Chapter 185: The World Tree's Nightmare

Ferda recalled the way Erika had always despised them.

Why had Erika shown such hostility toward the elves? Why had she subtly clashed with the High Chieftain during their conversation?

Now he understood.

They had once been close.

Close enough to have once been engaged.

"So that High Elf coveted Iorga's magic. Looking at someone like you, I can't say I'm surprised."

"You fool! It was the opposite!"

Cypress shouted furiously.

"Do you have any idea what atrocities that so-called water of knowledge and reason committed? They lured my fiancée into a trap and killed her! That man... even after giving everything he had! Iorga treated him no differently than a mere mortal!"

Cypress was an enemy.

There was nothing more foolish than believing an enemy's words.

Yet because he hated Ferda so intensely, Ferda could sense it even more clearly.

This man was speaking nothing but the truth.

When Ferda remained silent, Cypress sneered.

"You think that woman will treat you any differently? In the end, she'll throw you away like a worn-out rag. She'll grow suspicious of you on a whim and spend her days searching for an excuse to take your head!"

The instant those words reached him, something swallowed Ferda whole.

Like a demon, it slipped through the cracks in his heart.

The only difference was that this demon had already made its home inside him.

-He's insulting your fiancée. Are you just going to stand there?

Ferda answered by raising his hand.

Unable to perform incantations, the only thing he had left was this pitiful body.

One Mana Shot through the forehead.

That was all it would take to reduce the man to nothing more than flesh.

That alone would be enough.

"Mr. Ferda!"

Ferda's breathing stopped.

That voice...

It was one he should never have heard here.

Nor should it ever witness him like this.

Regaining his senses, he turned toward the sound.

Faint crimson hair.

Two horns.

Golden eyes.

It was Valdrova.

But after a single blink, the figure dissolved like a mirage.

Standing where Valdrova had been was the High Elf, Rizera.

"Regent Ferda..."

She spoke with anxious concern.

"If you kill Elder Cypress... there truly will be no turning back."

Even with one arm already severed, they had crossed more than enough lines.

Still...

Death and injury were fundamentally different.

If I kill him... will I really be able to leave with peace of mind?

His body answered the question before his mind could.

The Shadow Circle continued to rotate.

One thing was certain.

If he killed him now...

He would regret it.

Ferda slowly lowered his hand.

"Get a hold of yourself, Elder. One more mistake from you, and everyone here will die."

"You damned short-lived creature...!"

Ferda walked past him.

Rizera hesitantly followed behind.

"If you walk behind him... then abandon all hope of ever returning here."

Rizera hesitated.

No one had ever truly cared for her.

Yet this had still been the home where she had spent her entire life.

Leaving it behind could never be easy.

She squeezed her eyes shut...and stepped past his shoulder.

A violent waterfall roared alongside a pulse of mana.

Moments later, a familiar woman appeared before Cypress.

"Oh my?"

Erika covered her mouth with one hand.

Despite the gesture, the corners of her eyes curved into crescents.

"So it seems our esteemed Elder was defeated by a foolish short-lived race?"

"..."

Without giving him even a moment to respond, Erika simply left after those words.

Cypress barely managed to suppress the rage threatening to burst inside him.

The elven soldiers followed after her.

"Elder!"

They abandoned the pursuit and immediately examined Cypress's condition.

Upon discovering the Frenzy Spell affecting his mind, they hurriedly inscribed a dispelling rune.

Since it was only a low-tier spell, it unraveled easily.

"You require treatment first. Please remain calm—"

"Move!"

Cypress barked as countless protective runes surrounded him.

His face burned bright red with fury.

"Do not let those intruders leave this place! If they attempt to escape... kill them on sight!"

The elder rushed after them with the elven soldiers.

The advance pursuit unit had stopped just beyond the exit.

"What are you idiots doing!? Why are you standing around!?"

Cypress roared.

"W-Well..."

The elite pursuit squad answered in voices as bewildered as fresh recruits.

The moment Cypress saw what they were staring at...he immediately understood.

Blocking the corridor stood three Spirit bodies.

-Nobody gets through!

-You'll have to get past us first!

-Yeah! Yeah!

Their tiny bodies.

Their childish voices.

Anyone would have laughed at such adorable creatures.

But to those standing there...

It was an entirely different story.

Though far too small to fill the enormous corridor...

No one dared take a single step forward.

Not even a High Elf Elder dared treat them lightly.

"It would be wise to step aside, Spirits."

-Nope!

-Don't bully Rizera!

-What did Rizera ever do to you?

"She is aiding the escape of enemies of the World Tree."

-Are you saying Rizera is a bad elf?

"Yes."

The three Spirits looked at one another.

Then burst into laughter while clutching their stomachs.

-No way.

-Impossible!

-Rizera's kind.

-She greets us every single day.

-You elves are the bad ones.

"You claim that we are evil?"

-That's right!

-You all excluded Rizera.

-She always endured things she hated.

-But nobody ever became her friend.

-She never had any friends!

-Exactly!

The three Spirits wrapped around one another.

At that moment...

Something astonishing happened.

A violent wind arose.

The bark-like outer shell of the World Tree began gathering toward the center of the storm.

The mass continued swelling...

Until it finally took the shape of a colossal giant.

A body glowing emerald green.

Two terrifying eyes.

The elite elven soldiers froze...

Then instinctively stepped backward.

Even warriors trained to suppress every instinct of survival and march toward death found themselves unable to move.

How could they?

That form...was the elves' greatest nightmare.

The childish voices disappeared.

In their place, a damp, monstrous voice echoed from the abyss.

-Rizera is going to make new friends.

***

Rizera and Ferda climbed aboard the Sky Carriage.

It ascended smoothly into the heavens.

Yet Erika kept watching the World Tree below without letting down her guard.

"They resisted so fiercely... yet they're letting us go surprisingly easily."

"They had no choice."

Erika turned toward Rizera.

"What makes you so certain?"

"The Spirits stopped them."

"The Spirits?"

"Yes. They're children who lived inside the World Tree. They're like my friends."

Very few living beings could enter the World Tree.

Even Spirits capable of crossing dimensions were no exception.

Because elves naturally possessed great affinity with Spirits, many lingered around the World Tree.

But inside...

That was different.

'Surely not...?'

-Rizera! Rizera!

Three Spirit bodies flew straight through the walls of the Sky Carriage.

"You...!"

Rizera stared at them in shock.

"What are you doing here?"

-Because Rizera left!

-That's right!

-And you forgot something!

"Forgot something?"

One tiny Spirit opened a small dimensional gate and pulled something out.

It was a beautifully arranged bouquet of flowers.

"Ah!"

Long ago, Rizera had asked the Spirits to make her a bouquet.

They had come all this way simply to keep that promise.

Smiling gently, she said,

"You can go back now."

-We're not going back.

"Huh? Why?"

The Spirits leaped into Rizera's arms.

-It'll be lonely without you!

-And we're friends!

-Rizera's friend!

-The friend of friendless Rizera!

Their innocent words made her face flush bright red once again.

Anyone would smile at the purity produced by those tiny little bodies.

Erika, however, wore an entirely different expression.

"Um... Secretary Rizera?"

"Yes?"

"The Spirits surrounding you..."

"...They're not the ones called the World Tree's Nightmare, are they?"

The World Tree's Nightmare.

Spirits that lived within the World Tree itself.

Having absorbed the World Tree's mana, they had grown so powerful that the elves had attempted countless extermination campaigns, yet had never once succeeded in removing them.

Nourished directly by the World Tree, they had become inseparable from it.

Beings of overwhelming power.

"They do have that nickname. They're a little mischievous, but they're really not bad children."

"...Mischievous?"

Those troublemakers had tormented elves night after night.

And whenever someone harmed them, they returned the pain dozens of times over.

Even the High Elves, who rejected anything foreign in pursuit of purity, had ultimately declared that coexistence with these Spirits was the only option.

-We never bullied anyone first.

-The elves kept telling us to leave and kept hurting us!

-The place is huge, but they kept saying it all belonged to them!

-And they never talked kindly like Rizera did.

-That's probably why they don't have any friends!

"U-Um... that's not really related, so please..."

Rizera's face turned bright red again.

The Spirits burst into cheerful laughter.

For creatures infamous throughout elven history...

They certainly behaved like nothing more than adorable children.

Lightly tapping her cheeks, Rizera handed the bouquet to Ferda.

"A-Anyway... I wanted to give this bouquet to you, Mr. Ferda!"

Normally, flowers wilt after being picked.

Yet these looked as vibrant as though they had just bloomed.

A gentle floral fragrance mixed with the Spirits' mana, making anyone holding them feel refreshed.

Rizera then searched through her bag.

"And these are what Father wanted to give you... Um... just a moment. You're not supposed to receive everything..."

She had marked several folded pages beforehand.

Removing four sheets, she handed them to Ferda.

"He asked that these be shown to Regent Ferda first."

"To me?"

"Yes. He said there were things he couldn't tell you in person."

Erika glanced toward the stack of papers.

"While Mr. Ferda reads that, I'll collect what I'm supposed to receive."

"U-Um..."

"What? Did he say I have to wait until after you finish?"

"...Y-Yes..."

Erika glared at Rizera.

The pressure she now radiated as a Dragon Spawn, the same woman who had just swept away the elves with water, was on an entirely different level.

-Don't glare at Rizera!

-Bad dragon!

The Spirits immediately floated in front of Rizera protectively.

With those three backing her, Erika couldn't act carelessly.

Finally, she leaned back into her seat.

Meanwhile, Ferda quietly unfolded the letter.

To Regent Ferda,

First, allow me to apologize in advance for everything that is about to happen.

The elves will undoubtedly pursue you, and relations between us will inevitably suffer.

None of this is your fault.

It is entirely the result of my own actions.

Even so, I ask for your understanding that I cannot explain the circumstances.

It was something that had to be done...

For the sake of the Cerdes Continent...

And for the sake of our elves.

Our High Elves have long cherished a single lifelong aspiration.

We call it Mother's Seed.

The name differs in the human tongue, but I believe you already understand what it truly refers to.

Mother's Seed.

Though this was the first time he had heard the name...

Ferda immediately understood.

Magic differed only in form and terminology.

The higher one ascended, the closer one came to its origin.

Mother's Seed...was that very origin.

It was the Ninth-Circle magic—

Wish.

The High Chieftain knows I've already reached Wish.

Was that why he had looked so surprised?

Ferda turned the page.

For hundreds of years, we elves have delighted in pursuing Mother's Seed.

Joy enriches the land.

It allows us to become better beings.

Yet over these past centuries...

Our progress toward Mother's Seed has steadily slowed.

That was only natural.

After all, we sought to reach a realm higher even than our Mother—the Realm of the Gods.

But we refused to accept stagnation as inevitable.

That was why we coveted your path...

And your knowledge, Regent Ferda.

The one thing we could not relinquish...was greed.

Greed was an original sin that not even elves, despite their long lives, could escape.

Though it all began because of my own foolishness...

I have no regrets.

For I was able to witness what lay at the end.

Regent Ferda...

You know better than anyone what that end became.

The end of Ferda's journey—

A life fueled only by rage and hatred—

Had ultimately led only to emptiness.

Though our driving forces differed, the essence was the same.

By cruel coincidence, we realized that we had been walking the exact same path as you.

We forgot why patience mattered.

We forgot why the dead deserved mourning.

Instead, we pursued only joy.

Our impatience clouded truths we once understood clearly.

The pleasure gained through misguided methods slowly consumed us.

Only then did we realize...

That someone had already taken control of the World Tree.

"What... someone has taken control of the World Tree?"

"Taken control? What does that even mean?"

"I don't know. That's all the letter says."

"That can't be possible... No one can gaze into Mother's Heart without the High Chieftain's authority..."

Erika and Rizera reacted the same way.

Ferda continued reading.

Someone is attempting to claim both the earth and Mother's gifts without permission.

Although I realized the truth...

This old body of mine is already failing.

I no longer possess the strength to purge them.

Had I informed the two of you beforehand...

Escaping this place would have become impossible.

Your safety takes priority above all else.

After you escaped without understanding what had happened, the Tower Master would undoubtedly protest fiercely.

Please convey my apology to her on my behalf.

"He says he's sorry for not telling us sooner."

"That old man... If he'd told us earlier, there might have been something more we could've done..."

Erika sounded genuinely disappointed.

Perhaps this was what people called love and hate intertwined.

Ferda turned the final page.

I have spoken long enough.

Now, Regent Ferda...

Allow me to offer guidance that may serve as a signpost for the path you must walk.

At last...

The reason behind all of this appeared.

The next passage read:

To state the conclusion first...

The answer you seek lies in the East.

In the land now known as the Land of Demons.

There...

Lies the answer that even the Demon King failed to obtain.

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