Chapter 213

―Ah...!

She

was lamenting.

The Tree of Life, whose origins were a mystery even to itself. A single drop of its sap could turn a desert into grassland, and grassland into a forest. That was who

she

was.

Had things gone as they should have, her overflowing life force would have enriched the entire world. But the scar left by the Evil God prevented that from happening. The pain, so excruciating that she could barely hold onto consciousness, often became so unbearable that time lost all meaning.

She could still vividly recall those eyes—black, wicked scales covering them, filled with mockery and malice. Those eyes belonged to an incarnation of evil, one that had once tried to engulf the world in death.

―Verdandi...! Urd...! Skuld...! Pour the Water of Life into me...! The invaders have returned! I don’t know if I can hold on any longer...!

The goddesses, who were meant to care for her, had fallen silent long ago.

The goddesses, who should have poured the Water of Life into her branches that reached all the way to Asgard, no longer responded.

The gods, wiped out in the God-Slaying War, were gone, unable to heed her calls.

And yet, she kept crying out, again and again. Her perception of time and reality had long been shattered by Nidhogg’s poison. She was still locked in a struggle, battling the minions of the Evil God from the ancient era.

―The cruel stench of fire and steel... Have you, like that god, come to trample us?

To her, the Spriggans were still spirits, and the treants were part of her own body. She couldn't even perceive her own corruption, so how could she notice the contamination and mutation of the Spriggans and treants?

Thus, to her, the Mobile Fortress and Aeroships were nothing less than apostles of the Evil God. The determination and fighting spirit of the knights felt like a volcano of malevolence to her.

―I am sorry, my children.

Still remembering her role as the Mother of Life, she summoned what little strength she had left to call her children.

They were the children who had broken away from the Spirit Realm and remained by her side―Boreas, Thetis, Vulcanus, and Cybele.

The corrupted forms of the Spirit Kings, who had maintained their reverence for her even after falling into corruption, responded to her call. Their distorted, twisted forms swelled with power, receiving far more strength and authority than they had been granted before. Though it was an excruciating ordeal even for them, they silently endured and moved forward to face the enemy.

―We must protect... must protect... must protect must protect must protect must protect must protect must protect must protect must protect must protect.

The World Tree Yggdrasil—her maternal instincts and obsession now fused into madness—gave her command.

―Destroy the enemy.

The Wraith Kings obeyed.

* * *

At the moment Yggdrasil made her decision, very few people noticed the change. Only those who could perceive the flow of the world’s laws, namely the Demigod Tier knights or those close to reaching that level, could sense it.

The world had shifted.

The volatile energy that had manifested as typhoons, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions passed in an instant. That flow resembled the moments before a tsunami rises, when the waves draw back dramatically.

Sensing this, Uluka immediately activated his authority and brought the advancing Mobile Fortress to a halt. Something was coming. Something so unexpected that even the Demigod Tier warriors had to brace themselves.

———————!!!

Just then, with a sharp sound as the signal, a storm of arrows flew in. Not just one or two, but ten at once.

Projectiles formed by Boreas’ authority all crashed into the Aeroship fleet simultaneously, shredding ten Aeroships apart as though they were paper. Not even Grace would be able to fully repel such force and speed.

About thirty percent of the fleet was destroyed in an instant, but the Aeroships had another purpose.

“Oh...? So you increased the output? So what! Max Acceleration!” Grace chanted the command, and the Aeroships, engulfed in smoke and fire, all sped up in the direction Grace pinpointed.

They couldn’t target Boreas, who was dozens of kilometers away, but they could clear the way for the Mobile Fortress and slightly push back the interference within the domain. For weapons that were already set to be scrapped, this level of utility was worth the cost.

Kwaaaaang

—

!!

However, from the ground where the Aeroships had crashed, a massive lava giant erupted, overturning the very earth.

It was the Wraith King Vulcanus. Larger and more terrifying than when he first appeared as an eighty-meter-tall giant, his body expanded like a massive cloth. He blocked the explosion that would have occurred from the ten Aeroships, swallowing it all with his upper body.

Of course, the explosions from the Aeroships, which had already received self-destruct orders, didn’t just stop. The Aeroships that were sucked into Vulcanus’ body detonated shortly after.

Rumble...!

The simultaneous explosions of the ten vessels unleashed a shockwave within Vulcanus. He swelled up like a blowfish, now even larger than the Mobile Fortress itself.

Neither Thetis, Cybele, nor Boreas could have withstood that. Even though Nidhogg’s poison had corrupted them, their innate elemental powers—water, earth, wind—hadn’t changed. If the Wraith Kings were subjected to that much heat and pressure, they would melt away.

Only Vulcanus, a Wraith King with no attribute disadvantage, could deal with that.

“...Did he really withstand that?” Grace stared down at him, her face contorted with disbelief.

Vulcanus had swollen up considerably after absorbing the ten Aeroships, as if he would burst at any moment. But now, his upper body was slowly deflating, as though the pressure within him was finally subsiding.

The Mobile Fortress would have suffered significant damage from the simultaneous explosions of ten vessels, and yet Vulcanus had withstood it just like that. Even for a Wraith King resistant to heat and pressure, his durability was absurd.

“The explosions were bound to be less effective against Vulcanus, but still, it should have dealt some damage to him,” Audrey remarked, having observed the scene alongside Leonard. “Yggdrasil must have intervened. You felt it too, didn’t you?”

“Yes, an overwhelming presence moved.”

“Fundamentally, Wraith Kings are spirits, and they exist as such. Their level and power grow in proportion to the strength supplied to them.”

Unlike mortals, who had to cultivate martial arts and magic over time to raise their rank, spirits were considered part of the natural world. If they received enough energy, they could even reach divinity. It was similar to how droplets could gather to form a pond, then a lake, and finally an ocean.

If Yggdrasil could provide them with boundless power, the four Wraith Kings could have all reached divine status. Though, they would have been born as Evil Gods, corrupted by the deep-rooted poison in Yggdrasil’s roots.

“If Yggdrasil herself directly empowered them, and that’s all they could do, then she’s not in great shape either. That’s a bit of a relief.”

As long as the Wraith Kings weren’t at a level beyond what the commanders could handle, they wouldn’t be able to stop everyone from reaching Yggdrasil.

Audrey, confident in her own abilities, absentmindedly fiddled with her glaive. The aura radiating from her slender frame was so intense that even Leonard instinctively took a step back.

She hadn’t charged toward the massive lava giant blocking the Mobile Fortress only because Grace was already engaged with it. With four enemies and four commanders, breaking the one-on-one match-ups could create exploitable weaknesses on their side.

“Huh?”

“Oh?”

At that moment, the Mobile Fortress, halted under strict orders, suddenly sank a few meters as if the ground had given way. Neither Audrey nor Leonard seemed particularly surprised; both were strong enough to keep their balance. They merely glanced over the edge to see what had happened below.

“All four of them have appeared now,” Audrey observed.

“Mmhm... Looks like it’s time for the commanders to step up,” Leonard replied with a nod.

The Mobile Fortress, though it didn’t move on legs but wheels, had indeed

sunk

, just as they suspected. Although it had only sunk a few meters for now, the fortress was gradually descending into a deep pit.

This was the handiwork of two Wraith Kings.

Cybele and Thetis worked together to do this. They’ve thought this through.

By using the combined authority of Decay and Poison, the two had softened the ground beneath the Mobile Fortress, intending to neutralize it. And unfortunately, their plan was working.

The Mobile Fortress weighed as much as a mountain, and no Weight Manipulation magic circle had been engraved on it. It had always relied on its immense weight to flatten everything in its path, but this special swamp was too much, even for the fortress.

The commanders couldn’t afford to leave things as they were.

Audrey, standing on the wall of the fortress, glanced down at Leonard with a grin. “I’ll be heading down too. Take care of yourself, Leonard.”

With that, Audrey leaped off the edge, and Leonard noticed Uluka, who had been waiting somewhere in the fortress, also jumping down. Cybele and Thetis would face those two. Meanwhile, the last commander left on the fortress was Wade.

Flamberg

Wade swiftly transformed into a streak of light, using his Flamberg ability to accelerate time. He flew toward Boreas, the source of continuous sniper fire, marking the beginning of the one-on-one duels between all four Wraith Kings and all four commanders.

At this point, it was impossible for anyone to interfere with the battles of the Demigod Tier warriors, who were now fighting seriously. Whether it was Wade, who had already disappeared far into the distance, or Grace, still locked in combat with the colossal lava giant, or even the commanders dealing with the bottomless swamp—trying to help would only hinder them.

Thus, Leonard shifted his focus to the faint shadow that was beginning to materialize on the horizon. He could just barely make out the outline of an enormous tree with his Dragon Eyes.

She’s finally revealing her true form.

Though her roots were too far away to be seen, the towering trunk pierced through the clouds, making it impossible to miss. In fact, considering the sheer scale of Yggdrasil, it was strange they hadn’t noticed her earlier. Perhaps some kind of power had been interfering with their perception, or maybe Yggdrasil had been hiding behind the influence of her domain.

Even from this distance, the shadow of the giant tree exuded a presence so overwhelming that not even an eagle’s sharp eyesight could make it out clearly.

Yggdrasil, the World Tree.

This was the moment they finally faced one of Arcadia’s most formidable foes. Just gazing at the tree sent shivers through Leonard’s entire body. Cold sweat ran down his back, and his muscles threatened to give out under the immense pressure.

However, he pushed through the fear, his mental fortitude unyielding. Channeling his energy into his jet-black sword, he steadied himself. Although nearly seventy percent of the Aeroship fleet remained intact, and the Mobile Fortress was still operational, their defenses had significantly weakened with the absence of the commanders.

Yggdrasil wasn’t going to overlook that.

“They’re coming!!” Leonard shouted with the Azure Dragon’s Roar, raising his sword as he unleashed a brilliant white augmented sword energy that radiated across the battlefield.

The knights, who had momentarily let down their guard due to the commanders’ battles, were snapped back to reality. From the horizon to mere hundreds of meters away, hordes of Spriggans and Treants surged forward, their malicious eyes glowing in the darkness.

As if recognizing the disadvantage of their beam bombardment form, the treants had sprouted spider-like limbs. With terrifying mobility, they scaled the walls of the fortress with ease. It was clear they had adapted specifically to target the Mobile Fortress.

Western God Style

Cutter of All Things

Sky and Clouds Piercer

With a horizontal slash, Leonard unleashed his energy at the ground below, cleaving through the incoming horde and cutting most of them clean in half. His blade even tore through space itself, carving a massive, canyon-like chasm in the heart of the forest.

Hundreds of Spriggans and treants, which had blindly charged at the Mobile Fortress, plummeted into the ravine. Though some tried to stop, they were crushed by the sheer numbers of their own kind charging from behind, falling one after another into the abyss.

Even those with flight abilities were caught in the chaos, crashing down with the others, buried beneath their comrades.

Just as Leonard had intended, the momentum of the enemy’s advance had been broken.

“Everyone! We have to protect the fortress with our lives until the commanders return victorious!” he called out.

The knights, veterans of countless battles, swiftly regrouped. In mere moments, they were back in formation, raising their weapons with resolute expressions. The Titan gunners inside the fortress, as well as the mages managing the barrier magic, were all on high alert.

They all instinctively understood. From this moment on, the true battle against Yggdrasil, the ringleader behind the Spriggan Frontier, was about to begin.