chsdbacks Chapter 28 The Tree Man and the Outsider
Chapter 28 The Tree Man and the Outsider
Deep in the mountains, in the forests of the people.
It takes a whole day just to walk from Sapphire Bay to here.
Along the way, Allen heard about Viola's situation from Solina.
After gaining the favor of the Treants, Viola has been staying in the Treant Forest for some time now.
Recently, perhaps having gained the trust of the Tree People, she was invited to participate in a ceremony inside the Tree People's Forest.
Solina thought it would be over soon, but that wasn't the case.
She discovered that after Viola entered, the Treant Forest completely sealed off, and powerful magic was constantly surging within it.
Although Solina could sense through the connection between the twins that Viola was probably alright, she couldn't help but feel a little worried.
After thinking it over, he called Allen to come and take a look at the Tree People Woodland.
On the way, Allen tried to communicate with Viola through the telepathic connection of the [Followers] and received a reply that although the situation was unclear, it was still safe.
With this news, Solina felt much more at ease.
As the two approached the Tree People Forest, they also noticed some changes in the area.
The air by the sea often carries a salty, fishy smell, but the air around them becomes increasingly moist and fresh.
The path, which was not difficult to walk before, was now covered with bushes and thorns.
Even the stone surface was covered with a thick layer of moss overnight, as if everything was full of vitality.
When Allen and Solina arrived, they found that the Tree People Forest had already been completely sealed off.
The entire forest was completely sealed off by a living barrier woven from giant trees and vines.
Upon closer inspection, the twisted and intertwined old branches are layered together without leaving a single gap.
The vines spread wildly among the tree trunks, like green chains, binding all the branches tightly, making it impossible for any living thing to pass through.
Towering, thick, and impenetrable, it's like a city wall.
Even outside the woods, Allen and Solina could feel the abundant magic floating in the air, a life force so pure and pristine.
Looking into the woods, the canopy of that towering ancient tree was so large that it almost blocked out half the sky.
A pale green halo continuously emerged from the top of the tree canopy, rising and dispersing slowly like morning mist, enveloping the entire Treeman Forest.
That magic was vast and ancient, beating slowly like the heart of the entire forest.
Unable to enter the high walls, Allen and Solina had no choice but to stop on the outside and wait quietly for the ceremony to end.
They waited for three whole days.
Over the course of three days, Allen would occasionally communicate with Viola telepathically, and each time he received a reply that everything was fine, so the two of them waited patiently.
Three days later, Allen and Solina discovered that the life magic emanating from the forest was gradually fading, and the huge canopy in the center of the forest had fallen silent again.
"Crunch... crunch..."
After waiting for a long time, the tree-man's branches slowly retracted, and the wooden wall that sealed off the tree-man forest gradually dismantled.
However, Allen and Solina still did not approach rashly, because the red dragon bloodline that wields fire and destruction is one of the most hated auras for the Treant race.
"Thump...thump..."
Heavy, slow footsteps came from deep within the woods.
With each step, the ground trembled slightly, and a huge figure slowly emerged from the woods.
"Ellen! Solina! I'm here!"
A clear, cheerful voice floated out first.
A tree-man with its branches hanging down its arms steadily carried a slender figure as they strolled out.
Viola sat on the tree-man's broad shoulders, her hands gently resting on its rough branches.
Upon seeing Allen and Solina waiting outside, the girl slightly raised her chin, a smug smile curving her lips, revealing her undisguised pride and joy.
The tree-man stopped steadily in front of the two, and Viola gently leaped down from the tree trunk.
"Look at me! How's that? Pretty impressive, right?"
Only when he got closer did Allen notice the changes in Viola.
The original animal skin clothing disappeared, replaced by a long dress woven from bright green leaves and vines.
The leaves overlapped layer upon layer, stretching naturally along her body, thin and close-fitting, as if they had grown out of her body.
Most striking was the emerald green branch crown that Viola wore on her head.
It was filled with abundant life magic, just like the aura of the treant.
It must be said that this outfit truly reminded Allen of the elven appearance he had imagined in his previous life, possessing a unique beauty that blended seamlessly with nature.
Allen checked Viola's panel and found that she had indeed undergone many changes.
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
【Name: Viola - Star Chaser】
[Race: Half-elf]
Age: 16
[Character Template: Elite]
[Alliance: Lawful Good]
[Level: Ancient Tree Priest lv1 / Fire Elementalist lv2]
Status: Normal
[Special: The Twins]
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
On the character panel, Viola clearly has the class of [Ancient Tree Priest].
This must be what she gained from participating in the ceremony.
Seeing Allen's surprised look, Viola puffed out her chest, her smugness growing even stronger.
She has always relied on her sister Solina and Allen for protection. Although she tries her best not to be a burden, whether it is escaping, traveling, hunting or other matters, she always has to be the one who needs protection because of her limited abilities.
Now that she can finally contribute to the construction of her home, her joy is palpable.
So before Solina could even ask, Viola took the initiative to explain the whole story of the ceremony.
Viola had been trying to build a good relationship with the tree people, and the progress was so smooth that even she was a little surprised.
But ordinary tree people can't speak, and she can only sense their affection, but she doesn't know why.
She only learned the truth when she was taken to meet the ancient tree elder deep in the forest.
It turns out that these tree people were born in ancient times under the influence of magic from an elven kingdom, and their numbers once covered one-third of the kingdom's territory.
Later, the Elf Kingdom was destroyed, and the elves crossed the Sea of Horrors to the south to rebuild their new home.
The tree people, having lost the magical nourishment of the elves, gradually declined and died.
This small group of tree people relied on the nourishment of an ancient magical node underground, which gave birth to a powerful ancient tree elder who protects the group of tree people.
However, due to the limited magical range of the magic nodes, they also lack the ability to revive.
Therefore, the tree people felt very close to Viola, who possessed elven blood, upon her arrival.
On the one hand, it's because the Treants and the Elves are natural allies with a symbiotic relationship, and on the other hand, it's because Viola has good aptitude.
Therefore, the Elder Tree specially held a "Nature's Chosen One Oath Ceremony" for her, helping her gain the ability to communicate with the magic of life.
In this way, if Viola can become stronger, her natural magic can also nourish the Treant Forest, allowing the Treant race to grow stronger once again.
Upon hearing this, Solina was naturally delighted by Viola's opportunity and pulled Viola aside to ask about the details. The two sisters chattered on and on.
Allen, however, thought about it more deeply.
He had been hesitant about whether to enhance Viola's path to "Descendant of the Ancient Tree," but now that Viola has directly taken on the advanced class "Ancient Tree Priest" of "Descendant of the Ancient Tree," he no longer has to worry about it.
However, as an advanced class, the Ancient Tree Priest is likely to be much more difficult to progress than the basic classes.
Furthermore, due to the conflict between their bloodlines and magical attributes, it becomes even more difficult for Solina and Viola to learn from each other.
Previously, Viola was a blank slate and could learn the fire elemental magic techniques that Solina taught her, but now the difficulty of learning them has increased.
As a result, Solina and Viola's "Twins" talent still cannot reach its maximum effect.
Therefore, both Solina and Viola need a profession or bloodline that can "neutralize" their magical attributes, allowing their strength to grow exponentially.
Unfortunately, he doesn't yet have the materials to unleash this ability.
Allen suddenly realized that he had one more thing to do.
However, he didn't dwell on it for the time being, since Viola's gaining the Treant's approval was something to be more pleased about.
"Viola, regarding what I told you about letting the tree people join us, does the Ancient Tree Elder agree?"
"Of course!"
Viola said smugly,
"The tree people have always wanted to expand, so of course they'd like to join us!"
At this point, Viola's smug expression softened somewhat:
"However... they can't take root in places without a source of magic, so the ancient tree elder said that only a small portion of the tree people can help us, and they have to come back every now and then to rotate a batch and replenish their magic."
"This is already very good."
Allen nodded; he was very satisfied with the result.
The tree people are slow-moving and better at defensive warfare. They are not expected to actually hunt or attack, and it would be good enough if they could form a defensive line for their current territory.
Moreover, the tree people are tall and incredibly strong, and with their help in building future [territory] structures, the construction speed will definitely increase significantly.
At least they no longer have to exploit the short kobolds to move huge rocks—compared to their size.
It made Allen feel like he was a pharaoh exploiting slaves.
Once he builds structures that can store magic, these tree-people will be able to expand their territory at will and become Allen's true "defense towers".
As Allen and his two companions returned, Viola brought along a dozen or so tree-people, creating a large and imposing procession that startled countless birds and beasts along the way.
……
On the howling sea, the sea breeze, carrying water mist, relentlessly battered three dilapidated merchant ships.
The three ships were in very poor condition, with several charred marks on their hulls, suggesting they had been through gunfire.
The sails were tattered and drooping, and the mast was leaning precariously, looking completely unusable.
Even the sea god statue carved on the prow was damaged, which continued to dampen the morale of the sailors on board.
The captain was a weathered middle-aged man wearing a worn-out leather overcoat. He gazed at the coastline that was gradually appearing in the distance, his brows furrowed.
"Captain... we must go ashore. We've run out of fresh water and food, and we need to repair the hull, otherwise our ship will sink in two days!"
The speaker was the boatswain; his voice wasn't loud, but it was enough to attract the sailors' attention.
The captain didn't speak, but his first mate explained:
"Although we escaped the pirates' encirclement, they are definitely still searching for us in the surrounding waters. If we land carelessly, they will surely find us."
"Damn the Kuroshio Trading Company! The pirates they sponsor are nothing but barnacle scum, specializing in attacking merchant ships that threaten their monopoly..."
A tall, thin sailor spat, leaning against the swaying gunwale, cursing the pirates and the merchant guild behind them.
"May they soon perish in the wrath of Charondir!"
Calondil was a sea god widely worshipped by sailors, whose divine role was to control the unpredictable nature of the sea's raging waves and tsunamis.
The statue of Calondil was originally carved on the prow of their ship, but it was destroyed in a pirate attack.
Although the sailors temporarily understood the decision not to dock, the declining morale and despair quickly spread throughout the ship.
The first mate noticed this and, after dismissing the sailors, quietly expressed his concerns to the captain.
The first mate's concerns were also what the captain had been pondering.
"Tom, I remember there was an abandoned harbor in this area, right?"
"Captain, you mean that cursed one..."
"Yes, Sapphire Bay. It's said that after the fall of the Kingdom of Ono, it was the harbor that was cursed and all traces of it were erased."
The captain's voice was hoarse and weary.
"Let's go there; the pirates won't dare linger around here."
"But……"
The captain said in a deep voice, "There's no other way. We've run out of ammunition and food, and the ships are badly damaged. We simply can't hold out until we reach the next port."
"Sapphire Bay may be abandoned, and we don't know if the curse exists, but at least there are shallows where we can moor, shelter from the wind, and replenish our fresh water. We might be able to repair our boats for a while, since a boat without a mast can't sail for long."
Tom opened his mouth, but he understood what the captain meant.
They had nowhere to go, whether they were entangled in a curse whose existence was unknown, or killed by the pirates who were almost certain to catch up...
I don't know which ending is more despairing.
"May our humble figures still remain amidst the aftermath of the raging storm stirred up by Calondir."
Tom instinctively offered a prayer, then turned to relay the captain's orders.
He knew that the captain's long explanation wasn't meant for him, but rather for him to relay to the sailors below.
Otherwise, the sailors might refuse to enter the bay.
Therefore, he had to pretend to be confident and certain enough to intimidate them.
Tom patted his face, which had become increasingly stiff from being exposed to the sea breeze for so long, and tried to appear confident as he walked into the cabin where the sailors were.
……
A moment later, the sailors filed out and went about their tasks.
Despite their lingering concerns, they all acquiesced to the decision, as they had no other choice at the moment.
The merchant ship slowly changed course and gradually approached the shallow waters of Sapphire Bay.
The seawater gradually became shallower, and the clear sea surface was calm, a rare sight on Xiaofeng's sea.
In this calm, everyone gradually felt somewhat relieved.
Perhaps the legendary curse is just a rumor?
But just as the boat was getting closer to the shallows, the sea suddenly began to churn.
"Splash—!"
The calm water surface suddenly shattered as one after another, fiddler crabs with hard, bluish-brown shells and sharp, enormous pincers leaped out of the water.
They swung their giant pincers and rammed into the merchant ship's hull, the dull thuds and ferocious roars echoing across the sea.
"Oh no! It's the Fiddler Crabs! How could these barbarian sea creatures be in the shallows!"
"Quick, grab your weapons! They're trying to climb onto the boat!"
The sailors on deck were instantly thrown into chaos, hastily grabbing their knives and spears to defend themselves, and in the ensuing chaos, they became entangled in a fierce battle with the swarming crabmen.
"Get ashore quickly! They won't be able to catch us once we're on land!"
Under emergency command, the merchant ship struggled to break through the encirclement of the crab people and barely made it to the beach. The crew abandoned ship in a sorry state and went ashore, wanting only to get away from the threat at sea as soon as possible.
But as soon as they stepped onto the land of Sapphire Bay, before they could even catch their breath, a series of soft, dense footsteps echoed from behind the bushes and rocks around them.
A pair of eerie green vertical pupils lit up from the shadows.
To their despair, they watched as hordes of kobolds, wielding stone axes and wooden spears, crouched low and menacing, surrounding the caravan and trapping it completely on the beach.