Return to Jorgaldur Volume IV: Reunion

Main entrance (II)

"What!? A gate!? Wasn't it fake?"

"Are you saying that he opened the Walled Gate and entered through there?"

"Who's he really?"

"How's it even possible!?"

"It's a joke, right? I don't believe it."

"How did he achieve it?"

There was confusion and chaos among the nobles, especially among Eldi Hnefa's detractors. Some were beginning to think that they had made a serious mistake, that he was some kind of chosen one. Perhaps, he was more than just the otherworldly guy to whom their ancestors had made a promise "for the sake of appearances."

Those detractors were the most concerned, but perhaps the neutrals were the ones it had impacted the most. Some who had showed a certain tendency to approach the crown were rethinking about it. Others were seriously considering openly supporting Eldi Hnefa.

As for the allies, they were more than pleased, apart from amazed. It was very difficult for them not to smile from ear to ear.

"We've underestimated him. As much as it pains me to say it, it's been an amazing move. Not only has he escaped from all the assassins, but now many are doubting," Ricardo cursed.

"Without a doubt, he's prepared well. Luckily, so do we. We already expected that he could avoid the initial dangers in some way, although not in such a spectacular one. Anyway, everything is ready. That won't matter inside the palace," Elsa assured.

Although the truth is that she was worried. She could notice the doubts in her allies, or the change of position in some of those who weren't hostile to them. That put them in a vulnerable position.

"We have to be relentless. Now more than ever, we can only move forward," she clung. They couldn't allow themselves to falter.

"I'm going to see the queen before she bites the crown. I have to calm her down," Ricardo said goodbye, equally worried.

""Great, dad!"" the twins exclaimed internally at the same time, even though they were many meters apart.

"Eldi's opened the gate. It's been incredible," Goldmi reported. She had seen it through her sister's eyes.

"Although I already knew it beforehand, I still find it hard to believe it," Ted was amazed.

"I would've liked to see it," Mideltya wished.

"It must've been spectacular. I wonder what our enemies think," Elendnas smiled, amused.

"What's this about a gate in the wall?" Asmodeus asked, confused.

"What difference does it make. We only have to worry about our objective," Golgo disdained

The vampiress looked at the other two visitors out of the corner of her eye. She refrained from making any comments, no matter how excited she was.

"Great, Eldi," she said to herself, while biting into a cake to celebrate. "Open Sesame!!"

She would have wanted to shout it, but she settled for thinking about it. For a moment, Gjaki imagined Eldi doing it, but then she shook the idea out of her head.

"He's too much of a party pooper," she criticized inwardly, while smiling to herself.

Eldi advanced followed by his companions, who hurried to catch up with him. He had entered Hnefanak, the capital of Engenak. At the time, he hadn't understood how it was possible for them to change the name of the city in the game. After returning, he had felt somewhere between overwhelmed and embarrassed. Now, Eldi had already assumed it. He just sighed when remembering it.

They arrived at the temple square. It was behind the gate that had been opened for the first time in centuries, perhaps in history. They were about to catch up with him, but had to stop. A barrier of mana blocked their path. They could only surround it.

Despite the name, it was nothing more than an altar, under a dome supported by four columns. The plaza was a popular place for meditation and veneration, although access to the altar was restricted by the barrier. Normally, only priests could access it, thanks to sacred rituals and certain artifacts.

Eldi, for his part, had simply walked in. In the game, he had obtained recognition from the city spirit, thanks to which he had somehow obtained the key. Therefore, entering the altar was no problem at all.

"Hi, Hnefi," he greeted it with a nostalgic smile when the semi-transparent shape appeared before him. It was much larger than he remembered.

Back then, during the game, the city spirit was barely a newborn. It had been created from the accumulation of the inhabitants' desires and hopes over centuries. Without protection, without anyone even knowing about its existence, it had been on the verge of falling into the hands of a dark sorceress. She wanted to refine its essence for her own purposes.

In its desperate attempt to escape, it had run into Eldi, who had entered the darkness restriction imposed by the sorceress. Said restriction had come close to killing some children who were playing nearby. The high human had decided to investigate, as he believed it was some kind of mission.

What he had encountered had been what used to be called a unique mission, and which he now knew was a real interaction with the world. A kind of small snake with large, watery eyes had pounced on him, and had hidden behind him, terrified, seeking protection.

In the game, he hadn't found it strange. After all, it was just a game. Now, Eldi wondered how the spirit had known that he wasn't going to harm it, that he was going to protect it even if it meant a difficult fight against a powerful opponent.

As for the name, he preferred not to think about it. The spirit had named itself, after Gjaki had suggested it when he had introduced it to her.

With the sorceress dead, the snake spirit had grown fond of Eldi. Every time he went to the capital, it appeared in front of him. It asked for caresses, or simply wanted to be next to him.

Over time, the existence of the spirit had become public. They had even built an altar for it, since a city spirit was very important for its prosperity. However, it was a somewhat solitary spirit, who only interacted with the priests as few as possible.

Still, it did its job. In large part, because the spirit had promised it to the one it had been waiting for so long. Mainly, it drove away harmful spirits, whose appearances in recent years had become more frequent. They fed and were born from despair, resentment and other negative emotions, mixed with mana.

If the priests who interacted with the spirit could see it now, they would be as amazed as frustrated. The normally taciturn creature was curling around Eldi playfully. Its disembodied body may not have been able to hold him, but it didn't care either. It was happy that his friend and savior was back.

Eldi caressed it, by using mana to feel it. He noticed the tickling of the disembodied body that surrounded him, but above all, he perceived the contagious joy of the spirit.