SCRAAAAAPE.
After landing while dragging my claws down the cliff face, I immediately headed in the direction Cheori had indicated—the direction of the World Tree.
“Squeak.”
“Why am I not running?”
“Squeak.”
“How am I supposed to run when I do not know how long it will take to get there?”
I was confident in my stamina, but that did not mean it was infinite.
How could I run when I had no idea how far away the World Tree was?
‘The fact that I could not sleep does bother me a little....’
I had tried to sleep throughout the night, but sleep never came.
It was slightly concerning, but—
‘I should be fine.’
I still did not feel sleepy even now.
It probably would not matter.
As I continued walking through the forest—
“ROOOOAR!”
BOOM!
A gigantic bear roared, shaking the ground.
I stared up at the creature, which had rocks protruding from its back.
‘An Earth Bear.’
It was the creature that had appeared on the first floor.
It was also the creature that had fallen victim to the Bloody Mantis on the second floor.
That very creature was now swinging one of its forepaws at me.
“SQUEEEEEAK!”
Cheori cried out in terror and wrapped his tail tightly around my neck.
He squeezed his eyes shut and began trembling, apparently convinced that we were about to die.
He seemed to think we were in danger.
“What are you so worried about?”
An Earth Bear was—
“One-hit material.”
THUD!
I lightly swung my right hand.
It was an extremely casual motion.
The punch seemed so light that it appeared to contain no strength at all.
Yet that light punch—
“Guh....”
—tore an enormous hole through the Earth Bear’s abdomen with a single blow.
I stared at the Earth Bear as it collapsed to the ground, spraying blood everywhere.
“Is this because my Synchronization Rate rose to 1.5%?”
When I first encountered an Earth Bear, my attacks had not possessed this much power.
However, now that my Synchronization Rate had reached 1.5%—
Even the lightest punch had pierced the Earth Bear’s abdomen and killed it.
“S-Squeak....”
Cheori stared at the dead Earth Bear in shock.
After blinking several times, he looked back and forth between me and the corpse.
“I told you I would protect you.”
“...Squeak.”
“I am a man who keeps his word.”
Nuzzle.
Cheori suddenly began rubbing his head against my cheek.
Judging by his reaction, he apparently had not believed me before.
It did not matter as long as he believed me now.
I chuckled and casually flicked the blood from my right hand onto the ground.
“So, we just keep going straight in this direction, right?”
“Squeak.”
I nodded and continued walking in the direction Cheori had indicated.
There was still nothing but trees around us.
***
Four hours passed as I continued forward, dealing with the Earth Bears that appeared along the way.
I briefly stopped beside a stream I happened to discover and sat down to wet my throat.
“Refreshing.”
How long had it been since I last drank water?
It had certainly been so long that I could not even remember the last time I had done so.
“This really is strange.”
Ever since entering the tower, I had not felt sleepy or hungry.
The same was true of thirst.
Because I had never actually felt thirsty, I had completely forgotten about drinking water.
After drinking my fill, I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and glanced to the side.
Cheori was lapping up water with his long tongue.
“Does it taste good?”
“Squeak.”
“Are you hungry?”
“Squeeeak....”
So he was a little hungry.
I had expected as much.
With an indifferent expression, I slipped a hand into my pocket.
Then I pulled out a handful of the amethyst-like gemstones I had found in the cave the previous day.
“Here. Eat.”
Cheori’s eyes widened when he saw the gemstones piled on the ground.
A moment later, he began swallowing them one after another as though possessed by hunger.
I watched him devour the gemstones with obvious delight, then quietly turned my gaze away.
“That must be the World Tree.”
At the very edge of my vision—
Beyond a thick veil of mist, an enormous tree was barely visible.
The tree was tall enough to reach the clouds.
Although its outline was faint, its presence was unmistakable.
That was how I knew.
That place was the destination of this floor—the World Tree.
Perhaps because I could finally see my destination, even though it was still far away, I did not feel as mentally exhausted as I had expected.
I picked up Cheori, who was lying on his back with his now-round belly exposed, and placed him on my shoulder.
“If you are finished resting, let us go.”
It would be a waste of time to remain here.
I needed to complete the objective as soon as possible.
With Cheori perched on my shoulder, I continued toward the World Tree.
***
TAP.
Someone landed lightly on the gravel.
A woman brushed the pale green hair obscuring her vision behind her pointed ear, then examined the gemstone fragments scattered across the ground.
“This is a Mana Blast Stone....”
It was a dangerous gemstone capable of producing a powerful explosion when infused with mana.
Someone carrying such gemstones was now heading toward Mother.
“I do not know who you are, but you have made a grave mistake.”
CRACK.
The woman clenched a fragment of the Mana Blast Stone in her hand and infused it with mana.
The gemstone began to glow within her grasp.
A moment later, it exploded.
Smoke curled upward from her palm.
Beyond the smoke, her dark green eyes gleamed with verdant light.
The woman took a step forward, following the traces left on the ground.
“Do not think you can escape the Warden of the Forest.”
She lightly kicked off the ground and followed the trail.
It had looked like a light leap, but there was nothing slight about it.
She shot forward at tremendous speed in the direction the tracks led.
And then she found him.
A black-haired man who was already close to Mother.
And then she acted.
“Stop, human!”
She decided to attack him.
***
FWOOSH—BOOOOM!
Something slammed into the ground.
My eyes widened as I quickly retreated and clenched my fist.
[Black Dragon]
My heart nearly stopped.
The closer I came to the World Tree, the fewer monsters I encountered.
There had not been a single monster in sight, so I had deactivated Black Dragon and continued walking.
Then someone had suddenly attacked me from the sky.
Doing my best to conceal my surprise, I stared at the figure walking out through the smoke.
“Why are you heading toward Mother while carrying Mana Blast Stones?”
“What?”
Mana Blast Stones?
What were those?
More importantly—
“...You can speak?”
“What? What nonsense are you spouting, human?”
Step. Step.
A figure emerged through the smoke.
I opened and closed my mouth as I stared at her.
Rich green hair that fell to her waist.
Deep green eyes resembling leaves.
Pointed, fairy-like ears and a face as beautiful as a doll’s.
And....
“...Muscles?”
Her entire body was packed with muscles.
What was this?
Seriously, what was this?
I was utterly bewildered.
A woman who looked as though she belonged in a bodybuilding competition had suddenly dropped from the sky.
She spat on the ground and marched toward me.
“Leave immediately, unless you want to die.”
I had no idea what language she was speaking.
Yet somehow, I understood her.
It was confusing.
Even so, there was only one answer I could give.
“...That would be difficult.”
“What?”
“I have business with the World Tree.”
That was right.
I had business there.
I had to reach it.
‘If I wanted to survive.’
Perhaps she disliked my answer.
The woman ground her teeth and tightly clenched her fist.
“...Humans have always been greedy. You live by harming innocent plants.”
CRACK. CRACKLE.
Verdant energy rose from her right hand and swiftly spread across her entire body.
She slowly raised her head and lowered her stance, her eyes filled with hostility.
“That is why I became a warden. To stop creatures like you.”
“....”
“Come at me. If you wish to reach Mother, you will have to get past me—Elfinire, Warden of the Forest!”
She wanted me to fight her?
Seriously?
I swallowed dryly and stared at the woman before me.
She had introduced herself as Elfinire.
The moment she clenched her fist, it felt as though the space around her had begun to distort.
No, it was not merely a feeling.
The surrounding space was actually warping.
Just look at that.
The verdant energy rising from her body was already reaching the sky.
‘You seriously expect me to fight her?’
She looked as though she was in a very bad mood.
I let out a hollow laugh and glanced at my shoulder.
Cheori was trembling violently while covering his eyes with his tail.
I closed my eyes and considered the situation briefly.
Then I made my decision.
“I surrender.”
I did not want to fight her.
I casually raised both hands above my head.
My reaction seemed to bewilder Elfinire instead, and she hesitated.
“What?”
“I said I surrender. You told me not to come any closer, did you not?”
“...I did.”
“Also, I think you have misunderstood something.”
I slipped a hand into my pocket.
Then I pulled out a purple gemstone and lightly tapped Cheori on the shoulder with it.
“Cheori. Eat this.”
“...Squeak?”
He moved his tail away from his eyes.
The moment he saw the gemstone, he immediately stuffed it into his mouth.
As soon as the gemstone slid down his throat, his eyes lit up and he dove straight into my pocket.
Elfinire stumbled backward in alarm as she watched him happily devour the gemstones inside.
“W-What is that snake?”
“You do not know either?”
Seriously, what exactly was Cheori?
In the blink of an eye, he finished eating every gemstone in my pocket.
Or rather, every ‘Mana Blast Stone,’ as the woman had called them.
I pulled Cheori out of my pocket and held him up.
“These Mana Blast Stones—I do not know what kind of gemstones they are, but I only brought them as food for him.”
“H-How am I supposed to believe that? Even I, the Warden of the Forest, have never heard of a snake that eats gemstones!”
“I showed you because I knew you would not believe me. What else am I supposed to do if you still refuse to believe it?”
“....”
Elfinire pressed her lips tightly together.
I placed Cheori back on my shoulder, quietly clenched my fist, and looked at her.
“You are an elf, are you not?”
“...I am.”
An elf.
A race whose existence was always treated like a conspiracy theory on the internet.
Whenever the subject came up on Hunter forums, people would argue endlessly that if Orcs existed, then there was no reason elves could not exist as well.
However, because not a single elf had ever been sighted, the common conclusion was that they did not exist.
One of those mysterious beings was now standing directly before me.
‘Although she looks nothing like what I expected....’
Regardless, this woman was an elf.
And the elves called the World Tree ‘Mother.’
Was that not enough to explain everything?
“I have no intention of threatening the World Tree. I merely want to see it from nearby.”
“....”
She remained silent.
After staring at me for a while, she quietly clicked her tongue.
“This is what happens when the Chieftain refuses to lock the door.”
Elfinire muttered under her breath, then jerked her head toward me with a displeased expression.
“Follow me. I will guide you to Mother. However, if you attempt anything foolish....”
“I will die?”
“You understand well.”
How terrifying.
I shrugged and followed her through the forest.
“What is your name?”
“Han Mir.”
“I see. I am Elfinire. That does not mean you may address me casually.”
“....”
What was wrong with this lunatic elf?
I stared at Elfinire as though she were insane.
She must have felt my gaze, but she paid no attention to it and simply continued walking.
***
She did not say another word as we continued forward.
Thanks to that, I also remained silent and followed behind her.
Thirty minutes passed.
At last, I stopped in front of an enormous tree whose top remained invisible even when I tilted my head all the way back.
“This is the mother of all elves—the World Tree.”
“So this is the World Tree....”
It was enormous.
Was that why it was called the World Tree?
“I must inform the Chieftain that an outsider has arrived. Do not move a single step from this spot.”
TAP!
The moment she finished speaking, she vanished with a light leap.
Suddenly left alone, I took Cheori from my shoulder and placed him on the ground.
“You know the way from here, right?”
“Squeak?”
“I am going back now.”
I had already completed my objective.
After adding that quietly, I glanced to the side.
[Find the World Tree]
[Achieved]
[Success]
The System had already declared my success.
At this rate, I would soon be transported again.
If Cheori remained on me, there was a strong possibility that he would once more be dropped into a completely unfamiliar location.
That was why I had put him down.
‘I wonder what the next floor will be like....’
I hoped I would encounter someone I could communicate with, as I had on this floor.
With that thought, I waited for the System message announcing my transfer to the next floor.
However, the message that appeared was entirely different from what I expected.
[Starting from the next floor, you will not be able to leave the tower.]
[Would you like to ascend to the next floor?]
[Yes / No]
[※If you select No, you will immediately return to your original location. When you return to the tower afterward, you will begin directly from the fifth floor.]
I would not be able to leave the tower starting from the next floor....
It was unfortunate, but there was nothing I could do.
“No.”
I had already spent far too long inside the tower.
I did not even know how much time had passed outside.
It would be best to leave at least once.
Boss might have replied to me by now.
The moment I muttered my answer, bright light began flowing from beneath my feet.
As a floating sensation enveloped my body, I slowly closed my eyes.
“Whew....”
Then I opened them.
Before I knew it, I had returned to my beloved home.
The moment I left the tower, exhaustion suddenly washed over me.
I collapsed onto the floor—
“SQUAWK!”
“...?”
Why did this feel so familiar?
I quietly reached beneath myself.
Then—
“Why did you come with me again?”
“...Squeak?”
I found Cheori flattened beneath me.
I had gone out of my way to leave him behind, so why had he followed me out again?