Eat The World Tree

[Absolutely.]

“Deal. We’ll discuss details when we meet tomorrow.”

-Click.

After getting an affirmative response from Seyeong, Byeol leaned back in her chair, propping her left leg on the chair’s backrest, striking a triumphant pose.

“Let’s gooo!!!”

-Has she gone mad again?

Her FPS game mate, Ayeon, commented with a grimace. But Byeol, with her heightened voice, chastised her.

“Hey! You brazen, cobweb-covered virgin! I have to prepare to meet my future prince. Losers like you should keep playing and entertain yourself as losers do!”

-She’s gone completely nuts.

“I’m coming, my prince~!”

-Oh, god. She’s really crazy.

It had been almost four years since she was forced into labor as the damn association’s chairperson. Finally, spring had come to her in the name of a relationship.

Hugging her pillow tight, Byeol rolled around her bed, exclaiming,

“I’m going to get married!!!”

A laughing golden retriever seemed like it was watching her from the heavens.

---

-Redeemer: Hey.

-Me: Yes?

-Redeemer: Blind date next Sunday.

-Me: ???? Suddenly?

-Redeemer: Gauge your alcohol intake and get her to a motel. Ok?

Who was this person?

I couldn’t help but be amazed at Seyeong’s decisiveness and efficiency. Was it okay to proceed like this? I was grateful, but would it work? My trembling fingers typed on the keyboard, and it felt like it took longer than usual.

-Me: Okay (trembling bear emoticon)

-Redeemer: Yep (wooden man waving goodbye emoticon)

She suddenly appeared to set this up and then left.

“Why so cool?”

Since I was talking to myself, Guseul tilted her head, curious.

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“Nothing,”

I shrugged as Guseul chuckled and refocused. After a moment, she leaned over, pondering.

“Hey, Shiheon.”

“Yeah?”

“What tree are you planning to grow?”

“Why?”

“Next Sunday is Tree Planting Day.”

I had never thought about that day.

‘Given that there are companion plants, there must be some event for Tree Planting Day.’

“So, what’s typically done?”

“Well, we usually plant trees to celebrate the prosperity of the World Tree with a festival. They even have a small festival outside the academy. And, you know, some sneaky stuff? Hehehe.”

I figured it was something like Christmas in another world. A day where most intimate relations occurred. Intriguing.

“So, decide on which tree?”

“Not really. I don’t have much experience.”

“Really? Not even once?”

I had once. I remember nurturing a sapling that was almost discarded in the front yard during my childhood.

“Why not give it a try this time?”

“It’s okay.”

I knew it. Growing a tree was bothersome. I smiled and declined Guseul’s suggestion.

I didn’t have the time to grow a tree. Moreover, I already had something to nurture. Just in my dormitory alone, there was Shiba, who cried from not wanting to be away from me and eventually dozed off from exhaustion.

Guseul, unable to hold back, adeptly changed the topic.

“Then, have you thought about the training camp?”

Oh, right, there was that. This morning, as I glanced over the schedule, I saw many events after the midterm exams.

Among them, the most significant event was the training camp where the Red and Blue teams would be divided and play various games. The duel between the students was the game that garnered the most points.

“The training camp sounds fun. I plan to participate in all that I can.”

“If we’re on opposing teams, I’ll have to target you.”

“You’re crossing a line.”

“Hehehe.”

Guseul chuckled. There were many events waiting after the midterms, from club MTs to magic parade competitions. After the final exams, there was a leisure trip.

Combining the characteristics of high school and college, unique events were held.

‘Will I have time to participate in it all?’

If there was a valid reason, you could skip events. So, I planned to participate in the fun ones and skip the boring ones.

“By the way.”

“Yes?”

After finishing my notes, I pointed to Guseul’s notebook with the tip of my pencil.

“You’ll have to pass the exam first, right?”

“Oh…”

Guseul looked at her notebook with a face of despair. It was filled with doodles of strange trees marked with ‘X’s.

Not taking a single note during a class on formulas and proofs! Guseul called me with a trembling voice.

“Shiheon.”

“Yeah?”

“Can I… borrow your notes?”

No way.

“Not a chance.”

“No! Please!”

I pushed away Guseul, who was trying to cling, and tucked my notebook into my bag. Guseul pretended to wipe away tears.

Still, I won’t lend it to her. I only lend notes to friends.

---

Dungeon Class. It was a challenge for those who aspired to be hunters or heroes.

Many creatures lurked in dungeons, from wolves with protruding bones to monsters with green skin. Yet, the origin of these dungeons remained unclear.

The most plausible theory was the ‘Ancient Tree Origin Theory,’ suggesting that dungeons were formed from the energy of dead ancient trees. This theory emerged due to the matching power between the World Tree and dungeons, but the reasoning for the appearance of creatures seemed weak to me.

However, artificial dungeons were created due to the alignment between the power of the dungeon and the World Tree.

The creatures from these artificial dungeons weren’t valuable as materials, but they were excellent for student training. Thus, academies actively utilized them.

El Academy was no exception.

-Drip, Drip.

Water mixed with limestone dripped from the stalactites, with only the lantern on the wall dimly illuminating the cave.

Dungeon-themed classes started from comfortable terrains, but as the semester ended, they shifted to more closed spaces.

From plains to forests,

From forests to marshes,

From marshes to caves.

This was some of the scarce information I obtained from El Academy’s Everytime, which allowed me to prepare.

-Glow!

A bright white light floated above my hand, illuminating the cave. Light - one of the magic I stole long ago.

“Wow, you can use magic?”

“Yes.”

“Wow, so versatile!”

Behind me, Kim Sooyoung, who had just clung to my back, clapped in admiration.

Jin Dallae looked at her with a somewhat displeased face.

“…Sooyoung, be careful.”

“Oh, okay.”

-Dungeon Exploration Team C: Kim Sooyoung, Lee Shiheon, Jin Dallae.

A team balanced based on entrance criteria, from highest to lowest rank.

The exploration itself proceeded smoothly.

We had Jin Dallae, a skilled spirit user, and Kim Sooyoung, an excellent archer.

Currently, five spirits were hovering around us, scanning in all directions.

Wind spirit, fire spirit, and so on. Their tiny bodies were quite adorable.

“Shiheon, wait a moment.”

As we continued forward, we halted at Jin Dallae’s words.

“There are bats ahead… six, no, seven of them. What should we do?”

I raised my right hand, signaling for her to not move forward.

Charging blindly wasn’t the best option since it wouldn’t earn us any bonus points.

“What’s the plan?”

“Let me handle it from here.”

“From this distance?”

Sooyoung, with owl-like eyes peering into the darkness, seemed puzzled.

“…Can you do it?”

“Just trust me. I’m pretty good with magic, right?”

“…Yes.”

Even Jin Dallae, who usually trusted my words, seemed skeptical now.

I knelt and placed my hand on the damp stone floor.

Using my magic to measure the distance, I saw bats with pairs of wings flying approximately 30 meters ahead.

Found them.

A black mist began to rise from my shoulders as I evenly spread my magic throughout my body.

Slowly spreading out, the magic converged into a singular point, taking on a different form.

Seven wind cutters.

A simple yet highly effective spell.

However, this was distinctly different from the average wind cutter.

What I created was a wind cutter in the shape of a crescent moon infused with black magic.

I smirked.

-Whizz!

Like a wave, the dark crescent moon surged forward, engulfing the small bats.

-Crunch!

The sound of flesh tearing apart, like a chainsaw cutting through wood, filled the air.

[Screech!]

The dying screams of the consumed bats echoed horribly throughout the cave.

I got up, dusted my knees, and stood.

“What are you waiting for? Let’s go.”

“You’re incredible.”

I felt the warmth of Sooyoung’s praise on my back while Jin Dallae looked on in surprise.

As we moved further, the torn bodies of the bats came into view.

Their throats and bellies were torn apart, spilling blood and entrails.

As we were about to pass by, something rolled and hit the tip of my shoe.

-Roll.

A gem glowing in a blue hue.

Jin Dallae was the first to question.

“…Why is there a magic stone here?”

“I wonder.”

Certainly, it was odd for a magic stone to be here.

Considering the blood on it, it seemed to have been inside a monster, but monsters in artificial dungeons weren’t typically born with magic stones.

“Anyway, let’s keep going. We’re running out of time.”

“Understood.”

Though suspicious, we decided to put it aside due to the time constraint.

Thus, the dungeon exploration resumed.

With our light source secured and monsters detected from a distance being dealt with using bows and magic, there was no need for me to engage directly, making the exploration go smoothly.

-Thunk.

Upon opening the dungeon door, a cool breeze greeted us.

“Team C, well done.”

The instructor welcomed us with applause. Taking the towels he handed out, we each took a moment to rest.

“Shiheon, want some water?”

“Yeah.”

I drank the water offered by Jin Dallae and wiped away my sweat with the towel.

Constantly activating light magic had worn me out a bit.

‘It’s been a while since I had a lesson. How many weeks has it been, including with the mentor?’

It had always been life-or-death battles, but this time, I was glad I could train without worry.

I learned various magic applications, and more than anything, the ability I gained from Lee Seyeong’s magic bead was beyond my imagination. My wind magic was already on par with some pros.

I had got my future training roughly mapped out. It wouldn’t be hard.

Taking my mouth off the water bottle, I handed it to Jin Dallae and stretched.

“Ah. Right.

Then it hit me.

“So, what’s with the magic stone?

I had a pretty bad feeling about this.

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