chapter 39
Honestly, I thought I’d be able to fly again just by flapping my wings.
But in reality, I couldn’t even attempt it.
The wind was so strong that my body spun around like a pinwheel.
I couldn’t even spread my wings, let alone stabilize myself.
The spirits didn’t let go of me until the very end. It was a very kind gesture—but not a welcome one.
Because of their added weight, we were falling even faster.
Below us was a modest-sized forest.
Not far from there, I saw a very familiar mansion.
It was the Ibrante estate.
So it really had been a long time. We must’ve passed the capital and reached the Ibrante territory.
Everything that had looked so distant grew rapidly larger.
The lush forest became a dense thicket of trees, and I could even see birds flying between them.
Then, thanks to the enhanced vision I got after turning into a crow, I spotted a pool of water nestled in the center of the forest.
If it was visible from this height at that size… it must be a lake!
‘Guys! There’s a lake over there! Undine, it’s a lake!!’
“Caw! Caw caw! Screech!!”
Of course, the spirits couldn’t understand what I was saying.
— Lian! What the hell are you doing? Stop flailing!
— Please don’t move, Lord Lian! We’ll lose you like this!
— Ugh, seriously, stay still already!
Guys, you’re not holding me—you’re riding on top of me!
At this rate, I was going to fall to my death.
‘I have to struggle! No matter what, I’m getting back to my world!’
So please, just read my mind!
‘Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! huff huff Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake! Lake!’
“Caw! Caw! Screech! Caw!”
— Lord Lian, why are you acting like this? Is there something down there?
As if sensing something, Sylph glanced around. A moment later, her voice rang out, full of excitement.
— Over there! It’s a lake!!!
— Huh? You’re right! Hey, Waterhead, can you draw energy from that lake?
— I can… but it’s too far! We need to get closer!
‘C-closer? We’re already seconds from impact!’
The farther away the water source, the harder it was to draw nature’s energy.
Unless it was a vast body like the ocean, distance mattered a lot.
— U-Undine, shouldn’t we start already?!
— Not yet!
— Still?! At this rate, we’re all gonna die!
— Just a little more!
The ground was getting closer by the second.
I could now see the individual grains of dirt.
As I tightly shut my eyes, bracing for a tragic end—
— Aqua Shield!
A droplet of water formed by Undine enveloped me. And in the very next moment, I slammed into the ground.
Thunk!
The droplet surrounding me bounced like a ball upon impact.
‘Ugh!’
It bounced up high, then fell again in a perfect arc.
And bounced again.
Thunk, thunk, thunk, thunk, thun-turrrr.
After a few bounces, the droplet finally rolled to a stop.
I was completely exhausted.
My insides were twisted. I felt like I was going to puke my organs out.
As I gasped, the water surrounding me dissolved into a splash and scattered.
I lay sprawled out on the ground, soaked and miserable.
— Lian! Are you okay?!
— Lord Lian!
— Hey, contractor! Are you alive?!
…
I didn’t even have the strength to open my beak.
I passed out like I’d fallen into a coma.
The spirits surrounded the unconscious crow.
— This is Lian’s home, right? Let’s move them to their bedroom.
— Are you crazy? What if someone catches us?
— So we’re just going to leave Lian lying here? What if a wild animal comes by—are you gonna take responsibility?
— Why are you yelling at me?! I wasn’t the one who turned our contractor into a crow!
Undine and Salamander started bickering while Gnome fidgeted nervously between them.
Sylph, who had quietly watched the scene like it was a routine, finally spoke up.
— Let’s have a talk. Before Lord Lian wakes up.
Her voice was serious. Undine and Salamander stopped fighting and turned to her.
— Don’t be shocked, but… I think Lord Lian might be a Demon King Summoner.
A heavy silence fell.
Then the spirits who had been quiet let out awkward chuckles.
— Sylph, did you have a weird dream or something? Demon King Summoner? Seriously?
— What kind of insane nonsense is that? Not even funny—cut it out.
— The King once said that dark sorcerers have the ability to transform into the familiars of the demons they’ve contracted with. I hadn’t remembered it until now—but the moment Lord Lian turned into a crow, it all came back to me.
Sylph paused and looked at the unconscious crow.
— Humans like Lord Lian may not know, but we spirits do. What the Demon King’s familiar looks like.
The true name of the 8th Demon King was Raven. His familiar was a giant crow with three heads.
If what the Spirit King said was true, then just the fact that Lian had turned into a crow proved that Adrian had made a contract with the Demon King.
Undine asked in a dazed voice:
— …Are you saying our Lian really summoned the Demon King?
— To be precise, the original owner of that body is the one who summoned him—a dark sorcerer.
— My head’s gonna explode. So let me get this straight—our contractor fought and died defeating the Demon King that body’s original owner summoned, and now she’s possessed that sorcerer’s body?
— Yes.
The spirits couldn’t speak for a while.
They had finally found the sworn enemy they had cursed for so long—but they couldn’t take revenge.
Because that enemy was now their precious contractor.
But the rage and grief they had felt at their contractor’s death was far too great to just let go.
— I think Lord Lian might already suspect it too. That she turned into a crow because she’s a dark sorcerer. If she asks us directly, what do we say?
Back then, the expedition had witnessed every horror the Demon King had wrought.
Towns trampled. Villages ravaged by monsters. Humans driven mad and slaughtering each other at the hands of demons.
And despite it all, she had always kept a cheerful face.
She had never shed a single tear.
But the spirits knew—she had cried many times on the inside. They also knew how deeply she cursed the Demon King.
Strong emotions from the contractor were always felt clearly by their spirits.
— …Do we really have to tell her everything? Lian is Lian. She’s our precious contractor.
— Waterhead is right. I’m not saying we lie—we just don’t mention that the Demon King’s familiar is a crow. How about it, Sylph?
— I agree. Adrian committed terrible crimes—not only against us but all of humanity. But Lord Lian is our contractor. We must protect her. What do you think, Gnome?
— Hey, Gnome! What do you want to do?!
Gnome didn’t answer. He just lowered his head.
The other spirits sensed something was wrong and moved toward him—
That’s when the ground began to tremble slightly.
— Gasp! Gnome!
Gnome’s aura was off.
Veins like vines bulged on his earthen-colored body, and his eyes were glowing red, their focus lost.
The spirits had been pacifying Gnome’s unstable mind—shaken after their contractor’s death—by feeding his thirst for vengeance.
They had known it wasn’t the right way—but they had no other choice.
For the spirits, stabilizing Gnome had always come first.
And now, they had learned the truth about Adrian being the Demon King’s summoner.
It was no wonder Gnome had lost control.
— Gnome! Snap out of it! Lord Lian is not the enemy—she’s our contractor!
— Look at his eyes! He’s completely gone! Just hold him down!
If only the natural energy had been weaker. But this was a forest, on the surface.
The place where earth energy was strongest.
He wasn’t at full magical strength, but he could still easily bury a crow alive.
— Sylph! Protect the contractor! Waterhead, you take the hit!
— Leave it to me!
— Got it! I’ll restrain Gnome—Wahh!
Undine grabbed onto Gnome but was instantly flung away like a leaf.
Next, Salamander rushed in but was kicked aside and rolled across the ground.
— Gnome! Stop!
Sylph stood in Gnome’s path.
Thankfully, the wind was blowing.
She might be able to hold him off for a bit. She drew the sword she always carried and warned him:
— I don’t want to hurt you! Please come to your senses!
But Gnome’s blood-red eyes didn’t waver.
Even his body was turning pitch black—a sign that he was being consumed by malice.
At this rate, Gnome would become a dark spirit.
— Gnome!
As the spirits’ faces turned pale with fear—
A man, cigarette in his mouth, suddenly appeared, casually tapping one of Gnome’s sprouts with his fingertip.
And just like that, Gnome collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
His darkening body immediately returned to normal.
“Whew…”
The man exhaled smoke and lifted Gnome up.
His long, crimson hair fluttered in the breeze. Rather than “handsome,” the word “seductive” better suited his looks.
— The King!!!
