Preparation Only

With our stomachs full of fruit, we headed to Simurgh-san.

After hearing the situation, Simurgh-san flapped his wings and tapped his own cheeks as he murmured “Hmm, hmm.”

He then circled gracefully above us, observing Miria-san and Lulu-san from every angle.

“So they truly are Dark Elves… there is no mistake.”

“Oooh… this is the Divine Bird Simurgh-sama…”

“He really does feel divine…”

The two of them stared solemnly at Simurgh-san, bodies stiff with tension.

Well, even though they had met Wheel-san’s family in Guinea, they didn’t exactly get time for a long conversation.

And Wheel-san was more like the boisterous father of a huge family— not exactly a source of awe and majesty.

“But still… to think you’d involve yourself with Dark Elves… Woody is absurd as always.”

“Well, it kind of just… happened.”

“I want to say ‘nothing like that happens by accident!’ but…
when your talent is connected to World Trees, then ties with Elves are inevitable, I suppose…”

Perhaps influenced by the solemn mood the Dark Elves carried, even Simurgh-san wore an extremely serious expression— a far cry from the same Simurgh who had been flapping his wings and whining,

‘I want more Wind-element fruits, I demand more!’

“Woody, if you’re going to involve yourself with Dark Elves, you should prepare for interference from the Elves as well.”

“Interference… from the Elves?”

“Indeed. Before long, the Elves will surely notice the anomaly and come here.”

As I wondered why the Elves would come, Simurgh-san explained kindly.

To create a Sanctuary, you needed three components:

People, mana, and a Divine Beast.

But even if you had all three, that alone did not create a Sanctuary.

To form one, a World Tree was essential.

According to Simurgh-san, the World Tree acted as a lubricant linking the three components together.

If a Divine Beast were overwhelmingly powerful, a World Tree wouldn’t be required— but almost none are that strong, and such beings rarely appear near humans anyway.

Therefore, the World Tree is critically important.

And while my “Arborist” talent made planting them feel almost trivial, World Trees were originally extremely rare.

They absorbed mana from the land and air, and then redistributed it in many forms— purifying corrupted soldiers, creating oases, generating mines like in Guinea…

All of this greatly benefited those living inside a Sanctuary.

But it also altered the original natural flow of mana.

Elves, who have deep knowledge of World Trees and ley lines, would definitely notice something strange.

“If they learn Dark Elves are here, how will the Elves respond?”

“It will not be pleasant, that much is certain. But there is no need to rush a conclusion. Think slowly and decide carefully.”

“That’s true… thank you.”

The Elves would eventually come.

When they did, what should we do?

How should we respond?

If possible, I would like to get along with them… but that depended on how things played out.

For now, the only thing I could do was prepare so that Miria-san and the others would not have to fear what was coming.

I resolved to make sure of that— even before the Elves arrived.