Chapter 295 - MONA ROSEHEART'S MEMORIES (3)

"I DON'T have a twin sister," Mona, despite being surprised by Gavin Quinzel's sudden question, said. "And since our clan was cursed, each female Roseheart in the family could only give birth to one child."

She didn't know why the commander suddenly asked her if she had a twin sister. But she knew that he wasn't the type to ask such questions without a valid reason. Thus, she was quite worried.

It seemed like Gavin Quinzel noticed her expression because he explained right away.

"I apologize for saying something weird, Lady Roseheart," Gavin Quinzel said while giving her an apologetic smile. Then, she scratched his cheek as if he was embarrassed. "I just had a weird dream. It seems realistic so…"

"Oh," she said. "I have a twin sister in your dream?"

The commander tilted his head at one side as if he was thinking, then he slowly nodded as a response. "I guess so, my lady."

She was about to ask more about the commander's dream but they were interrupted.

"I apologize for interrupting your conversation, Lady Roseheart and Commander Quinzel," Jeanne Audley, the female Paladin, said when she approached the two of them. "The carriage is now ready."

"Alright," Mona said cheerfully. She was curious about the commander's dream but her duties would have to come first. Moreover, she wanted it to be over and done with as soon as possible so she could share the news of her pregnancy with Nikolai. "Let's depart."

***

MONA'S visit to the Spencer Estate was quick, thankfully.

It was because Marquis Reynold Spencer was sick. After greeting the marquis and receiving his official permission for her group to enter the Forest of Impurity, they immediately headed to the forest. Unfortunately, they had to be accompanied by the most detestable member of the Spencer Family.

"Lady Roseheart, I feel like you're calling our family useless," Young Master Russell Spencer, the marquis's heir, complained while walking behind her. "You claim that some undetected activities are going on in the Forest of Impurity. Why does it feel like you're saying the mages protecting our territory are incompetent for failing to notice it?"

She held back a sigh.

That was one of the reasons why she originally wanted to visit the forest secretly. Meddling with other people's territory was a big deal to the nobles. She bet Marquis Spencer wouldn't have allowed them to enter the Forest of Impurity had she not mentioned the Cosmic Tree's will.

The nobles could ignore her– the matriarch of House Roseheart– but not the message of the Cosmic Tree. And since everyone in the empire knew that she could talk to the Cosmic Tree, they couldn't simply ignore the order that she received.

"Lady Roseheart, you know that I'm the successor of Marquis Spencer. The forest's protection falls under my responsibility," Young Master Russell, who still wouldn't shut up despite her silence, warned her lightly. "Don't underestimate me."

"I couldn't possibly," Mona said cheekily, then she turned to the humiliated young master. "Young Master Russell, as the matriarch of House Roseheart, let me give you a piece of advice before you officially inherit your father's title: Don't ever pass up your chance to keep your mouth shut especially if no one asked you to talk."

The young master's lips formed a thin line, his face still red from embarrassment.

Satisfied that she finally made the noisy nobleman silent, she turned her back on him and continued walking ahead.

[Tsk. House Spencer would fall once Young Master Russell leads their family.]

A few moments later, Commander Quinzel and Jeanne Audley walked on either of her sides.

Protocol dictates that the commander and the female Paladin should walk behind her since her rank was higher. Although her new noble status was low (after those high-ranking bastards brought House Roseheart to ruins), her blood as a Roseheart and as the 'Daughter of Nature' made her a matriarch that had the same status as a duke.

Anyway, Commander Quinzel and Jeanne Audley probably walked on either of her sides to prevent Russell Spencer from approaching her again.

[I hope the young master stops–]

"For someone who wouldn't be an empress, aren't you being too arrogant, Lady Roseheart?"

Ah, the young master didn't heed her advice about shutting up, huh?

Her thoughts were interrupted when she noticed that both Commander Quinzel and Jeanne Audley reached for their swords. She subtly signaled them to withdraw whatever they planned to do to Russell Spencer. Then, she turned around to face the arrogant young master.

The mages and the Spencer Estate's knights behind him lowered their gaze as if they didn't have the courage to look at her in the eye. It seemed like the mages and the knights were embarrassed by how their young master was behaving toward her.

[The people that serve you don't even respect you, Young Master Russell. I wish you could see how embarrassed they are to serve a thoughtless fool like you. But then again, you only use your brain to harass women who reject you so I don't think you'd get it.]

"You grabbed the wrong rope, Lady Roseheart," Young Master Russell said arrogantly, then he crossed his arms over his chest. "You could have been a marchioness instead of a mere concubine."

He was saying that she should have chosen him over Nikolai.

Pfft.

She almost laughed at how ridiculous it sounded.

"Young Master Russell," she said in a slow yet eloquent manner. "Do you see me as His Majesty's mere concubine?"

As soon as she asked that, the ground began to shake.

Then, Russell Spencer grabbed his throat and breathed hard as if he was being choked by an invisible hand.

At that moment, Gale, in the form of the wind that couldn't be seen, circled the foolish young master– creating a small yet violent tornado in the process. "Should I knock the wind out of this punk? Or should I cut his tongue off first?"

The mages behind Russell Spencer, who was now kneeling on the ground while choking, groaned while creating a barrier to protect themselves and the knights from Gale's tornado. But the shield that the mages created wasn't that strong. The Wind Spirit's tornado was pushing the shield, as well as the mages and the knights behind it.

Heck, the mages and the knights couldn't even stand properly because the ground was still shaking. But thankfully, the shaking had begun to weaken.

[They should train more to be like Commander Quinzel and Lady Audley.]

Even without turning around, she could tell that the two were standing fine.

Commander Quinzel and Jeanne Audley's aura as a Swordmaster and a Swordsman respectively was enough to protect them from the "earthquake" and Gale's little tornado.

Unlike a certain young master.

If the trees around them didn't wrap their roots around Russell Spencer's body, then he would have been sent flying because of the little tornado.

Moreover, she put protection around Russell Spencer so Gale's wind blades wouldn't cut him. She wasn't protecting the bastard because she cared for him– she was only doing that because Nikolai would get in trouble if she accidentally killed the young master.

"Let's just burn that bastard to ashes, Master!" a small ball of fire that appeared on her left side said in an ecstatic voice. It was Blaze (male), her Fire Spirit. "Burn! Die! Perish!"

"No, don't burn the bad guy!" A pearl the size of an adult's fist appeared on her right side. It was Marina (female), her Water Spirit. "Master, let's just drown him to death! For justice, love, and happy endings!"

[These vicious children…]

Her thoughts were interrupted when a twig that appeared on the ground began to crawl as if it was a snake. Then, it climbed up her body until it reached her arm. The slim branch wrapped itself around her arm like an armlet before speaking.

"Master, did I do great?" the child-like voice of a little girl asked excitedly. Yes, the voice was coming from the twig around her arm. It was Olive, her Wood Spirit. "I'm keeping that bad guy in place so Sister Gale's tornado won't send him flying!"

"Yes, you're doing a good job," she praised Olive while gently patting the twig.

"Masteeeeeeeer!"

The ground once again shook when huge stones suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Those stones piled up on their own until they created a figure of a "man." Yes, it was a three-meter stone golem named Rockwell– her Earth Spirit.

"Master, can I step on the fucking bastard?" Rockwell, whose voice sounded like it came from under the ground, asked viciously. "I want to fucking stomp on him until he gets smashed liked a mashed potato!"

Gale, Blaze, Marina, Olive, Rockwell– these Spirits were five out of her seven Spirit Guardians. Well, maybe she only had six Spirit Guardians now that William left her when she chose to be with Nikolai.

[Don't come out,] she warned her last Spirit Guardian– the most powerful one– when the back of her right hand began to glow. Other Spirits thought William to be her most powerful Spirit Guardian, but she begged to differ. Russell Spencer (along with his servants), would turn into nothingness once this Spirit Guardian came out. [You have a different job than your friends and you know that.]

The faint tattoo of a white rose on her right wrist began to fade completely.

[Let's get this done and over with.]

"It's true that I'm His Majesty's concubine and I'm not ashamed of it," Mona said firmly to Russell Spencer who was now vomiting. The tornado around the punk already disappeared, and the roots around him withdrew as well. But the pitiful young master still couldn't raise his head. It was probably out of fear because she could see him trembling violently. The pressure from her Spirit Guardians' aura was probably crushing him down at the moment. "But I am more than that."

She didn't need to say anything else because a bastard like Russell Spencer didn't deserve a thorough explanation from her.

[And if I say more, my vicious Spirit Guardians might really kill the foolish young master.]

"Well said, Lady Roseheart," Jeanne Audley, who was standing behind her, said with a soft chuckle. "But what are we going to do with the young master and his servants?"

"They all fainted," Gavin Quinzel said in a disappointed voice. Russell Spencer along with the mages and the knights behind him all fainted a moment ago. "It seems like they weren't able to withstand the esteemed Spirit Guardians' aura, Lady Roseheart."

She let out a sigh because she felt bad for the mages and the knights who did nothing wrong.

"Lady Audley, take care of them," Mona said. She knew that Jeanne Audley already knew what to do because she was a smart and competent person. Knowing that the female Paladin would do a good job, she turned to Gavin Quinzel. "Commander Quinzel, let's enter the Forest of Impurity together."

***

"COMMANDER Quinzel, I'm going to purify the forest," Mona said while walking behind the commander. This time, she had to walk behind him because it was the commander's job to protect her even though she didn't really need protection. But that didn't mean that she'd get in the way of his duty. "Please don't use your Shadow Manipulation Technique in the meantime."

She was going to purify the forest so she sent the Spirit Guardians back. Only one of her Spirits (aside from William) was capable of purification anyway.

"I understand, Lady Roseheart," Gavin Quinzel, who was holding a slender sword covered with a black aura, said. Then, he turned to her. "Your Light attribute will purify my Darkness attribute once it comes out."

Her strongest Spirit Guardian was the Light Spirit. It had the ability to purify impure matters and attributes.

On the other hand, the Shadow Manipulation Technique was one of the Darkness attributes in the world. Therefore, her power would try to purify the commander's power if the Light and the Darkness collided.

"Thank you for understanding, Commander."

He chuckled before looking ahead again. "There's only the two of us here, Lady Roseheart," he said gently. "Please feel free to address me casually."

"Alright, Gavin," she said, then she turned around the area. "I know that the impurity of this forest is dense. Hence, its name. But it's not normal."

The two of them were already in the deep part of the forest.

Of course, that meant they had encountered the monsters that lived in there. She didn't have to lift a finger though. The commander took care of the monsters easily.

[There's a reason why Gavin Quinzel is a Swordmaster.]

A Swordmaster was one level higher than a Swordsman. In the empire, only Gavin Quinzel had received that title. He was also the youngest in the whole continent to do so. Thus, nobody complained when he became the Commander of the White Lion Knights early.

"I agree with you, Lady Roseheart," the commander said worriedly. "As a Shadow Manipulation Technique user, I can sense other Darkness attributes here. The one in this forest feels… evil. Extremely evil."

Not all Darkness attributes were evil despite the negative connotation of their name.

But the one in the forest gave off a very bad feeling. It was dangerous for ordinary people to be in this place. Fortunately, the Forest of Impurity was a restricted area.

"Darkness attributes are still a part of nature as well even if some of them could pose threat to humans," she said carefully. "The Forest of Impurity is a restricted area and so, I thought it was fine to leave the Darkness attributes here alone. But I didn't expect it to become this dangerous." She bit her lower lip. "I should have purified this forest a long time ago."

"Please don't be too hard on yourself, Lady Roseheart," the commander consoled him. "Although you are the Daughter of Nature, you're also a noble. Unfortunately, nobles have to abide by things such as rules and etiquette. The Forest of Impurity falls under Marquis Spencer's territory. Not even His Majesty could easily touch a marquis's property."

She knew that Gavin Quinzel spoke the truth.

But her heart was still filled with guilt.

Most people only knew her as a Summoner. But to be honest, being able to summon Spirits was just a part of her power. The truth was she held the power of Nature.

And that was the reason why the nobles who knew the truth treated her like a threat.

[The Royal Family's power came from a god while the power of the Rosehearts was gifted to us by Nature itself. Those bastards think that we have the power that rivals the de Moonasterios. Thus, they ruined our family.]

Her thoughts were interrupted when Gavin Quinzel suddenly stopped walking, the black aura that covered his sword grew stronger.

She knew why.

[Just what is that?]

An atrocious black tree greeted them.

The trunk, the branches, and even the dried leaves were all black. In fact, it looked like a burned tree. It was the source of the horrifying dark energy in the forest.

But its appearance and energy weren't the only strange things about the tree.

"It resembles the Cosmic Tree," she uttered in disbelief.

"Is that so?" Gavin Quinzel asked in an amused voice. "I've never seen the Cosmic Tree so it's interesting to have a faint idea of what the great tree looks like."

Only a select few had the access to get to the Cosmic Tree so it was natural that the commander hadn't seen it yet. Even Nikolai, a descendant of the Moon God, hadn't been invited by the Cosmic Tree to its lair. As far as the history books were concerned, none of the de Moonasterios had the chance to visit the great tree yet.

[The fact that the matriarchs of the Rosehearts have always been invited by the Cosmic Tree to its home is one of the reasons why the nobles have envied our family for years.]

"The appearance of that tree is far from the Cosmic Tree's holiness," she explained to the commander. She addressed the Cosmic Tree to Gavin Quinzel by its proper title instead of 'Mother Tree' because of the gravity of the situation. "The Cosmic Tree has white trunk and branches, and its leaves look like they're made of glass. And the flowers that bloom in the Cosmic Tree every once in a while resemble diamonds."

"Uhm…" The commander hesitated before he finally asked. "Lady Roseheart, how does the black tree resemble the great Cosmic Tree then?"

"It's alive."

"Excuse me?"

"Ah, you're the famed Daughter of Nature."

The commander gasped. "The tree… talked?"

Yes, and it wasn't alone.

"Gavin," she said in a serious tone while raising her right hand. The rose mark on her wrist began to glow and emit a pure white light around her whole arm. "Be careful."

An entity whose body was covered with a black aura suddenly appeared in front of Gavin Quinzel. She barely saw the entity but she was pretty sure that it had pale skin, golden hair, and sharp ears. It could either be a fairy or an elf.

She didn't have the time to confirm its identity nor the chance to worry about Gavin Quinzel. She knew that the commander was perfectly capable of protecting himself even against a strong elemental anyway.

Thus, she focused on her own opponent.

The black tree's branches reached for her as each of the branches turned into what seemed like burned human arms and hands.

"Roseanne," Mona summoned her Light Spirit. "Purify it– huh?"

She was shocked when the pure white light that covered her arm disappeared along with the rose mark on her wrist.

Then, the branches that resembled human arms "hugged" her tightly.

Much to her horror, she realized that she couldn't move and her consciousness was slowly slipping away.

"Lady Roseheart!"

Gavin Quinzel's voice calling out her name was the last thing that Mona heard before everything turned black.

***

MONA was greeted by a horrible sight as soon as she opened her eyes in a new dimension.

She was pretty sure that the vast field where she woke up wasn't an ordinary field. And it was because of the strange yet pitiful young woman dressed in a white robe in front of her. The young lady didn't give off the feeling of a giantess despite being around 15 meters tall.

[That's the usual height of gods who descend on the Middle World…]

A god?

Could the young lady be a god?

[But if she's a god, then why does she in a pitiful position?]

The young lady was looking up with her eyes closed. But her mouth was wide open. Her whole torso was covered with grass and colorful flowers. Her arms that were opened wide were covered with soil that seemed fertile because of the sprouts scattered all over. Her legs and her feet, on the other hand, had turned into roots.

[A human tree?]

Her heart suddenly thumped hard against her chest when she noticed that the young lady's long hair (that reached the ground) was white. The color reminded her of Nikolai's white hair.

And upon looking closely, the young lady's face…

"Doesn't she look like you, Mona Roseheart?" The majestic voice of a woman coming from the rumbling sky asked. "That should be the case because that poor little girl is the future of the tiny seed in your stomach."

She almost fainted from fear when she heard that.

Even though she didn't know the identity of the voice talking to her, she could tell that it was speaking the truth. The owner of the voice seemed to be a part of Nature, and for that reason, she felt a connection to her. And thus, even though she didn't want to, she was certain that it wasn't lying.

"No," Mona whispered to herself in disbelief. Then, her trembling arms unconsciously hugged her stomach. Her eyes that were now blurry from tears focused on the young lady that was slowly turning into a tree. "How and why would my precious daughter end up that way?"

***

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