[**The hidden achievement, Hero’s Duty, has been linked.**]
[**The hidden quest, Endless Hero’s Mission, has been triggered.**]
[**Seek out the Mediator.**]
Message windows popped up one after another before Evan’s eyes.
From Evan’s perspective, the Hero Quest was the one thing he wanted to avoid most. Even in this world, it continued to dog his footsteps until the very end.
However, rather than worrying about that immediately, Evan’s attention was captured by the sight unfolding before him.
The Forgotten Spring.
The water was as clear and transparent as glass. In the center of the spring stood a massive stone pillar that looked like a giant tombstone. Runic characters were inscribed upon the pillar, emanating a mysterious power that maintained this place.
‘A spring made to forget the passage of time through the power of Runes. Was it said to be a place where the concept of time does not exist?’
Of course, it was an unforgettable location for Evan. It was here, inside a Gate, that he had witnessed a survivor who should have been nothing but baggage.
‘A kid who wasn’t even a Hunter was holding out inside the Gate.’
He didn’t know how the child had ended up trapped in the Gate, but he remembered she had survived thanks to an artifact. Back then, Evan had carried that dying girl through the spring as he proceeded with the Hero Quest. He had cleared the Gate while protecting her.
That part had gone well, but although he made it out of the Gate, the girl had not. The Gate closed immediately after he exited, and the child’s whereabouts became unknown.
‘To think I’d return to this place personally. I wonder what happened to that kid back then?’
Evan looked around the Forgotten Spring as he reminisced. Soon, he began to grow wary. Recalling the hardships he had faced here made him feel dizzy.
There were legions of the Demon Tribe that had been targeting this spring. For some unknown reason, they showed an intense obsession with this place. Evan had fought them off, even though he never learned their motives. Whatever the reason, the Demon Tribe was the enemy of humanity.
While clearing the Gate was his primary objective, he had to stop the demons’ goals regardless of what they were. Evan turned to Helena and asked, “Has this place ever been attacked by the Demon Tribe?”
Helena blinked in surprise and nodded. “How did you know? That there were attacks by the Demon Tribe here…”
“It’s just a hunch. I felt like the Demon Tribe would target a place like this.”
“Yes. You are right. It has been passed down that our ancestors protected this place from the demons’ assault a very long time ago. Of course, there are many stories intertwined with this location.”
“Many stories…”
“Yes. I only know a few of them myself, but there is a tale passed down about an ancestor who protected the spring with the help of a human—no, a Hero. And that ancestor left behind a testament.”
Helena pointed toward Evan and gazed into his blue eyes.
“She said that if a human who could change destiny like you ever visited, I should pass this on.”
As Evan listened to her, a sense of dissonance washed over him.
‘It sounds similar to my story.’
The tale she told was remarkably similar to Evan’s situation. However, in Evan’s memory, his only experience here was saving a little girl and clearing the Gate.
‘That child should have been a human, not an Elf…’
Evan tried to recall the girl’s appearance, but he couldn’t remember clearly. He only had a faint memory of the silhouette of her face and that she was a young girl with blonde hair just like his.
As Evan fell into deep thought, Helena approached him with a smile. “Now, come this way!”
She took Evan’s hand and led him forward. Once they reached the edge of the spring, she let go and began to mutter in an unintelligible language. Suddenly, the Runic letters carved into the stone pillar began to glow.
Evan watched her actions in silence.
‘Was that the Hidden Piece?’
It was interesting to discover a new secret here. At the time, he hadn’t had the chance to look around properly due to the circumstances, so he had simply moved on.
*Whoosh!*
Soon, a powerful Runic force radiated from the stone pillar.
[**You have discovered the Elves’ permanent storage, Onkalo.**]
[**Items kept in Onkalo remain in their perfect, unchanging form.**]
[**One of the artifacts stored in Onkalo remembers your presence.**]
An entrance to a sub-space formed within the brilliantly shining pillar, *Onkalo*. Then, a single object flew out from within and slowly settled into Helena’s palm.
“…That is.”
Evan could not hide his shock upon seeing it. The Guardian’s Bracelet he had given to the girl was right there.
‘Why is this here?’
It was a piece of high-tech protective equipment developed by the Hunter Association in his previous world. It was designed so that anyone could use it, generating a protective shield for the wearer just by being equipped.
“Here, take it,” Helena said, handing the bracelet to Evan.
“Where on earth did you get this?”
“I don’t know the details myself. I simply followed the testament left by my ancestors. They said to entrust everything to a human capable of saving us. That is why I have entrusted our fate to you.”
Evan could finally understand why she had made such a bold choice.
‘A testament… More importantly, was that kid actually an Elf?’
He had finally learned the whereabouts of the child who hadn’t made it out of the Gate. Furthermore, it seemed that the girl was a distant ancestor of the Elves. A connection that had merely brushed past him in the countless repetitions of the world had been re-established here.
‘She was a being of this world. I remembered her as a human, so perhaps she was using magic to change her appearance?’
Pondering various questions, Evan opened the item’s information window.
[**Blessed Guardian’s Bracelet**]
Grade: S
– Durability: 499/500
– Effect: Granted with the Elf’s Blessing. Forms a Wind Shield around the wearer. Allows the use of Wind Barrier and Wind Messenger to block ranged attacks.
– ??
– Wind Spirit Affinity: 50%
– Miscellaneous: An Elf Chief who received help from a human placed a blessing upon this item.
Evan’s eyes sparkled. Unlike his expectations, the item was in perfect condition. Compared to when he had recovered the Metal Sword, this was a massive discovery. It had even been enhanced with the added effects of the blessing.
Evan equipped the bracelet to test it.
[**The Elf Chief’s Blessing is active.**]
[**Wind Spirit Affinity has increased by 50%.**]
[**You can now use Wind Messenger.**]
A shield made of wind formed around Evan. He didn’t stop there and activated the power of the bracelet to manifest the Wind Barrier.
*Whoosh!*
A Wind Barrier the height of a man appeared in front of Evan. When he placed his hand against the barrier, he felt a solid resistance as if he were touching a wall.
‘With this, I should be protected from most threats.’
It had excellent defensive capabilities.
‘Next is Wind Messenger.’
When Evan used Wind Messenger, a translucent puppy was summoned before him. Helena, who was watching, spoke up.
“Is that a Wind Spirit? Sylphs are low-ranking spirits, but we use them as messengers to deliver urgent news.”
“I see. No wonder it was called Wind Messenger.”
Evan chuckled and put the bracelet into his inventory. He had received a great gift.
‘Did she know this would happen? Or did she simply want to repay anyone who helped?’
Only the girl herself would know the truth, but the child he had protected had left a reward in this form. Rather than using it himself, Evan thought it might be better to give it to Ayra for a while so they could exchange messages.
‘More importantly…’
Evan turned his head to examine *Onkalo*.
‘How is this possible? As this world undergoes constant destruction and restoration, items should be damaged.’
The Elves’ permanent storage. A special ruin operating through the powerful force of the Runic language. It seemed that power was capable of protecting the items within the storage even if the world collapsed.
In that case, this ruin looked dangerous.
‘Now I know why the Demon Tribe attacked this place. The fact that things can be stored in an unchanging form is incredible. It means there’s something inside here.’
Evan asked Helena, “Are there other artifacts passed down from your ancestors here?”
“Yes. They were all left with testaments so that the artifacts can only be accessed under specific conditions.”
“Is there any way to open it by force?”
“I don’t know that much. However, it would likely be impossible through ordinary means. There is no being in this world who can defy the power of these ancient Runes.”
Evan nodded at her answer and fell into thought.
‘There will definitely be those who covet this place.’
He felt that he needed to establish a solid defense system and security for the Elf Village before leaving.
‘Yggdrasil and the Forgotten Spring.’
He believed it would be extremely dangerous if this region fell into enemy hands.
After returning to the village, Evan and Helena gathered all the leading Elves. There were things that needed to be done immediately.
“What is the extent of the damage?”
Restoring the destroyed Elf Village was the top priority.
“…”
When Evan asked the question, everyone seemed hesitant to respond. These were people who had lived their entire lives in hostility toward humans. It was not easy to adapt in a single day. However, because he had saved Yggdrasil, their hearts held respect rather than animosity.
As they were all glancing at each other, Ainis, unable to bear the silence, spoke first.
“I have been traveling around the village to check the damage. As you know, all the major defensive facilities were destroyed in the raid. If an outside invasion occurs now, it will be difficult to hold them off.”
The atmosphere lightened instantly, and the Elves began to speak one by one.
“There are still many monsters remaining throughout the forest. they are continuing to gather toward this location.”
“Fortunately, as the World Tree revives, the forest’s power is gradually recovering. Thanks to that, we have been able to regain our strength as well. We should have enough power to defend ourselves for now.”
Evan listened to their stories, pondered for a moment, and then spoke.
“The facilities were destroyed, but I have handed the Guardian’s Seeds over to Ainis so that this place can be protected. We will install them at every major path, so please station your troops primarily in those areas. And…”
Evan checked the Map of the Archive. It was a special map that showed the entire Continent. Because it was an old map, it was a bit tricky to use, but it was useful for places like the Elf Village where the terrain didn’t change. This was also why the planning sessions between Evan and the Elves proceeded without a hitch.
“From now on, I intend to establish a guild here. I will set up a system to relay information from the human kingdoms to this place so you can prepare your defenses. Additionally, I will install a Magic Transmission Device so that I can come and go at any time.”
The Elves began to murmur among themselves upon hearing Evan’s words. If things went as he said, their worries would certainly decrease as they could prepare in advance, but the concept of a “guild” was far too foreign to them.
“A-A guild? That human culture…”
“It seems too dangerous.”
Though they voiced their concerns and fears, Evan spoke firmly.
“If we do not protect this place, everyone is in danger. The enemies we face are vast and powerful. You must also consider the possibility of having to deal with the entire Southern Region. And perhaps other entities will target this place as well.”
“The… the entire Southern Region?”
Evan told them about what had happened in Bellium.
“The Southern Region operates under an alliance system. And their leader is targeting the World Tree.”
Evan intended to create a branch of the Rosie Guild here. It seemed better to utilize the Elves, who were more trustworthy than humans, to keep an eye on the movements of the South.
Evan resolved to completely overhaul the Elf Village during his stay.