140
140 ― The Corrupted Divine Body (神體)
He cut down the black-armored knight and absorbed the flames. The knight he had struggled against in Belen Village in the past could now be dealt with in a single strike. It wasn't just that they had become easier to handle—they felt like nothing more than common soldiers.
"Master!"
April came running breathlessly, discarding her broken bow. Her expression was one of joy at their reunion after a long time, and she bowed her head with a grateful look for being rescued.
"You were magnificent! Thank you for helping me!"
"It's been a while. You've returned from the 3rd floor."
"Yes. I was thinking about challenging the 5th floor soon, so I came back to prepare. But..."
April looked around with a troubled expression. Jin-woo followed her gaze. It was a black forest. No matter where he looked, all he could see was the blackened forest and trees.
"When I came back, my homeland was in chaos. It doesn't seem like the right time to enter the 5th floor."
"I see."
"Previously... Oh wait, would you like to sit down first? There's a campsite nearby."
April guided him to her campsite. A tent was set up that was far too large for one person, with the center dug out in the ground. There were half-burned pieces of wood and white ash, indicating a place for a campfire.
Compared to the size of the tent, there weren't many items inside, which was natural. April was a Hunter who could enter Gates, and Hunters had inventories. She could take out necessary items whenever needed, so there was no reason to have them spread out.
As a result, two people sat down with a thud in the quite spacious tent. April rummaged through the campfire area, took out some new firewood, and laid it down. Then she placed finely ground sawdust on top and lit a fire.
"Huuuu... Oh, I'm sorry. I'm just relieved."
April massaged her relaxed shoulders and forearms as she spoke. Her forearms were muscular enough to be similar to Jin-woo's thighs. Her naturally firm muscles had been unbearably tense for the past few days.
"May I ask what happened? I just arrived."
"Of course. So..."
April seemed to be choosing her words carefully as she fell into thought. It looked quite difficult for her to open her mouth, but it didn't seem to be because the story was complicated. There was another reason that made it difficult to speak.
Jin-woo looked at the black forest outside the tent. The scenery he felt from there. The sense of incongruity. What his intuition was warning him about.
"I had a branch of the World Tree, you see."
"Pardon?"
Unable to speak, Jin-woo took the initiative to begin on April's behalf. It was about the purpose of his visit here.
"My world is also a mess like this. More than 99% of the entire land was covered in erosion. But when I planted the World Tree branch I worked hard to obtain, the land began to recover centered around it."
"Really!?"
April exclaimed in surprise.
"The grace of Mother World Tree... It's already surprising that you possess the sacred body of Mother World Tree, but that story is also amazing."
"But you see, black spores were discovered in those roots."
Was it right to call them spores? They looked like black fairies, but didn't feel like living creatures. In fact, when Jin-woo grabbed them, they melted like water and returned to the roots.
"..."
April's expression hardened. Normally, she should immediately refute this. Mother World Tree was the god of the Elves. She should be angry, saying that their god could not be tainted by such impurity.
But she stood frozen with a hardened expression. With that reaction, Jin-woo became certain.
"I came here thinking there might be a cure. What do you think? Have you heard of anything?"
"No... Well..."
She finally opened her mouth after squeezing her eyes shut.
"There is no cure. It's the opposite! The contaminated roots of the corrupted Mother are devouring this world!"
Extremely blasphemous. She showed a rejection reaction so severe that hives rose on the forearms she was rubbing, but April finally spoke. About the atrocities of Mother World Tree. About the name of the god who abandoned them and fell into corruption.
"I thought so."
"You thought so?"
"I saw black roots in a village before."
Jin-woo briefly explained what happened in Belen Village. Also about the black knight he met there. He also mentioned the fact that the knight and the one he just cut down were very similar.
"So when black spores appeared on the World Tree in our world, I came here. To look for the black roots again."
"I see..."
April was greatly shocked by the fact that Jin-woo already knew. No, she was shocked because the World Tree had been corrupted from long ago.
April was even more shocked because she had been active in the 3rd floor for a long time and hadn't been able to return here often.
"What will you do from now on?"
"I have to find it. A way to fix this."
"Do you have any place in mind?"
"I'm thinking of going to the tower in the palace."
"!"
The White Tower in the palace, which only High Elves who were nobles, and among them only recognized wise beings, could enter.
"There's a priestess who serves the World Tree there. I need to talk to her."
Fermue. Quite some time had passed since they last met. Given her position and the distance between their worlds, they weren't in a relationship where they could meet easily.
"What's the state of the palace now? With the world in this state, it doesn't seem like only the palace would be safe."
"I heard the palace is completely covered in black thorns. They say it's in a state where you can neither enter nor exit."
"A state where you can neither enter nor exit..."
April placed a pot on the fire and poured water. Then she roughly chopped several ingredients and added them.
"If it's alright, may I accompany you? I'll try not to be a burden."
"Do as you wish."
There was no particular reason to refuse. The fact that there would be more people to stand guard at night was reason enough to accept.
"Thank you."
Despite offering to help on her own, she thanked Jin-woo. She wanted to know too. What the palace was like now, what had happened to the Queen, and whether Mother World Tree had truly fallen into corruption.
When the contents of the pot began to bubble bubble boil, she poured it into a wooden bowl and gave it to Jin-woo. It was fruit porridge made by mixing fruits and vegetables. A savory porridge made by boiling non-sweet fruit pulp.
Because the fruit pulp was boiled until it became mushy, the texture was quite unique. Still, it went down smoothly and had a fragrant aroma, making it quite excellent. The taste was so-so.
"I'll rest first. I haven't been able to sleep comfortably lately because there's been a lot of fighting."
"Rest well. I'll wake you at an appropriate time."
April rolled up a blanket to cover herself and fell asleep. Jin-woo went outside the tent and surveyed the surroundings. His duty as a night watchman.
In the distance, dozens of black flames were approaching in a formation surrounding this tent.
***
Black knights were visible. There were those swinging swords and those thrusting spears. There were also those who held shields and simply threw their bodies forward.
There were also beings similar to werewolves. They looked well over 3 meters tall, with their entire bodies covered in tough fur. There was brown fur and also silver fur close to ash-gray.
There were also beasts that looked like a mix between cows and horses. They had horns on their heads, and the hard horns that curved greatly and aimed forward looked like they would be fatal if you were struck by them.
Among other things. But there wasn't a single troublesome opponent.
Easy. He just had to dodge, cut, and kill as he saw fit. There were no complex combinations among the enemies, and there were no special abilities to be wary of. It was just a horde of monsters running wild as they pleased.
'So these things are pouring out.'
It wasn't difficult for him. But for April and those even weaker than April. And for ordinary Elves who couldn't fight, this would be a disaster.
'Perhaps...'
The situation might be worse than he thought. The Elves might already be half-exterminated. In a place where such enemies appeared in droves, it would be impossible to continue normal life. Unless there was someone's protection.
Then, black roots appeared. The traces of the corrupted World Tree that made April shudder so much.
But they didn't attack Jin-woo. Rather, they protected and guarded Jin-woo, and together they subjugated the enemies.
'Now I'm certain.'
All the enemies were swept away. Jin-woo absorbed all the flames from those he killed, and the World Tree dragged away those it killed to use as nourishment.
'It tried to drag away the black knight in Belen Village too.'
When the black knight appeared in Belen Village. Though a bit late, the World Tree also appeared and was hostile to the black knight. If Jin-woo hadn't been there, the one who would have defeated that knight would have been the World Tree.
In other words, this current situation. The fact that the entire forest where the kingdom is located has turned black meant that the World Tree was not the culprit. Conversely, the World Tree might be protecting the Elves from the enemies.
'Did the World Tree also seal the palace?'
That could be. The World Tree might have moved to seal the palace itself to protect the tower and the Queen.
'...For now, I need to find out the identity of the enemy.'
Who exactly was sending these knights and werewolves? Now that Praysiar and Jeraxon had fallen, there were 10 monarchs remaining. One of these 10 had been targeting the Elves' kingdom from long ago and was carrying out this invasion.
One of the black roots that had dealt with all the enemies approached Jin-woo. It wasn't the thick root from when it was dealing with enemies, but a thin root like a tentacle. It wrapped around Jin-woo's wrist once, then rubbed its head against the back of his hand.
'Still the same.'
This was still the same. When they first met, it had never shown hostility, and it was similar when they encountered the Dark Elf King.
"Master?"
Then, rustle rustle, April approached. It seemed she had woken up late due to the battle sounds.
Although the enemy corpses had all disappeared, the traces of battle remaining on the ground hadn't vanished. April's face flushed red with shame as she realized how big a battle had taken place from those remnants.
"I-I'm sorry. Despite you fighting like this, I couldn't wake up."
"It's okay. I fought quietly because I didn't want to wake you."
In fact, he had operated Mana to block sounds from being transmitted toward the tent. Still, the reason she woke up was probably due to the World Tree's roots. It must have felt the minute vibrations of it moving underground and sensed something was wrong.
And April saw the black root wrapped around Jin-woo's wrist.
"!"
April instantly took a stance to draw her sword. But she couldn't quite draw it. To her, the World Tree was an existence no different from a god. No matter how corrupted it had become, it wasn't an opponent she could easily point a sword at.
However...
"Keuuk!"
Clenching her teeth firmly, she drew her sword. Even as her arm trembled with impiety, the sword tip was pointing at the World Tree's roots. Even if it was a god, she had to fight against an enemy that threatened their home.
Jin-woo caught that sword tip with his bare hand. April flinched and tried to step back, but the sword didn't move.
Jin-woo slowly, but with irresistible force, made April lower her sword. The black root was still wrapped around his wrist, making April's pupils tremble madly.
"It's okay, so put it away. It's on our side."
"...What?"
What April hoped for. Even while seeing the corrupted divine body with her own two eyes, she had no choice but to cling to those words.