Free Web Novel“Eh, this is...”
Elf Ranger Deputy Commander Hiikan barely managed to force the words out. In that instant, he finally understood why elves sometimes fell silent from sheer shock.
Noticing his stare, Genea answered calmly. free𝑤ebnovel.com
“Lord Ian gave it to us.”
“What? Why... how...?” ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
Too many questions flooded his mind at once, tangling together before he could voice a single one properly.
Hiikan wanted answers.
How had the human Hero obtained a branch of the World Tree?
How had Genea known to seek him out?
Had she truly not betrayed the village?
And what had really happened to their withered World Tree...?
But above all those questions, one thought pressed hardest against his mind.
‘Why did she escape from prison?’
Genea was the Guardian of the World Tree and the younger sister of Moiken, leader of the Elf Rangers. Her influence within the village was immense.
Even after being treated as a criminal for failing to protect the World Tree, many elves would still have listened to her.
So why had she suddenly broken out of prison and captured Moiken?
Tilting her head slightly, Genea answered the questions he had yet to ask.
“Didn’t I say? I went to find a new World Tree.”
“When did you say that?”
“Ah. I suppose I never told you, Mr. Hiikan.”
“Then who did you tell?! No, wait, forget that. From the beginning... please explain everything from the start. About the World Tree... Guardian.”
Hiikan immediately abandoned the casual tone he had used with both a prisoner and a friend’s sister.
She had returned carrying a new World Tree.
That alone meant she was still the village’s guardian—the Guardian of the World Tree.
Genea rose after planting the branch and brushed the dirt from her knees.
“I heard there was a branch of the World Tree in the ancient temple of the Elf Goddess. I went there to confirm it, but there was nothing. By then, it had become too difficult to continue avoiding capture, and I desperately needed Lord Ian’s help, so I sought him out. Lord Ian immediately agreed to help me capture the one responsible for withering our World Tree.”
‘...?!’
Genea’s flat, emotionless tone made it difficult to grasp the true weight of her words.
A moment later, realization struck Hiikan.
“There was another culprit?!”
Genea blinked at him in confusion.
“Didn’t I tell you that?”
“You didn’t! You never said anything like that!”
“Ah. I told Moiken. He wouldn’t listen.”
“Why would he listen?! No—would the leader listen?! You’re supposed to explain things to someone capable of understanding them, not—why are you like this?!”
Hiikan pounded his chest in frustration.
Conversations with these siblings always left him exhausted.
Genea nodded in agreement.
“Exactly. Communication is difficult enough already, but it becomes even harder after someone locks you up. In the future, perhaps it would be better not to imprison Moiken when I need to speak with him.”
“Imprison?”
Hiikan frowned.
The one who had been imprisoned was Genea, not Moiken.
...Moiken?
‘Moiken was imprisoned?’
If that were true, then it hadn’t happened in an elf prison, but inside a human dungeon.
And if Moiken had been imprisoned in a human dungeon, then it must have happened after Genea escaped...
Hiikan exploded.
“Hey! You should’ve explained yourself before escaping! Who’s going to believe the excuses of a fugitive?!”
“Our elves clearly separate public and private matters. Even if we were close, would you really listen to the explanation of a prisoner who insists she must escape?”
“Of course the elf tribe wouldn’t listen to a prisoner! But if you’d said you were going to retrieve a new World Tree, who would’ve stopped you?!”
“They would have needed to stop me, wouldn’t they? How could they know I wasn’t lying?”
Genea answered firmly.
It was a perfectly reasonable argument.
But...
‘Is that really something you should be saying?’
Hiikan found himself speechless again—not because he lacked words, nor because he was confused, but because his mind simply couldn’t keep up anymore.
His thoughts felt numb.
“It seems the misunderstanding has been resolved.”
Unlike Hiikan, Ian looked completely satisfied.
Ding!
[Character]
‘Guardian of the World Tree’ Genea (★★★★☆)
Reputation
Guardian of the World Tree, Acting Leader, Cold
Skills:
Elemental Affinity: LV.3
Elemental Magic: LV.7
Martial Arts: LV.5
Genea’s reputation had returned to normal.
The title of ‘prisoner’ vanished completely. No elf present believed she had committed any crime anymore.
And considering how loudly Hiikan had been shouting, there was no way the surrounding elves could have missed the conversation.
Ian walked toward Genea.
Without needing any instruction, Genea quietly moved behind him.
The gesture made her allegiance unmistakably clear.
‘Ha ha. She’s mine.’
Ian felt absurdly pleased.
Smiling faintly, he spoke.
“Did you all hear that? After learning what Genea went through, doesn’t it sound obvious? To wither and kill the World Tree—if that isn’t a plot to destroy the elf village, then what is? Whoever committed such an act is either part of the demon tribe or one of their followers. Either way, they’re my enemies. And there’s no guarantee your village won’t become their target again.”
Golden light flowing from the World Tree illuminated Ian’s face.
His black hair gleamed softly beneath the light, while the curve of his smiling lips and the certainty in his eyes radiated calm confidence.
“I’ll capture the one who destroyed your village.”
Above him, the red dragon circled through the sky as though standing guard over him.
At that moment, Hiikan knew.
Those words would become reality.
A man who commanded legendary dragons, carried out divine will, and annihilated demons wherever he went.
‘Human Hero.’
Hiikan remembered the first time he had heard those words.
He had always known Ian was extraordinary, but only now did he truly understand what that meant.
Words like ‘heroic deeds’ and ‘heroic spirit’ were not titles given lightly.
Heroes were rare.
Moiken was the greatest ranger their village had ever produced, yet no one had ever called him a hero.
At best, he was merely the village’s greatest troublemaker.
‘Ah...’
Hiikan realized it then.
He was witnessing a true hero.
Looking around, he noticed everyone holding their breath as they stared at Ian.
No one dared interrupt the moment. Their eyes followed every movement, every word, as though they were watching a scene lifted straight from a heroic epic.
Why had this man saved them from the monsters?
Why had he returned the World Tree?
Why was he helping the weak and searching for a new home for them?
Objectively speaking, the elves were enemies who had invaded Ian’s dungeon.
No—the word ‘potential’ enemy was too soft.
They were invaders. Ian’s enemies.
So why?
‘Do I truly not know the answer?’
No.
Deep down, Hiikan already understood.
Still, he asked anyway, needing to hear the answer spoken aloud.
“...Why are you doing so much for us? You’re human, and we are elves. You have no obligation to protect our kind. If you continue like this, the humans under your protection could end up endangered instead. No—they already are. You’ve saved countless races, and because of that, your name has spread everywhere. Many among the demon tribe are searching for you. Aren’t you pushing yourself too far? Why help us?”
Elves were beloved by the elementals.
Born with a natural affinity for spirits, they constantly heard rumors carried from every corner of the world, because there was no land untouched by elementals.
“We may belong to different races, but we share the same enemy.”
Ian {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} answered lightly.
“And like you said, I’m already famous. How much more dangerous could things get just because I move around a little more?”
Many members of the demon tribe were looking for Ian?
‘Well, obviously. That’s how demon defense works in this game.’
What nonsense was this guy talking about?
If Ian didn’t handle those defenses himself, then the burden would fall onto the future elf village, or Louise’s tribe without Louise, or perhaps Momisia’s dungeon without Momisia, or Keith’s faction without Keith...
‘...’
Ian had a conscience.
He understood that taking away talent always came with a price.
This was a world where every playable hero’s scenario operated simultaneously.
Although Louise and Momisia were still too young for their routes to properly begin, Ian, Keith, and Genea’s scenarios had already started moving.
And besides—
Hadn’t Ian already destroyed three of the Demon King’s Life Vessels?
‘Worth it.’
He already had plenty of allies.
Soon enough, the elf village would become one as well.
“Just for that reason...?”
“What more reason do I need?”
‘It’s not like you people even have money...’
Elves were a race with neither wealth nor connections. According to their racial traits, they could practically survive on morning dew alone.
Low maintenance.
Zero savings.
Fortunately, Ian possessed enough social awareness not to actually say, ‘you guys are broke.’
That restraint immediately paid off.
Ding!
[Elf Genea sees you as a Sage King!]
Ding!
[Elf Ranger Deputy Commander Hiikan recognizes you as a Hero!]
Ding!
[Elf Fish is deeply moved by your speech!]
...
...
...
‘Maybe?’
Ian immediately opened his status window with anticipation.
Could it be?
Would the ‘Tyrant’ reputation finally disappear?
At some point, the internal excuse of ‘the tyrant reputation is actually useful’ had completely vanished.
It had only ever been self-consolation.
Ding!
[Character]
‘Hero’ Ian (★★★★☆)
Reputation
Hero, Tyrant, Sage King, Savior, Strategist, Frail, Bastard, Reveler, Hedonist
Skills:
Purification: LV.8
Horsemanship: LV.4
Archery: LV.8
Swordsmanship: LV.4
Martial Arts: LV.1
‘...Wait.’
Did I just make things worse?
