Act 2: World Beyond - Chapter 355: Up The Great Tree

Act 2: World Beyond - Chapter 355: Up The Great Tree

Erden stomped in front and nudged Oscar aside, forcibly huffing strongly from his snout. His meaning was clear as day, contrary to the stormy sky full of rain. Oscar lowered his arms, holding back his Ein, and fed Erden some blue potion before sitting near the edge.

"Take your time. Don't be too hasty and get hurt too much." Oscar pulled out a large fur cloak and held it above his body to prevent more rain from pouring onto him. His skin was pale and cold after a long climb in the storm. The rain killed any possibility of starting a fire to warm up.

"Will Erden be fine?" Gol-4 said over Oscar's shoulder.

"He'll do fine. He spent all these years with us and has killed many Grovekeepers in the past. His anger toward them hasn't lessened in the slightest over nearly being sacrificed." Oscar let out a white breath, chilly from the heavy rain. In the distance, Erden mowed up several Grovekeepers and tore down the fortified walls.

Erden stood atop mounds of corpses, stomping on any intact Grovekeepers to ensure their deaths. His teal antlers had several Grovekeepers stuck on its branches like hanging fruit, an inconvenience to Erden as he whipped his head around to try to throw them off.

Seeing Erden's distress, Oscar moved past the broken ivory walls, tugged on the Grovekeepers on Erden's antlers, and pulled them off one by one, collecting their cores. Wanting to take some shelter from the rain for a short rest, Oscar went into one of the makeshift huts, smiling at the respite from the storm.

It was a pity he couldn't start a fire, or the huts would burn down. Oscar glanced around; the size of this branch wasn't large, able to accommodate a small village's worth of Grovekeepers.

"It's almost like an ant colony. How many branches have they occupied? How many of them are here?" Oscar patted Erden on the head as the deer rested on the dry floor.

"It doesn't matter. Victory will come with the downfall of the Forest Heart. We can escape the moment it's destroyed." Gol-4 levitated and spun around, spraying water everywhere in the hut, annoying Erden, who grunted at the head.

Gol-4's words were true, but Oscar feared what the Grovekeepers might do when backed into a corner. No one could match him when it came to being reckless beyond the norm in a desperate situation. If the Grovekeepers' last lifeline existed on this tree, this was their last hurrah.

After an hour, Erden got to his feet, cracking his neck and grunting, full of vigor. Oscar strapped Gol-4 to his shoulder and put on fur cloaks before entering the storm. Near the edge of the branch on the other side was a bridge made of vines, toppling and tussling around with the winds, near tearing apart.

A journey across this bridge seemed as safe as walking over a tightrope while someone violently shook it. Oscar measured the distance between his branch and the next. The distance wasn't too bad, a mighty leap away.

Lifting Erden over his shoulders, Oscar ran across the full width of his branch and kicked off with a great Eirin Silver Burst, forcing his way through the torrential rain and twisting gales. He landed right near the edge of the next branch with a huge sigh of relief.

This branch was slightly larger than the previous, and more Grovekeepers came out to greet him with hostility radiating from their rain-battered bodies. Oscar placed Erden down, and the two clashed against the group of Grovekeepers. Feeling the heat of the battle warm up his chilled body, Oscar craved more as he hacked apart Grovekeepers, stabbed them, crushed them up, and tossed them off the edge.

His rampage carried over to the next branch, the next, and the one after that.

.......

Oscar lifted his arms and casted Eirin Silver Cage. His years of training were not in vain as sturdy silver rods formed and erupted from the group, wrapping around two large Grovekeepers. Their brute strength cracked the rods, but the prisons held strong.

Several more strange mutated Grovekeepers surrounded him and charged like rapid beasts wanting to tear Oscar apart. As Oscar raised his defenses, his eyes narrowed as the Grovekeepers disappeared into thin air. Suspecting foul play, Oscar brought up his Eliren Breaker and saw faint silhouettes shuffling around him.

"Fine. Then let's break you apart again." Demon walked closer with his hands relaxed and stopped an inch away from Oscar.

The inner world rippled from their punches colliding. There were no Ein, Reis, Eirin, or spells. It was a battle of wills and minds between Oscar and Demon, who fought brutally. In the end, Oscar suffered a kick to his chest and fell onto the floor.

"Who cares if they're dead? You're still alive." Demon stomped on Oscar's chest, and Oscar groaned in pain. "Everything is fine as long as you're alive. Yet, you can't understand that."

Oscar gripped Demon's leg and flung him away, but Demon landed on his feet, unamused and stoic as ever. Oscar felt his astral body fading as he was about to wake up. "I wonder why you can't understand. I'll see you later."

Waking up, Oscar squirmed around the floor before standing up. His body felt better, but his head hurt due to his spars against Demon. Eating a hearty breakfast, Oscar's mood improved, and he readied himself for the long battle ahead.

"We should be close to the top from here," Oscar said.

"Make sure you don't overdo it. I understand your anxiousness, but it's useless if you die from a mistake." Gol-4 instructed.

"Both of you...." Oscar chuckled.

"What?"

"Nothing. Let's head out, Erden."

.......

Oscar climbed up the Great Tree. Like Oen Fortress, this Great Tree had a chunk of land resting on its peak. Gripping tightly on the wet, jagged rock, Oscar lifted himself, withstood the fierce rain and winds, and reached the flat land where he beheld the largest dome of vines and green.

The only sentence he had for it was a green castle of ivy and leaves.

Oscar entered the large dome, bursting past the entrance with the rain and winds behind him. Shocked at the scene before him, Oscar lost his words momentarily before speaking softly, "What happened here?"

All over the dome were hundreds of Grovekeepers. They were all lying down, dead and withered. Thinking it was because of the sickness, Oscar went to one to find no signs it had been sick. Somehow, these Grovekeepers lost their lives, as if something took away their souls.

A slight creak reached his ear. Oscar snapped toward the source, finding a large beating green wooden heart, the Forest Heart he had been searching for. However, in front of it was a singular Grovekeeper. Its arms rippled with Ein and strength, unlike the thin, wooden limbs of its kind, and its body seemed more compact and tight, not at all loose.

"You...have...come." The Grovekeeper said.

"It talks?" Oscar and Gol-4 exclaimed.