episode_0125

The method to save the World Tree is simple.

1. Kill the World Tree zombie and obtain the . 2. Prepare a tree sturdy enough to withstand the Soul of the World Tree. 3. Insert the soul into the tree.

That’s it.

The process itself is incredibly straightforward.

But.

Not a single person has ever succeeded.

Why?

Because there’s no tree sturdy enough to withstand the Soul of the World Tree.

Other than the , created by the Goddess of Light, Serena herself, nothing can endure the soul.

If there had been even a seed, a new could have been grown,

but there isn’t even a seed.

Originally, it was a pitiful tree that couldn’t reproduce even if it wanted to, since there was only one in existence.

So.

There’s no spare vessel for the World Tree.

…And for that reason, the World Tree revival project was deemed impossible.

But.

As someone who studied biotechnology in college, my thoughts were different.

What?

No seed means no new tree can be grown?

If you have no teeth, use your gums!

If you have no seed, use a leaf!

Any biotech student could perform , right?

…Or so I fantasized.

But you can’t exactly teach biotech to a game character, can you?

So I couldn’t do it.

However.

This is the real world now.

A world where I can personally use the power of biotechnology to grow a sprout!

…With that thought, I pulled out my lab equipment.

Clank! Clank!

Crudely made lab equipment.

Compared to the proper, modern equipment in a university lab, this could be called scrap metal—it’s that pitiful.

It’s a shoddy replica made using one of the functions of the Holy Grail of Sacrifice: crafting.

The poor design is unavoidable.

But.

Its performance is still usable.

No.

In some ways, it’s even superior to lab equipment made with modern technology.

‘Because it borrows the power of magic.’

While science can’t easily create a perfectly sterile environment,

magic can.

‘There are other advantages too…’

But explaining more to someone from a fantasy world would be pointless.

So, skipping the details, I began the experiment.

Snip! Snip!

I cut the World Tree’s leaf into small rectangular pieces.

Plop! Plop!

Then placed them into a nutrient gel made from slime.

“Sophia.”

“Yes.”

Next, I used divine magic to explosively accelerate the cell division rate.

So?

What happens then?

“Obviously, a callus forms!”

A tumor-like mass of cells that forms when a plant is injured.

As a biotech major, I’m itching to explain in detail what a callus is, but!

Well…

No one here would understand anyway.

To summarize, it’s roughly this:

[A clump of cells that, if nurtured well, can grow into a sprout.]

The end.

“This should do, right?”

I immediately showed it to my sister, Fine.

“Sis.”

“Hm?”

“Look at this.”

“Th-This is… a sprout of the World Tree?…”

“Wow… You recognized it right away?”

“I could sense the World Tree’s energy, so I knew… But is this really a sprout of the World Tree?!!”

Sister Fine shouted in shock.

Then.

Other elves came running over, equally stunned.

“A sprout of the World Tree?!!”

“Is that really true?!!”

Elves who had been eating dropped everything and rushed over, spotting the sprout in my hand.

Then.

They bowed their heads to the ground, tears streaming.

“Oh, thank you!!!”

“Mother!!!”

“We sincerely thank you for saving the World Tree!!!”

Everyone was crying as they spoke.

“I haven’t saved it yet.”

“Wh-What?…”

“This is just a vessel to hold the Soul of the World Tree.”

It’s a special tree that becomes the World Tree when infused with its soul,

but without the soul, it’s just the sturdiest tree in the world—nothing particularly remarkable.

‘Well… It’s not like it has no other merits…’

But aside from its durability, it’s about as ordinary as any other tree, so calling it an advantage feels awkward.

So.

Right now, without the Soul of the World Tree, this sprout is just a sturdy sprout.

“But… That means…”

“Right.”

It means that with just the Soul of the World Tree, the World Tree can be fully revived.

…Hearing this, the elves erupted in cheers.

“Hooray! All hail Cain! All hail Cain, the close friend of the Goddess of Light, Serena!!!”

“Huh? Close friend?”

“?”

“That part sounds nice, so keep emphasizing it.”

“All hail Cain, the ‘close friend’ of the Goddess of Light, Serena!!!”

Serena’s sudden interference made the cheers feel a bit off, but…

Well…

If she likes hearing it, I’ll let it slide.

The important thing is this:

“Everyone, calm down and listen.”

“Yes!”

“It’s true that this sprout is from a tree sturdy enough to hold the Soul of the World Tree.”

“Yes!”

“But this tiny sprout can’t handle the massive soul of the World Tree.”

“Then…”

“That’s why we need you.”

“Ah!…”

Elves can use magic to accelerate plant growth.

So, we’ll grow the sprout at ultra-high speed.

Until it becomes a tree large enough to withstand the Soul of the World Tree.

…That’s the plan.

“Understood! We’ll start growing it right away!”

“Wait.”

“Huh?”

“I don’t plan to grow it now, so hold on.”

“Why not…”

“The Tree of Light is a special tree that only grows in specific places.”

It won’t grow just anywhere.

A place where mana gathers.

Where nutrients are abundant.

Where water is plentiful.

Where light overflows.

And so on.

It’s an incredibly finicky tree that only grows in land that meets all these exact conditions.

‘You can grow it in other places, but…’

Serena told me it would die within 100–200 years if the conditions aren’t perfect.

So.

To truly revive the World Tree, the sprout must be grown in the right land.

Then?

Where is that perfect land?

The primordial land where the Goddess of Light, Serena, first planted the World Tree.

The land where the World Tree zombie resides.

That’s the only place.

So.

We must plant the sprout after dealing with the World Tree zombie.

But once the zombie is defeated, the sealed Soul of the World Tree will emerge, turning it into a time attack.

Souls are volatile.

If left unattended, they dissipate like smoke and vanish.

We must grow the sprout as fast as possible and anchor the soul.

‘That’s why I told them to eat well and rest fully.’

The sprout must grow faster than the Soul of the World Tree evaporates.

“So, rest well…”

“Right.”

“Understood! As you command, Cain! We’ll rest fully and pour our souls into this in peak condition!”

The elves burned with determination, eating and sleeping with all their might.

The next day.

“Let’s go.”

“Yeah!”

Step 1 – Defeat the World Tree Zombie

“This should be easy.”

BOOM!!!

Lia charged at supersonic speed.

“Grrk?”

The demon relaxing atop the World Tree zombie reacted, but—

Slash!

“Ghk—!”

Lia’s sword was faster, killing it instantly.

CRASH!!!

With the black-mage demon controlling the World Tree zombie dead,

the zombie went berserk without its master.

But—

Whoosh!

A simple flame spell from Lia incinerated it on the spot.

Step 1, complete.

‘It’s almost anticlimactic how easily it ended, but…’

This is normal.

In cheat-stacked baby mode, even the Demon King dies in one hit.

That’s why I didn’t use it.

A game that’s too hard isn’t fun,

but a game that’s too easy isn’t fun either.

But.

In reality, this level of ease is good.

Hard mode can be fun in games,

but in life, easy mode is the best!

“Everyone ready?”

“Yeah!”

The hero party scattered, each handling their tasks.

“Hyaah!”

Elis spread nutrient supplements across the land.

“Oh, earth.”

Sister Fine used earth magic to mix soil, ash, and nutrients evenly, enriching the ground.

Tap! Tap!

I carefully planted the sprout.

“Oh, light.”

Sophia showered it with light.

Step 2, cleared.

The perfect environment for the sprout was prepared.

Water – OK.

Nutrients – OK.

Light – OK.

“Everyone!!! Begin!!!”

Finally, the elves activated their plant-growth magic!

“Haaaaah!!!”

“Uwaaaaah!!!”

“Hyaaaaah!!!”

The elves poured every ounce of their strength into growing the sprout.

“Whoa!…”

In minutes, the sprout grew into a tree as tall as me.

But.

It still wasn’t enough.

Far too small to hold the Soul of the World Tree.

So I shouted.

“More! More!! MORE!!!”

“Hnnnngh!!!”

At my urging, they strained their mana further, growing the at ultra-speed.

‘This should be enough to succeed.’

A normal human soul would dissipate immediately after death,

but the World Tree’s soul can last about an hour.

So.

If we grow the tree to a suitable size within that hour, it’ll work.

But.

“……?”

Something felt off.

‘Why only an hour?’

Even a D-rank like me can last 1–2 hours.

An A-rank hero can last even longer.

So?

What about the World Tree, which is near-godlike?

It should last at least a week.

But.

In the prophecy RPG, an hour was the limit.

Why?

What’s the issue?

…As I pondered, staring at the ground—

“C-Cain?…”

“?”

“C-Can we talk for a second?…”

A cute green spirit poked its head out of the soil and whispered to me.

“Don’t tell me… the World Tree?…”

“Shh!”

“Uh… okay…”

I sat quietly and whispered back.

“What’s up?”

“Um… well…”

“Yeah?”

“C-Can you secretly kill that tree for me?…”

“??????”

“O-Or just say it’s too weak to hold my soul… Something like that…”

“??????”