Fairy Tree (3)
Fairy Tree (3)
"Waaah..."
The man tilted his head back, mouth agape.
The forest was full of trees in every direction, but that one tree filling his vision drew the eye like nothing else.
"So this is a Fairy Tree..."
Thick roots partially exposed. A trunk as long and sturdy as a skyscraper, and countless branches spreading out as if to hold up the blue sky.
Sunlight filtered through the fresh green leaves and scattered beautifully down to the earth.
Standards of beauty and magnificence may differ, but to the man's eyes, this Fairy Tree was exceptionally large and lovely.
- I hardly know what to do with myself, receiving such admiration.
"Ah... excuse me."
At the voice from beside him, the man who had been staring blankly gave an awkward laugh.
- It isn't something that requires an apology.
The woman who had approached with light steps let out a soft giggle. Five-colored wings fluttered gently behind her back.
- If anything, I'm delighted. How could I find it unpleasant when someone regards our race's Spirit Tree as beautiful?
"I just thought you might think I was treating it like a spectacle..."
- Goodness. Now I see just how timidly you view our kind.
"Ah, I didn't mean it like that..."
- Yes, I haven't misunderstood, so please don't worry. We are not so petty a race as to doubt a benefactor who wholeheartedly saved our young kin.
At the fairy's words, the man's expression became something complicated.
"But A-rin and Senior Ji-yeon did all of that. I didn't really..."
- That differs from what the children told me. They were so deeply impressed that they speak of their benefactor every day. Listening to them, even I was nearly moved to tears.
"Isn't that just the usual exaggeration children are prone to?"
- Dismissing the children's pure words as exaggeration... that's rather harsh.
"That's... haah."
The man, who had been flustered and flapping both hands, let out a heavy sigh. Then, watching the giggling fairy, he pouted his lips slightly.
"Please don't tease me too much..."
- Forgive me. The way you react like a little bird was simply too endearing.
"That's teasing too..."
The man shook his head as if resigned. Indeed, the man's build was at least a head smaller than the fairy's.
Most fairies were small, but some individuals had human-sized bodies...
- That precious item is one I haven't seen before. Is it newly acquired armament?
The fairy, who had been smiling softly, shifted her gaze to the man's waist.
"Ah, yes. A sword I picked up recently."
The man, who had been looking dejected, shifted his hip slightly. A single sword hung from his waist.
The sword belonging to the man... the 1st Iteration.
'Where is...?'
Behind those two, Lee Ha-yul blinked. It felt like he was half-dreaming.
He searched his memory.
The moment he had tried to save the Fairy Tree. The soul... the fairy's Innate Talent had tried to break loose independently. At the same time, the Fairy Tree had tried to swell excessively.
While he had been regulating that, his consciousness had suddenly grown distant, and then this scene had appeared.
He'd had a similar experience before. It was like the sensation when he manifested Calamity Flame and caught a glimpse of the 3rd Iteration's memories.
While he was sorting out his thoughts, the 1st Iteration's sword suddenly came to mind.
An elegant and neat scabbard. The blade was hidden, but a mysterious aura openly emanated from it.
'The Holy Sword.'
His combat ability had been miserable, but the 1st Iteration had survived the longest out of all the iterations.
The existence of his comrades and his unique ability were part of the reason, but the presence of that Holy Sword was another.
Holy Sword wasn't its formal name.
But its performance was worthy of being classified as a holy sword.
It could not be drawn for an unjust cause. Once drawn, it repelled powers belonging to wickedness and aided its wielder against evil.
Acquiring it had been... a coincidence.
The 1st Iteration had no information about the world or anything else, after all.
It was a time of throwing himself headfirst into the bare earth with no unique ability or perks, so he had coincidentally encountered the Holy Sword, and since his disposition and situation happened to align, he had been able to draw it.
It also complemented his unique ability well, making it good to use.
That was why Lee Ha-yul had concluded the man's identity was the 1st Iteration.
Among the iterations so far, only the 1st Iteration had acquired that Holy Sword.
'His features are similar, to begin with.'
Lee Ha-yul examined the 1st Iteration with an odd expression.
The iterations he'd met before were the 2nd Iteration, the 5th Iteration, and the 10th Iteration.
Their overall features were all the same, and they all had rough, sturdy builds. Because of that, they had not a shred of a delicate impression and gave off a fierce, rough-hewn air.
But the 1st Iteration was different.
To be precise... he was quite similar to Lee Ha-yul.
Black hair and eyes.
A small frame with thin lines, giving him an androgynous look. In place of a tough, stout air, he had a soft and delicate atmosphere.
But he was taller than Lee Ha-yul.
"I don't know why it chose me, but now that it's drawn, I'll just have to do my best."
The 1st Iteration, stroking the hilt, smiled faintly. The fairy beside him looked at him with an expression that seemed to wonder if he genuinely didn't know.
'That fairy... no, where even is this to begin with?'
The timeframe was... the 1st Iteration. He had met fairies before. At the Taesan Family's territory, which he had visited with the Demon Realm and... Lee Ji-yeon.
'Are they talking about A-rin and Senior... Lee Ji-yeon? If so, it could be the Taesan Family.'
The Taesan Family protected fairies. Was that fairy one residing in the Taesan Family's territory?
She didn't seem like an ordinary fairy. Even her size was comparable to a human's. She was probably an individual like a Fairy Knight.
- ...Ahem. You may have heard this before, but this Fairy Tree is not yet a full-grown adult.
"Is that so?"
The 1st Iteration tilted his head in surprise. Behind them, Lee Ha-yul, who had been assessing the situation, subtly tuned in.
He was in the middle of dealing with a Fairy Tree himself. The information was uncertain, but hearing about Fairy Trees couldn't hurt.
- A Fairy Tree is a tree that grows from the hand of the King. It is a fortress wall, a heart, and also the cradle where fairies are born and raised.
The fairy smiled bitterly and continued her explanation.
- From when this was a sapling, I and the other fairies transplanted and raised it. But without the King's touch, it is not in a complete state.
At that, the 1st Iteration blinked and turned back to look at the tree.
It was an overwhelmingly large and beautiful tree.
His expression made it clear he couldn't believe that a tree with pure spirit energy flowing around it, whose mere sight put the heart at ease, was still undergrown.
- If it were a complete Fairy Tree... new fairies could have been born. But that is the King's unique authority. It is something impossible for the fairies here.
The fairy who had been explaining gave a bitter smile.
For a race's population not to grow meant they were headed for extinction. Understanding this, the 1st Iteration shut his mouth tight.
- You don't need to make such a face. The King has yet to appear, but when he does... everything will be resolved.
"...If there's ever anything I can help with, please tell me anytime. I'll help as much as I'm able."
- I will remember your words gratefully.
The fairy gave a faint smile at the 1st Iteration's remark, which held not a speck of malice.
But whether she could actually ask for help, she didn't know. She didn't know what kind of help to ask for in the first place.
And now she had no idea how to search for the King either.
The fairy suppressed the gloomy thoughts, maintaining her bitter smile.
.
.
.
His consciousness stirred. The dream receded, and a sense of reality approached.
An incredibly soft sensation was cradling the back of his head.
'What is this?'
But it was an unfamiliar sensation. Lee Ha-yul, inwardly tilting his head, lifted his eyelids.
The sky and tree branches were not visible.
Instead, he saw hazy fog and expressionless faces.
"Hik..."
At some point, the people who had been in the mansion were looking down at him. There were some his eyes couldn't capture, but the fact that their gazes were anything but kind was the same.
"You're awake?"
Along with a clear voice, a gentle touch landed on his forehead. The touch was invisible. Wondering if it could be, Lee Ha-yul opened Observation and his mouth.
[...Seo-yul?]
The person whose lap it was, was Lee Seo-yul.
With Lee Ha-yul's head cradled on her knees, her snowy white eyes were stroking his forehead and staring down at him fixedly.
Lee Ha-yul's face went blank.
Receiving a lap pillow from his daughter. And the fact that it was incredibly comfortable made him feel terribly complicated emotions...
How to put it. He felt proud, in a way... and also strange...
"Ha-yul, are you okay?"
Hong Yeon-hwa, kneeling beside Lee Ha-yul whose mind had momentarily stopped, asked the question.
Plain worry seeped from her hardened face. He looked fine on the outside, but she couldn't help but be concerned about the fact that he had suddenly lost consciousness.
[Yes, I'm fine.]
Lee Ha-yul, who wiggled his hand once, nodded his head slightly.
He had experienced an out-of-body state once before. That meant he already knew how to block it. Thanks to that, he'd been able to cut it off before getting torn out as badly as last time.
"Hoo, that's a relief."
"Hehe..."
As Hong Yeon-hwa, who had read the mental image contained in the necklace, swallowed a sigh of relief, Lee Ha-yul, who had been reading the mood, grinned sneakily. The corners of Hong Yeon-hwa's eyes shot up.
"What are you smiling about, as if you've done something good?"
"Ggueaak..."
Her unreserved finger lightly struck his nose.
"Seriously, what should I do with this kid? How does he manage to cause trouble even inside the mansion..."
"Just. I mean it. Should we wrap him up in a carrying cloth and hold him in our arms?"
"Wouldn't it be better to just feed him well and keep him asleep? From what I've seen, he sleeps a ton anyway, so if you feed him well and hold him, he dozes off all day."
This time, even Lee Seo-yul didn't hold him back. And it wasn't just one pair of hands. Countless hands tormented Lee Ha-yul's face...
"Again, again, again, again, again... what on earth did you do?"
A word that gained weight with each repetition. As Lee Ha-yul shrank his shoulders, Hong Yeon-hwa, swallowing yet another sigh, pointed ahead.
Lee Ha-yul, who had been hiding his nose with both hands, turned Observation behind him.
'Oh...'
And reflexively, he marveled.
Almost directly behind him was a tree. The Fairy Tree he'd been infusing with life force.
The difference from before he lost consciousness was... it had grown enormously.
'It got way too big.'
The Fairy Tree, which had been at most two or three times taller than Lee Ha-yul, was now nearing the size of a decent high-rise building.
Its gaunt roots, trunk, and branches had become impossibly thick, and the withered surface and interior had come fairly back to life.
"That's the Fairy Tree? The dead one they said they brought?"
"Do Fairy Trees normally get that big?"
Daera, who'd come out at the commotion, spoke with her mouth agape. At that, Baek A-rin, who had been poking Lee Ha-yul with her winged garment, looked at Lee Ji-yeon.
"Ji-yeon, aren't there a lot of trees that size in your territory?"
"Well, that's true, but..."
The Taesan Family territory had many trees.
There were many species, but among those specially cultivated with Taesan care and breeding, there were trees that boasted astonishing sizes.
Some of them were even larger than that Fairy Tree right now.
"So there are, right?"
"Yes, there are... but those trees have been nurtured for at least decades, sometimes over a hundred years."
And those were trees raised by Taesan manifestors themselves. And this one grew like that in a single day... no, in a minute at most?
It hadn't merely had its growth accelerated, leaving it hollow inside. Definite life could be felt. Lee Ji-yeon looked down at Lee Ha-yul with a stern face.
"Junior. Just how did you use your life force...? You didn't siphon off your own life force, did you?"
[No]
[Vehement denial]
At that question, everyone's eyes instantly went cold. Sensing the crisis, Lee Ha-yul hurriedly shook his head.
"No, but it suddenly grew way too big. You overdid it again, didn't you? Of course you'd faint after growing it this much from that scraggly state!"
"Kkaaek..."
While he was inspecting it for no good reason, his nose was pinched again. As he reflexively let out a whimper, the fairies anxiously fluttered their wings.
Sure enough, the ones who called him King were worried about Lee Ha-yul—
—King! King! Our house! The tree! Can we go see the tree?
[......]
It wasn't worry.
Of course, they had been worried, eyes brimming with tears until he regained consciousness, but once they saw he was fine, their bottoms were fidgeting with barely contained anticipation.
Seeing even the normally composed Kali's legs trembling, Lee Ha-yul gave a wry nod.
[...Then, go on.]
—Thank you! Oru! Rudi! Let's go, hurry!
No sooner had the words ended than the fairies shot off.
Their joyful figures were somewhat gratifying, but he also felt a strange wistfulness.
—I am relieved you are not injured, Your Majesty.
[Terramor...]
But Terramor, no less startled than the fairies, remained and still expressed worry. At those eyes dripping with concern, Lee Ha-yul's face colored with emotion.
—Anyway, a Fairy Tree of that size... it is magnificent.
After confirming Lee Ha-yul's condition, Terramor sighed in relief and properly took in the Fairy Tree he had been forcing his gaze away from.
"Uh... Terramor, you were familiar with other Fairy Trees, right? A size like that is rare, I take it?"
—Indeed, Queen Consort Hong Yeon-hwa. Even in the Fairy Kingdom, I have never seen a Fairy Tree of that size.
"Hmm, hmm. Is that so?"
While Hong Yeon-hwa was visibly pleased by Terramor's respectful attitude and that particular form of address, Lee Ha-yul thought of the Fairy Tree he had observed in his dream.
'It's true, the Fairy Tree that has now grown is definitely much bigger.'
In terms of size alone, this one was plainly larger. But the current Fairy Tree hadn't put out leaves, giving it a bare impression.
'No, it actually was bare.'
That Fairy Tree... first of all, had 'come back to life.' Its vessel had been restored considerably, and it could hold life force.
Its roots, squirming beneath the ground, had connected to an earth vein, and on its own it was greedily sucking up life force.
That was all.
Lee Ha-yul's Innate Talent could perceive that the tree was incomplete.
It could create barriers and shape the environment, but not perfectly. Moreover, it could not give birth to new fairies.
The Fairy Tree he'd encountered in the dream had been in a similar state.
'So it still can't be fully bloomed in this state.'
He wore a strange expression as he perceived the Innate Talent within.
Someday, he needed to separate his soul and body. Of course, he didn't mean abandoning his body; it would simply be a matter of coming out and going back in.
But that moment could not be now. The moment to use that had already been decided.
"Hm?"
The blue winged garments had gradually tangled together. When Baek A-rin tilted her head, Lee Ha-yul stealthily tried to get up.
"Kkack."
He couldn't rise because of a finger pressing on his head.
Lee Ha-yul's eyes flew wide open. The owner of the touch was an unexpected person... no, a fairy.
"Dad."
[Huh, hm...?]
Calm, pure white eyes looked down at Lee Ha-yul. They were eyes that were always beautiful whenever he thought about them.
...Calm? Lee Ha-yul swallowed hard and questioned his own thought.
"Why do you push yourself so hard?"
—Poke... poke—
A calm tone. A finger lightly pressing his forehead. Though it held no force at all, Lee Ha-yul felt an indescribable weight.
That weight pierced his chest.
"You're really too much."
[I-I'm sorry...]
Lee Ha-yul hunched his shoulders. Before his child, a parent's pride or stature dared not raise its head...
* * *
The weekend that followed the end of the Tower entry schedule.
While consolidating the growth she'd achieved in the Tower, Lee Ha-sol was a bit busy planning the after-party for the first-year Tower entry.
'This part is a bit of a pain.'
Sunday evening, the after-party held at the Third Banquet Hall.
Lee Ha-sol, who had escaped the heat onto a balcony, let out a deep sigh as she watched the after-party proceeding without issue.
"Once this is over, I have to prepare for midterms too..."
Lee Ha-sol rested both arms on the railing. Her voluptuous chest rested on top of it. Her expression turned odd.
Useless lumps of fat. Honestly, from the perspective of having them, she couldn't help but think that.
In fact, when handling a bow, this chest was nothing but a hindrance; it had never been helpful.
...But recently, it had been helpful.
Lee Ha-sol recalled Lee Ha-yul sleeping soundly in her arms and made a strange expression.
'Hm, hm.'
Somehow, ever since he was little, he had loved falling asleep in her arms. Lee Ha-sol took a small sip of water, her cheeks faintly flushed.
"......"
As she gazed at the night sky, memories from the Tower kept resurfacing.
Gale, Lee Ha-yul, Daera, Lee Ha-yul, Lee Ha-yul, Lee Ha-yulLee Ha-yulLee Ha-yul...
...It's all thoughts about Lee Ha-yul.
It couldn't be helped.
Though it had only been the last two days or so, she'd been stuck to Lee Ha-yul... and had been holding the already-young Lee Ha-yul in her arms.
Especially the dawn of the last day... against the backdrop of past memories, it was an intensely vivid memory.
Because of that, hadn't she missed the chance to fight the event boss that had been active since the dawn of the last day?
That was why Lee Ha-sol couldn't much participate in the topic going on inside the banquet hall.
'...And...'
Her softly curved lips stiffened as she reached a certain memory.
The day Lee Ha-yul had suddenly plunged into the lake while Lee Ha-sol had been washing.
Why on earth had he fallen in a state so close to a corpse? That question never left her.
With a stiff face, Lee Ha-sol, who'd been staring up at the moon, tapped her smartwatch.
In one of the contacts, she checked the recent messages.
[▷Contact: Lee Ha-yul]
[▷Lee Ha-yul: Lee Ha-sol]
[▷Lee Ha-yul: At Senior Daera's request, I'm planning to do some training for the midterms. Would you like to train together?]
...
[▷Lee Ha-yul: However, due to circumstances I can't leave the mansion... would it be okay if we did it at the mansion in the Central District?]
[▷Lee Ha-yul: The facilities are fine. It's got everything you'd need.]
Just as she'd been planning to train for the midterms, this suggestion came from Lee Ha-yul.
'I can ask then. And as a bonus, I can also greet the people there.'
She'd already gotten acquainted with Ellia. Since she'd established a connection with one person, she could use Ellia as a bridge to get to know the others.
Lee Ha-sol nodded.
.
.
.
"Ah-ha, so you're Lee Ha-sol? Nice to meet you. I'm Hong Yeon-hwa. Ha-yul told me about you."
"......"
Her jade-green eyes blinked.
Through the wide-open main gate, a park and flower garden in full bloom were visible. Walking along the path in the center were Lee Ha-yul and... Hong Yeon-hwa.
They were stuck quite close together. As if, given the chance, she'd carry him in her arms... her arm wrapped around his waist as if he were her possession...
The corner of Lee Ha-sol's mouth twitched.