The tearing in the gray mist continued for a long time, and Elder Sephaun took Caroli to the rear of the World Tree Realm in order to protect Caroli's safety.

Here gathered some of the non-combat-capable Darkwood Elves, some of whom were underage children, and some of whom were priests who served as 'chantors'.

The Inquisition did not raid here.

The elves looked very uneasy in the shelter, and a priestess at the head stepped forward.

"Elder Sephaon, flames are burning all around the forest, and I see huge monsters and tentacles bursting from the ground, what the hell is going on?"

"It must be a demon... I saw the horns on the heads of the monsters, and the flames burning on them. ”

A young elf said in a trembling voice.

"It is the Inquisition of the Holy Religion that invades this forest! And not some demon! ”

Elder Sephaon corrected the young elf's words loudly.

In such a panicked situation, the Darkwood Elves present would easily believe this rumor.

And this is exactly what the Inquisition wants to achieve, not only to draw the wrath of the Black Wood Elves to the demons, but also the hatred of the entire human race.

Elder Sephaon is not interested in the struggle between humans, but the actions of the Inquisition have doomed them to be the eternal enemies of the Blackwood Elves.

It would be a very sad thing if the descendants of the Darkwood Elves didn't even know who their enemies were.

"Priest of Olanca, take your people out of this dangerous place."

Elder Sephaun finally gave the order with grief.

"We... He is the priest of the sacred tree, and he will never choose to flee at such a time! The priestess at the head was very resolute.

"The sacred tree has withered..."

Elder Sephaun said this fact, which stunned the priests, including several young elves present.

"If this is the fate of the Blackwood Elves......"

The priestess looked outside the sanctuary, where the once lush forest had turned yellow, and the fallen leaves had turned to dust and scattered down, and the whole forest was filled with dead silence.

"It's not the fate of the Darkwood Elves."

Caroli, who had been sitting on the back of Etter the brown bear, stepped down and took the priestess's hand...

When she felt the life force belonging to the World Tree in Caroli's body, her eyes widened in disbelief.

She instantly understood what Grand Elder Sephaon meant, and after a period of mental struggle, she made the decision to leave the withered land.

………………

Caroli escaped from the gray mist on her back on the back of the brown bear Ett, and the Dark Wood Elves behind Caroli domesticated the elk as their mounts and followed Caroli.

The Blackwood Forest was already enveloped in flames.

The Elven Grand Elder Sephaun, who had been following Caroli's side, used his magic to disperse the flames around him.

Brown bear Etter let out an uneasy roar as he trampled on the charred trees on the ground, and it suddenly stopped running.

Someone... It's time to catch up!

Caroli felt as if she understood what it was trying to say, and the brown bear shook itself uneasily, forcing Caroli to fall from its back.

"I'm here to stop those invaders...... You leave here with this Maiden of the Forest! Elder Sephaon said to his companion for many years.

Brown bear Etter did not agree to Elder Sefarn's request this time, and let out a wail, and it was only then that Caroli noticed that the brown bear's two front paws were already bloody.

This is not the blood of the enemy, but its own.

During the Inquisition's attack, it was mortally wounded in order to protect Caroli.

Caroli sensed the meaning of the brown bear's wail, and it planned to defend itself against the Inquisitors, and at the same time stretched out its tongue and gently licked Caroli's hand, indicating that it was okay.

"You... Will be back, right? ”

Caroli didn't stop it, but asked it softly, and Brown Bear Etter rubbed Caroli with his wet nose before taking one last look at Elder Sephaon.

With the elven elven elder's nod, it turned and roared into the flaming forest, along with several young elven rangers who had gone to fend off the pursuing enemies.

“……”

Caroli stared at the burning forest in front of her, her determination to "make known what the Inquisition had done" sustained her from escaping, and there was no time for her to stay any longer.

"May your wrath with the forest be poured out on those invaders, my fellow citizens."

Elder Sephaun watched as the brown bear Etter disappeared into the flames, grabbed a piece of dirt from the ground and spilled it into the air, turning the dirt into a mass of clay figures the length of a finger and burrowing into the forest.

"Sit on, daughter of the forest... All I can do now is take you away from those intruders. ”

Elder Sephaon let out a low growl in his throat, and in the blink of an eye, he turned into a giant wolf that was two people tall.

Caroli sat on the wolf's back, and the giant wolf sped toward the outskirts of the Blackwood Forest.

At this moment, the roar of the brass dragon was heard throughout the forest, and Caroli looked back at the sky, and the brass dragon flapped its wings into the air, spewing a devastating breath towards the ground.

The brass dragon seems to have come to its senses, but Caroli knows... The forest is close to extinction, and even the dragons that once guarded the World Tree cannot undo it.

After a long journey of more than two hours, Caroli finally broke out of the encirclement of flames and came to a lake.

Caroli knows the lake... It is located on the other side of the Blackwood Forest, almost in the exact opposite direction to Duke Kuroki's territory.

But now she wanted to return to the forest, but it was too late to make her way in the direction of her home, the flames blocked the road, and she would have to be at great risk if she wanted to return.

And... There were also two dozen elves who had escaped from the Darkwood Forest with her.

At this moment, Caroli suddenly realized that she was no longer the little girl who was spoiled to her parents, and a heavy sense of mission was on her shoulders.

"The Daughter of the Forest... Are we going to move on? It is not your father's domain. ”

The voice of Elder Sephaon came from the throat of the giant wolf, and this little girl, after inheriting the seed of the World Tree, had a far higher status in the Darkwood Elf clan than him.

"I ......"

Caroli hesitated, looking at the flame-burning forest behind her, wondering if she should stay here for a while.

Maybe some other Darkwood Elves have escaped? For example, her bodyguard, Frey, and... The brown bear Etter who went to stop the intruders.

What if Caroli goes too far and it can't find itself?

And the truth told that Caroli's worries were always unnecessary, and a huge figure appeared in the burning forest, and the dark wood elves who followed Caroli showed uneasy expressions, but out of the forest was the brown bear that had left before.

It kept its promise to Caroli and did return.

Excitedly, Caroli jumped off the wolf's back and ran towards the brown bear named Etter, where she found that it was already scarred.

The brown bear seemed to be a little weak, and had just taken a few steps out of the forest before falling to the ground.

"Ette ......"

Caroli reached out and scratched its chin, and it rubbed its wet nose against Caroli's cheek as before.

But this tiny movement exhausted the last of its strength, and the brown bear's huge body lay on the ground, the last of its breath gradually disappearing from its body.

Caroli watched the scene with wide eyes and opened her mouth to say something, but in the end she buried her cheek in the brown bear's arms and cried out loud.

No matter how heavy her mission is, Caroli is still just a little girl.

Elder Sephaon turned back into human form and silently watched his old friend pass, reaching out to stroke the brown bear's blackened fur from the flames.

"For thy soul rests in peace... My old friend. Elder Sephaon whispered.