While the Pixie chatted with Douglas and the Paladin elder, the Elf Girl began to lead the way. Cipher watched her back, lost in thought. So, what exactly is the Warlock Divine Artifact?
So far, the Elf Girl hadn't shown anything outrageous. The only slightly overpowered skill, 'Kamui,' was actually the Pixie Lord's ability. Yet Cipher was certain her earlier intuition hadn't been wrong—this Elf Girl was definitely a Divine Artifact User.
Cipher hesitated, wondering if she should just go and ask what the Warlock Divine Artifact was. But it felt inappropriate. They were complete strangers, and she had almost kicked the girl to death just moments ago.
Just then, Aria gasped, "It's huge!"
Cipher looked up. A colossal oak tree, far larger than she could have ever imagined, filled her vision. From a distance, it truly seemed to connect the sky and the earth. Its lush branches and leaves completely blotted out the blue sky, transforming the entire heavens into a vibrant, living green.
Mydei's World-Flattening Strike had summoned a massive greatsword, but even that paled in comparison to the tree before them. Cipher felt as if the oak was so vast it could almost form a small world beneath its canopy.
As they continued forward, however, Cipher noticed something strange. The great tree gave her a faint sense of unease, a hazy, dreamlike quality, as if she were looking at a reflection in water or a scene from a dream.
It was magnificent from a distance, but up close, its flaws became apparent.
Then, the moment they crossed an invisible boundary, the scenery before Cipher shifted dramatically. The vibrant green world vanished, and the sky turned a pale yellow.
The tree was still the same tree, but it no longer radiated life. Instead, it exuded an aura of decline—the melancholy of late autumn, with fallen leaves carpeting the ground.
Gazing at the scene, the Paladin elder's face twisted in disbelief. His lips trembled as he stammered, "Is this... the Father of Oaks? How could He have become like this?"
Cipher, after a flicker of surprise, adopted an expression of understanding. So that's it, she thought. The Father of Oaks really is in trouble. Otherwise, how could He have allowed the Outer God incident in the forest to unfold without intervening?
Just then, the Pixie flew to Cipher's side, her usual carefree demeanor replaced by a grave seriousness. "This is a corruption of His Authority," she said solemnly.
The Father of Oaks—given His name, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that every living being in the Great Forest, if not the entire world, could rightfully call Him 'Father.'
Moreover, the Father of Oaks held numerous Authorities related to 'Life,' which, in a sense, overlapped with those of the Mother of Flesh.
Leveraging the faint connection between their divine names and the overlap in their Authorities, the Mother of Flesh had been corrupting this Ancient God. This wasn't something that happened overnight; it had been a slow, insidious process lasting for a very long time. Only in recent years—around the time the Death God disappeared—did the Father of Oaks's condition begin to rapidly deteriorate.
"It's like woodworms infesting a tree trunk," the Pixie continued. "This level of corruption can't kill the Ancient God, but it causes Him immense pain, rendering Him unable to attend to the events in the forest."
She went on, "I don't have a good way to cleanse the corruption, but I can alleviate His suffering as much as possible. So, I had people set up a massive Reversal Magic circle around the Father of Oaks, inverting reality and the Dream Realm in this area."
This meant that the pristine Father of Oaks they had seen from a distance was merely His appearance in the Dream Realm. Now that they were close enough to have truly entered the Dream World, the withered Father of Oaks before them was, in fact, the real one.
By creating this buffer, the Outer God's corruption was significantly lessened for the Father of Oaks.
Feidric surveyed their surroundings. "So you're saying we're in a dream right now? Incredible."
The Pixie placed a hand on her hip and tilted her head back proudly. "Of course! I'm super amazing. So, are you interested in forming a Contract with me? If you do, you'll be able to use my abilities and even create a magic circle just like this one..."
But before she could finish, Feidric bluntly rejected her. "No."
The Pixie: "..."
As the group continued forward, a small tribe came into Cipher's view. Following that, she saw the village was filled with elven beauties—some stunningly beautiful, others adorably cute.
While elves were known for their high average beauty, these individuals were exceptionally so. Cipher also noticed something striking: the entire tribe of nearly a hundred people consisted solely of women. There wasn't a single male among them.
Upon seeing the Elf Girl arrive with a group of strangers, the villagers' initial reaction was wary. However, the moment they spotted the Pixie flitting around Cipher, their caution vanished, and they returned to their own tasks.
Just then, Feidric's voice echoed in Cipher's mind. This place... is absurd. Every single person here radiates immense magic power. Any one of them, taken alone, is at least... a Legendary-grade Warlock.
Cipher replied, Not only that... I think they're all Divine Artifact Users.
Feidric: "What? This..."
Aria, who wasn't in the private chat, looked at Cipher and asked, "Sister Cipher, what's the plan now?"
Cipher replied, "I'm going to meet the Father of Oaks to see if I can speak with Him. You all wait here for me."
After a pause, she turned to Aria. "And no matter how much that little one invites you, you must not sign a contract with her. Understood?"
Though confused, Aria nodded. "Mm-hm, I understand~!"
Seeing this, the Pixie sighed in frustration. She glanced at Aria and Feidric before finally settling her gaze on Douglas and the Paladin elder. "What about you two? Are you interested in signing?"
Douglas hesitated. "Well... I'm not entirely against it?"
The Paladin elder said, "If what you say is true, then I am willing."
After all, they were at a critical juncture. Gaining a new source of power for free was an opportunity too good to pass up.
"Then follow me," the Pixie said upon hearing their replies.