Holy power spread through the ravine.

It was the power of the World Tree — the beginning of the world and the ruler of all life upon the earth.

"Tie......."

Tesetan, who had collapsed to the ground when the creatures of the abyss disappeared, curled in on himself.

With one hand, he clutched his torn shoulder, holding back a groan.

When he raised his head, he saw Tie in the distance.

His daughter, looking at the creature before her, was laughing brightly.

"A child... no......"

Tesetan stretched out his hand across the ground.

Gathering the remnants of his strength, he began to crawl across the battlefield littered with corpses.

A dark red trail of blood followed behind him.

"My daughter... no."

Could this be called luck.

The dragon that threatened the child had, at least, hidden its claws and fangs.

But that did not bring relief.

"The child...... give her back......"

No matter how far he crawled, Tie remained distant.

Stones, earth, and shattered bodies slowed him with every movement.

Tears streamed from his wide open eyes.

Unbearable pain tore through his wounded body.

But it was nothing

compared to the fear that he would not be able to hold his child.

Compared to that terror.

And at that moment—

"......Lady."

The dragon murmured, looking at the child.

Tesetan stopped without realizing it.

And then, before his eyes, an unbelievable sight unfolded.

A vast, radiant circle appeared around the child and the dragon.

Within the ring, where golden and dark blue light intertwined, unknown silhouettes began to manifest one after another.

'Souls......?'

While Tesetan struggled to comprehend what was happening—

"O king of the dead."

"Servant of death."

"The lord of the underworld calls."

The manifested spirits began to whisper in hundreds, thousands of voices.

On the verge of losing consciousness, Tesetan thought:

'The lord of the underworld?'

He had heard of it before.

More precisely — he had seen it in secret cult documents that had once leaked onto the Northern Continent.

He recalled the contents he had memorized and burned back then.

[In ancient times, when the world came into being, "life" and "death" came into opposition.]

But both life and death were absolutes.

When two absolutes clashed, the existence of the world became impossible.

In the end, they formed a pact of equilibrium.

An "ancient covenant," so that life and death could coexist and rule the world in harmony.

Blood flowed from Tesetan’s mouth.

But despite his fading pulse, his mind continued to recall.

[The lord of the underworld said: "O lord of Loxae. As long as you bloom, I will sustain you from the depths of the forgotten land."]

The lord of the underworld proclaimed the division of the two worlds.

It was a voluntary establishment of a relationship of service and alliance.

The World Tree, having obtained dominion over the land, extended six branches.

And entrusted them to the great spirits to govern life.

Meanwhile, the lord of the underworld ruled the afterlife.

But a problem arose.

The world was divided, and life and death no longer influenced one another.

Yet life leads to death, and death leads to life.

It is a cycle.

The lord of the underworld pondered and made a decision.

To create his representative, a loyal servant, and give it the name "king of the dead."

The king of the dead — the representative of the lord of the underworld.

The one who governs death and guides souls to the afterlife.

He could pass between the worlds,

and therefore was loved by the World Tree.

A mark of the covenant.

Proof of harmony.

A link.

That was what the king of the dead was.

"O king of the dead."

"Representative of the lord."

More and more spirits appeared.

They circled around Astie and Lucarion, repeating the same words.

Tesetan’s head fell to the ground.

With his cheek in a pool of blood, he looked at Astie.

'Astie.......'

His heavy eyelids slowly opened and closed.

Was it because of his wounds?

Or because it was becoming harder to connect the knowledge surfacing in his mind.

Why the spirits had appeared here.

Why they were repeating the same words. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Who they were calling the king of the dead — the creature or the child.

"We shall become the sword for the one who stands above Lady, for the source of power."

"We will shed blood for her."

A long breath escaped his lips.

The child he could not reach laughed.

For some unknown reason, she laughed happily as she looked at the dragon.

'Should I be relieved?'

At least for now, the child was safe.

But at the moment the last color drained from Tesetan’s face—

Kwang—!

The sky flashed, and everything darkened.

He slowly turned his head.

The gathered clouds began to pour heavy drops of rain.

And beyond them, there was something.

"The power of the tree......."

"Find."

"Find."

"Find and pursue to the end."

At first, it seemed like mist.

But it was not mist.

Creatures the size of a finger, resembling insects, flooded into the ravine.

Thousands, tens of thousands of wings buzzed, and everything was instantly covered in gray ash.

"The underworld is open. The power of the king of the dead is sensed nearby."

"Find."

"Search."

"Search."

Bulging eyes scanned the space.

Seeing the poison seeping through the air, Tesetan forced himself to stay conscious.

All the plants on the rocks began to wither rapidly.

He understood.

If they were discovered — death.

He no longer cared about himself.

But—

"......Astie must not."

His small daughter.

She had to be protected at any cost.

"Astie!"

Gathering inhuman strength, he crawled again.

One arm had already gone numb, so he moved using the other.

"Astie—!!"

The dragon holding the child turned its head first.

The same fear was reflected in its crimson eyes.

Time seemed to slow.

And within that slowing, the dragon whispered:

"......must protect."

Tesetan breathed heavily.

Just a little more.

Just a little, and he would reach her.

The dragon looked up at the sky.

"But how......."

Spirits circled around them «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» restlessly.

"Lady is in danger."

"We must flee."

"He is pursuing."

Three steps remained.

Just a little more, and he would be able to reach Astie.

Lucarion looked at Tie in his arms.

"There is nowhere to hide from his gaze......."

At that moment, Lucarion’s gaze fell upon the glowing seed of the World Tree in Tie’s chest.

He sharply inhaled.

"......if we use this power, perhaps......"

In the next moment, Tesetan grabbed his ankle.

At the same time, scales appeared across Lucarion’s body.

A second later—

a blinding flash engulfed the entire ravine.

Light, enough to blind, sharply contracted into a single point—

and—

Bang—!

burst outward, filling everything with white.

Tesetan abruptly opened his eyes.

"......Deputy Leader?"

His cheeks were lit by a lantern.

Green eyes filled with worry looked down at him.

A small hand shook Tesetan, who lay on the ground.

"Deputy Leader, are you okay? Does it hurt?"

Disheveled hair.

The child nervously placed a hand on his forehead.

"A fever......?"

Tesetan slowly inhaled.

As his eyes opened, fragments of memory rushed into his mind.

They assembled into a whole.

Familiar landscapes, familiar voices.

The child’s face, the warm hand, the name that always sounded the same.

"......Tie."

A weak groan slipped from his lips.

Astie tilted her head.

Tesetan suddenly pulled her into his arms.

Tie’s eyes widened.

"I’m sorry, I’m sorry......"

At his voice, the child froze and lifted her head.

Tears streaming down Tesetan’s cheeks fell onto her hand.

"It’s so clear...... then why......"

Tie went still.

For a moment, she looked at him in silence.

And then, quietly, barely audibly, she said:

"......Papa?"