Only a few hundred yards remained until they reached the base of the Great Tree Perga, but its sheer size made Shinji's group feel as if they were entering a kingdom of giants. The trunk rose monolithically, its rugged bark covered in deep grooves that looked like bottomless chasms. Its canopy was so vast it eclipsed the sky, creating a majestic, deep-green vault above them.
In the midst of the silence, Shinji once again heard a faint flapping of wings. He froze, looking around frantically, but there was absolutely no sign of any bird. Once again, everyone around him remained indifferent, as if they had heard nothing. It must just be the wind whistling through the leaves, Shinji told himself, though an inexplicable sense of unease rose in his chest.
"By the time we get there, we'll probably be dead from exhaustion,"
Omelet sighed heavily, flapping his wings.
"What are you so discouraged about?" Shinji asked curiously.
"Look! Just reaching the base isn't the end. We have to climb along the trunk to reach the library at the top, which is over 6,500 feet up!"
Hearing that number, everyone's legs suddenly felt like lead. After a few minutes of moving, they finally reached the foot of the Great Tree. Just the pieces of bark that had fallen to the ground were several times larger than their bodies, and the scattered dry leaves were dozens of feet wide, looking like giant leaf-boats.
"It's... massive,"
Shinji muttered.
The climb began. Along the trunk of Perga were primitive wooden stairs, bolted firmly into the ancient bark. They looked fragile, like makeshift planks hanging precariously over the abyss.
"Hey... these stairs don't look safe at all." Shinji looked up at the gargantuan tree, then back down at the ground, trembling.
Omelet nonchalantly flew to the first step and shrugged.
"It makes sense. Everyone in the Fairy race can fly; you're lucky they even have stairs for you to use."
Meanwhile, Akidou and Alba found a massive root protruding from the ground like a small island and sat down heavily.
"Hey, we'll stay down here and keep watch just to be safe. You guys go ahead!"
Omelet gave them a piercing glare.
"Keep watch? Or are you just making excuses to be lazy?"
Without wasting any more time arguing, the brothers Lumber and Gumber took the lead. Standing inside their familiar wooden crate, they coordinated perfectly, hopping up the tiny steps with incredible speed. Watching the wooden crate wobble precariously in mid-air, everyone was terrified they would slip and fall. Shinji and Lio followed quietly behind while Omelet flew ahead to guide the way. Below the tree, Alba and Akidou began to enjoy their moment of relaxation, leaning back against the comfortable root.
At the Heavenfield headquarters, the atmosphere in the infirmary remained tense. The dark-skinned man had just woken up and immediately spiraled into a panic, preparing to attack again. Ares instantly dropped into a combat stance, but Tetsutaro—now controlling the robot body—quickly spoke up in ancient Sernik.
The sound of his homeland made the man freeze, and he gradually calmed down. He accepted a blanket, leaned back against the headboard, and drank water slowly, though he still let out heavy sighs. Stella brought over a plate piled high with food, looking at him with concern.
"Would you like something else to eat?"
"I'm full,"
he replied shortly, having already finished 20 plates of meals before this.
Tetsutaro asked in a low voice.
"Hey, you're from the Sernik continent, right?"
The stranger set his cup down, his face clouded with sadness, and nodded slightly. "Yes."
"So... what is your name?"
"Ganso."
Tetsutaro paused for a few seconds as if he had heard that name somewhere in his data before, then continued.
"Is the Sernik continent... still safe?"
The moment the question was asked, Ganso's expression changed completely. A look of profound agony appeared in his eyes. He instantly crushed the cup in his hand, sending shards and hot water splashing everywhere.
"Oh my god! What are you doing? You've made the bed dirty!"
Stella grumbled, hurrying to find a towel.
But Ganso heard nothing. His massive frame began to tremble violently, and tears started to roll down his dark cheeks.
"I... I..."
The words caught in his throat. Tetsutaro understood that feeling; he stepped closer and placed a cold but empathetic metallic hand on Ganso's shoulder.
"It's alright. I understand... Just calm down and tell us what happened."
Back in Deepgreen, Shinji's group had climbed to a significant height. Looking down, the figures of Alba and Akidou were now just tiny dots amidst the carpet of the mushroom forest.
"Hey... my legs are so sore... I can't take another step..."
Shinji stopped, panting, clutching his trembling legs. Lio stood on the step above, silently reaching out a hand to help. But Shinji didn't want to show weakness; he gritted his teeth and mustered all his strength to keep going.
At Heavenfield, Ganso finally spoke up. "I'm not sure... when I left, things were still okay."
This detail confused everyone. Ares crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.
"Hey Ganso, then why would a man like you flee from Sernik?"
"The reason is long... do you really want to hear it?"
Suddenly, a shocked shout rang out in the infirmary.
"What! You're the Military Commander?!"
"That's right," Ganso nodded.
It turned out the man sitting there was actually a high-ranking Commander of the Sernik Royal Army, the warrior hailed as the strongest in the kingdom. Ares looked at the man before him in awe.
"Wow, no wonder you're so strong, Ganso."
Tetsutaro continued the questioning. "Ganso, when I found you... it was early morning, and you were about to pass out above Heavenfield, covered in wounds. Did you travel all the way from Sernik to here?"
"Yes. I traveled continuously for 24 hours."
The whole room went silent from shock.
"What?! That place is over 500 miles away. Did you actually... walk?"
Ganso looked at his calloused palms, hardened by years of battle.
"Yes, I walked, and I had to fight legions of demons along the way."
Tetsutaro mumbled a calculation for a moment.
"Let's see... 500 miles... 24 hours... No food, no water, fighting while moving... Good grief! You were moving at an average speed of nearly 21 mph for an entire day and night!"
Once again, astonishment filled the room. Ares began to look at Ganso with genuine respect and friendliness. He stood up straight and said excitedly,
"Ganso, you're stronger than I thought. Want to fight with me for a bit?"
"Sure."
Ganso stood up. Even though his body was still aching, the aura of a commander immediately returned.
Ares quickly introduced the others.
"I'm Ares, this is Stella, and that's Tetsutaro."
Ganso adjusted his signature shaggy hair and looked directly at Ares.
"So, Ares, where do you want to fight?"