I Became the Successor of the Martial God Chapter 105

I Became the Successor of the Martial God

Chapter 105.  

Upon hearing those words, Jin Seo-yeon fell deep into thought. She must have been mentally listing potential insiders within the Magic Tower capable of such an act.  

Yoo Baek-jun remained silent.  

—Grrr, hmmph!  

Tickle, tickle…!  

The fairy had been making a fuss for a while, but as Seol-yeong nuzzled against it, she quickly calmed down.  

But only for a moment—when Yoo Baek-jun stared at her intently, her eyes shot wide open with a start.  

As if she had just remembered something.  

—Oh, right! You guys!  

The fairy suddenly pointed a finger.  

—You promised to visit me regularly! Do you know how bored I’ve been here all alone…?  

“You were bored?”  

—N-no, I mean… I was worried you might be bored…!  

Her voice trailed off, as if even she found the excuse embarrassing.  

It was amusing to see the fairy of the World Tree, who should be dignified, complaining about boredom.  

But it wasn’t all that strange.  

‘Didn’t they say this fairy is only a few hundred years old?’  

She was still very young.  

Some might argue that’s not young at all, but considering most World Trees live for thousands of years as a baseline, she was indeed a child.  

Moreover, this World Tree originally belonged to the elves’ forest. She had lived there among the elves before being brought here alone.  

‘No wonder she feels lonely.’  

Having been confined here alone for so long, loneliness was inevitable.  

And that was the key to persuading her.  

Bringing Seol-yeong here was also part of exploiting that weakness.  

“I’m sorry. From now on, we’ll visit as promised.”  

—You better… Huh?  

The fairy, who had been nodding, suddenly began alternating her gaze between Jin Seo-yeon and Yoo Baek-jun.  

Then, tilting her head in confusion, she asked:  

—But why did you two come together this time?  

“What do you mean?”  

—Well, last time, there were more of you… Mmph! Mmmph!  

As the fairy tried to say something, Jin Seo-yeon hurriedly rushed over and covered her mouth.  

Yoo Baek-jun pretended not to notice what she was about to say.  

“…Ahem.”  

Jin Seo-yeon cleared her throat.  

“Wait here. I’ll scout the area. There might still be monsters lurking.”  

“Are you sure you’ll be fine alone?”  

“Are you seriously asking me that?”  

The question answered itself.  

What monster here could possibly harm a walking human weapon like her?  

Yoo Baek-jun readily agreed.  

“Hmm, then in the meantime, I’ll…”  

He began examining the flowers blooming luxuriantly around the World Tree.  

One of the reasons he came here was to gather medicinal herbs to heal Min Yi-jae’s younger sister.  

‘Well, these flowers only grow near the World Tree.’  

Yoo Baek-jun gestured to the fairy.  

—Why’d you call me?  

“Could you help me find a specific flower?”  

—A flower? What kind?  

“Pure white, with slightly translucent petals that emit light… that kind.”  

The fairy fluttered her wings and scanned the flowerbed before pointing to one.  

—This one?  

“Yes, that’s the one.”  

There it was—the flower she had pointed to.  

Even in this vast flowerbed, there was only one of its kind: the so-called ‘Flower of Resurrection.’  

Yoo Baek-jun carefully picked it.  

“May I take it?”  

—Sure. It’ll grow back anyway.  

With permission granted, he carefully stored the flower.  

[Flower of Resurrection (A+)]  

—A flower that blooms once every hundred years.  

—Possesses such potent life force that it could even revive the dead.  

An extremely rare medicinal ingredient.  

Though not as potent as the ultimate recovery potion, Elixir, it was still among the top-tier remedies.  

When processed into medicine, it could heal most wounds and diseases.  

‘But it’s useless for Song Dae-san.’  

He wasn’t dying from an illness—it was a ‘curse’ killing him.  

If Song Dae-san’s affliction had been a disease, this medicine could have fully restored him.  

“What a shame.”  

—Huh?  

Yoo Baek-jun stored the flower in his subspace.  

Then, with newfound greed in his eyes, he looked at the fairy. If only he could take her to the Demon Realm!  

He could transform the desolate wasteland into a vibrant land teeming with all kinds of plants.  

And that wasn’t all—she could also cultivate rare medicinal herbs.  

“Ahem!”  

The fairy was playing with Seol-yeong.

She seemed fond of Seol-yeong’s affectionate behavior, and Seol-yeong, in turn, seemed to like the fairy as well.  

‘Must be their compatibility.’  

The World Tree had the unique trait of attracting souls due to its immense magical power.  

And Seol-ho’s role involved handling such souls and guiding them to the spirit realm.  

Because of this trait, Seol-ho instinctively felt a kinship with the World Tree.  

—Hmm, you’re so gentle!  

—Meow!  

“Gentle?”  

That was hard to believe.  

Calling that creature gentle? But the situation worked in Yoo Baek-jun’s favor.  

Clearing his throat, he stepped closer to the fairy.  

“You must be lonely here all alone.”  

—Exactly! So lonely! Those idiots from the Magic Tower rarely visit! And because of that weird barrier, I can’t even go out to play…  

The fairy pouted.  

The barrier erected by the Magic Tower made it difficult to enter or exit, whether from the outside or inside.  

And it applied to the World Tree’s fairy as well.  

—Even animals can’t come here freely. That’s why I’m so bored… It’d be nice if you stayed with me.  

—Grrr…  

The fairy patted Seol-yeong’s head.  

—Wanna stay with me?  

—Growl… Hmph!  

—Why not?  

But even Seol-yeong firmly rejected the offer. The fairy looked shocked.  

Seol-yeong stared intently at Yoo Baek-jun.  

—Sigh…  

“Why are you glaring like that?”  

—I don’t know!  

Such an easy-to-read fairy.  

Well, given her youth and isolated upbringing, it made sense.  

The Magic Tower had overprotected her.  

“You want to stay with Seol-yeong?”  

—Yeah.  

“Then let’s flip the idea. Instead of Seol-yeong staying here, why don’t you come with us?”  

—How? I can’t leave here.  

Yoo Baek-jun smiled meaningfully.  

“Why not? Isn’t it about time to expand the World Tree’s domain?”  

—Y-you! How could a human even…?  

The World Tree governed life itself.  

Perhaps because of this, it instinctively sought to spread life across the world, considering it a sacred duty.  

The World Tree’s Incarnation, the fairy, would eventually create a sapling—a fragment of herself.  

She would then find a suitable place to plant it and nurture it until it grew.  

And what defined a suitable place?  

‘Where life is scarcest.’  

Barren, desolate wastelands.  

There, she would plant the sapling and breathe life into the surroundings. The sapling would grow into another World Tree, revitalizing nature.  

‘Originally, this one too…’  

She was a fairy born from such a sapling. Just as she awakened to govern life around her, she was forcibly brought to Earth.  

Through a gate.  

“I happen to know the perfect place.”  

—Y-you think I’d listen to a human? You’re just planning to trap me like the others here!  

“It’s an utterly barren wasteland—no animals, no plants, nothing.”  

—Slurp… Gasp!  

The fairy wiped away drool. The World Tree’s instincts were kicking in.  

“It’s called the Demon Realm.”  

—D-Demon Realm? Why that name?  

“It’s land transferred from the Underworld of Halpeon. Originally, it was where demons lived.”  

—Demons… Halpeon…  

A hint of nostalgia flickered in the fairy’s eyes.  

Truthfully, Earth had its share of barren wastelands. But that alone wasn’t enough—he needed to appeal to her longing for her homeland.  

Thanks to his extensive gaming experience, he knew this fairy harbored homesickness.  

—N-no! Even so…  

“The Magic Tower’s barrier prevents you from wandering outside, right? In the Demon Realm, you’d be free to move as you please.”  

—Uuuh…  

“And you could see Seol-yeong whenever you want.”  

—Meow!  

Seol-yeong lifted a paw. The fairy’s pupils wavered at the sight.  

“That’s not all. Unlike here, you could make as many friends as you’d like…”  

—W-who said I wanted that?  

“You don’t?”  

—N-no! I don’t!  

Despite her words, her eyes betrayed her. Yoo Baek-jun sighed.  

She was already halfway convinced.  

“Ah, forget it then.”  

—Huh?  

“I thought I was offering a great opportunity, but if you’re not interested, so be it.”  

Yoo Baek-jun coldly turned his back.  

He subtly signaled Seol-yeong, who seemed to understand and promptly turned away as well.  

“Let’s go, Seol-yeong. She doesn’t want to spend time with you. We’ll go by ourselves.”  

—Whiiine…  

It let out a whimper.  

Though her face wasn’t visible, the sound was unmistakably sorrowful.  

Though Seol-yeong ’s expression remained perfectly calm.

—W-wait a minute…!  

Now it was the fairy who grew frantic.  

“Why? We’ve done what we came for. Seo-yeon will take us back. I’m too busy to keep persuading someone who keeps refusing.”  

—I-I never said no!  

“You kept playing hard to get!”  

—W-well, that’s…!  

The tables had turned completely.  

Now the fairy was the one clinging. Yoo Baek-jun decided to drive the final nail.  

“Then let’s settle this now. Are you coming with us, or staying here alone?”  

—I mean, uh, uh, uhh…  

The fairy’s eyes spun in circles. Yoo Baek-jun waited patiently for her answer.  

But just as she was about to respond—  

“Are you… playing hard to get?”  

Jin Seo-yeon had returned.  

She stared at the absurd scene between Yoo Baek-jun and the fairy with utter disbelief.  

“…….”  

—…….  

Silence fell over the World Tree.  

* * *  

To summarize—  

The fairy agreed to plant a sapling of the World Tree in the Demon Realm. It was the result of her instincts as a World Tree combined with her loneliness.  

“Father is away. We’ll have to wait.”  

But it wasn’t over yet.  

Since the Magic Tower managed the World Tree, they needed permission from its leader, Jin Baek-cheon.  

So they returned to the Magic Tower’s highest floor.  

Standing before Jin Baek-cheon’s room, Jin Seo-yeon spoke.  

“I didn’t know you had that side to you.”  

“What side?”  

“The playful one.”  

“Playful? I was serious. I really wanted to bring her to the Demon Realm.”  

Jin Seo-yeon chuckled.  

“I thought you were a serious man.”  

“Me?”  

Yoo Baek-jun pointed at himself.  

He didn’t think he acted that seriously. Where was she getting that from?  

“…No, maybe I’m superimposing the old you over the present.”  

“Which version do you prefer?”  

“They’re both you. How could I prefer one over the other?”  

A rhetorical question.  

The problem was that the past Yoo Baek-jun and the present one were practically different people.  

“You’ve changed so much.”  

Jin Seo-yeon’s voice was calm.  

“Somehow, I feel like I’m the only one stuck in the past.”  

The Yoo Baek-jun who once talked with Jin Seo-yeon in the family garden, fearing his father, no longer existed.  

The current Yoo Baek-jun no longer feared his father and acted on his own will.  

Only Jin Seo-yeon remained unchanged.  

“Hmm…”  

Jin Seo-yeon stared ahead expressionlessly. Yoo Baek-jun scratched his head.  

‘How did the conversation end up here?’  

The mood had suddenly turned somber.