something we need to prepare for?”

“I don’t know when it will be, but goblins will come pouring over in large numbers.”

“Large numbers? What kind of scale, from where?”

“I don’t know either. I don’t particularly want to know. Everything that enters my field of vision, I’ll catch and devour them all, but beyond that isn’t my concern.”

The more the conversation continued, the more he felt the darkness and coldness dwelling within the human being named Quilbion.

Something nobody could embrace, something he couldn’t carelessly comfort……

“Receiving sympathy from others would be irritating, but I can laugh it off knowing Mr. Idril’s sincere.”

“I’m sorry. I had no intention of causing hurt.”

“There’s nothing to hurt, so don’t worry about it.”

Quilbion stretched out his legs and leaned against the wall.

“How old do you think I am, Mr. Idril?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. What I see with my eyes is someone around my age, but looking with anything other than my eyes, I can’t gauge it.”

“If I said I’ve lived for over 100 years, would you believe me?”

“……Right now, I would believe it.”

He’d seen it clearly with his own two eyes. The wave of curses that had spread as if to cover the sky.

It was power that a human who’d lived an ordinary life couldn’t contain.

“Talking like this with an ordinary person is a first for me too, so I’m also awkward. But since I received an assignment, I should do my best.”

“That thing you mentioned in the carriage.”

“Yes. I thought I’d become a monster long ago. Looking at that fact alone, I’m neither pleased nor displeased. It’s just something that happened.”

Quilbion glanced at Elcoco, then shifted his gaze to the ceiling.

“For a very long time, I lived forgetting who I was, only tearing goblins apart and killing them. By then, I’d already departed from being human. Yet now I’m told to recognize myself as human again and create a foundation to hold onto my soul.”

“I think you’re an ordinary human who just happens to possess special power, Mr. Quil.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Absolutely.”

“Thank you.”

Quilbion closed his eyes.

“You said you set off on a journey to help more people, Mr. Idril?”

“I did.”

“I have no will to strive for the sake of unspecified masses. I’m exhausted. I’ve experienced too much. I’ve gone to war for strangers, endured torture for neighbors. I’ve thrown myself to prevent coming disasters, spent decades in mines to save family. Ah, I’m truly sick of it.”

Quilbion’s eyelids lifted.

What was contained within those hazy pupils?

Idril kept looking, but he couldn’t read a single thing.

“How about telling me everything?”

“Telling?”

“Yes. Sometimes just unburdening yourself brings ease. Of course, this alone won’t solve your problems, Mr. Quilbion, but still……”

“Actually, words aren’t necessary. You’ve already seen a tiny bit of what I’ve experienced, Mr. Idril.”

“I’ve already seen it?”

At that moment, along with a dizzying sensation, a headache came.

He remembered.

The ‘certain impressions’ he’d seen just before passing out.

Cold came as if he’d been buried in snow. Idril huddled his body while looking at Quilbion.

“Don’t recall it. It’ll disappear soon. Intent flies away if you don’t hold onto it.”

“Nothing comes back clearly. But an impression remains that it was incredibly long, sad, and terrible.”

“Stop talking. If you become conscious of it, you might remember more.”

Idril looked at the wooden figurine placed beside Quilbion.

“That thing.”

When he pointed at the wooden figurine, Quilbion lightly pushed it with his hand. The sliding sculpture came to rest before Idril.

Idril grasped the figurine resembling the great one with trembling hands.

“Mr. Quil.”

“Don’t. That’s a very bad idea.”

“You read my mind well.”

“I’m perceptive.”

After taking a deep breath, Idril looked at Quilbion.

“Show me what you’ve experienced too, Mr. Quil.”

“No way. Do you want to kill someone?”

“This won’t be a comfort. But at least we could converse on the same level. You see, I have no intention of easily receiving what you obtained with such difficulty, Mr. Quil.”

“Drop that thought and live comfortably.”

“Sorrow divided is halved—you’ve heard that, Mr. Quil?”

“That’s wrong. Dividing sorrow only doubles the number of pitiful bastards.”

“Still, I want to try understanding you, Mr. Quil. If I understand you, I’ll realize things about curses and nark too. That will help many people.”

Idril forced a smile.

“More than anything, I’m strong against adversity.”

“You’re like a fairy tale protagonist, Mr. Idril.”

“I can’t become the protagonist, but still, I’m living earnestly. Hahaha.”

After staring at him for a while, Quilbion tapped the floor twice with his index finger.

A black cat leaped out.

But its appearance differed from what he’d seen until now.

It wasn’t a cute form. Starting with its face, its entire body was melting and dripping down.

“This is my intent. Yes, you could call it the depths of my mental world.”

The cat slowly approached.

Idril watched the cat with tension.

“Touch it lightly. I don’t want to see an innocent person die.”

“I don’t die that easily.”

“People who say that are always the first to go. I’ll retrieve it depending on the situation, so don’t worry too much.”

Idril let out short breaths while placing his hand above the cat.

Just as his hand was about to touch the cat, Quilbion spoke.

“Mr. Idril.”

“Yes?”

“Understanding is truly terrible.”

Hearing those words, he touched the cat.

And.

Idril screamed in regret.

A storm of indescribable emotions clawed at his body.

Idril experienced his entire body being shredded and shredded again. He wanted to lose consciousness, but the pain gripped his soul.

Countless events passed before his eyes.

‘Countless Quilbions’ tore through Idril’s brain.

Eternal pain.

Eternal solitude.

Please kill me.

The world turned white, then soon became black.

Sensation was gnawed away by insects and slowly disappeared. When nothing remained, Idril came to his senses.

He saw the ceiling.

And from the right side of his vision, Elcoco’s face pushed in.

“Are you alright?”

“……Am I alive?”

“Just a moment.”

Pain arose in his side. Idril let out an ugh while squirming.

“Does it hurt?”

“Yes, it hurts.”

“Then you’re alive.”

“Haha, you’re right.”

Idril raised his body. His pants caught his eye, but they weren’t the ones he’d been wearing.

Same with his shirt.

“Why are my clothes……”

“Lord Quilbion probably threw them away. Most likely.”

“Why would he throw away perfectly good clothes……”

The words came out slurred. He tapped his cheeks with his hand and looked at Elcoco. Elcoco turned her gaze away with an awkward smile.

“Why are you acting like that?”

“People living their lives can have that happen. When Master Flan gets blackout drunk, she often makes such mistakes. I understand. Yes! It can happen.”

“What?”

Come to think of it, the house structure was different too. It wasn’t the house where he’d been conversing with Quilbion.

“You were lying down for a long time, so your body must be terrible. Move slowly. I’ll go tell Lord Quilbion.”

Idril blinked his eyes before letting out a sigh.

The cat, Quilbion’s intent, and fainting.

Washing his face dryly, he shook off the thoughts.

Like when he’d first fainted, he couldn’t remember precisely, but the shock from that time remained throughout his body.

Understanding Quilbion even a little?

Idril realized it was impossible. That wasn’t the kind of thing a person could endure.

Though Quilbion had spoken of 100 years, Idril could tell. It wasn’t pain that could be explained by a mere 100 years.

Idril cracked his stiff neck left and right before getting up from his spot. A sharp pain spread down his back.

Just how long had he been lying down?

He came out of the house.

He saw a clean sky. It was such a blue sky that just staring blankly at it improved his mood.

He lowered his gaze.

The green mountain touching the blue was heaving today too.

Was it because he’d seen it once before, or because he’d experienced a bit of Quilbion’s inner world?

Even watching the trees walking plod plod, he felt no particular emotion. It felt routine.

Idril walked toward the mountain.

He stood beside Elcoco, who was watching.

“He’s been doing that for two days straight. I’ve met about three famous mages and magicians, you know? But in this world, only Lord Quilbion could cause such a miracle without even sleeping. Ooh, scary.”

“Yes, truly scary.”

Idril spoke while looking at Quilbion lying on a tree.

“You saw it too, Ms. Elcoco?”

“……I don’t really want to remember. But I only glimpsed it slightly. Even that made me faint though.”

Elcoco placed her hand on Idril’s shoulder.

“Just forget it. Let’s not recall it for no reason.”

Elcoco was making groaning sounds while shaking her head. Idril ascended the mountain slope, bathed in sunlight.

A tree passing before his eyes changed direction with thud thud sounds, avoiding Idril and heading elsewhere.

“Mr. Quil.”

“You’re up?”

Quilbion answered from atop the tree.

“Yes, I just opened my eyes.”

“How’s your mind? Though I retrieved the nark quickly, you must have seen this and that.”

“I’ve forgotten most of it. This head of mine desperately let it flow away to survive.”

Idril tapped his head with his finger tap tap.

“That’s good. They’re memories that would only be poison to carry around.”

Idril asked carefully.

“……How can you keep on living?”

“Good question. I should have died long ago, should have closed my eyes very comfortably, yet here I am breathing.”

“What you showed me was hell itself, Mr. Quil.”

“I told you. Understanding is terrible. You shouldn’t look into other people’s trash cans.”

“But within all that, I felt one thing that was different.”

The tree carrying Quilbion stopped abruptly. Idril spoke while receiving Quilbion’s gaze.

“Who are you trying to save?”

Quilbion gave a small laugh before looking at the sky.

“How embarrassing. Like my shame has been exposed.”

“Is it something to be embarrassed about? That……”

“It’s too long to explain in words. I just want to pull that child out from there. I can’t live with debts.”

It was then.

Idril looked down at the ground.

Something was squirming below.

“The mole bastard, tapping does bring them out.”

As Quilbion spoke, the trees that had stopped began rampaging madly.