Chapter 91 – Abduction – Necessity Named Fate (1)

A lost relationship will come back someday.

No matter how much we break and twist our own destiny, the ties between people cannot be severed. There is an infinite elasticity that goes beyond the laws of the world, so even if you push it right now, it will come back someday with the power of inertia.

So sometimes, without realizing it, there are times when I stare at the door endlessly. Maybe someday someone will break through that door and come in.

Wouldn’t someone who needs to meet me come find me even now.

I still haven’t thrown away the sword, fearing that the guest will come someday.

…

But no matter how much Ellie explained, she didn’t seem to understand it.

“Luka.”

“…Huh.”

“Ehh. Luca.”

There was sadness in the staring gaze. Ellie looked at the sword she found under her bed and put her hands on her chin.

“How many times has this been?”

“Sorry.”

“Why do you keep hiding the knife under the bed? In case there’s a crocodile hiding there?”

“Would you understand if I said that?”

“No. I can’t do that. I was really angry this time.”

Ellie tilted her head slightly towards her and she stared at me with a narrow gaze. I had no excuses, so I just hung my head. Then she sighed and opened her arms to me.

“But what am I supposed to do if I get mad at you? This older sister should be kind and understanding. Just come up.”

“I’m sorry, Ellie.”

“If you know you’re sorry, don’t spend money on things like this. Handsome oppa. Even so, household accounts are a mess these days.”

Along with the familiar name, the soft texture of the skin pressed down on both cheeks. It always happened, but when the fresh scent of mint stung the tip of my nose, I felt helplessly dizzy. Ellie incapacitated me with just the scent and tousled her hair.

“I remember you didn’t give me that much pocket money. Where the hell did you buy that?”

“Just… You know.”

“I’m sure it wasn’t stolen. Rumors abound that the town guards saw a suspicious person these days.”

“Most of it is something else. Rightfully.”

“You got it? You…”

“That…It’s not illegal, Ellie.”

Okay. Strictly speaking, it’s not illegal. Most of them were obtained through bets with drunken opponents. Like catching a flying bird with a single needle. Or throw a sword and drop a walnut from above. There was no drunkard who would not agree to such a ridiculous bet, and I won as expected.

Then there was a time when I almost got someone else’s wife. Looking back now, it was a terrifying moment. While chewing on the memories of that time, Ellie suddenly frowned at her.

“What are you thinking about right now? I’ve been running around lately and sometimes came with the smell of another woman.”

“Okay, Ellie. Knowing that wouldn’t happen.”

“If you keep doing this, you’re banned from going out. I don’t know about you, but I keep hearing about you in the neighborhood, right?”

“I didn’t even let you exercise, but I’ll take care of that.”

“I can’t do it. I’m just banned from going out from today. Don’t think about going out for a while.”

Then I’ll just lie in bed all day. While helping herself, Ellie’s fingers slipped through her clothes. Instead of refusing, I naturally lifted her head and kissed the nape of her neck.

“Okay. Then let’s have a baby. Have you thought about how many children you’ll have?”

“Are you saying that you don’t give birth yourself? But well, it’s not bad. To be honest, the more the better.”

“Then I should have gone on a trip before then. After having kids, I won’t be able to afford that.”

“I’m fine. Being with you is important anyway.”

“You didn’t even go on your honeymoon. You want to go, but don’t you?”

“No. And will you be okay Luca?

“That…”

Ellie’s words always got to the point. When I looked up, she was staring at me with a serious expression. When she saw that, she couldn’t help but let her mouth drop.

Memories from a past that shouldn’t exist again ran through her head. However, right before I was caught in that specter-like nightmare, Ellie smiled brightly and tugged at my ear.

“It’s okay to travel. I’ll just live with it.”

“I’m sorry. Because of me.”

“If you keep saying that, I’ll bite you.”

“Please look at that…”

She begged fervently, but Ellie left a mark of her teeth on my shoulder without forgiveness. Only then did I manage to get my smile back and frown.

“Then is it really okay not to go on a trip? You can’t say anything else later.”

“No, well…But there’s no such thing as not going forever. It doesn’t matter if there’s a good opportunity.”

“It’s a good opportunity. Like?”

“Well. I might think about it when the kids are all grown up.”

“Haha…”

When will that be? Seeing Ellie casually drawing a blueprint for the future made me feel like an idiot for constantly thinking about the past.

She knew, of course, that she could never forget. However, when she was with Ellie, I would fall into a drowsy routine in an instant without even realizing it. Maybe this is not all that is left of life.

Melting into peaceful daily life and slowly washing away the scars of the past.

If I could live like that, there would be nothing better.

…

But life always throws homework that you forgot at the most unexpected moment.

“Rather than that, Luca. What’s up today?”

“What happened?”

“I think there are guests coming outside?”

“Huh?”

Only then did I cast my gaze toward the doorway. Just as Ellie said, someone’s existence was approaching this way. At first, I wondered if it was because of my mood, but it soon materialized into the sound of someone knocking on the door.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

…

Thud. Thud. Thud.

“…There’s no one to come.”

“A letter must have arrived. Get out, Luca.”

“Huh…”

“Don’t even dream about that, okay?”

As she glanced at her sword, Ellie slapped her on the back. Swallowing my regret, I cautiously approached the door. Then, slowly, the voice of a strange woman began to be heard.

“Luca, are you there?”

“…”

“Hmm. I know you came here well. Mr. Luca? Are you inside?”

“…”

“I know you’re here, so please just open it. I’m not a bad person, Luca-san. Rather, it’s the opposite~”

Who the heck

No matter how hard I looked, no one came to mind. Her soft voice and sarcasm reminded me of a certain red-haired girl, but her voice was different, and most of all, she had no business.

Anxiety slowly crept into his chest. I quickly glanced at something that could be used as a weapon. Then he carefully opened the door.

…

“…?”

However, no matter how much I threw my gaze, the person’s face did not come into my eyes. While I was looking around in bewilderment, I heard a voice from below.

“Luca, this way.”

“Uh…”

Only then did I bow my head. And I met eyes with a little girl who was staring at me.

“Oops. You’re unexpectedly handsome. He’s a little shorter than I thought.”

“…”

“I’m sorry. I was a bit rude in the first meeting.”

The girl trembled again. Then she shrugged and held out her little hand to me.

“Nice to meet you. My name is Weather, a special advisor to the investigation team directly under the Imperial Family. Mr. Luca of Laurenheim, is that correct?”

“…”

Instead of listening to the long title, I looked at the girl. Then, under her finely combed hair, her extremely tired face caught her attention. Whether it was her eyes with dark shade, or her severely swollen lips, or her philtrum with noticeable nosebleeds at first glance. Either way, it wasn’t a normal girl’s face.

At this point, the impression was stronger that she was an overworked middle manager rather than a pleasant village girl. As I pondered a little longer, the girl named Weather snapped her fingers in front of her eyes.

“Mr. Luka. You’re listening, right. Ms. Luka?”

“…”

“Miss Luca?”

“You misunderstood the person.”

But whatever the circumstances, my answer was fixed. Now, I hated getting involved in troublesome things. Just as she was about to close her door, she hurriedly put her foot through it.

“Oops…Don’t do that. I’m not a weirdo.”

“Okay, so please leave. This is private property.”

“I know, but I have something to tell you. Please give me some time.”

“I’m not interested.”

Even though I stubbornly refused, the girl clung to me tenaciously. I don’t know if it’s because of my mood, but it seemed that the shade drawn under her eyes had deepened.

“And it doesn’t matter how private it is, as long as there is His Majesty’s order, Mr. Luca. So, can you let me in first?”

“It’s His Majesty’s order. Then, let’s bring in soldiers. We’ll see you then.”

“No matter how many people you bring, it’s of no use to Luca-san. That’s why I’m asking you this way.”

“…I don’t know how much you know about me, but when I say something nice, just leave.”

“I can’t. I have something to tell you. So let’s talk for a while.”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

“No. I’m sure there will be. No matter how much I threw away fate, Luca-san still has a lot of questions.”

…

Fate.

At that word, my hand stopped unconsciously.

I only turned her eyes to look at the girl. For the first time in a while, a sharp feeling of tension boiled in my stomach. But she spread her empty hands out wide and opened her mouth without any agitation.

“I didn’t bring anything like a weapon, so don’t be nervous. Then can I go in now? Warrior.”

“Hey, but who are you?”

Ellie, who greeted her guests without knowing her reason, carefully asked questions after setting her simple guest table. Then she gave the same answer as before.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Eli. I am a special advisor to the investigation team directly under the imperial family…”

“That’s enough. Who are you really?”

“…It’s called Weather. But that’s not what I usually do.”

She was about to tell the truth. But even the story that followed was absurd.

“I’m a prophet, Mr. Luca. I predict people’s future and prevent accidents.”

“Nonsense.”

“And it’s part of my job to have those doubts. But I’m a true prophet.”

It was a serious voice, but I only snorted. It’s only madmen and crooks who call themselves prophets.

And if there was a real prophet, he wouldn’t have let things go that way.

“You’re a true prophet.”

“Yes. Hard to believe, but it is.”

“That’s right.”

“Yes. So… Evil!”

As soon as she didn’t answer, I hit her with no warning. I thought it wasn’t that fast, but she couldn’t avoid it and grabbed her forehead.

“Ah… It hurts…”

“Luka. Isn’t that too much for the guests?”

“A real prophet would have avoided it, wouldn’t it, Miss Weather?”

“Sorry, but I can’t read your future.”

That’s a very convenient excuse. It wasn’t out of her mouth, but her trust in her had already hit rock bottom. But Weather slowly began to tell strange stories.

“Because a person who moves through time at will has no concept of the future. Isn’t that right, Mr. Luca?”

“…”

“So I can read your past to some extent, but I don’t know your future at all. Maybe you’re a possessed person, or a reincarnated person. Or maybe a regressor.”

“What the hell is that… Who the hell are you?”

“I told you, a prophet. Aren’t you already familiar with my prophecies?”

“No way…”

“I’m kidding. The prophecy was made by Goddess Ennessic herself. There may be a few messengers, but.”

She looked at me with a meaningful expression. Then she continued, rubbing the dark circles under her eyes.

“Anyway, that’s not what’s important. First of all, can I tell you about the business I’ve been looking for?”

“Okay. Then wait Ellie…”

“No. I’d like you to listen. I’m looking for both of you.”

“Me too?”

“Yes. I want Ellie to listen as well. And to tell you in advance, everything I’m going to talk about from now on is top secret, you know?”

Weather cleared his throat lightly. Then, clearing her voice, she opened her mouth.

“A while ago, an incident occurred in which one of our personnel deserted from the border area adjacent to the land of the demons. It is a common occurrence, but the problem is that the person fled to the territory of the demons, not the empire.”

“You mean you betrayed me?”

“Um… I don’t know what their intentions were. According to eyewitness statements, they went that way rather to gain credit, but no one knows the truth. It became a problem.”

“What is it?”

“They made a contract with the evil dragon that was dormant in the land of the demons and became a fusion and is rampaging. It can’t help but be a very embarrassing time when they are trying to sign a non-aggression pact with the demons.”

It’s a dragon

The cries of the dragons he had cut down countless times when he escaped from the land of demons became hallucinations and resonated in his head. Could that evil dragon be one of the ones I killed then? Ironically, among the stray ties, the first to return was not a human but a demon.

“He doesn’t distinguish between humans and demons, he eats and devours any creature he can find, roaming the land of the demons. In a way, he is quite a nuisance to us as well as to the demons.”

“Is that why you decided to deal with it?”

“Yes. In a way, this is the first joint operation with the demons. However, as it was the first time, there was not much active cooperation. It was just that they would turn a blind eye to our operation in their land. But.”

“There was a reason why it had to be top secret.”

“It’s true that we joined hands with the demons. Anyway, it’s our side who has to remove the amalgamation. It’s a headache. We need to find someone who is familiar with the demons’ land and skilled enough to catch them.”

“So.”

“…”

“Is that why you came to see me?”

“What…”

At my words, Weather blurted out his words. Then he answered in a voice that sounded embarrassed.

“We should be able to catch it by ourselves. But it will take time and manpower, and there will surely be casualties. But there are two people who can handle this very simply. A nameless swordsman who was designated as a hero. Or in the millennium. Like a genius wizard who comes out once in a while.”

“…”

“Of course… If the two of you come together, it will be over much sooner. First of all, according to my prediction, both of you will probably be able to pass away without a single wound. Even if you come with a light heart to warm up after a long time…”

“No.”

But then Ellie cut her off with a determined voice. Then, she hugged my head and shook her head.

“It’s the land of demons. Absolutely not. It’s hard to say something like this on our first meeting, but you’re so shameless to say such a thing.”

“Miss Eli. You may not remember it, but you have been to the land of demons too. And above all, if you have abilities like yours, you will never be in danger.”

“I know it because I heard it roughly. But it’s not possible. I’m sorry, but I just want you to go back.”

“Well…Yes. It was a bit of a difficult story to take in all of a sudden.”

Weather, looking at our expressions, suddenly pulled out a heavy pouch. As he set it down on the table, a jingling sound resounded indistinctly. That alone made it easy to guess what the contents were.

“It’s an advance payment. When the work is over, I’ll give you more as requested. I heard that the family situation is a bit difficult these days. Isn’t this a good offer?”

“…Hmm.”

“At this time of year, pretty cherry blossoms bloom in the border area. If it weren’t for the conflict with the demons, it would have been a good place to travel.”

“…”

“If you keep hesitating that much, I’ll stop talking and lay down like a dog and pray. Tears, runny nose, and dripping down my cheeks. Looking back, the carpet seems to have been freshly cleaned, isn’t it a waste?”

The shamelessness was at a high level at this point. Meanwhile, Ellie was gently pulling the bag from her tabletop toward us. Even so, when I hesitated, Weather opened his mouth in a low voice.

“Perhaps this story can help us decide. The number of people who deserted is a fairly famous article. So, on our side, we focus on rescue rather than killing.”

“A famous article?”

“Yes. Maybe Luca-san knows too.”

“Nadia Leonhart. Have you ever heard of it?”