Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert-Chapter 499

Chapter 499

Zeon felt something tickling his nose, and he slowly opened his eyes. As he did, he saw a tiny girl pressing her face right up against his, giggling brightly.

It was the wind spirit, Sylph.

When Zeon opened his eyes, the Sylph fluttered around him in delight.

“Why are you leaving your own contractor and bothering me instead?”

Zeon let out a faint sigh and sat up.

The Sylph who had woken him was one of the spirits born just three days ago.

Among the spirits, she had an especially lively personality, and despite contracting with another high elf, she woke Zeon every morning like this.

Zeon had stayed in the high elf village for over ten days.

In that time, more than twenty spirits had been born.

Aside from the first day, at least two spirits were born every day.

“Haaah.”

Zeon yawned and opened the window. The World Tree growing in the center of the village came into view.

It had grown considerably, now towering far above an adult’s height.

It was shooting upward day by day. Even so, it still carried a fragile impression.

Ever since the World Tree sprouted, the high elves had tended to it with utmost devotion.

The newly born spirits were also put to work caring for it.

Undine, the water spirit, ensured that it never lacked moisture.

The fire spirits regulated the warmth so the World Tree wouldn’t wither.

The wind spirits brought fresh air to maintain a pleasant environment.

Thanks to them, the World Tree was growing without a single issue.

The greatest change that came with the World Tree’s growth was the land of the high elf village becoming fertile.

Fresh grass had begun sprouting across the soil.

Having never seen such greenery, the young elves found it both fascinating and joyful.

They ran barefoot across the grassy fields, laughing.

Among the running children was Brielle.

She looked truly happy, playing with the other young elves.

“Running around since morning… she’s got stamina.”

“It’s a good sight.”

Levin entered through the door, smiling.

His whole body was drenched in sweat, he had clearly been running too.

“Did the Sylph wake you too?”

“Yes! She’s been poking me awake for the past thirty minutes. Damn it!”

His words were harsh, but his expression showed no annoyance at all.

Levin had woken up thirty minutes earlier and run a lap around the village. Whenever he had time, he ran to maintain his endurance.

Zeon asked:

“How far did it expand today?”

“About ten more meters, I think.”

“That’s pretty fast.”

“Yes! At this rate, the surrounding ten kilometers will become forest in no time.”

Every morning, Levin checked how far the forest had expanded.

With the World Tree at its center, the forest grew outward by ten meters a day.

Now, the entire high elf village had transformed into woodland.

The speed was astonishing.

But a growing forest did not mean only good things.

The larger the forest, the higher the chance the World Tree would be exposed.

To protect the World Tree and the village, they needed to act starting now.

“Let’s go.”

“Right.”

Zeon and Levin stepped outside.

“Lord Zeon! Did you sleep well?”

The first to greet him was Latricia.

The Undine she had contracted with ten days ago circled around her.

Having obtained Undine, Latricia had regained her vitality.

Undine was still only a low-rank spirit. But with proper care and connection, she would one day reach mid-rank like Riri, Brielle’s spirit.

Naturally, the stronger the contractor’s abilities, the faster the spirit grew.

Latricia and the older elves all had experience contracting spirits back in Kurayan and raising them to high rank.

For them, raising a young spirit was only a matter of time.

Fortunately, spirits continued to be born since the World Tree’s appearance.

For now, only some of the high elves had contracted spirits, but given enough time, all of them would.

The older elves passed down their knowledge and experience to the younger ones who had recently formed contracts.

There existed an unbridgeable gap between an elf who had contracted a spirit and one who hadn’t.

To a high elf, a spirit was a lifelong companion and a being with whom they shared their soul.

Those without spirits could never understand that feeling.

There were still many more elves without contracts in the village. But they calmly waited for new spirits to be born and choose them.

With spirits being born like this, their turn would certainly come.

Thus, none of them envied or resented those who had contracts.

Instead, they spent time with the spirits already contracted, studying how they would raise their own spirits when their time came.

Laughter and vitality overflowed throughout the village.

Tears gathered at the corners of Latricia’s eyes.

It had been over a century since she had seen such a scene.

She felt so happy she thought she might start crying, so she forced herself to hold it back.

“Thank you, Lord Zeon! Thanks to you, we high elves have regained our identity.”

“It’s all because of Brielle’s efforts.”

“I am grateful to her as well. Thanks to her, we were able to retrieve Lady Ciela’s relic.”

Latricia looked at the necklace of Ciela hanging from her neck.

The World Tree, Gaia, the spirits, and Ciela’s blessing… the high elf village had become nothing short of a perfect paradise.

If the World Tree continued to grow safely, many more beings would find a home under its shade.

Until then, it was Latricia’s duty to protect the village.

Her gaze shifted toward Tesserina, who stood among the elves.

Latricia knew that Tesserina was a chimera of dragons.

“Could Lady Tesserina perhaps remain in our village?”

“That would be difficult. She has matters she still needs to resolve.”

“As I expected. It would have been reassuring if Lady Tesserina could become the World Tree’s guardian.”

“Guardian of the World Tree?”

Zeon looked puzzled, and Latricia explained.

“In Kurayan, a Green Dragon would reside near the World Tree and protect it. A Green Dragon grows under the World Tree’s blessing, and in return, protects the tree from monsters and humans.”

“The World Tree has enough power to nurture a dragon?”

“It is, quite literally, the tree that sustains a world. A ‘tree’ in name only, it is practically a god.”

“Amazing.”

“But in this world, there is no being capable of guarding the World Tree… and we cannot entrust Gaia with the role.”

Gaia and the World Tree had excellent affinity, but Gaia’s gentle nature did not suit the role of guardian.

In peaceful times maybe, but in uncertain times like now, they needed a powerful and aggressive guardian.

Moreover, Gaia shared a spiritual bond with Zeon. She could stay near the World Tree for a while, but in the end, she would return to Zeon’s side.

For many reasons, Gaia could not become the World Tree’s guardian.

“We will set up barriers to hide the World Tree’s existence as much as possible, but it will be revealed before long.”

Which was why Latricia had hoped Tesserina could take the role.

There was no one more trustworthy under the current circumstances. But she could not be the guardian due to her situation.

Zeon asked Latricia:

“It doesn’t have to be a dragon, right? Other beings can become guardians?”

“Yes. But they must possess spirituality. A monster driven only by destruction can never become a guardian, no matter how strong.”

“Then I know just the right being.”

“…Pardon?”

“I’ll be right back.”

“Where are you?”

“I’ll return soon.”

Zeon smiled and stepped away.

—Piiii!

Gaia, sensing Zeon’s intention, approached him.

As Zeon climbed onto her, Gaia soared into the sky.

Zeon told her.

“Let’s go there.”

—Pii!

“You’re not scared of meeting him again, are you?”

—Pii? Piiii!

Gaia shook her head firmly, denying it.

Zeon smiled and stroked her head.

“Of course. I knew you wouldn’t be.”

—Piii!

“I trust you.”

—Piiii!

“Let’s go.”

The moment Zeon finished speaking, Gaia accelerated.

They retraced the exact route they had taken when coming to the high elf village.

Fwoooosh!

Air slammed against Gaia’s barrier and scattered like turbulent currents. But inside the barrier, Zeon felt no impact at all.

Thanks to this, they reached their destination with ease.

“It should be around here.”

Zeon looked around.

But all he could see were white clouds and blue sky, nothing else.

Zeon said to Gaia:

“You’ll have to call him.”

Gaia nodded and then released a long cry.

—Piiiiiiii!

Gaia’s distinctive call spread far across the sky.

Zeon waited atop Gaia’s back.

A moment later, something massive approached, pushing aside the clouds.

A colossal creature slithered through the air like a snake, it was an Imoogi.

Unable to obtain a yeouiju, it had failed to become a dragon, yet it responded to Gaia’s summons.

—Sssaaaah!

The Imoogi reached them, flicking its red tongue as it locked eyes with Zeon.

Zeon spoke to it:

“I have a proposal for you.”

—Sssaaah?

“You want to obtain a Yeouiju and become a Dragon, don’t you?”

—Sssaaa!

“If so, I know a good place for you.”

—Sssaa?

“Will you follow me? I promise good things will come to you.”

At Zeon’s bold assurance, the Imoogi’s massive eyes gleamed.

Had an ordinary human said such words, it would have swallowed them whole on the spot.

Though it had failed to become a dragon, the Imoogi’s strength far surpassed that of normal monsters.

Even S-rank beasts could be torn apart by an Imoogi with ease.

Such a being would never listen to an ordinary human’s proposal. But Zeon was no ordinary human.

Within that small body lay a power so immense that even the Imoogi could not guarantee victory.

Yet that human was politely making a proposal, not submissive, nor arrogant.

After a long consideration, the Imoogi accepted Zeon’s offer.

—Sssaaaah!

“Thank you. You won’t regret it. Follow me.”

As Zeon smiled, Gaia turned and flew toward the high elf village.

The enormous Imoogi quietly followed behind.

With the Imoogi following Gaia, the entire sky grew silent.

The flying monsters that occasionally appeared vanished without a trace.

That was the sheer presence of the Imoogi.

Even creatures that would normally avoid Gaia at a distance fled in terror from merely the Imoogi’s shadow.

Of course, the high elf village fell into chaos at the appearance of such a monstrous being.

Imoogis did not exist in Kurayan. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The elves were overwhelmed by the sight of the massive serpent-like creature.

If Zeon hadn’t been leading on Gaia’s back, they would have screamed, or worse.

Zeon guided the Imoogi toward the World Tree.

The closer they came, the more the Imoogi’s eyes shone with excitement, and its tongue flicked faster.

“Lord Zeon! What is this…?!”

Latricia spoke in panic, but Zeon motioned for silence.

She and the other high elves forced themselves to remain quiet.

By then, the Imoogi had reached the World Tree.

Its mineral-like eyes reflected the tiny tree completely.

Latricia murmured:

“So this is the World Tree guardian Lord Zeon chose…?”

It was shocking, but not incomprehensible.

The Imoogi possessed a body and presence rivaling a dragon.

The only issue was the World Tree’s choice.

Would the World Tree accept such a gigantic beast as its guardian?

At that moment.

Fwooooom!

A tremendous light burst forth between the World Tree and the Imoogi.

Latricia cried out in excitement:

“The World Tree has chosen its guardian!”

Within the blinding light, the Imoogi’s transformation began.