novelraw Chapter 59 : The World Tree and the Demon Beasts (2)
Chapter 59 : The World Tree and the Demon Beasts (2)
Chapter 59: The World Tree and the Demon Beasts (2)
“That is….”
Leon muttered, his face serious.
Garan reacted to those words.
“Leon, what exactly is happening right now? You’re the one who knows the most about Ira here. Explain it to us.”
Garan looked troubled. He had heard from Leon that Ira was a tenacious one.
Because of that, even when the demon beasts had appeared suddenly his composure had not broken.
But that did not mean he fully understood the situation.
‘We were surrounded by hundreds, maybe even a thousand demon beasts. Fortunately, we had hundreds of thousands of soldiers with us… but that wouldn’t help solve the immediate problem.’
Garan looked at Leon. For a warrior called a barbarian his face was neat. The furrowed brow, as if lost in thought, made him look like a portrait in a picture book.
Soon Leon spoke.
“He seems to be after the World Tree, Yggdrasil. He opened the gate to the Prison Forest Ground and went inside. That must mean he has business there.”
“World Tree? Yggdrasil?”
“I’ll explain the details later. For now, call Rahan and Lenel.”
At that, Ryan moved. He was usually sluggish, but his movements always quickened when danger came.
Leon watched the demon beasts with cold eyes. They showed no sign of moving first. There had to be a scheme.
He focused his ki to observe the demon beasts closely. Leon clicked his tongue.
“Tch, a humanoid demon beast is commanding them.”
“A humanoid demon beast?”
Garan asked. There was a killing edge in his sharp voice.
“It’s not strange. A humanoid demon beast is the final form of demon beasts. If they’d absorbed enough life force they could transform into human shape.”
That made it even stranger.
Hundreds of demon beasts had not devoured one another’s life force. They were instinctively the kind to crave life energy.
Their staying placid was simply puzzling.
It was then.
“Leon!”
Rahan called for Leon. He arrived in obvious haste.
Leon asked, “Where’s Ryan?”
“Ryan? I didn’t see him. Anyway, what happened? Demon beasts appeared. Meteors are falling from the sky!”
“So we were split up. As you said, the situation wasn’t good. I’ll be blunt. Can you open the Prison Forest Ground’s gate?”
“The Prison Forest Ground? Why?”
“The demon beasts went inside. Their target seems to be the World Tree.”
“How on earth did they—?”
Rahan trailed off, staring toward Riolfolt. His face turned horrified.
“Father, is—?”
His voice trembled. He sounded like a frightened child.
“Who is that over there? It can’t be Father, can it?”
“Calm down.”
Retina, who had been listening, put a hand on Rahan’s shoulder. Mana shimmered from her hand and enveloped Rahan’s whole body, as if steadying his scattered mind.
“Rahan, as you guessed, that is your father. But he isn’t dead yet. I confirmed it with magic. Being a High Elf, his body is sturdy—if we act immediately he can survive.”
Ka-BOOM!!
At that moment a meteor struck right beside Leon. A massive shock swept across the ground.
Even in that shock Leon did not lose his footing.
No one could have kept their wits in that chaos. Even the Empire’s Emperor over there must have been taken aback.
But not Leon. He was strong, composed—cold beyond what words could convey.
Rahan gripped his trembling heart and forced himself steady. The elves’ leader had lost consciousness. Now was the time for cool heads.
‘Even the outsider Leon was accepting the situation calmly. I must calm myself.’
He exhaled deeply, then said, “For now, we can’t open it. To enter the Prison Forest Ground requires an enormous amount of magical power. We’d need to channel mana for at least a full day. If we had to go in immediately we’d need your father’s help.”
“Is that so.”
Leon nodded, then lifted his head.
More and more meteors were continuing to fall from the sky.
So far the meteors had been relatively weak, but that would change soon.
The longer they fell, the more destructive the meteors became.
Besides, the meteors in that sky were larger than anything seen until now.
‘A meteor will fall soon. Can we wake the king and enter the Prison Forest Ground before then?’
The time to heal Riolfolt and the time until his consciousness returned—when Leon calculated everything, there was not nearly enough time. Even thinking took time they could scarcely spare.
‘So we must move at once.’
There was no time to voice that thought. Leon glanced at Garan, then dashed toward Riolfolt.
He unleashed the Dawn-Drifting Falcon Step at full focus, moving with uncanny speed to the front.
From that single motion the Black Dragon understood Leon’s intent.
They, too, immediately followed Leon.
Blaze—!!
Several phantoms leapt forward. Soldiers from every nation could not have missed them. But before they could react, the demon beasts began to move.
“Damn it! Demon beasts are charging! Form a line!”
“Protect His Majesty the Emperor! Mages, stop the meteors falling from the sky at once! Either shoot them down or deploy a shield—do anything!”
It was pandemonium.
Meanwhile, Leon reached the spot where Riolfolt lay.
“Who are you?”
Irena, nearby, said, her eyes wide with surprise. Her gaze then dropped.
“Have you grasped the situation roughly?”
“Is he after the World Tree?”
“More precisely, he is after the power contained within it. It looks like an action to break the Demon King’s seal.”
Their exchange was brief and concise. Time was urgent. There was no room for long talk.
Other companions arrived shortly after. Garan came a little later than the others; he must have slowed his pace to come with Rahan.
“This is a grave wound.”
Retina checked the injuries and said it with a look of horror. Could they not save him?
“First, we must secure consciousness.”
“Can we save the king?”
Elbin, watching nearby, asked in a desperate tone. The despair on his face was visible.
“It would only prolong his life. If we don’t heal him immediately with holy power, he would die. But it would be better than dying outright.”
“Please help us. We will grant whatever you wish. Please, please save the king.”
Elbin was outright begging. He knelt, looking up at Retina.
Elves were a proud race. For one to kneel before a human—such a sight could exist only in imagination.
And yet, an elf had knelt before a mere human. He realized that clinging to his pride might cost the king his life.
Boom! Boom! Boom-boom!!
Above them, meteors were being shot down one after another.
Magic that should have been aimed at the demon beasts was now used to destroy falling rocks, and naturally, the burden on those holding back the demons increased.
The battle line began to collapse bit by bit.
Meteors rained down from the sky. Demon beasts charged from all directions.
In a situation where a head could be severed at any moment, Retina spoke.
“Move aside. We don’t have time to talk.”
Magic flared from Retina’s hand.
Holy power was a universal force, best for healing, but that didn’t mean magic was useless for treatment.
‘It may not regenerate flesh as divine power does, but it can at least stop the bleeding.’
The problem was the amount of mana required. Retina was a combat-oriented mage. She had learned some support-type magic but never delved deeply into it.
The mana consumption for casting healing magic was enormous.
‘Once this healing is done, I might not be able to fight anymore.’
It didn’t matter. She had reliable companions here, and with a bit of rest, she would be able to rejoin the battle.
However, what worried her—
Retina looked at Leon. His hardened expression betrayed unease.
It was clear he intended to enter the Prison Forest Ground the moment it opened.
‘That man, Ira… he’s dangerous. Leon can’t handle him.’
Yet Leon meant to face that being.
It wasn’t just worry anymore—Retina felt as if she were watching a moth fly into fire, chasing the impossible.
In truth, she didn’t want to let Leon enter the Prison Forest Ground.
‘But you’ll go anyway.’
Just as he had come to help them before.
‘I don’t know why you keep throwing yourself into danger like this…’
Retina smiled faintly to herself.
‘Do as you wish. You were the first newcomer who ever called me senior. I’ll repay that properly.’
It was then.
“Rahan….”
Riolfolt regained consciousness.
“...!! Father!”
“Rahan… hurry, you must go to the Prison Forest Ground.”
“Don’t speak, your wound will open!”
“We must go… The blessing of the World Tree is the source of all elves. If that power is stolen by the demon beasts, we will be enslaved to them….”
At those words, Irena’s eyes widened.
Aurel was a mighty nation, second only to the Empire. If that power fell under the demons’ control—
It could bring upon humanity a peril never before seen in history.
‘When we killed the Evil God, all humanity united, but if division occurs now…’
Irena bit her lip hard. Regret filled her heart. If not for her greed to reclaim her name—
If only she hadn’t wished for war….
Clench—!
Irena ground her teeth.
“Rahan, you must stop him. I’ll open the Prison Forest Ground’s gate with what power I have left. Lead as many soldiers as you can….”
Crack—!
As he spoke, a fracture appeared in midair.
Like the gaping maw of a beast, the rift opened and closed unstably, over and over.
Shaking violently, Riolfolt forced the rift to stabilize and said,
“Quickly—go, now. He used my mana once to open the gate—it won’t last long…!”
Flash—!
Leon seized Rahan and leapt straight inside. He would need Rahan’s help to move within. He couldn’t go alone.
“Kazan! Protect the men! I’ll bring Leon back, so just stay alive somehow!”
Garan followed right after.
With that single shout of instruction, his figure vanished into the rift.
“Amon.”
“...Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Are you unharmed?”
“No issues.”
“Then follow them. The goal is the Blessing of the World Tree. If it seems that blessing will fall into the hands of the demon beasts… take that power for yourself.”
Amon nodded.
None of the elves objected. They too knew what it would mean for their race’s source to fall into demonic hands.
Soon, Amon entered the rift as well.
“Cough—!”
In that moment, Riolfolt coughed up blood. Dark, clotted blood stained his clothes.
“Ghhh—!!”
“Damn it! Why is a High Elf’s stamina this weak?!”
Retina shouted.
Of course, she understood Riolfolt’s condition. A human would have died instantly from such a wound. It was a miracle he’d held on this long.
And even now he was channeling mana. The pain must have been unbearable.
“Not yet! Don’t fall yet! Inside, only the captain and Leon are there! We need more soldiers to stop the demon beasts!”
Retina screamed like someone possessed. Riolfolt’s breath rattled as if he were about to die, the light fading from his eyes.
“Damn it!”
Before Retina could say more—
Riolfolt lost consciousness.
And at that same moment, the rift closed.