It’s been a while.
The branches of the World Tree densely covered the sky.
The fragrant smell of soil filling the surroundings.
I remember feeling gloomy like I was in a rustic countryside each time I visited here.
But now, it feels light, as if I’m just going to a friend’s house.
“What’s your relationship?”
“My wife and daughter.”
“Um… Can you lower your hood?”
“I’m sorry. My wife has a skin disease, and she can’t be exposed to sunlight.”
“I understand. Welcome to Elvenguard.”
Of course, I breezed through the immigration check.
The previously fierce and intimidating impression of Transylvania softened quite a bit with just a little makeup.
“Dammit. Never doing that again.”
“We’ll have to do it again when we leave, right?”
“I won’t! I’m going to sneak out this time!”
And so, Transylvania immediately wiped off all her makeup.
She was quite pretty though.
What a pity.
They say good-looking guys look pretty in drag, and that seems to be true.
“This is your accommodation.”
“…….”
However, my excited mood faded immediately as I reached the hotel.
Last time, I was shown to a stylish room in human style.
But this time, there’s just a hammock hanging in a nest made of vines.
“Right. This is how they are…”
I had forgotten.
The truth is that elves are all a bunch of racists deeply ingrained in their genes, and they are closed-minded.
That previous visit was something special.
As soon as I arrived, I had prevented the downfall of Elvenguard, so they couldn’t treat me like this today.
I reverted back to a gloomy mood that made me feel like I was in the countryside again.
“Oh. I hope the great spirit of water doesn’t cause a flood or something.”
“Why are you saying that all of a sudden?”
“I just want to upgrade my room a bit.”
“……?”
I was hoping that another great spirit might cause a disaster and send Elvenguard into ruin.
But I guess that won’t happen.
Resolving myself, I simply unpacked my things.
After all, this is a place where I’ll just be coming to sleep after training all day.
When my body is tired, I can fall asleep even on the stone floor.
A hammock is actually quite luxurious.
I’ve decided to think positively.
“First, I need to meet the priestess.”
“How are you going to meet the priestess when you snuck in? Outsiders won’t even get a glimpse of her.”
“I can just go find her with the World Tree’s eyes.”
“Huh… Elvenguard is going to ruin sooner or later if the priestess is sneaking a man into the most vital state facility.”
Saying that makes it sound a little off.
Though Mia isn’t the kind of fool to give away state secrets just because she’s infatuated with a man, so it should be fine.
Still, I’m a bit worried about security.
“……Let’s go together.”
“You can’t follow. The World Tree will judge you as an intruder and stop you.”
“……What?!”
“Hahaha! Let’s have a chat, blood ghoul to blood ghoul. Is your weapon a club? Let’s clash our weapons!”
“……What?!”
Mijeong, trying to follow naturally, froze and trembled with wide eyes when I waved my hand.
But soon, Transylvania grabbed her by the scruff and started dragging her away.
They didn’t seem to get along well, but since they’re both blood ghouls, they wouldn’t harm each other.
This could help Mijeong develop her close combat abilities a lot.
Despite how she looks, Transylvania’s skills are surely solid.
“……Yoo Jin. Yoo, Yoo Jin. Yoo Jin.”
Leaving behind Mijeong’s desperate call, I stepped out of the shabby accommodation toward the World Tree.
I’ve been to Elvenguard several times, so I memorized the way.
Walking down the familiar path toward the World Tree’s eyes…
“Oh?”
I was met with a blocked path.
The tunnel leading to the World Tree’s eye was entirely collapsed by dirt.
Now that I think about it, it got destroyed last time because Kali went on a rampage…
So how do I meet Mia?
Just as I was contemplating.
“Aha.”
A good idea popped into my head.
*
“Not good… very not good…”
Tap tap tap tap.
The sound of tapping feet kept echoing from the World Tree’s eye.
It was undoubtedly a disrespectful act toward the World Tree, but the priestess, Mia, was so anxious that she didn’t even notice.
“Why are so many strange things happening in succession…?”
Elvenguard is a particularly quiet town even among countryside villages.
It maintains extreme closure, so there’s hardly ever a diplomatic ruckus.
But right after the great fire in Elvenguard.
Specifically, strange occurrences began after Yoo Jin’s visit.
First of all, the former priestess, Yulia Petenburg’s return to Elvenguard could be accepted.
It seemed she had quite a deep connection with Yoo Jin.
Although she insisted on taking Yoo Jin for some bad reason.
But somehow, they pushed her away.
The moment Yulia turned away with a face like she’d stepped on something foul still lingers in my mind.
The Frost Duchess’s sudden visit was surprising, but that was okay.
When the elders recognized Alicia, who was accompanying the Frost Duchess, the atmosphere turned tense for a moment.
But I managed to get through it.
Alicia’s visit to Yoo Jin and Elvenguard seemed to be a secret escapade behind the Frost Duchess’s back.
The internal discord within Palana would be resolved among themselves.
Mia didn’t need to be concerned about that.
But the real problem started right after that.
Three prophecies appeared back-to-back, which is more than once a year.
The first prophecy.
“Darkness will descend upon Basel.”
With vague wording, all sorts of conjectures were made.
But just yesterday.
A large barrier appeared in Basel, and the darkness the prophecy referred to was identified.
“That’s not something a human magician can output!”
“Are you saying it’s a supernatural phenomenon?”
“It might be the work of an entity from another dimension, the Netherworld…”
An entity that brought dungeons into our world.
Whoever it is, it is someone from beyond the dimensional wall.
He began to launch open attacks.
After failing to seize the World Tree, he turned to Basel next.
Basel seems to be relatively unharmed, but the complete barrier covering Basel was enormous enough to be visible even in the Northern Continent.
An alien being has landed on our world.
And he possesses enough power to erase an entire city effortlessly.
This fact has spread openly.
It’s hard to hide what everyone can see with their own eyes.
And then the second prophecy.
“The priestess of the World Tree will be engulfed in anguish and regret.”
A bit chilling.
It was possibly a prophecy akin to a curse.
No matter how many times she asked what this meant, the World Tree remained silent.
Mia was getting more and more impatient.
“I’ll be engulfed in anguish and regret? What on earth is going to happen…?”
She has no family.
It surely can’t be a prophecy about losing blood relatives.
Then does it mean that many elders or elves will die?
Or could it mean Mia herself will get gravely injured?
If not that, could it be that something will happen to Yoo Jin?
Many thoughts crossed her mind.
As time passed, Mia’s anxiety grew.
She knew prophecies come true, but.
Even so, she had to try everything she could.
Because it’s certain that a great calamity is approaching.
She had to at least make efforts to avoid it.
What that might be, she didn’t know at all…
After the second prophecy came down.
Mia immediately sent a letter to Yoo Jin, but there was still no reply.
Perhaps he might have some clue…
“You seem to be prepared.”
Then came the moment of the third prophecy.
As if everything was ready, the fireflies filling the World Tree’s eyes began to blink in unison.
The priestess gathered her thoughts and stopped tapping her feet.
Then, she placed her hand on the wooden wall.
Syncing with the World Tree’s emotions, she began to sense it.
Soon after, an unrefined torrent of information flooded into Mia.
Mia recited the first phrase that was interpreted.
“The priestess of the World Tree…”
Again. Again.
Another prophecy regarding the priestess.
Mia’s body shuddered and trembled.
But she had to interpret it all the way to the end.
“The priestess of the World Tree will lead Elvenguard… to destruction?”
But the moment the prophecy was fully revealed, Mia had to doubt her ears and mind.
But confirming it was a precise prophecy without a single mistake, Mia was left speechless in shock for a long time.
“Me… me?”
I am supposed to destroy Elvenguard and fall into anguish and regret?
It’s utterly unbelievable.
Why would I betray the World Tree that raised and cared for me and lead to its destruction?
Why would I do something I would regret?
It was hard to comprehend.
I thought that maybe this time, the World Tree’s prophecy might miss the mark, to the extent that it felt unbelievable.
No. I didn’t want to believe it.
“Huh? Wait a minute…”
For a moment, I was in a panic, dazed in my thoughts.
But Mia quickly calmed her breathing and cleared her mind.
Her mind felt refreshed.
And she thought in a direction she had never imagined.
“The priestess of the World Tree… could it be…?”
The possibility that the priestess referred to in the prophecy is not Mia herself.
And that it points to someone with such deep hatred that they would want to destroy Elvenguard.
All arrows pointed in one direction.
“Are you talking about Yulia?”
The former priestess.
Yulia Petenburg.
Could the priestess mentioned in all those prophecies be referring to her?
“What do we do, what do we do?”
The problem is that this is merely a conjecture.
No matter how much the circumstances seemed to point toward Yulia, it was still too early to conclude.
Moreover, if this story were to reach the ears of the elders, who had severed ties with Yulia, they would surely condemn and revile her immediately.
“I need someone to discuss this with…”
For now, she would also relay the prophecy to the elders.
But as a priestess, she couldn’t bring up this conjectural rumor to them.
She needed someone to confide in.
How nice would it be right now if Yoo Jin were by her side?
Mia walked back to her dwelling with heavy steps, lost in pointless thoughts.
“Ah, you’re back?”
“Yoo Jin…?”
And the moment she opened the door.
A familiar voice reached her, and Mia’s eyes widened.
It felt like she was dreaming.
Just when she thought how much she wanted to see him, he appeared right before her eyes.
She didn’t even notice that Yoo Jin had trespassed into someone else’s house.
