CH 297.2

『This is good』

『It sure is』

On the contrary, they seem to be delighted with it.

Here, I think back to when I gave the two animals the positions of 『administrator』 and 『vice-administrator』.

(Now that I think about it, there was a weird voice ringing in my head)

It was when the medicinal herb tree had grown to a certain size. I was looking up at the starry sky and touching the trunk when I suddenly heard a voice.

It said, 『Decide who will manage the tree』, and I followed the instructions of my dependents to choose two spirit beasts that seemed to be qualified.

(At that time, I was just like, 『It’s a world with magic, so I guess something like this can happen huh』)

Now that I think back on it, it was clearly an unusual event. The proof is that since then, I haven’t heard such a voice again in my head.

「Do you know about this, Zaratan?」

Just as he swam to the shore, I asked the turtle who seemed to know the most. Zaratan blinked slowly, lifted his head, and opened his mouth.

『It’s a replacement process』

「A replacement?」

“Oohhh!” The caterpillar and the dung beetle on the branch and ground spun around cheerfully, while I raised my eyebrows and tilted my head, still not understanding what was going on.

「Your foothold is bad, so don’t move around too much, alright?」

I move the screaming Imosuke who half-slipped from the branch to my hand and look at the turtle for an explanation. And the answer that came from him was enough to surprise me.

「The World Tree? This?」

He said that the medicinal tree has been chosen as the next generation World Tree. The current World Tree was old and had little life left, but last night’s incident seemed to have been the deciding factor.

Then I remembered an act at the family meeting.

『The World Tree is the only major source of magic power in this world, right? Is it really okay to damage it?』

When I asked him, Zaratan took one look at the garden and replied, 『It is now』. This Great Spirit Beast must have realized long ago that the medicinal tree in the garden might be the successor to the World Tree.

「But, still…」

That doesn’t make it easier to swallow. The World Tree is supposed to be 『The only existence in this world that acts as an outlet to restore magical power to the earth』.

I have seen it in the Spirit Forest, and the majesty that covers the sky is enough to shake my heart. It is definitely not something that grows in a rooftop garden.

「This is originally just a medicinal plant, you know?」

Although it has grown into a tree, it is in fact just a plant I bought at a gardening supply store. When I told him this, the turtle looked up at the medicinal tree and continued.

『A World Tree doesn’t become what it is because of the seed』

Apparently, it was not about which specific tree that can become one, but whether that tree is suitable or not.

「It’s rare for trees outside the Spirit Forest to become one because it was chosen for its strong magical power, you say? 」

My eyes went wide at his words.

I have a very good idea of why this happened. It was definitely due to the fact that I had poured an S-ranked potion as a fertilizer.

「Did you guys know about this? That this tree is becoming the World Tree.」

Imosuke, who was sitting on top of my palm, bend his body and tilt his head in return. Dangorou is doing something similar on the ground.

『Amazing tree』

『A special tree』

Looks like they also felt that this is an amazing thing, but they didn’t think it was that far out of the ordinary. However, they didn’t seem to be that surprised when Zaratan said that it was a World Tree, so they must have suspected it to some extent.

『But still, it’s a bit different from what I thought』

The turtle’s words, uttered while looking up, drew the gazes of me, the caterpillar, and the dung beetle to the medicinal herb tree.

The light on the tree is weak, he said. According to Zaratan’s knowledge, the light now isn’t as bright as it’s supposed to be.

「That in itself would be troubling though」

It would be too conspicuous, and nearby neighbors would come to ask what was going on.

After thinking for a moment, the turtle gave his own answer.

『Perhaps, the binding might have loosened』

Magi Charter was severely damaged by the attack on the World Tree. Although in reality, it seems to have been caused not by my light arrow, but by the outburst of its defense mechanism.

As a result, the foundation which is 『Only one in the world』 may have been shaken.

「Then, the accumulation of strong magical power that has appeared all over the continent. Will new World Trees be born there as well?」

With a feeling of anticipation, I asked.

The magic beasts and spirit beasts that gave up living in the Spirit Forest and began to migrate. I really hope that there is a new world tree where they are headed.

Otherwise, they might all come this way.

『……I see』

At my words, Zaratan’s eyes widened for a moment and then he nodded. Then, with eyes as if looking into the distance, he continues.

『If that’s the case, then there might be a lot of World Trees that would grow from various medicinal plants. Very interesting indeed.』

World Trees will grow in various places around the world, each with its own small Spirit Forest. Apparently, that’s how it will turn out.

「So the voice that asked me to appoint an administrator came from Magi Charter huh?」

With the turtle’s affirmation, I ask Imosuke, who is in the palm of my hand.

「Are you disappointed that you are not going to be in charge of managing the only World Tree in the world?」

I asked him, but Imosuke shook his head from side to side. Apparently, like me, his master, he doesn’t want a very big position.

Dangorou, the vice administrator, also sends me the same kind of wave.

「But still, it will be bad if it keeps shining like this. Can’t you do something about it?」

When I said that it will be bad, Imosuke says, 『I will do something』. He said that this much could be stopped by the administrator’s authority.

「Then, please do」

Here, Imosuke, who is in the palm of my hand, looks at Dangorou on the ground. Then they both turned to me and sent a wave together.

『What a shame』

Apparently he thought it was cool. He didn’t react when the World Tree is no longer going to be the only one of its kind in the world, but he seemed to feel it’s really a shame to get rid of the light that shines from the tree.

After that, I put him back on the branch, and the caterpillar performed a strange dance. Gradually, the green light emitted by the medical tree faded and eventually disappeared completely.

「Alright then, let’s go to the living room for now. Please fill me in about various things regarding this matter there.」

I would like to know more about the World Tree, and I have other things I’m curious about.

It’s about Dangorou’s special skills. I want to see it again, this time with his and Zaratan’s explanations.

I carry the three animals into the living room with my arms full and place them on the bath towel. When I told Dangorou about this, he crawled over to Imosuke and started teasing him.

「What are you guys doing?」

The wave that came from Dangorou was that he’s good at it. If I have to translate it, he said something like, 『You heard that? He wanted to see my special skill』.

Imosuke, on the other hand, looks uninterested.

『Ei!』

『Ei ei!』

The two animals begin to play “oshikura-manju*”, while the turtle is completely unperturbed. Thus, the night of the Tauro household passed peacefully.

[*TL Note: Children’s game in which three or more stand back-to-back in a circle and jostle.]