117: Great Forest (8)
No matter how hard a human tries as a human, in the end, a human is just that—a human.
They can always choose to fall below that, sure. But they can never rise above it. Back when I first heard of Canaan's ideals, just before leaving the continent, I was briefly swayed.
What kind of vision must they have had, to believe they could cross the sea of stars as mere humans? What mysterious method had they come up with to turn away from the guidance of the stars?
Until I saw it with my own eyes, I had secretly held onto hope. But the moment I did see it, the illusion shattered. No matter how many times I looked around, there was no sign of hope or a future.
There were only humans, grateful to be alive today and praying tomorrow would be just like today. Maybe there was some grand plan, I’d thought. But after touring the entire continent, I realized—
There was no such thing. They were just scared of ceasing to be human, so they incited others and fled together. And once I knew that, the betrayal and emptiness hit me like a wave.
It was hard to accept—that someone who ran away for such a pathetic reason also had the ability to break through the veil and escape.
And so, after a short discussion with my comrades, we came to a conclusion. Fortunately, we were all in agreement, so there was no need to argue or persuade anyone.
We would destroy this continent.
The Star hadn’t commanded us to simply scout. We were to judge with our own eyes, and if it fell short of the standard, we were to destroy it—without mercy.
Though we could no longer receive support from the homeland and the environment here was more than just unpleasant—it was outright hostile—we still tried to carry out the command the Star had given us.
We tried to sway the locals, change the environment, and somehow put an end to Canaan’s mad flight.
But in the end, everyone died except for two. And even then, one of them ended up in pieces.
“…Now, Seonhak. You once said that though the human body is weak, the spirit is unyielding. Do you still believe that? Then I suggest you reconsider.”
There had been only two of us in this space—now there were three.
One of them had been abducted, yes. I didn’t know their true identity, but I could see clearly that the child was deeply loved. There was nothing more suitable.
It had been impossible to reach this place with a physical body, so I had no choice but to turn it into ether, imbue it with divinity, and satisfy the conditions to enter.
Losing the physical body was practically the same as death, but at least I could return the soul.
…Of course, I was sorry.
But I couldn’t abandon my mission. I had been created for this very purpose, and I had no other choice. All I could do was end Canaan’s aimless escape.
I had no way to contact the homeland. No power to end Canaan’s madness. That child likely didn’t have that power either. But perhaps they could become the spark of war.
No matter how highly praised she was as the top student, even she wouldn’t be able to stop this. I had analyzed the formula she designed to bind us and created a counter-formula to bind her instead.
It would only last about a week at most before she dismantled it, but that would be enough time. Enough for the child, enraged by the loss of their partner, to bring ruinous flames to this continent.
So become the spark, child of the stars.
***
When I arrived at the World Tree, it was completely surrounded by a curtain of blue light.
I threw a rock at it, kicked at it, even picked up a beetle stuck to the tree and threw that. Nothing worked.
The barrier stood there, resolute, rejecting anything and everything that tried to enter. The thought that he might be in danger kept gnawing at me.
You're in the way. You're in the way. A nuisance, a nuisance.
If not for that thing, I could get to where he was. That flimsy wall thinks it can stop me?
Impossible. Yeah, that's not possible.
Something like that shouldn’t even exist. So, it doesn’t.
Magic burst uncontrollably from my body, blanketing the barrier. Then it surged with violent energy and—
As if it had never existed at all, the barrier simply vanished. No wall, no trace that anything had ever been there.
I had no idea what just happened. No time to think, no reason to think. I had to find Dogeon—now. With that thought alone, I stepped into the World Tree.
Mana, divine power, magic, and demonic energy were all mixed together in such chaos I couldn’t even tell what was what. Inside that mess, I could faintly see something.
Two bright presences… and one faint one. Magic I could understand, but… why was there a divine presence?
Ah. So that was it. No wonder it felt familiar—inside the World Tree was Lord Shikari. As for the other two, I had no idea.
“How did you…? How did you get past the barrier?!”
The elf professor beside me was shouting something, but I ignored him and scoured the area for Dogeon.
He wasn’t here either.
Where? Where was he?
“…Professor. Have you seen Dogeon? He’s been missing since this morning. I remember holding him close, so tight… and then he was gone. Do you know where he is?”
The professor had been rambling to himself, but thankfully, once I spoke, he fell silent and listened. A good man. Though his expression twisted awkwardly, he replied.
“…You don’t even hear me, do you? I don’t know. Only that some soul entered the World Tree. Satisfied? Now please, get out. I don’t know how you broke through the barrier, but this is no place for you.”
“And that soul is the very one you’re looking for, child.”
As Lord Shikari suddenly emerged from the World Tree, a black sphere enveloped the elf professor. He tried to resist, releasing mana, but it was no use—he was swallowed whole.
He wasn’t dead. Just trapped, like being sealed in a package. Not my concern. Shikari said the faint light inside the tree was Dogeon.
How? He didn’t have the ability to enter that place. Then… he must have been abducted.
“…You’ve made it here, impressive. Unexpected, even… but yes. The soul of the one you cherish lies asleep within that tree. It was the doing of that wretched goddess, Canaan…”
…Blah, blah. So much talking.
The emphasis on “soul” told me… his body was gone. Poor Dogeon. What did he ever do to deserve this?
Don’t worry. I’ll make you a new one.
I didn’t know the principle. I didn’t even know how to do it. I wasn’t even sure I could. But I would. I’d already done something similar back at the cafeteria, without even realizing it.
I recalled the gestures my mother made at the pavilion.
First, a gesture to form a strong skeleton. Second, another to attach powerful muscles to move it. He’d need strength, after all—so I’d make it with care.
Mana was pouring out of me in torrents, but that didn’t matter.
Now for the skin. A tan isn’t bad, but I like it pale. The face didn’t even need thought—it was already clear in my mind.
Unfortunately, I didn’t know much about internal organs. Sorry, Dogeon. I’ll have to use a basic model for now. I’ll replace it with something better later.
After pouring out nearly all my mana, I opened my eyes—and there in my arms was Dogeon’s body, exactly as I had imagined it.
Warm, solid—but missing one crucial thing: his soul.
“…Come here, Dogeon. Why are you over there all alone? Don’t be scared… Come on, that’s it…”
Gathering the last of my mana, I extracted Dogeon from the World Tree. Shikari, who had been chattering beside me all this time, finally fell silent, letting me focus.
It was faint, almost imperceptible, but even Dogeon’s soul carried a trace of divine presence. Was that Shikari’s way of protecting it?
I anchored the soul to the body—and that was it. No more mana left.
“…To think, even as the child of that being, that you would inherit such power… No wonder the Star sealed it away.”
Shikari now stared at me with none of his usual playfulness—just pure caution.
Oh, right. I had something to ask him.
“Lord Shikari. I hate liars. So please, tell me the truth. Was it really Canaan who kidnapped Dogeon?”
I already knew who could have done it. So I just wanted an answer. Even if it was absurd, I wanted something.
Of the two bright presences, one was bound by something dark, unable to move. The other was Dogeon. That left only one possibility.
“…You know already, don’t you? Haha… What a foolish thing I’ve done. What good is hiding it now? Yes, I did it. I’m sorry. A grown man doing something so vile…”
“I'm asking why you did it. Why?”
I didn’t care about his regrets. Just answer my question.
“…To start a war. To ignite a flame that would burn this entire continent to ash. I couldn’t do it with my power alone. But if I summoned your power, and the armies of the homeland… Even just a brief moment would be enough. You must’ve seen it yourself by now—this continent has no dreams, no future.”
So that was his reason.
Dogeon still hadn’t come. He was sleeping peacefully, softly. I’d forgotten to give him clothes, so I covered him with his own coat.
While I gently examined his body, brushing his hair and checking for anything I might’ve done wrong, Shikari kept running his mouth.
“…So, Lord Shikari, you believe this continent is beyond saving.”
Is it?
That… I had to think about.
“…You demonic bastard…! So you’ve finally shown your true colors!”
Just as I was about to think seriously, a massive spear of light flew from somewhere and pierced Shikari, sending him flying. It came from the elf professor, who had escaped the black sphere.
Shikari retaliated, and chaos broke out all around me.
Still not my concern.
I thought back on what he—or she, or it— had said.
That without a future, one might as well be dead. I didn’t agree, but… I couldn’t deny that this continent felt kind of hollow. Sure, there were wondrous things here, but that was it.
Magic and tricks couldn’t fill your stomach. Couldn’t give you the strength to move forward. They could be a brief distraction, but no more.
…Hmm. It was hard to say. I’d once been someone without a future myself. So I couldn’t come to an easy conclusion.
As I sat there, explosions ringing around me, lost in thought—Dogeon’s eyelids began to twitch.