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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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“Where… should I begin…?”
I waited silently for the World Tree to speak.
I had no idea what she was about to say, but the weight of her contemplation suggested it was important.
After a long pause, she finally spoke.
“How much… do you know about us?”
“…The spirits?”
“Yes, about me… and us.”
It was a strange, unexpected question, but I answered to the best of my ability.
That they were ethereal beings, sentient, using Spirit Stones as a medium to manifest in the physical world.
The World Tree shook her head, a faint smile playing on her lips.
“That’s all true… but you don’t know the most important things.”
She seemed to have expected as much. She raised her hand towards the sky, and a small spirit appeared, flitting around her fingertips.
The spirit flew off, and she spoke again.
“Have you ever heard… of the place we live?”
“The Great Forest, you mean—”
“No, not there.”
She gazed in the direction the spirit had flown, her expression filled with a distant, almost melancholic longing.
“…You said you wanted a Spirit Stone, correct?”
“Yes.”
“I already know what you intend to use it for.”
“…Are you displeased?”
“…Not particularly. I’m allowing this trial even knowing your purpose.”
“…”
“And… I know a little about your circumstances.”
I’d intended to use her children, the spirits, as a means to an end. She had every right to be angry.
I expressed my gratitude for her understanding, and she appeared before me, gently stroking my head.
“It will be difficult. Spirits are mischievous.”
“Yes.”
“And… you were told this was a trade, correct?”
Sylvia had also called it a “trade,” not a favor.
“Yes.”
“…Then I cannot interfere.”
She sighed and placed both hands on my forehead, channeling her energy.
“I, the Primordial Tree, bestow my blessing upon you.
Human who knows and shares the grace of the forest.
Life that heeds the voice of nature.
The children of water, a drop of morning dew.
The children of earth, a path to guide his way.
The children of fire, the warmth of a gentle flame.
Your companion will respect your will,
And your companion will choose you.”
Her voice, beautiful and resonant, echoed through the air, and the plants around us stirred in response.
Spirits peeked out from behind the leaves, their curious eyes fixed on me.
“…?”
“Be still. That energy will coalesce and form a Spirit Stone.”
As she finished speaking, a wave of energy pulsed within me, shifting from green to blue, then to white, and finally, to black.
The black energy settled, then began to draw something from within me, something solid forming in my hand.
“…What is this?”
“…?”
I didn’t know how Spirit Stones were created, so I remained silent, but her reaction was strange.
She stared at the black energy swirling around me, then reached out, her eyes wide with a mixture of shock and… something else.
“…You’re still alive? You wretched thing…!”
“…Huh?”
As her hand touched me, I felt a surge of power, and the black energy within me lashed out.
And then, for the second time today, my consciousness faded.
“When you get there… they will tell you. About us.”
‘…?’
Into a darkness deeper than before, a bottomless abyss.
≪ A blessing is entering the user’s body. ≫
≪ The current location is affecting the blessing’s adaptation. ≫
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The pandemonium was over.
Or so they thought.
The rampaging individuals had been subdued, the injured were being treated, and order was slowly being restored.
“Ugh, this one’s no good either.”
“Aaargh!!”
And then, the illusion shattered.
“W-Wait…!”
“From now on, I’ll just take a small taste first…”
“Aaaagh!!”
Legs were torn from sockets, not just broken, but ripped apart, muscles and sinew shredding.
A trail of blood and mangled flesh marked the boy’s path.
Fear and despair followed in his wake.
Someone had to stop him.
And Sylvia, in that moment, decided it had to be her.
“Hmm? Who are you?”
“…Who are you?”
“I asked first. If you answer my question with a question, we’ll be here all day!”
“…I am the Princess of the Elves. Now, who are you, and…!”
She pointed a trembling finger at the gruesome scene behind him.
“What… is the meaning of this?”
“…?”
Mangled corpses, or rather, chunks of meat, lay scattered on the ground. Globules of flesh, with bits of hair and bone protruding from them.
The stench of blood was overwhelming, enough to make even a vampire retch.
But the boy, the one responsible for this carnage, seemed unfazed.
“Is there a problem?”
“…”
“Ah, the smell is a bit strong. My apologies.”
Every child has, at some point, pulled the wings off an insect. A cruel, thoughtless act, yet, at the time, they hadn’t stopped.
Why?
It wasn’t because they didn’t understand the value of life.
“Why… why are you doing this?!”
“…?”
“What have we done to—”
“Ah, well… it’s just a side thing.”
“…What?”
“I want to take a branch from the World Tree… and you wouldn’t just let me, would you? So, I’m doing this as a… bonus.”
“…”
“And… isn’t this fun?”
It was fun.
Watching the insects squirm, their wings torn, still hoping for survival, was amusing.
“…For that reason—”
“Ah, that’s not the only reason.”
“…?”
“I’m jealous, that’s all.”
“…What?”
His tone shifted, the earlier flippancy gone, replaced by a chilling intensity.
“Your genuine happiness. The way mothers and children naturally care for each other. The fact that you worry about what to eat, not if you’ll eat. Your petty complaints about your work. I’m so jealous, I can’t stand it. Is there a problem with that?”
His face was shrouded in shadows, but his smile was a bright, terrifying slash in the darkness, his eyes glowing with an unholy light.
“H-Help…!”
“A-A monster…!”
The elves, who had little combat experience, fled in terror.
“F-Form a line… ugh.”
“Captain, you’re bleeding…!”
Even the imperial soldiers, seasoned warriors, were struggling, most of them already injured or subdued.
Anyone, even Jenison, would have advised retreat. The power difference was too great.
But Sylvia didn’t back down.
“For…?”
“…?”
“For… such a petty reason?”
She, who was usually so pragmatic, couldn’t accept it. She couldn’t just run, not after he’d slaughtered her people for no reason.
She wouldn’t.
“For such a petty reason… you killed my people.”
A wave of heat radiated from her body, her fighting spirit taking physical form. Ice crystals formed in her right hand, while sparks of electricity crackled in her left.
“Hmm? No one’s dead.”
“…What?”
Her power dissipated, her mind reeling from his shocking statement.
“No one’s dead.”
“…Then, those…”
“Ah? They’re alive!”
And then, she saw it.
The chunks of meat, they were… twitching.
And she heard it.
The faint, but distinct, sound of a beating heart.
“They’re definitely alive!”
“…”
“Their jaws are shattered, so they can’t speak. Their limbs are torn off, so they can’t move. Their nerves are severed, so they can’t feel. Their brains are scrambled, so they’re probably vegetables. But they’re definitely still alive!”
“…”
“I know my reputation isn’t the best… but I don’t take lives lightly…!”
Their bodies were broken, their minds shattered. They couldn’t laugh, couldn’t cry, couldn’t hear the spirits sing. They couldn’t walk through the lush green fields, couldn’t talk with their friends, couldn’t feel the cool breeze on their skin.
They might not even be able to think, their memories erased.
But they were alive.
“…You…”
“…?”
“I will… never kill you…!”
Her words had the opposite effect.
The conversation was over.
Action followed.
Light, beautiful and bright, clashed with a viscous, cloying darkness.
And they collided.
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