Chapter 230


    <strong>CHAPTER 230 – ALTHEA’S LIFE</strong>


    I got on Olivia’s back and flew to the sky .


    I only brought Eleanor and Hikari and headed towards the north .


    『Are you sure it’s over here?』


    「Eleanor asked」


    「I would not forget a human’s smell once I have met them . As long as they are still alive, I can track them . That human especially possesses a strong smell, so there is no way I can be wrong」


    Olivia in her dragon form said with a heavy tone .


    Because her body became bigger, not only her tone was heavy, but her voice was loud as well .


    She would release a pressure that ordinary humans would feel frightened just by talking to her .


    Despite that, more than half of that pressure is neutralized .


    It’s because Hikari is hanging by her neck .


    Olivia, O-chan .


    Although they’re essentially different dragons, Hikari treats Olivia just like how she does with Chibi Dragon .


    And Olivia epts that . Because of how heartwarming they look, the pressure she releases decreased even more .


    And I don’t really mind it like that, so I ignored it, and continued to talk with Olivia .


    「What kind of ce is in this direction? Althea seems to be worried about Rodotos so, is it a city?」


    That’s right, it’s Althea .


    To establish Mercouri as a kingdom, a proper internal affair is essential after defeating the Empire .


    The other four kingdoms might be able to do something about it, but Mercouri only has Rex and Soora who I support .


    One of them is a man from a country vige and the other is a woman from a vige who chose to cease connection with the world .


    There was no way they could govern .


    And so, therees Althea .


    The Great Sage Althea, the woman who was Rodotos’s right arm .


    In the era I’m in, I have witnessed her political ability a bit, so I believe she could do it .


    「If it’s the Imperial City Irion, it’s over there」


    Olivia slowly raised her wed hand and pointed diagonally .


    「That’s an unfamiliar name . I see, it’s not the city huh」


    『I turned into something like “that”, so there is no way she would stay in the city』


    「I guess so……」


    ☆


    We flew for about an hour andnded in a deep forest .


    I got off in front of a mountain cabin that looks like a secret hideout inside the forest .


    Olivia returned to her dragonkin form and Hikari was still hanging from her neck .


    「It’s here?」


    「Un, she’s inside」


    Oliviapletely changed her tone after turning to her dragonkin form . She seems like a friendly neighborhood childhood friend in this form .


    Her tone just fits how she looks with Hikari hanging from her head .


    「Ororo?」


    「What’s the matter?」


    「I didn’t notice from far away, but this human, she’s dying?」


    「What did you say?!」


    『Umu . The life force of the human inside seems very weak』


    Hearing what Olivia and Eleanor said, I opened the door almost destroying it, and rushed inside .


    Inside the dark cabin was a bad smell and stagnated air .


    A silhouette that faintly appears .


    She is sitting on the ground, facing towards the wall .


    Her long hair and familiar clothes, it’s Althea .


    「Althea!」


    I ran up to her while calling out her nameーーI was stunned seeing her face when she reacted and looked up to me .


    It was an old woman .


    Thest time we’ve met was only a few days ago, but the youthful Althea turned into a wrinkly old woman .


    「You came……I thought you’de」


    Although the tone of her voice sounded very youthful, the voice itself waspletely that of an old woman .


    「Rather than that, what happened, Althea? What happened to you?!」


    「It is the,pensation」


    「Compensation?」


    「Ahh, it came again」


    「What?」


    I looked towards the opposite direction from Althea .


    I looked over there and saw something dark and transparent passing through the wall .


    「Hikari!」


    「Un!」


    I called Hikari and she turned into a Demon Sword . I raised the mother and daughter Demon Swords and faced towards that thing .


    「A ghost huh, I’ll end you quickly」


    「Wait」


    「Eh?」


    Althea grabbed me with her wrinkled hand .


    「Why should I wait?」


    「That is……he is……」


    『Rodotos, huh』


    「What?」


    Althea and Eleanor said together .


    I turned around in surprise . This ghost that doesn’t even have a shape, this is Rodotos?


    『There’s no doubt, it’s him』


    「……eii! If so, then let’s leave this ce first!」


    I couldn’t kill it at once, so I carried Althea and rushed out of the room .


    ☆


    I gained quite a distance from the cabin . Although we’re still inside the forest, the silent air made me feel that we had ventured deeper .


    Hikari remained in her Demon Sword form and Olivia and I faced with Althea .


    And there, I had Althea exin what’s happening .


    To save Rodotos whose soul is being sullied by Eleanor, Althea used an elixir to let Eleanor gain a physical body in exchange for releasing Rodotos .


    Rodotos was released immediately but still passed away . His soul was released as well .


    「ーーor, that was how it should have been」


    「He wasn’t released?」


    「He was, once . However, his soul did not return to the heavenpletely . As you can see, he started to attack me」


    「And because of that, you became like this?」


    「It would seem that he has an attachment to life . He might be trying to revive himself by absorbing my life force」


    「Is that so?」


    I asked Eleanor .


    『Although I don’t know whether it’s on purpose or just left like that, my powers might have remained in his soul . There are such times, when someone dies possessing my powers, they would turn into evil ghosts that are attached to life』


    「You yourself were obsessed with having a physical body after all」


    『That is true during this era . I do not anymore』


    「Is that thanks to me?」


    『Umu』


    I spoke in the middle and let Althea and Eleanor speak to each other .


    「I want to release him . What should I do?」


    『It’s simple . Just ask this man』


    「Me?」


    『You only need to cut him . Not his soul, but my powers that is possessing his soul』


    「I see」


    「Can you do that?」


    「Leave it to me . I’ll make him ascend to heaven the next time hees」


    What Eleanor is saying is not something that difficult . Rather, for me who was able to bring our powers that Eleanor didn’t have, the level of difficulty is just like riding a bike with one hand .


    It’s Althea’s request . I’ll quickly end him .


    「Rather than that, it’s you . That appearance, aren’t you in a really bad situation?」


    「Let me see, it feels like he took fifty years of my life . I won’t live for long」


    「Can’t you do something about it?」


    「Well, when ites to a person’s longevity……」


    Althea made wry smile .


    The Great Sage Althea, the woman who knows everything in this world .


    She is saying that because she knows everything, she cannot do anything against a person’s longevity .


    『……I see, it was like that huh』


    「What do you mean by that, Eleanor?」


    『I understood right now . I understood the reason why how she, an ordinary human, could meet you』


    「What do I need to do?」


    『You’re too quick to be convinced』


    Eleanorughed .


    Althea, just Althea .


    When we first met, she was an old woman who would suck up life force from humans, so I thought that she is from a long-lived race . But Althea who I met in this era said that she was an ordinary human .


    I secretly had my doubts on why she was able to continue to live and meet me in the future .


    『Do you remember? What I said to you after you slept with those Mercouri women?』


    「Are you talking about Cima and the other girls? …………the way you sleep with a woman?」


    「Don’t tell me……is it like this?」


    Althea said and grabbed my hand .


    Its the usual thing that Althea in the future does . That ability that absorbs life force .


    She held my hand just like that .


    「It’s that thing Rodotos was doing huh」


    It looks like what I heard from Eleanor, was something Althea actually saw .


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