Episode 126
Cold water droplets splashed onto my cheeks. I opened my eyes and saw the spirits waiting for me. They fluttered around excitedly, their energy swirling.
The most excited one was, of course, the Spirit King of the Wind.
—You have to wake up. We promised to ruin today, didn’t we?
“Yes, we should hurry. Heron will be exhausted if I stay here too long.”
This was an important day, a day not even sleep could interrupt.
I calmed my racing heart and looked at the bunch of keys in my hand.
—You’ll need keys to open the locked doors. I’ve prepared them for you.
“You seem more excited than I am.”
—Of course, I am! I’ve been wanting to meet you and help you for so long, and now it’s finally happening! You know I haven’t had a contractor who could summon me to the human world in ages.
It was referring to me, but paradoxically, its words weren’t directed at me.
“She would have been happy to hear that. It’s nice to have someone go out of their way for you.”
—I trust your words.
“Right?”
I smiled, and a playful breeze ruffled my hair and tickled my cheek.
“Ah, that tickles.”
The Spirit King of the Wind spoke in a wistful tone,
—You’re so lovely. It’s a shame that I won’t be able to see you often like this anymore. I was hoping you would find true happiness with my contractor.
It was a rather awkward remark. Both the spirit and its contractor were alike.
“That ship has sailed. I have someone waiting for me.”
—Yes, you have to go back to him. Now, shall we leave this room? I’ll show you the secret passage.
“What about the priests guarding my room?”
—I’ve already told my contractor. She’ll take care of them. She’s quite efficient in those matters. Hee hee.
Its laughter sounded villainous.
But for some reason, I also chuckled. It felt like I could hear a bird chirping happily somewhere.
The memory engraved in this soul replayed. The days spent alone in a strange place.
But now, spirits who loved me for who I was surrounded me. The wind guided me, and the divine power imbued in this land returned to me.
The feeling of being whole again was new.
‘Ah, so this is how it felt.’
I understood the sweet taste of freedom that little bird had experienced. It was a life it didn’t want to repeat.
I walked down the eerily empty hallway and reached a dead end.
Seeing only a white wall, I turned around. The Spirit King gestured towards the wall, as if knocking.
I mimicked its movements, and I heard a heavy grinding sound as something slid open. The white wall disappeared, revealing a dark passage.
—It’s a secret passage, so it’s safe until we reach the Jewel Room. But there are people guarding that room. I’ll take care of them.
“How quickly will they notice I’m here?”
—They’ll notice as soon as I touch the guards. But it’s okay.
A gust of wind pushed me forward. I could see a faint light at the end of the dark passage.
—Because all that’s left for you is happiness.
“She’s gone?”
The High Priest asked coldly, and the two priests kneeling before him stammered their excuses.
“W-we apologize. The three of us were guarding her, but somehow, we all suddenly felt… tired…”
“Enough. Where’s the other priest?”
“He… he was gone when we woke up.”
The High Priest’s smile disappeared at their answer. His eyes turned cold and sharp.
“It seems he helped that… creature out of pity. Interesting.”
“H-High Priest?”
“We’ll proceed with the Divine Ceremony as planned. Even if she escaped, she wouldn’t have left the Holy Kingdom yet. If we find her and she refuses to cooperate, we’ll just kill her and find a replacement. There’s no use for something that only causes trouble.”
“But… what if she’s gone somewhere we can’t find her…?”
The High Priest scoffed at a priest’s cautious question.
They had always left the cage door open. But it was the sacred artifact that chose to confine itself.
They had been worried about what might happen to it after the unexpected theft, but it had returned in the end.
Betrayed by the one it trusted and with no way to return, there was no one else to cherish it but them.
“Where would it go? If it knows it has nowhere else to belong, it will eventually return to its cage, even if it doesn’t want to.”
And it wouldn’t be able to abandon everything and run away without a shred of guilt, as it had always done. That foolish sense of responsibility and misplaced kindness were shackles binding its feet, even without them having to do anything.
‘What a useful tool.’
Hiding his dark thoughts, the High Priest smiled gently and replied,
“Don’t worry and just focus on the preparations. Today is a very important day for us.”
The worried priests finally lowered their heads at his words.
The High Priest slowly descended the stairs and said,
“Then let’s go and finalize the preparations. Everything is in place. Our Holy Kingdom will now be eternally protected by the gods’ representative.”
“Yes, Your Holiness.”
But the moment he left the room, the High Priest clenched his fists, the veins bulging.
He had sensed it during the meeting. The energy signature he felt was from the secret passage leading to the Jewel Room.
How did that bird find that passage, known only to a select few within the temple?
“So it wasn’t an escape, but an unauthorized exploration of the temple.”
But he couldn’t tell the other priests. It might jeopardize today’s ceremony.
If his priests objected and the ceremony was canceled because of this small transgression, all their deals would fall through.
‘What is it planning to do with that jewel? Judging by the energy I’m sensing, it doesn’t seem like she’s trying to destroy it.’
It was a jewel that couldn’t be easily destroyed anyway. And that bird was probably snooping around, unaware that he could sense her energy.
He scoffed and calmed himself down, but a nagging unease lingered.
He tried to ignore it and told himself that everything would be fine. Because there had never been a case of a bird born in the Holy Kingdom leaving.
As if on cue, another priest approached him.
“High Priest, the preparations are complete.”
“Thank you. Then let’s begin the ceremony.”
What could it possibly do in this kingdom, bound by the same divine power?
That thought was prevalent, yet he couldn’t shake off the anxiety that perhaps the sacred artifact had found a way to escape their control.
The High Priest, his mind racing with worry, gave a quiet order,
“Before that, capture the sacred artifact roaming the temple and bring her to the designated place. You’re authorized to use force, but make sure she’s not seriously injured. Don’t make things difficult for me by losing her.”
The priest bowed his head at his sharp, menacing words.
“Yes, Your Holiness.”
“She’s near the jewel where the divine power is stored, so bring that as well. I’ll say it again, I won’t tolerate any mistakes.”
The High Priest’s face, a moment ago menacing, softened into a gentle smile.
He had to put on his benevolent mask again; he was about to face the people he had carefully gathered for the glory of the Holy Kingdom.
The High Priest left without hesitation. The priest, who had witnessed his true nature, shuddered.
‘If I fail to bring her back after such a strict order, I’ll be in big trouble.’
The priest bit his thumbnail, blaming his colleagues for losing the sacred artifact, and hurried towards the location the High Priest had mentioned.
‘They should have kept a closer watch. Now I’m the one who has to deal with this!’
The High Priest had told him where the sacred artifact was, but if she was intentionally hiding, there was no guarantee she would still be there. Recapturing her would be difficult.
The priest lamented being caught in the High Priest’s crosshairs and having to take responsibility.
But when he arrived, he was met with an unexpected sight. He frowned, puzzled, seeing the sacred artifact calmly sitting there, toying with a fist-sized, blue jewel emitting a soft light.
She approached him as if asking why he was so late.
“Why are you so late? You told me to get ready.”
“H-here… give me that jewel. It’s dangerous for you to have it.”
The woman looked at the jewel and then readily handed it over.
“It doesn’t look dangerous, but since you’re asking… Here.”
The priest took the jewel and checked it. There were no scratches on the surface, and it shimmered as brightly as before.
“It seems you haven’t done anything foolish. Then please follow me. His Holiness is waiting, and the ceremony is about to begin.”
“What if I don’t want to go?”
“You have no choice. Your wishes don’t matter to us.”
“That’s rather sad.”
The sacred artifact spoke nonchalantly, even though she knew how she was being treated. He found it strange, but he was too preoccupied with following the High Priest’s orders to think about it.
“Be grateful that you’re not being punished for running away and trespassing, since everyone else is busy.”
“Yes, I apologize. By the way, I’m looking forward to the ceremony. Please take me there quickly.”
“We will.”
Lily chuckled, as if amused by something, and followed the priest.
Everything was going according to plan.