Chapter 325
Chapter 325
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 325
Chapter Title: The Collapse of the Cradle (10)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The depths of the Cradle.
With Flower's large-scale invasion underway, countless trees had lost their lives.
"Damn it."
The archbishop, Bin Mark, gritted his teeth and slammed the table with his tightly clenched fists.
-Bang!
His two fists trembled against the wood.
"Call every priest and holy knight right now! What the hell have you been doing to let it get this bad!?"
"Um, Archbishop."
"What!"
"The cadets and National Trees are at the hotel..."
"Is that important right now? When the World Trees are dying!? Screw everything—tell them all to come. Gather every hunter at the hotel and send them straight to the Foundation!!"
-Whirring.
The archbishop bellowed while the other bishops floundered.
The rotating surveillance camera captured their every move.
-Bang!
-Kaboom!
Explosions rang out one after another.
Sistus's clones were self-destructing, utterly dismantling the Cradle's vital systems.
"Fuck, fuck..."
The archbishop ground his teeth, his anxiety spilling over.
-Kaboom!
Even now, the Cradle was crumbling to ash.
Sistus's clones were devastatingly unstoppable.
Each one matched a capable hunter in strength, and the moment they detonated, their power rivaled a grand mage's destructive spell.
Their little-girl disguises crushed hunter morale.
Anyone caught in the blast radius of 100 meters mostly died on the spot.
Even those lucky enough to slay a clone often suffered mental breakdowns, with more than a few taking their own lives.
Flower's frontline nightmare incarnate.
And now Sistus was dead set on crushing the Cradle.
Hong Yeon—who had injected intelligent tactics into Flower's otherwise brute-force war—was extending her reach here as well.
'...What do I do?'
No answers came.
In the hollow silence, the archbishop hurled the question at himself over and over.
How to survive this crisis.
-Footsteps.
A robed man standing behind him spoke up.
"Archbishop?"
Aaron the priest.
The very reason Archbishop Bin Mark had risen to power in the church—a skilled combat priest.
When he'd first appeared out of nowhere offering an alliance, Mark hadn't seen the potential.
He'd dismissed it as cocky posturing from some upstart.
But Aaron had delivered ingenious schemes and raw power, quickly becoming the key to Bin Mark claiming the archbishop's seat.
"Priest Aaron... Will you tell me what I should do?"
"You have a lot on your mind."
There had been crises aplenty before.
Aaron's sharp insights had pulled them through every time.
Mark trusted him pathologically. So Aaron flashed a grin and rested a hand on his shoulder.
"I trust you, Priest. Surely you can find a way to rout those vile, scheming Flower scum?"
"That might be tough. Would you do anything?"
"Anything."
As always.
Aaron's hollow gaze swept over Mark's face.
The hand in its black glove slipped from the archbishop's shoulder.
"I see."
Aaron swung his arm.
-Thwack!
A round shadow beneath the lamp scattered into the air.
The head hit the floor rolling, oblivious even in death.
The archbishop's body shuddered violently, convulsed once, then collapsed in a spray of blood from the neck stump.
Aaron shed his robe.
They say if you bring a red spider lily indoors, the house burns down.
🌸 FLOWER CADRE REVEAL 🌸 6th Executive :: Lycoris Radiata
Lycoris radiata
Epithet :: Red Spider Lily (曼珠沙華)
A figure known in the world as the red spider lily.
The gray-haired man reached out and enveloped the archbishop's corpse.
His fingers tore through muscle and sinew, sucking every drop of blood straight into his own body.
"Even a guy like this has magic power that's damn useful."
No matter how spineless, an archbishop's skills were the real deal.
A coward slinging spells firsthand could still be a pain.
The red spider lily donned his robe once more and opened the door.
Now there was no one left to defend the Cradle.
'I hope not too many young talents die.'
All those National Trees who'd entered the hotel.
By betraying the World Trees, they'd become a massive boon.
The Cradle might fall, but they couldn't spare help for the hotel.
Archbishops and priests be damned—the true power was the World Trees.
The instant the trees fought back, even Flower couldn't claim certain victory.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A nostalgic dream.
"Oh, you're France's National Tree?"
Her childhood days.
Two girls shorter than her at the time gazed at Marronier.
"Nice to meet you. This one's Abby, I'm Bell. National Trees of England and Germany. Just like you!"
"...Uh, yeah. Nice to meet you."
England, Germany, France.
They formed Europe's core, but their relations hadn't always been smooth.
Back during the Wood Spirit King's war, Germany had sided with him.
England and France had spent the time eyeing each other warily, breeding plenty of public bad blood.
"Wow, your hair color's so pretty."
"...Really?"
Marronier had been newly minted as a National Tree, lost and hesitant in her social life.
Their bold friendliness had buoyed her spirits more than once.
"Nearly died in training today. You?"
"I... dunno. Just studied at the lab."
"A mage, huh~ Awesome. Never even dreamed of that. Hey, wanna see Excalibur?"
Bell—innocent and full of mischief.
Abby—quiet, but game for fun, always playing along even with the lamest jokes.
Their tales spread across Europe, drawing the nations closer—a textbook case now.
They'd helped rebuild Europe's diplomacy.
The photo of the three hoisting the EU Peace Award still sat in Marronier's diary.
'...Fun times.'
Good people.
Bell could be a handful with pranks, but she was solid.
Abby often brought plebeian foods Marronier had never tried.
The inaugural Forest Keeper Selection Tournament, their first public outing as National Trees.
A genuine friendship bound the trio.
Shared joys and memories etched forever.
"But why."
-Flash!
Rain poured.
A cold droplet from the sky plopped onto her long lashes.
"Huh, you're up, shorty."
A familiar voice—her lungs seized.
"Gahk! Cough, cough!"
Marronier slumped against the building wall, magic handcuffs binding her limbs.
She scanned her surroundings the instant her eyes opened.
A massive building loomed opposite.
A fountain dominated the center.
She knew this place.
Where everyone had gathered at the start of that first Forest Keeper Selection Tournament.
The grand arena where vines and trees had sprouted skyward.
Now shrouded in darkness, utterly empty.
Bell and Abby stood nearby, watching her.
"...You two."
Her throat clenched; words stuck.
Marronier bit her lip hard. Bell spoke gravely.
"Listen up, shorty. We don't really want to make you our enemy."
"...Handcuffs. Off."
"Can't do that. Just wait a sec."
"Why? Why are you doing this? Why!?"
She thrashed, but nothing budged.
Her internal magic core was sealed tight.
'Round Table'.
Bell's Authority.
It fully dominated all magic within its barrier.
True, it locked Bell out too.
But she more than made up for it with sheer physical prowess.
"Marronier."
Bell uttered her name; Marronier winced in pain.
"Don't say my name."
"You need to know what you know."
"What do you think you know? You... betrayed me? As a National Tree... Do you get how huge this is? Betraying your country, and you got so much to say?"
"Who's the betrayer here."
Bell tilted her head toward Marronier.
"Authoritarian rule's done. Public opinion's fully swung. Sure, World Trees appointed us National Trees... but we're trees made to serve our nations."
"......"
"France. Our situation's different from yours."
"So what."
"Listen. The church is a total shitshow now. A bishop from one nation wielding leader-level power behind the scenes? That right?"
Unlike Korea's overall prosperity.
Korea had its hero, Mugung.
Other nations' economies? Dismal.
Exploitation endless, trees' extravagance off the charts.
National Trees counted among them.
World Trees created National Trees to counter Flower and the Wood Spirit King.
But now even National Trees looked away.
Annual cost for one? 45 trillion—defense budget territory.
Money squeezed from Wood Person clans and humans alike.
How could resentment not boil?
Bell and Abby faced it head-on daily.
"People are exhausted. Now."
Examples abounded.
"...England's Kent has an oil field."
"Why bring that up."
"Magic-born. But it fell to the Wood Spirit King once. You know."
Areas lost to the Wood Spirit King couldn't be touched.
Developing that massive field? Astronomical gains.
Same story elsewhere.
The World Tree's arbitrary arrogance inflicted suffering beyond measure.
"So... betrayal?"
"You know deaths are piling up."
Bell gave a bitter smile.
First time seeing the prankster's sad face.
"Don't wanna see it anymore. Now."
"...So join terrorists?"
Abby cut in.
"No choice."
Marronier fell silent.
Betrayal shock lingered; anxiety gripped her.
No—tears already streamed from her eyes.
Betrayed by her only friends.
"......"
Her chest tore with agony.
"Think it over, Marronier."
Abby spoke. His eyes met hers honestly.
Marronier looked away.
"Ideals always get hijacked by politicians. It's all a power grab in the end. Shaping the world? That's for those monopolizing power and profit."
Flower wasn't all that different.
"When this war ends, we'll see if it's symbiosis or dictatorship left standing."
But Flower was the sole challenger to the World Tree's grip on this era.
National Trees had to save people.
Abby and Bell embodied that creed.
"We can steer it right. From the middle."
"......Killing people for it?"
"If it means Flower wins."
The hotel cadets were civilians.
But also future Flower foes—raw talent.
Unavoidable collateral, Abby explained.
"...But."
"Take your time. I get your struggle. Not asking you to flip overnight."
Abby's voice echoed in her ear.
Marronier was scared. She understood, but it horrified her.
The whole damn situation.
This blood-drenched, fight-riddled mess—she couldn't accept it.
Why fight.
Why more death.
Faction wars were inevitable.
-Drip.
Tears blurred her sight.
'I...'
Abby's words shattered her pounding headache.
"Or is it that man?"
"......What?"
"Lee Siheon. Nah... Calling him that feels off."
He whispered low.
"Wood Spirit King."
Those words stabbed her skull.
Feared by countless Wood People, etched as terror incarnate, laden with prejudices for noble-born Marronier.
-Na Mu Wang!
The Sage drawing close to Lee Siheon.
Sephiroth trailing him, chanting odd words.
Bits she'd dismissed as nothing now linked up, scrambling her thoughts.
"Ah... That. Uh?"
-Boom!
Vast magic thrummed through the air.
Abby shut his mouth and muttered to Bell.
"He's here. Get ready."
Bell nodded, drawing her sword.
Abby glanced over his shoulder, then locked eyes with Marronier again.
Her pupils quivered.
Like staring into an abyss.
"Marronier. One last thing."
"......"
"Help us out a little."
It pulled her in, those eyes.
This feeling—she'd sensed it before.
'Brainwashing.'
Power she could now resist.
"......!"
The brief headache cleared; Marronier shuddered.
Her mind sharpened, but terror made her lips tremble.
Tension flooded her body.
Breath came short.
Abby's eyes widened.
"Wrong call."
Regret tinged his mutter.
The instant his face hardened—
-Crunch!
Black magic poured between the three former comrades.