Eat The World Tree

The standoff with Flower had been ongoing for 40 minutes.

‘Oh, look at this.’

On the mountainside.

A bright yellow ghost was following Guseul at a terrifying speed.

“Stop right there.”

“Do you think I’ll stop?”

Her long hair fluttering, Sansuyu drew her sword while donning armor that concealed her large chest.

She was well aware that they were both from the same academy.

Whatever magic had been cast, Sansuyu’s true strength wasn’t like this at all.

Gunfire rained down like a storm.

Submachine gun. KRISS Vector. M.

A 3rd-generation firearm hailed as the ‘End of the Hunter Era,’ incorporating every known science.

The overheated barrel glowed red as spent cartridges ejected.

Despite being prosthetic, it was fully prepped with mana stones. No mere cadet from El Academy could face Lee Shiheon like this without being fully prepared.

-Boom!

The sound of an explosion accompanied by bursts of flame.

Sansuyu’s eyes locked onto a single point, her sword sweeping horizontally.

-Ping!

The yellow blade sliced through the bullets.

Tiny sparks erupted, each comparable to a B-grade spell in firepower, but the magical energy surrounding Sansuyu’s body shielded her completely.

The unique power of golden mana was a disaster for mages.

No artifact, no matter how powerful, could leave a scratch on her.

“…Crazy.”

A curse slipped out.

“You move pretty well for someone with that dumb look on your face.”

Sansuyu’s blade energy, evading the bullets, aimed to slice through Guseul’s body.

-Crash!

The tree Guseul had climbed shattered into pieces, collapsing. Quickly creating a foothold on the ground, she opted to flee once more.

‘…These lunatics—Lee Shiheon and the Cornus Family—what the hell did they create?’

It was a monster.

As soon as the mana infused into the bullets touched Sansuyu’s sword and skin, all the energy was absorbed into her body.

At first, Guseul thought she had managed to block the attacks purely by luck.

However, realizing that her own mana had only made Sansuyu stronger left her utterly speechless.

“Fine… Let’s see if you can survive this. Try enduring this one.”

Mana surged into the air, manifesting a massive anti-materiel sniper rifle.

It wasn’t a 30x173mm anti-tank cannon, but an anti-materiel sniper rifle.

Despite Guseul’s extensive knowledge and skills, this was as small as she could make it.

It was an artifact hailed as being a century ahead in scientific development—Guseul’s masterpiece.

A sniper rifle designed to kill titans, loaded with a single shot and fully dedicated to firepower, reserved only for S-rank assassination missions.

-Click.

‘Aim for the thigh.’

If she could render her target immobile, it would be enough.

Guseul moved her hands, and a deafening roar shook the mountain.

-Bang!

The sound resembled a lightning strike.

The sniper rifle’s barrel exploded, taking the artifact itself along with it.

The bullet, fired at unimaginable speed, pierced through Sansuyu’s thigh, seemingly about to tear her apart—

“…!”

But her body’s mana twisted the bullet’s trajectory completely.

A massive explosion erupted behind Sansuyu.

-Boom!

Flames engulfed the mountain. Sansuyu, approaching with an even more terrifying presence than before, resembled a living biological weapon.

At the sight, Guseul let out a scream.

“…You crazy woman!”

Biting into a pill infused with a high-grade mana stone, Guseul thought to herself:

It seemed she had run into her absolute counter.

“Are they doing well?”

-Shiver.

Maronnie’s trembling thighs and hands tightly gripped my body.

“Sansuyu is a good match against Guseul, but… who knows what she’s hiding.”

The right person in the right place.

The peculiarity of Sansuyu’s mana had been re-examined since the Sage taught her.

“…It’s hard to accept experimentation, though.”

At this point, Sansuyu’s power, under the right conditions, could surpass anyone else’s.

Even though her core was destroyed, her completed body had the unique characteristic of absorbing all surrounding mana as her own.

For Guseul, who relied on artifacts, it was a lethal disadvantage.

-Quiver.

Maronnie’s sweaty, warm thighs slid slightly in my hands.

She had enough flesh that I felt I might accidentally drop her.

“Up you go.”

“…!?!”

Adjusting my position startled Maronnie, and she almost let go of my shoulder.

“Just relax and lean on me. We’re almost there.”

After a moment’s hesitation, she wrapped her arms around my neck.

Her cat-like chin rested on my shoulder, her right ear brushing against my left.

The warmth of her back against mine was comforting.

“Feeling calmer now?”

“…Yeah.”

“Good. Then let’s get ready.”

-Nod.

“Do you think I can do it?”

“There are things only you can do.”

“Things only I can do?”

“How many mages recognized by the Sage do you think there are?”

Unless Sister Hwangdo came here herself, that was.

Not that she was some knockoff version of Hwangdo.

Even Hwangdo couldn’t read other people’s thoughts.

Truthfully, Maronnie’s authority was an unexpectedly powerful ability that couldn’t be ignored.

“……”

Maronnie, still clinging to me, stayed silent for a while.

It was as if something was still bothering her.

Without hesitation, I asked her directly:

“What’s on your mind?”

“Ah, nothing.”

“Just tell me.”

Though her voice was faint in the wind, Maronnie’s soft tone was unmistakable.

Maronnie mumbled:

“…I overheard it. That you’re the Tree Spirit King.”

“That’s right.”

It was something she would find out eventually.

“How… did that even happen?”

“I don’t know. They suddenly called me the Tree Spirit King’s heir… like I’d know why.”

“Was that power what you used to brainwash me?”

I didn’t answer. Even so, my meaning was clear.

“…I see.”

Maronnie seemed to grow more curious. She asked another question:

“Then.”

Her arms tightened around my neck.

Her blue hair fluttered beautifully in the wind.

She leaned her head lightly against my cheek, perhaps because of the atmosphere—or maybe the strong wind.

“…Why does the Tree Spirit King want to save people?”

I had no particular reason.

When I didn’t answer for a while, Maronnie voiced her assumption:

“Did the Sage tell you to?”

“That’s one way to think of it.”

There was also Byeol’s request.

If it were Cheondo, or the people I knew, they would have acted the same way.

“Then why did you try so hard to undo my brainwashing? You could have controlled me however you wanted.”

She had many questions, as she should.

From Maronnie’s perspective, there must have been countless things she was curious about.

“Hmm. Well.”

“…As the Tree Spirit King, haven’t you faced a lot of discrimination? Wasn’t that why you kept it hidden?”

“Not many people know. And I haven’t faced as much discrimination as you’d think.”

After all, I’d only been here for six months.

Laughing at her misguided assumption, I hesitated before responding:

“I just did what I wanted. Thinking too much about it gives me a headache.”

“…Is that all?”

“If I had to make up a reason, there’s one.”

It wasn’t anything special.

“You’re a good person.”

She became a National Tree belatedly but earnestly tried to fulfill her duty, even to the point of stressing herself out.

Her dream was to live an ordinary life.

I knew through our conversations that she was someone who would never stray from the right path.

“So, in conclusion.”

She wasn’t someone meant to be with me.

Maronnie fell silent.

Clutching my clothes tightly, she showed an expression I couldn’t see behind me.

My shoulder grew damp.

“From my perspective, there’s not much else to say. I planned to just scare you a bit and let you go. But things got complicated. We ended up trapped in a dungeon, and of all places, that dungeon had to be, well.”

“……”

“Feeling any less confused now?”

“Earlier… if you’d abandoned me, you could’ve caught those two, right?”

“Human lives aren’t something to weigh like that.”

I landed on a high spire.

From atop the hotel rooftop, surrounded by massive mountain ranges, I gently set Maronnie down.

The translucent mana platform beneath her supported her weight, naturally forming the island’s highest vantage point.

The breathtaking scenery stretched below.

The hotel windows flickered repeatedly, like a small town about to lose power.

Even with a sigh, the wind carried away my worries, leaving my mind clear.

Flames and smoke rose nearby.

The burning mountain left a strong impression—something one couldn’t normally witness.

-Whoosh!

Ash carried by the wind grazed Maronnie’s cheek.

She lowered her head, seemingly to hide her reddened eyes, and gazed down below.

“Do you see it?”

-Nod.

A horde of monsters approached in the distance.

The dungeon’s control had fallen into Flower’s hands.

In a gate crisis reminiscent of Africa, the facilities for civilians had long been destroyed.

The value of a mage.

I pointed to a spot right next to the hotel nestled in the mountain.

“Right there.”

Part of Maronnie’s plan.

On the schematically drawn map of her plan, that location was highlighted in red.

It was the most effective place to block the incoming Flowers and monsters swarming toward the hotel.

Controlling that area would effectively cut off any path for monsters to reach the hotel.

Monsters came rushing over the hill, as if flying.

Maronnie swallowed nervously and gripped her staff tightly.

“…Let’s go.”

We moved immediately.

Leaping far, my body quickly descended as I let gravity take over.

Maronnie, activating wind magic, floated gracefully through the air and landed there in no time.

I landed nearby, securing the surrounding area.

-Growl.

They encircled us, advancing as if to trap us.

Their glowing red eyes surged forward like an unstoppable wave.

It felt like a dam breaking, but it wasn’t too late.

After making a quick assessment, I unleashed my mana and scanned all directions.

“There’s one.”

“Really? Thank goodness…”

At my words, Maronnie clutched her chest in relief and bit her lip.

Banya.

As far as I knew, one of the few shamans remaining in the world.

The strange symbols embedded in the monsters’ foreheads and the exotic mana emanating from them were eerily similar to what I’d sensed before.

I picked up a half-destroyed but still functional radio and called Aori.

“Aori.”

[Should I go now?]

“Yeah.”

Since we’d discussed it beforehand, only a few words were needed.

I could search for Banya myself, but the mana was so dispersed that pinpointing their exact location was tricky.

Just as Maronnie finished preparing, I transformed the Mistletoe into a staff and extended it forward.

-Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

One by one, the arrows shooting out from behind me pierced the monsters’ mouths and exploded as they hit the ground.

The wind blades rising from the earth swept through the monsters, tearing them apart.

The surrounding monsters turned to ash and disappeared in an instant.

After clearing the area, I gently tapped Maronnie on the back.

“I’m counting on you.”

“…Okay.”

Maronnie, gathering her mana, replied.

A bright smile bloomed beneath her radiant face.

Maronnie’s magic touched the earth.

I recalled her during the days when I was still developing magic.

She had locked herself in her laboratory, endlessly debating with the Sage and creating magic.

As a mage, I believed Maronnie had long surpassed her former self since that time.

Maronnie closed her eyes.

“…Release.”

Tree roots rose from beneath her feet.

They spread slowly, wrapping around her entire body.

The spiraling roots stopped just above her chest.

Resembling someone wearing a giant dress made of tree roots, Maronnie gently opened one eye.

“Champs-Élysées.”

[Fields of Elysion.]

A street of chestnut trees stretching endlessly came to mind.

Her resonating blue eyes encompassed the entire mountain.

She looked like she was wearing a dress made of roots.

The branches extending from her hair reminded me of Shiba, as if seeing my own child.

White flower buds bloomed—Maronnie, undoubtedly, the flower of the chestnut tree.

Mana infused her dress, adding to her natural blue hue.

Her height increased, her presence grew.

The once small Maronnie now looked down at me from her newfound height, tilting her head slightly.

The flower bud on her side bloomed brightly when it saw me.

“Thank you.”

Her voice blossomed like a flower.

Oddly, Maronnie’s release didn’t carry the eerie, cracked voices typical of other wooden beings.

The voices of other wooden beings I’d heard would be horrifying enough to instill fear in most listeners—a ghastly, rasping tone.

“……”

But Maronnie’s voice was beyond description.

It echoed in my ears, swirling endlessly, embedding itself deeply in my mind as if it would never fade.

Even the most finely tuned artificial voice couldn’t surpass the impression her voice left.

“…This look—it must seem strange to humans, right?”

“Not really.”

“I haven’t shown this to anyone before. Honestly, it’s a bit embarrassing.”

Her tone became surprisingly refined.

So much so that I was momentarily at a loss for words.

Her hand pointed toward the mountainside.

The mana she had gathered formed into a massive orb.

Soon, the sphere burst into petals. Her will manifested as countless small, white petals scattered across the entire mountain.

It resembled fluffy snow piling softly on the pavement in midwinter.

-Whoosh!

I silently watched the musical notes blooming from her hands before stepping aside without a word.

Everyone had found their role; all that was left was to push forward.