Eat The World Tree

“What are you talking about…?”

“Why? You’re damn strong. Why do you attend the academy? People might think you’re a Flower underling.”

I naturally hardened my expression at Champi’s rapid-fire remarks.

I tried to play it cool, but did this person shift into reverse gear?

I knew that S-rank hunters, including Baekdo, acted as they pleased, but I didn’t expect it to this extent.

“You’re not seriously connected with Flower, are you?”

Champi’s question.

“Don’t make groundless assumptions. I’m not.”

“But you’re strong, right?”

However, they usually stayed silent to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Unless you actually fought, you couldn’t tell who’s stronger if you hid your power.

But I couldn’t trust these people enough to reveal my strength.

Yet, it seemed Champi was determined to test my limits.

She flicked a chopstick on the table, making it hover in the air.

-Ping.

Champi grabbed the spinning chopstick and pointed it at me, holding it backward.

Even a blunt chopstick in the hands of an S-rank hunter was as good as a weapon.

-Whoosh!

Although it wasn’t infused with magic, the quick thrust came straight for my eye.

I had no choice but to raise my palm to block the chopstick.

-Thud!

“See?”

Champi, holding the chopstick, sneered at me.

“You reacted.”

The chopstick bent at a right angle against my palm.

Champi sat back down and straightened the chopstick as if nothing had happened, whistling innocently.

“Both of you, calm down.”

Sung Jiho, who could no longer watch, stepped in to mediate with a bewildered look.

“Why do you keep interfering, Champi?”

“I thought it would speed up the conversation. Why? It’s good if we help each other. He said he wants to help our Sansuyu.”

“But does that mean you should stab people?”

“I hate being frustrated.”

“No…”

Listening to their conversation, I looked at my reddened palm.

A round mark, like a dot painted with red paint, appeared.

“So~!”

Starting to conclude the conversation, Champi spoke.

“Jiho, you want to reduce the number of people associated with the Cornus Family. And he wants to help Sansuyu, right? Am I right or wrong?”

“That’s right.”

I nodded at Champi’s question.

It wasn’t wrong, after all.

“But this guy is at least S-rank. You’d want someone to protect Sansuyu, right? You were going to assign a guard for the Forester Selection Competition anyway. I guarantee his skills.”

“…Yes? But that would make him directly involved.”

“He says he doesn’t mind.”

The Cornus Family was doomed.

Their associates were all in danger.

I only kneew the gist, but not the details.

“I don’t mind being targeted, but can you tell me exactly what’s going on?”

“See, he doesn’t mind.”

Champi reinforced my words, and Sung Jiho sighed, rubbing his forehead.

Champi forcibly pushed the conversation forward. Jiho probably needed time to think.

After some time, he reluctantly began to speak.

“It’s confidential.”

Each word was filled with agony.

He wondered if it was okay to tell this to a mere academy student and worried about what might happen to Sansuyu.

I nodded silently.

Next to me, Champi sat with a relaxed smile as if she was finally satisfied.

‘Well, it’s a gain for me too.’

The extreme performance worked well. Although I got caught up in it too.

“By the way, you know that Miss Sansuyu has trouble remembering names, right?”

“Yes, I know. She always mixes up Siheon and Siwon.”

“I’m Champi.”

With a serious expression, Sung Jiho slowly explained the situation to me.

“The Cornus Family has been conducting an ongoing experiment for a long time. Miss Sansuyu has been part of it since she was young.”

“What kind of experiment?”

“Well…”

When Sung Jiho hesitated, Champi chimed in.

“Tell him everything. If you don’t, I will.”

“…Sigh. It’s an experiment to create an eternal being, something beyond the World Tree.”

Beyond the World Tree. Did that mean surpassing the beings called gods?

“The World Tree must have kept it in check.”

“The Cornus Family and the World Tree Sect were in a symbiotic relationship. If they fought, mutual destruction was likely. But that only postponed the conflict…”

“Is it about to explode soon?”

“The family head’s alliance with Flower played a big part.”

Although the World Tree was considered divine, its power wasn’t limitless.

It couldn’t become a god without maintaining a certain level of societal order.

Oppressing noble families at will under the guise of divinity?

Figures like the Tree Spirit King would rise, and revolutions wouldn’t be surprising.

Thus, the Cornus Family couldn’t be antagonized until now.

Because there was no justification.

In a society where gods existed, it was part of foreign politics. Civilians didn’t see the World Tree as something close. If life got tough, it would explode immediately.

Social chaos wasn’t something the conservative World Tree would welcome.

Sung Jiho said.

“The World Tree has finally found a reason to abolish the Cornus Family and place a curse on them.”

Flower, the social evil.

With evidence of their alliance, the Cornus Family could be eradicated.

Even the Hunter Association, which had taken a neutral stance, would have to cooperate with the World Tree if the connection with Flower was revealed.

“Do you have evidence?”

“It was discovered a while ago.”

Sung Jiho said, tapping his phone screen and showing it to me.

Menedel.

A kind of drug that transformed people into Ents.

It was related to the serial rampage case I solved with Cheondo.

The connection between the Cornus Family and Flower was found at the collapsed company headquarters.

“The Cornus Family acted quickly, so it wasn’t reported, but the World Tree is already aware. They must be preparing.”

The World Tree is about to issue an order to annihilate the Cornus Family as soon as possible.

“Miss Sansuyu might be assassinated.”

I understood the situation.

“So, what is this experiment exactly?”

“I don’t know the details. They said it involves injecting a mixture of drugs directly into the spinal cord. That’s why Miss Sansuyu is the way she is…”

She couldn’t remember names.

Her behavior seemed oddly naive, likely due to the drug’s effects.

Sansuyu had been somewhat broken from the first time we met.

Although she still had some emotions left, even those might disappear in the future.

“What’s the point of gaining eternal life like that?”

“The family sees significance in the completion itself. All the past heads did. Since the Cornus Family appeared in 632, until now.”

It was beyond my comprehension.

“Is Sansuyu okay for now?”

Sung Jiho’s face hardened slightly.

“For now, yes. The critical moment will be after the Forester Selection Competition.”

“I see.”

“That’s why I said it. I hesitate to say this… but Miss Sansuyu has found a bit of happiness with you, Lee Siheon. Yes, I never thought it would happen.”

Sung Jiho licked his dry lips.

He clenched and unclenched his hands, letting out an awkward laugh.

“I’m grateful to you. So… I’m telling you to leave her now.”

“I understand.”

“You might die if you interfere.”

This was a near-final warning.

Sung Jiho spoke heavily with a serious expression.

A person in a much higher position than me was giving a stern warning.

If I were new to society, I would have been overwhelmed by the gravity of his words.

Champi was smiling at me, as if she already knew what I would say.

“How can I help?”

Sung Jiho’s eyes twitched.

“…As I said before-”

“My life would have been over if it weren’t for Sansuyu. It’s hard to explain, but I owe her my life.”

I spoke nonchalantly.

Considering the heavy subject, I tried to maintain a light attitude.

As if it were no big deal to me. It wasn’t true, but a bit of bravado couldn’t hurt.

“So.”

I concluded.

“What should I do?”

Sung Jiho finally relaxed his tense expression and let out a deep sigh.

“Haaa. Even if you say so, there’s nothing you can do.”

“There must be something.”

“…Yes. Upon thinking about it, there is indeed something only you can do, Lee Siheon.”

Champi yawned as if the boring conversation was finally over.

While some were desperately trying to persuade me, she was as unpredictable as Baekdo.

“It’s nothing major.”

Sung Jiho said to me.

“Miss Sansuyu must be very confused. The drug injections must be painful. Her brain functions might deteriorate further. She practically has no emotions.”

“Yes.”

“Even if the experiment is near completion, it would be hard for Miss Sansuyu to accept the final drug. She’s been injected with failed drugs for over a decade. Her body is in ruins.”

Considering Sansuyu’s strength, producing such power with a ruined body was remarkable.

Perhaps Sansuyu had as much talent as I did.

That thought crossed my mind.

“She might die. Even if she survives, it will be a partial completion.”

Sung Jiho continued calmly.

His face, having spilled all the secrets, looked strangely relieved.

“…Just stay by her side. Continuously.”

It wasn’t a big deal.

And it was the best I could do.

Even if the Cornus Family fell, I might be able to hide Sansuyu somehow.

“Is that the answer?”

“If Miss Sansuyu’s life is in danger.”

“Yes.”

I interrupted Sung Jiho’s words and answered first.

I knew what he was about to say.

Protection – I wouldn’t have the official title, but I would serve that role.

Since I would be with her during the Forester Selection Competition, it wouldn’t be hard.

“Is the conversation over?”

Champi interrupted, stuffing her mouth with the cookies in the center.

After gulping them down, she looked at me.

“If it’s over, come with me. Jiho, you can go.”

“What do you mean…”

“Seeing you reminds me of the old days. Do you have time?”

It seemed Champi had more to say to me.

-Wooong.

The sound of a machine hummed in the quiet capsule.

-Tsik.

The sound of air escaping from the syringe.

The strong smell of the drug.

A purple liquid flowed into the woman’s back through a long tube, causing her to convulse violently.

[…Ugh, Ugh!]

The woman thrashed inside the capsule, then lost consciousness with her eyes open.

Her body went limp, sinking into the liquid.

Soon, the capsule opened. A doctor approached and checked her pulse.

“…As expected.”

After quickly determining her condition, the doctor injected a neutralizing agent into her neck.

The clear liquid flowed from the syringe into the woman’s body.

This prevented her from becoming an Ent.

“Damn.”

A curse escaped the doctor’s mouth.

After a long silence, a researcher spoke up with difficulty.

“It seems that the only suitable person for this drug is Miss Sansuyu.”

The deceased woman was a member of the Cornus Family.

A branch family, but still related by blood to Sansuyu. She was similar in age to Sansuyu and considered a promising talent. But why?

Her blonde hair gradually lost color and turned white.

The researchers frowned as they looked at the dead woman.

“We thought we had finally created a perfect drug, but it only works on Miss Sansuyu?”

“…Miss Sansuyu has developed resistance through all the previous experiments. Following that path might lead to resistance in others too.”

It was a valid assumption.

Since Sansuyu could endure the perfected drug, perhaps injecting the earlier drugs in sequence into other family members could achieve the same result.

But this method wasn’t feasible.

First, Sansuyu had the most potent blood and the largest capacity among the family members.

She was considered more talented than the current head, San Hyukwon.

There were also financial reasons.

“…Should we increase the ratio of Menedel?”

“No. That will just kill them.”

“We’re short on materials. We must find a solution with what we have.”

“Yes.”

“If it becomes impossible, we must at least complete Miss Sansuyu.”

The researchers, engaged in heated discussions, turned their gaze to a woman sitting in a chair.

She sat there blankly, staring at the ceiling.

Her white outfit and even paler skin made her look like a sickly angel.

“But can Miss Sansuyu endure it?”

Sansuyu’s hair color was gradually fading.

“We’ll administer the completed drug. We need to observe her condition during the Forester Selection Competition.”

Activating the drug wasn’t easy.

Even if Sansuyu was confined out of sight, the drug’s power wouldn’t manifest without extreme conditions.

Power emerged in dramatic situations.

But what triggered it… even the researchers didn’t fully understand.

It had long been confirmed that a power greater than a dragon lay dormant in Sansuyu’s heart.

If they could trigger it, the experiment would succeed.

“Even past successful cases haven’t identified a clear trigger. We’ll have to leave it to chance.”

“Yes.”

A researcher cautiously suggested that extreme situations and the will to survive might trigger it, but no one knew for sure.

If emotions triggered it.

Could Sansuyu activate it?

“…”

Sansuyu’s golden eyes had a faint red tint.

Her dry lips parted, and a weak, cracked voice came out.

“…It hurts.”

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