Chapter 286: Chapter 284

It was autumn.

Rustle—

The fluttering red leaves falling one by one eventually filled the entire sky.

[King of the Snow Folk and the Monarch of Frost, warns that autumn has arrived.]

Autumn always came abruptly and left in an instant.

[King of the Snow Folk and the Monarch of Frost, says that humans brought autumn upon themselves.]

Sillad was right. Autumn here arrived particularly fast. As if time had accelerated tenfold, the leaves that were lush green just last night were now dyed red and falling. This sight might seem wondrous and beautiful to some. But to those who knew even a little about Elvenwood, it was a terrifying spectacle. The red leaves, soaked in someone's blood... were falling because they couldn't bear the weight of that crimson. For the elves, autumn was an omen of destruction. A season to hurriedly evacuate to avoid being devoured. As it was for all the Elvenwoods that the Monarch of Frost, Sillad, experienced. The Alfheim that grew in this city also faced the same season, just with a different name.

Rustle Rustle—

Red leaves covered the entire sky and gently landed on the land that was once called paradise. The 'omen of destruction' appeared in the city where the whole world was dyed red like blood.

Whoosh—

Swoosh—!

"Keuk?!"

"Wh-what is this?!"

The roots of Alfheim, which suddenly sprouted from the red-dyed ground, began to attack the villains who were fighting amongst themselves. And...

Gulp! Gulp!

"Kuhk! Wh-what the...?!"

Sharp tentacles hidden in the ground pierced their bodies, and began to suck out their nutrients.

"W-wait! Stop attacking! Alfheim has gone mad... Kyaaa!"

Gulp! Gulp!

The villains, who were fighting amongst themselves, stopped in a panic. And they hurriedly tore off and cut the roots that Alfheim suddenly pierced their bodies with. But it was already too late...

Whoosh—!

Slash—!

Since the entire ground was covered with red leaves, they couldn't tell where the roots would sprout from. It was impossible even for villains with heightened senses. These weren't ordinary leaves...

[My liege! These leaves have a perception-impairing effect!] Beru recognized the true nature of the leaves at a glance and warned Suho.

"My senses have dulled. Did these leaves turn the entire city into a perception-impairing barrier?"

All the people in the city were suddenly trapped in a giant perception-impairing barrier. Even Suho's senses were dulled, let alone the other villains. They could only helplessly die, pierced by the roots that sprouted from the ground. It began to take back even the power of the fruits it had fed them. The problem was that the Alfheim here was the largest and most well-grown tree Suho had ever seen. The speed at which its roots sucked out the villains' power was also terrifyingly fast.

"R-run...! Keuk!"

"Kugh...!"

The villains desperately fled from the roots, but even then, victims who withered away like mummies were appearing everywhere. As they died one by one and scattered to escape, They finally faced a shocking truth. Just like all the elves once did.

"Don't tell me all this time...?"

That's right. Alfheim was no longer on their side. It never was. Just food... They finally realized that they were nothing more than high-quality livestock that it had fattened up to consume.

"Kyaaaaaaaaaaa—!"

Screams filled the city. Red leaves falling from the sky still covered their vision. That scenery... was truly beautiful. But not everyone died in vain.

Whoosh—!

A half-moon shaped weapon cut through the air. Red leaves swirled, and the figure of the Reaper Hasul wielding a giant scythe was revealed.

"H-Hasul!"

"The Reapers...!"

Hope appeared in the eyes of the helpless villains who were running away. The Reapers, including Hasul, who had been harvesting at the bank's request, began to fight back! They had to climb the tall tree trunk every day to pick the fruits, so they skillfully dealt with the roots of Alfheim. And that was the same for the bankers who used the Reapers. They received all their salaries in fruits. Although some resold them to earn coins, they were the group who fundamentally ate more fruits than other citizens. Perhaps thanks to that power accumulated in their bodies, they had some resistance to the perception-impairing effect created by the leaves.

"Damn it! Run!"

"W-wait! Before that, those fruits...!"

Even in this urgent situation, some bankers spotted the fruits that fell among the leaves covering the ground and their eyes gleamed with greed. Having personally experienced the effects of the fruit, picking up those ownerless ones was instinctive.

"Keuhk!" Although some bankers died trying, most were diligently collecting the fruits that fell on the ground.

[King of the Snow Folk and the Monarch of Frost, clicks his tongue.] Watching this whole series of events, Sillad felt a deep sense of sorrow.

The autumn that the elves experienced had come to humans as well. Even if they were a different race, it wasn't pleasant to see this sight again. It was then.

"...Damn it, has it already started?" The bank manager, who went to another country through the Gate, returned to this city.

Witnessing the city's situation belatedly, he gritted his teeth. He hurried as much as he could, but the Russians were greedy and delayed him. But even then, this speed was absurdly fast. Nothing happened until this morning.

'This is all because of that bastard Beru!' If he hadn't let that damned newbie into the city yesterday, this wouldn't have happened. But what could he do? There was nothing that could reverse things at this point. All he could do was to follow the natural order.

"Haa... How hard I worked to raise this place." The bank manager rubbed his face with his hands and sighed in frustration.

And he began to shove all the fruits he bought from Russia into his mouth. There were quite a few, but he didn't chew and just swallowed them whole. The bank manager's body gradually transformed. His entire skin was covered in hard bark like a withered tree, and all the muscles and fibers that made up his body split like tree branches.

"Bank Manager...!" The bank employees belatedly noticed his return and rushed towards him with joy. The bank manager, who had completely shed his human form, gave them orders with emotionless eyes,

"This place is done for. We're leaving immediately."

"Before that, let's take some of the fruits... Keuk!"

Stab—

The bank manager instantly stabbed and killed the employee who dared to interrupt him and continued speaking with a frown,

"Shut up and leave. If the Enforcers show up, we're all done for... Ah, shit." An ominous feeling suddenly washed over him. The bank manager hurriedly looked up. And there... Above the branches of Alfheim, stripped bare of all its leaves, five fruits were swelling.

"What's that?"

"Fruits?"

The bank employees, following the bank manager's gaze, widened their eyes. The size and shape were completely different from the fruits of Alfheim they knew. It was more like an 'egg' than a fruit.

"Shit, run!"

The bank manager's body sprang up like a coiled spring. It was now every man for himself. He didn't have the time to worry about others. The bank employees, seeing the manager running away without looking back, also sensed something and scattered in a panic. But it was too late.

Pop! Bang!

The abnormally swollen fruits began to explode like balloons simultaneously. And 'Enforcers' emerged from within. Although humans called them Enforcers, their true nature was neither human nor anything else.

Whoosh—!

What erupted from within was 'winter' itself. Or, as Sillad called it, a harsh winter.

Whoosh—!

Along with the sound of balloons popping, a tremendous blizzard erupted from within and swallowed the entire city. The red season instantly turned the entire world white.

"Uwaak! Bank Manager!"

"What is this?!"

"What else, it's the Enforcers! If we don't escape now, we'll all freeze to death! From now on, it's every man for himself!" With those last words, the bank manager disappeared into the blizzard. But...

"...Aak!" Hearing the manager's scream from beyond, the bank employees who were following him immediately turned around and scattered. They had caught a glimpse of something in the white blizzard! There was a giant monster holding the bank manager's head in its hand.

[Spirit of Frost]

[Spirit of Frost]

[Spirit of Frost]

[...]

The true identity of the Enforcers was finally revealed before Suho's eyes.

"Were the Enforcers spirits?"

Suho's eyes gleamed sharply. His sens stat was ringing alarm bells. Just how many nutrients had they sucked out of Alfheim all this time? It didn't feel right to simply call them spirits. Their level was completely different from those he easily defeated on his way here.

[Kieek! Don't tell me that's...?!] Beru called out to Suho with a serious expression.

While fighting alongside Sung Jinwoo in outer space, Beru was always surrounded by the Rulers' soldiers, the angels. That's why he immediately realized what was happening... How these Enforcers were born, as soon as he saw them.

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

[My liege! They resemble the angels being born from the fruits of the World Tree!]

"What?"

Suho's expression hardened at those words. The World Tree, rooted in the Sea of Souls, bore fruit using the souls of the dead as nutrients. And angels were born from those special fruits that contained the most energy. But to think that the Alfheim, no, the Elvenwood here was the same? The only difference was that it used bodies instead of souls as nutrients. It consumed living beings as nutrients, and the 'Spirits of Frost' were born from the most special fruits among the numerous others.

'Is Elvenwood imitating the World Tree? Or are they originally the same kind?' He was curious, but solving the immediate problem was the priority. Beru shouted, pointing at the Spirits of Frost that revealed themselves,

[Seeing this, angels are also just spirits in a broader sense! That means those Spirits of Frost are also...!]

They were on the same level as the Rulers' soldiers, the angels. Just five fruits. Only five were born, but the cold wave was enough to cover this entire area and freeze the whole world! Just then, warning messages began to appear before Suho's eyes one after another.

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

['Winter of Frost' has begun.]

[Debuff: 'Frostbite' is activated.]

[Movement speed is gradually decreasing.]

[Attack speed is gradually decreasing.]

[The effect of Debuff: 'Frostbite' continues to stack over time.]

It was truly a natural disaster. Like when he entered the Sea of Souls, powerful and chilling warnings were ringing. But...

Flare—!

It was different from then. Because the flames from the Dragon King's heart were blazing in Suho's entire body.

['Dragon King's Heart' negates the effect of Debuff: 'Frostbite'.]

Even in this world, Suho's body temperature was close to boiling with black-red heat. But it seemed like that fact was quite irritating to the Spirits of Frost.

Whoosh—!

[...Who is it?]

[The one who dares defy us.]

The five Spirits of Frost, who instinctively absorbed heat from all living beings with warmth since birth, simultaneously turned to Suho. As they swelled their bodies along with the surrounding blizzard, it was enough to fill the entire sky.

[We execute winter.]

Rumble—

The Enforcers. They surrounded Suho to execute the winter that was a disaster for the elves. But...

"So what do you think?" Suho was smiling. As if this was rather fortunate.

"Do they seem useful?"

Instead of answering Suho's question, Sirka said something unexpected,

Stretch—

"Haa, this is refreshing." She was stretching with a truly rejuvenated expression.

Whoosh—

In the blizzard where he couldn't see an inch ahead, The harsh winter, the curse and disaster that had always been the bane of the elves since the beginning of time, But what did that matter? Sirka was a child of winter who took her first breath and learned to walk in this cold from the moment she was born. If Suho overcame the cold with the Dragon King's heart, Sirka was the opposite.

"It feels like I've come home." She was smiling brightly, taking in the refreshing air.

[King of the Snow Folk and the Monarch of Frost, grins meaningfully.]

That's right. Sillad, the first ice elf. His descendant grinned and ran towards the harsh winter without hesitation.

Lightly stepping on the blizzard.