Chapter 300. Prarya. [AotSC] (Patreon)

Author Note: Happy chapter 300! I hope you are having fun with the novel, Dears~.

*****

In front of her, a massive city opened up like a slumbering beast. The giant walls surrounding the city were imposing and deterring. Flor’s gaze moved beyond that wall and looked toward the distance, where a massively tall tree towered over all buildings, their canopy creating a large shadow that moved with the gentle winds that blew the branches at those heights. 

Flor asked Verena, her tone interested. “That’s the main World Tree of this place?”

Verena nodded and then shook her head. “While it is one of the World Trees, I think there is another on the other side of the province. They are both at around Level 40, from the information I have. Their age is also between 300 and 400 years. Quite young.”

“Young…” Flor scratched her cheek. “Liu Shu is about to be six years old. What does that make her?”

Verena chuckled and smiled. “She is six, but Level 25, right? That’s enough to consider a World Tree mature. Their intellect and rationale develop more with level than with age. Of course, both matter, but not as much as other intelligent beings.”

Flor hummed, her gaze thoughtful as she looked at the large city. “... Liu Shu has spent more than half her life sleeping. Do other World Trees take so long to Level Up?”

“They don’t.” Verena smiled. “Liu Shu is special, but I think the reason is simpler than you expect it.” 

“Oh? Do you have any idea?”

Verena nodded and answered. “I do. I think it is because of her age. Her body is just not used to the ridiculous changes, so it needs to go to sleep to process everything as carefully and efficiently as it can.” 

Flor nodded and asked, curious. “What’s the name of this World Tree, by the way?”

A nature-like curious voice spread in their carriage, startling both Verena and Flor. “My name is Prarya. You are such an interesting creature.”

Flor’s eyebrows twitched. She had forgotten that since they could see the World Tree, they were probably in her hearing range. ‘I didn’t expect her to be listening to us.’

Verena answered right away, her surprise quickly replaced by calmness. “Lady Prarya, it is quite surprising that you decided to speak. I heard that you’ve been incommunicative for almost two decades already.”

Prarya ignored Verena, her voice directing to Flor. “What race are you, Little Fairy? Are you interested in living in my domain?”

Verena didn’t take offense. These World Trees lived as they pleased, and they were all eccentric to a degree. Moreover, although she was confident in her strength, a World Tree was never an easy target. 

Flor noticed that Verena wasn’t angry at being ignored, so she decided to answer with a formal tone. “Lady Prarya, I would like to keep my race a secret. I was a Rose Fairy until not long ago, but that changed recently.” 

“Oh?” Prarya’s curious voice raised a tone. “You actually managed to change your race? That’s interesting. Legends say that only when one reached Level 100 would they shed their old race and reach their true potential.”

“Level 100…” Flor savored those words, and a wry smile spread on her lips. “I don’t know if Level 100 is possible to reach, Lady Prarya.” 

Prarya spoke bluntly. “It should be. If I live for another three or so thousand years, I will reach that level.” 

Verena laughed faintly and commented. “Lady Prarya is very confident. You must’ve been listening to us, right? Aren’t you afraid of Lady Tianlian Liu Shu?”

“Liu Shu…” Prarya’s words trailed off, and then, she commented. “She is the World Tree whose canopy you rest under, right?”

Flor smiled and nodded. “Indeed, she is.”

Prarya answered matter-of-factly. “I am not worried. She might’ve had a growth spurt, but she will slow down eventually. Even then, we are about 200 kilometers apart. For her roots to reach me, she needs to reach Level 50, which won’t happen before I do so.”

Flor hummed, her lips arching. “Perhaps. What if her roots reach this place?”

Prarya was blunt about this as well. “She will either stop spreading or regret attacking me. I will not be merciful even if she is a seedling.” Then, Flor felt her presence disappear from the carriage, returning everything to normal.

The voice of the World Tree remained in Flor’s mind. She muttered. “I wonder… Will you be that confident when you two meet?” Her gaze moved toward Verena’s smiling face and asked, curious. “Can all World Trees talk like Prarya, Fortuna, and Liu Shu?”

“Not all,” Verena answered. “However, it is rare for someone of the World Tree race to be unable to communicate. Most, if not all, World Trees have a skill called <World Tree Wisdom>. From what I've heard, the tier usually fluctuates between E Tier and B Tier. I heard that the strongest World Trees in our World might’ve been born with A Tier World Tree Wisdom.”

Flor guessed. “So, those who either don’t have that skill or are born with it at F Rank should be the ones that can’t communicate.”

“Spot on.” 

This information was interesting, making Flor think. ‘Should I ask Liu Shu the tier of that skill? Wait.’ Flor remembered that Liu Shu’s subconscious called itself Wisdom. ‘Is that the skill in action? If that’s the case, Liu Shu should have quite a high-ranked World Tree Wisdom, right?’

They arrived at the city not long after, and the guards checked their invitations. Seeing that they were attending the important leader meeting, they were all polite. With no stops whatsoever, they all reached their resting places. 

“Mom!”

Verena turned toward Verdantia and smiled. “What’s wrong, love?”

Verdantia asked, curious. “Will you be here with us?”

“Hmm~.” Verena rubbed her chin and then shook her head. “I have to meet with many family heads before the meeting starts. I need to expand the alliance as much as I can if we want to have a chance.”

“Huh?” Verdantia blinked, confused. “What alliance?”

Verena blinked twice and looked at Verdantia. “Hm… Right. You are still not aware of the alliance that you are part of.” 

Verdantia and the others looked at the mature Sylvan with twitching eyebrows. ‘What is this woman talking about?’

Verena smiled and blurted to Flor and the rest. “Lord Stormrider and I have made an alliance and decided to rope others in with Liu Shu as the central World Tree. We’ve grown quite a bit after your recent absolute victory against Baron Lorbase.” 

“...What?”

Verena turned around and waved at them. “Well, I must go now to convince other people! Bye-bye~.”

And just like that, she left, leaving behind a group that didn’t know what to do about the information bomb they just received. 

When they were thinking about that, they saw someone entering the building complex where they were staying. The place was spacious, with a central garden and a few rooms at the side. The buildings had four floors, with enough space for everyone who had arrived to have their own room.

The person who entered was a man. This man had elegant clothes, with black and white intermingling in an elegant outfit. His hair was swiped back, and his face was angular with sharp eyes, looking like an agile predator that was ready to pounce on his enemies.

His gaze scanned everyone and stopped on Flor’s tiny body. His lips arched politely. “You must be Lady Flor. The growth you’ve had during these last years is incredible. Our reports on how you and your people managed the city tell us that you are a wonderful being.”

Flor raised her eyebrow and commented, surprised. “I thought you would actually not recognize that it was me who did it.”

The man chuckled and shook his head. “There are many things that can happen due to luck. However, defeating a Baron from the Confederation is not one of those.” Looking at everyone, he continued. “I have come to speak to all of you about the schedule. The meeting is going to begin two weeks from now. The location will arrive by letter on the morning of the day of the meeting to avoid any mishaps from happening.” 

Flor asked, curious. “Is there anything we need to do before that date?”

“Everyone is free to roam the city. If any mishaps happen, we will intervene. Madam Thalgryn has ordered for the security of all guests.” The man paused and looked at Flor. “Speaking of which, we’ve received the news that you are being targeted. Don’t worry, and if anyone tries to do so, you are able to retaliate first. We’ll investigate later.” 

Flor nodded and smiled. “I appreciate the thoughtfulness. I hope we can have a lasting partnership even if some conflict is almost unavoidable between us.”

The man’s eyes flashed with slight surprise. He didn’t answer, though. Instead, he bowed and turned around, leaving through the door. 

A soldier that had come with Flor's group asked, confused. “Why would we have any conflicts with them?”

Wert smacked the back of his head. “Think a bit about it. What is in the middle of this city? How do you think Liu Shu will react when these two meet?”

The soldier rubbed the back of his head and asked, confused. “Wouldn’t Lady Liu Shu assi-GOH!”

Wert’s punch sunk deeply into the soldier’s stomach, forcing him to his knees. “Can you all be a bit more careful? We are in Lady Prarya territory.”

The soldiers coughed and straightened. “Yes, sir!”

Wert sighed and shook his head. “The recent wins have gone to your heads. While we’ve won all our battles in a way that no enemies were left, it is all because Liu Shu was fighting with us. We are now far from her roots, and even her summons would have a hard time reaching here. Be respectful because without counting Liu Shu, our overall power is that of a low-level Baron.”

Flor was slightly surprised. “Did we really reach that level?”

Wert nodded. “Barons usually have at least one Level 40. However, you can count as one, Flor. Then, the number of Level 30s is not few between our ranks. Adding the large amount of Level 25 that is popping up due to our battles, I would say that we have enough strength to face the weaker Barons. Of course, someone like Baron Lorbase is still outside of our class.”

Flor looked at Wert and asked, her face gaining a weird expression. “Is it my turn to punch your stomach now?”

Wert paused and looked at the Flower Fairy confusedly. Flor rolled her eyes. “You’ve just revealed our strength as if it were a casual data point!”

Wert paused. “Ah.” He cleared his throat and commented, his face serious. “They don’t know if my words are a deceptive tactic or not.”

Flor rolled her eyes and sighed. “Sure, sure.”