Chapter 91: The Purification of Kataka

The World Tree, Yggdrasil, whispered to Rohan before he left.

When you meet your own shadow, be sure to do this.

Paaat!

A brilliant light illuminated Nidhogg’s entire body.

[Th-this is!]

The World Tree’s blessing seeped into him.

[No, no! I still have so much to do!]

He let out a desperate howl.

[But you wanted this too. Your cries became my roots, your sorrow became my leaves!]

And then...

[If I disappear, do you think you’ll be safe? Yggdrasil, are you serious?]

Uaaaah!

Nidhogg clutched his head and screamed, and at the same time.

[Get out of my domain!]

With those words, Rohan returned to reality.

Pazing!

Before he knew it, the sword Rohan held was plunged deep into the base of the tree, and red light burst forth from inside.

“Kh!”

Rohan struggled not to let go of his sword.

Drrrrr!

His hands began to ache, and eventually, his palm split open, but he didn’t give up.

‘It has to be now!’

With only the determination to stop the war to come.

He endured, holding on with all his might.

“Cover Rohan!”

The Elphirians, grasping the situation, broke away from fighting Kazin to join him.

“Kgh, graaah!”

Kazin began thrashing, clutching his own head.

Kwaaaang!

The Dark World Tree let out a wail, and the ground shook.

“Everyone, be careful!”

“Hey! Give us a hand over here!”

Above, Drake was cradling the people he’d rescued.

Retina and Shakan climbed up to help him.

“Hyaaaah!”

Rohan drove his sword in even deeper with all his strength.

Kwaang!

Finally, he felt he had struck something vital.

“No! Damn!”

At the same time, Kazin shouted and charged.

A massive black vine lashed out at Rohan.

But Rohan was just a bit faster.

Kiaaaaak...!

With a scream, something hot began to spew out madly from the World Tree.

“Th-this…”

Faces could be seen within the red blood.

Elphirians, their ears pointed and beautiful, were screaming inside the searing blood.

“The souls of the dead Elphirians... they never left this place.”

Retina and the other Elphirians’ faces grew pale.

Kwaduk!

Meanwhile, Kazin, using a vine that had shot out from his body, severed one of the Dark World Tree’s branches.

“Seize Kazin!”

At Rohan’s order, the Elphirians finally moved.

Just then.

“His eye!”

Leon suddenly shouted.

“His weakness is his eye!”

Hearing that, Retina vanished and appeared right before Kazin.

“Die.”

Whoosh!

Her swift blade slashed toward Kazin’s eye.

“Kraaaagh!”

Kazin tried to block with his vine, but one eye was torn apart.

“Divine Tree, please... huff, huff. Save this pitiful soul.”

No sooner had he spoken than his vines spread wide, wrapping his body tightly into a cocoon.

Kaaang!

Retina struck at it again, but the cocoon remained unscathed.

“Damn!”

Kazin’s voice echoed from within the cocoon.

[We’ll... meet again, Rohan Schubert.]

His voice was strained, but full of a strange delight.

Thump, thump, thump.

With the sound of a heartbeat, the round cocoon began to rise into the sky.

And soon after.

Paat!

The cocoon seemed to shrink, then disappeared without a trace.

“He’s... gone!”

Leon reported the situation with a bewildered face.

“Damn, where did he go?”

Retina stabbed her sword into the ground in frustration.

She looked deeply vexed at having lost both Kazin and a branch of the Dark World Tree.

“Search the area thoroughly!”

“Yes!”

The Elphirian warriors scattered at Retina’s command.

“He can’t have gone far. He’s mortally wounded.”

At Rohan’s words, Retina nodded.

“It seems his eye really was the weak point, just as you said. I could tell the attack landed true.”

Retina opened and closed the hand that had held her sword, recalling the sensation.

It seemed Leon’s insight had paid off.

“Over there, look over there!”

Then, Drake pointed and shouted to one side.

“...!”

He was pointing at the waterway.

Where the blood of the Dark World Tree touched the water, white firefly-like lights began to float and spread within it.

Retina and Rohan, eyes wide with surprise, approached the waterway.

“The water... it’s being purified.”

Retina dipped her hand into the water.

White lights drifted gently near her hand.

A small smile formed at her lips.

“They’re our ancestors. They... have become spirits.”

Spirits!

Beings Rohan had only heard about in stories appeared before his eyes.

The Elphirians, who had been nourishment for the Dark World Tree for so long, now began purifying the polluted water on their own.

The Elphirian instinct to love nature.

That collective will allowed them to become spirits.

“The World Tree... it’s withering.”

Looking back, they saw the Dark World Tree rapidly drying up.

Branches and trunk that had once been robust shriveled and withered, as if it had lost its vitality ages ago.

The white lights floating in the water drifted away along the stream.

They looked peaceful, as if they’d finally finished a long task.

“Thank you, ancestors.”

Retina murmured softly.

Meanwhile, Rohan approached Drake.

“How are the people?”

“I don’t know yet. They’re not waking up.”

“Hm, we’ll have to return them to the castle and get them treated. Martin!”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Go up and report the situation to Duke Malta!”

After giving Martin his orders, Rohan slowly approached the withered Dark World Tree.

“As you wished, I’ve managed to hold them off for now.”

The World Tree, Yggdrasil, had asked him.

He must stop the Dark World Tree.

‘Of course, it’s not completely over yet.’

The foe had been mortally wounded, and the Dark World Tree was left with only a single branch, withering away.

Rohan and his companions began leading the survivors out.

As they made their way through the cave, Martin, who’d gone ahead to call the duke, returned.

“Your Highness, the way is blocked. The stairs have disappeared.”

“What?”

Everyone hurried toward the entrance, and sure enough, as Martin said, the stairs had completely vanished.

“The Dark World Tree’s magical power is gone. What now?”

Retina clicked her tongue, face full of dismay.

Just then.

Hwaaak!

With a burst of light, golden stairs began to appear.

“This is...”

From the cave’s entrance, the stairs stretched all the way to the opposite side of the ravine.

At the end of the straight path, familiar faces appeared.

“Nass! Luna!”

Retina was the first to recognize them, shouting.

Just as she said, at the far end of the stairs, Nass stood holding his staff, surrounded by ranks of Elphirian warriors.

“Wow, this is amazing!”

Drake, carrying a survivor on his back, tapped the golden stairs with his foot in awe.

“Let’s go up for now.”

When they ascended the stairs, Nass bowed his head in greeting.

“Lord Yggdrasil guided us here.”

“Thank you so much for coming. Without your help, we would have been trapped.”

“As we came, I could feel the dark, profane aura receding. Truly, you did well.”

Nass gave a gentle smile.

“There are survivors still inside the cave. We must move them into the inner fortress for treatment.”

“We’ll help, Rohan.”

As Nass nodded, Luna, captain of the Elphirian scouts, led her warriors down the stairs.

And so,

The remaining soldiers and Elphirians worked together to safely bring out all the survivors from the cave.


---


Upon arriving at the inner fortress, traces of fierce battle remained.

“Your Highness!”

Duke Malta rushed out as soon as he saw Rohan and his group bringing in the survivors.

“Please move the survivors. None of them have woken up yet, so we must treat them quickly.”

“...!”

The duke spotted his daughter, Latsha, among the survivors.

“Latsha, hey, Latsha.”

He took his daughter into his arms at once.

“She doesn’t seem to be in any serious danger. She’s just weak from being confined so long.”

“Thank you, Your Highness. Thank you...”

With reddened eyes and a hoarse voice, he expressed his gratitude again and again.

“Latsha!”

Latsha’s siblings came running, calling her name.

“Take Latsha to her room, quickly.”

“Yes, Father!”

“Move the other survivors to the infirmary at once!”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

Everyone began moving in perfect order.

“Your Grace. Is everything alright inside?”

“It’s fine. There was some damage, but...”

He explained how those he’d brought in, with their eyes covered, were not the real residents, the incident where they were attacked, and the situation when they returned to the fortress.

After hearing it all, Rohan nodded.

“When we went inside, we found the real residents. So, I expected it. Those locked in the inner fortress were imposters.”

“It was a cunning plan. It could have been disastrous. Are you unharmed, Your Highness?”

“I’m alright. Miraculously, we suffered no losses. Ah, also.”

Rohan turned halfway and pointed to a group.

“These are the Elphirians who came from Silvaren to aid us. This is Lord Nass, leader of Silvaren and king of the Prana Union.”

“...!”

The duke’s eyes widened.

“To meet the famous Lord Nass in person.”

“And to meet the renowned Northern Bear at last.”

Though they knew of each other well, it was their first time meeting face-to-face.

Their regions were close, but Silvaren typically avoided interacting with humans.

“We received great help from Malta territory this time. On behalf of Silvaren, I thank you.”

“No, not at all. We were the ones helped by the Elphirian warriors you sent.”

For once, they had truly helped each other as partners.

And this beginning would have far-reaching consequences.

“My, my. Thanks to Crown Prince Rohan, we have such a gathering here.”

Hahaha!

This event would shake the very heart of the Empire.

Moreover, the crown prince at the center of it all would surely gain tremendous power.

Imagining what might happen next, the duke laughed heartily, as if he found it all amusing.

“When do you plan to return to Silvaren?”

Duke Malta was a born warrior, but above all, he ruled the North.

He wasn’t one to waste such a precious opportunity.

“If possible, I’d like to express my thanks to the honored guests who have come to the North.”

A chance had arisen to establish relations with Silvaren.

That could mean the North gaining great influence.

It could mean wealth for this harsh land, and that the people would no longer starve through cold winters.

And all of this was thanks to Rohan.

It was the duke’s decision to accept the crown prince’s proposal and welcome him on his sudden visit that led to the situation now unfolding.

‘His Highness the Crown Prince is a true blessing, a blessing indeed!’

Duke Malta looked at Rohan’s profile and smiled with satisfaction.