I couldn't help but widen my eyes.
The Black World Tree. That was the name of the cursed artifact that had half-destroyed Zebuldia Magic Academy just the other day.
It had captured numerous Mages at Zebuldia Magic Academy, drained them of their mana, and was ultimately reduced to ash by Lucia and the Level 8 Hunter, Rosemary Puropos of "Abyssal Flame Annihilation."
And the very ash from which this staff had been created — was that cursed artifact.
Tino had to remind me; I'd completely forgotten. I mean, after all… I wasn't the one who created the staff.
"…Even though it was supposed to have been turned to ash and reforged, it's alive and well. That's terrifying."
The destructive energy unleashed by the Phantoms dimmed little by little with each root it struck, eventually being swallowed completely.
I recalled the information from the cursed artifact's encyclopedia.
If I remembered correctly… it said the Black World Tree was a counterfeit of the World Tree.
Unlike the genuine World Tree, which draws power from the Ley Lines to grow massive, the counterfeit actively attacks living creatures and devours their mana. At Zebuldia Magic Academy, it had devoured the attack magic of countless Mages and grown to a size surpassing the school buildings.
But the Black World Tree's growth ability now seemed to exceed even that.
My viewpoint rose further still. The grown Black World Tree was like a pitch-black giant.
I gripped the staff — the only part still retaining its original shape — and clung on desperately, refusing to be shaken off.
For the time being, it seemed the Black World Tree had no interest in Tino or me.
The Phantoms launched a coordinated assault. The arrows aimed at us, the newly constructed attack magic — all of it pierced the trunk of the Black World Tree.
A violent tremor shook us.
But the Black World Tree didn't collapse. The massive holes blown through by the Phantoms' attacks were regenerating faster than they could be opened.
"M-M-Mastaa, is this — is it drawing Mana Material from the Ley Line!?"
"Huh?"
"I-I, um, I studied after that last time — apparently, the Black World Tree doesn't have Mana Material of its own, so it has no choice but to steal mana —"
I see, I see… I… see?
……We might have just revived a truly monstrous creature. Despite being the same type of cursed artifact, its rampage was incomparable to what Marin and the others had dealt with.
It might even be worse than what we'd seen at the Magic Academy.
Tino's eyes rolled back in her head as she screamed.
"M-M-M-Mastaa — a strategy like this — actually exists — Mastaa! Mastaa!!"
"…Yeah, yeah, that's right."
Who would have thought a strategy like this could exist… What a strategy, huh!
The Phantoms pulled back warily, putting distance between themselves and the tree. The Black World Tree's movements froze for an instant.
Had it given up the pursuit? Had the damage finally been too much?
As we watched with bated breath, the ground suddenly quaked beneath our feet.
— It was a scene of cataclysmic devastation.
A vast area of ground shattered, and black roots burst forth from the cracks.
A surprise attack from directly below — an extremely specialized form of assault. The countless roots shot out with the speed and sharpness of spears hurled by a master lancer. There was no escaping them.
The innumerable roots coiled around the Phantoms. They tried to cut through, but even after sustaining massive damage from attack magic, the roots regrew — there was no breaking free.
Even the Phantoms from the Source Divine Hall couldn't match the raw power needed to tear themselves loose from these restraints — at least, not the Thief-type or Mage-type Phantoms.
Marin and the Black Knight had instinctively clung to the trunk, and even they were left dumbfounded by the Black World Tree's rampage.
I wanted to be dumbfounded too, but this situation — could it be… lucky?
At the very least, this Black World Tree probably had less murderous intent toward us than toward the Phantoms. Well, the promise I'd made to Selen — to avoid killing as much as possible — wasn't going to hold up, but there was nothing to be done about that.
This forest, dense with power, must be a perfect feeding ground for the Black World Tree. Its trunk pulsed with each beat, growing ever larger.
It was a counterfeit, sure, but it had been designed to emulate the World Tree for good reason.
Even if we weren't being targeted directly, at this size — if I slipped, I'd be crushed like an insect.
As I frantically endured this uncertain situation — dangerous or not, I couldn't tell — the roots that had been wrapping around a Phantom suddenly squirmed and spat its contents out onto the ground.
Seeing the figure unceremoniously dumped onto the ground, Tino lunged forward and shouted.
"!? A — a Spiritfolk came out from inside!? Is that what this is!?"
Huh? Seriously?
I squinted, looking down, but it was far below us. My eyesight wasn't that bad, but I still couldn't make it out clearly.
I'd heard the tale of how the people of Yggdra had been transformed into Phantoms. And apparently, with the power Finis possessed, they could be freed by eliminating the Mana Material.
Indeed, if the Black World Tree could absorb Mana Material from the Ley Line, then drawing it from Phantoms should be possible too.
The Black World Tree was tossing aside the Phantoms it had captured, one after another. As if they were no longer needed.
The discarded Phantoms — the Spiritfolk — weren't moving. But they were probably still alive. The incident at the Magic Academy hadn't produced any casualties either — or so I'd heard —.
Tino stared wide-eyed at the battlefield below — too far for me to see — and screamed.
"Look at that speed — so many of them… It's more efficient than Finis's draining, Mastaa! To think the Black World Tree had an ability like this… Hah! C-Could it be… the cursed artifact incident in the Imperial Capital — was that a rehearsal!?"
I couldn't even begin to understand what chain of logic had led to that conclusion. Not to brag, but once again, nothing had gone the way I'd planned.
No matter how hard I squinted, I couldn't see clearly, so I reluctantly gave up trying to assess the situation.
"Good grief, how many Phantoms were there in total…"
While I was grumbling, the forest had gone quiet.
During that time, not a single attack had been directed our way. It was completely one-sided.
Affinities really do matter… Who would have thought the Phantoms from the Treasure Hall — estimated at Level 10 — would be completely helpless.
Having apparently devoured all its choice prey, the Black World Tree came to a dead stop.
If it was satisfied, I wished it would turn back into a staff… I wanted to check on the people who'd been tossed aside, too.
The Black World Tree began to move slowly. Its size, having grown and grown, now exceeded the great trees scattered throughout the area. But it was still far from matching the real World Tree.
Just as Tino had said, the World Tree was nearby — well, "nearby" meant several kilometers away, but from this vantage point high above, its absurd size was plainly visible.
The cold wind made me shiver involuntarily. That was when the trembling Tino let out a startled cry.
"M-Mastaa, this one — it's being drawn to the Source Divine Hall!?"
"…That's bad."
Just as Tino said, the Black World Tree was slowly but surely heading toward the real World Tree.
It seemed that draining an entire army of Phantoms hadn't been enough to satisfy it.
Any living creature would instinctively understand the danger of the Source Divine Hall, but this tree had no such instinct.
No matter how favorable the matchup might be, charging into the enemy stronghold where the God's Phantoms resided was不可ignorable. If it managed to break through and grow even further, that would be a serious problem on its own —.
We'd bought enough time. With the device destroyed, there was no reason for us to stay here. Citry and the others should be able to handle this Black World Tree somehow.
"Alright… Let's lure it over to Citry and the others."
"!? H-How are we supposed to do that!?"
"Well, you see… it's like that thing — you know, dangling a carrot in front of a horse's nose to lead it —"
The Black World Tree had been prioritizing its attacks on the Phantoms until just now. Surely, the Source Divine Hall wasn't high enough on its list of priorities.
"H-However… what are you planning to use as bait? It doesn't seem interested in us at all —"
"Hmm, let's see… Back at the academy, I think it was said to target Mages…"
In other words, this tree was attracted to mana and Mana Material. The reason it wasn't pursuing Marin was either a fellow cursed artifact's courtesy, or perhaps Marin simply lacked mana.
The Black World Tree's movements were slow. Well, not exactly slow — but if we could draw its attention, we should be able to guide it.
It would make things easier if it reacted to Treasure Weapons, but it seemed to have no interest in them. They were imbued with considerable mana, but I couldn't figure out what criteria the Black World Tree used to select its targets.
I let out a small sigh and half-resigned, spoke to Mimikun.
"Mimikun, pull out something other than a mana-infused Treasure Weapon."
I had a general grasp of Mimikun's capabilities. He was an impeccable Space-Time Bag, but naturally couldn't produce something that wasn't inside.
Yet Mimikun, without a moment's hesitation, spat out a cloth bag.
It was a plain, unremarkable bag. It seemed vaguely familiar, but I couldn't quite place it —.
The Black World Tree, which had been trudging along with heavy footsteps, stopped dead in its tracks. I blinked, then steeled myself, opened the bag, and peered inside.
Inside were — threads of gold and silver. Thin, lustrous, and cool to the touch.
No, to be precise, they weren't threads. I pulled one out and examined it closely, then handed it to Tino, whose eyes were wide and frozen in shock.
This was — hair. The hair of Astol and the others, forcibly handed over when I'd rescued Selen from within Mires.
The hair of Spiritfolk with an aptitude for magic. A potent magical catalyst — for Spiritfolk, the thing most precious after life and pride.
It held — a powerful reservoir of Spiritfolk mana.
Tino blinked, and from both sides, roots surged toward her. Before Tino could be caught, I spoke rapidly.
"Tino, use Ka-kun to guide it — I'm counting on you!"