The Tiny Tree and the Even Tinier Grandfather
I was so startled that my teeth clacked together multiple times in the most undignified way.
'Y-you… what are you?'
(Me? I’m… hmm… Well. I had memories when I first arrived in this space, but now they’ve all become whatever.)
'What does that even mean? How long have you been here?'
(I’m not sure exactly, but it doesn’t feel like it’s been that long.)
'I-I see… Well, I’m busy, so I’ll be going now.'
(Aaaahhh!! Where are you going?! Talk to me!)
'What am I supposed to talk about with a tree that doesn’t remember anything?'
At my words, the little tree wriggled its way closer, waving its tiny branches wildly as it spoke.
(Hey! I said I don’t remember who I am, but I still have other memories left!)
'Hmm… I see.'
I wondered if anything could really matter when the being had forgotten its own identity, but I decided to hear it out for now.
'By the way… you’re not that grandfather, are you?'
(Grandfather? What are you talking about?)
'Never mind.'
(I don’t know about any grandfather, but I have seen a few nasty little spheres around.)
'……What?'
(It looked at me and said, “What a worthless tree!” It was definitely a bad guy!)
'……Really? Where can I find that sphere?'
The tree pressed one of its small branches against its trunk, thought for a moment, then answered.
(You’ll probably meet it if you wait just a little! It used to come every time a new leaf grew on me. Look. I already have nine leaves now.)
'Hmm… Are you sure?'
(I am!)
Just from the voice alone, it sounded like a cheerful little girl, and somehow that made me want to believe it. Besides, wandering around blindly might not help me find that grandfather anyway, so I decided to wait here for now.
'By the way, this place is nothing but darkness. How do you even live here? There’s no light. No rain either.'
In response, the tree spread the branch it had been holding against its trunk to both sides.
(I eat mana to survive! The mana leaking from your body right now tastes really good. Actually, I’ve already been snacking on it!)
'Mana was leaking from my body? Hmm… You really are a sensitive tree.'
When I focused on my body after hearing that, it was true. The amount was so faint that even I couldn’t sense it. It was fascinating. This was no ordinary tree.
(Speaking of rain, something’s trying to come to mind. Rain… Rai… It feels somehow bittersweet.)
'Hmm… Maybe it’s connected to whatever you’ve forgotten?'
(You think? It feels like it’s about to come back, but I can’t remember! Haha! Oh well, it’s fine!)
Even though it lived in a place like this without even remembering who it was, the tree remained incredibly bright and cheerful. I waited for the grandfather while chatting with it about this and that.
The tree was so lively and positive that simply talking to it felt like it was purifying my heart. Through our conversation, I learned one thing for certain: this tree had definitely lived on Earth once.
'If you lived on an island nation and remember animals that hop around with pouches… that would be Australia, right?'
(Australia?! So the place I lived was called Australia!)
As the tree talked with me, it gradually began recalling bits of its memory. But apart from that, it seemed overjoyed simply to have someone to converse with.
'This somehow reminds me of how I felt when I first met Tania…'
Its personality was the complete opposite of the quiet and dignified Tania, and this time I was the one listening, yet the feeling was strangely similar.
Then, out of nowhere, a message appeared.
You have formed a bond with a seed brimming with astonishing potential!
🌱 Nurture the seed and obtain your reward!
'?!'
I was startled once again by the completely unexpected message. A seed with astonishing potential? From what I could see, it already looked like a proper little tree, even if it was still small. Either way, it said that raising this thing would grant me some kind of reward.
The tree stared at me with its tiny mouth agape. I could feel a faint glow of mana flowing gently into it.
'Hey, does eating my mana help you grow?'
(Yeah! You taste really good! Stay with me forever, okay?)
The wording was a bit strange, but even to my eyes, the tree’s growth was visibly accelerating.
(Whoaaa! Another leaf just grew! Two in one day is a first!)
While the baby tree fluttered its leaves and danced merrily, a new presence entered the range of my senses.
'That must be the sphere the tree mentioned.'
The sphere was flying straight toward us, but its movements looked incredibly relaxed.
'It moves like an old man out for a casual stroll in the neighborhood.'
It zigzagged slowly, drawing wide circles in the air. That was exactly the impression it gave.
(Hehehehe~)
[What’s got you in such a good mood?]
The sphere, now within a hundred meters, called out loudly. But the tree completely ignored it.
[Are you still sulking?]
(Hmph! Don’t talk to me!)
'It’s small…'
When I had sensed it from afar, it seemed enormous, but now that it was close, the sphere was so tiny it was almost embarrassing to call it a sphere at all. About the size of a piece of candy, it reached the tree without sparing me even a glance and began examining it.
[Hmm— So you really are growing after all.]
(Ah! Go away!)
'The voice is different…'
The way it spoke was definitely the same as before, but the voice itself was different.
[Ah— So you’ve come.]
Now that the sphere finally acknowledged me, I asked immediately.
'Are you the grandfather I was told about?'
[I am. So sit down.]
'Hmm…'
I did as instructed and sat. The sphere spun slowly around me, muttering to itself.
“Oho—” “Mmm.” “I see.”
Then another message appeared.
The Forgotten Ancient Swordsmanship has been activated.
'Huh?'
Along with the trait’s activation, the sphere’s voice changed into the elderly tone I had heard before. After scanning my body for a long time, it settled in the air in front of me and spoke in a serious manner.
[Once every three days. Visit this place. I will teach you my swordsmanship.]
'?!'
I was immediately filled with questions for the sphere that had suddenly offered to teach me swordsmanship. Setting aside the doubt of whether a sphere the size of a bead could actually teach me anything, I wanted to know why it was doing this.
Was it because we were connected through the trait?
I couldn’t hold back my curiosity and asked. When I heard the answer, my jaw dropped.
[Because I too once possessed a hundred lives. Though I wasn’t reborn as a non-human entity like you.]
'?! How did you know I had that ability?'
I asked in shock, but the grandfather answered as if it were nothing special.
[The ability you possess connected with mine and shared various pieces of information. That’s how I knew. That you possess the same power as I once did.]
'I see…'
[In truth, I have been watching you even before our traits connected. Of course, I could only see you when you entered this space.]
'Huh… Then why didn’t you speak to me back then?'
[I had my own circumstances. Anyway, after watching you for nearly two months, I’ve come to one conclusion.]
'And that is?'
[Your swordsmanship is truly terrible.]
'…That’s a bit harsh for our first meeting.'
[It’s the truth.]
The brutal fact left me momentarily speechless, but I didn’t particularly feel bad about it. It’s not like I had ever been a swordsman. There were far too many things I was curious about, so I pressed on.
'Just how strong were you originally? And why are you in a place like this, in that form?'
[That is…]
There were countless questions I wanted to ask. The grandfather didn’t answer every single one, but he responded with sincerity to the things I truly needed to know.
First, he introduced himself as a master of the sword who had once lived in another dimension that no longer existed. He had also possessed a hundred lives like me, but unlike me, his original body would recover and he would resurrect that way.
'That does make more sense… Isn’t that how it’s supposed to work? Being reborn in a monster’s body and starting from the bottom feels somehow wrong.'
I listened attentively even as doubts swirled in my mind.
[I obtained the ‘100’ ability in my later years, when my body was already in steep decline. I don’t know why such a power was given to a half-dead old man like me, but I made decent use of it.]
'I see…'
[In your world, are you the only one who possesses a hundred lives?]
'I’m not sure. There are humans who live seven lives, so it wouldn’t be surprising if there were a few more.'
[Seven lives… That would be the incarnation of the Seven-Headed Dragon.]
'?! You know about the Seven-Headed Dragon?'
The grandfather slowly descended to the ground before continuing.
[I know a little about the Seven-Headed Dragon. It is an evil god, just like the ‘Blue Eye’ that deserves to be torn apart. All I know is that they are constantly fighting to devour each other’s worlds. The world I came from was also destroyed by their games. Though it seems the Seven-Headed Dragon appeared too late to enjoy the show.]
'What?!'
Even with a hundred lives, he couldn’t prevent the world’s destruction?
[I can guess what you’re thinking. Looking back, if I had obtained that ability during my prime. Or even while I was still growing… the outcome might have been different. But such thoughts are meaningless now.]
The grandfather emanated a wistful aura as he began floating upward again.
[Let me tell you one interesting fact that should make you wary. Every single person who received the power of a hundred lives failed to save the world they belonged to.]
'What?! How can that be?!'
This grandfather had a talent for casually dropping absolutely shocking revelations. And how did he even know such things? Was there some kind of club for people who had possessed [100]?
[What is 100… I believe it is an ability granted to balance the scales when a world faces the sign of destruction. That is what I think.]
'Balance…'
[It is a power bestowed by an existence beyond our comprehension in order to restore balance. Yet even a hundred lives granted to a single being would likely be insufficient to correct a world that has already tilted too far.]
'Sigh… Then does that mean our world is also doomed?'
[The possibility is high, but nothing is certain. Still, we cannot simply sit and wait, can we? Who knows. If you, who were reborn from a human into a skeleton soldier and now walk the path of the King of the Undead, might create a different outcome.]
He even knew that I had stepped onto the path of the King of the Undead. Just how much information about me was being shared? And why had such a heavy burden been placed on my shoulders? I truly couldn’t understand.