When Yuren became Karuga and was in the midst of the final battle in the past,
the place where Yuren had played with the portal gun in the future was in complete chaos.
The gymnasium looked crumpled and collapsed as if something had sucked it in, and everyone was gathered outside, worrying about Yuren.
“Yuren!! What do we do!!!”
“Calm down! Sora! Yuren’s not the kind of person to die from this! I’m sure he’s fine!!!”
“Yuren!!! Can you hear me!! Answer me!!!”
Sora thought Yuren was crushed under the debris of the gymnasium, while Sylvia, the most excited one, urged Sora to calm down, and Julia hurriedly started clearing the debris with magic.
Many priests from the Irene School, including Jiren, were frantic to confirm Yuren’s survival.
However, the ones who should have been the most anxious, Irene and Alicia, appeared calmly at the scene.
“Everyone, stop!!! There’s no Yuren here.”
“What!?”
“Irene, do you know where Yuren is?”
Irene didn’t answer Sora immediately.
She simply closed her eyes, wearing a relieved smile as if she was sensing something.
Then she slowly opened her eyes and said,
“It’s time for Yuren to return. Let’s go welcome him together.”
After that, Irene began to head somewhere, and Alicia followed behind her.
Sora, Sylvia, Julia, and Jiren, although confused by Irene’s words, started following her.
*
The Demon Lord died, and the barrier was lifted.
Due to the attacks from the characters inside my barrier, the Demon Lord’s corpse was turning into a black lump and slowly disintegrating into dust.
“Yuren, did you defeat him?”
Bam!!!
The Master suddenly uttered a resurrection spell, prompting me to reflexively unleash a ‘Pao (Fire Magic).’
Fortunately, the Demon Lord appeared to be completely dead, and the black lump exploded, turning to dust and disappearing from this world.
The fight was over.
But it was too soon to celebrate.
The Master, Alicia, and I, who hurriedly regained our magic, rushed towards the decaying roots of the World Tree, which had turned purple.
Originally, that spot should have been filled with the clear magic of the World Tree, but it was now polluted with a purple aura.
It was an obviously dangerous situation, and both the Master and Alicia rushed in to check the state of the World Tree.
“What’s going on? Can the World Tree recover at this point?”
“Shh! Be quiet!!”
“I’ll check it right away.”
They placed their hands on the World Tree and began to inspect its magic.
But their expressions grew darker.
Could it be…?
“It’s wrong.”
“It’s too late… The roots have been polluted by the demon’s magic.”
This can’t be…
In the history books I knew, it was recorded that Karuga died with the Demon Lord but succeeded in stopping him.
Have I changed history by living?
In a desperate state, I asked with the last shred of hope.
“Is there truly no way to heal the World Tree?”
“There is one way…”
“What is it!?”
Alicia, with an expression I had never seen before, informed me of how to heal the World Tree.
It was simply…
“Our magicians must enter the World Tree to purify the demon’s magic.”
“What!!?”
The method Alicia suggested was surprisingly simple.
The World Tree had begun to rot due to demon magic, but that was because the World Tree continued to produce its own magic.
If a magician entered the World Tree’s magic and manipulated it for purification, the World Tree could recover, she explained.
But there was a serious problem with that method.
“But Alicia, doing that means…”
“Right, if a soul born from the World Tree enters it, it will be swallowed up in less than a day, meaning the soul would be extracted and die.”
Yes, I remembered being taught that as a child by the Master.
That souls born from the World Tree would die if they entered it.
“But if we don’t purify it, the western World Tree will die, and the demon gate will open, turning the southwest into hell. There’s no other way than for our magicians to sacrifice themselves.”
Alicia spoke as if she was prepared to die.
And at that moment…
With this moment, everything started making sense to me.
Why I was reincarnated in this world,
Why I was sent back to the past,
Why I was right here at this moment… I felt like I understood everything.
Yes, everything began when the World Tree chose me for this moment.
“It’s okay. Master, Alicia. No one has to die.”
“What do you mean by that all of a sudden?”
Until now, I hadn’t understood anything while living in this other world.
Why was it me?
Why did I, who died in another world, reincarnate here?
Because I was needed.
My soul was needed to save this world.
“My soul is not one born from the World Tree. Therefore, I will not die even if I enter it.”
“Yuren… are you serious…”
I walked over to Alicia.
I presented the crystal ball that held Karuga’s remains and the dog tag, saying,
“Please treat Karuga as having died in this battle against the Demon Lord. And he asked me to deliver his love to his wife. Please do convey it.”
“Alright… I understand.”
With this, Karuga would become the national hero I knew.
I approached the Master.
The Master looked at me with eyes that seemed to want to cry.
“I’m sorry, Master… it seems we’ll have to go to the Elf’s Forest sometime far in the future.”
“Is there truly no other way? If we look a little harder, I’m sure… yes, I’m sure there’s another way!!”
The Master clung to me like a child.
And she begged me with tears.
I felt once again the solitude of the Master, who had been lonely for so long.
“Don’t go… Yuren…”
“Master…”
I tightly embraced the Master.
Hoping to give her even a little strength for the lonely journey that would begin now, I held her tightly.
“Please don’t be too sad, Master… We can meet in the future.”
“Yuren…”
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Yes, everything had been predetermined.
Me coming here, stopping the Demon Lord, and the meeting between my Master and me in the future; it had all been set from the start.
“Master, surely you can become the great elf who saves everyone. I will always support you. You are never alone.”
“Sniff… alright. I’ll create a peaceful world. I’ll make the world into a place where I can create enjoyable games, just like the fun I saw in your memories!!”
After saying our goodbyes, I slowly headed towards the World Tree.
Before diving into the polluted mana pond, I looked back at the Master and said,
“Then, Master! Let’s meet at ‘that’ place 500 years from now!!”
Splash-!
With those words, I jumped into the heart of the World Tree.
……………………
………………
…………
The inside of the World Tree was fascinating.
It felt like a dreamlike world.
The World Tree was connected to everything, and I could feel and sense everything the World Tree wanted to tell me.
And I sensed what the World Tree desired.
The World Tree wanted to rid itself of the demon’s magic, which was gnawing at it like a cancer, and I began to eliminate the demon’s magic one by one, as if I were a white blood cell.
It was a tedious task.
The only relief was that I could see the world inside the World Tree.
Time in the world passed quickly.
10 years… 20 years… 30 years…
I saw Karuga become a hero, and Sergeant Allen published a book about Karuga’s exploits.
I felt the soldiers of the war turn into heroes, grow old, die, and return to the World Tree for reincarnation.
And in that world, my Master began to take action.
Though she could have enjoyed great riches as a war hero, she refused everything and began to fight for peace.
The surface world quickly forgot about demons, and began to have wars, both big and small.
There was a war between the Kingdom of Ra and the Zers Empire.
There was a war between the Zers Empire and the Yura Republic.
There was a war between the Yura Republic and the Kingdom of Ra.
A civil war broke out over the succession issues of the Zers Empire.
A revolution broke out in the Yura Republic, starting a long civil war.
And amidst this chaos, my Master continued to cry out for peace.
She advocated dialogue and cooperation rather than fighting, acting and acting again.
But peace did not come easily.
People, elves, and many nations on the surface coveted my Master’s power and begged her to lend it to them.
They wanted my Master to take their side, and once they obtained power, they would create peace with that power and coerced her into butchery.
But my Master refused all of it.
She rejected fighting, rejected slaughter, and rejected invasion.
My Master acted only for one reason.
“A world where all children can smile and be happy.”
She acted only for that.
But the more she did, the more isolated she became.
I could know for sure, being inside the World Tree.
The people of this other world were no different.
Humans were garbage.
All living beings were disgusting, repulsive creatures.
They repeated the times where they would use and kill each other for a little benefit.
In the midst of those garbage beings, my Master continued to fight.
And eventually, she was cast out by both enemies and allies.
“It’s lonely… Yuren…”
My heart felt like it was collapsing.
Despite being abandoned by all, my Master continued to care for the orphaned children of war, continuing her lonely fight.
And every night, in places where no one could see, she cried.
What would I have done if I’d been in her situation?
I probably would have hated the world and burned everything to the ground.
But my Master…
“Let’s hang in there… A delightful day will surely come.”
My Master did not give up.
She believed that at the end of this road, the peaceful era I had shown her, where everyone was joyous and smiling, would eventually come.
Even if mocked and called a fool by people, she believed in my memories and continued to strive.
So I couldn’t give up either.
Time passed.
While healing the World Tree, I continued to support my Master a little within the World Tree.
I also helped Alicia, who was with my Master.
In that way, my Master and Alicia became sages,
and slowly, her dream began to come true.
Time continued to flow.
One by one, people who became a source of strength for her began to appear.
The Magic Association was formed.
The Magic Association prohibited the use of mass destruction magic in warfare.
The Krea Cathedral condemned wars and emphasized dialogue.
Wars began to decrease, and dialogue began to increase.
My Master’s face began to show more smiles slowly.
And finally…
My Master met ‘me.’
“You have talent. Be my disciple!”
To me, who had lost the will to live as my hometown burned, my Master extended her hand.
Fearing that hand, yet also hopeful, I took my Master’s hand.
As my Master smiled and looked at me, she firmly took my hand and led me to our first home.
A joyful time had begun.
My Master settled in the Southern Region and created the Irene School.
Jiren joined, Karen came in.
Noirin joined, and I rescued Barren and Lauren.
I met Juel and Julia.
Though it was tough and poor, the time was filled with joy and happiness.
And so time flowed, and I finally created a game.
Many incidents unfolded due to that game.
There were hardships and struggles, but all those times shone like gold.
At the center of it all was my Master’s smile.
After developing the game, I felt something had changed in my Master’s smile.
Now, I think I know the reason.
My Master had felt relieved.
That she had truly put forth her efforts…
That she sensed I had arrived in a future where I could return, and only now felt that relief after 500 years.
And all the last remaining demon power within the World Tree was completely gone.
The time had come.
It was time to go home.
