Due to the interference of those three humans earlier, he couldn’t reach Yggdrasil before dark. He’s not that far anymore though, as he already reached the roots sprouting all over near the gigantic tree. According to his estimations, he will arrive on his destination before noon tomorrow.

The great Yggdrasil looked more imposing than ever now that he’s near. He wondered just how old this intriguing specimen could be. Upon touching one of its roots, he could surely say that this unknown wooden material is harder than steel. It’s not something that can be explained through science, so no doubt that magic has something to do with it.

He can investigate it more closely once he reaches it. For now, the moon has already risen, and so commences the time for his rest. Just like before, he picked a dry, hollow tree as his temporary sleeping spot. Already used to sleeping on such places, sleep took over his mind much earlier than his previous nights.

“Wuru…”

Ah!” Upon running into an elevated root, Helen could only yelp as she plummeted to the ground. It was fortunate that she didn’t hit her head on any of the rocks below her. Mud and blood stained her once pristine white dress, while her face was wet from her snot and tears. “I, can’t move anymore…”

“Helen, come on…!” Gale ran back to her fallen companion and desperately pulled her up. “We’re, we’re already near the main road… Hang, haah, in there…!” Sweat was pouring all over her face, and her glasses had cracks all over it.

Both of them were panting in exhaustion. After successfully escaping that thing from before, the pair never stopped running, even with their feet feeling like it would snap in a moment’s notice. They ran through countless leaves, cobwebs, and boulders, tripping and falling to the ground over and over. The feeling that it could be chasing right behind them never left their minds.

It was only after a solid two hours of running that their thoughts have somewhat cleared and calmed. This brought them to their current situation right now.

After steadying her stand and dusting off the dirt on her dress, Helen quietly spoke to her remaining comrade.

“Gale, if this is an adventurer's daily life, I don’t think I…”

“Don’t say that, Helen.” Gale breathed in deep, then exhaled. “This was a first for me too. Death doesn’t happen as frequent as this, usually. If Rule didn’t insist on us going near the river, this wouldn’t have happened.”

Helen stayed silent, contemplating over her own thoughts.

The wizard firmly grabbed the blonde’s left hand and walked. “Let’s go. Even though we’re already here at the Beginner Zone, fighting a group of monsters would likely end with us being eaten. We don’t have a tank.”

The healer nodded in return. “Y-Yes, I understand.”

Amidst the tranquil silence of the forest, two pairs of footsteps echoed throughout the night.

Somewhere along the wide dirt road of this forest, a couple of carriages rode on under the moonlit sky. The rhythmic sound of the horses’ hooves hitting against the ground alerted the nearby small monsters they pass by.

Inside one of these vehicles, a familiar Wind Spellcaster rested, along with her trusted comrades.

“Please be at ease, commander Stella. We will keep an eye out for any ambushes while you take your much-deserved rest.” One of the hooded mages spoke to the blonde girl, his tone concerned.

“No. If there’s anyone that needs rest here, it will be you all. I still have a lot of energy to spare.” To demonstrate, she raised her left palm in the air and summoned a small ball of wind torrent upon it. Despite its size, the force of the unnamed spell could be felt by the entire carriage. “Have you forgotten who your commander is?”

“But commander--”

“Aren’t you convinced yet? Maybe I will make our knights’ carriage float above ours, will that convince you, vice-commander?” Her emerald staff glowed briefly, ready to make things fly if given a chance.

The mages could only sigh in reply. Their commander is a top-notch magician-- there’s no doubt about that-- but nevertheless, nothing can remove the fact that she still lacked experience, and is still quite young. Her hard-headedness would put veteran knights to shame, while her tendency to blow ‘dangerous’ things away just worsens her reputation.

“... Alright, commander. We shall rest…” the aforementioned vice-commander quietly replied. After checking that the girl wasn’t looking at them anymore, he whispered something to the person beside him.

“Nobody will sleep until Lady Stella slumbers. Let’s just pretend. Pass it on to the next person.”

And so the train of whispers circled and reached the final mage, which was sitting right beside Stella. The unknown female mage almost whispered it to the wind mage herself, but fortunately stopped herself after getting a stern glare from the vice-commander.

Everyone patiently waited for the young wizard to finally fall asleep. They would sometimes see her head nodding off, but would ultimately be disappointed as she would hastily snap back into alertness. But after a solid hour of pure silence, Stella finally looked like she’d fall asleep, until…

“Hiyaah!” the coachman yelled at the top of his lungs, making all of the mages face-fault to the floor. The horses also screamed as the carriage went to a full stop.

“What is it?!” Stella exclaimed in attention. “A monster ambush?” All of the mages looked like they’re ready to murder something, which confused the blonde wizard for a moment.

“N-No, commander. It…” the driver hastily replied. “looks like a pair of adventurers splayed on the ground. They’re breathing, but barely…”

Realizing that it was much more serious than what they’ve thought, everyone inside stood up in attention. Their commander, now wide-awake once again, barked out her latest orders.

“Bring them inside. Those who know healing magic, stay here with me and get ready.”

Meanwhile, inside the tree of Yggdrasil…

Sylph laid on her back on top of the tree’s emerald Core. On her left hand is an envelope tailored to her small size, with a stamp designed with a black skull. It was a letter given to her by the Demon Lord before he teleported away. She opened it and held it up above her face, reading it.

“The other two Elemental Spirits have already joined me. Only you remain neutral between this war, Sylph. I wouldn’t want to hear you betraying us monsters like that traitor Undine. Please choose wisely.” The letter read.

The first and foremost thing Sylph did was tear it to shreds. After that, she used her power over the wind and blew it away from her sight. Both of her green eyebrows were furrowed as hard as they can.

“You’d have to try harder than this if you want me to join your disgusting harem, Demon Lord.” She said to nobody while rolling her eyes. “I couldn't care less if the humans or those stinky demons win their petty war, all I want is my freedom.”

Sylph knew that that demon is unfathomably powerful. Much more powerful than her, even. She was aware that if he wanted, he could just forcefully abduct her and beat her into submission. But does she care? No.

While he could certainly do that, there’s a reason why he never does it. While he may be stronger, Sylph is still Sylph. For a lack of better term, the tiny, unassuming fae could legitimately be called wind herself. A fight between them will undoubtedly end on either her dying, or him losing a limb or two.

Sylph became a guardian for a reason; because she has the power to protect the Forest of Yggdrasil alone.

“Ah, he always brings nothing but stress. I need my daily dose of entertainment.” She flew up into the canopy of Yggdrasil and sat on a random leaf. She peered down below the ground, looking for a certain something that always brings a mischievous smile to her face.

“... Oh, there it--” she stopped her talk upon realizing where the creature is.

“It’s... trespassing at my home.”

Her previous bright green eyes suddenly turned cold.