Magia Tree

After a long effort, Theodoras had found a bunch of bloodworms and filled the bucket that Keykhösrev had given him for stuffing fish. This sight might have been utterly disgusting to some, but for Theodoras, it was no different from petting a cat. He scooped the bloodworms out of the mud with his hands, placing them one by one into the bucket. Theodoras' clothes were already covered in dust and filth, and now they were smeared with mud as well. Before heading to Lily, Theodoras decided to wander around the forest a bit more to explore, but there was a problem: the monsters in the forest. Deep down, Theodoras was afraid of this, but he was still determined to enter the forest. As he ventured in and wandered, he saw all sorts of plants, and it was quite impressive—everything was vibrant and colorful, completely unlike the forests of the outside world. The lands of the Magia Terrae continent, mentioned in stories, came to his mind. As a child, Theodoras, like all people, had grown up hearing many tales and stories about that continent. With his spirit vision, he could see traces of magic everywhere. The magical energy flowed through the soil like a river, and all the plants and trees were brimming with this magic. Naturally, the animals and insects that consumed these plants had to be equally extraordinary. Theodoras felt a tree branch under his foot and thought it was normal, but it wasn't. Suddenly, the branch wrapped around his ankle, flipping Theodoras upside down, and the tree's branches began draining his magical energy. Theodoras didn't want to let go of the bucket to avoid spilling the bloodworms. He gathered the mana in his body to his foot, aiming to break the branch with all his strength, but unfortunately, this didn't work, and the branch drained his mana even faster as a result. Theodoras let out a cry for help, but it was futile. It was impossible for his voice to be heard from there. In fact, Keykhösrev, with his superior senses, might have heard him, but he was currently in a small-scale retreat. Realizing that shouting wouldn't yield any solutions, Theodoras tried to stay calm and search for a way out. Thanks to his survival instincts, he quickly managed to overcome his panic, at least partially, and focused on the mana in his body, attempting to resist the tree's powerful mana drain. At first, this was extremely difficult for Theodoras, but thanks to his talent for understanding magic, he soon succeeded in resisting the tree's forceful mana absorption. Though he managed to resist the tree's mana drain, he still couldn't escape its grasp. He pulled his leg with all his might and managed to break the tree's flexible branch, but before Theodoras, who was hanging upside down, could hit the ground, the tree grabbed him with dozens of branches at once, wrapping around his body. The way the branches could be flexible one moment and hard the next was physically impossible. Theodoras was initially excited, as he had never seen anything like this before, but now he was starting to feel afraid. All his mana was being drained, and with his mana being siphoned from multiple points, Theodoras was struggling to endure it. The tree continued to rapidly drain Theodoras' mana, and it was painful. Theodoras' horn, just like after he had been beaten by Lucius, had disappeared. His physical strength diminished greatly when the black horn on his forehead vanished. Theodoras' head began to spin, but he didn't give up. He closed his eyes, focused with all his being, and tried with all his might to stop the tree. Then he thought, *"Why am I trying to stop the tree? Can't I just take my power back instead?"* Theodoras put this thought into action because it was his last chance for survival. He was in a mental battle with the monstrous tree—a war where the one with the stronger focus and control would win. Theodoras now focused on all the tree's branches, managing to pull back his mana, but it still wasn't enough to fully reclaim his mana from the tree. It was much harder than before to protect his mana because the targets he had to focus on had multiplied. Theodoras' consciousness was barely holding on, but this wasn't enough to stop him. He was so focused that it felt as if he had transcended to another realm. In his mind, he possessed the focus of a master craftsman. After a long struggle, Theodoras finally managed to overpower the tree and succeeded in pulling back some of his magical energy. Once he reclaimed a portion of his magical power, he became even more motivated. After a long struggle, when the tree could no longer draw more energy from Theodoras, it loosened its branches, and Theodoras fell to the ground. Unfortunately, all the bloodworms he had collected were crushed and killed. There were still some bloodworms left in the bucket, but Theodoras didn't have the energy to get up and take them. He continued lying on the ground, closed his eyes for a while, and fell asleep. Theodoras shouldn't have fallen asleep there, as doing so left him defenseless and vulnerable to a monster attack, but unfortunately, he succumbed to his exhaustion and fell asleep in the forest.

When Theodoras woke up, it was starting to get dark, and when he opened his eyes, he found himself back in the empty clearing with the temple and the lake. The lake was truly massive, reflecting the light of the setting sun. Theodoras was too captivated by the scenery to question how he got there. It reminded him of his childhood on Meladicte Island, when he and his mother would watch the sunset over the ocean every day. After getting emotional for a while, Theodoras snapped back to attention at the sound of Lily's voice. "Why did you zone out like that?" Theodoras was surprised to see that Lily's clothes were clean and looked as good as new, making him think he was dreaming. "Lord Keykhösrev carried you here. I told him you went into the forest and didn't come back," Lily said. "Oh, is that so? I guess I should thank him. By the way, Lily, how are your clothes so clean and new-looking?" Theodoras asked.