CH 247

Shattering Ayura’s expectations that it would be another few centuries before it would have to face the blighter, Aled’s speedy return meant that this visit was by no means a good one. As expected, Aled immediately grabbed Ayura.

“Ayura! We need to find the Archwitch! Let’s go!” Aled shouted.

“Let’s go? Who’s going with who!” Ayura retorted. What? Did he think the Archwitch was some runaway dog? It wasn’t like she was someone that could be found simply by looking.

“What do you mean who? You and me. And as for where we’re going… You’ll know once we get there.”

Aled’s evasive attempt to hide the destination meant that it must be an extremely bad place to visit. Fiercely resisting, Ayura yelled, “Why me? Aaargh, let go of me! This is kidnapping! Somebody! Save this spirit!” However, Ayura’s attempts to resist were all for naught. In the end, the spirit had no choice but to be dragged away crying.

That had all happened several days ago. Now that their destination had become clear, the spirit was contemplating taking its own life.

“Are you ready?” Aled chirped in a bright voice, seemingly unconcerned by Ayura’s troubles. The blighter was holding onto the end of a rope. Of course, the rope’s purpose was for tying up Ayura to prevent the latter’s escape.

The miserable captive looked at its bound hands and inwardly cursed, ‘If that spirit, Aled, ever gets knifed on the streets at night, the culprit’s gonna be me!’ Gnashing its teeth, Ayura turned its gaze forward and asked, “You’re really going to pass through this place?”

“Naturally.”

Aled had dragged Ayura to the end of the spirit realm. There were countless names for this place: a place no one ever sought out, a place that everyone knew, yet didn’t know about, the end of the world, and the beginning of another. To sum it up in a single line, it would basically be this: ‘Area Off Limits—Danger Ahead!’

Ayura looked around in search of a danger sign, not that it would exist. What spirit wasn’t already aware of the dangers in the first place? Except for Aled, that is. Besides, even if a warning sign had been erected, the blighter would’ve just kicked it over and ignored its existence.

“Aled, think this over one more time. I really don’t think this is a good idea,” Ayura sighed.

“Why? This is the only way to see the World Tree.”

“No, what I’m saying is ‘going to see the World Tree’ is the problem.”

“What’s wrong with visiting a tree?”

Ayura gave up trying to reason with the blighter after hearing Aled’s carefree reply. How was the World Tree just some tree? It was the tree that connected worlds and the source of life of this realm. There were still far too many things unknown about the World Tree, but the knowledge that gathered about it made one thing clear: it was an extraordinary and divine existence, and it was implicitly forbidden for anyone to approach it.

Naturally, the road to the World Tree was fraught with peril. Nobody knew what would come from recklessly approaching the World Tree because almost no spirits managed to return alive after meeting the World Tree in the first place. Of course, something like that didn’t faze Aled in the slightest.

“If the Archwitch went to the World Tree, wouldn’t the surest way to find her be to ask the World Tree about what they discussed?” Aled said.

With a face full of admiration, Ayura muttered, “You’re amazing, Aled. I wish I could live life without a care in the world like you do.” It wasn’t immediately clear whether the spirit was giving a compliment or an insult. If not for the rope, Ayura would’ve applauded too.

Aled seemed to take Ayura’s words as a compliment, and simply shrugged. Moving to stand at the edge of the spirit realm, Aled thought, ‘So, it lies beyond here…’ The spirit gazed out over the endless stretch of space. It had truly never expected things would come to this.

The spirit’s initial intention was to simply locate the Archwitch, but the more it investigated, the stranger things became. Using the information obtained from Ayura, Aled had discovered after diligently searching for traces of the Archwitch that apart from her interest in Eugendiph’s blood, she had expressed an equal amount of interest in the World Tree.

‘What’s the connection between the two?’ After repeatedly mulling over the question, Aled came to a conclusion: why not just ask? Of course, going alone was a bit scary, so it decided to make the trip with Ayura in tow.

“Then, you’re ready now, right?” Aled sang.

“No, I’m not!”

“Good! Here we go!” Aled laughed, ignoring Ayura’s wails.

Leaping off the edge of the world, Aled and Ayura, tied to the former by rope, tumbled into the abyss. The only thing they left behind was Ayura’s echoing scream.

“Listen to me you crazy spiriiit!”