Volume 4, Chapter 23 – The Blessing of the Holy Tree and the Wish of the World Tree

The night was deep and quiet.

The moon was not visible in Blossom’s night sky, yet it was brighter outside than a full moon. The towering tree known as the Holy Tree covered the entire sky of Blossom, its golden glow illuminating an area of over a hundred kilometers. Although this light could not compare to the sun, it was far more effective than the moon.

As for blocking the daylight, it might have been a problem in the past, but since the leaves of the Holy Tree began to wither thousands of years ago, the elves had no longer been troubled by it. In fact, the current Holy Tree had only a few leaves left, and not many branches either. Although it was still so tall that one could not see its top at a glance, it no longer blocked the sun. In Blossom, one could often see the moon looming among the branches of the Holy Tree.

The translucent golden giant tree, combined with the full moon in the sky and the brightly lit city on the ground, was a magnificent sight.

However, Fia was in no mood to appreciate it at the moment.

Dressed in a thin nightgown, she sat by her bed, frowning at the desk formed by [Telekinesis].

On the desk was a history of Silvar that she had selected from the library that afternoon. She had originally thought she could find clues about the past from the official records, but even in Silvar, a relatively enlightened nation in the northern continent, the court historians were not bold enough to wantonly discuss the marriages of the royal family.

For example, in the marriage between Queen Veronica and the second king, Yelido, the historian only recorded that they were both of royal blood and were related by blood. There was no mention of Veronica’s private affair with Clark, nor that she had been forcibly taken back by Yelido. Not only that, but the book even described their marriage as a match made in heaven, which was rather strange.

But it must be said that Fia’s search was not entirely without reward. The historian’s description of Yelido’s personal experiences was very detailed, such as his personal strength being only at the mid-level of the Seventh Rank, and the reason he had reached the quasi-Eighth Rank was due to the blessing of the Holy Tree.

The so-called blessing of the Holy Tree was a privilege that only the king could enjoy. It included powerful spells like [Lower-Rank Magic Immunity], [Arrow-Dodging Blessing], [Penetration Blessing], [Charm Immunity], [Mental Magic Immunity], and [Elemental Embrace], as well as blessings that sounded less practical but would make one think “how could there be such a blessing?” once they had them, such as [Charm Blessing], [Cooking Blessing], and [Favor of the Goddess of Fortune].

For example, the [Charm Blessing] meant that others would feel a sense of respect and think the Elf King was charismatic when they saw him. The [Cooking Blessing] meant that no matter what food he made, it would become delicious. And the final [Favor of the Goddess of Fortune] meant that if the king faced a multiple-choice problem, after excluding personal feelings and other external factors, he could always choose the option that was most beneficial to him. In every aspect, it was all very magical.

Under so many blessings, the Elf King’s strength could not be judged by normal ranks. Even if his mana was only at the Eighth Rank after being blessed by the Holy Tree, the [Lower-Rank Magic Immunity] and [Arrow-Dodging Blessing] alone were enough to make him extremely difficult to deal with.

The [Lower-Rank Magic Immunity] was self-explanatory. The [Arrow-Dodging Blessing] would automatically deflect all projectiles just before they hit him, and even magic with a trajectory was not exempt. It was as monstrous as an energy-deflecting shield.

If an outsider wanted to deal with the Elf King, it would be almost impossible to defeat him without first cutting off his connection to the Holy Tree and stopping it from continuously providing him with various blessings, because even insidious methods like poisoning and sneak attacks would be foreseen by the [Perception Blessing].

“Although I don’t want to fight the Elf King… my Father, hearing about so many blessings still makes it feel tricky. I need to master some intermediate-rank magic.”

Generally, magic from the First Rank to parts of the Third Rank was considered low-rank, parts of the Third Rank to parts of the Fifth Rank were classified as mid-rank, and anything above that was high-rank magic and forbidden spells. Although with the ability of [Hyper-computation], once she learned a mid-rank spell, its power would surely become as terrifying as [Spatial Rift], mastering it and choosing not to use it were two different things.

Tossing the pen aside, Fia, thoroughly troubled, leaned back and collapsed onto the princess’s soft, large bed in a starfish position.

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“The trickiest thing is still emotions.”

Learning, calculating, and comprehending were not difficult for her at all. But when it came to emotional matters, like handling the father-daughter relationship, being with Claire without tearing her relationship with her Father apart, the reconciliation in between was a domain she was not good at. It was like a student with a severe subject bias, who could get almost full marks in science but had trouble even barely passing in the language arts.

Staring blankly at the finely textured canopy above her, the feel of the soft bedding brushing against her neck and cheeks deepened the weariness in her mind. She couldn’t help but close her eyes.

The princess’s chambers were much more comfortable than life in the carriage. The mattress was incredibly soft, and the sheets and pillows were made of the finest elf fabric, feeling exceptionally silky and cool to the touch. Just lying on it made one feel drowsy.

“Tomorrow I have to go to the hall to meet with those nobles. It was already troublesome enough, and now I have to worry about this at this hour. The thing I’m most short of right now is time… Hah, I should just get some sleep first.”

Although she was short on time, she couldn’t stay up all night. If she went to see the nobles with dark circles under her eyes the next day, the authority she should have would become rather comical.

As for bathing, since she had the [Cleanse] spell, Fia didn’t go to experience the princess’s luxurious private bath. Besides, she had heard that when the princess bathed, she would be attended by several maids. Fia was quite shy about having others help her bathe, especially since the maids here were all carefully selected, beautiful girls with outstanding looks and figures. The thought of her naked body being exposed to so many eyes was just embarrassing.

Of course, this was just Fia’s own feeling. In fact, in the eyes of most nobles, servants were just lowly subordinates, and it was only natural for them to serve the nobility. Therefore, nobles did not feel shy about having servants help them bathe. On the contrary, they greatly enjoyed being served, believing that the more servants and the larger the bath, the more it reflected their wealth and status.

Like the former princess, bathing usually involved her soaking in the water and reading a book, while Anastasia, Colita, and other maids would enter the bath with minimal clothing to wash her body—it was worth mentioning that the current Fia was not aware of these specific details, otherwise she would not have been thinking of trying out the princess’s bath when she had the time.

Just as Fia was about to tidy up the things on the desk and go to sleep, the other side of the bed suddenly made a sound of the mattress being compressed.

It was Milu.

Milu had been so quiet that she had forgotten she was still in the room.

After finishing dinner with Yulisha and seeing her off, Fia had returned to her room. Anastasia had taken Milu to the magic laboratory to practice swordsmanship, using the excuse of training her combat skills. Milu had come to Fia’s room about half an hour ago. Since she hadn’t said why she was here, Fia had just let her do as she pleased.

However, Fia could feel that Milu had something she wanted to say to her, but she either hadn’t found the opportunity or hadn’t prepared her emotions.

Fia sat up and looked at Milu, who was lying on her back on the bed, her blood-red cat eyes staring up at her. Even Fia couldn’t tell what she was thinking at this moment.

“Are you sleepy, Milu? I can have Colita outside take you back to your room to sleep. It’s right next door.” Fia asked, pointing to the door.

According to the rules set by the Elf King, the Eldest Princess had to have at least two maids on standby at all times, even at night. Now, Colita and another maid were on guard outside the door.

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Milu, her long white hair spread out on the red bed, shook the white wings on the sides of her head, her expression unwilling.

“No.”

“But I’m going to sleep.”

“Sleep together.”

“…That’s not a good idea.”

“We’ve slept together before.” Milu pouted unhappily.

The “slept together” she was talking about probably referred to sleeping together in the carriage. But that was because space was limited. To sleep with Milu now, when there were extra rooms, felt a little strange to Fia.

As if sensing her thoughts, Milu sat up from the bed. She turned her body, her gaze fixed on Fia’s back as she tidied her desk, and said abruptly.

“I want to know more about Claire.”

“About Claire? I told you everything at the dinner table. The rest isn’t suitable for you to hear.”

“That’s all?”

“That’s all,” Fia affirmed.

“Mmm…” a rising intonation entered Milu’s voice, and a thoughtful expression appeared on her delicate and bewitching face. “I… I have a question.”

As Milu rarely showed hesitation, Fia couldn’t help but turn around, surprised.

“What is it?”

“When Master and Claire met the branch of the World Tree, you wished to be with Claire. I was wondering… if the branch of the World Tree could be influencing Master and that woman named Claire.”

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When she had met the branch of the World Tree in Aurora City, she had indeed wished to be with Claire in a loving relationship. But what was the problem with that?

Fia raised an eyebrow and asked for more details.

“What you mean is…?”

“Mmm,” although she was the one who had brought it up, Milu hesitated. She glanced at the bed and changed the subject in a low voice. “Nothing, I was probably just overthinking it.”

“It’s fine, you can say it. My relationship with Claire won’t be changed by these things.”

With Fia’s encouragement, Milu was silent for a moment, bit her lip, and mustered her courage.

“Mmm… I was saying, could it be that Miss Claire is in love with Master because she was influenced by the branch of the World Tree…”

“Eh.”

Fia’s hands paused for a moment, then quickly returned to normal.

“That’s impossible. If the branch of the World Tree were that effective, there wouldn’t be so many tragedies on the World Tree Continent. Besides, Claire’s strength is unfathomable. How could she be influenced by something so strange?”

Milu was suggesting that “Claire might be in love with Master because she was influenced by the branch of the World Tree.” This was obviously impossible. Her feelings for Claire were real, not influenced by any external factors.

“Not worried at all? When I heard Master talk about the branch of the World Tree, I wanted to tell you about this.”

“Mmm… even if I were worried, I could only confirm it when I see Claire again. You’re trying to drive a wedge between us, Milu. If people didn’t know better, they’d think you were a bad child.”

Of course, Fia was only saying this to tease her. In her heart, she didn’t really think Milu was trying to drive a wedge between her and Claire. She could feel from Milu’s words that she had no such dirty thoughts. She was just concerned for her, her family. Perhaps Milu thought that it would be less painful for her to be told from the beginning that this was a possibility, rather than suddenly learning the “truth” that Claire only loved her because of the branch of the World Tree.

Sure enough, when Fia teasingly said she was driving a wedge, Milu’s expression became anxious. She waved her hands frantically and explained.

“I-I’m not driving a wedge! I just have a feeling! If Master wishes, I can make the branch of the World Tree appear before you! Then you won’t have to worry about Miss Claire!”

“Oh my,” seeing that her teasing was effective, Fia couldn’t help but curve her lips into a smile. “Milu, you’ve never even seen the branch of the World Tree. How could you make it appear? Besides, if it were that easy to manifest, it wouldn’t be considered a miracle.”

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“I’m serious!”

In response to Milu’s insistence, Fia shrugged noncommittally. She didn’t want to linger on this topic, even if Milu was just worried about her.

She changed the subject.

“So you came to my room to tell me this?”

“…Mhm.”

“Hah, you’re just a child, yet you worry so much. Alright, I won’t be swayed by something like this. You should go back to your room and sleep.”

“Really? Master looks like you have a lot on your mind. If you’re lonely, just for one night, I… I can stay with you.”

“What are you being so shy for? I’m not even embarrassed.”

Fia couldn’t help but find it amusing to see Milu acting so shy, stammering and even blushing a little. After tidying her desk, she dispelled the [Telekinesis] and came up behind her, placing her hands on her small shoulders.

“Alright, you should go back to your room now. If you’re afraid of the dark, go find Anastasia or Colita. I’m sure they’d be happy to sleep with you.”

“I’m not a child.” Milu turned her head stubbornly to look at Fia, a hint of anger in her expression.

However, this didn’t change Fia’s mind. She pushed Milu out of the room. Under the gazes of the two maids at the door, Fia pushed the nightgown-clad Milu all the way to the room next door, tucked her into bed, and then, barefoot on the spotless plush carpet, returned to her own bedroom.

The first thing to do was to lock the door to prevent the maids outside from coming in. Then Fia remained quiet, her ear pressed against the wall opposite her bed. Anastasia’s room was on the other side. She was supposed to be sleeping on the first floor where the servants lived, but Fia had, by order, made her stay in the room next to hers tonight.

After holding her breath for a long time and hearing no movement from Anastasia’s side, Fia breathed a sigh of relief. She tiptoed back to her bed and stretched out her delicate body in an extremely comfortable position, her clothes in disarray, half-lying against the headboard.

She had just returned to the Royal Castle today, and had been scolded by the military in the afternoon. Anastasia, no matter what, would not be in the mood to do what she had accidentally stumbled upon in Claire’s clinic. She could probably rest easy.

The memory of Anastasia leaning against the headboard that night, holding her underwear and calling her name, brought a strange, indescribable feeling to Fia. A warmth even started to build in her stomach. It was all so terrible that it felt unreal. She was Anastasia’s half-sister. Anastasia must have called the wrong name that time, or she had misheard.

She couldn’t just go and confirm with Anastasia herself. It was both tantalizing and embarrassing.