Chapter 362

Chapter 362

Eat The World Tree.

Episode 362: Sprouting Monster (1)

“Thank you for teaching me so much, Master.”

I cut through the tangled roots.

Even if it drove a wedge into Cheondo’s heart.

If our opinions were at a standstill, this was the right thing to do.

Anyone who needed to be saved would have acted this way.

“……”

The conversation died.

The atmosphere, like a burst dam, froze coldly like winter frost.

Her eyebrows twitched. Her eyes, for the first time, not looking at me but down at the table, were filled with sadness.

Either one of us could have bowed our heads and taken a low stance.

We could have tried to persuade each other by invoking our past bonds, but neither Cheondo nor I could.

A person I could not blame.

Though the words were harsh, she cared for me and respected me, no matter what.

“…I’m… sorry…”

My frustrated heart ached at the single word that fell with difficulty.

A constant echo of emotions.

“Don’t think of forgiving me, the foolish one.”

However, emotions were too flimsy to show to others.

“But… there is one thing I would like to correct.”

Cheondo’s words were still pleasantly calm.

Just like when she used to teach me. A voice that faintly echoed in my ear.

“Where is there a bond that is not a coincidence? Though there are so many bonds that pass by like a brief breeze.”

“…”

“……It has been so for a long time.”

It was too hard to watch her touch her own inverse scale.

Among the people I knew, the people of Dowon lost the most connections.

And so did Cheondo.

After losing her heart’s home, her body merged, and she stepped into a world with nothing.

She inherited the power of Cheonma, but the disciple she struggled to find ended up saying words that fell short of her expectations.

I saw Cheondo’s pessimistic side that I didn’t know about.

“You are a very precious person to me. Even if you leave my arms.”

Me too.

“But it seems I was just a seasonal breeze to you.”

“What are you talking about?”

I wanted to deny those words.

She was the one who saved my life so many times.

The reason I went against Cheondo’s wishes was that I didn’t want to give up on either side.

“Didn’t I say that I would have done the same thing even in the opposite situation?”

“No. Even in the opposite situation, you shouldn’t have done that.”

“Yes?”

Cheondo’s eyes were filled with pity.

A face that looked at me with pity.

“…Take care of yourself.”

I couldn’t say anything in response.

The prolonged silence brought the end of the conversation.

Only a small tea leaf floating on the cold teacup was the only moving object in this static place.

-Little Brother.

-…Can’t we reconcile?

-Cheondo… is very sad. Little Brother, can’t you just talk to her once?

-Isn’t there some misunderstanding?

I knew.

I was just as sad.

-…You pathetic bastard. You loser. You idiot.

-You’re not even worthy of being a third disciple. You’re a fifth disciple.

Still, she didn’t give up on the title of disciple.

The last day passed with difficulty amidst Baekdo’s cold eyes and Hwangdo’s restless persuasion, without any special conversation.

As if that was the end of our relationship.

I couldn’t even go out for the obvious farewell.

Because Cheondo had already left without my knowledge.

‘Geez…’

Why did this linger in my heart?

Cheondo of Spring Peach Blossom, who was helping the association, would obviously try to kill Sansuyu.

Now that things had come to this.

Cheondo probably had the possibility of doing something to Sansuyu before I could even move.

‘So that I would give up.’

What lingered in my heart was that from today on, I had to worry about the disappearance of my masters.

-Drip.

The ice in the coffee moved and made a sound.

I looked up at the man in front of me.

“…So.”

A call came at dawn when I was with Cheondo. It was a contact saying they wanted to meet.

I wanted to hear what kind of nonsense they were talking about, but Seong Jiho’s words didn’t deviate much from my expectations.

-Never step forward.

-Don’t you value your life?

“It’s Miss Sansuyu’s request.”

“Fuck off.”

I wasn’t in a good mood, and my temper was at its peak, so good words didn’t come out.

Seong Jiho’s eyebrows twitched.

“Why are there so many people who care about my life like this? Do I look like I have such good fortune?”

“…”

-Just stay alive.

-Because my potential is guaranteed.

Even if you spouted such nonsense after everyone was dead, there would be no one left.

I went to the past and saw you guys dying.

And you still wanted me to be a crazy bastard who stood by?

“I’ll say it again.”

“I’ll say it again this time, but my life is mine.”

“…There may be some coercive measures involved.”

Seong Jiho clenched his fist and revealed a subtle threat.

-Boom!!!!

At that moment, a huge explosion shook the surroundings.

The surging magic power swirled in the cramped room.

Seong Jiho’s face, which had been instantly subdued, crumpled.

“What… is this?”

Seong Jiho was shocked as he felt the saturating magic power.

The coffee on the table trembled. Even the building was faintly shaking.

His complexion turned blue as if he was suffocating.

“Where is Sansuyu?”

“Why… do you have such power and yet you’re in the academy?”

“Don’t change the subject. Since you’re also a servant, you’re planning to die together anyway, right?”

He was the one who always assisted her by Sansuyu’s side.

Rather than a pure contractual relationship, there must be a reason for loyalty and affection.

Even more so when you saw him doing his job until the end, even when things had turned out like this.

Why didn’t this guy try to save Sansuyu?

There were questions, but it was none of my business.

If this guy really cared about Sansuyu, he wouldn’t be happy with the current situation where Sansuyu was dying.

I smirked, tasting the bitterness in my mouth.

“Well, since you’re Sansuyu’s secretary, you’re going to respect Sansuyu’s wishes, right?”

Seong Jiho’s eyelids twitched.

“I’m going to save Sansuyu.”

So, just tell me quickly, my words were made as if taking a gamble.

Despite the polite form, my tone was extremely rough, making Seong Jiho’s face perplexed.

He closed his mouth and maintained silence.

It was enough to give him some time to think.

As I slowly withdrew my magic power and waited, his mouth soon opened.

“You’re going to die.”

Warnings were laughable now.

“If you want to save someone who’s going to die, you have to be prepared to die too.”

Seong Jiho’s eyes widened. He didn’t expect to hear such words.

He took a sip of coffee with his trembling hand to calm himself down.

“Why are you so determined to save the young lady?”

“Then, are you okay with Sansuyu dying here?”

“……”

I laughed as if it were absurd.

That alone didn’t explain everything, but I didn’t intend to tell him everything in the first place.

“…A gamble, huh.”

He repeatedly clasped and unclasped his hands, then looked at me with narrowed eyes.

I understood that he still couldn’t trust me.

As Cheondo said.

Sansuyu and I had only been acquainted for a few months at most.

But on the other hand, it was similar to Cheondo’s case.

Just as Cheondo risked her life to dispel my doubts and make me rely on her when we had just met.

I was just proving my own kind of friendship.

“…Let’s talk.”

Seong Jiho’s words fell.

-Bang!

The door was flung open, making a sound as if it would break.

“Whoa, shit, you scared me!”

Taeyang, who was lying down, was startled and looked towards the door.

Taeyang was holding a comic book on the bed, and Aori was making something on the blanket spread on the floor.

Looking at the two of them, I immediately gestured with my chin.

“…Hyung?”

“Get ready, you perverts.”

“Yes, yes?”

“I found out Sansuyu’s location.”

Taeyang hurriedly got up, trying to shake off his drowsiness.

I grabbed his wrist as he reached for the teacup.

We didn’t need tea.

“Aori, what are you doing?”

“I’m making a nine-tailed knot plug. Do you want to use it on your girlfriend? It’s soft and feels good to the touch.”

“……You get ready too. It’s time to go.”

“Aww.”

I wondered how she made such things.

Her handiwork was so amazing to watch.

Aori’s cosplay collection, which I saw briefly before, was at a professional level. Even I, a novice, was speechless as soon as I saw it.

Aori rolled the knot plugs that filled her hands and pouted her lips.

“Hyung, it’s good that you found the location, but… what are you going to do?”

“What do you think we should do?”

“Are we going to storm in and rescue her? It’s going to be tough right now.”

Taeyang was right.

According to Seong Jiho’s information, Sansuyu’s experiment was being conducted in a huge mansion located in western European Russia.

I also knew the approximate coordinates and had a rough map of the mansion’s structure.

However, I couldn’t deal with the numerous guild hunters, who were thoroughly prepared with artifacts and defenses, with my own hands.

There were also many S-class hunters.

Even with Taeyang and Aori, it’s too much of a stretch to storm in.

Therefore, we had to wait a bit.

I asked Taeyang.

“What do you think we should do?”

“Well, we wait for the heresy declaration and the Hunter Association’s all-out attack, then slip in and just take Sansuyu noona, right?”

That was what I thought too.

We were short on manpower and hands, so all we could do was take advantage of the enemy’s weakness and rescue one person.

We’d take care of the aftermath somehow.

“Then, what should we do with the remaining time?”

“……Well, rest comfortably?”

-Bang!

Taeyang’s head was buried in the floor by a punch that landed on his crown.

His whole body was trembling, as if he had rigor mortis.

“Aori, tell me.”

Aori, who had been fiddling with the knot plugs, tilted her head at me.

Her red hair shook, and her large chest swayed.

Come to think of it, she’s in her underwear. Her white thighs were visible.

“Umm… what the King should do.”

Aori put her fist on her palm and said,

“Ah!”

“Sticking it into a tree?”

“Oh, you idiot Aori. Do you think hyung would do that?”

Taeyang, who got up rubbing his crown, scolded Aori.

Aori stuck out her tongue at Taeyang.

“Pi.”

“Think before you speak. And it would be nice if you paid some rent.”

“No way~”

Watching their banter wouldn’t be bad for killing time, but unfortunately, there were many things to do with the limited time.

“That’s right.”

I nodded at Aori’s words.

“……Yes?”

“Huh?”

Taeyang and Aori, who looked at me almost simultaneously, widened their eyes in disbelief.

If you asked what the best we could do right now was, then improving our skills was the priority.

If the fastest shortcut to getting stronger was sticking it into trees and women…

‘We have to do anything.’

We needed to cling desperately.

“…Hyung, you’re going to… a tree…”

“What.”

“Are you going to… devour it?”

“So?”

-Drip.

Suddenly, a shiny liquid dripped from Taeyang and Aori’s eyes.

“Are you guys… crying?”

“No, we’re not crying. It’s just that we’re so moved… sob.”

“The King is going to devour a tree, waaaah.”

Taeyang and Aori pretended to wipe their tears and wailed.

“The King!!!! Into a tree, huff huff puff!!! Waaahhh.”

“Damn it, shut up Aori!! What if he suddenly says he doesn’t want to stick it in anymore!!!! Sniff.”

I felt like I was going crazy.

“Are you guys making fun of me?”

“Waaahhh!”