Chapter 629 – Quite Unusual (3)
Healing School’s Private Room.
Sssssk.
Bellier activated a tracking magic in the space where Chief Lee had been lying. The traces of magic floated up, revealing the state of Chief Lee along with a projection of herself observing the scene.
At the same time—
Clack.
Bellier pulled out a magic tool, 『Virtue of Savings』, from her palm.
Its effect was simple:
A magic tool shaped like a small jewel box that collects and cultivates stored magic power. Of course, the cultivated magic power could only be used for healing within the boundaries of the magic power provider’s power.
Bellier had her doubts.
“…Why is it like this?”
Senior-level mages were considered irreplaceable talents in the Magic Tower. Therefore, to assist in their healing at any time, Virtue of Savings stored cultivated magic power from qualified mages.
That was one of the tower’s rules.
Bensch and Vangrit.
And the two other senior mages who had sustained serious injuries had all returned to daily life within a few months—thanks to this cultivated magic power.
Chief Lee was no exception.
Even if he looked displeased… he followed the rules, after all.
“Could the cultivated magic power not be responding?”
The magical traces in the room were clearly Chief Lee’s.
Even though the tightly closed jewel box should have shown some kind of reaction, it remained still, without the slightest movement.
Bellier bit her lip.
‘Could the change be so significant that even his magic power feels unfamiliar to him?’
The words of Chief Lee echoed in her head.
-“Driving away the demons of the Demon World… Was the price my time? Not a bad trade.”
“…Do you really think it wasn’t a bad trade?”
Bellier had witnessed it herself.
It felt like a distant memory now, but she remembered the sight of Chief Lee returning to the Magic Tower, covered in blood, after venturing into the Arcana Continent for Marcelo.
As a senior mage of the Healing School, Bellier could clearly assess the severity of his wounds.
Half in disbelief, she wondered: Was Chief Lee truly capable of even overcoming death itself?
That’s why—
“After all… you paid a price greater than death, didn’t you?”
She couldn’t leave the room where Chief Lee had stayed for quite some time.
She kept gazing at the magical traces with a wistful look in her eyes.
However, her reverie didn’t last long.
“!”
Amidst the floating magical traces, a strange movement was detected. Bellier’s eyes fixed on the spot at the head of the bed.
To be precise—
‘…The spot where I left the flowerpot.’
A pure, noble trace of life energy.
It was unmistakably the trace of the World Tree sapling that had taken root in the pot. Bellier’s curiosity was piqued.
Although she couldn’t fully grasp Chief Lee’s current condition—
‘Could it be that he was able to get up without any help from the cultivated magic power… thanks to the World Tree sapling?’
If that were the case, it would be a relief, easing some of her worries.
But—
“?!”
Bellier, a senior mage of the Healing School, could clearly see it.
Rather than passing life energy to Chief Lee, the sapling seemed to have extinguished its own life.
Bellier murmured in disbelief.
“Did… did it commit suicide?”
Not long after she had placed the pot by his bedside, the World Tree sapling had taken its own life. It had neither bestowed any blessing nor provided any help to Chief Lee.
…Sway.
Her already complicated thoughts grew even more tangled, and Bellier unintentionally stumbled.
How should she interpret this phenomenon?
‘Was the pot simply too small?’
No, that couldn’t be it. The World Tree sapling had been full of vitality.
It had trembled delightfully under Cleodia’s touch.
Bellier carefully voiced another thought.
“Could it be… just because of Chief Lee’s influence?”
According to the magical traces, Chief Lee hadn’t done anything while lying on the bed. There was no apparent reason for the World Tree sapling to end its life in his presence.
“!”
It was at that moment that Bellier realized something.
“Thank you, Bellier. And Cleodia. I am in your debt.”
What did Chief Lee mean by those words?
They had done nothing that would make Chief Lee feel indebted to them.
His words could only mean one thing—that he was referring to something that had yet to happen.
“So…”
Bellier smiled bitterly.
“You were telling us to keep quiet about what happened in this room, weren’t you?”
Indeed, if taken at face value, Chief Lee’s words would easily be misunderstood. Bellier suppressed her bitterness and began piecing together the situation.
“You paid a price so great that even the cultivated magic power refused to respond. You collapsed in your office because of it… yet you forced yourself to wake up to deal with the crisis involving the World Tree. All by yourself again.”
Bellier clenched her fist.
“Knowing that, how can I possibly remain silent? Chief Lee.”
It was not for any other reason.
It was the pride of a senior mage of the Healing School.
“You were the one who taught me that pride, after all.”
Bellier immediately started moving.
Her destination was the greenhouse in the private room, where the World Tree grew. She intended to investigate further and determine the real reason behind the World Tree’s wilting.
Creak.
As Bellier opened the door to the greenhouse—
-Bellier Yusia.
The World Tree’s leaves rustled as it called out to her.
-I’ve been waiting for you.
“…!”
*
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I, Hoyeol.
Time to exercise my special skill: grasping the situation.
So… that insanely high-stat boss monster…
[Blessed Guardian of the Verdant Forest: Lv. 2,000]
…is crumbling from my single attack?
‘Let’s be generous here.’
Let’s assume I’ve been overly humble and have severely underestimated my abilities.
Let’s try to make sense of what’s happening.
‘Nope. It still doesn’t add up.’
This is a Level 2,000 boss monster.
Even a fool knows the difference between regular monsters and boss monsters.
The gap in health, magic power, and difficulty in taking them down is massive.
Still not convinced? Just look at how the battlefield is reacting.
“W-What the hell!!”
“It’s staggering!!”
“Everyone, charge! Don’t waste the opportunity the Commander has given us!”
Even the Holy War Alliance is visibly shaken.
‘If my Natural Enemy status had been triggered, maybe I’d get it.’
That status could boost my combat power several times over.
Also, a moment ago, I didn’t use any ordinary magic. I unleashed 『Anomaly』.
‘And the material for that magic was top-tier power from one of the Ten Thrones.’
If all those buffs stacked together,
this scene might make a bit more sense.
But even with all that, it’s still way too much.
‘And most importantly, the message was strange.’
[Blessed Guardian of the Verdant Forest has been inflicted with the status effect ‘Fear.’]
Status effect: Fear.
As a demon hunter, I know more about the Fear status than anyone else.
Fear is one of the most powerful status effects.
The Dragon Fear, for example—the roar of the king of all creatures—induces Fear.
It’s a nightmare to deal with for demon-type monsters, regardless of their level.
‘Are you telling me I inflicted that on this monster?’
Even when Grandfell was with me, that was impossible.
The only ones who ever trembled in Fear before Grandfell were demon-type monsters.
‘If you couldn’t do it, how the hell could I, Grandfell?’
So, I, Hoyeol…
must have borrowed Grandfell’s power yet again.
I’ve perfectly assessed the situation.
‘There’s another reason behind this.’
And that reason is undoubtedly tied to the World Tree.
‘Even the reason Hiel left me… is connected to this.’
What action should I take in this situation?
Well, what else?
Struggle with everything I’ve got!
I checked my flickering vision.
[※ Warning: Excessive magic power consumption.]
Didn’t I originally plan to strike once and retreat?
Even if the effect was exceptional, the amount of magic power consumed remained unchanged.
Swoosh.
I reached into the inner pocket of my Dawn Jacket and murmured,
“A signal flare should be enough.”
Moments like these made me grateful for the morale-boosting effects of the Dawn set. Even as I gradually retreated, the Holy War Alliance erupted in loud cheers.
“I will prove it, without fail!”
…What exactly were they planning to prove?
I had no idea, but as long as they did their best, I wouldn’t complain.
Of course, I had no intention of loafing around in the back either.
‘Wouldn’t it be nice to prove I’m better than some dog at a training ground?’
I pulled out [The Baton of Rhythm].
Huff.
Even if only mentally, I took a deep breath.
The key is shameless boldness, Hoyeol.
I looked out at the battlefield.
‘There’s one thing I’m confident about.’
No matter what, I was sure I could command the Holy War Alliance better than Grandfell.
Some might argue, “Who do you think you are, questioning Grandfell’s leadership?” But that wasn’t my point.
‘Our Grandfell wasn’t interested in others, to begin with.’
But Hoyeol was different.
I had to think carefully to survive.
I memorized every detail about the Holy War Alliance’s factions, guilds, and players—what abilities they had and in which situations they excelled.
Thus,
“I command the Crimson Eyes Dune Clan.”
“…!”
I swung [The Baton of Rhythm] in the air, issuing commands to the Holy War Alliance in detail. I planned to hunt down the [Blessed Guardian of the Verdant Forest] by strategically moving forces into the next phase.
At this point, it might not seem like there’s an issue.
But let’s not overlook this.
The flood of specialized terms pouring from my mouth…
“Presto.”
“Vivacissimo.”
“Subito Forzando.”
Spitting out such words without pause—consider my emotional state, me, Hoyeol…!!
*
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Hiel Chrysiad Four Seasons Leaf.
“Finally, you’ve begun to move.”
No, it was the ‘Avatar of the World Tree’ who opened her eyes.
Her height had grown to that of a human.
Her hair was longer than ever before.
Her appearance was strikingly different from before.
It wasn’t just her appearance that had changed.
Her pupils gazed down on the entire Arcana Continent, and her every movement embodied the will of the Mother World Tree, truly dedicated to Arcana’s well-being.
However…
“My Lord.”
The Avatar of the World Tree still called him ‘My Lord.’
Even after becoming an entity equal to the World Tree itself and understanding why Arcana feared him.
She still believed.
“It’s not you who is in the wrong, My Lord.”
Her gaze shifted beyond Arcana, toward the Demon World.
“To the one who dared speak such words to our merciful Lord…”
With a chilling tone,
“It is only you, Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo.”
.
.
.
The Demon King of the First Throne
“Are you satisfied?”
Bael raised his head toward the sky.
In the Demon World’s sky, a massive Evil Eye had appeared.
It wasn’t his.
The brilliant silver eye burned with overwhelming power, as if it sought to incinerate the entire Demon World.
“Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo.”
Bael let out a twisted grin.
“You, above all, are the root of all evil.”
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