“This is the inner world I only heard about······. This is Yoo Jin’s inside, huh? It’s beautiful······.”
Wow! Mia looks around with her mouth agape.
I was pretending to be nonchalant, but inside…
What the heck is this······?
I was more shocked than Mia.
My inner world was definitely not like this.
A green field and a lake sparkling like starlight in the scattered sunlight.
Countless lives wriggled beneath the water, while flocks of birds soared in the sky, casting shadows on the ground.
What is this?
It’s way too different from the inner world I remembered.
Did I stumble into the wrong place?
I thought Mia had split open my soul to enter here.
Did I make a mistake?
Even though I knew it couldn’t be, I couldn’t shake off the suspicion.
A land of death that felt devoid of any life.
Where did the barren snowy plains, filled only with ice and snow, go?
At that moment, as I pushed through the bushes accompanied by a sizzle of pleasant sounds…
A hollow laugh escaped me.
“Ha······.”
A vast flower garden spread before me.
A field of mixed colors of flowers extending beyond the horizon.
Upon closer inspection, these flowers looked familiar.
This is yellow jasmine.
Next to it is a black rose.
And another one is a blue cyclamen.
Those small, insignificant flowers that were left alone on the frozen ground.
Now they thrive enough to fill the entire world.
At that moment, I felt as if someone was murmuring in my ear.
“I guess we won’t have to support them anymore.”
The voice faded away with a swoosh.
I felt it completely leave.
They were the manifestations created by my attachments and regrets.
The effort to remember the lost timeline birthed them.
They, standing tall in the desolate snowy plains, always supported me.
But now, I no longer needed them.
The heroines from the previous rounds are by my side.
The bonds I formed in this round are still intact.
Now, my inner world is bright enough.
The women I created shine brightly without forcing it.
Somewhere along the way, my insides were filled with life instead of death.
Thus, I became one with the women I made.
They didn’t vanish.
They became one with me.
I gently touched the vibrant flowers and smiled.
“Who are these children?”
“Children?”
“Ah, oops! I said something strange. For some reason, these flowers feel like people to me.”
Mia squats beside me, inhaling the flower aroma with a smile.
Can she see the essence of these flowers?
Maybe her ability to see the essence has already opened up.
If so, that means she has plenty of potential.
“How about it? This is how you cut through space. Right now, I split my soul to come in, but with practice, I’ll be able to jump to the desired place by splitting time and space.”
“I think I’m starting to get the hang of it. So, I just need to practice like this? Hehehe. Will you help me practice?”
“Of course! I can’t just leave my student to fend for herself.”
“Thank you so much, really. Everything······ all of it······.”
Mia gently grips my hand.
I can feel it trembling slightly.
Is she about to cry, or is she smiling brightly?
“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have saved so many elves. I wouldn’t have been able to preserve Elvenguard either. Honestly, I keep getting help from you, Yoo Jin.”
“I’m helping because I want to. If the elves, who serve the World Tree, disappeared, I’d be in trouble. I’ve benefited so much from that prophecy ability.”
“How shameless. Always packaging your good deeds in such a scummy way, huh?”
“…”
“No matter how much you smear mud and wrap it up dirty, it’s useless. The goodness of a person reveals itself unmistakably.”
With the priestess who sees through people’s hearts saying that, I found myself speechless…
But I can only feel wronged.
Did I fight intending to save people and dedicate myself to rescuing the current world?
I simply fought because I didn’t want to let the women beside me go and to be the hero of a corpse girl looking up at me.
I came this far for the most personal reasons.
Well, if Mia is going to package it like this, then I can’t help but feel good about it.
“Yoo Jin, can I ask for just one more thing?”
“Why are you being so careful between us? Even if it’s a burdensome request, just say it.”
“I mentioned that I’m looking for a place for the World Tree to take root, right? There’s no better place I’ve seen so far, and I doubt there will be. Would it be okay if I planted the World Tree here, in Yoo Jin’s inner world, until it grows into a mature tree?”
“…”
Mia, hugging the flowerpot, slowly continues speaking.
Planting the World Tree here······?
It was such a sudden request that my brain lagged for a moment.
Surely, this place is indeed the optimal environment for the World Tree to grow.
There’s always an abundance of mana and wisdom.
The ample land exists for the World Tree to expand its massive body and take root.
However, I had never thought of bringing something from outside to this inner world.
Theoretically, it shouldn’t be a problem since this world isn’t that different from the current realm.
But is it really okay to do it?
“Will the elves rebel against it?”
“They would actually welcome it. I’ve been struggling because every suitable land I found belonged to unreliable nations······. But to have even more suitable ground owned by the most trustworthy person in the world! The elders would support it all.”
“I didn’t know they trusted me this much.”
“Of course. If they hadn’t trusted you, the current world would have perished by now.”
That makes sense.
I carefully accepted the flowerpot containing the World Tree that Mia handed over.
If I plant this inside me, will I also gain that prophecy ability?
I have no reason to refuse.
“Then I’ll gratefully accept that trust. I’ll take care of it until it grows into a mature tree. After that, I’ll transplant it to Elvenguard.”
“Hehe. Thank you······.”
I dug into the fine soil, planted the sapling, and covered it with soil.
For now, it looks quite shabby, just a withered tree.
But this will grow into that enormous, majestic World Tree.
I’m looking forward to the day it grows into a mature tree.
We stood hand in hand before that shabby tree, remaining silent for a moment.
Even just standing here feels healing.
Birds chirp, and a gentle breeze brushes by······.
After a while gazing affectionately at the World Tree, Mia turned to me.
She gestures as if to come closer.
“Yoo Jin, do you know what the World Tree’s name is?”
“A name? It had one? What is it?”
“Come closer and listen.”
Since there’s no one else to hear it.
Curious, I leaned down and brought my face closer.
Then Mia playfully whispered quietly.
“These days, almost no one remembers it, but it used to be called by a name back in the day. I’ll tell you, Yoo Jin.”
“…”
“It’s Yggdrasil. Yes, that’s definitely the name.”
Whoooosh!
The scenery of the world transforms.
I can feel the fabric of time and space shimmering.
Suddenly, my brain felt numb.
Before I knew it, we had escaped my inner world and were in a dim forest.
With Mia holding my face, we kissed.
So soft.
And wet.
In that moment, my head was filled with those sensations, leaving no room for other thoughts.
As I broke the kiss, Mia turned her face away, her ears flushed red.
She was the one who initiated the surprise kiss, yet now looks shy.
“Will the elders support me if they find out?”
“They’d probably expel you from the priestess position······.”
“Somehow, it sounds like you want that to happen?”
“Hehe. Did I get caught? Now I think I understand how Yulia feels. The priestess position is surely fulfilling and honorable, but······ it’s way too constraining for a girl in love.”
Ah, I’ve seen this pattern somewhere.
This one took me by surprise too; I was momentarily dumbfounded.
Seizing the opportunity while I was flustered, Mia pulled me in again for another kiss.
“I love you, Yoo Jin. If I don’t say this now, I feel like I’ll regret it for life, so I’m rudely confessing my heart. Is it okay for me to love you, Yoo Jin?”
After a stammering buildup, Mia courageously uttered her feelings.
She looks relieved as if finally letting go of the things she’s held back for so long.
But then she looks a bit anxious, as if realizing she’s crossed a line.
If I said I didn’t know this feeling until now, it would be a lie.
I knew.
Not vaguely, but clearly.
However, at that time, I simply chose to ignore it.
I had thought I would sever ties with them, that I’d leave this world behind.
So I thought forming new connections would be something I’d regret later.
But that soft thought was shattered by Cornelia.
What kind of coward hesitates to start a bond for fear of losing it?
If such a coward exists, then it should be normal for them to live in fear of death.
So now I ask myself again.
What was my heart like back then, when I forcibly turned away from Mia’s feelings?
What truly is the path without regrets?
“Mia.”
“Y-yes······. Wait a minute······ Uhmm······ Yoo Jin······.”
“I couldn’t speak first because I didn’t want to ruin the priestess’s career, but honestly, I was drawn to you from the moment we met.”
“A-ah!?”
After pouring kisses, I conveyed my honest feelings.
Wiping my saliva-laden lips, Mia’s cheeks flushed bright red.
I don’t care anymore.
Since I’ve already got a wife, a mistress, and a girlfriend, what’s there to hesitate about?
This is the final one.
Really, the last.
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