Episode 93
second arrangement
-Summer has come.
As the sun got hotter, the blades of grass grew wider, and the trees growing here and there soon began to shed leaves and become denser.
Paradise became a forest.
-Autumn has arrived.
As the sky turned blue, the sky gradually rose, and a slightly chilly wind blew. All the leaves turned bright red.
The fruits fell down. As the apples were randomly lying on the floor, squirrels and foxes appeared and snatched them, and acorns continued to pour out from one side.
Then, as the leaves began to fall one by one, bare tree branches gradually appeared.
-Winter has fallen.
The chilly wind gradually became cold enough to sting. As the snow fell heavily, snowflakes began to bloom on bare tree branches where flowers and fruits had originally formed.
Icicles formed below, and the entire paradise was covered with snow.
Pure white world.
There was no warm wind, warm scent, or beautifully sparkling flowers that Elric had seen just a moment ago. Even foxes and squirrels seemed to have gone into hibernation.
couldn’t find anything. The quiet, desolate silence seemed like it would last forever.
Still, someday the sky will clear again and warm sunlight will shine.
As the snow melts, streams will gurgle, weeds will grow luxuriantly on the mounds again, and new shoots will grow where snowflakes and icicles have disappeared. Everyone believed that spring would return.
Because it was like that.
Such was the cycle of the seasons, no one questioned it.
-But a cold wave hit.
The barely remaining tree branches could not withstand the cold wind and fell.
As the fallen leaves rotted, the earth’s energy, which should have been replenished on its own, was unable to do so due to the cold, and the ground rotted along with it.
Animals that were hibernating in the winter also froze to death, turning the once paradise world into a world full of death.
Instead of the scent of flowers, there was a rotten stench, and the once green garden was filled with a black swamp. The once blue sky turned gray, and the days of warm sunlight never came back.
And that place… It gradually turned into a world infested with various monsters.
Once the world had changed, there seemed to be no way for it to return.
Dry and rotten land.
A world entirely black.
It made me wonder if this place, with monsters roaming around and giving off a poisonous smell, was really the paradise from just a moment ago.
“This is a black snow field.”
Elric sat alone and watched the scene, then turned his head towards a familiar voice he heard from behind.
A man was walking slowly this way.
An important ancestor of Mervinger and a vassal of ‘Winter’ who served the ancestor.
“My ancestor… ?”
It was Otto Hahn.
“It’s been a while. The bird I haven’t seen has grown very well. “It seems like the seal of cruelty has now been established properly.”
Otto Han looked Elric up and down with a smile on his face.
“How have you been?”
“yes. “I had a bit of a hard time.”
“haha. “You have to work hard to grow well.”
Elric was already worried about how much Otto Han would harass him.
“Anyway, I plan to keep following you around and nagging you until you complete ‘Winter.’ “It’s a hassle to explain it twice, so let’s listen carefully.”
Otto Hahn continued speaking while adjusting the glasses he was wearing.
“At first, this place was pure white, just like the word ‘snowfield.’ The ice age has begun. Still, I firmly believed that everyone living here would end one day. That trust was thwarted by betrayal. Do you know what the reason is?”
“Is it because of General Dong?”
Otto Hahn nodded.
“that’s right. To those who lived here, they were more like monsters than any other monster. “It is a remnant of the past and a curse that was left behind when a demon passed through this place.”
A remnant of a demon god and a curse.
Those words pierced Elric’s ears.
“So, descendant. From now on, you.”
Under the glasses.
His eyes smiled.
“You will learn how to take the Donggun.”
* * *
General Dong (冬將軍).
Those words pierced Elric’s ears.
“I’m taking General Dong…” .”
Elric’s eyes glowed brightly.
Can a natural disaster be so great that it covers the black snow fields and creates an environment for all kinds of monsters to grow?
Of course, it would be impossible to unfold such a disaster on a single person, unless you are a founder that you only saw in your dreams.
Still, it must have been amazing to be able to gain that much power.
But at the same time, I had that thought.
This won’t be the end.
“I guess this is what made me learn the Relentless Seal.”
“right.”
“And the reason I had to move to General Dong’s location was to give him an adjustment period to get used to the cruel seal.”
A smile spread across Otto Han’s lips.
“That’s also true.”
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“It captures General Dong with the seal of cruelty… It definitely seems good. But you don’t say that. “With this, we can complete ‘winter.’”
Otto Hahn just smiled without answering.
But Elric could tell that it was an unspoken affirmation.
‘I guess General Dong is just a piece to complete ‘Winter’, like the Seal of Relentlessness. I’m really curious about what will happen once that ‘winter’ thing is completed.’
Elric felt good as he had more room to continue growing in the future.
“Then what should I do?”
“Take this first.”
Elric reflexively caught what Otto Hahn threw.
It was familiar to him too.
seed.
It was also a seed from the same camellia tree in which the camellia god rested.
“From now on, cultivate a garden, plant it, and let it sprout. “Once you take care of the tree carefully for 100 days and the tree grows and flowers bloom, the arrangement is complete.”
I didn’t know what the connection was between growing the camellia tree and taking the Dongjanggun, but that was something I would find out automatically once the mission was over.
But the problem was the content of the mission.
Planting and taking care of trees?
What are we supposed to do in this place where the land is so rotten that even normal trees can’t grow?
Besides, what does that have to do with taking General Dong?
“why? “Would it be difficult?”
Otto Hahn was so amused by the bewildered expression on his descendant’s face that he adjusted his glasses as if he were going to die.
Elric frowned without realizing it.
This damn ancestor is pretending to be decent and is concentrating on giving trouble to his descendants.
It was the same during the time of King Snow Mountain, but I wonder why all the arrangements made are like this.
‘Isn’t the third and fourth arrangement after this all going to be like this?’
I felt like the excitement I had about having a lot of room to grow in the future had waned.
“… “Please give me at least a hint.”
“Hehe! “If my dear descendant says that, I can’t help it.”
If anyone hears this, they will think that you are giving away something that should not be done out of your utmost care for your descendants.
While Elric was thinking like that, Otto Hahn spread his hands wide in the air.
Whihwihwi!
Then, a magic circle was carved beautifully in the air and shattered into pieces.
Summoning camp.
I looked at it quietly to see what it was trying to call.
[This is truly annoying. What are you calling it for again? I must have told you over and over again not to wake this woman up in this stinking place!]
As the summoning circle broke apart, a fairy with impressive light pink wings appeared, grunting.
“God of camellia?”
Is this what it meant to say that we would meet again?
However, for a moment I wondered whether this fairy could really be called the ‘God of Camellia’.
The appearance was clearly the same as that of Dongbaek.
But the presence it gave off was completely different.
The flower scent was much stronger, and the color it gave off was very intense. Although it was small, it felt like seeing a huge tree.
A tree so large that it could cover an entire forest, and even block out the entire sky!
At that moment, Elric realized.
The god of camellia before my eyes is the ‘real’ god of camellia.
He was not the god of the camellia, which had declined over and over again due to the continuing winter, with only the petals remaining. He was the god of the camellia, a sacred tree that stood tall even in the middle of winter, with leaves constantly clashing and flowers in full bloom.
Wouldn’t it be to this extent that he can be called a true god, as people say?
[hmm? But who is this handsome kid? How do you know the woman you saw?]
Instead of getting annoyed, the camellia god found Elric belatedly and immediately changed into a friendly attitude and smiled.
[The only flaw is that I don’t like the scent. Is it Mervinger?]
“I don’t like the scent. That hurts a bit. Say hello. “They are my descendants.”
Hearing Otto Han’s words, the Camellia God snorted and looked at Elric, saying, ‘I guess so.’
and.
‘… ‘The atmosphere has changed?’
For a moment, Elric could feel that the air surrounding the Camellia God had changed.
Although the power he exuded was still similar, his temperament was quite similar to that of the Camellia God he had awakened.
[…] hmm! You grow camellia trees? I’m sure you came up with something cute like this. But will you be able to do it, Ousden’s grandson? It wouldn’t be that easy to accomplish such a perverted mission.]
Elric did not know what he had done, but he was able to know that the God of Camellia had ‘crossed’ with the God of Camellia of modern times.
Data update? Should I express it that way?
Anyway, I had already heard that God exists beyond time and space, so it was not strange.
‘If it’s like this, it’s much easier for me to talk.’
Elric’s eyes sparkled.
“I am prepared. “It seems that our ancestors are telling us to prepare a home for the camellia god.”
[Uncharacteristically for a Mervinger, you are very perceptive. All of your ancestors only liked to do trickery and use tricks, and were not very sincere. But you seem a little different?]
Just like with Mephisto, the Camellia God did not hesitate to speak harshly even though Otto Hahn was right next to him.
Otto Hahn didn’t seem to care at all.
However, Elric somehow felt as if Dongbaek God’s eyes were turning snake-like when looking at him, but he pretended not to notice at all.
“So, I think I’ll have to borrow a lot of help from Dongbaek.”
[Looking at it this way, it appears that he is actually a descendant of Mervinger. Ho Ho! But unfortunately, the only thing she can do here is watch from the side and tell me the necessary things. It is up to you to find it yourself and take care of the tree.]
“That is enough.”
[He is a child who knows very well that he must take care of his own things.]
The camellia god was now openly appreciating his appetite. Elric pretended not to see this again.
Otto Hahn stepped forward.
“As Dongbaek said, you can grow trees by following the advice she gives.”
The rules of arrangement he explained were very simple.
first. The historical background of Anbae is that it was an era when the curse of the demon god was first created through a strange phenomenon called ‘General Dong’.
‘Otto Hahn lived more than a thousand years ago, so how can we create an environment from 400 years ago?’
I had that question, but the explanation continued.
second. The god of camellia is the guide for this arrangement.
third. 5 days, 10 days, 15 days, 30 days… In this way, the God of Camellia will tell you the materials and items you need, so you can get them and use them when you need them.
fourth. Even if this is an image world, it is the same environment as the ‘real’ black snowy field, so be prepared for monsters that may come out of nowhere.
and… .
“The fifth and most important thing is to travel all over the black snow field to obtain materials, but never leave the realm of 1,000.”
The black snow field is made up of 9 levels, and of these, only 3,000 were known to have been reached by humans.
No one knows what lies beyond.
This was because everyone died and could not come back.
“Has it been implemented up to that point?”
“okay.”
“You worked very hard.”
Elric didn’t bother to ask how that was possible.
-Because it’s Mervinger.
That answer would be enough.
“Anyway, there is absolutely no other help throughout the mission. Camellia is also a guide, but it only gives advice limited to ‘tree care’. “You’ll have to take care of the rest on your own, so pay close attention.”
“ha! All right.”
The difficulty of the first arrangement wasn’t that easy anyway.
Elric nodded that he understood, and Otto Han smiled.
“And finally, take this too.”
Elric caught what Otto Han threw and then tilted his head.
A square-shaped stone slab.
Other than the emblem symbolizing the family drawn at the top, there were no special features.
“What is this?”
“It’s ‘Messenger.’ With that, you can check the condition of the tree in real time. Other uses will become apparent later.”
“… ?”
Elric somehow felt that Otto Han’s smile was ominous.
So I tried to ask a question, but before I could, Otto Hahn took a step back.
“Then I wish you good luck.”
match!
A moment of light applause.
Clap!
That’s it…
With a sound as if gears were turning somewhere, time, which had stood still, began to turn again.
It was the beginning of the second arrangement.
Wizard who swallowed talent
