Chapter 522
Chapter 522
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 522
Chapter Title: Solidifying One's Base (1)
The girl in the flowing dress gazed at her reflection in the mirror and nodded in satisfaction.
"Hmm, perfect. This looks great."
Her blue hair cascaded like ocean waves, her eyes shimmered like a tranquil lake, her delicate features boasted perfect proportions, and her skin was as smooth as white jade. She exuded an irresistible charm that could make anyone gasp in awe. Brushing her hair back with one hand, she admired herself in the mirror once more.
"Heh heh hum~."
A little tune escaped her lips naturally. Unlike her usual style, her long ears—now exposed as her hair fell back—sparkled with beautiful earrings. They possessed an elegant yet subtly extravagant flair, boldly proclaiming her presence and amplifying her allure even further.
'Worth the trouble of getting those from Mount Titania. Dwarves really know their craft when it comes to stuff like this.'
To obtain this accessory that maximally enhanced the wearer's charm, she'd had to pull out all the stops, coquettishly begging her dad—a massive sacrifice. But seeing the results, she figured it was more than worth it. Of course, she'd absolutely refuse to do it again.
'...That's all in the past now. No point dwelling on it.'
Shaphiron Silvetti shook her head vigorously, as if to banish the dark history of whining to her dad with a childish lisp at her age—a memory that still sent shivers down her spine. She let out a deep sigh. How had she, who'd been sprinting full-tilt toward her dream of becoming a High Elf, ended up like this?
'No, actually... you could see this as just an extension of that journey. Being around him might give me some kind of hint, who knows?'
Her goal was to become a High Elf. Naturally, building rapport with a senior who'd already achieved it wasn't something anyone could fault. Who knew? This could be the chance for her to catch the World Tree's eye and truly ascend.
Having convinced herself, Shaphiron nodded firmly. The fact that her lifelong companion, her father Rapori Greenwood, was a High Elf had already vanished from her mind alongside that past embarrassment.
"Oh! Already this late?!"
After spending quite some time in front of the mirror perfecting cute expressions and alluring poses, she checked the time, grabbed her pre-packed snack basket in a hurry, and summoned an upper wind spirit to cautiously scout the situation outside. Then, she slipped out of the house like a gust of wind.
"Phew."
Borrowing the spirit's power, she put distance between herself and home in an instant and breathed a sigh of relief. If her mother had caught her dolled up like this, a mere scolding wouldn't have been the end of it.
'Sigh, Mom's just too rigid.'
Unlike her father, who melted at Shaphiron's charms, her mother—the head of the prestigious Silvetti family, one of the pillars of the Elven Kingdom's founding—was exceedingly strict with her. And if her nature-worshipping mom discovered these flashy metal earrings—Dwarven-made, no less—on her ears... the wrath didn't bear thinking about.
"Well, I could always use Dad as a shield."
No matter how displeased, her mom couldn't outright bully her over a gift from her High Elf husband. Of course, that would put her father in a tough spot too. Before being a High Elf, he was a devoted husband who doted on his wife.
'Still, he'd do that much for his beloved daughter, right? I went all out with the aegyo, so a little backup service is only fair.'
The dutiful daughter Shaphiron—who'd begun awakening fire affinity alongside her wind—huffed and marched forward briskly. Toward the hilltop retreat of someone she could reach blindfolded from frequent visits.
"Huh? What's this?"
But the person she sought wasn't lounging under the tree's shade as usual, which was practically his daily routine.
'If not here...'
Her steps turned toward the next spot without hesitation. It was a bit surprising that the lazybones was up to something, but she knew his haunts inside out.
'Found you.'
She arrived at the heart of Drasha, the Elven Kingdom's capital—an altar adjoining the World Tree. There, she finally spotted her quarry.
"Ah."
A blond man with eyes closed, hands pressed against the massive trunk like he was communing with the colossal World Tree. The most recent High Elf to awaken—Harris Greenwood.
Shaphiron stared at him, entranced by his unusually solemn expression. This side of him, who spent most days in lazy stupor, was a rare sight.
Clutching her snack basket, she quietly squatted and gazed up at him from the altar's base. Say what you will, Harris was a High Elf, and High Elves were the World Tree's priests—elves' deities.
'And the Elven Kingdom's strongest fighter.'
Without him, Drasha—not to mention the entire Elven Kingdom or even the Enamel Continent—would've been on the brink of ruin. His feats during that massive raid defied description beyond "overwhelming." In just a few years, he'd secured an unassailable position beyond compare.
Unlike her, who merely talked big about becoming a High Elf someday.
"Sigh... maybe it's too greedy after all."
Whether that greed referred to her dream or something else, even she wasn't sure. Lost in melancholy, she watched Harris and the World Tree for a while.
"Huh?"
Suddenly sensing something, she let out a soft exclamation. The ambient natural energy had thickened noticeably. The cause was obvious.
'What on earth is he doing?'
Centered on Harris at the altar, vast natural power flowed along the World Tree's trunk. The sheer energy surge altered the surrounding density just from its ripples.
"Whoa? The World Tree...?"
"What's happening all of a sudden...!"
"Did Sir Harris do something?"
Gardeners of the World Tree rushed in from all sides upon detecting the anomaly, but they were powerless too. They knew nothing of this sudden event.
Woooong—
But it didn't take long for the gathered crowd to notice the changes.
"Over there! Look!"
"No way, is that...!"
Shaphiron and the elves' gazes naturally lifted skyward. From the dense canopy blanketing the heavens, something slowly descended.
A branch laden with leaves, bearing a red fruit at its tip. The material needed for a High Elf's awakening ritual, chosen by the World Tree itself.
"...The World Tree's fruit?"
"Why now of all times...?"
Enveloped in wind, the fruit settled gently before them—not in front of a candidate, but before the long-awakened High Elf, Harris Greenwood.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The Church of the Main God's saint, hero, and angel of the Main God: Heinrich. And the World Tree's priest, the High Elf Harris.
Among his many avatars, these two held a slightly special place.
'Unlike my other avatars, these two have been heavily influenced by this world's gods—enough to directly affect their realms.'
Heinrich, who'd started as a Holy Knight, went without saying. Through baptism, he'd gained the power of the Outerica Main God's divinity, received various blessings to become a hero, and ultimately ascended to angelhood.
'In other words, the Main God has a huge stake in Heinrich's growth. Even now, as he's properly nurturing and blooming that divinity, he can't escape that influence.'
From the Main God's perspective, the initial investment had paid off massively. Creating even a lesser divinity required immense energy and karma, but compared to that, the cost for Heinrich—who generated karma on his own and grew steadily—was negligible.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ The World Tree gazes upon its child. The same held true for Harris, albeit similarly yet differently. Though not reliant on divine power from the start like Heinrich, from his High Elf awakening to transcending realms, he owed much to various sources.
'The World Tree's branch served as the medium for his birth, and it's the elves' tribal god.'
However, differences existed between the Main God-Heinrich and World Tree-Harris relationships. Though hierarchically distinct, Heinrich and the World Tree could both be seen as the Main God's lesser divinities—and strictly speaking, Heinrich and Harris were one and the same.
Put bluntly, the family tree was a tangled mess.
-An intriguing expression.
Harris had requested this audience with the World Tree for that reason. To sort out the messy stakes and negotiate for mutual benefit.
-Your body is not yet ready, but your soul is sufficiently qualified. If that is your will, conversing now is not amiss.
As Harris ascended the altar and touched the World Tree, strain mounted on his mind, conjuring the massive tree's illusion.
Its trunk soared heavenward toward the cosmos, its branches—embracing the world—bore stars instead of fruit, and its roots clutched the planet he stood upon. The overwhelming presence evoked awe, leaving him breathless.
The World Tree wasn't pressuring him deliberately. It was simply the vast hierarchy of a localized god, rooted in faith for eons, dwarfing a novice divinity like himself. Still, being able to converse directly with a god thanks to his soul's elevated tier was encouraging.
'I had so many questions to ask once I could talk properly with the gods.'
Relations between Earth, this world, and the system; the impending invasion of outer gods on Earth, and more. Harris asked the World Tree eagerly, hoping for even one hit.
-I have long manifested in Outerica and know nothing of other dimensions. Even if I did, I lack the authority to answer such queries.
Unfortunately, no substantial info came. Fair enough—a lesser god, created by the Main God and bound to one dimension, couldn't provide deep answers without the Main God's level.
[Then there's no helping it. Pardon the intrusion. Shall we get to the main point?]
Harris refocused on the original goal: negotiating with the World Tree. His realm was still at transcendence, but with his main soul elevated, resolving this quickly was wise. ...He had ulterior motives too.
[That said, ascending to proper divinity comes first. No matter how impressive a transcendent is, it can't compare to a god, right?]
-Agreed.
[So, here's a thought...]
Pausing dramatically, Harris continued like a fisherman carefully baiting his hook. No lies could fool a god, so only pure truth to persuade.
[How about ramping up the investment entirely while we're at it?]
His bold gambit: proposing additional funding.
[Frankly, it's a bit ambiguous now, isn't it? I won't deny benefiting from you, World Tree, but I haven't just been taking either.]
During the Lycanthrope raid, without Harris, the Elven Kingdom—and the World Tree itself—might not have survived. They'd likely have followed the enemies' plan, stripping the World Tree of power, banishing it from the surface, and sinking the Enamel Continent without its divine miracle.
In short, some return on investment had already occurred... naturally reducing the World Tree's stake in his growth.
'But what matters now isn't later—it's completing divinity ASAP to protect Earth.'
Divine stakes weren't a big deal for him anyway. With foes like the Heaven-Defying Society Leader and outer gods, Earth could shatter anytime—who had time for long-term investments?
'Pull in every resource possible first to avert disaster.'
The first step: more from the World Tree.
[As you know, prime stocks like this don't come often. The Main God’s already reaping nice returns. Just look at the steady upward growth!]
Proven performance was the best portfolio. Like an analyst claiming rock bottom, Harris piled on the sweet talk—
-Ho, how intriguing.
Customer acquisition: a resounding success.