◈ Chapter 482. The Call (2)
The Spirit King of the Forest.
Everyone except Dryad was feigning surprise. It was only natural. After all, the only one who knew of Hiel’s existence was Dryad, who had watched over Hiel from the moment the contract was formed.
However.
“……
No way.”
Aerial, the Spirit King of Wind, who was well-versed in news, could make a guess.
Because there had been eyewitness accounts carried on the wind.
Aerial recalled the memory.
-“A new Spirit King? As if that could happen.”
That was certainly how she had answered the young spirits’ question.
She had not even wondered about the intent behind the question.
Because it was only natural not to give even the slightest attention to absurd rumors.
“A new Spirit King… were the rumors true……?”
At Aerial’s meaningful murmur, Oried practically jumped.
You…!
You’ve been choosing only the most frustrating things to do since earlier, Aerial.
“Do you call that something worth saying right now?”
“Oried…….”
“Look at the bonfire.”
The Spirit Bonfire.
A brilliant cluster of light shone atop the round table. It was a flame that rose in a restricted place where only Spirit Kings, or those granted permission by a Spirit King, could enter.
Oried’s gaze turned toward each of the kings.
“Count them one by one, Aerial. And don’t forget to count yourself, either. Now, have you counted them all without missing anyone? Yes, there are no empty seats before the Spirit Bonfire.”
It meant that since there were no empty seats, a new Spirit King could not be elected.
Even so, the atmosphere was chaotic.
Oried did not like the chaos.
A small mutter.
“Damned nonsense rumors just won’t stop.”
It was not only the rumor about a new Spirit King.
There were rumors that the spirits of the cosmos, who had vanished without a trace, had returned to the Arcana Continent. Among them, the most absurd rumor was the news of a Spirit King of Darkness who did not even exist.‘Even the name made no sense from the start.’Was it Diend Crysiad Eternal Darkness?
A spirit going around proclaiming for himself a name so grandiose that it surpassed even Oried, a true Spirit King. Oried did not want her plans to be muddied by such nonsense rumors.‘At this rate, I cannot break free from the shackles of purity.’So.
Step.
Oried focused on the approaching presence.
As stated before, this was a place only Spirit Kings.
Or those granted permission by a Spirit King could approach.
Oried’s sharp gaze turned toward Dryad.‘I don’t know what you want.’But there was no doubt.
The owner of those footsteps could appear before the bonfire because Dryad had permitted it. Oried did not overlook that point.
“I hope both of you take responsibility for your actions.”
Dryad and Aerial.
After snapping at the two Spirit Kings, Oried calmed her excitement.
If a variable had arisen, then she simply had to remove that variable calmly.
Step.
As Oried listened to the approaching footsteps, she turned her thoughts over.
How could she gain the agreement of the other Spirit Kings?‘Zeus will move according to my will in the end.’After all, he now had a clear weakness called the Child of Lightning.
It was the moment Oried was giving shape to her scheme.
Suddenly, an intense heat could be felt.
“……
Phoenix?”
Oried instinctively looked at Phoenix, the Spirit King of Flame.
But it was not Phoenix.
The heat was being emitted from the bonfire atop the round table.
Fwoosh.
“!”
The Spirit Bonfire was blazing with unprecedented intensity. Oried’s pupils, which had never once lost their lofty composure, began to tremble violently.
“What is this……. No way, vitality……?”
The Spirit Bonfire did not simply burn.
For every Spirit King seated before the round table, one spark was added, and only when all Spirit Kings were present did the bonfire begin to burn in its entirety.
And yet.
Merely because that mysterious presence drew near, the bonfire was burning even more brilliantly and intensely. At last, Oried’s trembling gaze turned toward the direction from which the sound came.
Step.‘Just what is it……?’At last, the identity revealed itself.
“……!!!”
Wings spread in full bloom.
Garments shining radiantly.
An elegance that flowed naturally.
One word surfaced in Oried’s mind.‘……
A new Spirit King.’But Oried unknowingly shook her head.
“……
No.”
She had no choice.
She had instinctively realized it.
More than herself, a Spirit King.
That nameless spirit’s rank was even higher.‘A rank higher than a Spirit King? Impossible.’As Oried denied the situation unfolding before her.
And the other Spirit Kings maintained their silence.
A voice began to continue.
It was a name.
“Hiel Crysiad Four Seasons Leaf.”……
Crysiad?‘That’s……!’It was the same name as the Spirit King of Darkness she had considered nothing more than an absurd rumor.
But before she could utter her shock.
An even more unbelievable story followed.
“I pay my respects to you who have answered the call.”
The call?
Then.
The reason we, the Spirit Kings, have gathered in one place…….
“……
Impossible.”
Was it because of her, because of Hiel’s call?*Nymph.
The insignificant low-ranked forest spirit looked at Dryad, who had once been her king. Hiel had received Dryad’s blessing when she formed a contract with her lord.‘As expected, you…….’But to Dryad, the past was merely the past.
Dryad alone bowed her head and paid respects.
Hiel kept it in mind.‘My lord always said this.’Noblesse oblige. With great power comes great responsibility.
Hiel did not forget the reason she, who had been no more than a nymph, had been reborn as a {Unique Spirit}. Yes. Everything was the will of the World Tree, the mother of all things.
Therefore, Hiel hid nothing.
“First, I ask for your understanding.”
“……?”
“It must have been a sudden call.”
How had she been able to summon the Spirit Kings to one place?
That was the authority of the First World Tree.
The Spirit Kings.
Though they themselves would not be able to perceive it, as if bewitched by something.
They had no choice but to naturally seek out this bonfire.
“And one more thing. I hope you will not be angered that I took in spirits who had nowhere to go without asking for your permission.”
At Hiel’s words, a sharp reply returned.
“Spirits who had nowhere to go?”
It was Oried.
“Do you think that makes sense? The people of the natural world serve only their own king. The forest spirits serve only Dryad. The fire spirits serve only Phoenix. And the earth spirits serve only me, Oried……!”
Oried’s voice grew heated.
But what returned was.
An answer in an unwavering tone.
“I have returned the spirits I took in on the road to the bonfire to your territories, so if you have questions, you may ask them yourselves and resolve them. However, one thing.”
Hiel warned them.
“Do not interrogate the pitiful spirits who had been abandoned.”
“Interrogate? That is my authority……!”
“Mother did not permit such authority.”
The devastated continent.
Hiel had protected the spirits who had lost their homes in the safe Claudie Territory. However, she did not want her lord’s territory to become known to many.
Because her lord, who observed from behind the scenes, would not want unnecessary commotion.
“Mother, you say…….”
At those words, Oried, and all the Spirit Kings including her, became aware of Hiel’s existence. I see. That spirit is the one who was said to have received Mother’s blessing.
If they acknowledged that fact.
“…….”
Everything now unfolding made sense.In the {Natural World}, the World Tree’s influence was truly absolute.
If a being who had received Mother’s blessing had wished for them to gather, then it was not strange that they had sought out the bonfire without any particular reason.
However, they could not accept it.
“Who is my mother?”
A majestic voice rang out.
The Spirit King of Flame, who had been keeping silent.
Phoenix parted his lips.
“My mother has already rotted away and turned to dust. Oried is right. At this moment, the World Trees that have taken root on the Arcana Continent are not my mothers.”
Fwoosh.
Flames surged up as though threatening Hiel.
“I have never had such a frail mother!”
Aerial nodded.
“I heard the news that came flying on the wind. That the World Tree rooted in northern Antonium would not survive a single day without the care of dragons…….”
Zeus lent strength to their words.
“That imperfection is proof.”
“Yes, it seems everyone thought the same as I did.”
“Oried.”
“Would you please not speak my name, Dryad?”
Dryad looked over the situation.
Before the bonfire, the factions had split in two. No, it was almost embarrassing to say that they had split in two. Aside from herself, everyone was denying Hiel’s very existence.
“I am sorry.”
Dryad, who had watched Hiel’s path, felt ashamed before her. It seemed as though her own weakness, scattered like leaves, had brought Hiel unnecessary conflict.
However.
“I see.”
Hiel was a being who closely resembled ‘someone.’
“What you need is proof.”
Yes, when underestimated, there was proof.
“Dryad, I express my gratitude for your trust.”
And when overestimated, that someone unfailingly made it reality.
She would prove it.
At Hiel’s declaration, an unusual light hovered in the Spirit Kings’ eyes.
Swoooosh.
Amid the tension.
The Spirit Bonfire, like an inextinguishable sacred flame.
Blazed even more fiercely.*Habits are truly important.
“Whew.”
Antonium Castle.
After the imperial council ended.
I immediately carried out that wretched class quest.
The amount of training kept increasing, but even this had become familiar now.
“It is truly light work.”
Of course, it was absolutely not actually light work like my mouth was claiming…….
It was just that my arms and legs no longer trembled like a vibrating smartphone.
However.
“Has it arrived?”
If even a little strength remained, this damned body of mine would not rest, so I immediately unfolded the parchment. It was the research material I had received when I reunited with Marcelo before entering Antonium.『Research Results on the Demon World’s Scripture, the Necronomicon』The Lich of the Demon World, Discus.
An [Epic]-grade item he had dropped.
No matter how intelligent Granfell’s mind was, he could not immediately acquire knowledge about the Demon World. And it was not something I, I Hoyeol, could understand by racking my brains, either.
Even so, I was the actual authority of the Magic Tower, the Chief Mage.
For the first time in a while, I abused my authority…….
No, I requested research from the Magic Tower through my rightful authority.
“It exceeds my expectations.”
The research on the Necronomicon was not conducted by the Magic Tower.
Alone.
Well now, names I had never imagined were listed as co-researchers.
“Marcelo, there will be no need to worry about the future anymore.”
A joint research report between the Magic Tower and AAU.
“Is the Magic Tower not already steadily advancing toward the strange?”
After all, they say two heads are better than one. Two forces that could be called the brains of reality and the Arcana Continent had put their heads together and written it down.
Rustle.
For now, I examined the table of contents first.──────0. Lich Discus
1. To Those Who Set Foot in the Demon World.
2. Beware the Kings.
3. An Incomprehensible Power…….──────The contents, which had been impossible to understand when I skimmed them alone, had been deciphered and organized so that they could at least be read. Let’s see, judging from the footnotes, Discus, that meticulous skull……!‘It was all code. No wonder I couldn’t read it.’In any case, thank you, Magic Tower.
For the first time in a while, it felt as though all the suffering I had endured at the Magic Tower was being repaid.
As I read through the table of contents, I found one item that drew my attention.──────Regarding Noble Paimon, Ruler of the Western Demon World.──────Paimon.
He had certainly been different from the demons I had met so far. It would be hard to say I felt that difference simply because he was an upper Demon King, since I had also encountered Gamigin and Buer.‘I certainly need to know myself and know my enemy.’Perhaps Granfell agreed on that point as well, because my mouth did not pour out indiscriminate disparagement of demons.
Of course, that did not mean I was able to calmly read through the research material.
Flash.
My vision blinked.
Not just once.
Messages continued to update.
I flinched.[Hidden Quest: Proof of Flame][Hidden Quest: Proof of Earth][Hidden Quest: Proof of Ice]…….
I realized it instinctively.
Hiel, it’s you.
But still, even if there was nothing else to resemble.
“Proof, is it? It is welcome at any time.”
You didn’t need to resemble even that damned love of proof……!