Chapter 453 Beneath the World Tree

A crimson-red sky......

Sand whipped endlessly across a desolate, barren land.

On this wasteland where not a single sign of life could be seen—

Crackle, pop!

Scattered bonfires flickered faintly.

Before the flames,

Haggard, exhausted people huddled together.

Their eyes were filled with confusion, unsure of where to turn next.

Nations, villages, the homes they’d relied on for survival—all had been destroyed by the sudden, overwhelming tide of monsters. They ran and ran, but hope was nowhere to be found.

"Waaah... Dad... Waaah, Mom..."

In a corner,

A young girl wept uncontrollably.

"They’re all dead...... Everyone’s dead...... Why is this happening?"

"Waaah... Bro... Brother... Are we going to die too?"

The young man sitting beside her stared blankly up at the sky, silent for a long time.

"......"

He didn’t have an answer either.

His right hand tightened around the hilt of his sword.

The young man lowered his gaze to his little sister beside him.

"No. We won’t."

He said firmly,

"I swear I’ll never let you die."

The girl wiped her tears and looked up at him.

"Really...... Brother?"

"Yeah." The young man nodded, raising his sword high. "I swear on this blade—I’ll make sure you survive."

"And don’t be too scared. I heard the north hasn’t been attacked by monsters yet. If we keep heading north, we’ll definitely escape this danger."

"Waaah......"

The girl brushed away her tears.

"I understand, Brother. I won’t be scared anymore."

"Good." The young man smiled reassuringly. "That’s my girl——"

"Mo-Monsters! They’re coming——!!!"

A panicked scream suddenly cut through the crowd.

The smile froze on the young man’s face.

The entire camp fell deathly silent for a heartbeat.

Then—

Rumble......

Everyone looked up.

On the horizon, a black line was rapidly closing in.

In an instant, chaos erupted in the camp.

"Monsters are here! Run for your lives!"

"Someone save me! I don’t want to die here!"

"Mommy!"

"......"

People fled in terror, trampling over everything in their path.

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"Everyone, stay calm——!"

The young man stood up and shouted at the top of his lungs.

At the sound of his voice, the panicked crowd regained a shred of their senses.

"Those who can still fight—come with me! We’ll buy time for the others! Everyone else—retreat north immediately!"

"......"

The crowd fell silent.

They’d seen far too many people "buy time" before—only to never return.

But even so, a few figures stepped forward.

They exchanged brief, tearful goodbyes with their parents, wives, and children, then stood behind the young man.

"Brother, I want to——"

"No!"

The young man cut her off decisively.

"......You have to survive."

"But I don’t want to! I don’t want to!"

The girl shook her head frantically.

"I don’t want to be alone! Mom and Dad are already gone— I can’t lose you too......"

A flash of profound grief crossed the young man’s eyes.

But he forced his voice to stay steady.

"Take her away."

A woman wearing an apron stepped forward, leading several others to grab the girl by the arms.

"Let go of me! Let me go!"

The young man didn’t look at his sister’s struggling form, only spoke in a calm, resolute tone.

"Take good care of her. Don’t let her come back......"

Then he turned around silently.

"Let’s move out."

"Yes, sir!"

Swish——!

The young man drew his longsword.

A small, ragged line of figures charged straight toward the overwhelming horde of monsters.

Behind them, the people who carried the hope of survival ran in the opposite direction.

"No! Brother!"

The girl was dragged along in the crowd, held tightly by several pairs of hands.

She could only watch as her brother’s figure grew farther and farther away, then let out a helpless, grief-stricken cry.

"Don’t go! Brother, come back! Come back! Brother......"

......

"......"

"Did you sleep well?"

When she opened her eyes,

A delicate, beautiful face was smiling gently down at her.

"......Irus?"

Hulim Heyerar rubbed her bleary eyes and sat up in bed.

"What are you doing in my room?"

"Why, admiring little Hulim’s adorable sleeping face, of course~."

(Stare——!)

"Haha...... Just kidding. But it’s rare to see you sleep so soundly, Hulim. Normally you’d wake up before I even step into the room. Did you have a nightmare?"

"A nightmare?"

Hulim tilted her head in confusion.

It felt like something was lingering at the back of her mind—but she couldn’t quite recall what.

"No, I didn’t. Why do you ask?"

"Hmm......"

Irus stroked her chin, studying Hulim’s face intently.

"I can’t put my finger on it. But when you opened your eyes just now, I had a feeling you might have."

"......"

What kind of reason is that?

"Never mind, let’s drop the subject. Speaking of which——"

Hulim fixed Irus with a wary stare.

"You wouldn’t have come all the way here first thing in the morning unless you have something to say, right?"

"Heh. You’re as sharp as ever. No need to look so suspicious—I’m not here to tease you this time."

"......"

(Stare——!)

"Ugh, that look of total distrust."

Irus clutched her chest, staggering backward in an exaggerated "hurt" pose.

"My poor heart is shattered into pieces~!"

"......Irus, you can drop the dramatic act now." Hulim said helplessly. "Cut to the chase."

"Aww, you’re no fun~."

Irus pouted, her tone oozing with disappointment.

Then her playful expression faded away.

She grew serious, her demeanor shifting entirely.

"Hulim, there’s actually something very important I need to talk to you about. Something that concerns you."

"Me?"

Hulim frowned in confusion.

"Yes. Originally, I should have come to you right after the battle at the World Tree. But I was worried that with you just having reached S-Rank, it might be too much of a burden. So I held off, waiting to see how you’d adjust."

"And now it seems—you’re ready to handle it."

"?"

What was she talking about?

......

A long, winding underground passage.

Tap, tap, tap......

The sound of their footsteps echoed endlessly through the darkness.

Hulim glanced at the walls around her, then spoke up.

"I never would’ve guessed there was a place like this beneath the World Tree."

"Yeah, well—that thing is dangerous and important beyond measure."

At Irus’s words, Hulim looked at the figure leading the way ahead of her.

"So what exactly is ‘that thing’? Don’t you think it’s about time you told me?"

"Patience, patience. You’ll find out soon enough once we get there."

Same old evasive answer.

Hulim stared at the back of Irus’s head, her eyes tinged with exasperation.

Why did she have to be so mysterious? She could’ve just said it straight out. And she loved teasing people so much—she was such a frustrating, yet impossible-to-hate nuisance.

With that thought, Hulim narrowed her eyes, her tone turning deliberately sharp.

"Irus——"

"What is it~?"

"Honestly... Sometimes your personality is so annoying. You’re a total pain in the neck."

"Pfft——!"

Irus stumbled, nearly tripping over the stone steps beneath her feet.

She whirled around, her cheeks puffing out, her eyes glistening with fake tears of hurt.

"That’s so mean! If you say things like that again—I’ll cry! I really will!"

"......"

This woman was such a handful.

"Sniffle."

"Ah, I’m sorry! I was just joking!"

Hulim apologized in a hurry.

"......"

"I said I was joking! Would you please stop looking like you’re actually about to cry? It’s embarrassing!"

"......You were really just joking?"

"Really, really."

"You don’t think I’m annoying and troublesome?"

"Uh......"

"Ah, I knew it! I am a terrible, annoying person——"

"No, no! I don’t think that at all! Y-You’re the best, Irus!"

Hulim’s smile was stiff and forced.

After all—she was spouting complete nonsense......

"Really, truly?"

"Really."

"Hehe! Then I’ll forgive you!"

With that, Irus hummed a little tune and continued walking downward.

Her lightning-fast mood swing left Hulim staring after her, completely dumbfounded.

Once she realized she’d been teased again, Hulim felt her cheeks heating up with irritation.

That woman——!!!

She’d been played right into her hands. Totally played.

......