The Greatest Warrior of All Time Returns
Chapter 223

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Chapter 223

As if it had been waiting, a burst of red mist exploded from the place where the entrance to the Root’s Depths lay.

The monster still couldn’t move past the barrier, remaining beyond the great forest.

But the spot where the red mist erupted was unmistakably the entrance to the Depths where the sword Falling Blossom had been placed.

“Tr… Triana!!!”

Seeing this, Ocelon widened his eyes and tried to rush off the battlefield.

I grabbed his arm.

“Let go of me!! Triana… Triana is!”

“Please don’t let anyone approach that mist. Once it consumes you, even I can’t guarantee safety.”

“Ghh?!”

“I’ll go.”

“P… please. I’m begging you…”

Moved by Ocelon’s desperate plea, I responded not with words, but with action.

With the red mist spreading, teleportation became a dangerous option.

Until I could understand the nature of the mist, it was too risky to use.

Passing through the chaotic city, I reached near the World Tree and descended into the Root’s Depths.

The passage to the depths had completely changed.

The elves who had been guarding this place…

Were all dead.

Their bodies, exposed to the terrifying red mist, were grotesquely twisted.

[Warning: Proceeding any closer to the red mist may result in harm.]

I know.

Not understanding the structure of the mist means it is unknown.

In other words, a perfect response is impossible.

But I didn’t stop.

If I had always hesitated just because I didn’t understand my enemy, I would have never escaped the Labyrinthos.

As I slowly walked into the red mist, the horrifying scene that was previously invisible now became clear.

The chances of survivors in here were extremely slim.

The corpses had not only lost their original forms—they had transformed into grotesque monsters.

But more troubling was that the space itself seemed contaminated and warped, making it impossible to locate my intended destination.

The best way to navigate in this kind of situation is with the Heart of the Machine God.

The problem was, I hadn’t yet fully analyzed and confirmed the information about the Red Moon.

Relying on it now would be a huge burden.

The more time passed, the worse everything became.

And honestly, contrary to Lord Ocelon’s hopes, the chance that Triana was still alive was far too low.

“Librarian… How is it that the Red Moon can interfere only here?”

[Currently verifying.]

As I wandered through a space where nothing could be distinguished—no direction, no boundary—I finally prepared to activate the Heart of the Machine God.

At that moment, I felt something… calling me.

Instinctively, I moved toward it.

At the end of that path, I saw it—the completely corrupted roots of the World Tree.

And in front of them, collapsed on her knees while holding onto Falling Blossom, was Triana.

* * *

Triana Bel Trigard.

A noble High Elf of the Trigard family, she had remained beside Falling Blossom, the sword of Leon, ever since he left, under the protection of the Elf Guards.

She couldn’t actually control the sword.

But even if she didn’t fully understand its nature, she was certain of one thing:

If the power connected to it were ever severed, the World Tree would not be able to withstand it.

That’s why she had the duty to make sure no one tampered with the sword.

Bringing Leon here was truly a stroke of fate.

If they hadn’t, by now the World Tree would have been completely corrupted, and the Mother Forest would have become uninhabitable for elves.

But the current situation was anything but good.

When Leon entered the forest, the World Tree had slowly started to recover its strength, but the Demon Tree had—as if trying to strike before it was too late—only accelerated its rate of invasion.

Every time a distant rumble echoed from outside, it felt like she could hear the World Tree groaning in pain.

With trembling hands, she anxiously looked at the sword planted in the ground—Falling Blossom.

Just hold on a little longer.

The World Tree was slowly recovering its strength.

The sounds from outside were worrying, but she couldn’t be of much help there.

Rather, as a candidate for the role of the Agent, it was her duty to guard this place.

All previous Agents had communicated with the World Tree from this very spot.

Leon’s sword, Falling Blossom, continued to emit a steady pulse of energy, resonating with the World Tree, seemingly unaware of the torment burning inside her.

“Um… is everything alright outside?”

“We don’t know. But… it’s definitely not good.”

Triana nodded grimly at the Elf Guard’s report.

“World Tree… please. Watch over us…”

She offered a prayer to the World Tree and spread the power she had gained as an Agent Candidate around her.

Amidst the constant booming sounds, she focused.

Until—

Something changed in the area where she stood.

Craack… Crackkk!!

The solid bedrock split apart, and the roots of the World Tree began to corrupt rapidly.

“What is this?!”

Startled, she and the Elf Guards showed signs of panic.

They rushed in, confused by the sudden anomaly.

And then—

“For unity…”

An elf, speaking in a bizarre voice and with crazed eyes, pulled a dagger from within his robe.

Then—

Puk!!

He stabbed himself and ripped out his own heart.

Even as his heart throbbed and pulsed in the open air, he simply knelt down without dying.

Everyone stood frozen, speechless at the grotesque sight.

Wasn’t he one of the soldiers who had retreated from battle earlier?

He seemed fine just moments ago—how did this happen?

Bulge! Bulge!!

At the same time, a strange red mist began to leak from the elf’s body.

Soon, some of the nearby Elf Guards began convulsing and foaming at the mouth.

“Hey… snap out of it!”

“What is this?! A poison?!”

“It’s not poison! It’s similar to that strange force surging in from outside!”

Despite the warnings, the maddened Elf Guards staggered forward, knelt, and began murmuring as they tore out their own hearts just like the first.

It was horrifying.

Absolutely horrifying.

But the most disturbing part came next.

They began emitting red light, like a magical circle being activated, dispersing the red mist even further.

At the same time, a tremendous gale spread the red mist.

Feeling a chilling sense of dread, she instinctively wrapped her sword, Falling Blossom, which was healing the World Tree.

"Run!!!"

The other quick-witted elves sensed the danger instinctively and fled.

Even though their original mission was to protect the sword and the World Tree.

But it wasn’t their fault.

Their survival instincts kicked in, and the sheer terror they felt upon seeing the red mist was enough to drive them mad.

"Aaaargh!!!"

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"Ahhhh!!!"

Horrific screams echoed from beyond the corridor.

And left alone, Triana, though afraid she would share their fate, did not move and instead held the sword tightly.

Her skin began to become tainted with a violet hue.

Not only that—the roots at the very core of the World Tree, its weakest part and essentially its heart, also began to be tainted violet again.

Ah… No…

The World Tree is being corrupted.

There’s no way to hold out this time.

If things remain like this, the World Tree will be completely tainted in an instant, beyond saving.

The red mist surely played a part in this…

But the real problem was that the sword Falling Blossom, planted in the ground, had ceased to activate.

Why suddenly?

Why now?

She grasped the hilt of Falling Blossom, which had stopped functioning due to the red mist.

And with a trembling voice, she began to speak.

She didn’t realize that the red mist had disrupted the flow of energy connecting the sword and Leon.

But did that even matter?

She had once heard Leon speak the activation phrase for the sword.

“Blossom… in full bloom.”

But the sword didn’t respond.

Leon had said that no one but him could use it.

But she couldn’t give up.

“Blossom… Please… Please move!”

Tears began to well up in her eyes as her voice turned into a plea.

“Please… If you don’t help, the World Tree is in danger… please…”

The sword didn’t respond.

Her falling tears began to turn violet.

Even as she coughed painfully, she clung to the sword with desperation.

The only means left to heal the World Tree.

She couldn’t afford to lose it.

Even as she was dying, she poured all the power she had received from the World Tree into the sword.

However, the red mist was stronger than she expected, and in an instant, it began to destroy her consciousness.

At the moment when it seemed she would perish without even protecting the sword—

An unexpected phenomenon occurred.

A small ring-shaped accessory hanging from her chest emitted a faint resonance and momentarily resisted the corruption that had invaded her body.

‘This item…’

It was something she hadn’t even considered.

Understandably so—it was a gift given to her by a woman wearing a doll mask, who had saved her from an ambush when she left the forest.

It was supposed to be just a powerless decoration.

So how…?

But the thought didn’t last long.

Though it had repelled the mist once, the red fog, which still filled the surroundings, quickly began to corrode her again.

There was no time to think about what the item was or who the doll-masked woman truly was.

She hugged the sword even tighter.

She once again enveloped Falling Blossom, now exposed to the red mist, with her power.

Even if she died here, she had to protect this sword.

Leon had risked his life to help her—she must respond to that call.

As a child of the World Tree.

As a High Elf who leads her kin.

She would fulfill her duty.

That was the only thought that remained.

Even when the power from the ring-like ornament was exhausted and her consciousness began to collapse again, she didn’t flee.

Though she had achieved a superhuman feat, far beyond her limits, it changed nothing.

The World Tree was completely corrupted, and Falling Blossom had lost its light.

She, too, was dying.

In a death that yielded nothing—she heard footsteps.

Tap… tap…

Slow, yet not truly slow steps.

The muffled sound gradually grew closer.

Thunk.

At the same moment—

The energy that had enveloped her and was pushing her toward death suddenly scattered.

“You fool. You should’ve thought of escaping first. Why are you holding onto that?”

At the calm voice, she raised her weary eyes toward the speaker.

It was none other than Leon, who was using a stream of blue light to push away the red mist.

“Still, you held out well. Because you resonated with the World Tree here, I was able to find this place quickly.”

Leon Cascadia.

At his appearance, Triana collapsed as if all strength had left her.

At the same time, Leon reached out toward the air.

Boom!

With a heavy sound, Falling Blossom, half-buried in the ground, flew up on its own and landed firmly in his hand.

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