Ch.141141. Reign

I walk up hundreds of steps leading to the sky.

Though my legs don’t stop, Rex looks down at his arms. They’re trembling slightly. Even clenching his fists doesn’t make the trembling disappear. Is he nervous? Perhaps. The eerie energy emanating from the World Tree is gradually growing stronger.

When he fought Elandir and Alvar, he didn’t even break a sweat, but now just sensing Elturas’s presence has left his entire body drenched in cold sweat.

‘Elturas.’

He has been secretly absorbing the divinity of the Life God since long ago. That plan isn’t fully complete yet, but it’s on the verge of completion. Honestly, Rex couldn’t imagine how powerful Elturas would be.

There are five existing stages of Sacred Awakeners: Revelation, Sacred Flame, Radiance, Apostle… and Descent. However, the Descent stage is only theoretically known to “exist,” and no Sacred Awakener has ever reached that level before.

That was only natural.

An Apostle is already a transcendent being, practically a demigod. It’s a realm that can only be reached by surpassing human limitations multiple times. If an Apostle is a divine avatar…

A Sacred Awakener of Descent is a living god who has transcended being a divine servant and acquired their own divinity. Though not on the level of major deities like Kaordiks or Elnebra, they’re in a different class altogether. If Elturas truly enters the Descent stage and obtains divinity, he too will ascend to the heavens, just as Kaiserion became the Sword God.

That would be the case if he had reached the Descent stage through normal means, but there has never been anyone who became a god through the exploitation of another deity’s divinity. That’s why even Elnebra couldn’t predict Elturas’s future.

In fact, it’s not even certain that Elturas has reached the Descent stage. But if victory is impossible even against ten Apostles, he must be at least close to that level.

The top of the World Tree is gradually drawing near. The moment to reunite with Elin approaches. In the end, all of this was for Elin. To save her, to give her a free life, to shatter the absurd fate she was born into.

“…Father?”

Elandir speaks up with a bewildered voice. Even he, being dragged along in Rex’s grip, now realizes that the situation has taken a strange turn. The claim that Elturas is killing the World Tree and stealing the Life God’s divinity—he had believed it was a lie.

Now… doubt begins to bloom. Elandir stares at the World Tree with wide eyes. An ominous energy he’s never experienced before pricks at his skin. A familiar presence is mixed within it. It belongs to Elturas.

“No way…! Father couldn’t possibly possess such power.”

The Elturas that Elandir knows has lived the longest in Alfheim, but he wasn’t Alfheim’s greatest warrior. A king doesn’t necessarily need to be powerful, after all. Of course, being a High Elf, he wasn’t weak.

Elturas’s level was Radiance. Not the highest, but instead, he had ruled Alfheim as a wise king. Protecting the forest was the duty of Elandir, the Apostle of Regeneration, and Elandir secretly took pride in supporting Elturas’s shortcomings.

The belief he had held his entire life begins to waver. Why? Elandir was about to mutter to himself again with a pale face when he suddenly groaned from the forceful grip pulling him.

“Ugh!”

“Ask your father directly if you’re curious.”

Rex clicks his tongue, grabs Elandir by the collar, and leaps into the air. His hair flutters roughly in the rushing wind. Rex ignores him and widens his eyes. —Boom! The sound was loud, but the impact was minimal.

The top of the World Tree is…

quiet. It’s a peaceful scene like something out of a fairy tale. Rather than the top of a tree, it resembles a spacious cliff. Warm sunlight shines down from the open sky above, and small branches encircle the area.

At the center is a cage.

“Elin.”

Rex enters the cage with a faint smile. Despite saying she would have happy dreams—Elin’s complexion is haggard. Perhaps her sleeping arrangements were uncomfortable. With her lower body submerged in the massive World Tree’s trunk, sleeping in such a position must be uncomfortable. Rex smirks and tears at the World Tree’s stem. Crack! The bark falls away, and Elin’s body tilts. Rex quickly takes her into his arms.

“…Rex?”

Elin’s eyes open. Looking around with a drowsy face, she appears confused when she sees Rex smiling at her.

“I was sure… my consciousness, no. Rex, why are you here…?”

“Let’s go back.”

Go back? Where? She can’t properly comprehend the situation. She doesn’t even remember the last moment she fell asleep. How much time has passed this time? And why is Rex, who supposedly left Alfheim, standing before her? Elin couldn’t accept reality, and her hazy mind drew its own conclusion.

“This must be a dream.”

“What?”

“A happy dream… Rex. You know, I… I wanted to see you. I didn’t want to part. I wanted to keep traveling with you.”

She hadn’t actually awakened from sleep. Her unresolved attachment had created this dream. She wanted to see Rex, to hold his hand again. Though impossible in reality, it’s possible in a dream.

Yes. In a dream. Even if she doesn’t know when she’ll wake up, no—precisely because of that, Elin wanted to savor this moment.

Elin embraces Rex. His shoulders flinch. After a moment, Rex strokes her head and speaks.

“This isn’t a dream.”

Elin looks up with a puzzled expression. Rex meets her eyes with upturned lips.

“It’s not a dream at all. Happiness can be found in reality, not just in dreams. If you don’t want to part, then don’t. If you wish… hold my hand anytime, look into my eyes. I’ll always be by your side.”

“What do you mean…?”

“Listen carefully.”

Rex swallows and continues.

“I’ve come to save you.”

“…Save me?”

Elin’s eyes fill with anxiety. This isn’t… a dream. Rex isn’t an illusion created by a dream, but real. This is reality, and Rex has come to Alfheim to save her. If that’s true. If she can stay with him as he says. Elin responds with a nervous voice.

“But without me, the ritual…”

“Are you worried about the elves? It’s fine. The ritual was fake from the beginning. The World Tree’s decline was all Elturas’s doing. He was trying to sacrifice you to steal the World Tree’s power.”

Rex turns his back.

“Isn’t that right? Elturas.”

“Nonsense.”

A cold voice is heard. Elin and Elandir’s mouths fall open. Outside the cage, at the top of the World Tree, Elturas is standing. His gaze is icy. Though he stands motionless, Elandir feels an inexplicable unease. He had seen him just this morning, yet the Elturas before him now seemed like a different person.

“What are you doing? Didn’t you say you would defeat the foreign intruder to Alfheim? I trusted you and the human Apostle and sent you off, so why are you with the enemy instead of eliminating him?”

“…Father.”

Elandir swallows dryly and barely manages to speak.

“I have something to ask.”

“What is it?”

“Killing the World Tree and stealing its power. Is it true?”

“I’m disappointed. Is your faith so weak that it can be swayed by the words of a human? You know how hard I’ve worked for Alfheim.”

“Yes, I know well. That’s why I’m asking. I… want to believe in you, Father. Please answer me.”

Elturas stares at Elandir with an expressionless face. After a brief silence, he smiles and responds.

“It’s a lie. The Life God is the mother of all elves, and the World Tree is her body. How could I possibly kill the World Tree?”

“…”

“This should resolve your doubts.”

“…Yes.”

Elandir grits his teeth. Blood flows from his pressed gums.

“You’re lying.”

Elandir glares at Elturas with bloodshot eyes. …He wanted to believe. Even though he already knew the answer, he foolishly asked.

“Do you take me for a fool?”

Until this morning, he had believed in Elturas. Now… he can’t. His trust had been shaking since the anomaly occurred in the World Tree. He had seen the flow of life force from the World Tree concentrating in one place. The World Tree’s energy flowed to the roots where Elturas resided. He wanted to ignore it. But the moment he saw Elturas, he could no longer turn a blind eye, and now even that thin trust has shattered completely.

“I am the Apostle of the Life God. I can read the flow of life force spreading through the World Tree. So why is the life force, which should flow throughout all of Alfheim, gathering only around you, Father?”

“Elandir.”

“Are you truly the father I knew? If, if… if Father is truly killing the World Tree, committing such a transgression… I, as the Apostle of the Life God, will have no choice but to stop you.”

“You were a bright child. I knew you were displeased with this ritual. Nevertheless, you suppressed your own discontent out of loyalty to Alfheim. Not as my son but as a subject of Alfheim’s king, you were truly an excellent talent.”

“…What are you saying—”

“Perhaps you realized it because you’re so bright. If you had realized, it would have been better if you had closed your eyes and turned a blind eye.”

Elturas adds with a sneer.

“It’s a shame to lose you here.”

Those words turned Elandir’s suspicion into certainty. Now that he knows the secret, Elturas intends to kill him along with Rex. Elandir’s expression contorts. With an indignant cry, he lunges at Elturas. His loyalty is not directed toward Elturas. What he truly vowed to protect was Alfheim. The World Tree. If someone is killing the World Tree, even if it’s the father who gave birth to him, they are merely an enemy to be eliminated.

“Bright but not wise.”

Elturas mutters in an indifferent tone.

“I haven’t completed the ritual, but I’ve succeeded in absorbing most of the Life God’s divinity. You, as the Apostle of the Life God, should know well what this means.”

Elandir looks down with a shocked expression. His legs—they won’t move. Not just his legs. The divine power he always used is silent. More precisely, it’s disappearing. The extracted teal energy gathers in Elturas’s hand. Resistance is impossible. Before all his divine power disappears, he desperately tries to manifest his full power, but…

“The one who bestowed divine power upon you was the Life God. As I have usurped her place, I shall reclaim your power.”

Before he can, Elturas extends his hand. Blood spurts from Elandir’s mouth. At this rate, he’ll die. Elandir bites his lip with a bloodless face. He needs to resist, but his body won’t move…

“Stay back.”

Just as Elandir’s knees are about to buckle, blazing flames engulf the world. Elandir doesn’t see it, but Elturas does. The invisible thread connecting them is severed. How? Elturas slightly furrows his brow and steps back. Before analyzing this incomprehensible phenomenon, instinct makes him retreat. Elandir groans and stares at Rex.

“…You.”

“You might not be able to fight. But you can protect Elin, right?”

Rex blurts out, his gaze fixed straight ahead. Elandir, staring blankly up at him, eventually nods with a stagger.

“…Come behind me.”

“Brother, but—”

“Right now…! Quietly retreating is the best way to help him.”

Elin looks anxiously at Rex’s back. Father is killing the World Tree and trying to steal its power. Something she couldn’t even imagine. She still doesn’t fully comprehend the situation, but she knows Elandir is right. Elin doesn’t want to be a burden to Rex.

“So.”

Elturas allows Elin and Elandir to flee. Alfheim is his domain anyway. It takes a long time to escape this vast forest, and he can capture them anytime if he wishes. The ritual is entering its final stage. He can continue after defeating Rex.

“Have you thought of a way to stop me?”

Elturas slowly raises his hand. Crack. Dozens of tentacles embedded in his back fall to the ground. Originally, these tentacles were meant to connect the High Elf princess to the World Tree, channeling the Life God’s divinity to him. With Elin gone from the World Tree’s summit, they’re now just a nuisance. There’s no worry about losing power even if the tentacles fall away. Most of the divinity has already been consumed within Elturas.

“I acknowledge your courage in coming here despite knowing my secret, but…”

“You talk too much.”

Rex twists his lips and draws his sword. A chilling light dwells in his blue eyes. The starlight of countless souls sleeping in the patterns responds to his will. Golden flames rise along the blade.

“There’s no need to listen to the words of someone who’s about to die, right?”

“So it wasn’t courage.”

A storm of light erupts from Rex’s entire body.

“It was.”

Looking at the approaching radiance, Elturas smiles.

“Recklessness.”

—Whoosh! Hot energy propels Rex’s body forward. The rushing flames engulf Elturas.