Chapter 55. Soul Tree (4)
The air was thick with the stench of blood, and the blood smeared on her arms and legs clung stickily.
She knew better than anyone whose blood it was. The young Leira glanced around, just as she had done back then.
Sure enough, the cold corpses of her parents and younger brother lay sprawled before her.
In front of her, darkness writhed.
A sharp, chilling hand slowly reached out. It clutched Leira's face. She tried to resist, but she could do nothing. Just as in the past, all she could do was tremble in fear.
Chiieeek—!
At once, a searing pain burned across her face.
As Leira screamed soundlessly, a voice, not human, whispered in her ear.
'Struggle all you wish within the curse.'
A demon.
The being that had utterly shattered Leira's once-ordinary life.
***
Crack.
The world split and shattered into fragments.
Leira, regaining consciousness, instinctively braced herself. Her eyes caught sight of the burning Soul Tree.
The ominous energy it had been radiating was no longer present.
'...Am I too late.'
The memory she had just witnessed must have been a nightmare shown by the Soul Tree.
Leira bit her lip, frustrated at having been deceived by nothing more than an illusion. Then, she turned her head toward Verden, who was standing with his arms crossed, watching the Soul Tree.
He, too, must have seen a nightmare, and yet there was not a trace of disturbance in him.
"Do you perhaps possess a magic item or artifact that protects your mind?"
"I do not."
"Then how did you escape the nightmare, and so quickly at that?"
The Soul Tree's nightmare shook the mind by showing its target a despairing past or future.
Once engulfed, the victim would never wake again, their life force slowly drained as they became nourishment. But Verden had not been affected in the slightest. The reason was simple.
"There is no reason to fear something that cannot exist."
At present, he could not yet contend with a tower master.
But his future self could. This was a certainty without the slightest shred of doubt.
Because of such conviction, a nightmare showing unwanted despair could not shake Verden's mind in the least.
"Does that answer satisfy you?"
"...Yes, somewhat."
Leira gave a small nod, then raised her gaze to the Soul Tree.
The blazing trunk split open with a crack, and something white soared into the sky before vanishing.
Ah—something seemed to come to her mind. Leira drew her sword and readied herself.
Blood Flash.
A massive crimson slash hurtled toward the giant tree. The bark of the Soul Tree, its core already destroyed, could no longer fulfill its function. Unable to resist, it was cleaved cleanly in two.
Through the rift, countless white forms surged upward, just like the one she had glimpsed earlier.
"Those are...."
"Records say, when the Soul Tree dies, it vomits forth the souls of the lives it had devoured. It is said those freed souls regain liberty and ascend to peace."
Of course, it was nothing more than an unproven rumor.
Yet, seeing countless spirits escape the Soul Tree and rise into the sky, illuminating the darkness with pure white light, it might not have been such a baseless tale.
Thud! Crack!
The weakened roots of the giant tree could no longer support its weight and began snapping apart.
Verden sent a slight tremor into the solidified earth pillar, and it collapsed instantly. The massive tree tilted, and at last, it crashed to the ground, shattering into pieces.
The tree that drowned nations in despair, the Soul Tree.
Subjugation successful.
***
Deprived of their leader, the treants instinctively retreated deep into the Forest of Demons.
Though hundreds had been slain, many still remained. To prevent such a disaster from happening again, they would need to be subjugated one day.
But for now, it was time to rest.
The weary adventurers left the forest with lighter hearts.
Among them was Bardel. Weaponless and exhausted though he was, as a Platinum Rank adventurer, he had managed not to fall to a treant along the way.
Leira and Verden.
The two walked slightly apart from the others, speaking together.
"Is this the end of the trials?"
"Most likely. There has never been a time when trials occurred twice in succession."
Verden fell into thought.
Truthfully, despite its grand title, the trial had not felt all that difficult. Though it had consumed much magic power, in the end he had not sustained a single wound.
But if not for a mage like Verden—
Leira alone would have struggled to subjugate the Soul Tree. Forcibly dragging it from its underground lair would have been impossible. And objectively speaking, the Soul Tree certainly possessed enough power to wipe out an entire city with ease.
'Well, they did say this trial wasn't prepared for me in the first place.'
It was all relative.
At that moment, Leira spoke.
"Come to think of it, I don't know your name."
Her voice was softer than when they had first met.
It wasn't because they had overcome the trial together as candidates. Leira still regarded Verden as a rival.
'It must be because the trial has ended.'
Her voice now carried a lightness, like someone relieved of a heavy burden.
Verden looked at Leira's helmet.
"I am the mage, Asher."
"Asher... since I've never heard the name, I suppose you must have only recently become a candidate for the Ark."
He was not a candidate, since he had never received a Listener's proposal. Of course, there was no need to bother telling Leira that fact.
Verden neither affirmed nor denied, instead asking her,
"Are there other candidates?"
"Of course. Including you and me, there are four candidates currently active in the Duchy of Riviant. By the rules, I can't reveal who they are. Not that I know anyway."
'So there are two more candidates in this country.'
Since Verden had played the decisive role in subjugating the Soul Tree, he had not been able to fully gauge Leira's strength. Even so, judging from her movements and sword energy, it was clear she was far stronger than the butcher, Galliark.
Could the other candidates also possess this level of skill?
He wanted to ask, but from Leira's expression it was obvious she would not answer, so Verden kept silent.
Thus the party finally emerged from the forest.
Far away in the sky, the darkness slowly receded and dawn began to break. They had fought through the night until morning.
Adventurers let out sighs of relief, the sense of it being over sinking in. Guards, knights, and adventurers of the city, who had been awaiting the subjugation force, cheered from atop the walls as they saw them.
"It's Bardel! The warrior is alive!"
"Everyone, well done!"
"Open the gates quickly! There seem to be injured among them!"
The Soul Tree was so large it could be seen even from the city, proof enough of how fierce the battle must have been.
Though they had all fallen into nightmares at the Soul Tree's final wail of the dead, fortunately they had regained consciousness before their minds were damaged.
And they had all witnessed it.
The white souls that had burst forth from the burning tree, brightening the sky with light. It was a sight that could never be forgotten.
"Well... we didn't really do much."
"Just stay quiet. Even being here is half the work."
Though they had done no more than hunt treants, the adventurers, embarrassed, decided to simply accept the cheers. After all, they had been part of the subjugation force.
Thinking only of the reward they would receive, they approached the city.
***
The Listener, watching the scene from afar, glanced at his watch.
The trial had ended far earlier than the Ark had expected. What's more, not a single casualty had occurred.
"This... it seems our predictions were far off."
His tone was still calm, but in truth he was deeply unsettled.
The Soul Tree was an abnormal species that manipulated the mind.
Yet with bark harder than steel, countless treants, and the ability to command the creatures it had devoured, it was an especially troublesome foe.
Even if one somehow broke through those, the Soul Tree's nightmare was nearly impossible to escape.
Even Leira, one of the top three candidates for the Ark, could have had her mind shattered. No matter how strong the body or power, training the mind itself was exceedingly difficult.
Had the Ark not been there, the Soul Tree would have devoured Lorian and achieved its complete growth.
If that had happened, at least four cities would have been destroyed. Casualties could have reached 430,000. Even half that number would have shaken the very foundation of the duchy.
There was a reason the Adventurer's Guild had recorded its danger level as equivalent to a special entity.
Considering all that, even though it had not reached complete growth, the Soul Tree in the Forest of Demons was not such a weak threat that it should have been subjugated so easily.
Of course, the saving of so many lives was cause for celebration.
Still, he was confused. Never before had a trial ended this simply. Even more so, knowing this had been brought about by a single mage.
'A 4th-tier mage, Asher.'
He wielded six confirmed elements.
Moreover, he could use enchantment magic, and unlike most mages, excelled in close combat as well. And it did not end there.
All of it was supported by a vast reservoir of magic power.
The Listener was certain.
Among the talents he knew of, among mages of that age, not one could rival Asher.
A genius mage, of unknown past, of uncertain master, who had appeared as if dropped from the sky.
"Asher... just who are you?"
His question dissolved quietly into the air.
***
After the Soul Tree's subjugation, Lorian bustled with activity.
Though the incident had been resolved, possible dangers remained. Thus, led by the recovered warrior Bardel, adventurers and Lorian's knights ventured into the Forest of Demons.
Meanwhile, the Adventurer's Guild began recovering the Soul Tree's remains directly.
Though it had been smashed beyond recognition, as an abnormal species rivaling special entities, it might still yield valuable materials.
Of course, the share would go to Verden and Leira, who had directly faced it.
Given the scale, it would take at least several days before the confirmation was complete.
Since he had to collect the Soul Tree's subjugation reward, Verden had no choice but to remain in Lorian. He spent the time leisurely, focusing on recovering his spent magic power.
He studied the magic left by Harkan, and considered how best to use the Mandrake extract the Listener had given him.
Then, from one day onward, the citizen's attitudes toward Verden changed.
"We won't take payment for your meal! At least let us treat the benefactor who saved the city!"
"..."
"Freshly baked bread! Please try it, and if you like it, we'll prepare more for your next visit!"
"..."
"Here, freshly made lemonade! Mother told me to give it to you!"
"..."
He had only gone out to buy some food, yet both his hands were suddenly full of offerings.
Puzzled, he asked about the situation. It turned out the Lorian newspaper had published the names of those who had saved the city: Leira and Asher. And since Verden's appearance stood out, he had quickly been identified.
It was nothing to be displeased about.
One day, when Verden proved himself a great mage, his name would spread across the entire world. This was just part of the journey.
'But still, what am I to do with all this food.'
Eating it all was impossible.
Though not a small eater, Verden was no glutton either. If he tried to eat it alone, half the food would surely grow cold and lose its taste.
'Then I should share it.'
After some thought, Verden changed direction from his inn.
His destination was the Church. They always welcomed donations, so surely they would accept even an inconvenient pile of food.