Chapter 23 : The World Tree

The elven village was shaped like a giant donut. Unsurprisingly, this was because the village was built around a giant ‘tree.’

The center of the elven village.

The moment one entered the area, protected by multiple layers of barriers and dozens of guards…

…One would encounter a colossal tree, protected by magic that obscured vision, reaching beyond the clouds.

“Mother Tree, my old friend Caliph has come to visit after a long time. Please scold him thoroughly.”
“It’s been a while, World Tree.”

The World Tree was a large tree. But it wasn’t just a large tree.

The World Tree… was the mother of all ‘elves.’ While elves could reproduce sexually, they generally had low libidos, and most were born from the World Tree’s fruit.

If elves were ants, the World Tree was a kind of queen ant.

So I had researched the World Tree before. I was curious about the ecology of this plant-like queen ant, which held the genetic information of countless elves.

And…

One piece of information I learned through that research was…

[Using Information Lifeform (LV.4).]
[Skill level insufficient.]
[The World Tree resists the skill.]

…That this ‘World Tree’ was actually a giant information lifeform containing information about each individual elf.

And it was a much more complete and massive information lifeform than the ‘elf-server’ I had replicated with magic and skills. The reason why the ‘elf’ race performed so well as a server was likely related to this.

I had tested it with other races with similar intelligence and mental stats after creating the elf neural network, but they didn’t achieve the same efficiency as elves.

The ‘Heart of the Swarm’ skill itself connected the consciousness of different individuals, so as the number of individuals increased, compatibility issues drastically reduced efficiency.

“Speak freely, Caliph. You wouldn’t do anything to harm the Mother Tree.”
“Yeah, thanks.”

Salien, who had guided me here, stepped back.

I placed my hand on the World Tree and explored its structure with magic, marveling once again.

“Wow… It’s always so breathtakingly beautiful…”

Grand magic created by life itself, something human magic couldn’t replicate.

The spiritual structure of the World Tree was like the ‘Soul Stream’ itself. It contained an entire spiritual world. Elves born from the World Tree’s fruit would eventually return to its embrace. The cycle of life.

The term ‘World Tree’ truly suited it.

And…

A mage couldn’t resist researching such magnificent magic.

“Sylvie. And everyone else. Could you all place your hands on the World Tree and try to communicate? A simple greeting will suffice.”
“Understood, Master.”

The elves placed their hands on the World Tree.

The fresh, natural mana emanating from the World Tree flowed like threads, connecting with the elves.

A connection of souls.

Similar to the vampire bloodline, but a more horizontal and fulfilling form of exchange.

“Before, I wouldn’t have been able to connect to the World Tree, but…”

[Using Heart of the Swarm (LV.MAX).]

Now that Heart of the Swarm had reached its maximum level…

…I was, for a brief moment, the elves themselves.

Borrowing the elves’ racial traits, talents, and souls, I cautiously approached the World Tree.

And so…

[Using Information Lifeform (LV.4).]

I connected to the World Tree network.

And…

In a language I had never heard in my hundreds of years in this world—no, in primitive images that hadn’t even formed into language…

The World Tree spoke to me.

• “Oh? What a curious child.”

“Greetings, Spirit of the World Tree.”

Even though my soul was protected by skills, its spirit was so powerful and vast that I would have been swept away if I lost focus for even a moment.

The World Tree’s will… it seemed closer to a spirit, to be precise.

Great nature awakened its own spirituality and became a spirit. It wasn’t strange for the World Tree, with its infinite wellspring of souls, to awaken its own spirituality.

• “You are not a child of the Divine Tree… but you have a similar scent. Perhaps you are like the Divine Tree. The form of your soul… its texture… very interesting. What kind of being are you?”
  “I am lacking, but I walk the path of magic.”

• “Ah! Magic. A child of runes, I see. Yes, a curious child. Why have you come to me, borrowing the voices of my children?”
  “I wish to study the World Tree.”

• “Oh?”
  “The infinite souls contained within you, the genetic information of the elf race, the biological structure from your roots to your leaves… As a mage, I find it all incredibly fascinating and enjoyable. If possible, I want to analyze it, understand it, and even make it my own.”

• “…Oh my. Oh my, oh my.”

The World Tree’s spirit gasped, flustered, for a long moment.

Was I being rude? But if I had lied to a spirit, I would have been caught immediately.

It was better to be blatantly honest.

• “So… Ahem! You want… my flower?”
  “Yes. Not just the flower, but I also want to study every drop of sap flowing through this giant trunk.”

“I apologize if I’ve offended you.”

• “You can offend me as much as you like!”
  “Pardon?”

• “Ah, no, I meant you can be as comfortable as you like. If you are a friend of my children, you are like my child too…. Like my other children, you can call me Mother.”
  “Yes, Mother.”

• “Hee hee…”

The World Tree chuckled, seemingly pleased.

It rustled its leaves, sending a flow of natural mana towards me. I accepted it without resistance.

Like the other elves communing with the World Tree…

I felt my soul directly connect with it.

• “Such a young soul… yet it holds such great and powerful energy, like the Divine Tree.”
  “Thank you for your kind words.”

• “You seem to have good compatibility with other souls too… A bit different from the Divine Tree, but your roots are properly established… Indeed, it seems you would be fine.”
  “Yes?”

• “I’ll insert it gently… Tell me immediately if it hurts.”

At that moment…

A part of the great spirituality circulating within the World Tree began to flow into me through the mana connection.

Vast genetic information about the elf race.

The blueprint of the long-eared, long-lived race’s soul was being forcibly injected into my mind.

An ordinary person’s mind would have broken under the sheer volume of information, but—

[The skill ‘Information Lifeform’ has leveled up.]

[The skill ‘Information Lifeform’ has leveled up.]

[The skill ‘Information Lifeform’ has leveled up.]

‘Holy…’

For me, it was just skill proficiency.

The level of ‘Information Lifeform,’ which consumed several times more skill points than ‘Heart of the Swarm,’ rose like crazy.

And so…

When the infusion of spirituality ended…

[Information Lifeform (LV.MAX)]

I marveled at the skill that had reached LV.MAX in an instant.

My goodness.

I was just thinking of raising the proficiency a little through research, but I never expected it to jump like this all at once.

• “Phew… Are you alright? Did I perhaps insert it too quickly…”
  “Ah! Thank you! That was incredibly helpful!”

• “Hee hee. I’m glad…. Um, then, from today…”
  “Then, Mother. I’ll visit you again next time.”

I was planning to spend a few years relaxing with the elves and working on my proficiency.

It seemed I could return to the mansion right away.

• “U-Um?”
  “I thought I’d have to stay by the World Tree for a few years and commune with it, but thanks to you, it was resolved easily.”

• “Oh? Ah?”
  “Thank you so much.”

• “W-Well, I’m glad! I’m happy I could help…. Really…”

The World Tree’s voice sounded a little tearful.

Perhaps she had used a lot of mental energy while infusing me with spirituality.

It would be impolite to bother her further.

“I’ll be going now.”

• “Wait! W-Wouldn’t it be alright to talk a little longer? We have plenty of time… Y-Yes! I can even let you taste the World Tree’s honey and sap.”

“I appreciate the thought.”

• “Ugh…. You’ll visit often, right? You have to come again.”

“Yes. I’ll visit often in the future.”

And so, my connection with the World Tree was severed.

Looking around, Sylvie and the other elves were staring at me with slightly dazed expressions.

“Everyone, let’s go home.”
“…Yes, Master.”

“Ah, does anyone want to stay in the elven village? If you want to live in your homeland, you don’t have to return to the mansion.”
“Everyone seems to prefer the mansion.”

“Really? Well, the elven village only has trees.”

I led the elves out of the World Tree’s domain.

Salien was waiting for me at the entrance.

“Oh, friend. Did you say goodbye to the Mother Tree?”
“Of course. Thanks for guiding me today, Salien.”

“Haha. What are friends for! You’re always welcome, so visit often. Don’t hide away for another 1,000 years. Honestly, I was quite hurt.”
“If I remember.”

“So you’re not coming!”
“…I’ll visit within 100 years.”

“Alright, you promise in the name of a mage?”
“Yeah, yeah.”

It should be fine if I visit in about 99 years.

The mage’s mansion. The mage’s workshop.

Researching the newly grown ‘Information Lifeform’ skill and the elven spirituality it contained, I realized…

“Can’t I use this… like artificial intelligence?”