“There was something wrong with the Tree of Remembrance.”
The blue fruit never decayed and never fell off but often flickered red.
While investigating this matter, my Master discovered a fact: There was a coincidence between when the fruit turned red and when Magdalene suffered a headache.
The tree was taking nutrients from Magdalene to produce antibodies against the poison. The nutrients were called memories.
What is even more troublesome is that the beasts in the forest have been observed to become restless when the fruit turns red.
The fruit of remembrance that had absorbed Magdalene’s memories seemed to possess a powerful phantom. When the fruit resonated with Magdalene, the original owner of the memories, it would cause a disturbance in the forest.
Trying to restore Magdalene’s memory is extremely dangerous because it might induce a bad reaction.
Master then decided to give up any attempts to restore Magdalene’s memory.
She chose not to inform her former companions, especially Giltoa, of her presence. In case Giltoa came to see Magdalene, she wouldn’t want this to trigger something unpleasant to happen to him.
Magdalene didn’t seem happy about the loss of her past. She often gazed off into the distance and longed to go on a journey.
“I’m haunted by this feeling that I’ve left something important somewhere behind. Or something is calling me somewhere…. Perhaps that’s where I’m supposed to die, hihihi.”
She jokingly spoke of this, but in Master’s eyes, she seemed very sad. Tefana was finally unable to keep Magdalene from leaving.
“I don’t know what is the right thing to do. Perhaps there are still lingering shadows of Giltoa in Magdalene. That would make sense if that were the case. She lost her hometown and chased after that kid who left to see the world. Besides, she calls herself a pharmacist, right? Pharmacy is Giltoa’s specialty. Magdalene was always helping him. Her mind longs for him despite her physical rejection. And when I think of that, I feel helpless to do anything about it.”
She didn’t help Magdalene remember, or stall her, or let Giltoa know she was there—
Nevertheless, Master did the best she could after that.
There is nothing she can do about Magdala or Giltoa on her own. But then, what about the forest? What about the tree of remembrance?
She thought so.
She enlisted adventurers’ help through the guild and purified the sick forest.
If the Tree of Remembrance was fed on Magdalene’s memories to counter the poisonous fog, then it would be easier to separate the tree from Magdalene’s memories, which the tree no longer needed once the threat was eliminated.
It was with such a tiny sliver of hope that we decided to go for it.
Unfortunately, the result was worse than expected. The adventurers’ and other players’ quarrels led to the Forest Lord’s displeasure, leading to the stampede of monsters.
Thanks to sage Orca’s assistance, the forest was successfully sealed, but the tree of remembrance was the only thing that could support the barrier.
That reminds me, in the revolutionary event video, there was a scene where the branches of the tree of remembrance and the vine plants that grew from the forest’s surroundings became intertwined.
There is no way to purify the forest, which is now inaccessible. Should Magdalene’s memory recover, the Tree of Remembrance would lose its power, the barricades surrounding the forest would collapse, and the stampede would inevitably resume.
The situation is now at an impasse on all sides.
It makes me feel a little sorry to hear what she’s saying.
Granted, I had nothing to do with the revolutionary event, but I think it’s an interesting progression of events from a game standpoint.
Even so, I feel responsible for this situation and apologize to our players.
“The fruit of remembrance, which used to turn red for a moment and then quickly return to its original color, has been red for a while now. And as the days go by, the color seems to get darker. This is why I keep coming back to check on them. There is a possibility that Magdalene’s memory is coming back to her. Giltoa found out about her and is looking for her, and maybe they have met somewhere…. No, you don’t have to feel guilty. It would have happened at some point, I’m sure.”
Master shook her head and sighed with a hint of melancholy.
“All we can do now is wait and see what happens….”
—With those last words, the hustle and bustle returned.
I zoned out for a while.
I have never experienced such a long episodic event and such a serious storyline before, so I’m a bit overwhelmed.
My mind still couldn’t catch up, and I wanted to bask in the aftermath.
Because I was still feeling overwhelmed, I noticed something unusual around me late one night. A cracking sound, sharper and louder than I had heard one day before, brought me to my senses.
It was only then that I finally realized something was wrong. I looked around to see all the players gathered there, all of whom were looking toward the direction of the forest with bated breath.
Following their lead, I saw the bright red fruit of remembrance just about to burst open. It pours down all over the forest, glittering and scattering fragments, and then disappears.
The ivy that had tangled itself around the trees lost its life all at once, dried up and decayed. And then the green barricade collapses, revealing the original forest—
Bwack.
—Suddenly, a black mist begins to overflow from the forest.
No, the black mist is not the only thing overflowing. There is something more defined… that looks like a bird? Something is getting bigger and bigger… or is it getting closer?
Huh, is that the ground shaking? And if you listen carefully, do these buzzing sounds differ from the presence of the players around you? Animals?
Nearby, I heard a crunching sound from something stomping the ground. Before I knew it, a lady with transparent dragonfly-like wings stood beside me.
She raised her mouth challengingly and said something to me. But, being semi-active, her voice didn’t reach me.
No sooner than I had time to think about how to respond, my vision suddenly went dark. A loud chime echoed through the air.
<The revolutionary event [Reunion of Despair] has begun. This will lead to an emergency world event [Stop the Stampede!] scheduled for a week starting tomorrow. There will be changes related to communicative missions, social conditions, etc. For more information on the Revolutionary Event, please visit the official video site’ Kimakura Historia.’ Please visit the ‘Notices’ page for more information on the Emergency World Event.>
Did I recognize her? Or was she wearing my brand of clothes? And everything was already behind.