◈ Episode 487. Fertilizer (3)
This isn’t going to be easy. ‘At this rate, there’ll be nothing left.’ The fused intelligent entity, Yggwid Lüfeng.
Every time the gigantic golem stirred, it felt as though an earthquake had struck.
This much power, just from twitching while lying facedown and overturned.
If something like that were to stand up on two feet?
It was right when I was imagining something dreadful. The Fire Spirit King, Phoenix, spread his crimson wings. Then he unleashed a fierce blaze toward the twitching fingers.
Fwoooosh.
Neither magic nor a skill, but {Nature}.
Fire itself.
Its power was tremendous at a glance.
Phoenix’s beak trembled with rage.
“Oried, your disgrace is deeply shameful.”
Was it because his dignity as a fellow Spirit King had been tarnished?
Or did he not even want to be lumped together with her?
As if trying to prove his own innocence.
Phoenix poured out crimson flames without pause.
However.
“That is enough, Phoenix.”
As the system message that never lied had proclaimed, [Command] over Phoenix and the fire spirits under his command belonged to me. Therefore, at a single word from me, Phoenix stopped moving.
I stared at the golem’s fingers and continued.
“Emotional responses are bound to backfire.”
It wasn’t some small pebble. That thing was no different from a living, moving rocky mountain. Worse, what we were facing was only one arm—and even then, merely five fingers of it.
Hissss.
The fingers, heated red-hot by Phoenix’s flames, seemed to have recognized us as enemies. Their movement was slow, but the power contained in that motion was impossible to gauge.
Kugugugung.
Following the shape of the palm that slammed down.
Shrrrrk.
The ground melted away.
Good thing I dodged early with Teleport.
Something like that was, quite literally, a natural disaster, difficult to block even with construction magic.
Only then did Phoenix realize his mistake.
“I had expected it to be merely on Oried’s level……”
Oried and Yggwid.
I still didn’t know what had happened between the two, nor whether that thing was Yggwid or Oried. But one thing was certain: it had become something of a scale that even Phoenix, a Spirit King, could not dare oppose.
Phoenix bowed his head.
“My apologies.”
There was really no need to apologize.
Before accepting his apology, first.
Shouldn’t we do something about those overheated fingers? ‘As expected, Absolute Zero is the only option.’ Anomaly, [『Absolute Zero』].
With Absolute Zero, I might not only be able to cool those heated fingers, but also immobilize their movement. Of course, I was worried because this would be my first time manifesting an anomaly over such a wide area. ‘Still, I have to do something. What choice do I have?’ It was the moment I thought that.
Swooooo.
Suddenly, a chill swept across the battlefield.
Of course, there was no Lee Hoyeol shivering from the cold because he lacked the [Warmth] buff. The effect of [Blessing of the First World Tree] was quite broad, after all. [The Blessing of the First World Tree rejects the status abnormality, ‘Frostbite’.] ……
Still, this is a little chilly, isn’t it? In any case, I was able to look at the owner of the cold without furrowing my brow. Just looking at that cold-blooded appearance made it easy to guess.
“The Ice Spirit King, Prinsher, greets the Blessed One.”
He could have skipped the greeting in such an urgent situation.
If I had to compare it, the cold was powerful enough not to fall behind even the ice dragon, Froznax. Thanks to it, the golem’s fingers, which had been burning hot, rapidly cooled.
Crack.
The abrupt change in temperature was causing damage.
Of course, it was not meaningful damage.
Because no sooner did something go wrong with the golem’s body.
Sssss.
Than the earth spirits, who had appeared at some point, began restoring the golem. The fire and ice spirits watching the situation with concern began to murmur.
“Have they truly betrayed us?”
“They must simply be following Lady Oried’s orders, right?”
“……They’re all pitiful.”
Among the spirits was a familiar lizard.
The contracted spirit of Senior Payyan of the Spirit School, Fire Drake. As expected of a high-ranking fire spirit, and as expected of a contracted spirit of the Magic Tower who knew me to some degree, Fire Drake quelled the commotion.
“There is no need for concern. A fitting judgment will be delivered.” ……
A fitting judgment?
Don’t tell me that judgment is something I have to deliver?
Senior Payyan, what in the world did you say to your contracted spirit?
Those eyes filled with such trust are extremely burdensome.
Because even at this moment, I wasn’t certain. ‘How many phases this raid has.’ I checked the flickering message. [Hidden Quest: Proof of the Earth]
The Earth Spirit King, Oried.
Oried wishes to prove the blessing of the World Tree.
Overcome the Trial of Earth and prove the existence of the World Tree.
- Natural Realm: Enter the Earth Territory. (Failed)
- Fused Intelligent Entity: Defeat Yggwid Lüfeng. (In Progress) ● Neutralize the fused intelligent entity’s fingers. (In Progress)
The greatest characteristic of a boss monster.
As you can see, it has phases. For now, in accordance with the quest objective, the fused intelligent entity was only moving its fingers. But there was no telling what body part would come next, what patterns would follow, or how many remained.
Shall I be a little more honest? ‘Because of that, I’ve already steeled myself to die.’ The effect of [Last Adventurer], valid because this was the Arcana Continent.
Therefore, I was even thinking of throwing away at least one life.
Why, this time, I didn’t have to just wait for the cooldown, did I? ‘Because the same thing must have appeared in reality too.’ In other words, at this moment.
I was thinking of the most efficient route by which to die. Of course, the fused intelligent entity that had displayed an appearance message on the Arcana Continent was rampaging without any regard for my circumstances.
“You’re late, Aerial.”
“Zeus, have you come out because you’re worried about your son?”
“Shut your mouth, Naias.”
“You’ve arrived, Lady Dryad.”
Because on this side as well, all of the Spirit Kings except Oried had gathered.
Once again, I was grateful and amazed, Hiel.
I glanced at Hiel and swallowed my relief. ‘What would I really have done without you?’ I might have forced out every kind of unreasonable measure to stop that thing alone. Among those unreasonable measures would likely have been the use of [Sole Supreme Under Heaven and Earth], which carried the risk of going berserk. ‘If it went berserk.’
Even I could not be certain how the situation would unfold.
Thanks to my alter ego, Hiel, we had avoided the worst-case scenario.
At that point.
“All kings, listen.”
I opened my mouth with convincing solemnity.
“You, who are kings of the Natural Realm, possess the ability. The ability to calm the rampaging earth. For that is the very order of nature.”
The order of nature.
To explain it in Grandfell’s manner of speech.
In a word, it was rock-paper-scissors. ‘The nature of attributes that bite and are bitten in turn.’ The earth spirits were desperately protecting the fused intelligent entity, Yggwid.
The golem, that is, but the clear fact did not change.
The golem’s fingers had been damaged by the abrupt change in temperature.
The Ice Spirit King, Prinsher, with his cold impression.
He continued politely.
“I will gladly heed the Blessed One’s words. However, that being is an unknown existence surpassing Oried, the Earth Spirit King. Even if we were to pour in all our strength……”
Because he had clashed with it just a moment ago.
He must have made an estimate.
He must have felt the overwhelming gap in power.
Even Phoenix did not particularly refute Prinsher’s words.
But I spoke calmly.
“Even so, there is no need for concern.”
“……!!!”
At my words, their expressions turned shocked, as if wondering whether I had some secret plan…… Regrettably, I had nothing of the sort. As I said, all I could do was.
“I will open the way for you.”
Offer this one life to drain the strength of the fused intelligent entity, Yggwid. Of course, that did not mean I intended to dump the aftermath on the Spirit Kings and make only them suffer.
Goooooo.
Suddenly, a ripple of mana reaction came from the sky.
It was not magic, but the characteristic mana emission pattern of mana stones.
Yes, it was the Iron Castle. ‘Faster than I expected, too.’ The Holy War Alliance.
It had not been long since they finished their life-and-death battle with the great beast, but the players who witnessed the appearance message would not have stayed still. The people of Arcana must also have received the news through the players. ‘They’ll be more reliable reinforcements than me.’ The one who added certainty to that thought was the Forest Spirit King, Dryad. It was probably news relayed by the forest spirits. Even in this situation, Dryad had not lost her gentleness, but now her expression changed.
“……It seems the elves have grasped the situation.”
They were the ones who, under the command of the leader High Elf, Argentress, had wandered the continent while tracking the World Tree’s enemy, the Primordial Evil. At least one of those elves must have witnessed the gigantic fused intelligent entity. ‘And based on that information, they’re gathering here.’ Suddenly, I became curious. ‘The spirits called the World Tree Mother too, didn’t they?’
And yet, enough to cause a misunderstanding.
The spirits had received neither attention nor affection from the World Tree.
As I considered the spirits’ position in the family order…… ‘……Isn’t this just like my family?’
Why, set aside the first and second children who get along well.
In the Lee family too.
And in the World Tree’s genealogy too, I was the youngest.
And the one who comparatively felt they were being alienated.
Was the third child stuck in the middle. ‘Lee Yerim is exactly like this, like an attention seeker.’
Thinking of Oried, who stabbed us in the back, as an enemy……
Somehow, my desire to settle this commotion even faster surged.
It was then.
“Oh no.”
A sigh burst out from among the Spirit Kings and spirits.
Had they realized attacks would pour down on the golem?
The earth spirits became shields and blocked the golem’s front.
“Oried, you truly are cruel.”
The Wind Spirit King, Aerial, shuddered. The earth spirits had been put forward as meat shields by Oried’s command. The terrified expressions of the earth spirits were proof of that.
“What are we supposed to do……?”
All spirits, including the Spirit Kings, flinched.
I understood at once what it meant that they had not yet lost their purity.
They were beings who could not bare their fangs at one another, even in a situation like this.
The spirits were. ‘That’s why they’d endured quietly in the Natural Realm.’ ……
Now I feel sorry for comparing them to that enemy.
It goes without saying.
I had no intention of making the purity the spirits had painstakingly preserved go to waste.
Moreover, didn’t I say it?
That this, too, was part of the World Tree’s plan. ‘I have to see just how grand that plan is.’ I opened my mouth.
“Blood is thicker than water.”
“……?”
“Earth spirits, you need not obey the command of a misguided king.”
To the earth spirits, the command of their liege, Oried, must be absolute. However, as I recalled Froznax and even received news about the elves, I became certain. ‘If the spirits are the World Tree’s third children.’
[Blessing Hierarchy].
That effect would also apply to the spirits.
My prediction was correct.
My vision flickered. [‘Blessing Hierarchy’ occurs among the earth spirits.]
The earth spirits, who had been trembling in fear, began to scatter.
They hurriedly moved away from the golem.
Rather, they were joining our side.
The Spirit Kings cried out in shock.
“It even surpasses a royal command?”
“……Such a thing!”
“You possessed such authority, yet why go through needless trouble……!”
I simply hadn’t thought of it that way.
Did they think I had been considering the dignity of the Spirit Kings?
After the shock, awe toward me poured out. ……
Yes, whatever the case. ‘This is more like me.’ The current me had been built up through all kinds of misunderstandings.
I had no intention of denying it now.
Here, proving it convincingly was the best I could do.
To underestimation, proof; to overestimation, realization.
Wasn’t that the path Lee Hoyeol and Grandfell walked together? In that sense, I took a step forward. The target was the first quest objective, the five fingers.
Inside my head.
I considered all kinds of means and methods.
Among them, I chose the best move.
The combination of pure mana and attributes.
What amplifies through that is the nature of attribute magic.
Nature should not be an exception.
I manifested pure mana magic.
Above all, my mana was not just ordinary mana. ‘It is mana of a different “rank.”’
I spoke to the Spirit Kings.
“For this moment alone, you may borrow my authority and run wild.”
“……!!!”
At my words, the Spirit Kings immediately prepared their blows.
At last, all manner of natural attributes exploded with my mana as the medium.
I looked at the flickering message. ● Neutralize the fused intelligent entity’s fingers. (Success)
It goes without saying.
In my current action, there was also a timid invoice that I, Lee Hoyeol, had scribbled inside my head. [You have acquired contribution toward the kill.]
I looked at the collapsing fingers and thought.
As convincingly as possible. We’ve made it past phase one. ‘By the way……’
How are they dealing with a monster like this in reality? ‘Still, the Magic Tower is there, so there’s nothing to worry about……’
Then the thought reached me.
Who I had entrusted with the duties of acting chief temporary deputy.
Before heading to the Arcana Continent. ‘Oh no, Bensch William……!!’ ...
Park Hwigang doubted his own eyes.
“Huh?”
An appearance message had suddenly appeared. [The released Flame Emperor, ‘Bensch William,’ appears.]
“If it’s Bensch, then he’s a senior mage……? But the released Flame Emperor……? What is this incredible modifier?!”
At the same time, he felt hellfire.
From none other than.
The staircase of the Magic Tower.