Magnus, with narrowed eyes, slowly opened his mouth.

“They tried to cut down the tree with an axe. They stopped midway.”

“Correct! That’s right, the ancient humans, you know. They tried to cut down this tree. This one that gives land, life, and helps with breathing. Do you know why?”

The child smiled brightly.

Despite the bright and innocent smile, somehow Serena felt as if the child was crying.

No, as if he was crying while being extremely angry.

“That year… there was a drought, you know? It didn’t rain much. Well, since another being is in charge of the sky, it’s also a part we can’t do anything about…… How could we always provide the desired climate on time?”

The smiling child very carefully stroked the wound.

The wound was filled with a sticky liquid, either sap that had flowed out or something else that had been used to block it.

The child jumped up from his spot and kicked a skull rolling on the ground with his foot.

“The reason was simple! Crops didn’t grow properly in the drought, and people started dying because it didn’t rain. The sun was hot too.”

“……”

“If they had endured for just 1-2 years, the returning rain clouds would have brought rain, and the well-rested land would have sprung back to life vigorously, allowing for abundant crops from fertile soil.”

The voice of the smiling child gradually sank.

It was still a young voice, but the story he was reciting seemed somehow heavy and painful.

“But they couldn’t endure it. In the end, not knowing the grace until now, one day after a little over a year… humans came rushing in with axes.”

The child’s foot that had rolled the skull moved slowly and then placed his small foot on one of the skull heads.

Crunch-

The skull shattered into pieces. The child carelessly stepped on each of the broken bone fragments one by one, slowly raising his head.

“They said they would cut this one down and offer it as a sacrifice. ……To God!”

The young eyes flashed coldly.

The red eyes, overflowing with anger and betrayal, shook slightly and then quickly calmed down.

“It screamed. It begged to be saved. So I… saved it.”

The child smiled broadly.

I gave them what they wanted so badly, to live forever without dying.

The boy, heaving a deep sigh, lightly kicked another skull rolling on the ground and played with it.

“Then that black thing from earlier……”

“They were humans living eternally as guardians! I’m really too kind for my own good, you know.”

The child smiled broadly, twisting his body as if embarrassed.

The way he scratched his cheek seemed to show no hesitation at all, so Serena closed her mouth for a moment.

“It would have been nice if they could have lived with gratitude for what was given. After 1-2 years, the fertile land would have returned. The World Tree had arranged it that way.”

“Wouldn’t it have been unavoidable since people around them were starving to death? Fear is… unavoidable, isn’t it.”

At Serena’s words, the boy blinked slowly and stared at Serena blankly.

“Big sister, do you eat your parents when you’re hungry?”

At that emotionless gaze, Serena unconsciously closed her mouth tightly.

“…That’s not the case, but…”

“What was the reason they could prosper in this world? It was all thanks to my land and the World Tree that planted light in this land.”

“……”

“But they tried to kill it, didn’t they? Am I not allowed to think about revenge? Am I not allowed to think about changing this world? I just wanted people to live with gratitude for what they were given, that’s all?”

The child slowly approached Serena.

When Magnus tried to block his way, the boy flicked his finger.

Then Magnus’s movement stopped abruptly. His face turned fierce.

“Big brother, you’re in the way. I said I don’t want to talk to you.”

“Who the hell is your big brother!”

“Big brother is big brother.”

The boy, who answered lightly, smiled and pushed Magnus aside, standing in front of Serena.

“Big sister, am I still bad even like this? I was just trying to save the world with one person’s life. Are you thinking of watching numerous misfortunes for the sake of just yourself? If the World Tree disappears, this world will eventually perish. The World Tree is the source and root of this world.”

“You said this land was yours.”

“It was originally, yes. In fact, as the World Tree’s power weakened, my power grew stronger, right? That’s why the madness of the dukes of Kelahinum grew worse, dragons went mad, wars never ceased in the world, and even the World Tree’s contractor almost fell into corruption.”

“…What are you saying? Didn’t you do that on purpose?”

At Serena’s words, the boy smiled brightly as if to say what a naive thing to say.

“No, big sister. That’s… just because the World Tree was weak, my intervention became more severe. I became unable to suppress the impulses. I just… um, I just brought forward things that were going to happen anyway, little by little, because there wasn’t much time.”

The child grabbed Serena’s hand.

“Serena! D*mn it!”

Magnus tried to swing his hand holding the sword, but his body didn’t move an inch.

It felt like his whole body was being crushed by a stone. And not just any stone, but one so heavy that no human strength could move it.

“Come here, big sister.”

“Magnus…!”

“Big sister, it’s okay. I won’t do anything right away.”

The child, holding Serena’s fingers, pulled her. Magnus struggled with his body.

Even when he tried to draw up his sword energy, he could only move a little, just a twitch.

He took a deep breath and rolled his eyes to look towards where Serena was.

“Touch it, big sister.”

The boy said, bringing Serena’s hand close to the tree trunk.

“It’s okay.”

The child nodded.

After a small hesitation, Serena carefully placed her hand on the tree trunk.

The moment she touched the pure white tree, Serena had to pull her hand away in shock.

“…It’s cold.”

It couldn’t even be described as ice-cold. It was so cold that she felt like she might get frostbite just from touching it for a little while.

[…Give.]

It was much colder than putting your hand in winter snow or even in ice water.

[…Give it.]

A very faint voice was heard. Serena’s shoulders stiffened slightly.

She looked around once. It was too thin to be Magnus’s voice, and too close to an adult woman’s voice to be the child’s.

“Big sister, the World Tree is dying. It’s because my power has grown too strong.”

“……”

As she listened to the child’s explanation, Serena furrowed her brow.

‘Did I hear wrong?’

Wondering if she was even hearing hallucinations, Serena took a deep breath and looked at the child again.

“Originally, it was much warmer. Warm enough to share that warmth with its surroundings and make the soil fertile.”

The child said this while raising his index finger and pointing around once in a circle.

As Serena moved her gaze following the child’s gesture, she saw the surroundings without a single blade of grass.

“But look. This place is now worse than a winter land. Nothing grows, and all that’s here are corpses.”

Serena silently looked down at the child and closed her mouth.

At the end of the voice filled with deep regret and remorse, there was a desire to return everything to its original state.

[…He, ……lp.]

Startled, Serena’s shoulders stiffened again. It seems to keep being heard, too much to be a mistake.

But the child and Magnus, who should have better hearing than her, seemed to not hear it at all.

‘It stopped again.’

The sound was no longer heard.

“As time passes and the world changes, the world will be different. There will probably be more bad people than good people.”

“……”

The child still didn’t stop talking.

He acted as if he was trying to persuade continuously.

“There will be more people who prioritize their own well-being over considering others……”

The child approached Serena.

What the child was trying to say in detail was about human selfishness.

About the changes in people, about the fact that eventually nothing will remain.

“Eventually, someday, a world will come where even one’s own children and parents are abandoned, sold out, and abused.”

“……”

“Then the power of the World Tree will gradually disappear, and someday humans will try to cut down the World Tree again.”

Serena silently looked down at the child and listened to the story.

So what was she supposed to do?

That was the only thought that came to her mind. The world is inherently bound to change.

Aren’t animals selfish too? Don’t even animals immediately tuck their tails and run when faced with a powerful enemy, valuing their own lives?

“So, big sister. Help me.”