I Can See Evolution Paths

The little creature wiggled even harder.

Arthur laughed softly. "I’ll take that as a yes."

Before anyone could say anything else, a distant roar echoed through the forest.

Everyone froze.

Arthur’s smile disappeared as he immediately looked toward the sky.

The roar came again, louder this time.

Through the gaps between the trees, they caught a glimpse of the enormous Water Long Serpent Dragon moving across the distant sky. Jakō was still standing on its head, his figure becoming smaller as the beast carried him farther away.

Nobody spoke.

They simply watched.

The Dragon eventually disappeared beyond the treeline, and even its enormous presence seemed to fade with it.

Only then did Athy slowly relax her wings. "He’s leaving."

Athena continued watching the empty sky for several seconds before finally nodding. "It looks like it."

Arthur kept his eyes on the horizon a little longer. "He’s really gone."

Luna released a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

The tension that had kept the group frozen finally began to leave their bodies. The forest gradually returned to its natural sounds, with leaves rustling overhead and water dripping from the trees.

For several moments, none of them moved. They simply stood there and listened, nobody quite ready to be the one who broke the quiet after everything they’d just survived.

Athy eventually lowered herself onto the grass, breathing heavily after carrying everyone out of the underground passage. "And we’re not being carried around by boiling water anymore."

Athena looked down at her partner with a faint smile. "You did well."

Athy smiled tiredly. "I know."

Arthur laughed. "That confidence came back quickly."

Athy sat up and brushed a few blades of grass from her feathers. "I carried everyone."

Arthur gestured toward himself. "Including me."

Athy looked at him. "Especially you."

Arthur laughed again.

Then he felt something soft against his leg.

He looked down.

The tiny blue Slime was still attached to him.

Arthur blinked. "...You’re still here."

The Slime wiggled happily.

Arthur crouched and carefully picked it up. The little Slime immediately settled into his palms without the slightest resistance. Its translucent blue body felt surprisingly warm and soft, almost like holding a ball of living jelly.

Arthur’s eyes brightened.

Then his Evolution Path Vision suddenly activated.

Information flashed across his vision.

[Slime]

[Species: Unknown]

Evolution Path

[??? Slime]

[???]

[???]

[???]

Arthur blinked.

An evolution path? And what is a Slime? Why couldn’t he see the name of its Evolution Beasts name?

He had never seen one quite like this before.

The information flickered again.

[Evolution Requirement:]

[Consume 100 Mana Crystals: 0/100]

[Reached Level 15: 0/1]

[Forged A True Bond: 0/1]

Arthur stared at the notification. "...Oh?"

It was the first time he saw three evolution requirements for a first evolution. He inwardly chuckled as tilted the Slime in his hands before then pressing one finger into it. The Slime sank around his fingertip, deforming easily before slowly returning to its original shape.

Arthur’s eyes shone with even more curiosity. ’So you can evolve too.’

The Slime wiggled happily in his hands.

"That’s interesting."

Athena immediately knelt beside him, studying the creature with renewed curiosity. "Its body doesn’t appear to have a fixed structure."

Athena’s eyes moved across Star’s body, following every tiny change in its shape.

"I’ve never seen a Beast behave like this."

Athy leaned closer. "Could it be a special species?"

"Possibly."

Athena reached for her notebook, then stopped herself.

She looked at Star again. "...I want to study it."

Arthur smiled. "I knew you would."

"Can you blame me?" Athy leaned closer. "It’s like water, but it isn’t behaving like water."

Arthur gently squeezed the Slime between his hands. Its body stretched around his fingers before bouncing back into shape. "It’s really soft."

Arthur turned the Slime over in his hands, studying the way its body immediately adjusted to his grip. It wasn’t simply soft. Its entire body seemed to respond to whatever touched it, almost as though it had no fixed form at all.

His curiosity deepened.

"What exactly are you?"

He brought it against his cheek.

The Slime flattened harmlessly against his face.

Arthur paused. "...Very soft."

Athy laughed. "You really like it."

Arthur didn’t even bother denying it. "I do."

Luna watched them with a small smile. She cautiously reached out. "Can I?"

Arthur handed the Slime to her. It immediately settled into Luna’s palms.

Luna’s eyes widened slightly. "It’s warm."

The Slime wiggled.

Athy smiled. "I think it likes you."

Luna gently stroked its surface. For the first time since Jakō had appeared, her expression looked completely relaxed. Arthur began studying the little creature as it happily wiggled between her fingers. "You need a name."

Star tilted its body as though it were listening.

Athy leaned closer. "What are you thinking?"

Arthur glanced at the creature again. Sunlight passed through its translucent blue body, making it shimmer faintly. "Star."

Luna looked up. "Star?"

Arthur nodded. "It helped us when we were trapped in darkness. And it showed up exactly when we needed it."

As if it understood him, Star suddenly bounced several times in Luna’s hands.

Athy’s eyes widened. "It likes it."

Arthur laughed. "Looks like we got an answer."

Luna smiled as Star continued wiggling happily. "Then... Star it is."

Arthur gently patted its head. "Welcome to the team, Star."

Athena became more serious as she examined Star. "We should probably discuss what happens next."

Arthur looked at her. "You mean whether we’re keeping Star."

Athena nodded. She explained that Star’s ability to conceal their mana signatures could be extremely valuable, especially after what happened with Jakō. "A Silver Rank Beast Tamer was searching for us, and Star managed to hide our presence from him completely."

Athy nodded. "If it can do that consistently, it could save our lives again."

Arthur looked down at Star. The little creature wiggled happily in his hands. "Then that’s settled."

Athena raised an eyebrow. "You decided that rather quickly."

"It saved us." Arthur paused, then added with complete seriousness, "And it’s cute."

Athena stared at him for a moment before sighing. "Those are two very different reasons."

Arthur looked down at Star again. "Not to me."

Athy burst out laughing, while Luna covered a small giggle.

Arthur continued examining Star. "We’ll figure out what else it can do later."

Athena nodded. "Agreed."

The laughter gradually faded, leaving the forest quiet again.

Arthur noticed that Luna had stopped smiling. She was still holding Star, but the way her fingers rested against its soft body had changed. They were no longer gently stroking it. Instead, they had tightened around it as though she were trying to hold onto something.

Arthur studied her for a moment before speaking. "Luna."

She looked up. "Hm?"

"Are you okay?"

Luna immediately tried to smile. "I’m fine."

Arthur glanced at her trembling hands. "You’re still shaking."

Luna looked down but she didn’t answer.

Athy’s expression softened. "You don’t have to pretend."

Luna’s eyes began to water and then she looked toward the direction Jakō had disappeared. "Maybe..." Her voice became quieter. "Maybe he was right."

Arthur’s expression changed. "About what?"

Luna swallowed. "I ran." Her fingers tightened around Star. "Everyone else was still there." She took a shaky breath. "My friends. My family." A tear slid down her cheek. "I was the one who escaped."

Athy’s expression tightened. "That doesn’t mean you abandoned them."

Luna looked at her.

Athy moved a little closer, her voice becoming firmer. "You were a child trying to survive something terrible. What were you supposed to do?"

Luna’s lips trembled. "But I survived."

"Exactly," Athy said. "You survived." Her eyes softened. "And there’s nothing wrong with that."

"B-But—"

Arthur walked over and he flicked her forehead.

"Ow!"

Luna looked up at him in surprise, one hand immediately going to her forehead.

Arthur folded his arms. "Stop listening to that crazy person."

"But..."

His expression softened. "Jakō was one of the people responsible for destroying your home. Then he came here and tried to make you feel guilty for surviving. Why would you believe anything he said?"

Luna’s lips trembled.

Arthur’s expression softened. "You survived because your grandfather wanted you to survive."

Luna’s eyes trembled.

Arthur reached into his bag and brought out the Fire Mirror, holding it where she could see it. "And because you survived, you brought us here." He nodded toward the Mirror. "You helped us find this."

Luna stared at the artifact.

Arthur held up the Fire Mirror. "Look at this."

Luna stared at it.

"We wouldn’t have this if you hadn’t survived."

He lowered the Mirror. "So don’t let someone who destroyed your home decide what your survival means."

Luna looked down at Star.

Arthur smiled. "You helped us."

Athy nodded firmly. "You saved us too."

Athena added quietly, "Survival isn’t something you need to apologize for."

Luna’s eyes filled with tears. "...Thank you." She wiped them away.

Arthur gave her a small smile. "Better."

Luna laughed weakly. "You really had to flick me?"

"You weren’t listening."

Athy laughed. "It worked."

Once Luna’s breathing had finally steadied, the group let the moment settle a little longer, nobody in a hurry to move past what she’d just admitted. Then Arthur’s expression became more serious.

There was still one thing they needed to understand.

"Luna."

She looked toward him.

"Who exactly is Jakō?"

The question immediately changed the atmosphere.

Athena closed her notebook, while Athy stopped playing with Star and looked toward Luna.

Luna lowered her gaze. "He’s part of the group that destroyed my village."

Arthur’s expression hardened. "He was there?"

Luna shook her head. "Not personally."

She looked toward the Fire Mirror. "But he’s one of them."

Arthur slowly nodded.

Suddenly, several things made sense.

Jakō hadn’t stumbled across them.

He hadn’t simply followed them because he happened to be nearby. He had known exactly what they were looking for.

And he’d known Luna.

Athena’s eyes narrowed. "And they’re searching for the Mirrors?"

"Yes."

Arthur looked toward the Fire Mirror resting nearby. "Why?"

Luna hesitated. Her expression changed, as though she wasn’t sure whether she wanted to say the answer aloud. "Because they believe the Mirrors can..."

She stopped.

Arthur waited.

Athena watched her carefully, while Athy leaned forward.

Finally, Luna lowered her voice. "...revive the World Tree."

Silence.

Athena’s eyes widened.

Her notebook slowly lowered from her hand.

Athy’s beak fell open. "The World Tree...?"

Luna nodded faintly.

Mithra wasn’t there to react, and neither were Vedas or the others. They were still inside the Mana Realm, completely unaware of what had just been revealed.

Arthur simply stared at Luna.

The Fire Mirror rested quietly beside them, its orange surface reflecting the light filtering through the trees.

He looked at it.

Then at Luna.

Then back at the Mirror.

Suddenly, the ancient memories, the Five Mirrors, the golden tree, the people carrying the artifacts, the strange trials...

They all felt connected.

Arthur’s expression slowly became serious.

The World Tree could be revived.

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