'Back?' Arthur frowned as he heard the voice. 'Have I ever been here before?' The fact that the tree said 'back' means that he was here before, but Arthur remembered no such thing. 'I need to find out what this means.'
As the light began to fade, the tree's roots split in front of them and opened a pathway. This incident drew attention from all sides, making the people shout and chaos spread.
"Come on, My Seika." Gala shook her head as she grabbed her head. "We agreed to draw less attention."
"That was the plan, but it's better this way," Arthur said as he looked at the people being amazed by the root. "Can you make us appear, little spirit?"
"Yee." The spirit danced around Arthur, rubbing itself to his right hand. Arthur chuckled at this sight, but Gala was looking at him with a complex gaze.
"What?" Arthur turned her way as the group appeared to the public. "Do you still get mad if I talk to your spirit directly?"
In response, Gala shook her head and looked at the tree. The cries of the people as they witnessed the Seika appearing out of nowhere prevented Arthur from asking any further.
"It's the Seika!"
"What is he doing to Mother Rega?"
"Can the rumors be true? That he's here to harm our Divine Tree?"
"No! Remember what he's called? The Gardener! He must be here under his Majesty's orders to restore Mother Rega's former glory!"
"Mother Rega opened its root for the Seika. This can only mean he's here to help her!"
The people held different opinions, but there was no doubt that Arthur's revelation of himself would generate underlying storms. Arthur walked into the tree with his group without speaking to the people, and it closed behind them.
As they walked into the tree, they found themselves standing in the middle of the endless fog. Islands were floating around connected by the tree's roots, which they happened to be standing on one.
"This is the Divine Tree's inner world?" Gala looked around with amazement. "To have an inner world, the tree must be..."
"A spirit." Arthur nodded with a smile. "I think you've already sensed that something was amiss."
"I did, but this can't be true. Spirits can't exist on their own. Someone must be contracted to them. If the owner dies, the spirit returns to their realm. How old is this tree?" Gala asked Daniel.
"Mother Rega has been around since the beginning of time." Daniel blinked. "People built the city because of the existence of the Divine Tree."
"That means..." Gala's eyes widened.
"This spirit either exists on its own or that its contractor is still alive after thousands of years." Arthur squinted his eyes. His words made silence descend on the group. "Which one is more frightening?" He asked with a smile.
"The existence of a thousand years old being..." Dia muttered; her brows furrowed. "If that's true, then no one can match up to their strength."
"There's someone who's as ancient right beside you." Arthur glanced at Gala, who shook her head.
"I'm not as old as this tree. I'm not even a thousand years old yet." Gala said without being offended. "What's more frightening is the existence of a spirit without a contractor. If they can descend on their own, this dimension is no longer ours. There are powerful spirits that can flatten the world with a single breath."
"Has anyone ever contracted one?" Arthur asked.
"There's no such thing. These spirits are cosmic beings that have existed since ancient times. They're as old as the universe itself."
Arthur pondered such a notion. Beings that could eat worlds for breakfast and swallow suns for dessert somewhere out there in the universe. Such a thing made one despair.
"We need to find the core." Arthur shook the thoughts away and started walking up the tree. "However, something has damaged the tree. That's why it asked for our help."
"Whatever can harm this spirit must be something equally as powerful," Gala said, grabbing Arthur's shoulder and pulling him back. "We can just leave; your reputation doesn't matter if we unearth the identity of the traitor."
"It's not about that." Arthur shook his head. "This city is pivotal for the safety of Freda. If it falls due to a plague, it'll be more troublesome in the future."
"Are you sure this isn't about helping this city?" Dia interrupted. "Don't get me wrong, Seika. I'll follow your commands. However, if you're after world peace and no one getting hurt, then I must warn you that it's futile."
"Maybe." Arthur shrugged. He couldn't say that he also wanted to find out what the tree meant by its words. "I don't care if this saves people or kills people as long as it wouldn't hinder me."
He began walking away as Dia and Gala looked at each other. Daniel seemed confused as he carried Roya, but he followed after Arthur. The tree's root extended endlessly, connecting various islands. They arrived at the first island after an hour of walking.
"Why are you still here?" Gala asked Daniel, who shrunk a bit at her gaze.
"Mother Rega can cure anyone, including my daughter. She might be stronger than before, but she's still sickly."
"That has nothing to do with us." Dia scowled, and Roya began tearing up. Gala hurried to carry her as she glared at the princess.
"Made of ice," Gala said with disapproval.
"Enough." Arthur stopped in front of a giant well on the island. The well was almost ten meters wide, looking like a pond than a well.
"What is this place?" Dia asked as she looked around the island.
"My well has dried, the one that gave life to this land." A voice answered it, the same voice that Arthur heard before he entered the tree. "A being resides inside this well, drinking all of its water."
"Well, thanks for the explanation." Arthur smiled as he looked upward. "How about you reveal yourself?"
"This is your world." The tree answered him. "But my roots have dried, defeat that being for them to allow your ascendence."
"It's asking us to help it first to ascend." Dia frowned.
"Really? I thought it was asking us to strip." Arthur rolled his eyes, and Dia huffed in anger. "Let's go down there. Gala, stay here with Daniel."
"Alright~"
"You seem too cheerful to skip work." Arthur sighed. Dia walked over to him, and he grew confused. "What are you doing?"
"Carry you down there."
"Oh, there's no need for your vehicle services anymore." Arthur laughed and jumped on the well's edge. "I can land on my own." Arthur jumped down and began freefalling downward.
"Wait!" Dia shouted behind him and jumped after him. "This well is endless! You'll die if you land like this, grab onto me!"
"You have zero trust in me." Arthur sighed and activated his skill. Suddenly, his descent became slower. "Happy now?"
"Whatever," Dia looked at him silently and turned around. She then dived straight into the well without waiting for him.
'Is she trying to be useful?' Arthur smiled as he resumed his freefall. He could see the bottom of the well only after several minutes, which made him amazed.
"What is that?" Dia asked as she covered her nose. "Is that what we're supposed to defeat? It looks like..."
"An octopus," Arthur answered as he began gliding downward. "But not just any octopus, this one is..."
Arthur looked at the giant monster, still drinking the crystal-clear water of the well. Its skin was white, but the monster had black fluid coming out of its eight tentacles.
"The water is already shallow; why is it still trying to drink it?" Dia frowned at the monster, which didn't even notice their arrival.
"Because it was ordered to do so by a corruptive being." Arthur's eyes brightly shone in the dark bottom of the well. "Something that shouldn't exist in this world."
Arthur's spiritual arm, which consisted of a continuously gushing stream of spiritual power, began taking the shape of a giant sword. The sword was golden in color, and Arthur made it descend and stab the giant octopus, making it roar in agony.
"Ever eaten a fried octopus?" Arthur grinned as fire danced on his fingers. In response, countless ice shards appeared above Dia.
"You don't plan on doing all the work, do you?" Dia smirked and gestured with her hand, making the ice shards descend like rain. "It's coming!"
The octopus was wrathful and began its attack. Two tentacles avoided their attacks and tried to ram into Arthur and Dia. However, a two-layered barrier appeared in front of them, golden and blue.
The tentacles struck the barrier and corroded them both. Arthur frowned and pulled Dia closer to him. He waved his hand, and a wall of liquid fire appeared to stop the advancement of the tentacles.
"Be careful." Arthur frowned. "This monster eats away everything in existence, including mana."