Chapter 147 - 49

The world tree is a symbol of the Elven Kingdom. It's the source of life and strength for the elves who live in the kingdom. But none of the elves knew that the world tree was currently under someone else's control. The person who did it was one of the divine race that came to that kingdom.

Currently, Ziel is in front of the world tree together with Kalya and Laurel. He had arrived a while ago but had not done anything. He just silently looked at the world tree's roots, to be more precise, what was in the soil beneath those roots. Kalya and Laurel could only be silent and did not dare to make the slightest sound for fear of disturbing Ziel's concentration.

Not long after that, Ziel walked towards the right side under the world tree. He strolled so that the world tree would not consider him an enemy when approaching it. Ziel suddenly raised his fist and swung it to the ground right under his feet.

Booooommmmmmmm!

Booooommmmmmmm!

Booooommmmmmmm!

Ziel pounded the ground beneath his feet continuously. The area around the world tree shook violently. He took out his black sword and plunged it into the ground. A semicircular barrier of his black sword ability formed to protect him. The roots of the world tree suddenly moved to attack Ziel. Tree's roots that were like spearheads stabbed him. But once the tree's root touched the barrier surface of the black sword, it turned to dust and so on with the other tree's root.

The leaves of the world tree began to fall from Ziel's blow, and the vibrations around him grew more assertive as Ziel increased the amount of power in his blows. Not long after, someone's angry scream was heard from the ground beneath Ziel's feet.

"Who dares to mess in my place!?" That person didn't emerge from the ground under Ziel's feet but from the trunk of the world tree.

Kalya and Laurel tremble after hearing that voice, especially for Kalya. He is the one who forced Kalya to run away from her hometown for years.

The person who appeared from the trunk of the world tree was a young man with whitish silver hair that was neatly tied in the middle and wore glasses in one eye. He was wearing the white lab coat that scientists usually wear.

He is Crossel, one of the 5 main gods in the divine temple who uses the embodiment of the silver statue in every divine race meeting.

When Crossel saw Ziel under the world tree, he frowned. Crossel didn't expect the person who caused the earthquake in his laboratory under the world tree to be a human, let alone a boy.

"Who are you? I never saw you in this kingdom before. Ah, don't tell me you're one of the humans from the academy in the report?" Crossel stared intently at Ziel and examined him from head to toe.

"You're finally out of your nest. I wouldn't have to do such a troublesome thing if you didn't live under the world tree." Ziel said indifferently. He didn't answer any of the questions asked by Crossel.

Crossel frowned after hearing Ziel's words. Crossel ignores him and looks at Kalya and Laurel standing not far behind Ziel.

"Ooh, isn't this Princess Cattleya? We haven't seen each other in a long time, Princess." Crossel smiled broadly to greet Kalya.

"Who are you? Could you not act as you know me? You are just an ignorant bastard who came to invade the Elven Kingdom." Kalya answered his greeting coldly.

"Hahaha…I've never invaded this kingdom. I only cooperate with the people who are hereAfter everything is done, I will immediately leave the Elven Kingdom. Coincidentally, I was running out of experimental subjects, and you came to hand yourself over to me." Crossel wasn't angry with Kalya's words. He laughed happily because Kalya had come to that place.

"What are you saying, bastard!?" Kalya gets irritated after hearing his words. Crossel treated the elves like an item. When he doesn't need it anymore, he throws it away.

"You should be honored to be able to serve us, Divine Race. Wouldn't it be the duty of the lower races to serve the higher races? The same goes for you too." Crossel disappeared and reappeared in front of Kalya. He stretched out his hand and intended to strangle Kalya. Crossel's sudden action took Laurel by surprise. She didn't have time to react because Crossel movements were so fast. But Kalya's reaction was different. She looked calm when she saw Crossel's hand that was approaching her.

Before Crossel's hand could touch Kalya, someone first grabbed Crossel's wrist.

"How long are you going to ignore me?" Ziel said coldly to him.

Crossel was surprised because he didn't feel Ziel move from where he was standing before but suddenly was beside him. Moreover, Crossel couldn't let go of Ziel's grip on his hand.

When he intended to increase his strength and forcefully break free from Ziel's grip, a fist was already in front of his eyes.

Booooommmm!

Crossel was blown away and crashed into the trunk of the world tree he had appeared in earlier.

"Leya, you don't need to argue with him anymore. Step back. Let him be my business. I have to finish him quickly.

Kalya raises her eyebrows at Ziel's words. She felt like he was in a race against time. Kalya is curious, but she decides to ask him later.

"Okay." Kalya nodded and left the place together with Laurel.

"I seem to have underestimated you. You're stronger than I thought." Crossel stood up and dusted off his clothes. He still maintains his composure even though he just got hit by Ziel.

"Don't you talk too much?" Ziel doesn't want to waste time with him. He had heard from Lilith that the silver statue was in charge of the mission in the Elven Kingdom. Lilith also told him that silver statues were primarily silent during meetings in divine temples. But somehow, Ziel saw that he was the one who was actively talking at the moment.

"You're starting to piss me off, kid!" Crossel's face became gloomy after Ziel said that. He indirectly felt insinuated by his words.

Crossel swung his hand at Ziel. Ordinary people would only see that it wasn't a dangerous move. But Ziel knows that his hands are covered in a highly dense divine power. Not only that, Crossel's hand changed shape into a dragon's claw all of a sudden.

[Dragon slash]

Five claws formed from the compression of divine power shot towards Ziel at high speed. Ziel did a horizontal slash in response to the attack.

[Orbit Slash]

The five claws were cut off instantly, and Ziel's slashes continued to shoot towards Crossel.

Crossel frowned as his attacks were easily cut through. Not only that, Ziel's attack didn't even decrease in strength after colliding with his attack.

Crossel took out iron wings from his back and used them to block Ziel's attack.

"You… Are you using yourself as an experimental subject? I feel I know that power. Were you the one who experimented on the dark elves named Ashil and Asbil?" Ziel remembers the power used by Ashil and Asbil. They were the dark elves from the divine race experiment he defeated in the Argaint Kingdom. Ziel felt the same vibration as the force used by Crossel.

"Eh? Do you know that failed subject? Wait a minute. You are the one who foiled our plans in the Argaint Kingdom?" Crossel narrowed his eyes at Ziel. Right now, he looked even more alert than before.

"Possibly." Ziel gave a vague answer. He charged forward to attack Crossel Ziel appeared in front of him in the blink of an eye and instantly slashed his black sword.

Crossel quickly turned his left hand into a shield to block Ziel's slash and turned his right hand into a large scythe to counterattack him. But Ziel easily parried his attack. Ziel keeps attacking and cornering Crossel.

Kalya and Laurel watched the fight in awe not far from that place. Kalya couldn't help but be mesmerized every time she saw Ziel fighting. Unlike Kalya, Laurel saw Ziel fight for the first time. Her admiration was accompanied by the shock that humans could fight on par with people from the divine race. All the knights of the Elven Kingdom couldn't even give a small scratch on one of the divine races. But Ziel has already attacked him twice. His first attack was even a direct hit, even though Crossel was unharmed.

"Princess, where did you find a man like that?" Laurel subconsciously asked Kalya. She didn't know why she suddenly asked such a thing. But the figure of Ziel fighting makes her very curious. Kalya raised her eyebrows after hearing Laurel's question.

"Hmm... is it possible that you are interested in a man like Ziel?" Kalya asked Laurel back. She knew what Laurel was feeling right now.

"That… don't joke with me, Princess. How could I be attracted to him?" Laurel averted her gaze from Kalya. She didn't dare show her blushing face.

Kalya just smiled in response to Laurel's behavior. She didn't feel jealous or angry because it was natural that Laurel would like Ziel.

"It's okay if you don't want to be honest with me. But then, I don't intend to answer your question either." Kalya smiled teasingly.

" You…aren't you angry that other girls are attracted to him, Princess?" Laurel doesn't understand why Kalya is so calm when she sees other girls interested in Ziel.

"Why am I angry?" Kalya tilts her head cutely at Laurel's question.

"Wouldn't you be possessive if you had a lover and wanted to monopolize him?" Laurel says the reason is if she is in Kalya's position.

"For a man like Ziel, is it possible if I forbid the girls to be attracted to him? If their feelings arise because they come purely from within their hearts, I can't do anything about it. Can I stop someone's heart from falling in love with someone else? Can't you?" Kalya smiled, explaining it to Laurel. She kept looking at the fight between Ziel and Crossel without taking her eyes off him. 

"You are right." Laurel lowered her head and thought about Kalya's answer. She was amazed by Kalya's way of thinking. Laurel wouldn't be that calm if she were in her position.

"You're attracted to him, aren't you?" Kalya suddenly asked Laurel, who was pondering.

"Yeah... eh? No…no… what did I say earlier because I was thinking about something else!? You must forget what I said!" Laurel stubbornly denied it. Kalya just smiled a little and said nothing else. Laurel's face turned red from her carelessness in answering. She returned her focus to Ziel's fight to shake off her embarrassment.

Boooooooooom!

Crossel was blown away again by Ziel's attack. Ziel had already hit him several times in that battle. Luckily he could always quickly dodge Ziel's attacks before hitting his vitals.

"You're weak..." Ziel concluded his observations after fighting for a while with Crossel.

"What are you saying, you lowly human!?" Crossel's face darkened after hearing his words. Ziel said the words Crossel hated the most. Crossel did all those experiments to strengthen the other divine races. But his main goal was to improve himself. He was the weakest among the five main gods in the divine temple. He only pretended to be calm and assertive in front of the other main gods.

"Among the other divine races, you are the weakest I have ever fought. Looks like you're not combat-oriented. But that doesn't change anything." Ziel tightened his grip on the black sword. In the blink of an eye, he had appeared next to Crossel.

"You've fought another divine race!? Could it be that you are!?" Crossel finally realized who he was fighting right now. The one who had eliminated the main gods one after another and thwarted their plans. He was a dangerous existence to them. But he found out too late. Crossel quickly used his divine power and created 17 stacks of shields.

[17 Shield Scales]

Seventeen pieces of shield that were each as strong as ancient dragon scales were piled up at once. He used it to block Ziel's attack.

Ziel didn't care about the pile of shields. All he saw was Crossel hiding behind the shield. Ziel compressed the red lightning on his black sword. Not long after that, his sword was enveloped in a thick red light with sparks of lightning. Ziel slashed his black sword vertically at Crossel.

[Violent Thunder Slash]

The crimson lightning aura blade sliced ​​through the 17 stacks of shields like paper and directly hit Crossel.

"Aaaaahhhh!" Crossel screamed in pain from being struck. He was blown away hundreds of meters until he pierced the trunk of the world tree.

Booooommmmmm!

Ziel was not careless and judged the battle as over. He narrowed his eyes at the hole he had created in the trunk of the world tree. Suddenly Ziel heard laughter from inside the hole.

"Hahaha…you forced me to do this. This power isn't perfect yet, but I will use it to defeat you and show my abilities to the rest of the divine race!" Crossel's figure slowly emerged from the hole with world tree roots connected in several parts of his body. An incredible amount of spirit and divine power overflowed from him.

"Prepare to die!" Crossel grinned eerily.