episode_0033

Whooooosh!!

A heavy shockwave swept through the surroundings.

A massive crater.

A dragon with its head stuck.

Stems scattered all around.

And there stood Shaela alone, unscathed.

“Ugh….”

“Master?”

“What in the world….”

The slave warriors who were blown away by the shockwave struggled to get back on their feet. Then, upon seeing Kardephion lying on the ground, they widened their eyes or gasped in unison.

As shocking as it was….

They quickly regained their composure.

It couldn’t continue like this.

Shaela moved the scattered stems around her in all directions.

Shrrrrk!!

Swoooosh!!

“Ugh!!”

“What is this!?”

The target was the slave warriors.

Now was the chance in their confusion.

She tightly bound all of them with the stems, full of gaps.

Crack!!

Squelch!!-

“Hey!! Let go of me!!”

“What have you done to the Master!?”

“Aaahhh!!!”

Resistance was futile. The stems were coated with deadly poison.

“What… why is my strength…”

“Let go! Let go!! Aaargh!!!”

Thud!!

“Ugh… the Master….”

If they were slave hunters, they might have resisted.

But they were much weaker than that.

They were quickly overwhelmed and couldn’t break free.

They either showed great anger or despair at Kardephion’s fall.

Were they sincerely following Kardephion?

No, it was just fanaticism.

Swoosh~

Without any mercy, she gathered them all in one place with the stems.

“You little bastard!!!”

“How dare you do this to the Master!!”

“Release. I said release!!!”

She singled out the strongest-looking female with blue hair, restrained her separately, and imprisoned the rest in the stems, melting them with venom.

The screams soon turned into shrieks.

“Aaahhh!!!!!”

“Aaargh!! Save me!!!!!”

“Kiiyaaarurrr…..”

A large amount of nutrients were absorbed.

Roughly equivalent to 1.5 vampires.

She sucked in the liquidified ones with the stems, gathered them, and slowly digested them.

“Aah… could it be the Great One?….”

“What in the world….”

Next, she looked towards the back.

The two elves I rescued were staring blankly ahead.

The other side seemed fine….

She then moved the stems towards where Kardephion had fallen-

Thud.

“Munchan, stop.”

Shaela raised her hand to stop her.

Even though her eyes were probably not visible, her gaze was fixed fiercely on the ground that had crumbled.

Behind Shaela.

The main body replied through the mouth.

“Why?”

“It’s not time yet.”

“Not time?….”

Could it be.

Was Kardephion still alive?

Kwahng!!

Fwaaaah!!-

As she anxiously imagined, a cloud of dust shot up.

“Aaargh!!…. Damn it. Who dares, who dares to challenge me!!!….”

Kardephion appeared in the dust.

Not as a dragon, but in human form again, with horns and a tail.

To survive that attack….

He was like a monster. I couldn’t possibly face him in my current state.

Was he originally a dragon?

If such a creature ended so anticlimactically, it was rather strange-

Twist~

Thud.

“Ugh… what strange poison is this….”

Squelch.

“Cough!!!-”

Unexpectedly, he knelt down and coughed up blood.

It seemed like the poison was finally taking effect.

Shaela walked slowly towards him, and Kardephion struggled to lift her.

“Aah… it’s you. How dare you…. Cough!….”

“You are insignificant. Just a lizard.”

Splat.

“You dare insult me-”

Slap!

Shaela lightly slapped his cheek.

“………!!?!”

A strong gust of wind struck.

A powerful force compressed and exploded in an instant.

Although Cardelphion did not fly away, a powerful impact spread throughout his body. It seemed like a high-level technique that unleashed the shock internally, hitting the entire body despite appearing as a light attack.

Cardelphion couldn’t move as if paralyzed.

“Kuh… You, what… what level are you?”

“Level. Meaningless.”

“Could it be, you’re a divine being-”

Thwack!!

“Kk!!?…….

Kwaaaaa!!!-

This time, a spear pierced through the guy’s head. The shock spread instantly to the tip of his toes.

Splat!….

Kwagwagwagwag!!!-

A crack appeared on the ground.

The shockwave spread out again.

“……Kuh….”

Cardelphion’s white matter was exposed.

Thud.

In the end, he fell backward.

Then, Shaela, tapping my main body attached to her neck, said with a satisfied smile.

“Muchan. I told you. I am strong.”

“Uh… I see……”

Hehe.

A satisfied laugh.

At the same time, she pointed at the fallen Cardelphion.

“Is this… fertilizer?”

“……….”

“Muchan?”

“…Yes. It’s fertilizer.”

“Yeah. I’ll give it to you.”

“……….”

I don’t understand.

What defeated that monster.

What she’s giving me as if to eat.

What she’s looking at expectantly as if waiting for me to eat it.

What kind of being is she, really?

Are all beings of the divine lineage this strong?

I never felt any power from her before, but where did this strength come from….

There are many things I want to say, but I kept quiet.

It’s just easier to go along with it.

I wrapped my fallen Cardelphion’s body with my main stem without hesitation.

Just by touching it, I can feel it.

A powerful force compressed and spread throughout the body.

If I absorb this guy’s flesh well, I can obtain a huge amount of nutrients, mana, and life factors that help with growth.

This is the best fertilizer I’ve ever seen.

Swoosh.

Grrrr~

I tightly wrapped Cardelphion with my stem.

I completely sealed him to prevent any drops and slowly dissolved him with bacillus toxin. Although his resistance was high and it didn’t dissolve easily in the bacillus toxin, after a few days, it would break down.

Above all.

‘This taste…’

It’s like a drug I haven’t felt in a long time.

Even though I absorbed just a little, I can feel it.

It’s overflowing with flavor.

Insanely sweet.

Mana bursts out abundantly like juice.

Each piece of flesh makes my whole body feel the taste.

In this way, the powerful life information of the flesh was slowly absorbed into my main body.

First, I’ll pierce his throat with poison and slowly savor it at home.

“Is it delicious?”

Although she can’t see, Shaela noticed the situation and asked curiously.

There’s no need for any other words.

“…Finish him.”

I’ll finish him off literally.

With this, I will become even stronger.

And since Valphir’s physical body is dead, it’s perfect.

After digesting slowly….

I’ll have to refine my body again.

*

The situation was quickly resolved.

Cardelphion became fertilizer, only one slave warrior was spared and captured, and Shaela proudly embraced my main body.

And.

“Um….”

Two rescued elves cautiously approached Shaela from behind.

Among them, one guy looked at me.

A green-haired High Elf.

Wasn’t he called Neria?

It’s a complex and subtle expression.

Who I am.

Why they rescued me.

If they did the right thing by rescuing me.

There must be a lot they want to ask.

As I was about to think about where to start explaining, the guy shouted at me first.

“Hey, are you the great one!?”

Maybe because he’s a High Elf.

He figured out my identity.

Shaela tapped me on the shoulder and turned around. It was her way of telling me to take care of things myself.

Once again, I replied with my main body.

“…I told you not to call me great.”

“Oh… of course. It is truly an honor to meet you. You are a great mother!!”

“Great mother! We have been waiting for this day.”

The elf next to her also smiled happily.

What am I even…

“I’ve said it before, don’t call me great. And especially don’t call me mother. Don’t change my identity as you please.”

“Huh? Then…”

“Call me Shinmok. Everyone else does.”

“Yes, Shinmok!”

“Let’s talk as we walk.”

“Understood!!”

They both followed my words obediently.

So, we picked up the bodies of the slave warrior and the Cardepion and moved together.

Thud~

Shaela took care of the transportation.

She held the bodies of the Cardepion and the unconscious slave warrior with her main body, lifting them up like wings on either side, and I carried them.

They didn’t seem heavy at all.

He walked yawning from time to time.

And occasionally, he would stroke my main body.

Every time, the elf looked surprised, but I told him not to worry.

I then explained the current situation to the two elves.

That they were searching for scattered elves.

That they were going to rescue the captured elves.

They seemed relieved by my explanation.

And so, on that day.

While we were on the move, Shinmok’s elf contacted us.

[Shinmok. We have arrived at the location you mentioned. We will search for the scattered group of elves who fled.]

The seventh Jermeon.

The most agile squad of Shinmok’s elves began the search.

[We have found the elves. We will rescue the scattered members and guide them to the village.]

Fortunately, they didn’t take long to find the group of elves fleeing towards the village.

The elves were overjoyed to see Jermeon and followed him as if they had met a god.

[Good. Guide them to the village.]

[Yes!]

It seemed that the elf refugees were safe for now…

Next, I checked in with Illian about the situation of rescuing the elves captured by the slave warriors.

[How is the situation?]

[We are tracking them to the location you mentioned, but it may take another day or two to catch up.]

In Illian’s view.

Tinia and several of Shinmok’s elves were running through the forest together.

There were 24 high elves following them.

Since they couldn’t evacuate the entire village, only half of the high elves were deployed.

With no Cardepion and the enemy split in half, the elves should be able to handle it without any trouble.

[Report back if there are any issues.]

[Understood!]

I turned my attention back.

And then.

“Right~”

Shaela was once again stroking my main body.

“Why do you do that every time you look at me?”

“Just because. You saved me. Accept it.”

“…Not tired of it?”

“It’s fun.”

“…Then I’ll do it too.”

Swoosh.

Swish~

“Huh?….”

I made a hand with my main body and gently stroked Shaela’s head.

She looked quite flustered.

Swish swish~

“…Hey?”

“Why.”

“Is this… right?”

“Hurry up and go.”

“….”

Surprisingly, there was no sign of refusal.

She just made a bewildered face and moved forward.

Thud~

And so, with Shaela and the elves, we returned to the village within two days.

*

Arriving home.

I created a stem prison next to the house to imprison the captured slave warrior, making sure he couldn’t move.

Interrogation would come later.

After returning to my body using the elf’s body waiting at home, I buried the Cardepion’s body on the floor of the house.

Plop~

Shaela lay down on the bed.

I sat down next to her.

As we rested for a moment.

“Shinmok. We have eliminated all the slave warriors and rescued the elves.”

Illian reported the victory.

I already know. I was focusing half of my consciousness on Illyan.

Fortunately, there was no major damage.

The reinforced elf of the Divine Tree surpassed the strength of the slave warriors, and the High Elves easily defeated the slave warriors while coordinating their attacks.

The rescued elves, needless to say, followed along as if praising Illyan.

“[Absorb all the corpses and guide the elves back to the village.]”

“Yes!”

Following my command, Illyan absorbed the corpses of the slave warriors through a separate branch and began the return journey with the elves.

Now then….

“We need to expand the village.”

There were about 400 rescued elves. In order to accommodate them all, it was necessary to expand the farms and territory.

However.

“Can you help?”

In response to my muttering, Shaela reacted. What does this guy mean by asking how he can help?

“Just. Trying.”

“….?”

“Work hard~”

“Why do you keep getting more unlucky?”

“Well~ Don’t you have anything to say to me~?”

“….”

“Nothing. Just be quiet.”

Huff~

He stretched out while lying down. Then, as if telling me not to talk to him, he turned over in the opposite direction.

Staring at him intently, I muttered softly.

“…Thank you for helping.”

“….”

Chuckle.

It seems he can see it from the corner of his eye. Me smiling secretly with pride.

“I can see you smiling.”

“….Eek!!!?”

The feeling of being unlucky dissipated.

Kugugugu!!

Shuaaack!~

I moved the branch barrier. With more family members, it was time to expand the village in earnest.

And so.

Kugugu~

Chwarrurruk!~

The branch barrier extended, expanding the territory. With a larger body, nutrients were quickly depleted.

It’s okay. I expanded without hesitation. There are much more nutrients than before. I’m still digesting the carcass of the Cardepean that I buried under the house. Compared to that, this is not a big energy at all.

Radius 200m.

→︎ Radius 500m.

The branch barrier surrounded the village.

“Wow….”

“This is the power of the great Divine Tree.”

“Ah. Now we can live in peace….”

The elves looked on with emotion. They were rescued, but they were still without a place to stay.

“There are so many elves….”

“That sight is amazing no matter how many times you see it moving.”

Floren and the human crowd also watched. At first, the elves were frightened and scared when they saw the humans, but with the mediation of Floren and the Divine Tree’s elves, they quickly calmed down.

I hope they can mix well in the future.

“Stop staring and start moving! Let’s pair up in groups of ten and build houses first.”

During this time, Jermeon directed the elves. Let’s build new homes for the new family members.

The framework of the house can be done by me and the Divine Tree’s elves, but making it a livable home is their responsibility.

The Divine Tree’s elves, the High Elves, the rescued elves, and even the humans all worked together.

Building homes.

Expanding farmland.

For a few days like that.

Illyan and the elves who were captured arrived.

“I’m glad you’re safe. Sob!!….”

“Mommy!!!”

Tears of reunion followed, and then they expressed their gratitude to the great being by bowing more than 10 meters tall in my growing house.

That darn great being.

~Lord Lord Lord Lord.

I don’t know how many times I heard it. I just bowed and prayed with emotion.

I didn’t reveal myself directly. Rather, I had Illyan prevent them from getting too close. It’s burdensome to do that every day. And I don’t like being pushed forward.

Illyan will manage it on his own.

However.

“Oh Divine Tree.”

High Elf Neria.

He was the only one I allowed.

Refusing to pray altogether, as it seemed that all the elves would wither away if he did not, he was allowed to pray in front of the house as a representative.

Honestly, I don’t understand what all this nonsense is about.

Why on earth would anyone want to pray?

“May your protection always extend far and wide to keep us all safe. For this, we will all dedicate ourselves to the Lord at all times.”

Neria.

She was the leader of the ordinary elves.

While Illyan oversaw all the elves, she was in charge of managing the rescued elves.

As you can see, she is a diligent and patient person.

If only she were less diligent in her prayers.

Plonk!~

“Huh!?”

A fruit sprouted from the stem of the house.

[Take this and go.]

“Oh… Th-thank you!!!!”

He politely accepted the fruit and hurried back to his newly built house, placing it inside a chest as if he were trying to preserve it.

No, why tell him to eat it.

What if it rots….

Shiver.

Next, he looked at the village.

A livelier village than before.

More houses were built, and farming expanded to a much larger area. With fruits ripening quickly, food was not a major issue.

Peace obtained by killing Cardepion.

The elves gradually forgot their sorrow and slowly regained their smiles in their ordinary lives.

For a while, he watched them through the stem’s perspective.

Strangely, he found himself quietly observing.

He liked the sight of the village.

So, to protect this sight….

“I have to go back.”

Outside the Misty Forest.

The city of hunters.

He needed to understand the situation of the mysterious strongman lurking there.

There was no time to waste.

Swoosh!~

He gathered the stem.

He created a new fruit.

With Cardepion’s absorption almost complete, it was time to replicate the body.

Then he would be able to easily infiltrate the city.

Mana flowing abundantly.

Let’s create the flesh of a dragon.