Twenty years later.
Ever since he had caught a fleeting glimpse of the Artificial Sun law he had pursued so relentlessly at the Grand Natural Sciences Academy in Reilo, he had abandoned communal life and begun living in hiding in the wilderness, embarking on a lonely quest for knowledge to avoid harming innocent people again through some accident.
Yet twenty years had passed, and ever since that fleeting glimpse of the Artificial Sun law, no similar opportunity had come his way.
One day.
He happened upon a mountain wilderness.
After more than a century of recovery following the Ice Age, the wasteland had once again regained its former vitality. Amid the green mountains and clear waters, life flourished.
Reilo strode resolutely through the rainforest.
Several tree frogs leaped into the stream and disappeared from sight.
"Since the long winter, no humans have come here in a long time."
A treant suddenly spoke to Reilo.
Reilo stopped and looked at the treant, who had spoken to him of its own accord. It was rooted in the soil, exuding an ancient aura, its canopy lush with verdant leaves.
"Are you a guardian of the Life Tree Academy?"
The place wasn't far from the Life Tree Academy. He had asked casually.
At Reilo's question, the treant sighed. "I'm just an ordinary treant who's lived here for many years. My favorite thing is listening to passersby tell their stories. If I like a story, I'll give a reward. Traveler on the road, do you have a story of your own?"
Oh?
Reilo, who had been roughing it on the road, had gone several months without speaking to anyone either.
Hearing the treant's words, he felt a little interested.
After thinking for a moment, Reilo said slowly, "I do have a story."
As the treant