Chapter 610: A Wildfire Starts From a Tiny Spark - Finale
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 610: A Wildfire Starts From a Tiny Spark - Finale
A slash that should not exist in this era cleaved the Tree of Genesis at an angle. Whether it was intentional is uncertain, but the flames, wreathed in a new star, incinerated every branch where the beasts grew.
The World Tree suffered its second arson. The only silver lining was that the stellar flames left not even ashes behind. Unlike the last fire, the embers shot upward and vanished, becoming stars that adorned the sky instead of sowing seeds of fire in the jungle.
Thanks to these merciful flames ascending to the heavens, the people living atop the giant were able to keep their lives.
The people who had tied themselves down to endure the rampaging World Tree cheered at its silence. It seemed their immediate safety was more important than the fact that the blessed tree that had fed them was now dead.
It was only natural. Even eating is done for the sake of surviving the day.
The fact that the World Tree was burning and falling. That such a tragedy was repeating itself. That countless people had already lost their footing and were on the verge of plummeting to their deaths.
All of it was swept away by the overwhelming relief of immediate survival.
And, inside the great lotus flower at the peak of the World Tree….
*
The worst way to wake up is by falling. The experience of plummeting in your most defenseless state is unpleasant beyond compare. Even someone sleeping so soundly they wouldn't notice being carried away would wake up flailing their limbs ungracefully if they were dropped.
Therefore, the best way to wake up is by falling. You'll wake up unless you're dead. If you don't wake up, you die.
And when I came to my senses, I was falling.
Damn it. What the hell is going on?
The once-lush leaves were gone. The dense branches were nowhere to be seen. Before me, only a clear sky, as if even the clouds had been blown away, stretched out endlessly.
Even as I fell, I used my mind-reading ability to grasp the situation. Fragmented information pieced itself together in my head.
Flames had erupted. A massive conflagration had blown off the top of the World Tree. Despite such immense power, its trajectory had been slightly off, so only the layer of the Human Regime had burned, relatively intact.
I'm not sure if 'burned intact' is the right phrase, but I'm alive, so that's what matters.
I have regeneration, so I'll probably live, right? In that case, let's do some thinking during this short fall. Who on earth did what to make the Tree of Genesis burn to a crisp, and if it was someone's doing, what should I do about it?
…Hmm. I don't really have a clue. Who could possibly have the power to blow away the Tree of Genesis? With that kind of firepower, they should have shown up long ago.
Ah, screw it. I'll just fall for now and see what happens. With things in this state, Nevida won't have the luxury of chasing me....
“Hughes!”
Just as I thought that, a familiar voice approached. I turned my head to see, unexpectedly, Shei flying near me.
What? What's going on? Reading her thoughts, it seems like Shei did something. But our minds are both too chaotic, so I can't get a clear read.
I greeted Shei cheerfully.
“Oh, Shei? Good to see you. Been a while, how have you been?”
“Is this really the time for pleasantries?! Fly, quickly!”
“Humans can't fly. Don't ask the impossible.”
“You're always acting so high and mighty. Tsk. Just grab on!”
I grabbed the hand Shei offered. After pulling me close, she gripped my clothes tightly and righted her posture, preparing for a safe landing.
Finding myself suddenly held in her arms, I asked Shei.
“Hey, Shei. What's going on? I woke up and the Tree of Genesis is gone.”
Shei answered curtly, blasting wind with Chun-aeng.
“I burned it.”
“You burned it? The Tree of Genesis? How?”
“It was nothing special. I've done it once before. I told you I regressed, didn't I?”
“Yes. You mentioned it in passing.”
I'd read it in her mind countless times, but I feigned ignorance and asked again. Unaware of this, Shei nodded and replied.
“Hughes. This isn't the first time I've been in this situation.”
“What situation? Falling from the sky?”
“No, not that. This situation, heading out to attack the Tree of Genesis. I've experienced this before. You weren't there then, and I came with far more troops.”
When? If you had a memory like that, you should have told me beforehand.
Well, I guess it's understandable if she couldn't recall it after being captured with her arm torn off.
“The Tree of Genesis has the form of a tree, and it requires a massive amount of water to sustain itself. That's why it has passages everywhere called water channels, which transport water absorbed from all its roots.”
“That's what we used to climb up at the beginning.”
“Yes. And I sent alchemic bombs flowing through them.”
“Alchemic bombs?”
Alchemic Gold possesses magical value in itself, and alchemic value means changing in an intended direction. In other words, with specific processing, Alchemic Gold can become gunpowder or a bomb. It requires considerable technical skill, though.
“I converted all my Alchemic Gold into alchemic bombs and sent them flowing into the water channels.”
“What? That's insane. What were you going to do if a fire broke out?”
That's extreme. The entire Tree of Genesis could have burned down.
“Don't worry. Right before igniting, the alchemic bombs are lighter than water. If you release them into the water channels, they naturally head for the highest point. Even using all my alchemic bombs, it's impossible to burn the entire Tree of Genesis, but I can blow off the top part.”
“So you blew it off?”
“I had no choice. Mayel happened to help, too. The air became dry and the riverbeds parched. It was the perfect condition for a fire.”
Shei spoke with conviction. Indeed, with the strangely dry sky and lack of moisture, the blessing of the Saintess of the Sky, and the immense treasure Shei possessed, it was possible. And she had actually done it once before.
…But something's off. I'm not sure if the memory in Shei's mind is from the previous timeline or this one. Is it because she's a Regressor?
And can you really burn it down like this with that method?
I don't know. In any case, that wasn't very important right now.
“Do you have any more business here? You don't, right?”
“No. I'm pretty much done.”
“The druids will use this chaos to escape, too. They have trained owls. This is our chance while Nevida's attention is diverted. Let's get out of here!”
Neither Shei nor I can handle Nevida. It's beyond just not being able to handle her; the moment we're discovered, it's over.
“You're right. We need to bolt. But where is Nevida?”
“She's probably with the King of Humans she adores so much! Oh, right, Hughes. What happened to the King of Humans?”
“Ah. Don't worry about that. Everyone's wish came true.”
“What?”
“My 'sister' will awaken. Nevida will get her sister back.”
“W-what? Why?”
“What was I supposed to do? Tell my sister to kill herself right there? That's sororicide. And I'd be the one dying. Getting out of there in one piece was the best I could do.”
“Sister…?”
Getting out of there in one piece was exactly what I wanted. I have to protect my own life, after all.
And my sister has to protect her life, too.
She doesn't need to judge humans. Humans will try to judge her. As she responds to that, she'll naturally develop her own standards.
That's how standards are made. They aren't just given to you.
Though I doubt that would resonate much with the King of Humans, who was born with everything already given to her.
“I've used too much energy, I can't fly for long! I'm landing!”
Shei held me like a princess and generated a gust of wind, preparing to land. Somehow recovered, Chun-aeng struggled to blast out wind, pushing Shei and me upward.
At least with Shei holding me, I won't be smashed to pieces on impact... Just as I was feeling relieved, I suddenly felt something unstable.
“Wait a minute, Shei. Your arm is trembling.”
“Don't mind it.”
“How can I not mind it?! My body is shaking like it's caught in turbulence!”
“It's because my arm was just reattached. It's fine. I can move it with Qi.”
A quick glance revealed she was shaking simply from a lack of arm strength. The trembling started from her shoulder, hidden by her clothes—precisely from the cross-section where Nevida had torn her arm off.
“Hey! Let go! This is even more nerve-wracking!”
“You're the one making it nerve-wracking! Stay still!”
“Stay still? If we land like this, your arm is going to snap right off along with me!”
I just didn't trust her. Bickering with Shei, I shifted my position in mid-air. Instead of being held by her, I held onto her and waited for the rapidly approaching ground.
“Hup!”
Even if the body regenerates, the pain remains. I braced my legs and core for the coming impact.
CRASH. My legs dug deep into the ground. Perhaps because our speed had lessened, I was able to land without much issue. No, it wasn't just that our speed had decreased. Even holding Shei, my body felt lighter than I expected.
“There. You can get down now!”
“…Oh.”
Even when I tilted slightly, Shei didn't seem to have any intention of getting down, her hands neatly folded. She was frozen, wheezing like an animal caught by the scruff of its neck. I couldn't just throw the petrified Shei off, so I looked down and asked.
“Hey, why are you just sitting there? Get down. Did your legs get cut off too?”
Shei's eyes widened as they met mine, and she immediately started flailing her limbs, pushing me away.
“I-it's nothing! Put me down!”
“I told you to get down, what kind of nonsense is that? Anyone would think I wasn't letting you!”
Shei jumped down and covered her mouth with a confused expression. Was she airsick or something? Why was she suddenly acting like that?
‘What? What's going on? Her reaction is strange…?’
“You said we should run. Aren't you going to run?”
“…Right. Let's go.”
“What about the druids?”
“We decided to survive on our own. It's too much for any of us to be responsible for someone else's life.”
“That's good. You have to look out for yourself.”
It's better than getting wiped out all at once.
…And Nevida won't have the capacity to catch them either. No, no one here will be able to pay any attention to such trivial matters.
Because my sister is about to wake up.
“Let's run!”
“Yeah....”
After replying, Shei tried to run but immediately staggered and collapsed. Just before her head hit the ground, I snatched the back of her collar with surprising reflexes.
“See, I told you something felt off. You're already exhausted. Where did you use up all that energy?”
“…Ugh. Right before starting the fire, getting Chun-aeng and Jizan out of Nevida's sanctum.”
Mind-reading only reads a person's thoughts. Shei thought she was still able to move, but in reality, she was nearly depleted of all her energy. Maybe it's because she's a Regressor, but there's a severe disconnect between her will and her physical condition.
“You pushed yourself too hard when you weren't even in good shape. You'll die like that.”
“It's fine. I'm a Regressor. Even if I die… I'll go back.”
“I don't really know what that means, but you're not going back with me, are you?”
Shei paused for a moment, then gave a small nod.
“…Right.”
“Then it's the same as dying to me. Jeez. I sent you off to live, and you come back trying to die again.”
“Hmph. I came to save you. You could at least be grateful.”
“Come on. You came to try and deal with the King of Sins.”
“…That too!”
“Whatever. Just fold your arms like before and stay still. You're hard to carry.”
“What? How am I supposed to stay?”
She was so docile before, but now that I'm telling her what to do, she's getting prickly. I pointed to the hem of her slightly dirty shirt and said.
“Arrange your clothes.”
“…! This is!”
“There we go. Hup.”
Taking advantage of the moment Shei crossed her arms and shrank back, I lifted her up. It seems better for me to carry the one who can't move. Unlike Shei, I'm in good shape, probably because I rested well for a few days.
“W-w-w…!”
“…You're light. What? You weren't this light before.”
“I was always light!”
Shei yelled, her face flushing red, then clamped her mouth shut. From the perspective of the one being carried, it's better to stay quiet like this. I hurriedly ran toward the edge of the jungle, carrying Shei.
“But can we really escape just by running like this? If Nevida takes a moment to come looking for us, we'll be caught, won't we?”
“…”
“What's with her? She's not answering.”
‘Is it the Heavenly Counter Domain…? Why... why isn't the Heavenly Counter Domain reacting even though Hughes is holding me? Does this mean it's okay now…?’
Hmm. Her attitude seems to have changed a little. Did she have a change of heart?
Ah, who knows. I'll think while I run. Getting out of the jungle has to be the top priority. With a fire this big, Nevida and the other members of the Human Regime must be in chaos.
I had been running for a while when it happened. Shei, who had been staring up with her seven-colored eyes, suddenly focused her gaze, her pupils turning yellow as her eyes shot wide open.
The third color of the Seven Colored Eyes. The Golden Eyes that see the unseen. Witnessing the firmament through the leaves with the eyes called Fiery Golden Eyes, Shei shouted.
“Hughes! Above!”
“Above?”
I followed her gaze and looked up. Nothing was visible in the blue firmament seen through the leaves. The empty sky was filled with its usual azure hue.
But Shei's Golden Eyes clearly saw something. A trace, invisible yet definitely existing, occupying a corner of the world. The Fiery Golden Eyes showed Shei even that which should not be seen.
And so, I could see it too.
Through Shei's vision, visible between the sparse leaves. A beautiful arc, shimmering with a torrent of golden power.
And along that arc, someone was ‘falling’.
“The Trajectory of the Heavenly Spindle…!”
Shei muttered.
The Mage Federation's Floating Castle has a golden trajectory. An unknown power that keeps the massive, castle-like structure afloat in the air. The Trajectory of the Heavenly Spindle, indicated by that solemn power that holds the world, allows one to land anywhere in this world.
It is a means of transport that only the mages of the Mage Federation can use—instantaneous, fast... and utterly unstoppable.
“Hughes, be careful! I don't know what that is or why it's coming, but…! The opponent is a mage from the Mage Federation! One who has mastered combat magic and a Unique Magic!”
Shei warned me quickly, but even that was too late. The rules the mage created had arrived before he did.
Suddenly, my steps faltered. No, I was walking perfectly fine, but the direction of my movement was reversing. No one pushed or pulled me, yet I was suddenly walking back the way I had just run. It felt like I had become a fish trapped in a bowl.
It wasn't me that was strange. It was the world. I felt like a traveler who had fallen into a strange land.
I've experienced this a few times before. When was it?
As I stopped walking, a sense of déjà vu washing over me, and placed a hand on a tree.
“Ignoramus. I will explain kindly so that even a fool can understand, so listen without panicking.”
From above, a voice that was somehow both nostalgic and detestable reached me. I looked up and took in the sight of the mage landing amidst a swirling tempest.
“I am a Federation Investigator of the Mage Federation. I detected a massive attack originating from this location and am currently gathering information by tracing the magical residue. If you reveal everything you know, you will be compensated. Answer as quickly as possible. The time I allow you to live is also part of that compensation....”
It was an unexpected encounter, but not a particularly strange one.
The Mage Federation was an organization formed by countless mages to study magic itself.
And the Divine, who had pierced the principles of the world, was an object of envy for mages... and at the same time, a power to be researched.
For the Mage Federation, which built shrines to the Divine and studied them, the Tree of Genesis was also an object to be researched and observed. It was only natural for them to come when such a tree had been burned to the ground.
However, the fact that this Federation Investigator was an acquaintance of mine was a bit of a surprise.
“Lankart?”
“You know my name, ignoramus?… No, wait.”
A person with whom I shared a past, but not a future I wished to share. The mage who graduated second in his class from the Military State's Secondary Military School and was recorded as a disgrace to the State.
Lankart Spendry. Once my friend, now a mage who had become the shame of the Military State.
Frowning deeply, he scrutinized my face from every angle before asking again.
“Are you… really Huey?”