In the vast squares of the cities, where sounds always intertwined and life flowed ceaselessly, an unusual silence suddenly took hold.
The messengers of the Holy Empire, in white and gold robes with emotionless faces, stood in the center of the squares and unrolled scrolls on which the royal seal shone. The sunlight fell on that seal and turned it into something beyond a simple command, as if the words themselves carried a power that could not be ignored.
One of them stepped forward and began to read in a voice that spread through the space unnaturally.
"By the decree of the Divine Prophet…"
The people held their breath.
"The Cursed Tree, which is considered a threat to the balance of the continent, must be destroyed."
Whispers began, but most people were confused. After all, this was a decree that had already been announced.
So why was it announced again? Did the Holy Empire want to make sure no one had forgotten this matter? The people really didn't understand.
But the next sentence turned those whispers into something completely different.
"A foreign monster… is protecting this tree."
Silence returned again, but this time heavier. They couldn't believe what they were hearing. What had happened was beyond ordinary protection.
This was disobedience to the gods' order! Someone had dared to disobey the gods' order!
But a foreign monster? They couldn't exactly understand the meaning of these words. Monsters are monsters. What does "foreign" mean? Has it come from somewhere outside this continent?
But what kind of monster could it be that the Holy Empire couldn't destroy on its own?
"He has disobeyed the Divine Prophet's order."
And this was where the continent lost its breath.
In religious cities, people looked at each other with pale faces. Some knelt and prayed under their breath. Others whispered the word "apostate" in anger, as if that word alone was enough to describe such audacity.
In other corners, where swords meant more than prayers, smiles formed. Adventurers and warriors reacted to this news with eyes gleaming with greed.
"A hundred million gold coins…" One laughed.
"And now we also have a living target."
In the courts of other empires, where decisions were made with deadly precision, a deeper silence took shape. Kings and advisors listened to the reports with cautious looks.
"One person… has stood against the Prophet's decree?"
This was no longer just a mission. This was a variable. No one in the continent had ever dared to disobey the Divine Prophet's order.
Only once in history had such a thing happened, and then the entire continent mobilized to hunt that person.
Could such a thing happen again now?
In the shadows, among sects and groups whose names were never spoken, different smiles formed.
"Perhaps… this is what we have been waiting for."
And in this way, a small point in the heart of an unknown forest became the center of attention for the entire continent.
At that very moment, deep in that forest, where none of those sounds reached directly but their effect could be felt in reality itself, Daniel was still sitting in the same spot.
But the space was no longer the same.
The tree's roots had emerged from the soil more than before, like snakes crawling quietly and silently on the ground, searching for something.
The light of the fruit above the branches had deepened. After devouring the life force of those five people, its growth had accelerated again for a short time.
But the fruit's growth seemed to be able to affect the surrounding space as well, because the other trees were also growing faster.
Daniel had reasoned that it was probably because of the strange light of this fruit.
At this moment, his eyes were closed.
His body was completely still, but this stillness was not a sign of rest, but a sign of focus that had reached a level where physical movement was no longer needed.
Around him, energy flows were changing imperceptibly.
Mana, which had always seemed excessively "neat" in this forest, had now begun to twist. Shadows had deepened, and something coming from within his blood, something that was not entirely mana, was entering this combination.
In his mind, paths were taking shape.
"This isn't enough…"
The flows met, but at the last moment, they separated.
"There must be something that connects these…"
He tried many times, each time getting closer, each time feeling that this time he would succeed.
And each time, something was missing. A flaw, not something he could easily identify, but a vague feeling, like a missing piece in a puzzle whose overall shape he knew but couldn't find the location of that piece.
He didn't know how to combine his bloodline and his race. Every attempt was a dead end.
He had tried every way and failed. It was as if these two things were completely in opposition.
And right at the moment when this dead end reached its peak, something changed.
As if a door that had always been closed suddenly opened. His understanding became clear.
The connections, which until that moment had been vague, suddenly became clear.
Not as a new discovery, but as a reminder of something that had always been there, but he had never been able to see it.
His eyes opened slightly, and his gaze fell directly on the tree.
And in that brief moment, he understood.
This help… was not from him. He looked at the tree without moving for a few seconds.
"…Was it you?"
No answer came, but in the depth of that silence, there was something. A very faint feeling, like a creature that is not yet fully awake, but its presence is undeniable.
Daniel focused a bit more, trying to communicate, but he received no direct answer.
Only that vague feeling remained. He quietly closed his eyes.
"Could this have been its way of thanking me?"
At that moment, something else caught his attention.
A presence, weaker than what would normally be considered a threat.
Hidden but familiar. In fact, from the first moment he sensed it, he knew who it was.
That presence approached slowly, with a caution that seemed more like hesitation than fear, and stopped at a specific distance, as if its owner was still unsure whether to show herself or not.
Daniel smiled very faintly.
"Princess… welcome." And then he said.
A few seconds of silence, and then the girl appeared, removing her shawl.
Of course, it was none other than Elisira.
She stepped forward a few steps, her gaze locked directly onto Daniel.
"Even the Grand Minister can't find me when I wear this shawl." She didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"Hiding from me is not easy." Daniel answered without looking directly at her.
A brief silence formed between them.
"I thought you wouldn't dare come back."
"I didn't want to come…" Elisira took a quiet breath, as if she herself was unsure of her decision.
She paused and then added,
"But I couldn't control my curiosity."
Daniel chuckled softly. He didn't expect this girl to be among those curious ones who put curiosity above their own safety.
"Sigh, don't laugh… Do you know how hard it was to come? Since yesterday, my father has multiplied my guards." Elisira snorted and came closer to him and sat down.
"I don't know whether to call you brave or stupid. Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?"
"If you wanted to kill us, you would have done it then… You only kill those who attack the tree, don't you?" The princess said with a smile, but even she wasn't confident in her words.
Daniel remained silent and preferred not to answer.
Seeing the silence take over the space, Elisira gathered her courage to ask the main question she wanted to ask.
"Are you… human? Or a monster?"
"Neither. But I was human once." Daniel answered without hesitation.
He wasn't lying. His current race is no longer human and cannot be considered human, but likewise, it is not a monster.
"Then why are you protecting it?" Elisira sighed, her gaze going to the tree for a moment.
She understood that whatever this being was, he didn't want to give a complete answer to her previous question, so she asked another.
"Because I wanted and plus I was bored." Daniel shrugged.
"…What?" The princess's eyes widened in shock.
"I had nothing else to do." He seemed completely serious too.
"You turned the entire continent into your enemy just because you were bored?"
Daniel didn't answer and just looked at her. He couldn't just say that a system with an unknown origin told him to do this, right?
"Do you know that the Holy Empire has just announced your presence to the entire continent?" Elisira still couldn't believe his answer.
"Everyone is coming." And then she warned seriously.
She waited to see the reaction of this man, or whatever he was. What could it be? Fear? Excitement? Mockery?
But what she saw was beyond anything she had expected.