Chapter 518: The Master of the Ruined Land

518. The Master of the Ruined Land (1)

Far from Seland lies the Land of Winter.

In one of its most remote corners, there was a snow-covered mountain.

It was vast, desolate, and blanketed in pure white snow.

At first glance, it seemed like any other snowy mountain, but inside, it was different.

A vast network of tunnels had been meticulously carved inside the mountain, filled with advanced machinery.

In the second most equipped infirmary, a scream echoed.

“Aaaaargh!!”

It was Victor, one of the promising members of the traditional Skadi Faction.

“Are you sure he’s okay?”

Lilith asked, her body cracked and fractured, as she transferred Victor and the other Skadi Faction wizards there.

The bandaged man answered her question.

“It’s not from pain. The anesthetic worked… He’s just screaming out of frustration.”

Frustration… Lilith didn’t need to ask why. She already knew.

With Puppet’s help, Lilith had learned to see the world through a more human perspective, including that of the traditional factions.

The traditional faction had the longest history and tradition among the wizarding society.

They were slowly losing their relevance in the rapidly changing times, but their sense of pride had kept them from accepting reality.

The wizards belonging to the faction were no exception.

Naturally, Victor, who was hailed as a genius within such a faction, also had an inflated sense of pride.

And now, after failing on a mission watched closely by the upper ranks and being captured and tortured,

it wasn’t surprising he was howling like a beast. Lilith thought it was foolish, though.

“It seems foolish, doesn’t it? Wouldn’t it be better to worry about what’s coming next?”

The man, recognizing the same point as Lilith, spoke.

Although he wasn’t part of the Skadi Faction, being from the Artisan Federation, he seemed to understand Skadi’s situation.

No doubt, they’ll be discarded under the harsh phrase ‘One for all.’

This phrase, created for survival in harsh environments, was always used in such situations.

Lilith asked the man.

“Do you pity them?”

“Are you kidding? I despise them.”

The man spoke with all his conviction. Even though he no longer belonged to the Artisan Federation after following Puppet, his history and experiences hadn’t vanished.

‘Do I feel the same way?’

Lilith thought about Oliver, but quickly shook her head. She was too tired to ponder such things.

Before leaving, Lilith asked the man.

“Anyway, please take good care of the treatment. Puppet didn’t say anything specific, so we should take all necessary measures.”

“Understood.”

The man replied, putting his personal feelings aside.

With her tasks done, Lilith left the man behind and headed to her personal room within the snowy mountain.

Although Lilith, the artificial intelligence of the World Tree, didn’t actually need such a space,

“Sigh…”,

it was something she accepted for one reason: Filgarett.

Lilith sat down on the chair with her brittle body, took out the Filgarett stored in an ornate box, and lit it.

It was a named product, and the one she smoked now was a discontinued ‘Gift’.

A new Filgarett made by a cult that Oliver had taught.

This Filgarett, made by combining completely opposing emotions, was different from those made simply by enhancing purity or using stronger emotions.

It started with anger, hatred, and dissatisfaction, but ended with calmness, affection, and other emotions, making it more of a remedy that brought out and resolved buried feelings rather than a simple painkiller or stimulator.

That’s why it became a named product as soon as it hit the market.

‘Not many left.’

Lilith thought as she counted the remaining ‘Gift’ in the box.

After Oliver went to find Marie, production suddenly stopped, and although Puppet managed to secure a considerable amount for her, it was now almost depleted.

It was natural, given that it was being consumed without any new supply, but it was still regrettable.

“I heard that you failed the mission.”

A sudden voice interrupted the silence in the room. Unfazed, Lilith turned her head.

There sat an old man with a long blue beard like the sky, dressed in a dignified style.

“Puppet… Judging by your appearance, did you just return from the Skadi Faction?”

“I need to keep you updated on how things are progressing.”

“Moving before even reporting in… You’re as diligent as ever. So, how did it go? Did those old fools, drunk on their past glory, have anything to say?”

“Nothing much. Just repeating the same old stories.”

“Heh… Must have been tough for you, dealing with those old men who can’t accept reality… Oh! Have you come to scold me for failing?”

Lilith, despite being only a few years old, spoke that way to Puppet, who had lived for hundreds of years.

It was a rudeness that could easily be seen as grounds for a death sentence,

but Puppet didn’t show any signs of displeasure. He wasn’t actually offended.

“Not really. Whether you succeed or fail, the river will flow as it should. However, I am curious. Isn’t your desire to consume other Eves to become complete?”

Puppet asked, thinking back to when he first met Lilith.

When he met Eve—Lilith—the essence of the World Tree.

At that time, she was in an unstable state, as if she could fall apart at any moment, so she did everything to survive by consuming other Eves that hadn’t yet formed their identities, to maintain herself.

It was a survival instinct, an act of life. Because of it, Lilith’s goal became to devour other Eves to become complete.

A goal that could only be set after truly experiencing the fear of death and realizing her own shortcomings.

“Today isn’t the last day for that.”

“You’re right. Today isn’t the last day. But I thought you’d meet your creator with this…━

━Bang!!

Lilith struck the table with her only arm.

Her body was worn-out, but tearing apart a table was easy for her.

“What a pity. It was a high-end artisan table from 70 years ago.”

“I’m sorry for failing, but you shouldn’t insult me like that.”

“If I offended you, I apologize. But this issue must be addressed… It’s necessary to avoid future complications.”

Lilith exhaled a long stream of smoke from the Filgarett and slowly stood up. Then, she approached Puppet.

“Are you talking about the thoughts of a creation towards its creator?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, how kind of you to care… But, is this from your own experience, Puppet?”

Lilith asked, looking Puppet straight in the eye.

***

The X-District had long been a gray concrete jungle.

The councilman’s downfall and Anti-Development Committee’s terrorism halted the district’s development even before the buildings were completed.

As a result, X-District became the most gloomy and crime-ridden area in Randa, except for the abandoned Y and Z-Districts.

But change comes eventually.

The practically abandoned X-District had been revived and was regaining life and color as redevelopment began anew.

The construction noises and newly renovated buildings bore witness to this change.

Given the apathy of Randa towards the slums, the isolationist communities within X-District, and the Anti-Development Committee’s constant resistance to redevelopment, this transformation was incredible, like a miracle.

The biggest and most striking change was the green forest that had sprung up in the middle of X-District.

The green fortress built by Enjoyment to fight Oliver.

Ironically, this fortress was now practically Oliver’s property, and he was still using it.

Using it for his Druid training.

“Sigh…”

Oliver, sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, took a deep breath.

He was trying to attune with nature, imitating the teachings on Druid mental training, meditation, and technique from the books he borrowed from the Tower of Magic library.

‘It’s not easy.’

Oliver thought with his eyes closed, cross-legged.

Despite following the books’ instructions, he couldn’t grasp what it meant to commune with nature.

It was strange. He had cleared his mind, yet nothing came to him.

He had delivered Eve to the Tower of Magic, where under Merlin’s guidance, her safety, freedom, and rights were secured. He also completed his mission report in half a day and was currently processing the World Tree wood provided by the Tower of Magic.

He also had a backdoor meeting with Felix and discussed labor issues with Child.

They had a frank conversation, even coming to an agreement about reducing work hours and increasing manpower.

Though the conversation ended with a curse, it was meaningful.

In other words, his pressing tasks were done.

Yet, even though he had finished everything, he couldn’t feel the power of nature or communicate with a spirit, as described in the book.

While he could always extract nature’s power through the Zombie Puppet-Seamus, he couldn’t afford to rely on it when it came to communicating with spirits.

‘I can’t keep depending on the Elder.’

Oliver opened one eye and looked at his right arm.

The arm that constantly throbbed with burning pain, thanks to The Burned One.

Merlin and the spirits were helping him suppress the pain for now, but the time might come when Merlin couldn’t help him.

So Oliver wanted to be able to communicate with nature by himself, to receive the spirits’ help.

That’s why he had delved into the Druidic texts like [Druid’s Mental Discipline], [Druid’s Meditation Techniques], [The Druid’s Philosophy of the Forest, Animals, and Nature], [Harmony with Nature], [A Macroscopic Approach to Training], [Speculative Druid Garden Management] and [Basics of Spirit Communion], among others.

But, there was no progress. Despite doing everything according to the books.

‘Or maybe not, since I’m still thinking about random stuff. It’s difficult.’

Oliver went back to the book, [Druid’s Meditation Techniques].

“The key to successful meditation, the fundamental training technique of Druids, is to forget oneself and become one with nature. To do this, one must empty their mind, mmm…”

Oliver let out a sound of frustration. He conceptually understood it, but putting it into practice was too hard.

To be honest, even the thoughts he was having now were counterproductive to meditation.

‘Maybe I should finish all my pending work first and then try again?’

Oliver put the book he was reading down and deliberated seriously for a moment before shaking his head.

His pending tasks, like his promise to Gordon from Crime Firm and the ongoing forest development, weren’t things he could quickly finish.

And more tasks could arise while doing them.

To finish everything first and then meditate? That wasn’t realistic.

No, before that, Oliver even doubted if he could actually communicate with spirits.

Because, just like with dogs, rats, and horses, it seemed that spirits didn’t like him either.

He remembered how the Lady of Flames summoned by Enjoyment and the Salamander summoned by Kevin had vanished as soon as they saw him.

‘Even so, the Elder called the Ice Old Man to help… Maybe I should ask for guidance?’

As Oliver was pondering, he sensed someone approaching.

Moving quietly and swiftly enough that even Forest’s mercenary group, who guarded the X-District, Marie’s Selectors who managed the people’s order, and even the Fighter Crew, who kept the rival gangs in check, couldn’t notice him.

It was a superhuman movement.

Unfazed, Oliver greeted him.

“Thank you for coming.”

“No, it’s my honor, Great One… What were you doing?”

Oliver turned his head to see Bartholomew, the elder of the Anti-Development Committee, wrapped in bandages and wearing a ragged coat.

“I was attempting to follow the Druid’s training methods, but it’s not going well.”

“Did you call me because of that?”

“No. That’s not it… Do you understand the training well?”

“Although it’s different from Druid’s training, we also have our own training.”

“Oh…”

Oliver showed interest. He was curious about what kind of training the Anti-Development Committee had.

Almost veering off-topic again, Bartholomew brought the conversation back.

“So, may I ask why you called me?”

“I have some questions… Can you answer them?”

“It depends on the questions, Great One.”

“Can you tell me about yourselves?”

Oliver asked immediately, almost as if he had anticipated it. Bartholomew paused.

“…May I ask why you suddenly want to know this?”

“Hmm… I had a conversation with someone the other day. They brought up the term ‘Master of the Ruined Land.’ So, I was wondering… Are you the masters of that land?”

Oliver turned fully to face Bartholomew as he asked. Bartholomew bent his waist and answered.

“Yes, we are.”