Bloria!
The last flower hidden in Luxi Forest—the Spirit Candle.
And along with it, the Sealed World of Flower Spirits, Bloria, was discovered.
When the Milkway was spread over the whole city, the message had declared that Elysia was becoming an environment close to Bloria.
Through that, Jaeho instinctively realized—now was the perfect timing to release Bloria’s seal.
[Ohora—so you’ve brought them.]
“You recognized them right away?”
[Of course, it’s Volron. Those children are like my own. They’re the ones Tinlight especially cared for.]
“Hm? Was something wrong with them?”
[Very much so. When the demons invaded and those poor children were left with nowhere to go, it was Tinlight who took them in.]
At those words, Jaeho tilted his head.
“Come to think of it, aren’t spirits supposed to not experience death? Why seal them up at all?”
[Those children were, in the past, spirits who looked after the Shinmok, meaning me, directly. Tinlight sealed away Bloria as a whole to create an environment where I could safely be reborn.]
“…Wait a minute. So, are you saying I could’ve released this a long time ago?”
[Huh?]
There was a clear sense of incredulity in the Shinmok’s voice at Jaeho’s words.
[Isn’t it obvious? Those children were closer to me than anyone, and they understood me best. Don’t tell me… you just found them now and didn’t have them from the start?]
“Well, of course I just got them now. Geez, do you know how much trouble I had finding where you hid all this?”
[Hm… So that’s how it is.]
The Shinmok’s reply was thick with suspicion.
[Well, this place is pretty much Bloria already… Still, it will be a great help.]
“So, what do I do with this, then?”
[Just plant it anywhere along my roots.]
Jaeho immediately planted the Essence of Bloria right next to him.
[Step back for a moment.]
Following Shinmok’s direction, Jaeho moved back, and a light from the Shinmok began to spread over that spot.
Paaaah—
As if in response, the light started emerging from underground, gradually widening and enveloping the surroundings.
Charararang—
Large jade-colored leaves twined around the Shinmok, and there, a pond appeared where there had been none before.
“There…”
The world of the Flower Spirits he had seen before was inside that pond.
[Bloria’s seal is released!]
[A direct connection with the Spirit Realm is established!]
[Due to Bloria’s connection, flowers in the Elysia Garden will never fall ill.]
[New natural items producible in Bloria have been added.]
[1. Geuroumgaru]
[2. Fairy Jelly]
[3. Spirit Cloth]
[News that the Elysia Garden has a connection to the Spirit Realm spreads across the continent.]
The news spreading was of little concern.
What mattered to Jaeho were the items obtainable from Bloria.
There was no need to even mention Geuroumgaru.
It was the most crucial component for crafting all sorts of items.
Releasing Bloria’s seal had been his number one goal.
On the other hand, the remaining two were completely new to him—especially ‘Spirit Cloth’, which sounded rather ominous.
[Fairy Jelly]
[Grade: Legendary]
[Usage Requirement: None]
[This is a natural honey formed from flower pollen collected on the bodies of the spirits.
Among chefs, it’s called a legendary ingredient, and among some, it’s referred to as a cure-all.]
[Effect: 1. Upon consumption, all debuffs are halved for 5 minutes.
- All stats increase by 15%.
- Spirit Power increases by 300%.]
“Wow.”
Effects so good his jaw dropped!
The base effects alone were extraordinary, but if the user possessed spirit-related abilities, this item would produce broken levels of efficiency.
“The first person who comes to mind is Samantha.”
Given that she used the power of spirits, this would more than make up for the strength she recently lost due to her class change.
Now, what remained was the shocking and almost unpronounceable name—Spirit Cloth.
“No way, is it made by turning spirits into cloth?”
Jaeho believed such a horrifying thing wouldn’t come from Bloria… but, in this twisted New World, who knew.
[Spirit Cloth]
[Grade: Legendary]
[This cloth is woven by the spirits from fibers extracted from the ether.
So thin as to be nearly invisible, it barely feels tangible to the touch.
Long ago, an ancient king once wore clothing made from Spirit Cloth and paraded through the city virtually naked.]
[Effect: 1. Movement Speed +20%, Agility +15%, Evasion +10%.
- Charm increases greatly, making affinity with NPC individuals rise rapidly.
- Magic Resistance +30%.]
As expected, it was outstandingly powerful.
However, with such excellent effects—
“It can’t be easy to get, can it?”
Jjireureu—
While Jaeho was confirming all this, spirits poured out from Bloria and flitted cheerfully around him.
They tugged his hair, hopped onto his shoulders, and pranced about as if they owned the place.
“…No more reason to come looking for the Shinmok, I guess.”
Though cute, their excessive affection quickly shifted from delightful to burdensome.
“Alright, alright, enough, go pay attention to your mom now.”
Jjareureu—
Only then did the spirits realize Shinmok was nearby, and all at once flew in her direction.
The tiny spirits swarmed around the Shinmok, creating a spectacular sight like a shower of starlight.
“Wow…!”
Before he knew it, Mei and Samantha had also come over, mouths agape. Jaeho, too, couldn’t help but watch in awe for a moment.
—Hey, Alcia!
But just then, a communication from an unwelcome party arrived.
—Huh? Who’s this? How did you manage to send a message to me?!
—…It’s Taylor.
—Oh, you?
—Could you treat me with a little more care?
—Are you serious? Just a few days ago, you were trying to stab me to death.
—But now we’re allies, right?!
—Heh, fine. So, what’s the situation?
—Of course I’ve found something. First of all…
Taylor relayed the current state of Wansik’s Completely Eaten State.
Then, he reported on the current plans of the Bear Kingdom.
—The Guild side has absolutely no intention of letting your friend go. Even now, he’s been imprisoned for the fifth time already.
Jaeho had already heard about that from Wansik.
They kept letting him go and re-arresting him with all sorts of trumped-up charges.
To the point that Wansik said he’d rather just stay in Prison because it was less hassle.
—But the Prison isn’t managed all that strictly. The Chief Jailer is a Player brought in by connections, so his reputation is bad among the other jailers.
—That’s good for us.
With Angler’s Eyepatch, Jaeho had a significant advantage dealing with those in the 460.
—I can’t do much for you, honestly. At most, I can help your friend get through the city gates and inform you when he’s leaving Prison.
—What? That’s basically nothing.
—Do you realize how much help that is?! Without me, he’d get caught at the city gate for sure. That I guarantee!
Jaeho could understand why Taylor was speaking so firmly.
—Ahem, fine, I’ll accept your help. But just in case, can you tell me if there’s a route leading all the way to the Prison?
—What? Why?
—Just in case I have to break him out myself.
Since Wansik could be released and caught again at any time, Jaeho needed to prepare Plan B.
—So Plan B is busting into the Prison, huh…?
—That’s what Plan B is.
—…Alright, I get it. But that’ll take some time. I can’t guarantee you’ll even find it in the inner archives.
—Okay. In that case, I’ll start making preparations on my end.
Nearly two weeks since Wansik was kidnapped.
At last, Jaeho began assembling a rescue team to save him.
“We’ll go with you!”
Upon hearing the news, the Elves tried to follow Jaeho en masse, as usual.
“Absolutely not!”
He couldn’t bring along people with such distinctive looks right into enemy territory.
“Then please take just one of us to serve as Lady Elysia’s guard!”
They managed a compromise—Jaeho would bring one Elf along as a bodyguard for Lady Elysia.
“Alright. But please, I’m begging you—could you at least cover your ears?”
He knew Elven pride was immense, but he didn’t want to make things more difficult than necessary.
“Uh, that’s…”
The Elves, as expected, looked troubled.
“Ah! Then how about this?!”
At that moment, one Elf came up with an idea.
An idea… that seemed very much off the mark…
***
In the end, Jaeho set out on the road with a female Elf named Tina.
But contrary to Jaeho’s hopes that she’d hide her characteristic pointy ears, Tina walked boldly with her ears fully exposed.
On the contrary, Jaeho’s own ordinary, unremarkable ears had been changed into large, pointed ones.
It was the result of a disguise magic that changed appearances.
Just as Runior, head of the Red Tower, had said, Elves were quite skilled in magic.
They’d managed to change Jaeho’s ears without any sign of alteration…
Whether it actually suited him or not was another question entirely.
Every Elf Jaeho had seen so far was either a flower-like beauty or so handsome it hurt to look, and there was no one who looked remotely average.
“Do you really think this will work?”
“Of course!!!”
Tina practically shouted.
“You look so, so good! You could keep it like this forever and I wouldn’t mind!!!”
Every Elf seemed obsessed with Jaeho, but Tina was the most extreme of all.
She’d always stood out to him, a young Elf who had nearly gone wild to earn this opportunity to accompany him.
But from her perspective, she had her reasons.
“My grandfather and father both served as Royal Guards for previous Regents of Spirits. Our family’s ties to the Regent of Spirits go way back!”
“I… see.”
“Of course! I grew up listening to stories of adventures with the Regent of Spirits from the elders. I always dreamed of going on an adventure, and finally, my dream has come true!!!”
Her overwhelming enthusiasm clearly ran in the family.
“One day, I’ll take up the legacy and hunt a Dragon myself!”
“What?”
A sudden, out-of-nowhere declaration.
“If you’re a Regent of Spirits, you have to hunt at least one Dragon! Grandpa and Dad each took one down, you know? I’ll catch one too and make a Dragonbone Bracelet!!!”
Jaeho was dumbfounded by her ambition.
A Dragon… what in the world…
“Is that really true?”
As Tina rambled on in excitement, Jaeho quietly asked his pendant.
—…Do you think it’s true?
“Knew it.”
He began to suspect that this trip might turn out to be more of a headache than he’d thought.
***
Compared to the many nations scattered across the continent, the Bear Kingdom was not that large.
For a Guild, centered around Players, to take over and fully control an entire country was no easy feat.
In fact, the predecessor of the Bear Kingdom, the Kingdom of Deran, had been three times larger.
But after the royal family fell, local lords who refused to recognize the new king, Crowing, either declared independence or formed federations of their own.
So, for all its ostentatious appearance, the Bear Kingdom had a lot of internal problems.
One of which was the guards.
The loyal ones were all dead, and those who remained just held their posts or focused on making a living.
With such people guarding the borders, there was little hope of a tight defense.
“Haaahm.”
A guard sitting slumped at the city gate, yawning lazily, was just such a person.
“So boring. Still ages until I can go home…?”
Suddenly, he sensed someone behind him and turned his head.
“Gasp?!”
Dressed head to toe in black with an unmistakable, chilling gaze.
And his lower face covered with a mask—he was someone known to most in the Bear Kingdom.
The assassin who had taken out numerous nobles and generals of the Kingdom of Deran!
“C-Count Taylor!”
The guard leaped up, trembling in terror.
Since the coup, the newly risen nobles had never come out to such remote areas. Why was he here, now…
Ssss—
Suddenly, Taylor held out a small pouch.
“Take it.”
“What’s this…?”
The guard carefully opened it and gulped.
Silver coins!
“There’s something I need you to do.”
With those words, Taylor handed over Jaeho’s wanted poster, now spread throughout the Bear Kingdom.
“Th-this is…”
“You know what to do.”
“Of course!”
“I never said anything.”
The guard quickly pocketed the pouch and nodded.
Loyalty or patriotism—such things had long since vanished from the Bear Kingdom’s border guards.