CH 112

Moving past the sign, Aled approached the little house. Has its arrival been noticed? It wasn’t long before another spirit appeared from within the house, and Aled broke out into a grin. “Hey! I was wondering who was living out here. Who knew it’d turn out to be you, Ayura!”

Unlike Aled’s beaming face, Ayura was quietly glaring at the uninvited guest, with an expression that clearly reflected that Aled’s arrival spelled a miserable day in its books. Ayura scanned its garden in search of the missing sign, which was nowhere to be found. It was obvious the unwanted visitor had tossed it. Ayura fought back the murderous impulse to dice Aled into tiny pieces.

‘I can’t believe that even though I’m dealing with this loon, I still have to keep my manners just because it’s an elder…’

Aside from being an elder spirit, Aled’s strength was noteworthy. Ayura would be at a disadvantage in a challenge of might, as the power of spiritual entities was almost always proportional to the years lived. Ayura could only lament that it lived in a filthy world where age equated to power. It was unfair, but what could be done?

‘Not to mention, Aled possesses a nice house too.’ The Spirits’s obsession over their dwellings were not without reason. Their strength was also correlated to their standard of living. Aled was fortunate in this regard—the eleven king and large company of the spirit realm had banded together to offer up a jewel of splendor as bait, with the purpose of luring the unruly spirit into a trapped semi-sealed state. The elven king suffered a financial loss, but all in all it was a happy ending. The elven king gained peace, the spirit realm company obtained riches, and Aled received a marvelous jewel that came to be known as the Emerald of Aled as his home. Still, Ayura couldn’t help but feel bitterness about Aled’s incredible luck.

“Hey, your house really sucks,” Aled remarked, as it flitted around the place.

‘This must be the power of The Forest of Tetin,’ Ayura thought, as it watched this nuisance of an elder fluttering about. A strong energy was emanating from Aled; it appeared the rumors that the elder spirit had attained the impressive jewel as its new dwelling was true. Why did this spirit have so much luck in acquiring excellent homes? Forget having a jewel as a permanent residence, all Ayura had managed to scrape together was this shabby hut located on the outskirts of the spirit realm.

While Ayura was busy lamenting his misfortune, Aled drew close and asked, “I do have lots to discuss, but I’m on a tight schedule. Ayura, I hear you’re knowledgeable about Eugendiph’s blood?”

“Is that your reason for coming?” Ayura asked.

“Huh? Didn’t you know that’s why I came looking for you? I thought that’s why you put the sign out front,” Aled said. The elder spirit’s admission that it had seen the sign swiftly earned it a glare from Ayura. Aled deftly avoided it by pretending to gaze off somewhere far off while whistling.

“The sign was for a past personal grudge, but… it doesn’t matter anymore. I can’t bear to sit through your long ramblings if we start arguing now,” Ayura sighed with exasperation, as it massaged its aching temples. “So, what did you want to know about Eugendiph’s blood? It’s all gone anyway.”

“Uh, about that…” Aled began.

“You aren’t thinking of causing mischief, are you? That blood is not something for a mindless spirit like you to get involved with,” Ayura scolded. It couldn’t shake the memory of the elven king single-handedly downing multiple bottles of liquor, all the while weeping. The elder spirit clearly had no awareness on how its antics had tormented the elven king.

“Mindless? What! Why! How!” Aled yelled defensively.

“Let’s move on. You’re allowed only one question, which I shall answer. After that, I ask you to leave and never return.”

“You have to save me, Ayura. I’m being threatened!” Aled exclaimed while reaching out to grab Ayura’s shoulders; the elder spirit’s expression suddenly turning serious.

“Instead of struggling like this, wouldn’t this be a great opportunity for you to enter an eternal sleep,” Ayura responded curtly, trying to wriggle out of Aled’s grip to no avail. The implied message was clear—rather than trying to prolong life, Aled was much better off setting off into its afterlife. Ayura didn’t want to deal with Aled’s nonsense. After all, how could there be someone capable of threatening Aled, an elder spirit who possessed enough power to easily cross dimensions.

“Hey! I’m being serious!” Aled grumbled in response to Ayura’s acerbic undertone.

“Oh, please. How could an elder spirit be threatened!” Ayura doubted Aled, but the elder spirit’s desperation was apparent. Not wanting to prolong Aled’s visit, Ayura decided to stop bickering with Aled. The quicker Aled was given an answer, the sooner Ayura would be rid of this unwanted guest.

“That’s not for you to know. Anyway, I need an answer. Is there a way to rid and purify one of Eugendiph’s blood? Specifically, is there a way to restore a body consumed by that accursed blood back to normal?”

“Huh. Someone asked me the exact same question,” Ayura remarked curiously. This was a surprise.

“What? Who did?” Aled demanded.

“The Archwitch.”

“Who?”

“The Archwitch asked.”