I Picked Up the Abandoned Hero

89. The End of Childhood

The dreams of the past were vivid even in the present.

The day when God came.

When the person who was watching everything directly touched it, the ecstasy at that time still makes me shiver.

Warm hands.

Beautiful appearance.

A merciful voice.

How can I forget all that?

Something that can never be forgotten even if hundreds or thousands of years pass.

Even if my body dies, I remember it clearly.

I am standing here to experience that feeling once again.

A magic circle has already been prepared around her, and all that remains is to use the World Tree as a sacrifice to activate it.

At first she was worried that there were no more sacrifices in the land, but that was a useless worry.

Unfortunately, when I woke up, many of the elves had already died…

Because there was still a sacrifice that was greater than anything else, the World Tree.

Even if we gathered tens of thousands of bug-like elves, they would not amount to one branch of this world tree.

And now there are no more annoying intruders.

God’s blessing will once again be granted to this land.

And, God’s mercy will be shown to the ignorant creatures outside.

That was the only rest given to the elves.

†††

“…Are you ready?”

“Yes, the preparation of body and mind has already been completed.”

Arsel and Stella gazed at their goal, the World Tree, from the top of the observatory.

There are countless elves and shadows with terrible fangs creeping around.

“You can’t miss a single thing, you only get one chance. “Our fate and future depend on that one moment.”

For now, I have come up here to avoid their eyes, but the moment I gather magical power, my presence will be discovered.

“I know.”

This game will probably start from then.

The defense on the ground was left to Alfred and Morian.

Alfred is someone you shouldn’t trust, but he’s also someone who strangely makes you trust him.

Alfred said that he would take care of Morian himself and that he should put all his effort into felling the World Tree.

In that case, no matter what happens, we have no choice but to repay by cutting down that world tree.

“I will take out the holy sword. “How are the bows prepared?”

“Leave it to me, elves my size don’t carry bows. “Because we make the bow you need right on the spot.”

Roots sprout from the bottom.

The root was transformed into a bow larger than a person, and was closer in shape to a ballista than a bow.

“You’re shooting a sword, not an arrow, so wouldn’t you need a bow of an appropriate size?”

“That is correct, then I will control the holy sword. All you have to do is control me and shoot the holy sword like an arrow.”

Arcel placed the holy sword in his hand and tied it to the string.

Stella holds the Holy Sword with Arcel and begins to change the zero point to aim at her target, the World Tree.

Now all that’s left is to pack enough magical power into the holy sword, which is an arrow.

Stella channeled all of her magical energy into the holy sword.

Pajijik-!!

The Holy Sword begins to emit blue electric current and bright light.

From that point on, the surrounding air also changed.

The red-eyed elves turned their gaze to the observatory.

It seems they sensed magical power and realized that the target they were aiming for was there.

‘It’s coming…!’

The ground begins to shake.

Thousands of elves were flocking to the observatory to bite Arcel and Stella.

Besides, it’s not just the elves that are targeting the two people.

The fangs hiding in the shadows of the elves were rushing toward the observatory like a tsunami.

“Close your eyes for a moment. If you confirmed the location anyway, it doesn’t matter if you close your eyes, right?”

Alfred’s voice heard at that time.

Arsel and Stella close their eyes immediately after hearing the voice.

Now there is no time or reason to ask why.

If you just want to close your eyes, closing them is the best option.

“I have the sun in my hands now.”

Alfred threw a red magic stone into the night sky.

Pow!!

‘Even if I close my eyes, I feel dazzled.’

Then, a light is emitted that brightens the dark night like broad day.

The magic stone that Alfred threw exploded, and an incredibly bright light engulfed the world.

In the aftermath, the tsunami of shadows disappeared, albeit temporarily, and most of the elves fell to the ground with burning pain in their eyes.

“You can open your eyes now, just try your best.”

“…I understand. Alfred.”

Alfred went down again.

Until now, the elves had been running wild without pain or fear, but when their sight was taken away, it was out of the question.

As there are so many, they lose sight of each other, so they collide with each other, fall, and become stranded.

‘Are there still moving elves?’

From Noble mtl dot com

However, not all elves fell, and those who had received training like Stella were able to move without major problems even if they lost their eyesight.

With senses as developed as the eyes of an elf, they are aware of space and rush towards the observatory.

Before he became like that, he must have been a skilled hunter with a lot of battlefield experience.

“Light of the Holy Sword, protect this tower from evil.”

Morian stopped those hunters.

As if he hadn’t just said he would help with words, Morian drew out his holy sword and cut down all the elves that were attacking him.

As if he couldn’t hold the holy sword for nothing, Morian was fending off the elves with less difficulty than expected.

Thanks to this, the upper part was able to really focus on sniping.

“Now focus all your attention on the holy sword! If you can’t cut down the World Tree with one blow, everything will be in vain!”

“…I understand!”

A world tree that feels like you can reach it if you stretch out your hand.

However, that was only due to the size of the huge world tree, and the actual distance was far away.

The primordial tree located in the center of this land.

The World Tree is like a parent that contains the ancient wishes and narratives of various elves.

Stella pledged to cut down the world tree like her parents, and at this moment, she puts that resolution into practice.

There is no need to worry about the storm of battle raging around you.

For Stella, wind was a meaningless variable not even worth considering, and the Holy Sword is an instant-kill bullet that pierces not only the wind but any other protection.

In essence, sniping is not particularly difficult.

But the problem is that the target is the World Tree.

There is a top-class arrow that cannot be compared to any other holy sword, but its target was the world tree containing the history and wishes of the elves that made even such a holy sword smaller.

If the power is too strong, it will only penetrate, and if it is too weak, it will not be able to cut through the huge stem and will bounce off.

We had to find an appropriate agreement there.

There is no future for either of them.

In order to move toward the future, I had to cut down that huge world tree with just this one shot.

“I’m going to use all the magic I have.”

“But if that were the case-“

Still, Stella decided to use all the magic she had.

Even if the power was too strong or excessive, I thought it was right.

“…Don’t worry, I will definitely cut down the World Tree. “I just want you to stop me from collapsing due to exhaustion of mana.”

The goal is nothing else but the World Tree.

It was a sacred old tree that was like a parent to him. In order to cut down such an old tree, he felt that it would not be enough to sacrifice not only all his magical power but also his life.

In that way, Stella sent all of her magical energy into the bow and arrow, the Holy Sword.

After all, it is Arcel’s weapon, not your own, so you will have to do it that way to achieve sufficient power.

Apart from that, the holy sword felt really heavy.

Although Arcel was holding the holy sword and did not drop it, I was able to feel once again how heavy the holy sword and the name of the warrior were.

Arsel had been carrying this weight alone for the past time.

No matter how painful and difficult it was, he never once said anything he didn’t like.

He said that it was his duty to do it, and rather, he encouraged others who were his colleagues and made them move forward.

Stella also received help.

So now is the time to help Arcel move forward, he takes a deep breath and his eyes light up.

All magical power is fully contained in the holy sword.

“…Go!!!”

And just like that, the arrow left the demonstration.

For a moment, time stopped and all the surrounding light seemed to disappear.

It seemed as if everything around had been absorbed by the holy sword.

The holy sword takes the shape of blue light and is shot towards the World Tree at incredible speed.

It felt like a hawk, and the blue electric current it emitted cut through the darkness and instantly reduced the distance of tens of kilometers to zero.

Kwagwagwagwa-!

“Damn it! Could it be that the world tree is-!”

Arsel, who was looking at the holy sword, clenched his teeth.

In response to the Holy Sword being fired, the World Tree tried to block it by not just creating a barrier but also pulling its own roots down to the ground, layer after layer.

The thinnest stem that is sown is comparable to the wall of a sturdy castle.

It wasn’t just one, but dozens of them, so Arcel was worried that his power might drop and he wouldn’t be able to cut them down.

“It doesn’t matter! “Our arrows won’t be blocked by roots like that!”

But even though Stella was stumbling, her eyes were full of faith and confidence.

Kwasik!!!

The holy sword that was actually fired destroyed the roots blocking the path before it even reached them.

Thanks to the enormous amount of magical energy poured into it, the Holy Sword has reached a level where it can blow away the World Tree rather than cut it down.

The holy sword reached the level of twisting space, showing its powerful force of dividing roots and earth.

And finally…

Kwaaang!!!!!

With a roar that seemed to shake the heavens and earth, it collided with the World Tree, causing a huge explosion and a storm that swept the land.

Huge clouds and smoke rose from the spot of the World Tree.

It took several minutes for the clouds and smoke to clear.

‘The World Tree has disappeared!’

The scenery that was revealed afterwards was wide open.

Where the World Tree used to be, all that remained was the roots, with the stems having completely evaporated.

“Stella, success! “The World Tree has disappeared!”

The scene that had been hidden by the World Tree was revealed, presenting a spectacular view.

Arsel was happy and called Stella’s name.

But for some reason the answer seemed to be late, so I turned my head away.

“Ah, that’s a good thing… But, it’s so hard I can’t stand…”

“Are you okay?”

“Maybe I’m not okay… I have no strength in my hands and even my legs are gone…”

A difficult voice.

Stella, who was next to him, looked like he was on the verge of collapsing, even bleeding from his nose.

Thanks to the use of all his magical power, he was able to cut down the World Tree’s roots, but the reaction caused his body to be completely destroyed.

It seemed like he could barely stand with his mental strength.

Anyway, it’s over now.

Now that the barrier has disappeared, there is nothing holding Alfred back anymore.

The remaining elves can be dealt with very easily.

“…Okay, let’s rest now. I just felt the barrier disappear. “Now all that’s left is for Alfred-“

They were smiling, saying that their job was done now that the barrier had disappeared.

“Again, I was interrupted like before. Ah, this is why they are root bugs.”

Suddenly an ominous voice was heard.

“Ah.”

Immediately after, Arcel’s complexion turned pale.

The trembling eyes foreshadowed that there was no hope.

For some reason, the high elf they saw in the tomb was standing next to them.

A creepy feeling.

The holy sword that was fired succeeded in cutting down the World Tree, but it seems that it could not defeat the high elf inside it.

No, it seems like he sensed that something unstoppable was coming and avoided it long ago.

‘No, there is no holy sword and Stella cannot move.’

No matter how hard she tried to respond, Stella was already on the verge of collapsing, and Arcel did not have the holy sword.

I poured all my strength into cutting down the World Tree, and if I hadn’t done so, I would have failed, so it was inevitable.

“Then goodbye. How dare they even cut down our world tree. “Even if I die, I won’t have anything to say.”

This was the result of that choice.

The high elf extended his hand with a cold look in his eyes.

A shadow stretched out from the tip of her finger, trying to devour Arcel and Stella.

I couldn’t avoid it or block it.

“…You live.”

“Stella?”

Smiling as if Stella had given up, she pushed Arcel away, leaving her alone to be swallowed up by her shadow.

“Instead, I have to live happily up to my share? “It’s okay to be with those damn demons.”

“Stella…!”

Arcel urgently stretched out her hand, but she could not reach it.

Not long after, Stella’s figure was covered in shadow.

.

.

.

“Well, that’s a shame, you idiot.”