38
038 — The God of Moonlit Forest
The atmosphere became tense. Even though the roots didn't have eyes, Jin-woo was having a staring contest with them.
The World Tree's roots were filled with hostility and greed. But then.
At some point, the hostility began to fade away.
'What?'
Because they were confronting each other like this, Jin-woo was even more sensitive to the movements of the roots. He could sense the will they possessed and the emotions they showed toward him.
The hostility that had initially tried to recklessly steal the black flames completely disappeared, and what remained was doubt and curiosity.
Seureu—
Before he knew it, one particularly small root had approached within close range of Jin-woo. Then it gently brushed against Jin-woo's cheek.
"!"
It felt like some unknown monster was licking his face. Chills ran down his spine to his back as Jin-woo jumped backward to create distance.
Then the small root that had licked Jin-woo swayed once and spread a mysterious energy to guide Jin-woo.
'My vision...'
It wasn't the type of magic that made him lose consciousness or control him. Jin-woo's body was still in place, keeping watch over the World Tree.
Only his vision changed. It was trying to show him something.
'A forest... White buildings... Is it a castle?'
In the expanded vision, there was a vast forest along with a white palace built within the forest.
The entire forest was used as the palace grounds, blending with the pure white buildings. It was a structure naturally built mixed with the forest, like the Elven mansion he had once seen in the 0th floor.
Soon, the vision descended to the ground. Then deeper into the center of the palace, even deeper.
To a place within the palace that was extremely rarely visited, where only a handful of people in the entire kingdom could enter.
'A white tower.'
That tower was the Queen's residence. The White Queen of this Delphinia Kingdom and the priestess of the World Tree.
She was the kingdom's supreme ruler, the priest who presided over ceremonies, and simultaneously the keeper of the World Tree's secrets.
Jin-woo wasn't surprised by the knowledge that naturally came to mind. It was being conveyed by the World Tree along with the vision.
Soon, the vision entered the tower and headed to the tower's basement. There, the World Tree's thickest root was located, where the priestess would spend most of her day offering prayers.
Even at this moment, she was silently offering prayers, and the first thing that caught the eye was her flames.
He didn't know if it was his own subjective view, but her flames bloomed more gracefully than any elf he had seen so far. Beautiful and noble enough to make one lose their soul.
Her appearance only came into view after that. Around where she knelt for prayer, water-colored hair that seemed longer than her height was spread out, and her attire was more heavily colored with religious overtones rather than queenly garments.
It was white and loose, with the skirt and sleeves also spread on the floor along with her hair.
She, who had been quietly offering prayers, suddenly seemed to sense a presence and turned this way.
"Huh...?"
Her eyes widened greatly. Jin-woo was also surprised. Could she see him?
"Who on earth are you..."
How could a man she was seeing for the first time, and a human at that, not even an Elf, be in this tower?
The white tower built in the center of Delphinia's royal castle was forbidden land where entry was prohibited except for a few High Elves permitted by the priestess.
Not only regular Elves or Dark Elves, but even most High Elves were forbidden from even approaching.
For a human man to enter such a land. Such a thing had never happened once in thousands of years.
Ttuk—
With her surprised question as the last, the vision was severed. Like a TV being turned off.
In an instant, Jin-woo's vision had returned to the ruined rural village. Before his eyes were the World Tree's roots that had played tricks on him.
"...What did you just do?"
Jin-woo asked while putting strength into the hand holding his sword.
The vision just now felt like... Yes, similar to when a mage shares vision with a familiar or something.
In this brief time, his vision and the World Tree's had been shared, achieving unity.
But he wasn't the World Tree's familiar, nor was it the other way around. They weren't connected by contract, yet they shared a vision.
And that wasn't the only question.
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
Why had it shown him the appearance of the palace and the appearance of the priestess?
He couldn't understand the intention. Maybe it was the opposite? Perhaps the purpose wasn't to show him, but to show himself to the priestess.
Either way, he couldn't understand what meaning it had.
If they had at least conversed, but all they did was look at each other's faces. What meaning could such a half-hearted meeting have?
Seureu...
But the World Tree didn't seem inclined to answer. Having unilaterally accomplished only its own purpose, it burrowed into the ground and hid itself.
He dug through the dirt with his feet, but it was no longer visible anywhere.
It had run away. No, it would be more accurate to say it had withdrawn.
"Tch."
It was surprising that the World Tree was the subject of Erosion, but it seemed to have incomprehensible schemes as well.
He had learned many new facts, but there were even more things he didn't know. Jin-woo clicked his tongue and put his sword into his inventory.
***
With the Erosion gone, the village chief gathered the scattered villagers. Being Elves, there were plenty of ways to relay messages in the forest, and before long, most of the Elves had returned to the village.
The completely destroyed village was so thoroughly smashed that it needed to be rebuilt from scratch.
But there was a problem that came first.
"..."
"..."
It was the subtle atmosphere between them and Jin-woo.
They had heard that Jin-woo had repelled the Erosion for them. But they didn't know how to treat him.
They had lived in a closed rural area for hundreds of years and inevitably had a strong fear of outsiders. Especially if that outsider was a human, not an Elf.
It wasn't hostility. It was just strong wariness and fear toward the outside.
In that atmosphere, Mari was fidgeting restlessly.
"Mom. Mom."
"Be, be quiet."
Mari's mother embraced her with her skirt and stopped her when Mari couldn't bear it and tried to say something. She didn't know what her daughter might say in this atmosphere.
"I don't want to!"
But Mari couldn't bear it quietly and left her mother's embrace to cling to the village chief.
The wisest and kindest village chief grandmother in the village. She always gave sweet wild strawberries and patted her head when she ran errands.
It seemed like Grandma Village Chief would listen to her story.
In the quiet silence, Mari's whining couldn't help but draw attention, and the villagers' gazes also focused on the village chief.
They were simply at a loss. So they hoped the wise village chief would make a decision.
The village chief,
"It's alright, Mari."
She still comforted Mari with a gentle touch, stroking her.
"Welcome to Belen Village, stranger. We would like to formally welcome you as our village's benefactor."
The village chief stepped forward before anyone else and bowed to Jin-woo.
It was merely an imitation of noble etiquette she had glimpsed in her youth, but to Jin-woo, it didn't look much different from the priestess's gestures he had seen earlier.
The most important thing in etiquette is the heart toward the other person and an upright spirit.
"My name is Jin-woo. I happened to meet Mari about two weeks ago and became friends with her."
Jin-woo also hoped his appearance would look as courteous as hers.
***
Once the village chief stepped forward first, the villagers no longer had reason to be distant.
They still found the being called human difficult, but precisely because of that, they were more considerate and offered thanks to Jin-woo.
Thank you for saving the village, thank you for dealing with the Erosion, and so on. Countless gratitudes poured out.
"Though I'd hardly call it saving when everything's destroyed."
"Hahaha! Well, young folks like us can rebuild it!"
He inevitably became closer to Elves who seemed to be his peers, and Elves who appeared to be in their 20s and 30s, regardless of gender, showed strong curiosity toward Jin-woo.
Still full of vigor, they were very curious about Jin-woo, who was both a race they were seeing for the first time and an outsider.
'Looking like my peers means their actual age is 200-300 years old, right?'
Jin-woo paused at that thought, but there was nothing he could do about it. If you really thought about it, Mari, too, was actually over 50 years old, having lived twice as long as Jin-woo.
'Let's just not think about Elf ages.'
He well knew that only he would lose out if he dwelled on it.
"Come on! Let's restore the village as quickly as possible! You young folks, stop playing around and gather over here!"
"Yes~!"
"Got it, mister!"
After the storm-like meeting passed, most of the village Elves began restoration work.
Roles were distributed centered around middle-aged Elves with good experience and sense in construction. Some went to get materials while others leveled the ground.
There was a tent temporarily set up on one side, where the village chief, who had difficulty moving her body, was resting while watching the restoration work.
As he was about to head toward her, Mari caught him halfway.
"Jin-woo! Let's go play! Rebecca and Daisy want to play with Jin-woo!"
"Are they your friends?"
"Yeah!"
Behind Mari stood two children he was seeing for the first time, children who seemed just as energetic as Mari.
Mari alone was hard enough to handle, but three of them...
"Um, I have something to discuss with the village chief, so why don't you three go play and come back?"
"With the village chief?"
"Since I've become a guest of the village, there are various things to discuss."
"Ah~"
Mari, who had been determined to play with Jin-woo no matter what, changed her expression when he mentioned being a guest of the village.
Since Jin-woo had been accepted into the village, there was nothing to hide now, and they could meet in the village. She realized there was no need to play right away.
"Then we'll go and come back by ourselves!"
After sending off the three children like that, Jin-woo sighed softly. Then he headed toward the tent where the village chief was resting, as was his original purpose.
"Hohoho, our benefactor seems popular with the children. Mari seems to follow you well, too."
"I'm just a toy that doesn't break no matter how much they drag me around."
Jin-woo said, shrugging his shoulders. Looking at Jin-woo pleasantly, the village chief offered him a seat.
"Please sit."
"Thank you."
When he sat across from her, the village chief brought a small teapot and teacup and poured fragrant herbal tea.
He didn't know what kind of tea it was, but the aroma was deep and left a long, lingering scent in his nostrils. It wasn't just using quality herbs, but a cup that contained craftsmanship accumulated over hundreds of years.
"To be treated to such tea, it's an honor."
"Hoho, this kind of thing is all an old person like me has as a hobby."
The village chief's way of speaking was leisurely, having something that stabilized people's hearts. If he had also had a grandmother, would it have felt like this?
Jin-woo took a sip of tea and erased the bitter smile from his lips.
"There's one thing I'd like to ask."
"Yes. I'll answer anything."
The village chief was without concealment, seeming ready to tell him anything she knew.
"You were watching me fight, weren't you?"
"You knew. As the village chief, I thought I should watch how things turned out no matter what..."
What impressive sense of responsibility. That's probably how she could lead the village as chief for hundreds of years.
However, what Jin-woo wanted to ask was something else.
"Who exactly was that guy?"
"That guy, you mean the Erosion's minion?"
"Erosion's minion?"
"Those guys collect the souls of us Elves, Dwarves, humans, and such to offer them to their lord. They're incredibly strong; some individuals are so difficult to deal with that even an entire knight order rushing at them would have trouble defeating them."
He knew well from direct experience that they were strong. But there was a word that bothered him more.
"Lord?"
"Don't you know about the Erosion lords?"
"...Please explain in detail."
Realizing that Jin-woo truly didn't know, the village chief cleared her throat.
Her explanation that followed was simple.
In this universe, there exist beings that cause Erosion, and there are 13 of them in total; no, 13 entities exist.
They release minions to devour the world, and those minions are beings like the Black Knight that Jin-woo had fought.
"Isn't Erosion a phenomenon that spreads like a territory being deployed?"
"No, yes. Initially, there was such Erosion too. But once most of the world is devoured, they begin sending minions. The reason is probably..."
"Probably?"
"To definitively finish off the residents of that world who are making their last resistance. Just spreading territory wouldn't be enough to destroy everyone."
Indeed, that was an understandable reason.
It was easy to understand when he thought about cleaning. First, you wipe the large areas, then the corners come next.
If Erosion that spreads territory has painted most of the planet's area, what remains are only the corners.
To attack those corners, they now send minions.
Of course, understanding the reason didn't mean he endorsed it.
"If there are 13 lords..."
"As I said, they're the ones who command Erosion territories and minions. As for who they are, let me see..."
"Is there perhaps one called the Lord of Eyes and Ice?"
"Ah, yes. There is a lord called by that name."
...As expected.
At the newly learned fact, Jin-woo touched his chin with a serious expression.
'All thirteen gods of the 2nd floor were Erosion lords.'
The being known on Earth as the God of Ice Valley, but who introduced herself as the Lord of Eyes and Ice.
He who had lent him the sword to kill Johan was precisely one of the main culprits causing Erosion.
'Did I push Johan into erosion with my own hands?'
Jin-woo frowned. It wasn't that he felt sorry for Johan, but he felt instinctive revulsion at having helped erosion with his own hands.
Well, what's done is done.
"Could I hear the names of the other twelve as well?"
"Of course. First, there's the Lord of Fire and Furnace..."
That would probably refer to the God of the Furnace.
Even though they changed their titles to gods, the characteristics and symbols they possessed didn't change. Thanks to this, Jin-woo could match all their lord names with their divine names.
The Lord of Eyes and Ice was the God of Ice Valley, the Lord of Fire and Furnace was the God of the Furnace, and so on...
But then.
"Wait a moment."
One person.
Exactly one person didn't match.
"The Lord of Beginning and Primordial? Who is that?"
"As the name suggests, I know them as the very first lord. All Erosion and lords are said to have originated from them."
Jin-woo frowned.
'Who is that?'
Only that one didn't match with the 13 gods of the 2nd floor. He could understand all the other twelve, but this one was different.
'I'm sure the last god was called the God of Moonlit Forest.'
The altar of Moonlit Forest is on the 2nd floor.
Jin-woo recalled the list of offerings that the God of Moonlit Forest liked, which had been written on Hunter Net Blind.
That god's most favorite offering was elf corpses, and among things that could be easily obtained, they liked things that could be found in the forest, like fruits or wild beasts.
Therefore, gathering as many offerings as possible in the Primeval Forest and finding the altar of Moonlit Forest on the 2nd floor to offer them. That was said to be the best scenario when entering the 2nd floor.
***
A brilliantly bright moon rises. She was at the top of the white tower, receiving moonlight with her entire body.
The young queen of Delphinia Kingdom, called the White Queen.
However, she, who was only around 150 years old, didn't participate much in complex governance or state affairs.
What she focused on was not her duty as a king but her role as a priestess serving the World Tree.
That was the most important work for an Elf, so she was also the most important person in this kingdom.
"The moon is beautiful today, too, Mother."
On days when the moon shone brightly like this, Mother World Tree rejoiced. Therefore, she, as the priestess, had the duty to bask in moonlight to her heart's content.
Though she called it duty, it was also her favorite time.
The time when she, trapped in the narrow tower and unable to go out for life, could enjoy a little freedom.
She looked toward that world beyond.
What might be outside? What joyful things and what adventures might be beautifully coloring the world?
She couldn't leave the tower, but her imagination could stretch out as much as she wanted. Imagining the outside world she had never seen while basking in moonlight like this was the only freedom allowed to her.
But then.
'Who on earth was that person?'
Today was a little different from usual thoughts.
Her eyes, looking at the moonlight, became slightly dreamily unfocused.