127-121 Estia's past

As we left the cave that led to the dwarven kingdom, it was completely light and clear.

"So why the ambush?

At the entrance to the cave was Estia.

''Well you can't understand me!

It's Esther. I questioned you.

Estia began to sob.

''........Luciel-sama, is this the one you call Estia?''

I'm just a little girl.

"...do we inherently know about this too?

After all, Lionel and the others didn't remember Estia at all.

More importantly, when they became slaves, if they didn't notice, they could have escaped, right? My doubts about Esther are only deepening.

But the tears are still there... no, I can't relax, because even in acting, there are supposed to be things that make you cry... I start to think about that as I speak.

'I'm pretty sure this is Estia. Even if you cry, Estia, your suspicions about you will not be cleared. Why weren't you in the slave break room with the former slaves?

''It's been a long time since the Dark Spirit manifested and used his power, and everyone forgot about me...''

So?

''The Dark Spirit got angry and tried to attack you all, so I left the scene.

What happened to the Dark Spirit?

They can't be seen until they are in the cave or at night.

That sounds plausible but it's too dangerous and there's not a single benefit to taking them to Rockford.

'Well, you're not a slave, so do your best to live.

Help me, please.

That expression on Estia's face was really a look of urgency.

Deciding that there was a risk of getting a grudge if this was the case, I decided to refuse after listening to her for a while.

Can you explain why?

Estia said she was afraid of the spirits... as soon as I told her that, her body shook, a surprised expression appeared on her face, and she started crying again.

''I just want to get along with the spirits...''

She said that she didn't want to manipulate the spirits or anything like that.

However, she thought she could unconsciously borrow power from the spirits if she felt she was in danger, but in reality, she was taking away the spirits' power without their permission.

''........If that's true, then they're quite dangerous.''

..........

She froze with her head down.

'Couldn't you ask the dark spirits to train them to not take away your power?

They said I could control it at some point.

Is that for a genie?

''No, these are the people who raised me. The Dark Spirit gets a sad face when you talk about it...

Is it normal to be out of control? Or ... the one who raised me.

If it were me, you'd be like Master Brod.

If he's a reincarnation, I'm wondering where he learned that fighting skill.

How old is Estia?

I'm 17 years old.

....Huh? Did you misread it?

"...when did you learn to see and talk to spirits?

When I was little... I used to be so weak that I could die at any time.

And my parents told me to go to a place where they could treat me... I still vaguely remember the time I was sold.

They said it was an experiment and made me take all sorts of drugs, they forced me to wield a sword even when I had a fever, and I was always covered in scars.

And I was always lonely.

At some point, after a few years of this, I started to see the dark spirits.

Then my body started to feel better.

...You mean you summoned the spirits on your own? Or was there an original predisposition? The effects of the drug they say they were given... what? I asked him just what I was wondering.

'Isn't it strange that you were sold into slavery and then caught as a slave again?'

I've been freed from slavery.

...I'm glad you let me go.

'At one point I asked for emancipation and he complied so easily that I stuttered, but apparently it was the dark spirits who did it.

''I've always wondered, did you use forget-me-not magic when you left the audience room? Not even a trace of it... and how is it that the spirit of the earth didn't notice the spirit of darkness?

"...that's the price of power.

Quid pro quo?

Esther continued to speak with a dark look on her face.

''Where I fought the queen ants, my defensive instincts kicked in and I used the spirits' power.

Because I took away the life magic power of the spirits, all of them except for the contracted spirits, the Darkness Spirits, will take a break to regain their power.

On the contrary, only the dark spirits would get energized and drift away, dripping a cloaking effect in the area.

To explain the cost in simple terms, originally, by the time we left the cave, I was supposed to have slipped from your memories.

But for some reason, I was unable to interfere with Luciel-sama's memories alone.

Those eyes didn't feel like they were telling a lie.

I just couldn't gauge whether she was worthy of trust.

If there was no threat, I had the option of taking her to Rockford. But I couldn't trust her that much.

'I don't know if the dark spirits wanting to save Estia are running amok, or if Estia is unconsciously running amok.

In a world where there is no exchange of life, one could think that would be fine. But in this world, there's no way I can take you right now.

''Well that's right. You freed me from slavery I'm grateful for that alone.

As I look at Esther, who forced a smile on her face, I still wonder if this decision is the right one.

I decided to procrastinate until I got information on what was the right thing to do.

'I'll lend you this sword and shield. And I'll write a note to King Rockwell so that he can wait in the dwarven kingdom for you.

What?

"I don't intend to be so insane as to abandon those who can't cook.

'Thank you. Thank you.

I took out the parchment from the magic bag and wrote a letter to King Rockwell while Estia thanked me for my help.

As I wrote the letter, I thought to myself, if the mindset and scale of the spirits were different, wouldn't I be able to understand a little bit of the spirits' mindset and other things through Estia?

I decided to see him again, considering the benefits of taking him with me.

''I will be back here in ten days. Until then, I hope you're making a decent living in the Dwarven Kingdom.

'I understand. I look forward to seeing you again.

He let Forenoir and the others out with the key of the hermit and was about to return to Rockford when Forenoir walked up to Estia.

'What, what is it?'

Esther utters a puzzled look.

'What's the matter, Forêt Noir?'

Forenoire didn't respond to my question, but stopped in front of Estia and looked into her face.

After a dozen seconds in time, Estia poked her knee.

After that, Forenoire walked leisurely towards us........

''What did you do?''

"Burrrrrrr.

Forenoire only shook her head.

But Esther was different.

She just stared at Forenoire like a possession had fallen out of her, and she just stared at Forenoire.

Lionel straddled his horse, Ketty and the others got into the carriage and finished getting ready to leave, and as I straddled Forenoire, I called out to Estia.

If you can talk to the spirit of darkness, you had better tell them how painful it is to have your memories forgotten by the people around you, unlike in the spirit world. Surely there must be a huge gap between spirits and people's thoughts.

''....Okay. I'll ask the dark spirits to help you.

Bye.

Have a good day, dear.

We left for Rockford, with Esther seeing us off.

A few minutes after we left, Lionel spoke up before I did.

'That girl was probably in the Illimassia Empire.

What makes you think that?

'It's possible that being physically ill at a young age may have been a job aptitude that wasn't appropriate for your body.

Possibilities, right?

There is an ongoing effort in the Empire to collect such children and make them into Imperial soldiers.

"...why?

Ostensibly it's billed as a cure, but really it's to make you resent the other countries that brought you here by becoming an Imperial soldier.

You mean brainwashing?

'Yes. If you're little, you won't even know you've been brainwashed.

"...I've heard similar stories before in Meratni...

Botakouri's daughter was like that, wasn't she?

When you think about it... what happens to a slave sold to the Empire?

"By the way, what happens to adult slaves sold by other countries to the Empire?

It's hard to say, but there have been rumors of it being passed from one country to another, bought as a pet, used to train children ... for human experimentation.

This is about Lionel's betrayal, isn't it?

''........Yes, it will. The darkness of the Empire is much deeper than I thought.

'But why would you take in a sickly child based on the possibility alone?

''Because the emperor of the Illumassia Empire was in the same situation. His weak body changed once he reached adulthood, and when he took up a special job, he quickly rose to the position of emperor.

...and what was the result?

'I don't know the specifics, but I've heard it's working reasonably well. I've also heard that if you can't get a special or advanced job, you'll be sold back to another country...

Do you ever spend a lot of money treating and educating people and selling them?

Next time I get a chance to see Esther again, I don't know if she'll answer me, but I decided to ask her a question.