Chapter 194 -----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 194
Chapter Title: The Shadow's Embrace
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[A shadow spirit? I've never heard of such a thing.]
Ignit stared at Elsie with a dry expression.
[Judging by your clear will, you must be a spirit of considerable power. So, what is it you wish to discuss with me? Do you want to come under my command?]
At his question, Elsie's eyes widened before she smiled sweetly.
[No. I may look like this now, but I, too, am a Great Spirit. As a spirit possessing the authority of dominion, I cannot bow my head to another.]
[Nonsense. It's impossible for two Great Spirits of the same attribute to exist in the same era.]
[Yes. I am a spirit of the past who should not exist in this world.]
[Are you a mad spirit?]
Despite the insulting words, Elsie merely kept her sweet smile.
Any other Great Spirit would not have let such a comment slide.
To be the Great Spirit of Darkness meant being a king to all spirits of darkness, a title that would not be out of place.
That dominion was so mighty it could influence not only dark spirits but those of other attributes as well.
If one wished, it was possible to ascend to the position of an absolute ruler over a vast territory, much like Undine, the spirit of the deep sea.
To receive such an insult could easily spark a war between Great Spirits, devastating the surrounding area.
But Elsie smiled.
She felt no offense.
Elsie was a being of the past, brought to the present by the divine miracle known as the Hero Record.
Anyone who heard her story would have reacted just as Ignit had.
'Perhaps if I were in his situation, I would have felt the same.'
Ignit found Elsie's reaction intriguing.
[Let's assume you truly are a Great Spirit of the past. Even so, I have never heard the name 'shadow spirit' anywhere.]
[Yes. That is because I lived in this world for only a very short time.]
Taking a step forward, Elsie smiled brightly.
She was the only Great Spirit in the world whose name was never recorded in history.
[What does a Great Spirit who failed to even leave a name in history want to discuss with me?]
[Why do you hate people?]
[Because they are vile creatures.]
Ignit stated it flatly.
[The other Great Spirits say that only by forging a pact with the races of the earth does a spirit find its worth. That we Great Spirits have a duty to lend our strength to those who are worthy.]
Ignit tilted his head.
[But is there any need to do so for the utterly vile beings of the earth?]
Dark spirits are regarded as the most somber of all.
At one time, they were symbols of misfortune and ill omens, and they were even denounced as beings of Tartaros itself.
Spirits forced to cultivate their power in the shade, not the light.
Because of this trait, people turned away from dark spirits.
Even those with the aptitude to contract with a dark spirit would deny their own potential.
As a result, the only ones who contracted with dark spirits were naturally those with unfortunate destinies, desperate for power.
Ignit was a Great Spirit who had existed for nearly a thousand years.
He had seen far too much of humanity's dark side.
[Is your contractor not the same?]
Ignit looked at Leo and spoke without expression.
[He may be a student at Lumerne, but he must have a wretched past.]
At Ignit's words, Elsie glanced at Leo.
She didn't know the details of Leo's life.
But she knew the path he had walked.
[Yes. Leo has likely lived in a darkness I cannot even begin to imagine.]
Elsie was right.
Leo had lived through the Age of Calamity.
He had survived by witnessing all manner of depravity, and even during his time with the Erebos Subjugation Team, he had buried the vile in the shadows of history.
Driven by the single-minded belief that he couldn't let his comrades' hands be stained with blood, he secretly took on the dirty work himself.
If the other Great Heroes cast off the darkness and walked toward the light…
Kyle had steeped his feet in darkness to move toward the light.
That was the difference between Kyle and the other Great Heroes.
'The me from the past, whom I don't even remember, must have been drawn to that side of Kyle.'
[I haven't lived as long as you, nor have I likely experienced as much misfortune.]
Elsie looked at Ignit with eyes full of pity.
[But if you are also a spirit of darkness, you must be drawn to the light, no?]
It was instinct for a spirit of darkness to be drawn to light.
[Don't you wish to see the light as well?]
[The light, you say.]
At Elsie's question, Ignit understood why this being, claiming to be a Great Spirit of the past, had approached him.
[Do you understand me and take pity on me?]
[Yes.]
Seeing Elsie nod, the corners of Ignit's mouth curled up.
[Then prove it.]
[Prove… what?]
[That you understand my darkness.]
An ominous darkness began to seep out from around Ignit.
[If you understand my darkness, you should be able to maintain your sanity even within this abyss.]
This was on a completely different level from the darkness that had enveloped Leo and Ril just moments before.
[If you wish to speak with me, that would be the first step.]
Elsie looked at Leo.
She was worried that her own insistence might endanger her contractor.
Seeing her concern, Leo chuckled and said,
"Elsie. Who do you think I am?"
His question made Elsie's eyes widen.
Then, she smiled brightly.
['The Survivor.']
"Exactly. So I don't know how great this abyss is, but there's no reason to worry about me. No matter how heavy it is, it can't possibly be heavier than what I've carried."
At the words of the man who once shouldered the world, Elsie nodded and turned back to Ignit.
[Very well.]
Watching Elsie, Leo smiled bitterly to himself.
'She's just too kind.'
Her concern for Ignit was born of pure altruism.
She understood his misfortune and suffering, and she truly pitied him.
It was because she was that kind of person that she had ultimately sacrificed herself for the world, even after coming to hate it.
*Fwoosh-!*
Ignit's abyss engulfed Leo.
He felt a throbbing pain in his head.
'Mental destruction.'
The endless abyss began to consume Leo's mind.
Ignit's mental anguish and suffering flooded into his head.
The moment he recognized it…
*Step— Step—*
[What?]
Ignit's face stiffened.
Leo was walking out of the abyss toward him, completely unfazed.
[How in the world?]
"Isn't it simple?"
Leo smiled.
"It just means I've lived a life more wretched than yours."
There was no way Leo, who had lived through the Age of Calamity, could have been happier than Ignit, who had lived through an age of peace.
No matter what anyone said, Kyle had witnessed the world on the brink of annihilation.
Even if Ignit had lived in darkness for nearly a thousand years, the depths of the darkness they had experienced were different.
"And."
Leo glanced at the mass of the abyss.
A massive shadow formed around it.
Soon, the shadow swallowed the abyss.
The abyss thrashed wildly.
But it soon calmed, growing still within the shadow's embrace.
Seeing this, Ignit's face was painted with astonishment.
[My darkness was dominated?]
[I didn't dominate it. I simply embraced your darkness.]
The shadow receded, revealing a beautiful woman.
Leo's expression was one of surprise.
Elsie's form had changed.
From the appearance of a young girl to that of a mature woman.
She looked just like the Elsie that Kyle had first met.
And the power she exuded had grown stronger as well.
'Did she absorb the power of the abyssal spirit?'
Elsie was a Great Spirit, but she was not in her complete state.
She was a subordinate spirit who couldn't exist without maintaining her contract with Leo.
In other words, the power she could wield was determined by Leo's capacity.
But now, she was emanating a formidable power.
Of course, it was still a far cry from the power Leo remembered from the past.
Even so, Elsie had succeeded in making Ignit's darkness her own.
'Did she devour not only its power but its very nature as well?'
Leo noticed that one of Elsie's eyes, which had once glittered like obsidian, was now tinged with a faint darkness.
Though both were black, this eye was different from her usual one.
[Are you truly a Great Spirit?]
Ignit's voice trembled.
Even among Great Spirits, there were differences in power.
In terms of the authority of dominion, Elsie was far more powerful than Ignit.
[Yes. I told you, didn't I? I am your distant senior.]
Elsie smiled sweetly and approached Ignit.
With each step she took, more of Ignit's darkness was absorbed into her.
As she devoured Ignit's power, Elsie was literally reclaiming the majesty of a Great Spirit.
Conversely, Ignit's body grew smaller and smaller.
His face contorted, Ignit looked up at Elsie and asked.
[What do you want from me? To extinguish me and become the new Great Spirit?]
At his question, Elsie's eyes widened, and she burst into laughter.
[As if I would do such a thing!]
Elsie reached out and gently patted Ignit's head.
[I just wanted to tell you not to hate people.]
Elsie took a step back.
As she did, her power began to flow back into Ignit.
[You are living in such a beautiful world, aren't you? Yet seeing you shoulder your own unhappiness seemed so pitiful.]
Elsie could never forget the awe she felt the first time she saw the night sky.
The fact that something so beautiful existed made her feel as if she had the whole world.
To live in such a world, yet lead a gloomy life without a contractor…
Elsie's body gradually shrank back to that of a young girl.
Her appearance soon matched Ignit's in age.
[Try to enjoy life a little more. I'm sure there is a brilliant contractor out there who is a perfect match for you. Though I've lived a shorter life than you, I am still your senior, so don't take my words lightly.]
Ignit silently watched the brightly smiling Elsie before speaking.
[You… are a being who shines more beautifully than a spirit of light.]
[Hehe, thank you.]
Now the size of a palm, Elsie flew up and perched on Leo's shoulder.
Just then.
*Fwoosh-!*
"Puha!"
Ril burst through the darkness.
"Leo! I'm here to save—."
She spoke urgently, but then she saw Leo standing there perfectly fine and her expression turned glum.
"...You escaped before I did, Leo."
"I was lucky."
"Ugh… I really wanted to show you the dignity of a senior this time."
As Ril sulked, Ignit looked at her with a fed-up expression.
[What is that thing? A monster?]
"A monster! I have a perfectly fine nickname, the Spirit Master of the Gale! Do not call me by such a strange name!"
Ril, who hated being teased as a monster girl, flared up.
Watching her, Elsie muttered.
[At this point, I think she really might be a monster.]
In Leo's case, Ignit's darkness had no effect on him to begin with.
So there was nothing to escape from.
But Ril was different.
She had been caught in Ignit's abyss.
Yet, she had overcome that darkness and escaped.
It was an astonishing feat, enough to be acknowledged by both a Great Spirit of the distant past and a Great Spirit of the present.
And even by a Great Hero.
"I see now. I understand why Senior Elena and Senior Hark call her a monster girl."
"Leo! You too!"
Just as Ril was on the verge of tears.
*CRASH-!*
"Hah! Juniors! Your senior is here to save—."
Jin, who had arrived late by smashing through the ceiling, shouted gallantly, only to spot the two of them standing unharmed. He then muttered in a defeated voice.
"...You escaped on your own? Are you two really first and second years?"
Jin knew about the mind-destroying properties of the abyssal spirit, so he had broken through the spirit legion as quickly as possible to reach the core area.
Shaking his head at his juniors' competence, Jin stood before Ignit.
"It's been a while, Ignit."
[So it has, Knight of Undine.]
"No matter how much you hate people, you know this has gone too far."
Sensing Jin's killing intent, Ignit said.
[I will accept the invitation, so withdraw your hostility.]
Ignit retracted his darkness.
Then he looked at Leo and Ril and said.
[I will also consider contracting with students from Lumerne.]
At his words, Ril and Jin wore expressions of shock.
Ignit, who hadn't taken a contractor for hundreds of years because he disliked people, was considering one?
"Is it because of Leo?"
Ril asked, impressed.
Since she had seen Leo already talking with Ignit before she managed to escape on her own, she assumed Leo had persuaded him.
At Ril's words, Ignit replied in a toneless voice.
[I have no interest in a philanderer.]
'A philanderer? Is it because Leo is the Phoenix's contractor?'
Unable to understand, Ril could only tilt her head in confusion.
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