There are two World Trees on this continent.
No, there were.
The Blessed Ginkgo Tree existing in the dense forest of the continent's southeast. That massive World Tree, which grew by solely drinking the river's currents and gnawing through the earth, stood tall for tens of thousands of years, proudly looking down upon the world.
Though the dense forest has no seasons, seasons were nothing more than the World Tree's whims. If the World Tree wished to adorn itself in a yellow patchwork coat today, then that day was autumn. When countless ginkgo leaves covered the world, announcing the arrival of autumn, a bridge of ginkgo leaves formed over the Snake River that divided the forest in two. That was the moving season for the beasts living on land.
During the era when countless nations flourished. The World Tree that was the symbol of that brilliant civilization. The beautiful and blessed ginkgo tree.
Burned and fell to ugly jealousy.
And at that extreme. Only the silent Metasequoia that supported civilization in the Great Forest of the continent's northwest became the sole World Tree.
"The World Tree? Why an innocent tree?"
[The tree did nothing wrong. But, I'm interested in the despair they'll feel when that tree falls.]
"The druids of the Great Forest...? Why them? They serve the same World Tree anyway."
[It seems it wasn't the same World Tree. To them, that is.]
The parrot muttering emptily seemed to have some story behind it. I should probably read its thoughts for this too. Or rather, seeing as it's loose-lipped, maybe I should coax it out?
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[...Ah. Walpurgis. Why? What? Did I say something I shouldn't have? Hm? I talked too much?]
Ugh. I don't know about the Grand Witch, but the witch below her seems a bit clever. The Grand Witch, having regained her senses, spoke again with an arrogant attitude.
[Knowledge is more precious than gold. If you want to hear more of the story, you'll have to pay an appropriate price.]
"What do you need? Shall I explain about Tyr's Demon God?"
[Uh, um, hmm! That much is, barely acceptable!]
"If it's barely acceptable, that won't do. Let's pretend this conversation never happened."
[Huh, wha-? Why?]
"To be honest, I wasn't that curious about your motives to begin with. What does it matter if a World Tree on the other side of the continent falls? In the first place, it's uncertain whether you'll succeed or not, and I have nothing to contribute."
[Huh? Would you contribute?]
"I haven't even heard the story, so why would I."
I'll just read your thoughts later and find out roughly. When I waved my hand to shoo the parrot away, it flapped its wings and clung to my body.
[No! Once you're on this ship, you have to suck everything dry! King of Humans. Let's make a deal! You must want to know why the World Tree burned too, right?]
"No, I said I'm not interested. Did I beat around the bush too much? It's none of my business."
[B-b-but! The Metasequoia is the World Tree of civilization! Those bastards from the Great Forest have no hesitation in felling the tree they worship to fatten the Empire! They're druids who became the Empire's dogs!]
"People can become dogs too. Sometimes I do when I drink."
[Hey!]
How annoying. I've said I'm not interested multiple times.
'...Wait. If it's about the Grand Witch's circumstances, I am a bit interested.'
The regressor, who had been listening quietly until now, silently expressed interest. I wondered if they had been darkly listening in even as the parrot was ruffling their hair. They shouldn't be saying anything about the Grand Witch then.
'The Grand Witch is the one who scatters the Plague Herald upon the world, and at the same time... laid waste to the Great Forest with the Green Death. It would be good if we could stop even one of those.'
Plague Herald? Green Death? Another bizarrely intriguing keyword has appeared.
No, if it's that important, shouldn't you know it first and tell me? Why are you trying to find out now?
Come to think of it, if the regressor was an enemy of Nebida and the Grand Witch until now, they wouldn't have had the chance to hear their circumstances. They would have been too busy fighting against them.
This became troublesome. If I alone were to know the truth, I could just read their thoughts and keep my mouth shut. But if I'm going to tell the regressor about the Grand Witch's circumstances and extract information, I need to extract it through a "proper" procedure, not telepathy. That way, they won't suspect the source.
"Then could you arrange a meeting? Whether we like it or not, we're in the same boat, so let's hold an exchange meeting."
[Yes! Good!]
"Please prepare the place on your end. I'll come to you."
[You must come! Absolutely!]
The parrot, repeating itself, flapped energetically and flew out the open window. The Grand Witch, despite living so long, is more cheerful than expected. Every elderly person I've seen so far had either emotionless or rigid aspects. Is it because she lives with animals?
However, she's not a good visitor. The parrot left, but the Grand Witch's familiars are still holding their breath in various parts of my room, watching this way. While I closed the door again and, while I was at it, closed the window too, the regressor groaned and spoke.
"...Hughes. When you go, take me with you."
"With your body in that state? Your arm would fall off if you ran lightly."
"Even so, I need to hear it. About the Grand Witch. Because the Grand Witch is..."
"Uh, wait. Be careful with your words. Ms. Shea. This is enemy territory for you."
Your information is mostly from what you saw in your regressions. At this point in time, that's the future. If you blurt out information from the future, it'll raise the Grand Witch's guard. If Nebida is dense but sturdy and mighty vegetation, the Grand Witch is a sensitive and wary beast. Show a single opening and there's no going back.
"Mm. But this is an opportunity too. Maybe the Grand Witch could stop the plague..."
"Ugh! Read the room!"
Can't you understand a subtle warning?! I forcibly covered the regressor's mouth and casually scanned the room. There was no unusual movement from the Grand Witch's surveillance... no, observation... no, peeping insect familiars hiding in various places. Since she was controlling the parrot just a moment ago, she probably isn't receiving the insects' senses now.
"Please be more careful with your behavior? I don't know about me, but you're just a prisoner, Ms. Shea. If you leak unnecessary information, you might end up having to spit out even more. Understand?"
"Mmph, mmph!"
"I'll believe you understood. From now on, please don't bring up information only you know out loud."
Because I'll read it with telepathy. When I felt the regressor had calmed down, I removed my hand. The regressor wore a displeased expression but accepted my words.
"...I didn't think that far. Quite sharp of you."
"Weak people always have a lot of things to be watchful about. You, who have always been strong, probably wouldn't know."
"If I were truly strong, I wouldn't be groaning here with a broken arm... I'm not strong either... I was always weak. Weaker than the King of Sins, weaker than the Demon King, weaker than the Sword Saint, and... weaker than Nebida."
The regressor sighed weakly, lamenting their fate. With their confidence diminished and their vicious spirit gone, they're somewhat cute. They had been too sharp-edged until now.
"Being able to count from the top means you're already strong enough. Then what does that make me?"
"...Right. How did you survive?"
"Suddenly acknowledging that makes me feel bad. How did I survive? I survived by desperately avoiding and running from danger! Meanwhile, you keep sticking your head into deadly places and somehow staying alive!"
'Even though you've already died more than ten times.'
Exactly. If you didn't have regression abilities, you would have died long ago. You should bow every time to the person who gave you those regression abilities.
"If you want to follow to the exchange meeting, get your arm sorted out first. I can't go around with a walking filth bomb that spurts blood whenever it moves."
"It's not that bad...! Uh..."
Suddenly remembering their state, the regressor let out a miserable groan. Unable to move a single finger, their clothes stained with blood, sweat, and dust. Even though the skin was reattached, yellowish fluid was oozing from the stretched and torn skin, making them look like what a filth bomb would be called with no room for argument.
'Normally I would have at least wiped myself with qi... but I don't even have the strength for that now. Maintaining the Heavenly Reflection is taking everything I have. I need to wash my body somehow...'
But with neither qi nor hands usable right now, the regressor had no means to wash their body. The regressor groaned as they continued thinking.
'Should I ask someone? But right now my only ally is Hughes. If anyone, it would be Hughes...'
The moment they thought that, the regressor shook their head fiercely, hard to believe for an injured person.
'No. Just endure it. It's just a bit uncomfortable. Just a bit...'
But once you become conscious of it, it becomes a problem you can't just endure and move past. The regressor kept twitching their body as if uncomfortable. From their feet, which could at least move, to their waist, they kept shifting this way and that.
'Ugh. How can I ask them to wash me...! That's weird! But there's no one else to ask right now...! The witches? No, as long as the Grand Witch exists, all witches are my enemies. I definitely can't entrust my body to enemies!'
With their pride hurt from being the first to bring it up, the regressor glared at me with tightly pressed lips. I feel a tremendous pressure.
No, really. What am I supposed to do. So this is it? You don't want to say it yourself but you want me to offer? What a truly troublesome species.
I tried to ignore it and make today's food, but the regressor's gaze grew even more intense. At this rate, the back of my head will catch fire before the hearth does.
"If you have something to say, say it with words. Stop staring."
"...It's nothing!"
"If it's nothing, stop staring! Focus on healing your body!"
"I can't focus! My clothes are damp with blood, and my body is dirty!"
"Is that so? Should I wash your body at least?"
"A-are you crazy?! Who asked for that?!"
"Well then what am I supposed to do!"
Ugh, what a headache. What do I really do about this. I should wash them but how do I overcome that defense mechanism. Maybe? It probably won't work, but should I try?
"Ms. Shea. You're a man, right. Men can help each other out, you know."
Only then remembering that they were cross-dressing as a man, the regressor answered uncertainly.
"Ah, right. That was... the case?"
"There. Don't be too embarrassed. We should help each other when times are tough."
"Y-yeah. It's not a request... wait! Stop! Take your hands off my clothes!"
Dammit. Busted. Well, it would be stranger if I wasn't caught. The regressor has weakened quite a bit too. Overwhelmed by the regressor's glare, I took my hands off their clothes and sighed.
"Then what are you going to do? Wear that for the rest of your life?"
"...I-is there another way?"
"Where would that other way be? Your wish is this: I can't touch you. But you want to wash your body. But you don't want to be seen by me. Is that it?"
"It's not that much...!"
'...But that would work!'
"Sigh. Truly troublesome. So many demands for a prisoner."
Nothing but complicated requests and conditions.
*Sigh*, fine. The harder the wish, the more satisfying it is to grant. Though it's annoying because it takes too much effort. If they say they grant even dead people's wishes, can I not grant a living person's wish?
"...Forget it. Just leave me. I'll do it myself when I'm healed."
"How do you know when you'll be fully healed? What about me who has to stay with you until then?"
I let out a sigh and rummaged through the room. The natural room made from the World Tree's inner flesh was growing all sorts of multipurpose grasses. Rummaging through things, I found lush moss growing near the bathroom and tore off a large handful. The moss was dry yet soft like a towel.
It shares only the classification of moss, but it's an entirely new species I've never seen. This too must have been 'improved' with Nebida's power.
"This seems to be moss for wiping the body. It's dry now, but it should become moist if dampened with water."
I filled a water bucket made of pumpkin shell, soaked the moss in it, and placed it at the regressor's feet. Then I called upon the Divine Origin Tree and made the moss 'grow.'
"If I leave it like this, the moss will grow while wrapping around your body. That should at least roughly clean your body. How about it?"
Strictly speaking, this was even more suspicious, but it was enough to overcome the regressor's reluctance.
"...I-if it's that much, fine."
"Well. It's not me washing you, it's the moss. Whether it washes well or not has nothing to do with me. You can't complain. Understood?"
"Yeah."
While speaking, the grown moss extended its tendrils. For stemless moss to grow, it needs a support to wrap around. The tendril searching for a support in the pumpkin bucket finally found the regressor's bare feet and wrapped around them.
'Ah, it's cold. It's moister than I thought. It grows quite fast... This should clean the body well. Hiek?!'
At that moment, the moss that found its support began to climb up the regressor fiercely as if competing with each other. Green moss brushed past the regressor's skin like a snake. Flustered by the unfamiliar sensation welling up from below, the regressor spoke.
"W-wait. Hughes. This...!"
"I don't know anything. I'm going to take a nap and wake up."
This is what you wanted. You would have been full of complaints if I washed you with my own hands. Just endure it.
"This. It's going inside...! Hughes, wait! Get this off, hiek!"
"Zzz."
I lay down on the bed with my back to the regressor who was gradually being buried in the moss. It seemed like I wouldn't be able to sleep with the regressor making noise, but perhaps because I was tired too, sleep came surprisingly easily.