Carving on the Tree

Under the cover of night, Eagle Cape Village was unusually quiet.

Not to mention the sounds of fighting outside, you can't even hear the chirping of insects or birds.

But this is clearly unreasonable.

Iver had long been aware of the incongruity in it.

Because in rural areas like this, there should be a great variety of insects, snakes, birds and animals.

Unlike Glass Island, where the Bureau of Supervision frequently comes to check sanitation and various pest control Rodent Control Company hand out flyers on the streets Eagle Cape Village, nestled deep in the forest, is a place where it's normal for wolves to roam the streets at night... and it's not impossible to find a snake in your blanket when you wake up.

Not to mention all sorts of small insects.

Even though crickets aren't active in winter... after being in Eagle Cape Village for several days, Iver hasn't seen a single ladybug, spider, or slug.

Not only were there no wolf howls or cat meows, but you couldn't even hear the sound of birds flapping their wings.

"Aren't there any Hunter in your village?"

Iver asked Hai Na.

Hai Na hesitated for a moment. "Hmm... maybe yes, maybe no."

"This is the most outrageous response I've heard this month."

Sherlock retorted, "It's either there or it isn't, how can there be 'maybe'?"

"This is Mubay County."

As Hai Na paced back and forth in the room, she confidently put her hands on her hips and replied, "If you want to eat meat, you have to find the herders. There are so many sheep and cattle grazing there. Although there is sometimes wild game in the village, it might be bought from Bagpipe Town or traded with other villages."

It's uncertain whether the fighting outside has ended, so Hai Na doesn't dare go home.

But Hai Na had nothing to do, was full of energy and extremely excited... so she could only wander around the room, and then occasionally go and tease the griffin that was about to fall asleep.

Liz had almost fallen asleep three times while lying in the corner, but each time she was woken up by Hai Na.

The key point is that Hai Na waking it up, Haina didn't ask it to do anything; instead, she quickly stroked its head to soothe it back to sleep. Afterward, she wandered around the room a few times and couldn't resist going to play with the griffin again.

There's nothing we can do about it.

After all, the other three people besides her— Iver, Sherlock, and Lily —are not easy to bother.

Lily is introverted and quiet. Even when you talk to her, Lily will only smile faintly and listen silently. She only responds a little more when Iver tries to talk to her.

She did want to play with Iver, but now that Iver was an irrelevant minister, he was far too powerful for Hai Na to handle – she had been afraid of Edward when he was the chief inspector, but Iver was much more formidable than Edward.

And Sherlock goes without saying.

He was looking at a book over there... Hai Na leaned over to take a look and discovered that it was actually a book about astrology.

The large numbers and symbols inside Hai Na dizzy just looking at them.

Of course, if you force her to memorize it, she could probably recite the whole thing. But understanding it would be very difficult.

To her relief, even the Path of Wisdom Sherlock wasn't finding the book easy to understand. Little Sherlock frowned, deep in thought, looking just like a younger brother diligently doing his homework—it was quite adorable.

However, perhaps because Sherlock was also getting a headache from reading it— Hai Na's rhythmic passing behind him annoyed Sherlock so much that he slammed his book down with a thud, looked up, and cursed a few times.

He vehemently disliked Hai Na's disruptive behavior of constantly circling around people and making noise in the middle of the night, criticizing her as "an energetic donkey warming up for tomorrow's millstone work."

So Hai Na didn't want to get close to Sherlock anymore.

She was stupid, she knew she wasn't as smart as Sherlock. But the donkey wasn't happy to hear that.

—She was a pretty girl who was popular at school, so calling her a donkey was too much! It should at least be a cute animal like a horse or a dog!

"Speaking of which," Iver said thoughtfully, raising his hand to stop Hai Na, who was spinning around, "You kids used to run around everywhere with your friends, right?"

"Of course, otherwise there wouldn't be much fun to do here." Hai Na nodded.

Have you ever gone near a forest?

"We often play in the forest."

"Hai Na replied."

Upon hearing this, Sherlock suddenly frowned, looked up, and asked, "You guys were playing in the forest?"

"... Yes, what's wrong?"

Hai Na felt guilty, wondering if she had said something wrong.

"That's a huge problem."

Sherlock frowned like a little adult. "You adults just let you run around in the woods like this?"

"What's wrong?" Hai Na, somewhat puzzled. "It's not like we're going to the swamp, what's so dangerous about that... They don't allow us to go to the swamp, but just saying that doesn't really matter, we still go every month, hahaha..."

Hai Na said things like, "If you haven't been there, you haven't been there," and "Anyway, no one has ever really gotten into trouble," as she enthusiastically wanted to talk about her childhood adventures.

But Sherlock interrupted her abruptly, "Aren't you adults worried about bad people, wild animals, or poisonous insects in the forest?"

Hearing this, Hai Na was stunned for a moment.

She then vaguely realized. "It's probably because... Ah, didn't Iver say our village is inside the fairy's barrier? That must be the reason, right?"

"Aren't they afraid you'll be captured by demons?"

Sherlock then countered with a question.

Upon hearing this, Hai Na finally fell silent.

She hissed softly, also lost in confusion.

Yes, why is that?

Iver had a vague idea of what was going on.

He asked gently, "Senior, how much do you know about these forests?"

"Ah, Iver, please don't call me 'senior' anymore, I've already graduated..."

Hai Na waved her hand somewhat awkwardly. "Just call me Hai Na."

Now, just hearing Iver's polite and affectionate address makes her feel like she's about to break out in a sweat.

How could she possibly have the face to be addressed as "senior sister" by a young, powerful minister, the current patriarch of the Founding Family, a member of the Round Table Hall, or even possibly the future regent Prince of Avalon and the future speaker of the Round Table Hall?

The current Hai Na is no longer the young, naive, and spirited woman she was when she first started working at the Bureau of Supervision. She has matured and understands more. As for her relationship with Iver, it's not as frequent... The reason they developed a close relationship was simply because Iver shared with her the forbidden secrets about the Silver Crowned Dragon becoming Pillar God.

From that point on, they were accomplices. Because they shared a forbidden secret, and both knew the other possessed it and that the other hadn't reported them immediately—they were now in the same boat.

It was after that that Hai Na was forced to join many of Iver and Sherlock's plans. As a result, she learned more and more, and now there's no escaping it.

Now that she fully understands what the name Iver means in Avalon, she wishes she could go back in time and punch her foolish self from back then.

Iver simply smiled, easily seeing through Hai Na's concerns. "It's alright, senior. From the first time I called you senior, you gave me a kind reply... From then on, I can call you senior."

"I used to call you by your first name ' Hai Na ' to show my closeness; but now the situation is different. Calling you by your first name has become businesslike, while calling you 'senior' has become a sign of closeness. So naturally I will choose the more intimate form of address."

"But..."

"There's no 'but' about it."

Iver tapped the table lightly with his fingertips, the gentle tapping interrupting Hai Na's words.

Although he no longer uses a wheelchair, the habits he developed back then still remain.

"You are the last disciple of the Grand Arbitrator."

Iver said lightly, "A genius who touched the Fourth Level wall at the age of twenty-two years and two months."

"And who can say... you won't be the next Grand Arbitrator?"

"No, no, no, no, I can't, I can't, I can't, I can't."

Hai Na was terrified; her face turned pale, and she shook her head and waved her hands repeatedly.

She felt no surge of ambition or fighting spirit, only immense pressure.

Even though Hai Na was politically naive, her intuition told her that the Grand Arbitrator was currently the protector of Avalon, Nation-Protecting Expert's safety. Without the Grand Arbitrator, Avalon would likely be immediately dragged into war.

So what does becoming the next Grand Arbitrator mean? It means I'll have to shoulder this heavy responsibility of "protecting the nation"! In other words, if Avalon is dragged into war while I'm in the position of Grand Arbitrator, it's my responsibility! — It's all because my strength is inferior to my teacher's! Thinking further, if Avalon is destroyed because of this... wouldn't I be a sinner!

The thought of being listed in future history books as the direct cause of Avalon's destruction made Hai Na's hands go numb.

How could she possibly shoulder this level of responsibility...?

Iver smiled and did not continue the pursuit.

Instead, they switched back to the previous topic. "Senior, did you carve a hole in a tree on your way to school?"

"Oh, did you notice it?"

Hai Na somewhat embarrassedly, "It really is still too conspicuous in that spot... Yes, when I was in middle school, I carved a mark on that little tree on my way to school. When I came back a few days ago, I found that it was still in the same place. The location of the tree and the location of the mark were exactly the same as before. I was really touched. It's as if nothing has changed."

"... made a cut?"

Sherlock suddenly realized something.

He raised an eyebrow, closed the book, put it down, and sat up straight.

"You didn't use that tree to record your height, did you?"

"... No, is that not allowed?"

Hai Na hesitated for a moment.

She has a terminal illness that makes her feel guilty whenever Sherlock questions her.

Is it accurate?

Sherlock simply countered with a question.

"That's pretty accurate."

Hai Na was somewhat puzzled.

Are you sure the width of that mark is the same as when you carved it?

"It's the same, I remember it very clearly. The depth is the same, it's just that it's covered with a scab."

Hai Na answered with certainty, "Not only the carvings, but even the shape of the crown is exactly the same. That tree is very beautiful; I rarely see trees that look so alike... There seems to be something wrong with what I said, but you get the gist!"

Sherlock gasped. "No, didn't you ever suspect there was something wrong with this place?"

Even Lily couldn't hold back anymore.

She spoke softly, "Hai Na... a sapling is different from a fully grown tree, and a tree is different from a person. Scars on a person don't grow with age, but the marks on a sapling will gradually widen. Although it's slow, the marks you left behind will definitely deform."

"It won't rise, but it will get longer and thicker..."

"—No. I probably won't understand what you're talking about."

Iver sighed, "How can a person realize that trees can grow if she lives in a village where 'trees don't change' from birth until she is thirteen or fourteen?"

"What are you talking about? Of course I know trees grow..."

Hai Na said casually.

But she suddenly froze, clutching her head, and murmured, "No, wait..."

The common sense in her mind kept changing—her hometown was unchanging, and trees would grow.

Two completely different sets of common sense repeatedly rose and fell in her mind, making her feel for the first time how illusory the world could be. Her pupils constantly emitted a faint yellowish hue, which was then shattered by a clear, Deep Blue.

Seeing Hai Na's intense reaction, Sherlock looked at Iver with a mixture of admiration and doubt. "When did you find out?"

"Just now."

Iver replied, "Because I know very well how close the explosion was to the woods and how powerful it was."

"But after the explosion, a deep crater was left in the ground. However, the trees were completely unharmed, with only a few branches falling off."

He looked at Hai Na, who was clutching her head and whose pupils were trembling violently, and said softly, "So neither of you really understood what I meant."

"I'm not trying to tell Hai Na trivial things like, 'Trees grow, so the marks you left will become distorted,' or 'The sapling from that year shouldn't look exactly the same as it does now.'"

"—I wanted to ask, senior, what did you use to make those marks on the tree back then?"

The first chapter is already nearly four thousand words! Wait for the cat to eat, then there'll be a second chapter, meow~