The Forest Where Spirits Live - 09
The war had erupted.
Goddess and Evil God at war, they say. And the conflict had dragged on for a long time.
At first the monsters slaughtered without mercy, but then they began to falter.
“Wise,” the man murmured.
“Correct.”
“Wise?”
“Present-day monsters are, by nature, selfish creatures who refuse to listen to others. Even the old monsters were much the same. They could only charge straight in and tear at throats. No strategy, no need for it.”
Creatures that never had to learn, never felt the need.
Literal beasts.
Or worse, in some sense.
“The Goddess started with traps, then taught them how to win wars. In the meantime, she created another being.”
“Indeed. No matter how much wisdom humanity uses, direct power is still required.”
“And that being is us.”
“Spirits?”
“Surprised? We spirits were born to fight. More precisely, to protect this beautiful world.”
Of course.
So we are not deeply hostile toward humans or monsters, but we choose to guard humanity over monsters.
We were never created to fight from the start, nor did we harbor such hearts.
“And the Evil God responded by creating demons and began to fight.”
“The outcome?”
“The Goddess won.”
“……”
The war continued. In the end, through human and spirit hands, monsters and demons were defeated, and even the Evil God was bested.
The difference in direct combat power is too vast for me to judge. I could not conclude that the Evil God’s power is weaker than the Goddess’s merely because of this single war.
All that remained was the result: the Goddess won.
“If she won… then why do monsters and Evil Gods still flood the world? Why does the curse of the Hero and Demon King continue to torment us without end?”
Olivia frowned deeply. I carefully took her hand.
She startled, then exhaled.
“Forgive me.”
“No. You have every right to say it. ……I see. The Goddess won, but both sides suffered mortal wounds. The Goddess alone received the chance for a final blow, and it was a wretched fight that could scarcely be called a victory.”
It sounded as if someone had repeated a story I already knew.
Did she hear it directly from the Goddess?
“And in that final moment, she could have killed the Evil God with one strike.”
“She didn’t?”
“She did strike. But she hesitated for the briefest instant. In the end, with her own twin—her family—standing before her, she wavered and held back.”
“……That sounds almost human.”
“We were born to the Goddess. Perhaps we should call her our own.”
Yes, that was quite sacrilegious.
Olivia gave a small laugh.
“So?”
“Ultimately, the attack landed, but the Evil God also had time to counter. They inflicted fatal wounds on each other. The Goddess realized it could not end that way and decided to seal him at the final moment. And most cruelly, the Evil God had the same thought.”
At that final instant, both judged the other too dangerous to kill outright. They chose instead to seal each other.
Sealing.
Why would they choose sealing over choosing to kill each other with their last strikes?
“In the end, both were sealed by their own sealing arts.”
“I see.”
“The Goddess accepted it. But the Evil God did not stop there. Using the cracks in the seal, he poured his power outward and created a being like the Demon King, weaving another scheme.”
“……”
“And the Goddess noticed and chose the same path—sealing the cracks. That is why the Hero and Saintess exist.”
The Goddess chose the Hero and Saintess. The Evil God chose the Demon King.
No matter how you looked at it, the methods seemed oddly similar.
“There is one question.”
“What?”
“Why only from humanity? The Hero and Saintess?”
“Because the first race the Goddess created was human. All other races that came after were merely variants of humanity.”
In other words, every human race began with humans.
Elves, beastkin, dragonkin, dwarves—none were exceptions.
The idea had always existed, yet hearing it spoken so plainly left me speechless.
“Olivia Reinhardt, Hero of this age. The Holy Sword you carry was once the Goddess’s own blade.”
“The Goddess’s sword?”
“Only those who possess the strength to wield it receive the mark.”
Of course.
So they ignored humanity, morality, ethics.
Only the ability to hold the sword mattered.
“Take pride in your strength.”
“Me?”
“You were chosen only as one who can wield the sword. The Goddess granted you no grand blessing. Yet you did not give up, and here you stand—possessing an absurdly powerful strength.”
“……”
“Talent is one thing, but the value of blood-and-sweat effort remains. You deserve respect for that strength.”
“No… a little embarrassed.”
“Even in your current state, you are far stronger than I. No need to say more.”
Olivia was indeed unnaturally powerful.
“Then… to summarize: unlike the Goddess, the Evil God was truly a monster who desired only the law of the jungle. And he recovers far faster, expanding his influence.”
“Huh? So that’s what the story was?”
“Otherwise the current situation makes no sense. The Demon King Army Cadres already wielding the Evil God’s power is simply unnatural.”
The Demon King’s position had spread far wider than once thought.
“Precisely. Astronomical time has passed. Both wounds have healed. But the Evil God’s recovery is faster, and breaking the seal comes sooner. It is undeniable. Thus the Evil God’s influence spreads across the world.”
I had no idea how long it took to heal from such wounds.
During sealing, proper rest was impossible, healing was difficult, and in addition he was channeling his own mana outward through the cracks. Of course his recovery lagged.
I remembered the saying that mana and life force are the same—yet here the difference was clear.
“That explains why Alex received the Evil God’s power and became a betrayer of humanity.”
“The Evil God gave humanity his power? When did that start? There was no hint of it during our travels. Moreover, if he was an Evil God ally, why did he go with me to kill the Demon King?”
“……His simplest goal was to prevent me from killing the Demon King. But since you were too strong, the plan changed.”
“Hm, I see.”
Olivia looked unconvinced.
I myself was unconvinced. There had to be other reasons.
Or rather, the reason I gave might be accurate, yet the story felt too abrupt in too many places to be complete.
Where had Alex even contacted the Evil God?
For what purpose?
Could he truly laugh if the entire world had to be sacrificed just to make him happy?
I had always thought him that kind of person, but even then this went too far.
Or perhaps I had simply overvalued an old friend and blinded myself.
Whatever the case, the line had already been crossed. Even if Alex survived, he could never escape the prison.
This was only in the case where humanity won at the final moment.
If the Evil God won, humanity was finished.
From the Evil God’s viewpoint, there was no need to keep humans alive.
Or perhaps only a few could survive, depending.
Did Alex become enamored with the Evil God? Or choose for some other reason?
I was genuinely troubled, yet trying to unravel the logic brought no satisfactory answer.
“That is all I can tell you for now. Any questions?”
“If the Spirit of the World Tree were to come here.”
“In that case?”
“If I am lucky, I might meet the Goddess. Is that possible?”
“……You have heard that far? The World Tree Spirit must truly like you.”
Well, whether liked or not, the one who saved the World Tree was me. The Spirit had no reason to dislike me.
“Well, that requires true luck… but I will give it a try.”
“Yes.”
“Then are all questions finished?”
I glanced at Olivia. She shook her head. No questions came to mind at the moment…
Not quite.
Something had just flashed through my mind.
The shock was like lightning striking. My eyes widened.
“You said the Hero and Saintess were chosen from humanity, right?”
“Correct.”
“Then what about the monsters?”
“……”
“Aren’t there a Demon King and a Hero of Monsters?”
“That doesn’t seem right.”
“What do you mean?”
“The Hero is chosen, and the Saintess receives power directly from the Goddess.”
“That’s right… so why?”
Olivia tilted her head in confusion. I looked at the Shrine Spirit and spoke.
“The Saintess’s and Demon King’s roles seem to overlap.”
“Overlap?”
“The Demon King receives power from the Evil God and boosts all monster abilities. Olivia, what is the Saintess’s role?”
“She receives power from the Goddess and protects people… protects…”
Olivia paused, then seemed to realize.
“She can grant blessings that awaken the abilities of allies.”
Almost identical roles.
It was no exaggeration to say the only difference was humanity versus monsters.
The Demon King simply had a wider reach and could wield his powers more efficiently.
“Shrine Spirit, one more question.”
“Speak.”
“Does the Demon King’s position not… resemble the Hero of Monsters?”
“……The possibility cannot be dismissed.”
“Then…”
Olivia spoke first.
“Does that mean there is someone who holds the position of Hero of Monsters…?”