Ascension of the Sylvan Cosmos.

The Explorer Association group walked through the forest, surrounding the caravan they were accompanying. 

After Flor and the rest spoke with the shopkeeper, they used a few berries to buy many items for Liu Shu. The ones they used weren't as strong as Liu Shu's current ones. Taking into account their visit, they stocked up on some lower-ranked berries and money, which was almost enough to clean the dogkin's stock of Low-Rank materials.

Wert looked around as they slowly moved through the giant tree forest and started a conversation. "I've been to the Golden Sap Forest in the past."

Flor asked. "Has it changed a lot since you came here?"

Wert nodded. "It has. The trees look more vigorous, and the grass and plants are overflowing with vitality." Wert looked at the branches of one tree and raised an eyebrow. "Even the Level 1 and Level 2 little critters that roamed the forest have become quite strong."

The girls looked toward the tree and saw a squirrel-like creature. Focusing on it, they realized that it was a Level 6 being. 

Wert commented. "And all these changes happened within five years, which is the time I've been away from the Golden Sap Forest."

A man besides Wert spoke. "Sir, I would say it is less than two years. I came here two years ago with a client to check the golden sap of the trees and see if there were any notable changes. We didn't really get enough evidence for a change."

Wert exclaimed. "Less than three years!" He looked at Flor and the others and laughed. "I wonder what can cause all of this? I know very few beings that are able to influence a whole forest in such a short time." 

Flor and the others didn't let anything show on their faces. Flor even answered. "Well, you are just a few hours away from discovering what caused it." 

Wert's eyes flashed with cunningness. 'Hmm… I am 80% sure that it is a World Tree, but this clever Rose Fairy should not be ignorant of a World Tree's importance, even more so when she has been in contact with Little Miss Verdantia.'

As they walked, they suddenly heard a small buzzing, and some people unsheathed their weapons. Flor shouted. "Wait!"

Wert raised a hand, supporting Flor's motion, and then a group of 10 Rose Fairies appeared from the nearby trees. "Queen Flor!" 

Wert nodded, and the people looking at him relaxed, sheathing their weapons. However, their hands were kept on them, ready to strike at the smallest signal of danger. 

Flor sighed and flew toward the Rose Fairies. "What are you doing here? I am not in danger."

The ten Rose Fairies were between Level 8 and 9, with one Level 10 Rose Fairy at the lead. This Level 10 Rose Fairy spoke. "We wanted to check. We didn't think we would get discovered." 

Flor wanted to roll her eyes so badly right now. Meanwhile, Wert smiled. "It seems that you are an outlier in terms of intelligence, Queen Flor."

Flor gave Wert a side eye, making him raise his arms with a chuckle. "Sorry, but it is the truth."

The Rose Fairy Queen didn't refute it. "Anyway, go back to the town and inform Ig-, Mariane. We'll be there soon."

The Rose Fairies nodded and flew off. 

Wert asked. "So, how large is your current population?"

Flor answered honestly. "A few hundred, we don't reach 400 though." 

One person in Wert's group raised their eyebrows. "That's a lot."

Noticing the tone, the Rose Fairy Queen asked. "Is it? Aren't there a few tens of thousands of humans living in the surrounding area?"

The Explorer who spoke frowned. "That's different."

Flor looked at Wert, and Wert shrugged as if saying. "I am not stopping anyone from saying anything."

Flor snorted and looked at the person who spoke. "How's it different?"

The Explorer answered with a sneer. "For example, humans won't go into indiscriminate killing sprees like monsters would."

Flor raised both her eyebrows and looked at the man without speaking. However, her facial expression read like she was saying 1000 words. 

Cinderielle and Tempestria laughed at Flor's facial expression, and even Wert chuckled. He even said, supporting Flor's facial expression. "Hey, that's probably the worst aspect of humans that you could've compared them to with Rose Fairies."

The Explorer looked around, and instead of the supporting gazes he expected, he saw people looking at him with disapproving and amused faces, increasing his embarrassment by a notch. "Whatever."

Flor looked forward and said. "Okay, let's continue. We are almost there."

After walking for a while, Wert and the other explorers reached the outer layer of the Golden Town Forest. Seeing the enormous walls, their eyes widened tremendously. 

When Flor said they were living in a town, they imagined a primitive village with a few houses built in it.

Instead, a wall nearing 15 meters in height stood imposingly in their way, with giant trees that approximated 40 meters in height on them. The enormous trees that towered above the walls had a menacing aura, and when people analyzed them, they realized that they were Level 13.

Curious, some people analyzed the wall, and to their shock, a system page appeared in front of them, showing that it was also a Level 13 being. A system page only appeared on living creatures, so the wall having one meant that the immense 15-meter-tall root wall was a single massive creature.

Wert spoke, incredulous. "When… No. How did you build this? This wall-like thing is a living creature? That's insane…" 

Flor approached the wall with Verdantia and the other two Sylvans. Then, she tapped it, and the roots began moving, slowly opening a path large enough for them to enter. While it appeared as if Flor had opened it, in truth, it was Liu Shu who controlled the wall to let them in.

Now that they were close, Liu Shu could communicate individually with them. So, while the people from the Explorer group looked around and marveled, Liu Shu had already asked Flor for the details. 

Wert and the rest snapped out of their reverie when Flor called them. "Come in. I've opened it."

The human that had spoken a few moments ago looked at everything with a baffled face. 'How could a stupid monster race build all of this alone in just a few years? Do they have external support?'

Wert didn't know what to say, so he rubbed his forehead and nodded. "Sure. Let's go in."

Inside, he was lamenting. 'I've involved myself with something quite big, haven't I?' At first, he thought that he would be visiting a small town, seeing that it was not worth it, and leaving. He really didn't have any intentions to open a branch here. 

Opening an Explorer Association branch was extremely troublesome and considerably increased his workload. While it was manageable, his free time would be reduced to nothing. 

Meanwhile, on Liu Shu's branches, hidden from sight, Ignatia muttered. "That man is strong."

Mariane smiled. "Who, Wert?" 

Ignatia shrugged. "I don't know names." Then, she pointed. "That one."

Mariane nodded. "Yeah, that's Wert. He is an Explorer Association branch manager. Even the weakest ones must reach at least the <Second Cycle> to be eligible. Moreover, the overall tier must be above E Rank. So, yeah, he is a strong man for this land. Still, from his aura, he is probably not Level 30 yet. He must be very close, though. Level 28 or Level 29."

Liu Shu hummed and asked them. "Can I win?"

Mariane pondered. "If you had transformed your shards to cores, perhaps you have a chance. But right now? You would need to sacrifice most of the town to beat him, and even then, the chances are not 100%. <Cores> are better than <Shards> as an energy source, remember? So, even when your tier is much higher, that difference is quite… lethal."

Liu Shu remembered the fire spell she had received in the past when fighting Malacai, which almost burnt her entire body into charcoal. 'That was just one <Second Cycle> spell, and yet it did me so much harm.'

Mariane smiled. "Anyway, keep yourself hidden, and if you feel threatened, call the two flying snakes to swoop down from the sky and protect you. I'll also try my best."

Ignatia raised her antennae in surprise. "Oh? Will you really fight for Liu Shu?"

Mariane shrugged. "I can't really give up on such an interesting World Tree without a fight, right? I feel that my runic knowledge can make giant steps if I stay here." 

Liu Shu commented. "Oh, they are looking at me."

Ignatia and Mariane, who were camouflaged in Liu Shu's gargantuan canopy, looked over. Mariane asked. "Do you think they can feel us?"

Ignatia laughed. "Impossible. First of all, Liu Shu's figure is covered by that skill. Second, Liu Shu's energy aura is incredibly vast and profound. We are like shiny rocks at the bottom of a lake. They will need to squint quite a lot to see us."

Wert commented. "So, that's the source?"

Flor nodded. "That Life Tree is the source of all the changes. I was lucky to discover it when it was young, and I've been protecting and feeding it during all this time."

Wert smiled. "Do the berries come from it?"

Flor shook her head. "Not all. Some of them do, but the rest come from another place." 

Wert laughed. "I see. So, how do I know that the thing is not a hiding World Tree?"

Flor looked at Wert with bewilderment. "Huh?"

Wert hummed. "You see, passing off World Trees as Life Trees is rare but not unheard of. It is prohibited by almost every power as well, so you can get into big trouble if you do it." Wert commented. "While I love the entire town and how it is built, I don't want to one day be cornered because I unknowingly hid a World Tree, you know?"

Flor frowned, not knowing how to answer. Verdantia spoke. "While it has a strong life aura, you can easily see its trunk. Does that flat trunk look like a World Tree's trunk to you?" 

Wert shrugged and challenged Verdantia's words. "I don't know, does it, Sylvan? Would you mind if I approached it and touched it?"

Verdantia sneered. "Would you mind if I entered your house and touched your wife, Wert?"

Wert's face fell, and he spoke coldly. "What is the meaning of those words, Verdantia?"

Verdantia's eyes flashed with a dark light. 'Do you think I will let you touch the body of my wife at will, human?'

Cinderielle spoke before Verdantia, her tone cutting. "What we mean is that you don't touch other people's important creatures at will, Wert. While I respect your standing as an Explorer Association manager or whatever, I don't like the way you are demanding us to show you our every last secret."

Tempestria finished it by saying with a smile that wasn't a smile. "We are building a bond here. There must be trust in it, and you're constantly challenging it, which is somewhat annoying. As we said, we can always look at other cities to search for someone who can open an Explorer Association building here. You were our first option because we had a good opinion of you. How about not blowing it into the wind?"

Verdantia looked at him coldly. "The town is in a perfect place, the resources are rich, and there is a Life Tree in the middle, which can rival a World Tree without challenging it. What more do you want? This is a perfect opportunity to build a perfect place that can challenge Fortuna City's hegemony." Verdantia asked flatly. "So, are you going to scram, or will you stay?"