Yigret

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Chapter 1. The Heron Prince.

“Now, what I’m handing out is a delivery from His Holiness. It happens every year around this time, so you’ve all guessed, right?”

Meiran put one hand on her hip and chuckled.

“It’s a field trip to the Holy See.”

The words on the parchment were what they advised every student under the age of fifteen at Academia Ruvarh to do every year.

It wasn’t just the imperial family or the aristocracy that had high hopes for Ruvarh, the empire’s premier school of talent.

The Elysium, a temple that lags behind the imperial power, but is just as influential and even has the power to designate inviolable territory.

[Come to receive your True Name on the return pilgrimage]

A true name is a spiritual name that comes directly from the Holy See. You could take it or leave it. It was a recommendation, not a requirement, but most people chose to travel to the Holy See to receive it.

A true name is a blessing for the future and is recorded in the form of an alphabetical initial between the names you already have.

It is a name that is never revealed to anyone other than the person themselves, unless they tell it otherwise.

The problem, however, was its location.

“Oh, that’s a hassle.”

“You could do this until you’re 15. Let’s go next year.”

“Don’t you think it’s better to go beforehand?”

An uproar broke out among the students.

Unlike Ruvarh in the western part of the empire, the Holy See was located in the capital.

A trip there would take at least ten days.

The academy would give them a day off from class if someone went to get their true names, but it felt like a waste of time.

Amidst the noisy students, Judas studied the parchment in silence.

At the bottom of the parchment was the seal of the Ruvarh Academy, along with a note of caution.

It was related to the recognition requirements for the day off and various confirmations required to leave the academy.

[To travel in groups of three, assigned only to the applicants]

“….. A group of three?”

Apparently, they organize groups instead of having chaperones. The good news was that the academy would organize the groups for him.

Judas rubbed his jaw and stared down at the parchment.

Back in his dorm, Judas plopped down on his bed and opened his palms.

“Yuni.”

Yes, Yigret.

At his call, the spirit flew to his captor without a second’s hesitation.

Judas smiled as he watched Yuni rub her cheek against his fingertips in delight.

“I wonder how long I will live in this body.”

Well, we want you to stay, but why the sudden question?

“Hmm. I was wondering what level of things I could do over…….”

Looking up at Judas, who was stuttering in confusion, Yuni prodded.

You want to get it……, right? Your name.

He nodded in agreement, realizing that Yuni has finished analyzing.

A True name given by the Holy See.

It was a special Spiritual name that could only be given to children between the ages of 10 and 15. One of the major differences from a baptismal name was that it allowed the recipient to have a certain amount of self-will, but only while they were still in their innocence.

It is also treated as a precious and sacred name that is recorded in the temple and is not revealed to anyone unless the recipient reveals it themselves.

At a time when imperial power and priesthood were hanging in the balance, a true name, another name granted by the papacy, was a mandatory option for all noble children.

The present king, Lewis G. Ruvarsan Archidion, received his name from the pope at that age.

The letter G in his name was the initial letter of his name, though no one knew exactly what word it stood for.

“I wish I had a signpost to say I was here. Haha, what an old fool I am.”

You realize that’s a terrible thing to say with that face?

Yuni blew on him, cooling the beads of sweat that ran down the side of his face.

You can do what you want, Yigret, and who knows, you’ll live the rest of your life just like that.

“That’s kind of sad, isn’t it? He seemed to have so many things he wanted to do…….”

“The-re-fo-re! You don’t have to worry about that? As long as you’re using it, you’re the owner of the body.”

From the past to the present, they have directed the love of the spirits toward only one person.

Knowing that blind affection, Judas smiled a little and laid back. The feel of a fluffy pillow stuffed with bird feathers cradled his head.

It didn’t take long for his tired body to slip into a deep sleep.

For the first time in his life as Judas, he dreamed.

It was brief, but it was definitely a part of his past that his physical body remembered.

Judas, much younger than he was now, was standing with someone. No, they weren’t really together, just in proximity.

Slap!

His head snapped around. Still, the child did not cry. His eyes reddened naturally in response to the pain, but that was all.

Startled by the sudden slap, he lifted his tiny hand to cup his cheek and felt a stinging pain, even in his dreams.

“Useless brat.”

“…….”

I’m sorry.

An unspoken apology danced on the tip of his tongue. Blood leaked from his cheek where her nails had scratched it. Paying no attention to the red stain on his little finger, the other jerked away.

“It’s upsetting.”

Shatter!

The prized potted plant shattered and splashed everywhere. The woman who broke the pot smiled, her red lips curling into a tight smile.

In the fleeting moment when he sought solace in that smile, this time she picked up the shattered pieces. In the mirrored fragments echoing through the air, the pale, stunned face of the child reflected.

“……!”

No, I must stop…….

Yigret’s wish, assimilated with the mind of young Judas, called out to someone strongly.

And he woke up from his dream.

Yuni, who had been sitting at Judas’ bedside, lost in thought, looked up sharply, startled by an unexpected signal.

What is this? …… Yigret!

Boom!

In the sky, Yuni could see the gentle flow of the land lightly vibrating. Books poured out from the shaking shelves, and a few teacups placed on the shelf fell and broke.

In the untimely earthquake, Yuni hardened her expression and flew over to Judas’ head.

Yigret.

A gentle stroke on his forehead, and the vibrations stopped like a lie.

Watching Judas slowly lift his eyelids, Yuni called out to him again, worried.

Yigret, are you okay?

“…… hmm?”

Judas looked up at Yuni with sleepy eyes, then slowly sat up and looked down at the futon covering him.

Yuni’s head turned to follow his gaze. Yuni forgot what she was worried about and let out a strange squeaking sound and shouted at the futon.

You, you!

…… humph…….

There, perched there, was a tiny spirit with wings just like Yuni’s.

The boyish spirit, whose ochre-colored hair grew thick and covered his eyes, sobbed into the futon, his shoulders shaking.

Seeing this, Judas reached out a loving hand to him.

“Come here, Tony.”

Oooh…… Yig-rettteee. Wooah!

The earth-colored spirit clung to the outstretched hand and squealed in frustration.

Yuni raised her eyebrows in anticipation of what was to come.

Spirit King of Geo, Tony, the second spirit to answer Yigret’s call.

***

Tony cried for a long time, wondering what was so sad.

Faced with a waking, weeping spirit, Judas waited with an embarrassed smile on his face.

When Tony had stopped crying, he clung to Judas’s hand like a gumdrop, sobbing.

I missed you, Yighet.

“Me too. Haha.”

I’ve been waiting foh you, and you never called, and now I’m thinking you’ve forgotten about us…….”

Tony, the most childlike of the four spirit kings from his appearance to his manner of speech, was also very good at being silly.

Judas shook his head at Tony, who had tears streaking down his face.

“Of course not. Tony, we were dear friends, even in death. That being said, how do you all realize that I’m not dead?”

Hmm?

Of course, Ygritte. You’re our contractor, and while I can’t come to you unless I’m called, I can sense your presence.

Yuni interrupted Tony, who was shaking his head. Tony’s face lit up when he realized she was there.

Yuni?!

Uh, yeah.

I was thinking it was weird that you haven’t been around lately!

It’s okay, I was here before you.

Tony’s wings fluttered at the harsh tone. His eyes were hidden by his bangs, but his mouth set in a tight line that clearly showed his discomfort.

…… Yuni fihst?

Oh, why? Do you have a problem with me being the first spirit Yigret called?

You’he lying! You missed her mo’oh than me?

Yuni smiled a victorious smile as Tony recoiled.

Judas watched the two spirits bicker as if they were engaged in a childish brawl between siblings, then gently interrupted them.

“Enough, both of you. I didn’t call you late because I didn’t want to see you, Tony.”

Hmph, then why……?

“…….”

His golden eyes held the spirits warmly.

“Because when I call you, you’ll never want to leave my side.”

To him, the spirits were his most precious friends. They had been friends and family to him when he had turned his back on his own people and bled on the sword of betrayal.

He wanted to give them their freedom, even if only for a moment, and if he had to call them one day, as late as possible.

In that regard, he felt quite sorry for Yuni, the first person he had called to his side after waking up.

Sensing Judas’s feelings without a long explanation, Yuni shook her head vigorously.

That’s obvious. that’s-

“…… haha.”

Judas buried his head in his pillow again, cradling the spirits in his hands. It was hard to fight off the surge of sleep in his tired body.

It was quite a relief to have two people she trusted by her side. He felt bad for summoning Tony so unexpectedly, but now that he had, he wasn’t going to disappear from his side again.

He didn’t resist and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Hoping he wouldn’t have nightmares again.

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TL by Shir104

Tony has this polite-ish impolite korean accent(?) or manner of speech.

I felt that there is a need for an accent but wasn’t able to find the exact same one.

So I just chose to mix Boston, English, and normal accent to make his unique accent lol.
Please share your opinion, if you hate it really bad i gotta edit this episode and stop this before i make more episodes.

Please leave a comment if you see any kind of what so ever mistakes, and a upvote if you liked this episode!

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