Eat The World Tree

I entered the room to change clothes before heading out for the morning routine.

-Swish.

The rough fabric clung to my skin. Wearing the same detergent-scented short sleeves as the women, I pulled over a shabby-colored robe.

Phone, check. The invisibility mask and mistletoe, ready.

Finally, I turned the mistletoe into a bracelet, then looked over at the bed from the wardrobe. On the bed, two women were sleeping in each other’s arms. A smirk escaped my lips.

“This is my bed, not yours.”

Stepping back a few steps, I sat on Sansuyu’s bed.

The two of them had been frustrated from not getting my attention for some days. Although it hadn’t escalated to a serious argument, Maronnie seemed particularly conscious of Sansuyu, as if her weakness had been exposed.

‘I wonder what change of heart made them sleep hugging like sisters.’

Maronnie, asleep, nestled against Sansuyu’s ample chest. Sansuyu was holding her like a teddy bear, looking childlike. The difference was that both of them clutched the blanket tightly, pulling it up close to their faces. As if claiming it as their own.

I pulled out Sansuyu’s blanket and laid it over the two of them so they wouldn’t be cold.

-Thud!

The blanket fell to the floor instantly with a flick of their feet.

“….”

I lay it over them again.

-Thud!

It seemed they were not satisfied with the blanket I was offering. I really wished they’d stop leaving their scent on my bed. For someone with a mischievous mind, it was hard to bear. And I couldn’t even wash it. Every time I so much as considered washing the blanket, Maronnie and Sansuyu strongly opposed it.

This was really driving me nuts.

“…Heh.”

Yeah, if you were normal, you wouldn’t even be able to stay around me.

Accepting it made me feel more at ease, with a hint of self-mockery at my own situation. I sat back down on the bed and looked at Sansuyu.

-Healing is impossible.

The words of the Sage came to mind naturally.

-She won’t make it through this year. No matter how exceptional the powers are. Unless it’s a power that defies natural order, it’s impossible to change this.

Sansuyu couldn’t be saved.

Even though I had infused her with healing powers repeatedly, it was only temporary. Still, they said her lifespan had been extended quite a bit thanks to me.

‘…It’s a power that can regenerate even heart and nerve cells.’

Which meant it was worse than any disease I could imagine. I felt both proud and saddened by Sansuyu, who was enduring it so well.

‘If, by any chance.’

If the experiment succeeded, Sansuyu could live.

Sansuyu herself was hoping for that. They said that every member of the Cornus family lived with a single-minded determination for eternal life. Seeing her, almost a fool now, after participating in experiments since childhood, it was clear.

So, what should I do for Sansuyu?

Help the Cornus family? Those bastards who ruined Sansuyu’s entire life for their experiment? Doing that would also naturally mean helping Flower.

‘……Flower.’

Yeah, those bastards. Even if I boiled them alive in a pot, they wouldn’t be worth it. But I’d have to do good by them. If I want to save Sansuyu of my own will, that is.

I ran my hands over my face.

“Damn it…. Everything is messed up from start to finish.”

The faces of women I had been with countless times in the past flash through my mind. Not in a vulgar sense, but people I genuinely shared affection with and thought of dearly. It was thanks to such people that I could endure even in the past.

“Master is… clinging to the World Tree.”

Nothing was going right.

“The Cornus family is with Flower. Sansuyu sides with her family.”

Sansuyu and Master will suddenly disappear in the future. As I slowly come to understand the situation I used to know nothing about, fear is creeping in.

“All of them, without exception.”

I couldn’t yell. The two women in front of me, their figures faded from my view long ago, but I still remembered them in my mind, so I kept my voice down.

“….”

A scratch on my cheek from my nail drew a thin line of blood. Naturally, my body engraved with healing powers would repair such minor injuries instantly. I wiped the blood away with my sleeve.

-Jerk.

I got up from my seat. In the past, whenever I had such worries, Cheondo would always offer me an answer. Even if I was mistaken or acted wrongly, she’d push me forward.

Go participate in the Forester Selection Competition. Find comrades and discover talent there.

I followed her advice. I gained a lot. There’s Maronnie, and there’s Taeyang and Aori, and though we’re not ideally connected, there’s Bao. Saku and Kim Sooyeon were also good-natured and flexible people.

“I want to ask.”

But now, even my Master’s words, which I should trust most, no longer felt purely well-intentioned. Naturally, I couldn’t trust Baekdo and Hwangdo either. Just the fact that they’re cooperating with the World Tree. And the fact that I had to bear this alone was piercing deep in my heart.

The problem was that, if I let my emotions control me like this, my situation could become even worse. I had to remain calm, no matter how much I hated it. For now.

-Knock, knock, knock.

[Mr. Lee Shiheon?]

“…Yes.”

I replied casually and stepped out the door.

Outside, the Sage was smiling pleasantly.

It was a smile that never revealed what she’s truly thinking.

“Let’s go, shall we?”

I took a deep breath, straightened my shoulders.

With the same face I once showed Cheondo in the past.

This was just a part of the process to break away.

Now it was time for me to move forward on my own.

“So, starting today, I go alone?”

“Yes. Do you think you can handle it?”

“…And whatever I do there, it’s up to me?”

At my meaningful statement, the Sage responded as if it were obvious.

“Of course. Just remember to feed our children.”

“Yes~ Oh, is it Teddy Bear pink today?”

The Sage’s face turned stern, and I glanced away.

Usually, this worked to let things slide.

But this time, the reaction was a bit different.

The Sage raised her hand and pinched my arm.

“Ouch!”Nôv(el)B\\jnn

A tear almost slipped out from the pain.

It’d been a while since I’d felt pain, so it surprised me.

As I rubbed my pinched arm and stepped back, the Sage smiled brightly.

“Take care.”

“….”

“Patience, patience—it’s said that enduring three times averts a disaster. There are many fun proverbs in Korea. Do you know how many times it’s been so far?”

“Well… isn’t liking teddy bears… not particularly weird?”

“Shut up.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Responding like an idiot, I chuckled and slung the large backpack the Sage handed me over my shoulder and activated the teleportation spell.

My surroundings flipped, and the tiled floor under me changed instantly to a dusty ground.

At the same time, my previously tense expression relaxed.

-Peek, peek.

After walking a little further, I saw kids who were now familiar to me.

They seemed a bit cautious since the sage wasn’t there. But as I opened the backpack, they all started to run toward me, eager not to be late to receive something.

“Sparrow. Woodpecker. Wake up.”

[…Master! Y-You called? I came right away. I was first!]

Sparrow arrived, looking drenched, as if she’d come straight from a bath.

Then, a magic circle appeared on the ground, and Woodpecker joined.

[Good morning, Master.]

“Yes.”

[What did you call us for, Master, Master!]

The arrival of the two chattering little birds drew the attention of the kids around us.

…They wouldn’t try to eat these birds out of hunger, would they?

Seeing their curious eyes, I ordered my spirits.

[…Uh, Master. Who are these kids?]

“Hand out some bread.”

There were quite a few kids to share with.

I loosened the straps of the backpack and revealed its contents.

A magical pocket enchanted with spatial magic.

A one-of-a-kind backpack, capable of holding anything, conjured with the image of a blue cat doll.

[This is not difficult, but… what is your relationship with these kids, Master?]

I shrugged at Woodpecker’s question.

“No relation.”

[…….]

Woodpecker closed her beak at my straightforward answer.

Sparrow also suddenly fell silent.

What’s with them all of a sudden?

Looking at them, a bit bewildered, they spoke in voices tinged with admiration.

[…Master, you’re amazing.]

[You’re kinder than I thought.]

“Remember, doing the work comes before talking. Only then will you get a speck more of power.”

[Yes, yes!]

[Oh no….]

“And by the way, if the kids try to pet you, don’t dodge. These kids don’t often get to see little birds like you.”

[Master, did you just tell us to be playthings…? How could you say such a thing?]

They’re talking nonsense again.

I fixed my gaze on Sparrow.

[…But I’m Master’s Sparrow. I want only you to touch me, Master!]

“You’re making me dizzy. Shut him up.”

Each holding a piece of bread in their beak, Woodpecker grabbed Sparrow by the back of her neck with her foot.

[Yes.]

[Masstterrr!]

If they kept bustling around, they’d at least earn their keep.

I said as much and returned to distributing bread.

“Th-Thank you, Hyung.”

“Sure. But where’s the new kid?”

“The… new kid?”

Though there’s a bit of dialect, it was in English, so it was enough for us to understand each other.

Recently, I had been picking up bits of French here and there, too.

At my question, the boy tilted his head.

“Well… the ones who just arrived, I mean. Around this height, or maybe a bit smaller? A girl.”

Tina, I think.

She was so malnourished she looked almost skeletal.

A sweet kid whose tears fell like raindrops the moment she got food.

I’d been waiting, wondering when she’d come, but she was nowhere to be seen.

“That kid… she left yesterday.”

“What? Left? Where to?”

“She was taken by an old man….”

The boy whispered hesitantly so the other kids wouldn’t hear.

“…What?”

“Oh, nothing.”

As my face hardened, he took a step back as if he’d made a big mistake.

I quickly forced a smile and asked again.

“Quietly tell me. I’ll give you another piece of bread. Are you low on milk?”

“…Uh, well. I’m not supposed to talk about this… but you won’t say I told you, right?”

“Of course not.”

I handed him an extra piece of bread.

To prevent the others from complaining, I handed out additional bread to everyone.

Then, I turned back to the boy and listened closely.

“…He’s a man in a ragged cloak.”

The boy had sometimes stared at the sage who’d wander around here, handing out food.

At the same time, I looked toward the direction the boy’s eyes flickered to briefly.

Two alleys down.

About 100 meters away, the man in question was lurking there, watching us.

I turned my head as if I hadn’t noticed him.

At the same time, I scattered a faint trace of magic towards that direction, so faint that the target wouldn’t detect it.

‘Eleonore.’

<Yes, Master?>

‘Follow that man I just marked with my magic. The guy in the ragged cloak. Watch him closely and report back on what he’s up to. If it feels off in any way, give me a call.’

<…Alright. But, Master, when will you… spend time with me?>

‘Once this is done, I’ll indulge you as much as you want, so just do as I asked.’

<Okay, hehe! I’ll clean my feathers and wait….>

Originally, it would’ve made more sense to send Woodpecker.

But to build up Eleonore’s experience, who had never done any trailing before, I chose her.

Even a spirit that’s rough around the edges can handle it. She won’t make any big mistakes.

Only then could I finally focus on distributing bread.

<…Master?>

‘Yes?’

A while later.

When I’d finished handing out all the bread and was about to leave, her voice came through.

<Something feels… strange over here.>