Deus was going through the pages as if he were drinking water. Finishing the three books, he saw a window appear in front of him.
System?
Skill Acquisition 「Magic balls」from Niv.1
Skill Acquisition 「Magic Missiles 」from Niv.1
Skill Acquisition「Magic Barrier」from Niv.1
「-Research in progress-」
He had just realized a massive change. His memory had started to store certain memories as if they had belonged to him from the very beginning.
But it was too big, he felt like he had a migraine and a splitting headache.
Deus tried to reduce the flow of information into his brain by forming packets of data. Immediately, the sensation decreased drastically, even though the pain was still there. But he justified it by thinking about the magic spells he would learn.
Deus eventually drifted off to sleep. A short nap had never hurt anyone.
Thinking that, he fell into a dreamless sleep.
Ten years later, he woke up yawning and began writing down some ideas in books that came to his mind. It was a usual routine for him.
After that, he walked through the library, recording a detailed plan of its structure.
In order not to get lost, he had to update it regularly.
His days were limited to these. Except for some days when he slept several years because of his body and his mind tree, he continued to rigorously practice his new magic spells.
He even managed to turn parts of the library into a personal training room. It was really helpful
"Sister, have the elves returned again?"
"It seems so. Father apparently discovered elven sentinels near the forest. They are scouting, and they will find us soon."
Deus caught some interesting conversations drifting to his ears. He was very curious.
These humans had settled all around him as if they were praying for his blessings. The population was rather small, about the size of an average village.
Deus regretted his inactivity. They often made offerings to them. Every month, he could pick delicious fruits to satisfy his taste buds.
But unable to express his words, their conversations remained unilateral.
He simply knew that the situation for the humans was precarious and that the elves who had attacked him last time would soon return.
Because of a difference in lifespan, 10 years for the elves was only one year for them. However, the humans continued to reproduce. About 2,000 humans lived here.
The elves were few in number, around a hundred, but he had discovered a startling fact.
Humans couldn't use mana. In fact, their mana reserves were too weak to be used.
In a world where status is defined by the quantity and quality of mana, it was like a death flag for all of humanity. It didn't surprise him that the state of humanity was so terrible.
Humans knelt before him. They prayed like devout believers. From children to old people.
Humans had always prayed to entities that stood above them. The things that couldn't be explained, and those who could save them.
This world was no exception.
Deus muttered and then withdrew.
"They're here! They're invading us!"
A night guard man woke up to the cold corpse of his night companion.
"Ring the bell!" An old man who was sitting on a high tower quickly woke up the whole village.
The evacuation was quick as they prepared in advance, an ambush. Children and disabled people withdrew around him.
At the front, men and women with long bows.
Magic being unusable, they used weapons considered primitive for the other races.
"No time to think!"
"Protect the village!"
Luminous balls began to illuminate the night sky.
They were magic balls.
They bring out the heavy artillery right from the start, huh?
Deus answered by summoning magic balls.
"What is it!" The children looked at the sky in amazement, explosions like fireworks shone through the starry sky.
Meanwhile, the humans got up and fired arrows at the elves. However, the arrows have all been blocked by magical barriers.
"Nameless Bastard! I will avenge this humiliation!"
It's the same guys again.
The last time, it was only by ambush and chance that they managed to hit the elves.
If they had not thought of other enemy races, they would have come back mad with rage by throwing their magic until exhausted.
It was a hard reality to make. Humans, although at a distance, were still massacring magic missiles that passed through its magical shields.
His skills were still at level 1.
Far removed from the intermediate levels used by the elves. If a level 1 magic missile could kill a human, then it would take ten magic missiles to counter a single level 4 magic missile.
His mana reserve was higher than that of the elves. His roots were anchored deep in the ground, drawing mana from the rocky residues beneath.
His mana regeneration was high, but still slower than the rate at which spells consumed it.
Eventually, the barriers shattered, and waves of magic missiles and bombs rained down on the humans. The children huddled themselves.
He fully focused on protecting the children and the old men near him.
The environment shook under the catastrophes caused by the impacts of destructive spells.
Buildings collapsed, and a thick fog of dust rose, obscuring the view of the battlefield.
The explosions had ceased.
A deathly silence reigned over the area. Some children lay on the ground, hovering between life and death. The scene was deplorable.
Some of the elderly had died, their backs burned while shielding the new generation. The sight left a bitter taste in his mouth.
As a human, he should have felt outraged, furious, and angry. Yet his mind was as clear as a mountain lake. Because he was a tree.
"Advance! They must be exhausted and disoriented by our spells!" Behind the smoke, the elves began to move toward the village.
Deus shook his head.
He had to prepare to defend against them. The humans were all weakened by the recent attack, even though he had absorbed most of the damage.
It was difficult…
Most of the magic he had learned was inferior to theirs. Confronting these long-eared beings head-on would lead to a war of attrition until he was completely drained.
As a tree, he was immobile. Anchored like a fixed point in the ocean, his fate seemed sealed.
Yet he refused to die.
Die now? He still had so much left to do! Ever since the humans had settled here, he had grown curious about their lives… and the outside world.
Deus clenched his teeth.
Last chance! He would never die without fighting to the very end!
He quickly began gathering a wild amount of mana within his branches. Every remaining strand was used as fuel. His body pulsed across the area like a bomb about to detonate.
As Deus rapidly lost his grip on reason, the branches began to glow.
The elves instinctively stepped back at the sight of the massive concentration of mana.
"Fall back immediately!"
"Evacuate the area!"
However, they were too late. It would take two minutes to get out of the blast radius. Deus quickly understood how to eliminate everyone.
He had to do it to survive.
In a final struggle for clarity, he stretched his branches outward, clinging to the last fragment of his sanity.