The Truth of the Great Tree Mildfir

“Save the world, you say? Don’t make me laugh!” exclaimed the chief of the elves. “There’s no way she would appear before a human!”

The chief’s response unsettled me, but it also complicated things. All the elves who had surrounded us glared fiercely and readied their weapons, prepared to strike at any moment. Yet they didn’t, because their leader’s fury didn’t stop at shouting—it came directly at us.

“You… damn human! How dare you…!? Huh!?”

Once he got close enough, the old elf grabbed me by the shirt and prepared to hit me, but I had no time to defend myself, for my forehead began to shine intensely, confusing the elven chief, who immediately stepped back.

“That symbol… it can’t be,” he muttered.

“What is that?”

“I have no idea…” I replied to Liz with hesitation.

The place fell into complete silence. The elves only watched as their leader grew increasingly confused; they awaited orders, but none came, until eventually he spoke again.

“Stand down,” he ordered reluctantly. “I’ll take them to my office.”

“But, sir…”

“Don’t make me repeat myself!” the chief shouted back. He didn’t look at all pleased with the situation.

At his command, the surrounding elves lowered their weapons and returned to their dwellings while we followed the elven chief in silence. We still didn’t trust him, but the fact that he let us through despite hating the idea made me realize it was something of utmost importance.

The elven village was quite different from what I had imagined at first. One usually assumes they would live in trees or forests, as the classic trope suggests, but these elves lived in large tents, taking advantage of the wide space inside the cave, and the further we went, the more of them we found.

At last, we arrived at the chief’s office, which was also a large tent built in an elevated spot, I suppose to make it stand out. Once inside, Liz and I took our seats. However, the leader said nothing—he just kept pacing while muttering things I couldn’t make out. This looked like it was going to take a while…

“Hello?” I said, trying to get his attention.

“Shut up, human!” he shouted back. This was starting to really annoy me.

I suddenly rose from my seat and faced the old elf. We needed this to move forward, and whether he was going to help us or not, I wanted an answer as soon as possible so we could leave this place.

“Do you have some kind of problem with me!?” I demanded.

“Do I have a problem? Of course I do! It’s because of you humans that we’re in this situation!”

“What do you mean?” I asked, surprised by his remark.

Humans’ fault? From what I knew, elves had disappeared shortly after the destruction of the great tree Mildfir, being a magical race dependent on the mana it produced. What did humans have to do with that?

“Don’t tell me… the humans hid the truth. Those bastards…” he cursed under his breath. “The truth is that it was you humans who destroyed the great tree Mildfir!”

Humans destroyed the tree? It was the first time I’d ever heard such a version. Liz didn’t stay indifferent either; she quickly stood up, stepping into the conversation.

“Impossible! It was the demons who destroyed it after losing the war!” she argued.

“The demons? Girl, demons are also a magical race. Why would they want to destroy the tree if it also sustained them?”

Looking at it that way, it made a lot of sense. If the demons were just as dependent on mana as the elves, that meant their disappearance wasn’t due to losing the war, but a consequence of that very dependence.

“The demons wanted to control the tree, but the humans destroyed it when they interrupted the hero summoning ritual. I know because I was there…”

I suppose the elves in this world are extremely long-lived. At this point the chief must be over a hundred years old, and if he actively took part in the war, I’d estimate he could be closer to one hundred and fifty.

“It can’t be…” Liz murmured, still in shock at the truth behind the destruction of the great tree.

“Tell me, do you know the shining girl in white?” I asked. Things were already advancing, so it was time to get straight to the point.

“A shining girl in white… yes, from the emblem that lit up on your forehead, I know who you mean,” he replied. “I too was able to hear and see her because of my position as guardian of the great tree.”

“A guardian?”

“Yes, and that girl you speak of is none other than the very consciousness of the great tree Mildfir.”

Its consciousness? The great tree was also a sentient being? Countless new doubts rushed through my mind, but one in particular stood out above the rest. If the consciousness of the great tree Mildfir still exists, doesn’t that mean the tree is still alive?

“That’s why it’s hard for me to believe you were able to speak with her. She stopped communicating after her destruction at the hands of the humans… But the emblem on your forehead is proof enough.”

“Wait, doesn’t that mean the great tree is still alive?” I asked with a spark of hope. “Couldn’t that be what she meant when she told me to save the world?”

At my observation, the chief widened his eyes noticeably, as if he hadn’t considered that possibility, surely blinded by doubt and his anger at having to deal with the very humans who had destroyed the great tree in the first place—even though I wasn’t from this world at all.

“It’s true… But I know nothing about such a thing. I’ll have to investigate the matter thoroughly, but it will take me some time.”

“We’re in the same situation. We were heading to the capital to research in the library of Noxhollow. What do you say we meet again once we’ve learned enough?”

The elven chief thought for a few moments, but finally made a decision.

“Very well. You already know how to find us, so there shouldn’t be any problem. Just don’t tell anyone, is that clear?”

“Yes.”

Having agreed on a plan, Liz and I thanked him for his help and made our way to the exit, but the chief stopped us with a request.

“Boy, before you leave, I need you to do us a favor.”

“Huh?”

***

The cave, once silent from the tension of the moment, was now filled with whispers, pleas, and even shouts. It was only natural, for the elves, this was a once-in-a-lifetime occasion.

“Next!” shouted the elven chief.

The favor he asked of me was to provide mana to the elves of the village, at least for a while. According to him, they had managed to survive until now thanks to certain plants in the caves that produced a limited amount of mana, but it wasn’t enough, so he wanted to take advantage of my ability to generate and share mana to help as many as possible. To that end, I now found myself surrounded by elves hugging and touching me to receive some mana.

“This is uncomfortable…” I muttered.

“Oh, is it?” Liz responded, watching the scene with clear irritation and lifeless eyes.

She had been like that ever since we started this, and honestly, it was a little terrifying, but in my current situation there wasn’t much I could do beyond waiting for it all to end.

However, the line didn’t seem to end; it only grew longer and longer.

“My turn!” exclaimed a female elf as she hugged me from behind, which made Liz’s gaze harden.

“Seems like you’re enjoying yourself…”

“Not at all…”

This is going to take forever… Somebody get me out of here!