I woke up earlier than usual or maybe I didn't really sleep well, it's hard to sleep when your only travel companion is a mysterious woman whose level is unreadable and who could most likely stab you in three fatal spots before breakfast.

The campfire was a healthy environment, with only a few embers remaining, and the morning mist hanging low among the trees. The air was cooler than yesterday. I opened my eyes and reflexively looked around. Nara was awake, of course, sitting on a rock, sharpening one of her daggers. Her movements were calm, precise, almost deliberate. I ignored the fact that the tool she was sharpening was meant for stabbing vital organs.

“Good morning,” I said.

Nara glanced briefly.

“You slept holding a gun.”

I looked at the Thorny Branch that I was still holding.

“…new habits.”

“Paranoid,” he corrected.

“Survival instinct,” I replied.

Nara didn't respond, it was hard to win a debate with someone whose default expression was unpaid invoice. 

I stood up and stretched. Nature Assimilation was actually very helpful, even after a short sleep. My body felt much fresher, and the minor injuries from last night were almost healed, which was very good. I opened my status.

Name: Lock

Level 13

Class: One Tree Trunk

Weapon: Thorny Branch

Skill:

Devour Root

Ember Slash

Root Snare

Minor Mana Sense

Nature Assimilation

Good progress, still far from overpowered, but no longer depressing, I was a little satisfied. Nara threw something at me, and I caught it reflexively, a small, dark red fruit.

“What is this?” I asked.

“It’s edible.” Not a very convincing answer.

I stared at the fruit.

“Edible and safe to eat are two different categories.”

"If it was poisonous I wouldn't give it to you."

I raised an eyebrow.

“High optimism.”

Even though I ate it, it tasted sour, a little bitter but gave a warm sensation in the body, not bad.

“Light buff,” Nara said.

“Thirty minutes of cold resistance.” I nodded. 

Okay, that's useful. We started walking after packing up camp. Today's target: the core zone. 

There was no pressure, the morning forest felt different, the deeper we went in, the heavier the atmosphere, the trees changed shape, the trunks were darker, the leaves were almost black, large roots spread like giant snakes. 

Some even moved slightly, but I chose to pretend not to notice that mental health was important. Minor Mana Sense also began to work harder, the energy in this area was too dense, even the air felt heavy. I looked at Nara.

“Have you been this far?”

“Once,” he replied.

"Almost die."

A great boost in confidence, we continued our journey in silence, occasionally Nara signaling stops, avoiding certain areas, pointing out monster tracks or natural traps. 

He's clearly experienced, I'm starting to understand why he's still alive a useful but still suspicious partner, yeah pretty balanced.

A few hours passed and finally we arrived at the limit, I knew it even before Nara stopped because the atmosphere changed drastically. 

Before us lay a large open area like a giant clearing in the middle of a black earth forest, the fog was thicker and in the middle of it a giant tree. 

I froze the trunk was so large it felt like a tower, its roots spread throughout the area, its leaves were dark silver, a faint light was coming from the trunk, the mana from it was so great it was almost suffocating.

Notifications appear automatically.

Area discovered:

Core Zone — False World Tree

Danger: Extreme

I read the name of the area twice.

“The World Tree... is fake?”

Interesting. Nara stood beside me, her gaze serious.

“That is the center of this forest.”

“The root of all change.”

I couldn't stop staring at the tree, the Thorny Branch in my hand started to throb once, twice, stronger than before as if responding to something, I looked at my weapon. Oh?

A new notification appears.

Class resonance detected.

Source nearby.

Evolution material present.

I stared at the writing, my heart beating faster. The closest source? Could it be the tree? I slowly raised my head to look at the giant tree in front of me, a small smile appearing on my face.

“I think my class is very interested.”

Nara glanced at the notification on my face.

"Guess?"

“Maybe a big jackpot,” I replied.

He let out a small sigh.

"Good."

“That means our problems are big too.”

Fair enough we started to slowly move into the area, each step feeling wrong like stepping into the territory of something that shouldn't be disturbed. 

My instincts screamed back, go away, find a quiet life, maybe open a shop, but curiosity was far stronger than a very bad bad trait. 

Just a few steps in, I heard the voices of not monsters but several humans, Nara and I immediately took cover behind a large root to peek. 

There were five people near the tree, their armor better, their weapons fully equipped, and their auras stronger—they weren't hunters by any chance. One of them, wearing a long, dark blue coat, held a metal staff, seemingly the leader. They were digging for something near the tree roots, searching for something. Nara narrowed her eyes.

“Too late,” he whispered.

I noticed the symbol on their armor was an unknown white circle symbol.

A small notification appears.

Faction detected:

White Council

Threat: High

White Council? New name, possibly new problems, that's great, I whispered,

“Know them?”

Nara's expression changed slightly to one of extreme dislike.

“Yes.”

His tone was colder.

“And that's bad news.”

Okay, that's clear. The group leader suddenly spoke, his voice was clear.

“Search faster.”

“The artifact must be found before the next resonance.”

Resonance, Artifact, Tree, Class resonance the puzzle pieces began to connect, I stared at the Thorny Branch my weapon pulsed again stronger as if calling. Damn, please don't activate drama mode now, Nara saw my expression.

"What is it?"

I answered quietly,

“I think... what they're looking for might react to me.”

Nara looked at me, was silent for two seconds then took a deep breath.

“Great.”

“I've only known you for two days and my life is already more complicated.”

I smiled a little.

“Glad to contribute.”

In front of us one of the White Council members suddenly stopped, he turned towards the bush where we were hiding. 

“Who’s there?!” he shouted.

All heads immediately turned towards us, Nara and I looked at each other silently for a split second then I said,

“I think stealth mode is over.”

Nara took out her two daggers.

“Yes.”

And in an instant the situation turned very bad again.

[END CHAPTER 10]

"Who is there?!"

The voice broke the silence, one of the White Council members raised his sword and stared directly at the bush where we were hiding. 

Great, our stealth mode lasted about five minutes—a touching feat. Nara and I exchanged glances for a split second. She already had her two daggers in hand, her gaze focused and calm, as if this was just a normal morning routine. I was a little envious.

“Any plans?” I whispered.

Nara answered briefly.

"There is."

I waited, he glanced at me.

“Don't die.”

I stared at him blankly.

“An inspiring plan.”

Nara didn't respond, moving first, her body darting out of hiding like a shadow too fast. One of the White Council members hadn't even finished reacting when Nara appeared in front of him, two daggers flashing.

SHRAK.

Blood spurted out as the man collapsed cleanly, efficiently and alarmingly, I got out a few seconds later.

“Okay, negotiations failed,” I shouted casually.

Now all eyes were on us, the blue-robed leader narrowed his eyes, his gaze stopping on me and then on the Thorny Branch in my hand, his expression changing slightly. Oh? Interesting.

"That child." he said softly.

“So it's true.”

I don't like that tone too much implied knowledge, one of the other members attacked me with a short sword fast movement more practiced than a normal hunter I blocked.

CLANG!

The impact was quite severe but manageable. I parried his sword and then stabbed, but he dodged.    Not bad, at least he wasn't a disposable NPC. 

The White Council clearly has high recruitment standards, which is annoying to me. Meanwhile, Nara is fighting two people at once and winning quite convincingly. I'm starting to believe this woman isn't just "fairly strong." She's clearly way above my level, a good ally and a potential enemy nightmare. 

I refocused on my opponent slashing quickly towards the neck, I ducked then counterattacked with a flaming Thorny Branch Ember Slash, I slashed and my attack hit the armor on his shoulder a small fire spread the man winced. 

Good, damage comes in, he retreats, I don't give him any space to run forward, Root Snare! Roots come out of the ground, wrapping around his legs successfully.

"WHAT?!"

I immediately stabbed his stomach, the attack was confirmed, his body weakened and then died, the Devour Root activated automatically, energy flowed in, hot, addictive.

A notification appears.

Human target slain.

Strength +1

Dexterity +1

EXP gained.

Level 14 reached.

Good, I raised my head, there were still three people left including the leader and he hadn't moved, just observing, I didn't like that. 

People who are too calm usually have problems with Nara completing her second target, two bodies fell almost simultaneously she was really unreasonable. 

Now only the blue-robed leader was left alone, he looked at his fallen subordinates without much emotion, coldly, professionally then he sighed.

“Incompetent.”

Wow, he raised his metal staff and the mana around him instantly became denser, heavier, I tensed up automatically.

A notification appears.

Target identified:

Aldric

White Council Executor

Level unreadable.

Threat: Very High

It was unreadable, I hated that writing. Aldric was looking at me, not Nara, I was fully focused.

“We have been looking for a resonance holder for a long time,” he said.

I frowned.

“Can you use more human language?”

Aldric ignored me.

“Surrender yourself.”

“No,” I answered quickly.

No need to complicate things, Aldric tilted his head slightly as if he had already expected the answer.

"Of course."

He raised his wand and a magic circle appeared beneath my feet. Oh no, I jumped back but it was too late.

BOOM!

Black ice exploded from the ground, narrowly missing my feet. I stared at the frozen remains of the explosion. The surrounding area instantly froze. 

Okay, Mage, good. Why is it always mages? Aldric attacked again, three ice spears forming in the air, hurtling towards me. I dodged two, and one grazed my shoulder. A sharp chill spread instantly.

    “Ah!”

It hurt, it wasn't pleasant at all. Nara finally stepped in, charging at Aldric from a blind spot. Her dagger was aimed at his neck, but Aldric raised one hand, and a transparent barrier appeared.

THING!

Nara's attack was blocked by Aldric staring at him blankly.

“Disturber.”

It releases a mana shock wave.

HANDS!

Nara was thrown several meters.

Oh, that wasn't an ideal situation, not at all ideal. Aldric was far stronger than the other subordinates. The difference was palpable, I gritted my teeth.

Minor Mana Sense caught a strange mana flow in his staff which was the main source, of course mage and staff dependent, I shouted at Nara.

“The stick!”

He immediately understood the good cooperation, Aldric attacked again using ice chains this time. The ice chains shot out from the ground, I dodged, rolled, got up, and ran closer. Aldric seemed a little displeased with me getting in close. 

Good, he retreated while keeping his distance again but Nara appeared from the left her dagger hitting the stick.

CRACK.

A small crack appeared, and Aldric finally showed a hint of anger. Excellent, I activated Ember Slash, gathering all my mana. The Thorny Branch flared brighter, and I leaped and stabbed straight into the staff.

CRAAACK!

The stick cracked, and the mana exploded wildly. Aldric's eyes widened.

“Nooooo”

BOOM!

The mana explosion threw us all away, my body hitting a large root, my breath escaping, my vision slightly blurry. It hurt so much, I forced myself to stand up and look ahead. 

Aldric knelt down, his staff shattered, his mana distorted, and his face showed a panicked expression for the first time. Fortunately, Nara had already stood up and walked toward Aldric with her dagger in hand. 

Aldric looked at us both and chuckled. I frowned, wondering why villains always do this before something bad happens. Aldric pulled out a small crystal from his robes. Oh no, that was a very suspicious object. He crushed it.

CRUSH.

White light exploded a teleport circle appeared, I moved forward.

 “Wait!”

Too late, Aldric disappeared, teleporting out, a villain privilege. The room fell silent again, or rather, the tree area fell silent again, and I took a deep breath.

“Great.”

“We just made an enemy of the organization.”

Nara cleaned the blood from her dagger.

“It was from the start.”

A reasonable point, I looked around the corpses, the giant tree roots, the excavation area and something new because after the fight earlier the part of the roots near the tree opened up like a door to a passageway going down and you could see a large amount of mana flowing from inside.

A notification appears.

Hidden path unlocked.

Destination:

Core Chamber

I looked at the writing then looked at Nara, she also saw it, it was silent for two seconds then I smiled faintly.

"So."

"Enter?"

Nara put her dagger back in.

"Clear."

"Yeah, stupid question," we looked at each other and without another word, began walking down the underground passageway to the true core of the False World Tree. I had a bad feeling, which usually means good story progress.

[END CHAPTER 11]

The passageway leading underground was much older than the previous ruins, the stone walls were filled with fine cracks, tree roots penetrated almost the entire surface as if this place was slowly being swallowed alive by something. 

The faint green light emanating from the roots provided enough light to walk and the perfect setting for bad life decisions.

I walked behind Nara not out of politeness but because she was clearly more experienced in dealing with deadly traps.

“How long has this place been around?” I asked quietly.

Nara nodded.

“Much older than the surrounding kingdoms.”

“How old?”

"No one knows."

"That's a very helpful answer," I sighed. My Minor Mana Sense was working hard, and the deeper we went, the stronger the sensation, like a slow, steady pulse, like a heartbeat. I paused for a moment as Nara turned around.

"What is it?"

I touched the rooted wall.

“This place... is alive.”

Nara didn't look surprised.

“Yes.”

Excuse me? That's information that should have been discussed first, but I decided not to dwell on it. Some facts in this world are better understood before the brain decides to stop. 

The hallway finally ended before us, a large stone door covered in roots, strange carvings covering its surface—circles, branches, eyes—a bit unsettling. As I approached, the Thorny Branch in my hand began to vibrate more violently than before.

A notification appears.

Class resonance increasing.

Compatible source nearby.

Evolution chance detected.

My heart beat faster Nara saw my expression.

“Another reaction?”

I nodded.

“Getting stronger.”

Nara looked at the door.

“Then you open it.”

“Why do I feel like this is a bad idea?”

“Because that's how it is.”

Honesty remains consistent, I approached the door while raising the Thorny Branch, as soon as the tip touched the surface of the root the entire door shook.

KRRAAAK.

The roots began to move, slowly opening a path. Okay, a little creepy. The door opened and the room beyond made me pause for breath for a moment. 

The room was enormous, almost like a giant underground hall. The high ceiling was lined with glowing roots, and in the center of the room was the core. 

A dark green crystal the size of a grown man floated in the air and connected to large roots throughout the room the energy from it was incredibly dense, ancient, unstable.

Notifications appear automatically.

Target identified:

World Tree Fragment

Status: Corrupted

I read the writing slowly. Fragments? So my class is really related to this. Nara took a few steps in, her gaze focused and serious.

“Finally,” he muttered.

I looked at him.

“You know about this?”

Nara was silent for a few seconds then nodded slightly.

"Part."

“Explanation?” I asked.

I guess after a few near-death experiences, I deserve some knowledge. Nara stared at the crystal.

“There used to be a real World Tree.”

“The center of mana and the balance of the world.”

Classic fantasy infrastructure he continued.

“But something destroyed it.”

“The fragments are scattered.”

“Some are missing.”

“Some are sealed.”

His gaze hardened.

“And some... are corrupted.”

I saw the crystal in front. It makes sense, the aesthetic is very damaged.

“And my class?” I asked.

Nara glanced at me.

“I think your class is one of the fragments.”

I was speechless, well that wasn't a small piece of information at all.

“You mean I brought the World Tree shard?”

"Less is more." he said calmly.

That was more or less a very important detail to reveal casually, I stared at the Thorny Branch my weapon was pulsing again faster, stronger, as if calling or being called.

A new notification appears.

Evolution available.

Condition:

Absorb corrupted fragment.

Warning:

High risk.

Unknown mutation possible.

I stared at the writing for a long, long time and then chuckled.

“Of course there are warnings.”

It can never be just a normal upgrade there is always the possibility of horror, Nara approaches.

“What are the options?”

I showed him the notification, he read it and his expression didn't change, it was still calm to the point of being annoying.

“If it works?”

"Evolution."

"What if it fails?"

I pointed to the writing.

“Unknown mutation.”

Nara thought for a moment. Then she said,

“That sounds bad.”

“Sharp analysis.”

We stood silently, staring at the fragment. This was clearly its true purpose, I could feel it. My class was hungry, there was a strong instinctive urge to absorb, to take, to grow very strong. 

It was a little disturbing, like a faint voice in my head saying, "Take it, absorb it, complete it." I gritted my teeth, trying to hold back the urge. Okay, a little creepy.

“Cancer.”

Nara's voice cut through my thoughts, I turned to see her expression was more serious than usual.

“If you do this, there may be no turning back.”

The tone was different, not cold, not sarcastic, but honest. Concern? Character development detected, I looked at the crystal again and chuckled,

“I think the way back was lost since I was thrown into the forest.”

A fair assessment, I took one step forward, two steps closer to the fragment. The mana in the room began to swirl, the roots trembled, the Thorny Branch glowed brighter.

Notifications are flashing.

Absorption started?

Not yet, my hand was only a few centimeters from the crystal. My heart was beating fast, the air felt heavy. Nara stepped back a little, I took a breath.

“If I turn into a strange monster”

“Don’t worry,” said Nara.

"I will kill you."

I turned to him.

“…very supportive.”

"Thank You."

My usual expressionless expression was blank, and I smiled faintly. Well, let's see if this is the biggest upgrade of my life or the worst decision yet. Likely both. I placed my hand on the crystal, and the world instantly changed.

BOOOOM!

A dark green light exploded filling the entire room, excruciating pain shot through my body as if every bone was being broken at once, I screamed,

“AAAAARGH!”

The wild mana entering my body was not just mana but something much older, greater and stranger.

Notifications appear in succession.

Corrupted Fragment detected.

Forced synchronization initiated.

Compatibility test in progress.

Oh, that sounds terrible, very terrible. My body began to lose control. The Thorny Branches cracked and deformed, black roots sprouted from the floor and wrapped around my body. 

Pain level: unacceptable, I almost lost consciousness.

The last notification appears.

Evolution beginning.

Please survive.

…This system is very helpful emotionally my vision is starting to darken Nara's voice sounds faint.

“Cancer!”

Then everything went black.

[END CHAPTER 12]