The ritual was complete.
When the life-energy surged through Ruel, he felt his fatigue and wound vanihs on the spot.
The Great Whisperer, on the other hand, ceased its attack the moment Amalia finished and began to rapidly change before his eyes.
Its gray, rotting bark sprang back to life and leaves began sprouting from its withered branches.
Grass and flowers regrew across the clearing while the corrupted spirits dissolved at once, their gray forms unraveling into threads of light.
When the Great Whisperer realized what had happened, it began to weep with joy.
Its forest had been saved.
Now, it felt nothing but gratitude toward these strangers who had achieved the impossible.
After finishing the ritual, Amalia looked up at the giant tree and spoke.
All the fear and doubt that had once filled her heart had dissolved just like the corruption that once infected the forest.
“I’m not Leaf, and I can never replace her, but I made an oath to save this forest and I fulfilled it to the very end.
Live again, oh Great Whisperer, and be free from the curse which afflicted you.”
“Then…
who are you, stranger?” the tree replied.
“How did you create such a miracle?”
“I am Amalia Sheran Sharm, princess of the Sadida Kingdom.”
The moment she spoke her name, the forest spirits bowed their heads in solemn reverence.
All nature seemed to hold its breath, and even the grass and trees appeared to kneel before her.
The heroes could only watch in surprise.
I knew she was someone important, Ruel thought, but not even in my wildest dreams would I have imagined she was royalty.
The Great Whisperer also gave a deep bow as one of its enormous branches descended gently toward the princess.
“We are deeply sorry for attacking you, Your Highness.
We are at your service.”
Amalia shook her head firmly.
“Before I speak, ” she replied.
“There’s someone you must see first.”
She stepped aside and her small wooden doll took a step forward, ascending along the Great Whisperer’s branch.
The tree only watched with curiosity, as if recognizing something long forgotten.
Once the doll touched its bark, it began to glow with greenish light.
And then, it began to transform right before his eyes.
Shining light poured from within as its body expanded and grew to a human size.
Its skin became moss-green and fresh twigs and leaves sprouted from its entire body.
Now, it resembled a young woman with green skin and hair made of leaves.
The ancient tree immediately recognized her and trembled with emotion, thick tears of sap sliding down its rough bark.
“Leaf?
Is that you?”
The creature smiled with gentle warmth and leaned in to embrace the trunk like a daughter who had returned home after a long time.
Amalia watched with tenderness and addressed the Great Tree softly.
“Yes…
and no.
I’ve woven a connection between this forest and the Tree of Life.
I channeled its life energy to purge the corruption and restore your ancient essence.
But I could only manifest Leaf for a short time…
just long enough for you to say goodbye.”
The Tree didn’t respond.
Its branches swayed slowly, hoping to prolong the moment as much as he it possibly could.
For what felt like an eternity, they remained embraced in silence.
At last, Leaf pulled back and whispered words in an ancient tongue that only the Tree could understand.
Her inner light intensified until it was almost blinding.
And then, as if her soul were being set free, the light separated from her body and rose toward the sky.
As it reached the top, it light shattered into hundreds of shining fragments that descended upon the clearing like falling stars.
The scene was so beautiful that no one dared move or speak.
When the last light faded, the doll returned to its original form and fell softly to the ground.
Amalia picked it up gently and tucked it into her bag.
Its purpose had been fulfilled.
“I am eternally grateful to you, outsiders,” the tree said, its deep voice echoing through the clearing.
“I beg your forgiveness for the harm we caused. Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
Anger blinded us…
we lost control and attacked so many innocents.
But fear not.
I have sent Leaf to heal every person who was unjustly cursed.
This way, I can thank you for all you’ve done for this forest.”
The heroes exchanged glances filled with relief and happiness.
They had saved the town once more and brought an end to such a terrible curse.
Amalia turned to Yugo and, with a warm smile, whispered:
“As you see, I never break my promises.
Now, everything is back the way it was.”
Before she could say more, Yugo stepped forward and gave her a tight hug, catching her off-guard and making her deeply blush.
“Thank you, Amalia.”
“Save that excitement for when you see your father,” she replied with a smile.
“I bet he’s waiting for you!”
A shout interrupted the moment.
Percedal had just recovered from the blow that knocked him out of the fight and sprang to his feet, ready for action.
“What happened?
Did we win?!”
“Easy, Percedal,” Yugo answered.
“Amalia healed the forest.
All the dark spirits are back to normal.”
“That was a fight for the ages!” the knight puffed out his chest.
“Let’s celebrate another great vicotry of Sir Percedal of Sadlygrove, knight of the Order of the Shushu!”
Yugo chuckled, then lowered his voice.
“Anyway, Dally, I wanted to thank you for saving me from that monster.
If you hadn’t gotten there in time…
I don’t even want to think about it.”
“Eh, I was just returning the favor.
You saved me from Rubilax, remember?
Besides, a true knight always comes to the rescue of those in need!”
Percedal picked up Rubilax and headed toward the rest of the group, already making their way to the forest’s exit.
As he caught up, Ruel approached and, for the first time since they’d met, sounded genuinely sincere.
“You did good out there, Sir Percedal,” he said.
“I hate to admit it, but if it hadn’t been for you…
Yugo would be…” He paused.
“Look, after what happened with Alibert, I couldn’t bear to lose Yugo too.
Truly…
thank you.”
Percedal gave him a modest smile.
“No need to thank me.
I was just doing my duty.”
For once in a long time, Percedal’s neurons clicked and he asked full of curiosity:
“Though now that I think about it…
how strong are you, really?
I saw you fighting that enormous tree and you don’t even have a scratch on you.”
“Looks can be deceiving, and this old dog knows plenty of tricks,” Ruel replied with a laugh.
“I’ve gone on so many adventures that a grumpy tree isn’t the worst thing I’ve ever faced.
I’d rank it somewhere in the middle.”
As he glanced around to make sure no one had been left behind, he noticed Evangelyne had lingered in the clearing.
The Cra had pulled out a notebook and was writing furiously, so absorbed she didn’t realize everyone was waiting.
Intrigued, Ruel approached.
She wasn’t just writing.
She was drawing.
With firm, detailed strokes, she’d sketched many of the creatures they’d encountered.
The illustrations were remarkably well done, each accompanied by small annotations about the nature and abilities of each spirit.
“Hey there, young lady,” he said.
“Sorry,” Eva replied, visibly embarrassed.
“I just wanted to record them before I forget.
Won’t take long, I promise.”
“Then hurry it up.
The forest may look prettier now, but I still wouldn’t trust it one bit.” Ruel looked closer at her sketches.
“Hey, I have to say…
you’ve got real talent.
Ever thought about selling any of these?
You could make some decent Kamas off them.”
“I’ve never considered it,” she answered, with a shy smile that gradually grew more enthusiastic.
“I always loved reading books about monsters and fantastical creatures when I was a kid.
Now that I’m living my own adventures, I want to document everything.
Knowing the right information about a monster could mean the difference between life and death.”
“Good instincts, young lady,” Ruel said.
“That kind of thinking is what separates adventurers who survive from those who don’t.
Finish up and let’s get going.”
Eva gave him a grateful smile and put the finishing touches on her drawings.
In the end, this dirty old man is more decent than he seemed, she thought as she reviewed her final strokes.
She closed the notebook and ran to catch up.
Percedal, who’d been listening from a few feet away, approached with his usual dopey grin on his face.
“You sure took your time with those drawings.
Hey, can I see them?”
“If that’s what you want,” she replied, opening the notebook slightly.
“But don’t you dare touch them!
Every single one took me a lot of time and effort, and I swear if you ruin one I’ll break your fingers.”
“Look, that’s me!
Or better said, Rubi!” he exclaimed when he reached the page with his Shushu form.
“Awesome!
The only thing I don’t get are those weird scribbles everywhere.”
“Those aren’t scribbles.
It’s information about your monstrous form, in case we ever have to fight you again…
Wait, don’t tell me you can’t read?”
“Can’t read, can’t write,” he answered proudly.
Eva just rubbed her forehead.
Why am I even surprised?
This is completely predictable.
On the other hand, Percedal just kept talking, utterly oblivious to her exasperation.
“My master always said all you need to know is how to swing a sword and hit hard.
With enough hits, even the strongest enemy will go down eventually.
Right, Rubilax?”
“Whatever you say, chief,” the cursed sword responded mockingly.
“For someone like you, I suppose that’s the best strategy you can imagine.”
Eva couldn’t help a small laugh.
“No wonder they say nobody loses to an Iop more than once.”
“Hang on…” Percedal strained his brain cells.
“Wait, are you saying that…?”
“All right, you two lovebirds, knock it off and keep walking!” Ruel interrupted.
“The town’s waiting for us.”
The group resumed their march, guided once again by Amalia’s magic.
Yugo could only think about his father.
He’d always dreamed of adventure, of fighting monsters and saving the world…
but now, more than ever, he just wanted to go home.
He just wanted to hug his father once again.
Writing fight scenes is another of the aspects I enjoy from this story, and this one is the first “arc boss battle” (of many).
As a TTRPG and Shonen anime enthusiast, I hope to bring the excitement and teamwork of such fights as best I can through my writing.
I even draft a “turn-by-turn” outline for my fights to better track them down and figure out what everyone is doing as it is easy to become overwhelmed.
One of my goals in this story is for each member of the group to be useful in some way in fights (something I felt was lacking in the show at the beginning, especially with Amalia), and I hope I did a good job at that.