The Evolution Fruit Has Formed

Luan began laying out his alchemy tools. Several small vials. A tiny mortar. A thin brush. Some he had brought with him, but many were crafted right here. Next, he brought out the materials he had gathered himself from Pirel Forest: a sap with a reddish glow, seeds from a translucent flower, a clump of dried moss, and so on. I watched him, thinking, 'Are those all ingredients for the growth stimulant?'

Luan checked the materials one by one and said, "Each of these contains components that aid the flower's growth. The mixing ratio is crucial, so I must be careful..."

Just then, Riri fluttered over and landed right next to Luan. The child began peering at everything with wide, curious eyes. "What's this?"

"Pardon? Oh... that is," Luan replied, flustered. "It's bark sap..."

"Bark sap?"

"Yes. Bark sap."

Riri’s eyes sparkled, seemingly intrigued. "Then what about this?"

"That is a white seed..."

"And this?"

Luan paused for a moment. "Uh... that is brown moss."

At that, Riri tilted her head. "It smells weird."

"...It does, doesn't it?" Luan smiled, casting his eyes downward. Then, bored, Tori ran over and poked his head in. "Kkung?"

"Ah, Mr. Tori, you’re too close..."

"Kku-ung!" Tori picked up one of the tools.

"Ah, ah, you shouldn't touch that...!"

Riri looked at the tool Tori was holding with eyes full of curiosity. "What's that? Riri wants to see too!"

Luan hurriedly blocked them with both hands. "Wait a moment! This is used in the process of making the stimulant, so you can't just—"

"Kkung!"

"Riri too!"

Luan looked back and forth between them and finally sighed. "...I'll let you look at them one by one. But you must not touch them."

And so, Riri and Tori sat side by side, their eyes shining as they listened to Luan explain each item. 'They're so cute.' I watched them with a sense of satisfaction. Even while being watched, Luan continued his work without a single lapse. He ground the ingredients to the exact ratio, mixed them, applied heat, and carefully filtered the result.

Then, "It's done." Luan held up a small glass vial. It contained a pale green liquid. "This is a stimulant with no side effects."

'Oh.' Seeing it in person was fascinating. "You just need to apply a very small amount to the very center of the flower bud."

Luan dipped the brush into the stimulant just a tiny bit. Then, he stood in front of the flower bud and—tremble, tremble. His hand shook again. The sweat running down his forehead showed just how nervous he was. I called out to him quietly. 'Luan.'

"Yes."

'Doesn't it make it harder if you shake like that?'

Luan gave an awkward smile. "...I can't help it when I'm in front of the World Tree's flower."

Even so, he delicately brought the tip of the brush to the inside of the bud. And then, a touch—just the slightest touch. 'Oh...' I could feel something. A tingling, ticklish sensation rose from the tip of my branch. Although I couldn't see anything yet, something was definitely changing. It felt as if the stimulant was soaking into the flower. Like the scent of the air before it rains—a sensation that gave me the premonition that something was about to happen.

Luan lowered the brush, his face drenched in sweat. "It’s done. Now, you just have to wait."

The next morning, I checked the flower first thing. 'It doesn't look any different from yesterday.' Although the sensation at the tip of the branch had felt subtly different since using the stimulant, there was no visible change. 'He said a week, so I suppose I have to wait.'

While I was thinking that, 'Riri has gone inside again.' There was no sound from inside the Honey-Ring tribe's house. Riri had been inside her home since last night, making pollen. After applying the stimulant, I had immediately asked Riri if she could produce pollen. Riri had nodded with shining eyes. "Riri can do it! Don't worry, Mama!" Then she had hopped away and flown into the Honey-Ring house. Since then, there had been no word. It felt empty without the little one who was always by my side.

It wasn't just Riri who was preparing. On one side of the village, the elves, led by Hylen, were practicing how to wield their power. Since they said that soothing the World Tree's flower required delicate mana control, Hylen was giving the elves a special lecture on the subject. He stood in front of the elves, slowly raised his hand, and said, "Now. You must distribute your holy power and elemental power evenly. Let it flow like water. Do not force it in."

At that, Lin, who was next to him, blinked and said, -But water doesn't always flow, does it?

Hylen narrowed his brows slightly. "Of course... water trapped in a puddle or the ground might not, but..."

Jini also chimed in from the side, -The ground doesn't necessarily trap water...

"No. That’s not what I meant..."

Then Khan, who was standing by with his arms crossed, said, "Aren't you all being a nuisance? Both of you, shh."

Lin then threw out a remark with a pouty expression. -A nuisance! I’m not!

Jini also said, fumbling, -That's right... If there's an error, we should help...

At their words, Khan clicked his tongue. "That’s what I call being a nuisance."

-Ugh! I'm not!

-U-ung... It's two against one, so we're right!

The elves listening to the lecture were distracted, watching the bickering between the spirits and Khan. Finally, Hylen, having reached his limit, took a deep breath. "All... all of you are a nuisance."

At that, Lin sneered at Khan. -See! You're a nuisance too!

Jini added a word. -W-we aren't the only ones being a nuisance!

"Tsk. You have to look at the order of things. The biggest nuisance is probably you, Lin."

-Ugh! Khan, are you going to keep doing that?

-Uh-oh! Lin! You can't use waves here!

Eventually, Lin exploded and unleashed a barrage of water bombs at Khan, and Khan dodged them here and there with a sly laugh. The classroom became a complete water world. As water splashed everywhere, Hylen shouted, "Look! See! This is how water is fluid. And you must operate your mana just like this water!"

Watching the elves continue their lesson amidst such a situation, I chuckled. 'It’s a bit of a mess, but...' Still, everyone was working hard.

Three days passed. Since the stimulant was applied, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Luan checked the flower bud every morning. "It is opening little by little, and the pollen is being made well."

At those words, I extended my mana toward the flower bud. 'Oh. Really?' It wasn't clearly visible to the eye yet, but the sensation at the tip of the branch was different. The ticklish feeling was a bit stronger than yesterday. 'So the stimulant is working.'

That afternoon, Lin was lying on a water droplet, staring blankly at the flower bud. -I hope it blooms soon.

Jini also sat next to her, watching the bud. -Yeah... I hope it blooms soon.

Lin narrowed her eyes and said, -Riri still hasn't come out?

-She must be in the house. Still.

-Hing... I miss Riri.

Lin muttered, burying her face in the water droplet. -She didn't even come out to eat; what is she doing?

I answered quietly. 'She must be making pollen.' Because a sweet scent had been flowing from inside the Honey-Ring house. Without a single moment of pause. And the elves also continued their practice endlessly. With the help of the spirits and the advice of Hylen, they were slowly getting the hang of it. Khan wasn't just watching from the sidelines, either. He had significantly increased the number of scouts and paid more attention to the surrounding perimeter in case of any incidents. Everyone spent their time doing their part, and finally, the morning of the seventh day arrived.

"It's in full bloom!" As Luan, who had been checking the flower, shouted, I stopped my branches. It was in full bloom? The flower was indeed completely open. Every single layer of petals had unfolded, revealing the golden stamen inside. The fragrance burst forth all at once. A sweet, thick, and suffocatingly deep scent. The entire village was enveloped in that fragrance.

"Kku-ung..." Tori looked up at the flower blankly.

"Kie..." The goblins also stopped in their tracks. The spirits flew slowly around the flower. 'The flower has finally bloomed.' Then, it was time for pollination. I had to show the results of all our efforts so far.

Hylen said with a determined expression, "Then, let us begin."

The elves stood in front of the flower. Hylen closed his eyes and raised his hands. At the same time, each of them released their mana, wrapping it around the flower. "Slowly."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Then, holy power and elemental power flowed out from the flower simultaneously. At first, they flowed out separately and chaotically, but—

"Approach carefully."

Following Hylen's direction, they slowly began to merge into one. Without scattering, without pushing each other away, like flowing water. As they did, the holy power and elemental power that had been wrapping around the flower began to coalesce. The golden stamen became brighter, and the petals trembled minutely. As if it were breathing. Then, Hylen opened his eyes and shouted, "Now! Riri!"

Something popped out from the entrance of the Honey-Ring house. "Ung!" It was Riri. Riri, whom I hadn't seen in a while, was holding something full in both hands. It was golden pollen. Pollen that Riri had made herself.

Riri flew up slowly. Her chubby cheeks were flushed red. Unlike her usual bright self, her eyes were serious and firm. Riri, who had stopped in front of the flower, took a breath. "Hoo..." And then, very slowly, she brought both hands into the flower. The pollen began to enter the flower little by little.

At that moment—Whoosh! The golden light of the flower spread to the tips of the petals and shone brightly. A light so bright it was hard to keep one's eyes open. Luan reflexively raised his sleeve to cover his eyes. Khan narrowed his brows, and the spirits all retreated at once. And at the same time—thud, thud. The petals began to fall.

Luan stepped forward and carefully picked up the flower. The protagonist watched that sight in silence. 'Is the fruit forming now?' How long would I have to wait for it to bear fruit? Just as I was thinking that, something began to form slowly where the flower had been.

'Oh...?' At first, it looked like a mass of light. A mixture of golden and pink. It slowly took shape, becoming smaller, harder, and rounder. It was a mysterious sensation, as if a very old memory were crystallizing. 'Don't tell me... is the fruit forming right away?' Amazing! Then I don't have to wait, which is great!

Meanwhile, the light slowly subsided. And something had formed where the flower had been. It was a round, golden fruit. A vivid golden light shone from the tip of the branch.

"Kku-u-ung!" Tori's eyes widened as if they were going to pop out.

"Kieeee!" The goblins looked at each other.

-Wow!

-It's a fruit, a fruit!

-It really formed!

The spirits burst out all at once. Hylen muttered, his eyes welling up with tears. "To think it's the fruit of the World Tree..."

Luan also looked at the petals in his hand and then carefully raised his gaze toward the fruit. Riri also flew ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠close to the fruit and smiled brightly. "It's pretty!"

I couldn't say anything. Because I was that moved. At the same time, a window appeared.

'Finally...' The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Evolution Fruit had formed.