CHAPTER 140
Chapter 140: Corrupted Divine Body (神體)
Jinwoo cut down the knight in black armor and absorbed the flame.
In the past, the Black Knights he fought in Bellen Village had been difficult opponents. Now, he could dispatch them with a single stroke. They no longer felt like threats; they felt like mere foot soldiers.
"Master!"
Ipril threw aside her broken bow and came running in a hurry. She bowed her head with a look of overwhelming emotion, clearly glad to see him after so long and grateful for the rescue.
"It has been a long time! Thank you for your help!"
"It has been a while. So, you returned from the 3rd Floor."
"Yes. I was thinking of challenging the 5th Floor soon, so I came back to prepare. But..."
Ipril looked around with a troubled expression. Jinwoo followed her gaze.
It was a Black Forest. Wherever one looked, there was nothing but forests and trees dyed in black.
"When I returned, my home was in chaos. It seems this is not the time to enter the 5th Floor."
"I see."
"Earlier... Ah, shall we sit first? There is a campsite nearby."
Ipril guided him to her camp. A tent that was excessively large for a single person was set up, and a pit was dug in the center of the ground. Burnt wood scraps and white ash indicated it was a spot for a campfire.
Compared to the size of the tent, there weren't many items inside, which was natural. Ipril was a Hunter capable of entering Gates, and Hunters possessed Inventories. She could just take out what she needed when she needed it, so there was no reason to leave things scattered about.
The two sat down in the rather empty tent. Ipril rummaged through the fire pit, laid down some fresh firewood, added some fine sawdust, and lit the fire.
"Phew... Ah, I apologize. The tension just left me."
Ipril spoke while massaging her shoulders and forearms, where the tension had drained away. Her forearms were so muscular they were comparable to Jinwoo's thighs. Her muscles, naturally rock-hard, had been stiff beyond words for the past few days.
"Can I hear the story? I just arrived."
"Of course. So..."
Ipril seemed lost in thought, choosing her words. It seemed difficult for her to speak, not because the story was complex, but for another reason.
Jinwoo looked at the Black Forest outside the tent. The scenery. The sense of wrongness. The warning from his intuition.
"I had a branch of the World Tree."
"Excuse me?"
Jinwoo broke the ice for Ipril, who was struggling to speak. He started with the reason he had come here.
"My world is also a mess like this. More than 99% of the land was covered in Erosion. But when I planted the World Tree I managed to acquire, the land around it began to recover."
"Is that true!?"
Ipril exclaimed in surprise.
" The grace of Mother World Tree... It is surprising enough that you possess the Jade Body of Mother World Tree, Master, but that story is also astonishing."
"But here's the thing. Black spores were found on its roots."
Was "spores" the right word? They looked like black fairies, but they didn't feel like living creatures. In fact, when Jinwoo grabbed one, it melted like water and returned to the root.
"......"
Ipril’s expression hardened. Normally, she should have refuted him immediately. The Mother World Tree was the God of the Elves. It would have been right for her to be angry, claiming their God could never be tainted by such filth.
But she remained frozen with a stiff expression. Her reaction confirmed it for Jinwoo.
"I came here hoping there might be a cure. What do you think? Have you heard of this?"
"No... that is..."
She squeezed her eyes shut and barely managed to open her mouth.
"There is no cure. It is the opposite! The corrupted roots of the Mother, tainted by Erosion, are eating away at this world!"
Extremely blasphemous words. Ipril showed a reaction of rejection so strong that hives seemed to rise on the arms she was massaging, but she said it in the end. The atrocity of the Mother World Tree. The name of the fallen God who had abandoned them.
"As I thought."
"As you thought?"
"I saw black roots in a village once before."
Jinwoo briefly explained the incident in Bellen Village. He told her about the Black Knight he met there, and how that knight was very similar to the one he had just cut down.
"So when the black spores appeared on the World Tree in our world, I came here. To look for the black roots again."
"I see..."
Ipril was shocked that Jinwoo already knew. No, the shock probably came from the fact that the World Tree had been corrupted for a long time. Since Ipril had been active on the 3rd Floor for so long, she hadn't been able to return here often, making the shock even greater.
"What do you intend to do now?"
"I have to find it. A way to fix it."
"Do you have any leads?"
"I plan to go to the tower in the Royal Palace."
"!"
The White Tower of the Royal Palace, which no one could enter unless they were a High Elf—a noble—and a recognized wise being among them.
"I heard there is a priestess who serves the World Tree there. I need to talk to her."
Permu. It had been quite a while since they last met. Considering her position and the distance between their worlds, it wasn't a relationship where they could meet easily.
"What is the condition of the Royal Palace right now? With the world in this state, I doubt the palace is safe."
"I heard the palace is completely covered in black thorns. They say it's in a state where no one can enter or leave."
"Can't enter or leave, huh..."
Ipril placed a pot on the fire and poured water. Then, she chopped up some ingredients and threw them in.
"If it is alright, may I accompany you? I will try not to hold you back."
"Suit yourself."
There was no reason to refuse. The fact that he would have one more person to stand guard at night was reason enough to accept.
"Thank you."
Even though she had volunteered to help, she thanked Jinwoo. She wanted to know, too. The state of the palace, what had happened to the Queen, and if the Mother World Tree had truly fallen.
When the contents of the pot bubbled, she ladled it into a wooden bowl and gave it to Jinwoo. It was fruit porridge made with fruits and vegetables. A savory porridge made by boiling non-sweet fruit flesh.
Because the fruit had been boiled until it was mushy, the texture was very unique. Still, it went down smoothly and had a fragrant aroma, making it excellent. The taste was passable.
"I will rest first. There has been so much fighting lately that I haven't slept comfortably."
"Rest well. I'll wake you at the appropriate time."
Ipril rolled herself up in a blanket and fell asleep. Jinwoo stepped out of the tent and surveyed the surroundings. His duty as the sentry.
In the distance, dozens of Black Flames were approaching, encircling the tent.
He could see Black Knights. Some wielded swords, others thrust spears. There were also those who blindly shoved their bodies forward holding shields.
There were also creatures resembling werewolves. They stood well over 3 meters tall, their entire bodies covered in coarse fur. Some had brown fur, while others had silver fur close to ash gray.
There were beasts that looked like a mix between a bull and a horse. They had horns on their heads—curled, hard horns aimed forward that looked like they would finish anyone off if they gored them.
And various other things. But none of them were troublesome opponents.
Easy. He just had to dodge, cut, and kill as he saw them. There was no complex coordination between the enemies, nor any special abilities to watch out for. It was just a pack of monsters rampaging as they pleased.
'Does this mean these guys are pouring out?'
It wasn't difficult for him. But for Ipril, or those weaker than her, and for the ordinary Elves who couldn't fight, this would be a disaster.
'Maybe...'
The situation might be worse than he thought. The Elves might be half-exterminated already. There was no way to maintain a normal life in a place where enemies like this swarmed. Unless they had someone's protection.
At that moment, a Black Root appeared. The trace of the corrupted World Tree that Ipril shuddered at so much.
But it did not attack Jinwoo. Instead, it protected and guarded him, exterminating the enemies together with him.
'It's certain now.'
The enemies were all swept away. Jinwoo absorbed the flames of those he killed, and the World Tree dragged away those it killed as nutrients.
'It tried to drag away the Black Knight in Bellen Village too.'
When the Black Knight appeared in Bellen Village, although it was a bit late, the World Tree had also appeared and was hostile to the Black Knight. If Jinwoo hadn't been there, the one to defeat the knight back then would have been the World Tree.
In other words, this current situation—this entire forest where the kingdom lay being dyed black—did not mean the World Tree was the culprit. On the contrary, the World Tree might be protecting the Elves from the enemies.
'Did the World Tree seal the Royal Palace too?'
That was possible. The World Tree might have moved to seal the palace itself to protect the Tower and the Queen.
'...First, I need to figure out the enemy's identity.'
Who on earth was sending these knights and werewolves? With Prycia and Jerakson defeated, there were 10 Monarchs left. One of those ten had been targeting the Elf Kingdom and forcing an invasion since long ago.
A single Black Root that had finished off the enemies approached Jinwoo. It wasn't the thick root used to kill enemies, but a thin root like a tentacle. It wound around Jinwoo's wrist once and rubbed its head against the back of his hand.
'Still the same.'
This behavior was the same. It had never shown hostility when they first met, and it was similar when he encountered it with the King of Dark Elves.
"Master?"
At that moment, Ipril approached with a rustle. It seemed she had woken up late from the sounds of battle.
The corpses of the enemies were gone, but the traces of battle left on the ground remained. Seeing the devastation, Ipril’s face turned red with shame, realizing how big the battle had been.
"I-I apologize. To think I didn't wake up even while you were fighting like this."
"It's fine. I fought quietly so as not to wake you."
In fact, he had used mana to block the sound from reaching the tent. The reason she woke up was probably due to the World Tree's root. She must have felt the minute vibrations of it moving underground and sensed something was wrong.
And then, Ipril saw the Black Root wrapped around Jinwoo's wrist.
"!"
Ipril instantly took a stance to draw her sword. But she couldn't bring herself to draw it. To her, the World Tree was an existence no different from a God. Even if it was corrupted, it wasn't an opponent she could easily point a sword at.
But...
"Kuh!"
Clenching her teeth, she drew her sword. Her arm trembled at the impiety, but the tip of her blade aimed at the root of the World Tree. Even if it was a God, she had to fight against an enemy threatening their home.
Jinwoo grabbed that blade tip with his bare hand. Ipril flinched and tried to pull back, but the sword wouldn't move.
Jinwoo slowly, but with irresistible force, made Ipril lower her sword. Because the Black Root was still wrapped around his wrist, Ipril’s pupils were trembling madly.
"It's fine, put it away. It's on our side."
"...Pardon?"
Something Ipril desperately wished for. Even while seeing the Corrupted Divine Body with her own two eyes, she had no choice but to cling to those words.