This World Needs a Hero

Chapter 289

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[Translator – Night]

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Tap-tap-

Nyhill was racing through the rugged forest.

As always, her steps were swift and light.

‘Almost there.’

For an average tourist, it would take more than a week to traverse from the depths of the forest to its entrance.

The forest was inherently rugged and as complex as a maze.

But surprisingly, Nyhill had crossed half the forest in no time at all.

‘Faster…!’

While her own agility was impressive, the forest was aiding her.

Srrrk-

Trees moved as if alive to clear a path for her.

Bushes split apart so as not to hinder her steps, and in dark areas, bioluminescent insects swarmed to light her way.

That wasn’t all.

Whoosh-!

Cliffs and deep ravines didn’t matter.

Vines would come from nowhere to support her, and occasionally, a massive beast would lend its back, carrying her for some distance.

[Just leave your body to me, Nyhill!]

Meanwhile, a spirit used the power of the earth to open paths for her, allowing her incredible speed to be maintained without interruption.

Even though the undead of the first legion and the monsters of the second legion occasionally blocked her way, the forest moved on its own to shield Nyhill from them.

At this pace, she would escape the forest on schedule.

…Step-

However, she suddenly stopped in the middle of the forest.

A puzzled voice from the spirit echoed in her mind, but her feet refused to move.

[…Nyhill?]

Screech-

Fwoosh-

A burning forest.

Amidst the monstrous roars, the girl stood still.

It was roughly three years ago.

The hero had given her the antidote for her ‘companion,’ freeing Nyhill from the influence of the shadow.

Mother Ghost had tacitly permitted her release, likely due to the hero’s influence.

But shortly after leaving the hero in the north, Nyhill returned to Mother Ghost.

“I didn’t expect you to come back to the cage.”

“Teach me.”

“What?”

Thanks to spending a year by the hero’s side, Nyhill had gained the ability to make ‘independent judgments.’

‘This won’t do.’

She wasn’t talented in combat like her peers, nor did she have abundant resources or a strong background.

Though she could currently exert similar power thanks to her harsh upbringing as an agent, the gap would widen over time.

She wouldn’t be able to help the hero.

Soon, she would be of no use.

So, what options did she have to become ‘useful’?

Nyhill found the answer quickly.

“Teach me your secret arts, Mother Ghost. Teach me the spells.”

She would even take another companion if that was the price.

She would willingly return to the shadow’s fold and become a loyal ghost.

Mother Ghost stared at her for a moment and then spoke curtly.

“Fine. I’ll teach you.”

Surprisingly, she didn’t demand another companion in return.

“…I wouldn’t do such a thing and risk retaliation from that person. You have no idea of your position.”

Thus, she learned the spells and awakened her spirituality.

Thanks to the mystical power of her Origin, Nyhill showed outstanding talent in the spells.

This talent was recently refined to an exceptional level by the elven priests, including Laplace, in the great forest.

And now.

Nyhill was gripped by an inexplicable intuition.

Perhaps it was the call of the spirituality she had honed over the years.

‘I must stop.’

It felt like thousands of stars were flowing through her veins.

‘I must go back.’

This sensation was not merely physical but felt like a vibration emanating from deep within her soul.

It was a wisdom and guidance that defied simple explanation.

‘I must not leave the forest now.’

From deep within her heart, the path she needed to take and the decisions she needed to make became clear.

Uuuuuuung-

At the same time, the power of Laplace, imbued in her dagger, responded with a faint vibration.

[What is this!?]

There was no time to explain.

Nyhill reached out her hand and focused.

Rumble-!

The ground began to vibrate slightly.

Tiny grains of earth started to rise, forming shapes as if an invisible hand were gathering them.

Before long, a dozen or so dolls that looked exactly like Nyhill stood before her.

Nyhill took out a communication orb from her pocket and handed it to one of them.

“Use the others as decoys and head out of the forest.”

“Okay.”

Even with the help of spells, it was an overuse of Origin.

She must have lost a significant amount of her lifespan.

But there was no wavering in Nyhill’s expression.

[Nyhill…]

‘It’s okay.’

Tap-

Her silhouette shot back along the path she had just taken.

‘I have to do this.’

* * *

Laplace’s disciple, Muriel, looked around with a heavy heart.

The forest, once teeming with life, was now a burning heap of ashes.

Trees had turned into blackened remains.

The sounds of birds, streams, and laughter were replaced by the rustling of half-burnt leaves.

“Sniff.”

Occasionally, a muffled sob or groan would break the silence.

Muriel, wounded, caught her breath, trying to compose herself.

She had resisted Theo’s power with her own, but parts of her body were desiccated like an ancient corpse.

‘…Everyone.’

The guardians had fought valiantly.

Despite losing more than half their combat power to ‘loss,’ they had defeated the elite undead army.

They had also bought time for non-combatants to escape through the forest’s back paths.

…However, victory eluded them.

Step.

Someone walked calmly across the ash-covered forest floor.

Only one person could cross the great forest with such leisurely steps now.

Muriel looked at him through her blurry vision.

Dusty blood mixed with her tears, but she did not close or avert her eyes.

“…Theo!”

A wrinkled old man smiled warmly.

He looked ordinary, but no one would mistake him for a human.

A pitch-black aura followed Theo like a cloak.

“Stop….”

Thunk-

Muriel’s hand grabbed Theo’s ankle as he headed toward the World Tree.

There was a seal inside the knothole of the World Tree.

Various protective artifacts and barriers remained, but they would be of little use against Theo.

‘I must stop him….’

Srrk-

Theo reached out and grabbed Muriel by the throat.

His hand was dry and brittle like a dead tree branch.

“Elves sure do have long lives.”

Snap-

He tossed Muriel’s limp body carelessly.

The dark aura that hovered around him like a hungry beast began to engulf Muriel.

Laughing at the sight of her writhing body, Theo resumed his walk toward the World Tree.

Corpses lay scattered around.

“…Tsk.”

For a moment, a look of dissatisfaction crossed Theo’s face.

The losses were significant.

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The main legion, surrounding the forest’s perimeter and slowly tightening their grip, remained intact, but the elite troops were decimated.

Theo’s direct lich unit was also destroyed while fighting the elven priests.

Although the life vessels remained, resurrecting them would require substantial demonic energy and time.

They were a crucial asset, making their loss painful.

‘Especially those Dawn Knights….’

Some were individuals Theo recognized.

They had thrown their lives away, targeting Theo alongside Laplace.

Their combined assault was chilling.

If not for prior preparations and a lack of further support from humans, Theo would have faced severe difficulties.

“Ha ha….”

But it’s fine.

Theo smiled again.

He was about to reap rewards that would more than compensate for these losses.

Step-

Theo stood before the knothole of the World Tree.

Laplace, with half of his body shriveled and bleeding from the mouth, sat leaning against the entrance.

Though still breathing, he was little more than a living corpse.

Theo looked down at him and murmured.

“A sage with a thousand years of wisdom.”

“……”

“What wisdom could you have, having only looked at this world for a thousand years…?”

Laplace’s cloudy eyes blinked.

“Impressive… how well you’ve hidden your strength.”

“Of course. There are times when one plus one doesn’t equal two.”

Theo, giving a playful response, looked deep into the hollow of the World Tree.

There was an expression of admiration.

‘For a mortal to construct such a high-level seal.’

A seal with five axes.

It wasn’t a shoddy type that would collapse entirely by breaking one axis.

But it didn’t matter.

Theo’s true goal wasn’t the seal.

Breaking the seal was a secondary objective.

Tap-

Theo’s wrinkled hand touched the base of the World Tree.

Laplace looked up at him with a twisted expression.

He knew what Theo was about to do.

Theo smiled brightly at him.

“The tree of another world… those who have lived under its protection for a thousand years.”

The seed of the World Tree that Laplace planted in the once barren southern lands.

The World Tree grew to an unimaginable size, forming a forest that covered the entire south, and those blessed by it, the elves, gained longevity.

Moreover, communication with otherworldly beings, the spirits, became possible.

Such a tree could not be an ordinary entity of this world.

Laplace gazed at the World Tree with a strange look in his eyes.

“A tree that is itself a rift to the spirit world… a conduit linking higher and lower dimensions.”

Using the World Tree wouldn’t instantly connect the demon realm to the present world to bring about the Demon King’s descent.

No matter how much Theo had advanced by absorbing Yol, that was a power reserved for rulers of dimensions like the Demon King.

However, using the World Tree’s transdimensional properties, the previously impossible act of ‘interfering with another dimension’ could be made possible again.

This was a direct order from the Demon King through communication.

Breaking a single seal… would bring much greater gains.

‘Shaking it from inside and out.’

Rumble-

A black mist emanated from Theo.

Creak-

Like black ink spreading in a water-filled bowl, the part of the World Tree in contact with Theo’s palm turned black.

The small black spot quickly spread like a cloud, and soon, the World Tree appeared to be infected with dark veins.

“Aah….”

Theo trembled.

By using the World Tree’s power, he was indirectly reaching their king.

The chains binding him would loosen.

His influence would once again touch this land.

“……”

“……”

Crackle-

With one hand still on the base of the World Tree, Theo turned around.

His face was layered with intense anger at the disruption of the critical ritual.

“Hello?”

A white-haired woman stood against the backdrop of the burning forest, wearing a languid expression.

Half-closed eyes, looking bored, and a simple robe as if she was out for a stroll in front of her house.

With a small smile on her lips, she waved at Theo.

“Long time no see?”

“…Damn wretch.”

He had known even before turning around.

Few could break through the barrier that had been meticulously laid over the entire great forest.

But it was infuriating.

No matter how she was called the strongest human mage, she couldn’t be a match for him.

How could she act so complacently?

Theo laughed.

It was a laugh filled with ridicule and contempt.

“You don’t value your life, do you?”

Larze frowned and shook her head.

“I do value it. But I’ve received too much, so I have to repay it.”

…And there’s still a lot more to receive.

“So, humanity can’t go extinct just yet.”

Larze’s white hair glowed brightly, reflecting the flames consuming the forest.

She continued in a casual tone, as if exchanging pleasantries.

“Oh, by the way, I broke all the Life Vessels in your stakes.”

“…What?”

“House empty, gobble gobble.”

Before Theo could even express his anger,

Whoosh-

a bright blue flame shot from the tip of Larze’s staff, White Despair, towards Theo.

A Maestro-level destructive spell cast without an incantation.

Rumble-

The ground on either side swelled and surged up to crush Theo.

Screech-

Finally, a massive ice spike materialized in mid-air and plummeted down.

“Pathetic.”

But Theo merely glanced at it to extinguish it.

His hand still touched the World Tree, infusing it with dark energy.

Larze’s eyes flickered slightly.

‘Unbelievable.’

…Theo’s hand remained attached to the World Tree.

She didn’t take her eyes off it.

Whatever he was doing, she realized that once it was completed, something terrible would happen.

Reading Larze’s panic and urgency, Theo sneered.

“A human mage cannot defeat me.”

“Is that so? In that case….”

Rumble-

Larze intentionally drew upon her magic forcefully.

…At the same time, a very subtle movement took place behind her.

The camouflage magic she had previously cast concealed even the faintest sign of it.

The shadow moved softly, like a cloth swaying in the wind, drawing closer.

Larze’s wildly shaking eyes fixed at that moment.

“What about a ghost?”

“…What?”

Screech-

A dagger imbued with Laplace’s power struck Theo’s palm.

Whoosh-

The wrinkled hand was engulfed in white flames.

“Arrgh!”

Theo screamed, pulling his hand away from the World Tree.

The counterattack he launched narrowly missed the ‘ghost.’

Swish-

With the help of a spirit, the ghost quickly vanished into the shadows and reappeared behind Larze.

Larze gently whispered to Nyhill.

“Let’s just hold out until the latecomer arrives.”

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[Translator – Night]

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