CH 110

*3rd person POV

Miel was busy going here and there.

‘The work of an Elementalist is more than I expected.’

It was because he was busy learning the application methods that he had never thought of doing thorough exchanges with other Elementalist.

‘Sigh...’

Feeling exhausted suddenly, he sighed briefly and rubbed his shoulder. Then he pulled something of her out of his pocket.

"...I have to give her this."

It was an item that took longer than he expected to obtain.

The gray stone, as if alive, was changing colors from gray close to black to white. It was as if the clouds of a storm were condensed into a small stone.

Miel looked at the Wind Spirit Stone for a while and put it back into his pocket. Because of its rarity, it was safer to deliver the spirit stone directly.

As he let out a sigh, expressing his regret, he heard the sound of flapping wings in his ear.

"Here you are, Marquis Albion. I was looking for you."

Seeing the crow transforming into a human figure in front of him, Miel hurriedly knelt on one of his knees and took a respectful stance.

"Rainelle-nim."

"Nice to see you, Marquis Albion. I'm sorry to say this as soon as we met, but can I ask you a favor?"

"Please say it."

Rainelle looked perplexed at his attitude of answering without a moment's hesitation. After wavering for a bit, she shook her head and opened her mouth,

"Lend me the power of the high-level wind spirit."

"...? High-level wind spirit?"

Rainelle nodded.

For her safety, he always attached a high-level spirit to her, but it was difficult to guess why she suddenly asked him such a favor.

"Excuse me, Rainelle-nim. Can you explain why?"

At that, Rainelle bit her lower lip. After a moment of silence, she answered his question,

"...I want to fly high."

"...Yes?"

"I have to fly high. More than any other bird."

At Rainelle’s incomprehensible words, Miel looked at her questioningly.

High? Why?

"...I'm sorry I couldn't tell you the reason in detail. Even if I tell you, I'm not sure if you'll believe me. ...So, Marquis Albion, I know this kind of request is difficult, but please. Can you lend me the power of the high-level wind spirit?"

At the words, Miel bowed his head.

‘What do you mean ‘please’? There's no need for that.’

"Of course."

"Thank you. Marquis Albion."

Miel flinched for a moment as he saw Rainelle smiling at him as if she was really glad.

He then said, while reaching his hand into his pocket,

"Rainelle-nim. I have something to give you."

"...? What is it?"

"This is the spirit stone that I promised you before. It contains the power of the wind spirits."

Saying that, he took out the Spirit Stone and handed it to Rainelle.

Rainelle, who received it reflexively, blinked her eyes.

"Oh, thank you."

"You said you wanted to fly high, so it would be helpful."

At those words, Rainellel looked at the Spirit Stone. Looking at her like that, Miel infused his magic power so that she could see the high-level wind spirit.

When a spirit suddenly appeared near her, Rainelle flinched as if she was startled.

"Help Rainelle-nim."

"...Does that mean you want me to listen to that crow and act according to her wish?"

At that, Miel nodded his head. Seeing his attitude, the spirit grumbled inwardly, but did not speak out.

It was because no matter how much it said that its contractor was Miel, he did not listen even with his ears open. And so, the spirit approached Rainelle without a word.

"---Thank you so much, Marquis Albion. How should I repay you?"

"Please don't say that. Rainelle-nim."

‘Things like this are nothing compared to being saved by you.’

Swallowing those words, Miel bowed his head silently. After pausing for a moment, Rainelle said, “I'll be back soon” and returned to the form of a crow.

Then she flew high towards the blue sky.

As she said, high, very high.

*Rainelle’s POV

Before flying high, I visited Miel to borrow the power of his contract spirit.

---Of course, I have a contract with Mui, but Mui is a low-level spirit. Besides, I lacked the wing compared to a wild crow, so I needed help to fly high. More powerful help than what low-level spirit can offer.

That's why I swung my wings hard.

I'll get help if I'm tired, but I'll have to do as much as I can before then.

Since the Black Bird is the assistant of God and is a divine beast, I thought I have to show that I worked hard to draw a positive response.

I flew high, worrying about what to do if the Black Bird thought badly of me.

I went higher, and higher.

As I flew higher, the air became quite cold, enough to make my wings stiff. In addition, the wind started to blow more and more strongly.

The high-level wind spirit silently enveloped my body in its wind. Then, the cold went away, but I briefly thought about what to do with the wind of nature that started to blow wildly.

Should I ride the wind?

But, it seems that even if I can go with the flow of the wind, I will not be able to fly higher. So I turned my head and looked at the spirit.

Then the spirit slightly waved the tip of its wings. After that, I felt my body rise. It was as if the underside of my wings were supported.

I narrowed my eyes and swung my wings slightly. Then, my body rose upwards easily and lightly. It was incomparable to when I flew by myself. I was dumbfounded as it felt as if I was climbing the stairs before, and now I had climbed on an escalator.

I turned my head and looked at the spirit. Then it gazed back like it was asking, “Is this okay?”

...I nodded my head as I felt stabbed by the figure of the spirit, who was somehow full of dissatisfaction.

Well, it wouldn't be pleasant to listen to a mere crow's orders.

But now I have no choice but to fly high. This is just a straw-like possibility, but it's better than nothing.

I continued to increase my altitude by receiving the power of the spirit. ...still, the hardships remained the same. Even if you go up the stairs or get on the escalator, it was still difficult. Of course, it takes less power, but...

How long do I have to go up?

The mental hardship made me groan inwardly. I flapped my wings.

Should I just give up and go down? There's no guarantee that I'll ever meet the Black Bird this way, so maybe I've been too optimistic?

The thought of giving up came rushing through me. It was a pity that I'd flown so high, but it was still very difficult.

Should I give up or not? I’m so tired that I want to rest. But it's a waste when I’ve reached so much height.

...the sky became dark all of a sudden as my mind became complicated by various thoughts.

What? Are these clouds?

But when I flew up earlier, there were not that many clouds...

I inadvertently raised my head and opened my beak without realizing it at the sight. If I had been in human form, the sight would cause me to rub my eyes, doubting whether what I see was real.

There was a bird.

A gigantic bird with three pairs of wings and shiny black feathers. The legs also had feathers just like the three pairs of wings, so if not looking carefully, it would look like there were four pairs of wings.

It had black feathers like a crow, but on its wings, neck, and around the eyes, golden feathers formed a delicate pattern as if it had been painted. The long, phoenix-like tail feathers were also waving beautifully in black and gold.

The black bird, who was slowly flapping its huge wings, turned its head and looked at me. Its eyes, a mix of red and gold, were reminiscent of the sun.

“You are the first child to have flown all the way here.”

A warm voice can be heard. It was a warm, comfortable, and gentle voice. Like a mother's voice reaching the ears of a child swimming through amniotic fluid.

"Come closer, my dear sweet child who flew high."

Regardless of my will, my body went up and up. In just a moment, I was flying near the Black Bird’s head.

The sun-embracing eyes gently curved. Its large, black beak clattered, and its voice rang in my head,

"Child who ate my fragment, the first to fly high, do you want to meet me? Do you want to talk to me? Let me hear your voice, your thoughts. The work of the earth."

It was as if this Black Bird was a grandmother or a grandfather who sat their granddaughter on their lap, and asked what she did today. Unbeknownst to me, the gentle voice made my heart flutter.

"Caw... (Excuse me...)"

"Yes, sweetheart. What do you want to say?"

"---Caaw… (---My wings hurt so much…)"

"Oh, my. It must have been difficult for you, who are delicate."

Suddenly, white clouds gathered around us. When the puffy clouds came together, the Black Bird landed on the cloud as if telling me “You can do this”.

I stepped on the cloud too while paying attention to the Black Bird who was sitting comfortably on the cloud as if it was sitting on a sofa. Then, my eyes widened at the sensation I felt on my feet.

It was soft like cotton, and there was nothing like the feeling of being entangled. The pleasant coolness seemed to cool my feet which got hot from moving, so I inflated my feathers without realizing it.

“Are you alright now, Baby?”

"Caaw. (Thank you.)"

"Yeah. I'm glad you're okay."

The Black Bird was very friendly. It seems as if it has been waiting for this moment...

Am I mistaken?

"What's the reason my sweet baby flew so high?"

I swallowed my saliva at the words of the Black Bird that gently asked the question.

The original purpose was to meet you and gain power.

But when I think about what I've been through while possessing a crow, I feel like crying from the inside out.

Intellectual deterioration!! Crowization1! What can you do? Of course, it may not be the Black Bird's fault, but it's at least still divine!

"Caaw, caaw. (I want to know why I became a crow, and there are other reasons as well.)"

The words that came out of my mouth, or rather my beak, were reflexive. It was as if several thoughts came out of nowhere at the same time and fought each other over who should go first. ...Having said that, I really wondered,

Why am I possessing a crow? Why? For what?

The Black Bird blinked slowly, then it asked while tilting its head slightly to the side,

"---Do you hate crows?"

"Caaw, caw caaw. (It's not that I hate it, but it's more stupid and instinctive than when I was a human.)"

The Black Bird was listening calmly. Then, for some reason, I felt emotional, and the words I had stored inside came pouring out,

"Caaw, caaw! Caaw, caaw, caw! Caaw, caaw! Caaw, caaw! (If this was a game or a novel, I would have been very insulted while watching it! I was a human being, but my thought became stupid and simple, like a child! No matter how stupid I am, I was a human! I wasn't talented or a genius, but still, at least I didn't act simple!)"

The Black Bird blinked slowly. Then it opened its beak slightly,

"So, are you unhappy?"

At those words, I was speechless.

"Is your life unhappy because you're dumber and simpler than you were when you were a human being?"

When asked if I’m unhappy, I’m not... I couldn't say I’m unhappy. Of course, my wing was pierced by an arrow, broken, and I was beaten up by that bastard Luwellin… but I couldn't say I am unhappy.

No, my life is rather luxurious. I can play with jewels, and my living place is fancy...

Above all, I met Karmeut.

"---Caw. (---No.)"

"I don't fully understand your analogy, but I do understand that you care about other people’s eyes. So let me ask you. Do hyenas change their ways of living because their cry sounds like a sneer and humans hate them for stealing and eating corpses? Do snakes try not to flick their tongue because it's seen as creepy?"

The black bird spread one wing.

"Is there an animal that listened to humans and change their way of life?"

If there is such an animal, it shouldn't be difficult for a zookeeper. Raising animals won’t be difficult.

"Caw. (No.)"

"You used to be human, but now you are a crow. Therefore, ignore human gazes. A flying bird does not understand the mind of a fish that swims in the sea."

After saying so, the Black Bird flapped its wings lightly and continued saying,

"It doesn't matter how other people see you. Your life is for yourself. It doesn't really matter what other people think. So don’t think about it."

The Black Bird said with a soothing voice.

***

Notes:

1  Is that even a word?↩