Don't mess with nature!

I fired another volley of leaves in answer. This time though I didn't use the rune to watch what happened. And there it was, a round object in the nobles pocket sent out a wave of fire that incinerated my leaves.

"Bragging based on an artifact, are we."

"What do you know! Holding an artifact is a qualification too. Now I will show you what it means to defy me."

I wasn't really scared of him. He might be able to burn my leaves but my body was far too dense to be burned by such a weak flame. These thoughts suddenly turned into pure terror. He wasn't walking towards me. He was going for my descendant!

'Hum?'

Not now. I needed to stop him.

I started to increase the barrage of leaf blades until they turned into a green current of death. This current of sharpness coursed straight at the noble and engaged the fire waves sent out by the artifact. Due to the nature of fire burning leaves, the artifact held a massive advantage. Even with these immense quantities, I couldn't muster enough power to overload the artifact.

Thus, I had to look as the noble slowly approached my sapling. Behind him, a charred pathway was left, proof of my fight with the scorching waves that defended him.

My tiny descendants just stood there, rooted to the ground. The little sapling barely reached the noble's knees.

Then the ax chopped down. It was swung by Erik! A gash appeared nearly cutting my sapling in half. Despite the apparent futility of it, I increased the green current's strength once again.

The ax was raised once again. That dreadful ax. In my mind, the descendant's voice had been reduced to a tiny whimper. And with a last wavering cry, the ax descended once again.

A lifeless sapling hit the ground. I lost it.

"BASTARDS! I'll end you!

Red mist began to spread through countless fractures from my body.

\u003c Skill [Bloodlust (active)] has been triggered. The host's emotional state is very unstable. Title [guardian of nature] has been triggered. Assessing trial method...

Trial method: lightning tribulation.

Hidden power [nature's wrath] has been triggered. Commencing operation...\u003e

Dark clouds covered the sky. The world was plunged into darkness. The only light, the red mist that was spreading furiously. The noble and his two accomplices froze up, engulfed by the tangible bloodlust.

Winds picked up, gales, whirlwinds, gust, and even small cyclones ravaged the forest. The wood of the town's houses creaked under the pressure and was hit by the first raindrops.

Far away from Utgard a powerful presence approached but by the time it got close, it was met by a spinning wall of water, reminding of a hurricane.

Thunder roared in the sky, purple lightning flashes flickered and lightly illuminated the eye of the storm.

The first lightning bolt struck the ground, it aimed for the petrified noble but was barely blocked by a powerful burst of flames.

A crack echoed the whole town. The artifact in the noble's pocket had collapsed under the lightning strike's power. His face twisted into a soundless cry of horror and despair as he saw the next lightning bolt.

He was hit directly and the lightning slowly scorched his body. Little arcs of lightning were left dancing over his corpse as it fell to the ground devoid of all life. Time seemed to stop for a few seconds...

The strong presence outside of the storm turned and headed back.

Erik took a step back. He was attempting to run but he had underestimated the power of the storm my boundless wrath had summoned.

The silence was broken by another lightning strike, followed by another and another. Thousands of lightning strikes fell and turned my surroundings into a charred hellscape.

The only thing left standing completely unharmed were me and my trees. The town was also mostly fine. It had been spared by the lightning. There were only a few wrecked houses that had been met with a cyclone.

\u003cYou have gained an affinity strong with lightning.\u003e

'Why? Why! WHY?!! I couldn't even save a single sapling.'

\u003cThat is your own fault. You have been warned multiple times and, had you not been holding back, you could have saved him.\u003e