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The World Tree faced the risk of collapse. During this incident, Ashella stayed in a small church at the edge of Berith to give instructions.

She was as far as she could from the World Tree, but if a gigantic tree like that collapsed, she couldn’t avoid death no matter where she went.

But even so, she could at least protect herself from the falling barks and twigs.

When the World Tree started creaking and the risk of collapse became apparent, a snake-like Dragon coiled around the World Tree to support it. Furthermore, a violent storm surrounded the top part of it and prevented it from tilting to the side.

In other words, she understood that some transcendental beings were joining forces and trying to protect the World Tree.

“Still… It doesn’t change the fact that I can’t do anything.”

Many people got injured during the chaos that was brought about by the urgent evacuation.

In the worst case, the panic could even result in deaths.

Due to such a situation, all the members of the World Tree Religion were busy healing the general public.

“Yahoo, how you been, Ashella?”
“Hyoeeh?!”

Ashella had taken command and was going around casting healing magic herself too, but someone suddenly called out to her from behind.

But there was only one person who could address the current her so casually. But that being was one she never thought would show up here. After all, she was quite literally the nemesis of the World Tree Religion.

“L-Lady Yuuri?”
“That I am~”

Ashella responded back as quietly as she could, but the God of Destruction Yuuri raised her hand casually in response.

There were three fainted people behind her. Among them, two were people Ashella was familiar with.

“Nicole! And Lady Cortina too?”
“Good grief, it was a mess. Are you interested in the situation? You are, right?”

God of Destruction Yuuri explained the situation to her half-forcibly.

She was something like a distant relative to Ashella, and in fact her magic teacher as well. But the World Tree Religion held a grudge against her for breaking the World Tree’s summit.

Ashella was the pope of that religion, so she wasn’t someone she could interact so friendly with.

The God of Destruction didn’t seem to care about that one bit, however.

“Kufar did? And Nicole and Lady Cortina…”
“Finia too. You have to give them a proper hero treatment, okay?”
“Naturally. But this is quite troubling.”

She meant Kufar.

The half-demon discrimination had finally grown weaker, but then this happened.

Kufar himself was reborn as a Deadly Disease Slime, but it would be quite bad if his past life was dug up and it spread to the world.

The hatred toward the half-demons that finally softened would come back once again.

“Well, you don’t have to mention his past life, do you? A mutant Slime eroded the World Tree. And Nicole saved it. That should do, don’t you think?”
“I suppose… but it feels like people will suspect it.”
“Not everyone is as scheming as you, Ashella.”
“That’s rude!”

Ashella who had only lived a few hundred years couldn’t match up to her who had lived a thousand since the mythical times.

Even she lost her composure against those who still treated her as a child. It felt like her normal standing was reversed.

Nevertheless, the God of Destruction’s words were important and accurate.

“Alright, I will spread it like that.”
“Please do. When it comes to uproars like this, people need the culprit and the hero who stood up to him.”
“Indeed. But is Nicole alright?”
“These two have a magic deficiency, and Nicole is experiencing a shock because she handled magic power beyond the limits of her control. There is no danger to their lives.”

After she said so, she levitated the three of them toward the beds.

“I plan to return her to her parents, but have her rest here in the meantime.”
“Yes, of course.”
“There’s one more problem. The Víðópnir System of the World Tree.”
“The thing that broke before I was born and what allowed us to use the resurrection magic?”
“Yes, that. I’m not sure how he managed it, but Kufar restored that function. Thanks to that, resurrection magic is currently impossible to use.”
“That sounds like a major problem…”
“It is a major problem. But due to this, the World Tree’s purification function was restored and the half-demons can no longer be born at present.”

In this world, souls were born from the World Tree and returned to the World Tree after death to be purified.

The imperfectly purified souls in particular ended up being reborn as half-demons.

The merits and demerits of the Víðópnir System breaking were the resurrection magic and the existence of half-demons.

Now that it got restored, the purification mechanism returned to normal, making resurrection magic impossible to use as well as half-demons no longer being born.

“Half-demons no longer being born isn’t bad, right?”
“Yes. But at the same time, resurrection magic is no longer usable. I don’t particularly mind it either way… but…what do we do about the Víðópnir System?”
“Meaning?”
“If you wish to, I can break it again.”
“That’s…”

The resurrection of the dead. For some humans that was magic they’d want to have by any means.

But it also went against the providence of the world.

As a result, half-demons started being born, spreading discrimination throughout the world.

This was a question of whether to sacrifice the resurrection magic so that half-demons wouldn’t be born.

“Please leave it as is.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Everyone I know were people who did not want to be revived.”

Be it her grandmother who was an Adventurer, or her grandfather who created the resurrection magic, both of them rejected being resurrected just before death.

It was partly due to old age, but it was also because they lived to the fullest and died satisfied.

The ones who are left behind would find it hard to accept, but that was how humans ought to be.

“Resurrection magic might be too much for the current mankind. Those who desire that power will surely climb the World Tree with their own strength and destroy the Víðópnir System.”
“So you’re saying those who desire power have to work for it?”
“Yes.”

The God of Destruction seemed satisfied with her answer and nodded.

“Understood. Then that’s the end of this incident. I have to go talk to someone for a bit, so I’ll leave Nicole to you.”
“Alright.”

Saying so, the God of Destruction left the church behind.

Just as she left the church, she started speaking to herself. It was in a small enough voice that the wind could overshadow.

“Baa, is everything fine on your end?”
“No problem. The World Tree is important for me too, after all.”

The God of Destruction’s gaze was focused on the snake-like Dragon—the Dragon God Bahamut, which was coiled around the World Tree.

Bahamut’s skin had transformed into what seemed to be the World Tree’s bark, and supported it by assimilating into it.

“You’ve been quite rash to merge into it. It would take centuries to turn back, you know?”
“There was no other choice but to do it. Plus, a few hundred years is but an instant for me.”
“There you go acting all composed. But still, thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”

Certainly, for Bahamut, who was one of the primordial gods even older than the God of Destruction, merging into the World Tree until it recovered may not be all that long.

But still, it was enough time for humans to be reborn several times.

It was by no means a trivial amount.

“Well, I’ll come to visit you sometimes. I’ll leave the World Tree in your hands.”
“Convey my regards to Nicole too.”
“Alright. But it’s quite rare for you to take a liking to a human, isn’t it?”
“She has the makings of someone who could reach our heights one day. So it’s natural that I have.”
“It doesn’t seem like she will choose that path, though.”
“That all depends on her.”

Hearing his words, the God of Destruction shrugged her shoulders.

During these thousand years, the only ones by her side were her husband, Wind God Hastur, and her partner in crime, Dragon God Bahamut.

Her old friend Levy, who was called the Drifting God, loitered the northern lands and barely showed her face.

If Nicole joined in, she felt that the future would turn more enjoyable.

“Well, I can’t force her…”

She muttered regretfully and turned back toward the church.

First came returning her to her parents, after all.