The One Branch of The Tree

I woke up earlier than usual or maybe I didn't really sleep well, it's hard to sleep when your only travel companion is a mysterious woman whose level is unreadable and who could most likely stab you in three fatal spots before breakfast.

The campfire was a healthy environment, with only a few embers remaining, and the morning mist hanging low among the trees. The air was cooler than yesterday. I opened my eyes and reflexively looked around. Nara was awake, of course, sitting on a rock, sharpening one of her daggers. Her movements were calm, precise, almost deliberate. I ignored the fact that the tool she was sharpening was meant for stabbing vital organs.

“Good morning,” I said.

Nara glanced briefly.

“You slept holding a gun.”

I looked at the Thorny Branch that I was still holding.

“…new habits.”

“Paranoid,” he corrected.

“Survival instinct,” I replied.

Nara didn't respond, it was hard to win a debate with someone whose default expression was unpaid invoice. 

I stood up and stretched. Nature Assimilation was actually very helpful, even after a short sleep. My body felt much fresher, and the minor injuries from last night were almost healed, which was very good. I opened my status.

Name: Lock

Level 13

Class: One Tree Trunk

Weapon: Thorny Branch

Skill:

Devour Root

Ember Slash

Root Snare

Minor Mana Sense

Nature Assimilation

Good progress, still far from overpowered, but no longer depressing, I was a little satisfied. Nara threw something at me, and I caught it reflexively, a small, dark red fruit.

“What is this?” I asked.

“It’s edible.” Not a very convincing answer.

I stared at the fruit.

“Edible and safe to eat are two different categories.”

"If it was poisonous I wouldn't give it to you."

I raised an eyebrow.

“High optimism.”

Even though I ate it, it tasted sour, a little bitter but gave a warm sensation in the body, not bad.

“Light buff,” Nara said.

“Thirty minutes of cold resistance.” I nodded. 

Okay, that's useful. We started walking after packing up camp. Today's target: the core zone. 

There was no pressure, the morning forest felt different, the deeper we went in, the heavier the atmosphere, the trees changed shape, the trunks were darker, the leaves were almost black, large roots spread like giant snakes. 

Some even moved slightly, but I chose to pretend not to notice that mental health was important. Minor Mana Sense also began to work harder, the energy in this area was too dense, even the air felt heavy. I looked at Nara.

“Have you been this far?”

“Once,” he replied.

"Almost die."

A great boost in confidence, we continued our journey in silence, occasionally Nara signaling stops, avoiding certain areas, pointing out monster tracks or natural traps. 

He's clearly experienced, I'm starting to understand why he's still alive a useful but still suspicious partner, yeah pretty balanced.

A few hours passed and finally we arrived at the limit, I knew it even before Nara stopped because the atmosphere changed drastically. 

Before us lay a large open area like a giant clearing in the middle of a black earth forest, the fog was thicker and in the middle of it a giant tree. 

I froze the trunk was so large it felt like a tower, its roots spread throughout the area, its leaves were dark silver, a faint light was coming from the trunk, the mana from it was so great it was almost suffocating.

Notifications appear automatically.

Area discovered:

Core Zone — False World Tree

Danger: Extreme

I read the name of the area twice.

“The World Tree... is fake?”

Interesting. Nara stood beside me, her gaze serious.

“That is the center of this forest.”

“The root of all change.”

I couldn't stop staring at the tree, the Thorny Branch in my hand started to throb once, twice, stronger than before as if responding to something, I looked at my weapon. Oh?

A new notification appears.

Class resonance detected.

Source nearby.

Evolution material present.

I stared at the writing, my heart beating faster. The closest source? Could it be the tree? I slowly raised my head to look at the giant tree in front of me, a small smile appearing on my face.

“I think my class is very interested.”

Nara glanced at the notification on my face.

"Guess?"

“Maybe a big jackpot,” I replied.

He let out a small sigh.

"Good."

“That means our problems are big too.”

Fair enough we started to slowly move into the area, each step feeling wrong like stepping into the territory of something that shouldn't be disturbed. 

My instincts screamed back, go away, find a quiet life, maybe open a shop, but curiosity was far stronger than a very bad bad trait. 

Just a few steps in, I heard the voices of not monsters but several humans, Nara and I immediately took cover behind a large root to peek. 

There were five people near the tree, their armor better, their weapons fully equipped, and their auras stronger—they weren't hunters by any chance. One of them, wearing a long, dark blue coat, held a metal staff, seemingly the leader. They were digging for something near the tree roots, searching for something. Nara narrowed her eyes.

“Too late,” he whispered.

I noticed the symbol on their armor was an unknown white circle symbol.

A small notification appears.

Faction detected:

White Council

Threat: High

White Council? New name, possibly new problems, that's great, I whispered,

“Know them?”

Nara's expression changed slightly to one of extreme dislike.

“Yes.”

His tone was colder.

“And that's bad news.”

Okay, that's clear. The group leader suddenly spoke, his voice was clear.

“Search faster.”

“The artifact must be found before the next resonance.”

Resonance, Artifact, Tree, Class resonance the puzzle pieces began to connect, I stared at the Thorny Branch my weapon pulsed again stronger as if calling. Damn, please don't activate drama mode now, Nara saw my expression.

"What is it?"

I answered quietly,

“I think... what they're looking for might react to me.”

Nara looked at me, was silent for two seconds then took a deep breath.

“Great.”

“I've only known you for two days and my life is already more complicated.”

I smiled a little.

“Glad to contribute.”

In front of us one of the White Council members suddenly stopped, he turned towards the bush where we were hiding. 

“Who’s there?!” he shouted.

All heads immediately turned towards us, Nara and I looked at each other silently for a split second then I said,

“I think stealth mode is over.”

Nara took out her two daggers.

“Yes.”

And in an instant the situation turned very bad again.

[END CHAPTER 10]