Suddenly, the scenery in my sight whips around.

I, who had been floating in the darkness for a long time, fell into a familiar place.

A mansion still under construction.

As soon as we fell through a massive shadowy passage in the sky, the attention of the dwarves naturally shifted towards us.

One of them hurriedly dashed off somewhere. Probably to call for Rubia.

Sure enough, I could hear heavy breaths coming from afar.

But…

That wasn’t what caught my eye right now.

What lingered in my mind was just that face from before.

It was unavoidable. After all… it was the first time I saw that girl crying.

I couldn’t ignore that my last words had been a lie.

So what should I do?

Well, that was obvious.

I had promised not to lose anything.

I had to find a way to retrieve Siel.

‘But how exactly?’

Even if I mobilized all the forces at my disposal and used every means possible, I couldn’t guarantee victory.

And I couldn’t even think of a method to win.

The situation felt completely hopeless.

After a long while of brooding, I realized….

This wasn’t about what should be done.

I couldn’t lose her like this. It couldn’t end this way. I had to save her by any means necessary.

“Ian? What’s going on all of a sudden….”

Rubia approached me.

I thought having someone to help out would ease things a bit, but she still looked tired.

Yet….

“There’s no time, Rubia. Gather all the potions you can without hesitation.”

Right now, I didn’t have time to answer her questions. Understanding the gravity of the situation, Rubia nodded seriously and left.

Next, I called for Rob.

I handed him the Holy Sword and the artifacts I had just gained.

“Can you fix this in a day?”

His expression turned to one of panic at my words.

Naturally so. Even with the artifacts, accomplishing such a feat within a day was practically impossible.

“Even for such a task, it would take at least three months….”

As expected, Rob spoke in a troubled tone.

But I pressed again.

“So, does that mean you can’t?”

This wasn’t a request; it was an order. If it couldn’t be done, I would ensure it happened by any means necessary. My determination was clear.

Not surprisingly, Rob just nodded.

At the same time, he began summoning the dwarves. Hundreds of craftsmen would likely come here.

I had no idea what the outcome would be.

But I couldn’t afford to worry about that right now.

I immediately headed inside.

To the temporary base of the Black Fangs.

To a storeroom filled with supplies for them.

A space lined with various equipment and weapons.

Of course, there were potions there.

Though their quality wasn’t great.

They were hard to absorb, and overconsumption could lead to side effects.

Even when I had money, I avoided putting those potions in my mouth.

After all, items easily bought with money had poor efficiency.

No matter how healthy the physical attributes claimed to be, overindulging would wreck my body.

Still.

I shoved them into my mouth as best I could.

I felt my heart racing like crazy. My mind buzzed. But it didn’t matter.

If I die, then that’s it.

Better to die than to abandon someone. I had sworn to the Holy Sword long ago.

Besides, wasn’t my body already beyond the normal limits? I had been hesitant to experiment until now.

But I had thought up a way to offset the potions’ penalties.

I plunged a knife into my heart.

The pain didn’t bother me; I felt nothing.

Somehow, I tore into my tough flesh and ripped my heart out.

If I did this, a broken heart wouldn’t matter. After all, a whole new one would grow back.

The more I repeated this process, the more my mana increased.

Of course.

If I couldn’t absorb it properly, then no amount of this nonsense would yield any results.

But even that didn’t concern me.

I already knew about cultivation techniques. Those of the prestigious families, the skills that they cherished more than their lives.

I just needed to grab one of them.

Well, they say you can’t fill up on the first meal. At first, I felt mana backflowing and started vomiting blood through trial and error.

But after about ten times, I got used to it.

I quickly found the technique that suited me and assimilated its energy into myself.

“…Wh-what on earth is happening?”

Rubia returned to the scene, staring at me with a horrified expression. Not much surprise there.

I must have been covered in blood.

If she wasn’t shocked, that would be more surprising.

But I didn’t have time to dwell on that.

“Siel has been kidnapped. We have to save her right away.”

Even if she usually seemed scatterbrained, she knew how to act when necessary.

Upon hearing my words, she immediately understood my behavior and handed over the high-quality potions she had brought.

Each one, a premium item.

No side effects whatsoever.

I didn’t even need to repeat that bizarre act from earlier.

“…Is this really someone you have to go through all that for?”

With a serious face, Rubia asked that. I simply nodded.

With the massive divine power and physical abilities I already possessed.

Combined with the mana I had hastily amassed.

I picked up a cheap sword that was lying around in the storeroom and tried to channel my mana.

The sword crackled and started to crack as if it would explode any moment. I couldn’t even fathom how many levels I had just jumped.

But still.

It wasn’t enough.

So I brought out the last piece that would complete my plan.

The scroll I had obtained from the castle.

…For some reason, this time I didn’t feel nervous at all.

Certainty flooded in.

It wasn’t because the earring was exerting its power.

It was just my intuition.

My intuition that had always gone awry in the past.

Without hesitation, I tore it up. Simultaneously, an odd spell pattern was engraved on my body.

A consumption buff.

A one-time skill that allows me to absorb the characteristics of a defeated enemy. The odds of success had to be below one in a hundred.

Yet, it felt as though fate had aligned perfectly.

…With all preparations finished.

I stood up.

I was ready to use every unscrupulous means necessary.

Yet, I felt no hesitation.

They had crossed the line first.

They were the ones who touched what they shouldn’t have. So I wouldn’t uphold any sense of morality.

With either original knowledge or underhanded tactics, I would reclaim what was lost.

I would show them what it meant to have the protagonist and the center of the world turned against them.

“Wait a sec. At least tell me where you’re going.”

I answered Rubia, who asked me that.

“To the Great Forest.”

“The Great Forest? Why there all of a sudden….”

Rubia looked bewildered, but it wasn’t difficult to understand.

“They have no method other than that to pinpoint our position.”

Rubia didn’t leak any information. Fake Balzac hadn’t been detected either. The only possibility left is the Elves.

They can sense the aura of their kin.

“I’m sure the first prince must have gained the cooperation of the Elves.”

“Wait, hold up, so you’re saying we’re crawling into the enemy’s den?!”

Rubia exclaimed in dismay. Of course, that was correct.

“I don’t care. I intend to subdue them all and make them my slaves.”

I said that with a calm face.

Indeed, Elves are powerful beings. If not for the risk of not being able to leave the World Tree’s vicinity, they might have stood at the top of the pyramid instead of humans.

But this wasn’t just idle talk.

With just the consumption buff from earlier, it would definitely be possible. I could take control of the life and death of every Elf.

I would force them into the battlefield to reclaim Siel.

Of course, I didn’t particularly enjoy the idea of joining without consent. But what could I do?

They were the ones who touched my people first.

“What… What on earth are you even saying?”

Even after my explanation, Rubia’s face only grew more confused. It seemed she was completely lost in the current situation.

But honestly, that didn’t matter much.

What I was about to do was very simple.

“For now, I’m going to set fire to the World Tree.”

I chose the World Tree as the target for my absorption.