It's after school. Neloufa and I are supposed to have a rehearsal for our upcoming performance, but due to an urgent matter that I need to attend to today, I ask Neloufa to go ahead without me and tell the Opera House that I will be late and may not even join today's rehearsal. Neloufa doesn't really ask why, but she can tell that I'm about to do something secretive, so she just smiles and asks me to take care of myself. I get the feeling she doesn't want me to go, maybe because she's afraid I'll be missing again. Not to worry, I told her, because Brother Sas, Master Merlin and Grandma Farhah will be there with me, along with
"Such a cute doll!" [Farhah]
"It really looks like her" [Farhana].
"I am! I am!" [Doll Diana]
"And this Jester Bone, it's scary to know that a dungeon boss is talking to us..." [Elegast]
"Don't worry, you're with Master Diana today, so I wouldn't control your mind to strip you naked, or control the puppet in this dungeon to beat you" [Jester Bone].
"Your curse seems purified, more so than the last time I saw you" [Merlin].
"Probably because I am always with The Hanging Treant" [Jester Bone]
"True, The Hanging Treant has begun to radiate Divine Mana more and more" [Calypso].
"Master did? Well, not surprising. His Divine Mana was already strong when I was his apprentice" [Farhah].
"Can we take it as proof that he's a step closer to becoming a World Tree?" [Sas]
"Hard to say. I have to see my master first" [Farhah].
"Hanging Treant is further down. Let's go, go, go!" [Diana]
"Meow!" [Fie]
As we descend further into the dungeon, Calypso comments that my clothes and wand are stronger. I tell her, along with the doll and Jester Bone, about my recent "trip" to the Elven Kingdom.
"That wicked Dyrad! If I catch her, I'll make her a dyrad for Hanging Treant and lock her up forever!" [Calypso]
"That's... Actually, that's not a bad idea. It creates a spell that connects two forests, maybe it can be a useful dyrad for the master" [Farhah].
"All the more reason to get closer to the group of elves who kidnapped Diana" [Sas].
"How did Alagast manage to form a bond with this dyrad?" [Farhana]
"Honestly, he is the weakest among us, but for a powerful dyrad to cooperate with him, something big must have happened" [Elegast].
"I couldn't feel THE THING back then, so I'm sure it wasn't because of it" [Diana].
"I was there too, like Diana said, we can rule out THE THING this time" [Merlin].
"Which makes this even more mysterious" [Elegast].
And as we enter the floor that houses The Hanging Treant, I can sense a divine mana similar to that emanating from Saintess Rumia and Grandma Farhah. The Hanging Treant is also getting bigger!
"Mr. Hanging Treant! You look divine!" [Diana]
"Welcome... It's been a while, my disciples. I hope the world is treating you well" [Hanging Treant].
"Master, it has been so long... Since they killed and hanged you... Master... Master... Sob..." [Farhah]
"Mother..." [Farhana, Elegast]
"Mother? I see... To think that the day will come when I can see your children. Truly, a blessing for me to possess a Treant back then" [Hanging Treant].
The former saint of the elves, Grandma Farhah's master, who was unjustly persecuted by the elves, was hanged on a treant and possessed it, which is currently in the process of becoming a second world tree. The old man's face is still there on it trunk. Will it disappear once it becomes a World Tree? I hope not. I would like to continue the conversation with Hanging Treant. He's kind and has a lot of wisdom to teach me.
Grandmother Farhah talked about what happened to her after she became the World Tree Priestess. She talked about her arranged marriage to Iligast, as per the orders of their parents and, surprisingly, the decision of the Elven Council during her time. She said she's fine with the marriage, but as they drift apart more and more as Iligast becomes more greedy with power, her problems start to pile up more and more. The more I hear about it, the more I get angry with him! I may call Grandma Farhah my grandma, but I certainly wouldn't call him my grandfather! Not in a million years!
"Your divine mana, it's the same warmth as before, but... That alone wouldn't be enough for you to become a World Tree, as I'm sure you already know" [Farhah].
"Right, so I need the World Tree itself to be connected to me" [Hanging Treant].
"We have already asked the Adamantoise to find the Durant Ant Group so that they can build a tunnel to connect you and the World Tree. We also plan to capture a powerful dyrad to serve you one day" [Diana].
"This is indeed good, but I would like to request two more things" [Hanging Treant].
"Please tell me" [Farhah].
"Since Calypso wanted new fairies to be born out of me, it would be better if I had a fairy spring near me, and it would also be good if this floor was a realm similar to the World Tree" [Hanging Treant].
"That's a really tall order" [Sas].
"Fairy spring... Do I have to give my blood or something..." [Diana]
I mean, I wouldn't mind, since I'm sure Hanging Treant means no harm to me. I wonder how much of my blood will be spilled? That's scary.
"I think I can provide a solution to this. At least, the basis of the solution" [Merlin].
"As expected from Master Merlin!" [Diana]
"Master Merlin really does know everything!" [Doll Diana]
"The greatest witch of all time!" [Jester Bone]
"We love you for your greatness!" [Calypso]
"Now, now, praise me more!" [Merlin]
"MEOW!" [Fie]
"Hehe, good. Good. The solution isn't quite straightforward, but basically, for the spring, how about the divine water near the Sea Ark guarded by the mermaid, and mix it with some of Diana's blood. As for the realm, we can ask Walpurgis to help us" [Merlin].
"That's definitely better than drying my blood" [Diana].
"Question, can't you create your own realm? You're the most powerful space magic user I know" [Sas]
"I'm good at it, and I can probably think of something, but even I have to admit that I'm not the best space magic user in the world. As for why we need Walpurgis' help, she can swallow an entire moon if necessary, so I'm sure her idea and method will be better than mine. After all, I am a witch first and foremost. My expertise is more in the realm of the soul" [Merlin].
Now then, the question remains
"Where are those two?" [Farhana]
"At this point, even I'm not sure. It's been a long time since I last saw them. The Ark was moved when the Mermaid King and Queen of the Ancient Past ordered it to be moved for fear of the Devil King. As for Walpurgis, all we can do is pray and hope. Maybe Saintess Rumia can help by asking the Goddess, but I'm sure Walpurgis will ask the Goddess not to reveal her location" [Merlin].
"This is difficult" [Diana].
"We are helping Master to become a World Tree, so it was never easy to start with my dear Diana" [Farhah].
It's after school. Neloufa and I are supposed to have a rehearsal for our upcoming performance, but due to an urgent matter that I need to attend to today, I ask Neloufa to go ahead without me and tell the Opera House that I will be late and may not even join today's rehearsal. Neloufa doesn't really ask why, but she can tell that I'm about to do something secretive, so she just smiles and asks me to take care of myself. I get the feeling she doesn't want me to go, maybe because she's afraid I'll be missing again. Not to worry, I told her, because Brother Sas, Master Merlin and Grandma Farhah will be there with me, along with
"Such a cute doll!" [Farhah]
"It really looks like her" [Farhana].
"I am! I am!" [Doll Diana]
"And this Jester Bone, it's scary to know that a dungeon boss is talking to us..." [Elegast]
"Don't worry, you're with Master Diana today, so I wouldn't control your mind to strip you naked, or control the puppet in this dungeon to beat you" [Jester Bone].
"Your curse seems purified, more so than the last time I saw you" [Merlin].
"Probably because I am always with The Hanging Treant" [Jester Bone]
"True, The Hanging Treant has begun to radiate Divine Mana more and more" [Calypso].
"Master did? Well, not surprising. His Divine Mana was already strong when I was his apprentice" [Farhah].
"Can we take it as proof that he's a step closer to becoming a World Tree?" [Sas]
"Hard to say. I have to see my master first" [Farhah].
"Hanging Treant is further down. Let's go, go, go!" [Diana]
"Meow!" [Fie]
As we descend further into the dungeon, Calypso comments that my clothes and wand are stronger. I tell her, along with the doll and Jester Bone, about my recent "trip" to the Elven Kingdom.
"That wicked Dyrad! If I catch her, I'll make her a dyrad for Hanging Treant and lock her up forever!" [Calypso]
"That's... Actually, that's not a bad idea. It creates a spell that connects two forests, maybe it can be a useful dyrad for the master" [Farhah].
"All the more reason to get closer to the group of elves who kidnapped Diana" [Sas].
"How did Alagast manage to form a bond with this dyrad?" [Farhana]
"Honestly, he is the weakest among us, but for a powerful dyrad to cooperate with him, something big must have happened" [Elegast].
"I couldn't feel THE THING back then, so I'm sure it wasn't because of it" [Diana].
"I was there too, like Diana said, we can rule out THE THING this time" [Merlin].
"Which makes this even more mysterious" [Elegast].
And as we enter the floor that houses The Hanging Treant, I can sense a divine mana similar to that emanating from Saintess Rumia and Grandma Farhah. The Hanging Treant is also getting bigger!
"Mr. Hanging Treant! You look divine!" [Diana]
"Welcome... It's been a while, my disciples. I hope the world is treating you well" [Hanging Treant].
"Master, it has been so long... Since they killed and hanged you... Master... Master... Sob..." [Farhah]
"Mother..." [Farhana, Elegast]
"Mother? I see... To think that the day will come when I can see your children. Truly, a blessing for me to possess a Treant back then" [Hanging Treant].
The former saint of the elves, Grandma Farhah's master, who was unjustly persecuted by the elves, was hanged on a treant and possessed it, which is currently in the process of becoming a second world tree. The old man's face is still there on it trunk. Will it disappear once it becomes a World Tree? I hope not. I would like to continue the conversation with Hanging Treant. He's kind and has a lot of wisdom to teach me.
Grandmother Farhah talked about what happened to her after she became the World Tree Priestess. She talked about her arranged marriage to Iligast, as per the orders of their parents and, surprisingly, the decision of the Elven Council during her time. She said she's fine with the marriage, but as they drift apart more and more as Iligast becomes more greedy with power, her problems start to pile up more and more. The more I hear about it, the more I get angry with him! I may call Grandma Farhah my grandma, but I certainly wouldn't call him my grandfather! Not in a million years!
"Your divine mana, it's the same warmth as before, but... That alone wouldn't be enough for you to become a World Tree, as I'm sure you already know" [Farhah].
"Right, so I need the World Tree itself to be connected to me" [Hanging Treant].
"We have already asked the Adamantoise to find the Durant Ant Group so that they can build a tunnel to connect you and the World Tree. We also plan to capture a powerful dyrad to serve you one day" [Diana].
"This is indeed good, but I would like to request two more things" [Hanging Treant].
"Please tell me" [Farhah].
"Since Calypso wanted new fairies to be born out of me, it would be better if I had a fairy spring near me, and it would also be good if this floor was a realm similar to the World Tree" [Hanging Treant].
"That's a really tall order" [Sas].
"Fairy spring... Do I have to give my blood or something..." [Diana]
I mean, I wouldn't mind, since I'm sure Hanging Treant means no harm to me. I wonder how much of my blood will be spilled? That's scary.
"I think I can provide a solution to this. At least, the basis of the solution" [Merlin].
"As expected from Master Merlin!" [Diana]
"Master Merlin really does know everything!" [Doll Diana]
"The greatest witch of all time!" [Jester Bone]
"We love you for your greatness!" [Calypso]
"Now, now, praise me more!" [Merlin]
"MEOW!" [Fie]
"Hehe, good. Good. The solution isn't quite straightforward, but basically, for the spring, how about the divine water near the Sea Ark guarded by the mermaid, and mix it with some of Diana's blood. As for the realm, we can ask Walpurgis to help us" [Merlin].
"That's definitely better than drying my blood" [Diana].
"Question, can't you create your own realm? You're the most powerful space magic user I know" [Sas]
"I'm good at it, and I can probably think of something, but even I have to admit that I'm not the best space magic user in the world. As for why we need Walpurgis' help, she can swallow an entire moon if necessary, so I'm sure her idea and method will be better than mine. After all, I am a witch first and foremost. My expertise is more in the realm of the soul" [Merlin].
Now then, the question remains
"Where are those two?" [Farhana]
"At this point, even I'm not sure. It's been a long time since I last saw them. The Ark was moved when the Mermaid King and Queen of the Ancient Past ordered it to be moved for fear of the Devil King. As for Walpurgis, all we can do is pray and hope. Maybe Saintess Rumia can help by asking the Goddess, but I'm sure Walpurgis will ask the Goddess not to reveal her location" [Merlin].
"This is difficult" [Diana].
"We are helping Master to become a World Tree, so it was never easy to start with my dear Diana" [Farhah].
