It was a few days after they had headed west, following Signard’s directions.
After leaving the village of the wandering elves, they hadn’t run into anything particularly troublesome. They had encountered a few monsters and discovered traces of nearby tribes, but they hadn’t run into any of the natives.
“...Ah,” Eugene let out a gasp.
He felt ‘movement’ coming from the leaf of the world tree that he had stored in his chest pocket. It wasn’t just an illusion. Most of Eugene’s senses had been focused on this dried leaf during these past few days of travel, and Eugene wasn’t foolish enough to make such a mistake no matter how eagerly he had been waiting for a response.
Eugene immediately pulled the leaf out of his pocket. He stilled the wind that was blowing towards them and then stared at the leaf as he held it in the palm of his hand.
The leaf began to move once more. Having come over to his side at some point, Kristina’s face brightened as she saw this.
The leaf in Eugene’s palm moved slowly. While constantly shifting ever so slightly, the leaf was moving forward in a certain direction.
“It’s like a compass,” Eugene muttered as he placed it back inside his pocket.
“Why are you putting it back?” Kristina asked.
“It’s cumbersome to keep holding it in my hand as we travel. In any case, even if I keep it in my pocket, I can still feel where it’s trying to head,” Eugene explained.
This direction was… just slightly off from due west. It looked like Signard’s memory wasn’t wrong, so for him to have failed to find the elven territory even with that, there had to be another reason that had kept him from doing so. While feeling his heart pound with excitement, Eugene hurried his steps.
As they went in the direction that it was indicating, the leaf’s reaction grew stronger. At first it would only wriggle slightly to show they were going in the right direction, but now it was practically oscillating as if it was trying to climb out of his pocket.
As the leaf’s reaction grew stronger, Eugene’s steps also grew faster. Without losing track of Eugene’s movements, Kristina kept following him.
Sir Eugene,” Kristina called out.
“I know,” Eugene spat out, his voice shaking slightly.
Even as he focused on racing forward, Eugene didn’t miss the ‘changes’ that were occurring around them. The wind had begun to pick up, and it felt different from an ordinary breeze.
It wasn’t just the wind either. The ground and the trees also felt different from the forest that these two had been walking through for the past two months or so.
However, Eugene couldn’t tell exactly what was different about it. He thus pulled Wynnyd out of his cloak.
[...This is surprising.]
Tempest’s voice rang out inside of Eugene’s head. Without needing any explanation whatsoever, Tempest immediately grasped the situation.
[A primal spirit…. No, could this be the spirit of the World Tree?]
‘What does that mean?’ Eugene asked.
[Do you know what a primal spirit is?]
‘Of course I know. It’s the lowest class of spirit without a will of their own.’
Tempest let out a low chuckle at this answer.
[The lowest class of spirit you say…. Fine, I guess you could also see it that way.]
‘Is that not the case?’
[Primal spirits are the pure essence of spirits. Weaker than the lesser spirit of the wind, the Sylph, a primal spirit can’t even mount any resistance to the breeze that a Sylph can raise, but… primal spirits won’t lose themselves even when they’re caught in a Sylph’s breeze.]
‘...,’ Eugene listened silently.
[Whether it is I, the Spirit King, or a Sylph, a lesser spirit, we were all also primal spirits at one point.]
After pondering for a few moments, Eugene asked, ‘...Is it a similar state to mana?’
[That’s right. Primal spirits are similar to mana. You might even see them as… another aspect of mana. Just like how mana exists everywhere in existence, so too do the primal spirits. All wind, earth, fire, and water are composed of mana and the primal spirits.]
‘But why did your reply sound so vague when you were saying that you were once a primal spirit?’ Eugene pointed out.
[Hamel, do you have any memories from when you were a fetus?]
‘...I do have memories of the moment I was born.’
[However, you don’t remember the time when you were in your mother’s womb. Even the fact that your memories start from the moment that you were born is because you were reincarnated with the memories and personality of your previous life. Ordinary people, no matter how good their memory might be, would not be able to remember the moment they were born.]
‘Well, of course that’s the case. But what does all that have to do with the spirit of the World Tree?’
Having signed a contract with Tempest, Eugene had thought that after coming to Samar he might perhaps be able to get Tempest to help him find the elves and their elven domain. Tempest was the Spirit King of the Wind, with command over the wind spirits, and as elves had an innate affinity to the spirits, their entire race was able to sign contracts with spirits without having to learn any particular spirit summoning techniques.
However, things hadn’t proved to be that easy. For a spirit, contracts were absolute. No matter how much authority that Tempest had as the Spirit King of the Wind, it was impossible for him to get the wind spirits under his command to spill any information about their contractors.
[Just as I was saying.]
Tempest’s voice was filled with an unconcealable excitement.
[If a spirit that dwells in the wind is called a wind spirit, then the spirit that dwells in the World Tree must be the spirit of the World Tree. It is different from a tree spirit.]
‘...Isn’t the World Tree basically just an old fairy tree?’
[Are you being serious?!]
‘Nah, I just wanted to try saying it. Even I know that the World Tree is special.’
A tree whose young saplings were able to set up a barrier and block the advancement of the Demonic Disease couldn’t be said to just be some ancient tree that had been around for a long time. In the first place, fairy trees were extremely rare and were used as powerful magical reagents.
[...Elves have always placed their faith in the World Tree. They believe that their deceased ancestors and those that they have lost… all of the elven souls are guided to the World Tree after their death, and they also believe that the tree will always protect their race.]
‘But it’s not like all elves believe that. After all, there are also elves who serve the god of light.’
[Isn’t that something unavoidable? Faith is a choice that everyone makes for themselves. In any case, the World Tree is a spiritual and powerful existence that has received most of the faith from an entire race.]
The forest — no, space itself began to shake. The ground slowly began to move and the trees seemed to be drawing back.
[Even though I am the Spirit King of the Wind, I cannot control the winds in this place. I would not be the only one. No matter which Spirit King it is, they would not be able to interfere with the spirits residing here.]
The leaf in Eugene’s pocket was vibrating. As he pulled it out, he saw that it was emitting a bright ray of light. Then, it began to float in the air all on its own. Eugene didn’t keep hold of the leaf.
Whomp!
The space in front of them distorted and a path opened up. As the leaf flew into the passage, Eugene stretched his hand out to Kristina. Kristina hesitated for a moment and then took Eugene’s hand.
“...Will it be dangerous…?” Kristina asked hesitantly.
“There’s no way,” Eugene muttered as he pulled Kristina closer to him. Then, he kicked off the ground and leapt into the hole in space.
After the two had passed through the opening, the hole closed up once more. The forest that had crawled apart to open up a path had returned to its original appearance.
Shortly after that….
Boom!
Leaping over from some distant location, a man fell to the ground. After brushing off the dust from his landing, he turned to look at the surroundings. Even the trees that had crawled out of their way to open up a path had already returned to normal, and the soil they had overturned had also flattened back out.
The path had closed.
“I missed it,” the man with a raised hood muttered as he sniffed the air.
The scent… was gone. Even though they had definitely disappeared in this location, no clues had been left behind as to their whereabouts, as if it had all been an illusion.
“Damn it.” The man spat out a curse, with a scowl twisting his lips.
He had just wanted to peacefully follow them to their destination, but to think that things would really turn out like this…. This was all because that little brat was way too sensitive. He had been just a bit too late because he had had to make sure to keep a good distance and follow them by their scent trail.
The man thought to himself, ‘Could they still be… somewhere nearby?’
There was no way to tell. Even though they should have been here just now… their scent trail had been erased from this location. Their scents seemed to be floating off into a completely different location… no, their scents were actually being scattered throughout the surrounding patch of forest. Was it because the trees had twisted aside to create a path, and this had created a gust of wind?
‘It’s like a maze,’ the man observed as he sensed the myriad different scent trails.
He decided to give up on chasing their scents.
Well then, what should he do now? Should he just wait here thoughtlessly, when he had no idea when they might be coming back out? And it wasn’t like there was any guarantee that they would be coming back out in the same place, was there? Since that was the case, then he might just end up waiting here for a long time, only to not achieve anything. The man was disgusted by the thought of such a possibility.
In that case, wouldn’t it be better for him to wait in a place that they were sure to return to?
* * *
“...Wow…” Kristina gasped.
Was she really someone who knew how to make such an innocent sound?
Eugene turned his head as he heard this clear exclamation coming from beside him. The look of awe on Kristina’s face was so pure that it could easily be called the most beautiful expression that he had ever seen on her. It was without any of her arrogance or pretentiousness. Kristina was just sincerely admiring the sight in front of her.
It couldn’t be helped. Eugene placed the leaf of the World Tree back into his pocket and looked ahead. He also felt the same admiration at the sight in front of him.
“...It’s like an umbrella,” Eugene muttered in a low voice.
It might sound like a poor metaphor, but this sight in front of them truly did look like an umbrella. The countless, verdant branches and leaves of the huge tree before them, the World Tree, looked like an umbrella that had covered up the sky.
“Rather than an umbrella… it feels more like a huge ceiling,” Kristina argued.
“Well, that might be true. But in the end, they both cover things, right?” Eugen replied as he looked up at the sky.
No, he couldn’t see the sky no matter how high up he looked. All that could be seen, no matter where he turned, were branches and leaves.
They were currently at the top of a cliff, and below them sprawled a city. A city that had been around for hundreds of years. Looking down at it like that, it almost seemed like an ancient ruin.
‘No, if it’s that old, it really is an ancient relic.’ As Eugene corrected himself, he glanced back behind them.
He couldn’t see the path that had connected them to this location. Tree roots, vines, and soil were all intertwined with each other, blocking the path that had led them here.
“What should we do when we want to get back out?” Kristina asked in concern.
“Well, who knows,” Eugene replied as he began walking forwards. “For now… we can tell this much. This place might be beautiful, but it’s not a place where anything can survive.”
“...Yes, it does seem that way,” Kristina also agreed with a nod. “Everything in this place seems to be connected to the World Tree. However, that’s all there is to it. Contrary to what we have seen… the mana here is almost nonexistent.”
This was a weird problem. Boasting a magnificent stature, at first glance the World Tree seemed full of mana, just like the area in the Lionheart Forest surrounding the Leyline. However, there was almost no mana to be sensed. Even all of these green leaves, on the outside they might seem to be full of vitality, but for some reason it felt like they would crumble to dust if he tried to touch them.
‘What is going on here?’ Eugene thought to himself.
He was reminded of Vermouth’s tomb, the space that had been filled with blooming artificial flowers. The trees and grass here weren’t fake, but while they might be real, they were lifeless.
[Was all the mana concentrated into the barrier?]
‘What about the spirits?’
[...Hm…. It’s strange,] Tempest muttered. [The spirits are silent. They are there, but they aren’t manifesting themselves.]
Eugene shrugged and leapt off the cliff, with Kristina unfurling her wings of light and following after him.
After the two had landed at the bottom of the cliff, they walked over to the city. The buildings were ancient, with roots growing from the ground and wrapping around the buildings.
“...It doesn’t seem like there’s anyone here,” Eugene murmured..
Eugene had been expecting the elves to be here waiting for them. However, there were no elves to be found anywhere in the city. Although the place was beautiful, no one could actually have lived here. The mana was too faint and there was nothing for people to actually live off of.
As they passed through the city, they saw a few dried up trees.
These trees were wrapped around and connected to the roots of the World Tree, but they weren’t fairy trees. Instead, there were several different types of fruit trees. Eugene got closer to one of the trees and placed his hand on it.
‘...It’s dead.’
He could sense that the tree would collapse with just a slight press of his hand.
It wasn’t just the trees, either. The soil had also dried up. None of the wells that were located throughout the city had any water in them.
Eugene assessed the city. ‘It’ll be impossible for any of the wandering elves to relocate here.’
If the soil was revitalized and seeds were planted, would they be able to make this place livable?
[That’s impossible. The land here is dead. That has been the case for quite some time. Without supplying a massive quantity of mana, it is impossible to revive this place.]
‘A massive quantity of mana… how much would that be exactly?’
[Comparing it to the Leyline in the Lionheart clan’s estate… you would need several times the amount of mana there.]
‘What if we had a Dragonheart?’
[...Could you really be thinking of stealing Sienna’s staff?]
Akasha was a magic staff that was made from a branch of the world tree and a Dragonheart.
‘If it’s necessary,’ Eugene admitted.
[Even a Dragonheart won’t be enough. Also… I sense that this might call for more than just mana. Hamel, I can feel an unknown discomfort coming from this whole space.]
‘What do you mean by that?’
[This feeling… it’s like… it reminds me of a Demon King’s sinister aura.]
‘Don’t say something so ridiculous. This is the territory of the elves. That’s the World Tree right in front of us,’ Eugene responded aggressively as he strode forwards.
“...Where could the elves have gone?” Kristina spoke up.
“Maybe they all decided to go into hibernation together,” Eugene hypothesized. “Or perhaps they just moved to a different place?”
“Are you making fun of me?”
“No, I’m being serious here. This isn’t a place fit for someone to live in. There aren’t any elves living here either. Do you really think that all the elves living here were killed? The city is in too good a state for that to be true.”
Although no one was here, the city wasn’t actually in ruins.
They crossed through the city and drew closer to the World Tree. It had already seemed large when they were viewing it from a distance, but as they got closer, they began to realize just how huge the World Tree really was. The tree was at least as large as a mountain.
And below, there was a huge lake lying at the foot of the World Tree.
Even though all the water in the wells had dried up, the water in this lake had remained as it was. Eugene looked down calmly into the surface of the lake.
Deep in the depths of the lake, he could see the roots of the World Tree. These roots had spread throughout the city, the land, and even this lank, connecting everything back to the World Tree. Eugene crouched down and placed a hand on the surface of the lake.
“...Really now…,” Eugene said with a sigh.
The mana here wasn’t as faint as everywhere else.
All of the mana that would normally have been spread throughout the entire space was being concentrated into the World Tree. Its roots had spread out like blood vessels, with the mana being the blood flowing back into the World Tree. Eugene focused his concentration and tried to sense where exactly all the mana was flowing to.
Then he found it.
Eugene stood back up. Then, without saying a word, he stepped forward onto the lake. The surface of the lake supported Eugene’s foot without even a ripple.
“Sir Eugene,” Kristina called to him.
Eugene told her, “Wait here.”
His order might have been abrupt, but Kristina didn’t question him. She gave a slight nod and remained on the shore as Eugene walked across the large lake.
Before too much time had passed, Eugene arrived right at the foot of the World Tree. The exact location… well, it didn’t matter where he was exactly. Eugene took the leaf out of his pocket and brought it close to the World Tree.
The bark of the World Tree cracked into two, opening up a path. Eugene tried to calm his nerves as he stepped into the tree.
Eugene silently walked down the long passage that lay inside. This was the inside of the World Tree. The mana outside was certainly scarce, but there was more mana inside the tree itself than any place that Eugene had ever been to.
[...They’re silent.]
“Are you talking about the spirits?”
[That’s right. The primal spirits… no, the spirits of the World Tree. They might not have formed an ego, but they are observing you.]
“So what, do they feel welcoming?”
[Something like that.]
Eugene smirked as he gazed around.
He had finally found some elves.
They were wrapped in tree vines with relaxed expressions on their faces, and they had been buried into the walls of this wide passage.
It didn’t… seem like they were dead. They just looked like they had fallen into a deep sleep. He could hear their faint breathing, and their heartbeats were resonating with each other.
Thump. Thump.
The unified sound of their heartbeats made this passage feel like one giant cradle.
“...Ah,” Eugene gasped.
After passing the elves who had fallen into a long nap, Eugene’s steps came to a halt.
“...I found you.”
What sort of expression should he be making?
He couldn’t figure it out on his own. Should he be smiling because he was happy? Or else… just like she had, should he be wallowing in tears instead?
“Sienna Merdein,” Eugene called out her name.
Like all the other elves, she had been placed into a deep sleep.
Only… she had a huge hole through her chest. The thing keeping her alive was the World Tree, whose vines wrapped around half her body.
Eugene reached out with a shaking hand to touch Sienna. But in the end, he couldn’t do it. He was afraid that Sienna would shatter into pieces if he carelessly touched her. Like all the dead and fallen trees that he had seen on the way before arriving here.
‘...Her chest was pierced through.’
The vines of the World Tree had woven together to fill the hole. With that, Sienna had been connected to the World Tree.
‘...But she hasn’t died.’
Sienna was breathing weakly, and her heart was also beating.
Eugene tried to smile.
“Hey,” he said in a trembling voice.
The results of his attempt weren’t that great. Eugene weakly sat down on the floor as he stared at Sienna.
“Sienna,” Eugene called out once more.
There was no reply.
In a shaking voice, he asked, “What happened to you?”
Then Eugene finally gave in, dropping his face into his hands as he wept.
