Chapter 24: Even the Elf King Doesn’t Know

Following Elder Jilbero’s guidance, I headed toward the heart of the World Tree.

The Elves, recently injured during the Dragons’ attack, were being transported with the help of the tree spirits, the Trents, or being rushed to the hospital.

The whole place was moving busily, like a city at war.

Honestly, it was understandable.

No matter how young, if five Dragons gathered together, even an entire Kingdom could be wiped out in an instant.

It was as if someone had handed a weapon so fearsome that even the Demon King would tremble to innocent children.

At least it was fortunate that those Dragons hadn’t come here intending to destroy the Kingdom.

Truthfully, if they had been set on it, it wouldn’t have been strange for the Barrier to collapse before I could even intervene.

Perhaps the other Elves knew this as well. Instead of anger at the Dragons, there was a sense of awe directed at me—for having driven off the Dragons without spilling a single drop of blood.

It was a reaction I had grown used to, and for the first time in a while, it brought me peace of mind.

‘But still.’

As I was being guided, I quietly turned my head and looked around.

The Ellesion Great Forest, which serves as the bridge between the Kingdom of Lumin and the Prasion Kingdom.

At its center stood the towering World Tree, with wooden dwellings lined all around.

Yet, something about it seemed oddly lifeless.

“The atmosphere is quite different than usual.”

Jilbero, walking ahead, wore a puzzled expression.

“Have you visited our city before, by chance?”

“I have, actually. Did some logging here, back in the day.”

“……Pardon?”

While fighting the Demon King’s Army, what we lacked most was, after all, resources.

As the battles against the Demon Army grew fiercer and the front lines were pushed back, Ellesion Great Forest became the center of almost all material resources.

As a result, the city, once the heart of the Elves, was transformed into a site of indiscriminate resource extraction, and fell first.

It had been my role to cut down Trents that had turned into Demonic Beasts, corrupted by Magia.

I suppose what brought those memories back was how similar the current atmosphere was to back then.

“Forgive me. I was lost in old memories, so perhaps I sounded odd.”

“Ah, hmm. Is that so. Still, it’s surprising to hear you’ve visited before. We keep a record of all visitors, but…”

“I used to wander about without permission, so you needn’t worry.”

Jilbero seemed to recall the scene of me knocking down Dragons just moments ago, and shuddered as he nodded.

“That does make sense.”

“Regardless, let me ask you something. The village feels as if something is dying, but I can’t tell what. Do you know why it’s like this?”

Hearing my words, Jilbero’s face filled with shock.

“You—you could sense that? Truly?”

“……Is something wrong?”

“It’s not a problem per se… I’m just surprised you could sense the Death of the Forest. I thought only Elders older than myself or the Elf King could feel such things.”

Upon hearing this, I could not help but ask the Elder directly.

“……The Death of the Forest, you say? Are you saying the Ellesion Great Forest is dying?”

Ellesion Great Forest is not merely a place for Elves to live.

The entire forest, with the World Tree at its heart, purifies Demon energy and sustains all life in the world.

For the Resistance Army, even if their own Kingdoms fell, the World Tree was the one thing that absolutely had to be protected.

If the World Tree perished, Kingdoms and all else would be lost; life itself would no longer be able to survive in this world, and everything would be doomed to destruction in the blink of an eye.

Jilbero glanced around, then lowered his voice.

“That’s part of it. Let me explain inside. This way, please.”

I don’t know how much farther we walked, following Jilbero’s lead.

Soon, we reached a wooden building near the World Tree.

The exterior looked like a simple hut, but inside, perhaps by magic, there was a much wider living room and several rooms beyond.

“And this place?”

“This is my private residence. When foreign guests arrive, I always host them here.”

“Normally, wouldn’t the palace provide a guest room for visitors?”

“For most other Kings, yes—their residences are usually in the Capital’s heart. We follow that tradition; the Elf King also resides in the World Tree, but… it isn’t well-suited for diplomatic matters.”

“otot.”

That couldn’t be helped.

Though the World Tree seems harmless on the outside, its interior overflows with Life Force.

The Life Force itself isn’t dangerous, but once it exceeds what a human can withstand, it becomes deadly.

Like a balloon, which bursts if filled with too much air.

Only the Elf King, possessing the power of immortality, could reside within the World Tree itself.

I sat on a sofa that looked perfect for conversation and spoke.

“Let’s skip the pleasantries and get to the point. What is the crisis facing the Elf Kingdom?”

Jilbero took a seat across from me and replied.

“As you already saw, the forest is dying. For now, this is classified information and must not be leaked outside, so I ask for your discretion.”

The fact that he told me so readily meant it was always their intention to bring this up during diplomatic discussions.

“I need specifics.”

“Of course. The reason the forest is dying is not something as simple as disease or magical influence.”

“I thought as much.”

Ellesion Forest can ward off Demons and purify their energy precisely because the roots of the World Tree spread deep throughout the entire Great Forest.

In other words, the dying of Ellesion Forest means something is wrong with the World Tree itself.

And the World Tree is virtually immune to disease and magic.

“But that doesn’t mean the World Tree is invincible.”

“Exactly. The World Tree may be immune to disease and magic, but it is quite vulnerable to external shocks.”

Jilbero calmly agreed with me.

The moment I saw that, I was convinced the World Tree had suffered direct harm.

“Who harmed the World Tree?”

Jilbero let out a deep sigh.

“Well, actually…

“It was the Dragons.”

Just then, with a clatter, the door burst open.

Jilbero instantly rose and bowed respectfully.

“I greet the King.”

Turning my gaze, I saw that the one who entered was a boy of very small stature.

If not for the golden hair falling to his waist and the characteristic green glow in his eyes marking him as an Elf, his appearance could have won affection anywhere.

But since ancient times, beauty itself was one of the most dangerous weapons—so I sensed that the Elf King was far from an ordinary opponent.

“Jilbero, you’ve worked hard defending the Kingdom. I’ll handle our guest from here, so go and rest at the Elders’ Hall.”

“B-but…”

“That wasn’t a request. It’s an order. I’ve told you before—the matters of the World Tree I will handle myself.”

At the Elf King’s sharp gaze, Jilbero paled and let out a sigh.

“Understood. I’ll withdraw to the Elders’ Hall for a while. Please notify me once the diplomacy is over.”

Watching his slumped back as he left, for some reason, a sense of melancholy welled up inside me.

‘Come to think of it, the King just told the Elder to leave the house, didn’t he?’

Even if it was for diplomacy between nations, was this really proper?

Still, what could I do?

When in someone else’s land, you must follow their rules.

Facing the Elf King, I cut straight to the chase.

“You said the Dragons were the problem. What exactly is happening?”

The Elf King gracefully sat on the sofa before me and replied.

“Haven’t you already guessed?”

To anyone else, it might sound like nonsense, but for me, it was answer enough.

“So it really is that Dragon called Thrall inside the World Tree.”

“To be precise, he’s trapped within the World Tree.”

“Trapped?”

“If he weren’t trapped, he would have come out long ago.”

Indeed, even if Thrall was a Dragon incapable of using magic, there was no way the strength of his body alone wouldn’t let him break a tree.

If he had wanted to, he could have burst out at any time—so ‘trapped’ was probably the right word.

“Then we’ll have to get him out.”

As I pictured what lay ahead, the Elf King asked me a question.

“There’s something I’m curious about.”

“What is it?”

“Why did you bother to send the Dragons back? Strictly speaking, this had nothing to do with you from the start.”

I realized that this question was being asked both to me as a person and as a diplomatic envoy of the Kingdom of Lumin.

“There are three reasons. First, profit. Second, mutual cooperation.”

“……Profit, to gain diplomatic advantage. Mutual cooperation, to improve relations with the Kingdom of Lumin, correct?”

He saw through it instantly, a sign of formidable experience.

So this is what it means to age gracefully.

I wonder if I’ll be like that someday.

“Looks like you’re in your teens, but you’re actually thousands of years old, aren’t you?”

“Hmm? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Just having an unattainable dream for a moment. Let’s get back to business.”

“……Right. So, what’s the third reason?”

“Simply put, the Dragons did something wrong.”

The Elf King let out a breath, smiling faintly.

“Hah, haha. ‘They did wrong, so I sent them back.’ For a human, that’s quite the audacious statement.”

“Is it? By human standards, those Dragons weren’t even ten years old. If children misbehave, adults should scold them.”

Whatever struck the Elf King as funny, he kept letting out short laughs.

“Very well. Let’s return to diplomacy. First, regarding the help we received, I intend to send an official gift to the King of Lumin in the near future.”

I blinked and asked,

“I haven’t heard of any royal marriage plans?”

“It isn’t that kind of official gift. But what I give will surely help solve the King of Lumin’s troubles.”

The Elf King’s eyes watched the whole world.

Recalling that, I had a pretty good idea what Deaurus Lumin’s troubles were.

“I suppose you’ll be able to break down the Barrier that’s been blocking the Elf Kingdom’s diplomatic requests.”

“Now that the wall is down, the pent-up waters can finally flow.”

“Like rivers merging into one?”

“No, perhaps it’s more like salmon swimming up a river meeting again in the sea.”

Either way, it was a move to revive diplomatic exchange, so I nodded roughly.

“Now, there’s one thing left—and it’s the most important.”

At that moment, the Elf King fixed me with the same sharp gaze he’d given Elder Jilbero.

A suffocating pressure closed in from all sides, as if even the slightest movement of a finger would be seen by the Elf King before me.

And that intuition was probably very close to the truth.

“Can you get the Dragon out of the World Tree? Without leaving a single scratch on the World Tree?”

But compared to the pressure I’d faced from the Demon King, this was nothing. I answered right away.

“It’s impossible for me.”

“Wouldn’t it be better for both sides if you could? After all, you’re holding the diplomatic advantage—shouldn’t you make full use of it?”

Hearing that from the one who’d be taken advantage of was oddly amusing.

Is this the composure that comes from living thousands of years with immortality?

A truly impressive King.

“That’s true. It’s not that there’s no way—there’s only one.”

The Elf King’s gaze narrowed.

“And what would that be?”

“If the Dragon is trapped, it means the World Tree itself is holding him. So, unless the World Tree willingly releases him, there’s no way to get the Dragon out without hurting the World Tree.”

“If that were possible, I’d have done it myself already. Since the day the Forest started dying, I haven’t been able to communicate with the World Tree.”

“There’s no need to worry about that. I should be able to do it.”

“Oh!”

I’d already done it once before I took down the Demon King in my previous life.

The certainty in my voice left the Elf King looking incredulous.

“You mean to say you can talk with the World Tree?”

“That’s what I said. All I need is for you to grant me permission to enter the heart of the World Tree.”

Strictly speaking, it sounded absurd.

If I hadn’t held the diplomatic advantage, I wouldn’t have even brought it up.

“Impossible.”

“Why?”

I hadn’t expected to be rejected so quickly, and was about to grow sullen when the Elf King corrected himself.

“Don’t misunderstand. Granting permission is easy enough. But, no matter how strong you are—even if you can face Dragons—you can’t withstand the flow of Life Force inside the World Tree. It’s not that you’re weak, it’s a matter of species. Even a Sword Master would struggle to remain sane inside.”

I nodded, already knowing as much.

“It doesn’t matter.”

“……You’re serious.”

The Elf King stood and asked,

“What is your name?”

“Owen. Captain of the Special Task Force of the Kingdom of Lumin.”

“Ellesion, Elf King.”

A perfectly ordinary introduction.

But since very few people ever exchanged names with the Elf King, I knew I had truly earned his favor.

After introducing ourselves, I followed him to the very center of the World Tree.

If I wanted to free the future Dragon King trapped inside, I’d need to meet the World Tree itself and check the situation.

But my questions would have to be precise.

To strike at the heart of the matter, I needed some background information.

“When did the Forest start dying?”

“Not long ago. About two years. Of course, for you humans, that may seem a long time.”

Even so, it wasn’t as long as I’d thought.

But unlike the World Tree, the Great Forest’s problems appeared gradually, so Thrall must have been inside the World Tree for at least two years.

“Do you know anything, Elf King?”

“About what?”

“About why a Dragon would end up inside the World Tree.”

The Elf King scratched his face with a bitter expression.

“I have no idea, either.”

“That’s a problem.”

A Dragon, who should not be able to leave Heavenly Palace, had somehow hidden from the Elf King’s gaze and entered the World Tree.

Even this alone meant something truly extraordinary was at hand.