Eat The World Tree

Chapter 186: The First Clash (1)

The logistics truck was loaded with high-quality mana-processed waters.

Whistling, I looked at the densely packed water tanks.

“Hmm, um.”

Flower had been diverting this precious resource for some purpose.

I didn’t know how much capital they had, but I was satisfied that they had taken a hit.

I sparked a flame on my finger.

-Whoosh.

The flame, similar in trait to the fire I had once seen from Cistus.

Due to the purity of the mana, it couldn’t cause a large explosion like Cistus could cause.

Mana similar to Cistus’s could mislead the police investigation in another direction.

It was a method possible because Cistus, who was directly leading the terror, existed.

‘Compared to the power of Cheonma, its destructive power is less.’

Mana was useful.

Depending on its use, it could deceive a country and even change my identity.

That’s why major national deceptions by presidents and politicians were typically facilitated through magic.

Because of this, traces of the mana used to cause magic can become the livelihood of detectives. But the important thing was that such manipulation was trivial if one was determined.

Hwangdo, being naturally kind, might not think of such tricks, but I was not like that.

I spread the flame over the spilled oil on the ground.

-Whooooosh!

The fire on the ground raced towards the mana-processed waters.

-Boom!

The truck exploded. Sparks fell over corpses.

After teleporting a great distance away using spatial magic, I casually picked up my phone.

-Rrrrring.

Calling Byeol, I examined the clothes I was wearing.

A part of the hood was burnt through. Time to throw this away.

-Click.

[Hello?]

“Hello, Byeol noona.”

[Mhm, our Shiheon~ Why? But why does your voice sound like that? It’s mechanical.]

Byeol’s voice crackled through the phone, destabilized by the mana wave from the explosion.

“That’s…things seem to have gotten serious.”

I took a deep breath and lowered my voice as much as I could.

[Huh?]

“It seems like there’s been a terrorist incident. They’re looking for Flower; it happened near the factory.”

[…What? Really?]

“Yes. I was thinking of going there, but it’s too far, and it seems like it’s already over, so I wanted to contact you.”

[Wait a minute. How long has it been?]

“Not long.”

Supported by the government and the World Foundation, the Hunter Association.

And naturally, the Korean branch of hunters had the responsibility and duty to ensure the nation’s security and defense.

In the event of a terror attack or similar disaster, it’s imperative to be the first to report and handle the situation cleanly.

[…Hey. Uh. Have they already contacted you? Check the facts immediately, send out the article, and quickly prepare a response.]

The anxious words from Byeol through the phone.

Using terror as a disguise was not merely to avoid becoming a criminal myself.

[Hmm, Shiheon, you’re okay, right?]

When a terror attack occurred, all relevant agencies began intensive enforcement in the area.

Public enterprises, influenced by corporate interests, which couldn’t be monitored, could now be directly handled by public agencies.

Did that make sense? There’s no business in front of public opinion.

No matter how large a corporation, it could not refuse investigation and scrutiny where the public’s eyes were focused.

Naturally, Flower would temporarily withdraw from this city. And the property damage to Flower… easily surpassed the factory damage by dozens of times.

“Yes… it’s going to be noisy again for a while.”

It was not terrorism they initiated.

Yet, it was attributed to them as terrorism.

Thinking about how complicated things would get made me laugh.

Normally, a structured organization avoids establishing any connections around a terrorism site, apart from minimal groundwork, to prevent being traced. Even if that weren’t a concern, preparations are typically made in advance for a quick withdrawal.

‘…I don’t know if they initially intended to commit terrorism or not.’

After confirming the scene where mana-processed waters were being taken from the factory,

It seemed their goal was more about securing resources than committing terrorism. Only after witnessing that did I finalize my plan to blow up the factory.

“As an organization, all economic activities in this city have come to a halt.”

Withdrawing to avoid leaving traces was a natural course of action.

It’s even better if they were caught trying to destroy evidence.

At first glance, I was just a guy who blew up a factory.

But I had made tens, maybe even hundreds of billions in profit at the expense of millions of won in losses.

Strictly speaking, I didn’t really incur any losses.

Busted containers and logistics trucks?

After all, they were either owned by Flower, or it’s the factory contracted with Flower that bore the burden.

[Sigh. Just when I forget about them, those bastards show up.]

“Haha…”

Byeol mutterred in a weary voice.

Yes, there were damages on our side too.

If the troubles with the Hunter Association counted as damage, then it was damage.

But since I didn’t like those association guys anyway, it’s Yi Yi Zhi Yi (using barbarians to control barbarians) for me.

Only Byeol was a bit pitiful.

I should take her to an amusement park later.

“If Flower has connections with the media or police… they might find the perpetrator.”

Knowing this, I had long since erased my traces.

Even if the investigation revealed that Flower wasn’t behind it, between an unknown perpetrator and Flower, the responsibility would naturally shift to Flower, which everyone hated.

“…In the end, the case concludes as your fault.”

The police were the ones who were cautious about pressuring Flower.

Watching both the citizens and Flower.

They would ultimately have to choose one side.

“Haah.”

It’s refreshing. I felt like my insides had been cleared out.

I placed my hand on the surface of my facial skin and gently peeled it off.

The mask that was stuck to my face fell off, returning my face to its original state.

‘The last thing I need to be careful of.’

The likelihood that they will cause one big incident in a final desperate attempt.

As long as they didn’t flounder too much, countering it should be easy.

The Hunter Association dealing with Flower was no fool either.

So, now was the time to wait for that moment.

Cistus’s fifth house.

Tube Rose kept watching the articles appearing on the portal site, smirking bitterly.

“…Did they really pick a fight intentionally?”

The intention of the opponent was very clear.

Because the situation had grown so much, one of Cistus’s bases, excluding the barn, had completely shut down.

Companies were hurriedly erasing traces of relationships.

Even trying to salvage any remaining resources was denied, as the manipulation of records was too conspicuous.

It was a convincing reason, but painful for them.

“Is it an organization?”

She thought it was the work of one person, but she couldn’t rule out the possibility that several people had collectively orchestrated the incident.

Especially since the case became a hot issue and spread through the media very quickly.

“No, maybe it was just good luck.”

A crazy person recklessly caused significant damage. In fact, in the current situation, it made more sense to assume someone just randomly picked a factory, attacked Flower, and burned the evidence.

Tube Rose knew the situation firsthand, having run around on the ground.

‘…The evidence and mana traces there. It all points to impulsive actions.’

From the perpetrator’s footsteps to the scene of the battle, there were clear signs.

It wasn’t a covert killing. It was a deliberate, uncontrollable smashing of the opponent’s body into pieces.

‘A dumb guy just got lucky.’

So the evidence suggested.

‘…However.’

If it was indeed good luck. Or perhaps it was meant to make the opponent think that?

Because it was staged so realistically, it actually felt disjointed.

“An annoying bug has latched on.”

-Crack-

The mouse she was holding broke under her grip.

It was irritating. The damage was more extensive than expected.

Swept by heat, Tube Rose wiped her eyes with her hand, and then looked up at the ceiling, laughing heartily.

“Ha, haha, hahaha!”

Having come this far, they too had their means.

In fact, it had been in progress for a long time.

Tube Rose immediately took out a bottle from a drawer, looked at the purple liquid inside, and chuckled.

“Yes. Since they can’t trade there anymore anyway.”

Maybe she’d start the experiment passed on by the boss in that city.

The Elixir of Immortality.

Supported by the Corneus family, it was a drug that had been researched for centuries and was nearing completion—the worst drug ever conceived.

Of course, anyone not a member of the Corneus family would turn into an Ent upon taking it.

This was because the property of accepting nourishment differed by bloodline.

‘What a remarkable drug.’

The shining purple elixir.

Rubbing the surface of the bottle, he laughed sinisterly.

Flower was put in charge of researching this drug for a simple reason.

Flower wanted to exploit the fact that the person who took the drug would turn into an Ent.

Corneus wanted to complete the drug.

Their interests had aligned from the start.

“The heart of Cheonma. The roots of the World Tree… The magic stone of the Wood Dragon from centuries ago.”

Each component, if revealed to the market, would cause a huge stir.

Especially Cheonma… That elder’s heart was said to have been procured by the head of the Corneus family himself.

“I don’t know why they go to such lengths for eternal life.”

The grand dream of the family. Living only to see that dream realized is what the humans of the Corneus family do.

Flower decided to fully exploit such a family’s wealth.

“Let’s see.”

In two days, the second clinical trial begins.

It would have been a major event several months later, but it was inadvertently pushed forward.

Well… she thought the head of the Corneus family would understand.

Then she’d also be out.

Tube Rose tilted the shimmering drug.

One thought came to her mind.

If the drug was completed, who would be the one to take it?

She heard there was a tree person who had been taking the drug since birth.

“…What was the name?”

She didn’t know it well.

If true immortality was achieved, she’d eventually learn the name.

She decided not to worry about it too much.

The purple drug seeped into the spinal cord through a long tube.

“……”

The terrible pain that racked through my entire body.

The agony that felt as if my limbs were being torn apart no longer affected me.

It’s the day when the drug was administered once a month.

-Suuuuck.

I felt indifferent.

Dazed.

Just dazed.

Neither feeling good nor bad.

Pleasure was never a part of it.

I couldn’t remember the last time I felt my heartbeat, or if I even had a heart.

I didn’t do anything here. I meant, I existed but I didn’t.

Just indifferently looking around. Then I saw people in white coats surrounding me, discussing in incomprehensible terms what went wrong this time.

What were these people’s names?

I couldn’t remember.

I was bad at remembering names.

I didn’t know why. It’s just been that way for some time.

Trapped in a white room, receiving medication and training for 20 years.

According to that person, I had been receiving drugs since I was born to build immunity.

Drugs. It’s just drugs.

I didn’t know where they helped, but they were supposed to be good for the body.

At first, the pain was so intense that I would lose consciousness.

Sleep was a relief. Back then, at least I could dream.

Now, I felt nothing and hardly dreamt at all.

So much time had passed that I had even forgotten if I was happy back then.

Now, I wondered what happiness felt like.

Too many emotions were unknown to me.

I wanted to understand them, but I couldn’t.

Eventually, I tired from thinking and gave up.

But still, I was feeling some stimuli now.

“……Ah.”

I didn’t know.

I wondered how Sieon was doing now.

Inside a white capsule, I gaze at a dark sun.

-Sliding.

“What day is it today?”

I could barely remember common concepts like dates. The people around me took care of that.

Blurry memories and dulled senses.

Despite being like this, there was still one thing I distinctly remembered.

‘…Sansuyu.’

I recalled the bright red fruit that my mother used to place in my hand.

Overcome with drowsiness, I closed my eyes.