The One Branch of The Tree
- Raka, an ordinary high school student, dies of exhaustion and is reincarnated with his entire class into a fantasy world. There, everyone receives a class and a blessing from the gods to start a new life. While his friends acquire powerful classes like knight, mage, healer, and assassin, Raka is given the class considered the weakest and most shameful: the One Tree Branch.
- Considered a burden and a threat to the group, Raka was betrayed and hunted by his own friends on their first day of arrival. Cornered in the Forbidden Forest, a place known as a region full of monsters and death, Raka discovered his class' true ability: Devour Root, the power to absorb the attributes, energy, and even skills of anyone he kills.
- Since then, his life changed completely.
- To survive, Raka is forced to kill monsters, bounty hunters, and the people who hunt him. Each victory makes him grow stronger, while his class weapon slowly evolves from a lowly twig into an increasingly terrifying weapon.
- In the midst of his struggle for survival, Raka meets Nara, a mysterious girl wielding two daggers who has her own agenda in the Forbidden Forest. Together with Nara, Raka enters the Core Zone, the mysterious center of the forest filled with ancient ruins, artifacts, and a dangerous organization called the White Council.
- There, Raka discovers that his class resonates with a mysterious entity called the False World Tree, a giant tree that is the source of the anomalies in the Forbidden Forest.
- The deeper he unravels the secrets of the False World Tree, the more it becomes clear that the One Tree Trunk class is not a failed class, but rather a forbidden fragment of the true World Tree-a power that has long been sealed away because it was thought to be capable of destroying the balance of the world.
- Now Raka is at a crossroads: take revenge on his friends who betrayed him, or pursue the truth behind the World Tree fragment that is now directly connected to him.
- But one thing is certain, the more power he absorbs, the closer he gets to something far more dangerous than death: losing himself and becoming the new vessel for the World Tree.
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Chapter 12
The passageway leading underground was much older than the previous ruins, the stone walls were filled with fine cracks, tree roots penetrated almost the entire surface as if this place was slowly being swallowed alive by something.
The faint green light emanating from the roots provided enough light to walk and the perfect setting for bad life decisions.
I walked behind Nara not out of politeness but because she was clearly more experienced in dealing with deadly traps.
“How long has this place been around?” I asked quietly.
Nara nodded.
“Much older than the surrounding kingdoms.”
“How old?”
"No one knows."
"That's a very helpful answer," I sighed. My Minor Mana Sense was working hard, and the deeper we went, the stronger the sensation, like a slow, steady pulse, like a heartbeat. I paused for a moment as Nara turned around.
"What is it?"
I touched the rooted wall.
“This place... is alive.”
Nara didn't look surprised.
“Yes.”
Excuse me? That's information that should have been discussed first, but I decided not to dwell on it. Some facts in this world are better understood before the brain decides to stop.
The hallway finally ended before us, a large stone door covered in roots, strange carvings covering its surface—circles, branches, eyes—a bit unsettling. As I approached, the Thorny Branch in my hand began to vibrate more violently than before.
A notification appears.
Class resonance increasing.
Compatible source nearby.
Evolution chance detected.
My heart beat faster Nara saw my expression.
“Another reaction?”
I nodded.
“Getting stronger.”
Nara looked at the door.
“Then you open it.”
“Why do I feel like this is a bad idea?”
“Because that's how it is.”
Honesty remains consistent, I approached the door while raising the Thorny Branch, as soon as the tip touched the surface of the root the entire door shook.
KRRAAAK.
The roots began to move, slowly opening a path. Okay, a little creepy. The door opened and the room beyond made me pause for breath for a moment.
The room was enormous, almost like a giant underground hall. The high ceiling was lined with glowing roots, and in the center of the room was the core.
A dark green crystal the size of a grown man floated in the air and connected to large roots throughout the room the energy from it was incredibly dense, ancient, unstable.
Notifications appear automatically.
Target identified:
World Tree Fragment
Status: Corrupted
I read the writing slowly. Fragments? So my class is really related to this. Nara took a few steps in, her gaze focused and serious.
“Finally,” he muttered.
I looked at him.
“You know about this?”
Nara was silent for a few seconds then nodded slightly.
"Part."
“Explanation?” I asked.
I guess after a few near-death experiences, I deserve some knowledge. Nara stared at the crystal.
“There used to be a real World Tree.”
“The center of mana and the balance of the world.”
Classic fantasy infrastructure he continued.
“But something destroyed it.”
“The fragments are scattered.”
“Some are missing.”
“Some are sealed.”
His gaze hardened.
“And some... are corrupted.”
I saw the crystal in front. It makes sense, the aesthetic is very damaged.
“And my class?” I asked.
Nara glanced at me.
“I think your class is one of the fragments.”
I was speechless, well that wasn't a small piece of information at all.
“You mean I brought the World Tree shard?”
"Less is more." he said calmly.
That was more or less a very important detail to reveal casually, I stared at the Thorny Branch my weapon was pulsing again faster, stronger, as if calling or being called.
A new notification appears.
Evolution available.
Condition:
Absorb corrupted fragment.
Warning:
High risk.
Unknown mutation possible.
I stared at the writing for a long, long time and then chuckled.
“Of course there are warnings.”
It can never be just a normal upgrade there is always the possibility of horror, Nara approaches.
“What are the options?”
I showed him the notification, he read it and his expression didn't change, it was still calm to the point of being annoying.
“If it works?”
"Evolution."
"What if it fails?"
I pointed to the writing.
“Unknown mutation.”
Nara thought for a moment. Then she said,
“That sounds bad.”
“Sharp analysis.”
We stood silently, staring at the fragment. This was clearly its true purpose, I could feel it. My class was hungry, there was a strong instinctive urge to absorb, to take, to grow very strong.
It was a little disturbing, like a faint voice in my head saying, "Take it, absorb it, complete it." I gritted my teeth, trying to hold back the urge. Okay, a little creepy.
“Cancer.”
Nara's voice cut through my thoughts, I turned to see her expression was more serious than usual.
“If you do this, there may be no turning back.”
The tone was different, not cold, not sarcastic, but honest. Concern? Character development detected, I looked at the crystal again and chuckled,
“I think the way back was lost since I was thrown into the forest.”
A fair assessment, I took one step forward, two steps closer to the fragment. The mana in the room began to swirl, the roots trembled, the Thorny Branch glowed brighter.
Notifications are flashing.
Absorption started?
Not yet, my hand was only a few centimeters from the crystal. My heart was beating fast, the air felt heavy. Nara stepped back a little, I took a breath.
“If I turn into a strange monster”
“Don’t worry,” said Nara.
"I will kill you."
I turned to him.
“…very supportive.”
"Thank You."
My usual expressionless expression was blank, and I smiled faintly. Well, let's see if this is the biggest upgrade of my life or the worst decision yet. Likely both. I placed my hand on the crystal, and the world instantly changed.
BOOOOM!
A dark green light exploded filling the entire room, excruciating pain shot through my body as if every bone was being broken at once, I screamed,
“AAAAARGH!”
The wild mana entering my body was not just mana but something much older, greater and stranger.
Notifications appear in succession.
Corrupted Fragment detected.
Forced synchronization initiated.
Compatibility test in progress.
Oh, that sounds terrible, very terrible. My body began to lose control. The Thorny Branches cracked and deformed, black roots sprouted from the floor and wrapped around my body.
Pain level: unacceptable, I almost lost consciousness.
The last notification appears.
Evolution beginning.
Please survive.
…This system is very helpful emotionally my vision is starting to darken Nara's voice sounds faint.
“Cancer!”
Then everything went black.
[END CHAPTER 12]
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8.3
Betrayed at the altar. Replaced by her own sister.
On what should have been the happiest day of her life, Amara loses everything-her fiancé, her dignity, and her future.
But that same night, a dangerous man steps out of the shadows with an offer she can't refuse.
Marriage. Power. Revenge.
Now bound to a ruthless CEO, Amara is ready to destroy everyone who betrayed her.
There's just one problem...
Her new husband knows more about her past than he should.
And the closer she gets to revenge-
the more she realizes she may have married the man who ruined her in the first place.
8.4
I worked three double shifts at the garage just to buy a velvet-boxed cake for my wealthy girlfriend, Arleen.
But when I pushed open the VIP room door, I saw her lover kissing her bare leg.
She didn't push him away. Instead, she laughed and swirled her martini.
"I only forgot Finn because I knew he would stay. He is a poor boy from Queens who follows me around like a loyal dog."
Later that night, her lover intentionally crashed a Porsche to scare me, sending a piece of jagged metal into my skull.
Lying in a growing pool of my own blood, I watched Arleen crawl out of the wreckage.
She didn't even look at me. She threw herself at her uninjured lover, screaming for a medic.
"He just got scraped by a piece of plastic. He is faking it. Deal with Jaquez first!"
When I woke up, I wasn't free. Arleen had locked me in a private hospital wing with 24-hour security, planning to isolate me and keep me as her broken, captive toy forever.
My blind, pathetic devotion finally froze into absolute disgust.
I looked at the heart monitor next to my bed and grabbed an IV needle.
I severed the sensor wire to trigger a flatline, slipped out the fire stairs while the nurses panicked, and burned my identity to ashes.
This time, I was going to disappear to London, build my own empire, and watch hers burn.
7.2
Clifton, the god of esports, was secretly battling a career-ending wrist injury to protect his team.
A year ago, he kissed his duo partner, Justice, only to be met with violent disgust. Justice shoved him away and dry-heaved in the rain, looking at him like a monster.
Humiliated by the straight man's raw revulsion, Clifton cut him out of his life.
But now, Justice suddenly appeared at Clifton's club as a rookie tryout.
Instead of an ambitious climber, Justice played the perfect, pathetic victim. He cowered, trembled, and acted terrified whenever Clifton was near.
He even signed a bloodsucking contract with a toxic teammate, sparking rumors he was brought in to replace Clifton as captain.
During a scrimmage, Clifton hesitated to shoot because he remembered Justice had just severely burned his hand.
Justice showed no mercy. He ruthlessly gunned Clifton down, humiliating the captain in front of the entire coaching staff.
Clifton was consumed by blinding rage and betrayal.
If Justice was so disgusted by him, why did he fake his devotion for six months just to use him?
Why was he acting like helpless prey now, after trampling all over Clifton's pride?
Determined to rip off the liar's disguise, Clifton dragged Justice into a live stream in front of sixty thousand viewers.
"He's asking if you are in love with me."
Clifton smiled cruelly, waiting for the public execution. But just as the trap snapped shut, a choked, terrified gasp came through the headset.
8.6
Lilac Stone once wanted nothing more than being unnoticed. But everything changed the moment she met Adrian Cole, the new lecturer.
He's distant and completely off-limits. She's quiet, guarded, and unprepared for the way he sees right through her.
What begins as harmless conversations after class quickly turns into something far more dangerous-something neither of them can stop no matter how hard they try.
But then they're living in a world where rules are meant to be followed, and their connection is one line they were never supposed to cross.
Whispers turn to accusations. Secrets are exposed. Their futures are at risk.
They are merely two opposites-a lecturer and a student, a male and a female-but they are bound to destroy each other as long as they are huddled in one space at the same time.
What then can they choose: forfeit their futures and embrace their happiness, or let the latter slip while keeping their careers intact?
8.8
"Fuck...please..."
He risks a nibble, sending shockwaves to my core. My back arches off the wall with a sharp moan.
His hand slides between my legs, cupping my soaking panties.
"Look how wet you are," he whispers, "...shaking, and I haven't even fucked you yet."
He strokes my clit gently first, then harder. My toes curl, hair spilling into my sweaty face.
He's breaking me, ruining me with just his tongue and fingers. I can't speak. I can't think. I just tremble in his arms.
*********
The night I caught my fiancé cheating, something in me broke.
I cried.
I screamed.
I drove - into the rain, into nowhere, into him.
Cassian Cross.
A stranger with gray eyes, a sinful mouth, and hands that made me forget my name.
One night was all it took. One reckless mistake to burn away my heartbreak.
Until he showed up at my mom's wedding...
As my new stepbrother.
Now, Cassian won't stop.
He corners me in hallways, whispers filth at the altar, and looks at me like he still owns my body.
But there's one thing he didn't tell me-
He already belongs to someone else.
A fiancée bound to him by a contract... and a secret that could destroy us both.
He's dangerous.
He's forbidden.
He's promised to another.
And God help me, I still can't stop wanting him.
9.7
Gemma expected the tearing agony of the bullet wound that had just ended her life.
Instead, her trembling fingers met the cool, smooth friction of heavy silk.
She stared into the mirror. Her face was flawless, completely devoid of the jagged scar that had marred her cheek for the last five years.
It was exactly ten years ago. The day of her engagement party to the ruthless billionaire, Brion Hubbard.
In her past life, her "best friend" Katelyn convinced her to run away with a scheming scumbag.
Katelyn claimed Brion was a heartless tyrant who would ruin her. Gemma had foolishly believed those fake tears.
That choice led to her family's bankruptcy, her brutal disfigurement, and ultimately, a fatal bomb explosion.
The only person who tried to save her was Brion, his blood-soaked body shielding hers from the blast.
She even realized too late that the strawberry cream cakes she always made for him were full of dairy.
He wasn't leaving to cheat on her. He was locking himself in a medical bay, fighting fatal allergic shock, just to accept a tiny scrap of her affection.
Gemma had been so incredibly blind. Why did she trust the venomous snakes who destroyed her, while hating the man who died for her?
Hearing Katelyn frantically knocking on the dressing room door, urging her to run away again, a towering hatred surged through Gemma's veins.
This time, she wasn't going to run.
She was going to expose the traitors, take back her family's wealth, and claim the tyrant for herself.