The elf guide stopped in front of a certain door.
“Shiomara-sama. I’ve brought them.”
“Please let them in.”
After confirming a woman’s voice from the back of the room, the guide opened the door.
“This is as far as I can guide you. The one in the back is waiting for you.”
After saying that, she gestured for them to enter the room with her right hand.
Kousuke and the others looked at her and entered the room.
In the back of the room, a female elf wearing a shrine maiden outfit was waiting.
However, her sharp ears clearly indicated she was an elf, yet something felt off when she was called an elf.
Kousuke, who tilted his head inwardly upon sensing this, was met with a look of admiration from the woman.
“As expected. Normally, one cannot distinguish between them and regular elves… I am Shiomara, a High Elf.”
She seemed to have seen through Kousuke’s thoughts, though he thought he hadn’t shown it on his face.
As Shiomara said that, she introduced herself.
“…Excuse me. I am Kou…”
The moment Kousuke was about to introduce himself, Shiomara stopped him with her right hand.
“Please excuse me. I already know your real name. The same goes for the other two.”
Before Kousuke could question her words, Esena appeared.
“Big Brother, I’m sorry. I told Elder Sister.”
“Elder Sister?”
Kousuke looked at Esena once, then at Shiomara, but Esena shook her head left and right.
Kousuke then understood who Esena’s “Elder Sister” was.
She was wearing clothes similar to the shrine maiden outfit Sheryl wore previously when they came to the Elf Village.
It was easy to guess.
“…I see. If that’s the case, you don’t need to worry about it.”
Kousuke said this while pacifying Esena, who was looking dejected.
Kousuke felt like he had been calming Esena down more and more since they approached this forest.
After confirming Esena had recovered from her dejection, Kousuke turned back to Shiomara.
“I apologize.”
Kousuke bowed his head for neglecting her, but Shiomara waved her hand with a smile.
“No, it’s alright. I’m glad to know that you two are on very good terms.”
“Well, yes, I suppose so.”
Thinking it would be strange to deny it here, Kousuke’s reply became subtle.
To cover it up, Kousuke continued somewhat hastily.
“So, is there something you needed us for?”
“No. It is not I who needed you, but someone else.”
Shiomara intentionally spoke vaguely, but Kousuke immediately understood who she meant.
It was probably Esena’s “Elder Sister.”
“Is that so? Will we meet her here?”
Kousuke asked, tilting his head, but Shiomara shook her head in response.
“Even though I am a shrine maiden, it is impossible for her to leave her main body and come out.”
“Eh?!”
Kousuke exclaimed in surprise at Shiomara’s unexpected words.
Esena had been appearing beside Kousuke as a matter of course until now.
He had naturally assumed that other World Tree fairies could do the same.
Seeing Kousuke’s surprised expression as he looked at Esena, Shiomara gave a bitter smile.
“It seems you and that person over there are bound by a special bond. I don’t know the specifics myself, but it’s likely thanks to that.”
Shiomara seemed to understand what kind of existence Esena was.
On top of that, she told him that the relationship between Kousuke and Esena was special.
Kousuke sighed at this fact, which he had only just learned.
“It’s just… I never expected to learn something like this now.”
“It must be difficult to understand oneself.”
Shiomara said with a laugh to Kousuke, who was being hard on himself.
“Well, if we stay here any longer, she might get impatient. Shall we move along?”
Shiomara said this and pointed to an entrance different from the one Kousuke and the others had entered.
“Ah, yes. Understood. …Nana can come too, right?”
“Of course. There is no reason to refuse your familiar.”
With those words, Kousuke understood that Nana was also being accounted for, and he nodded without saying anything further.
The other door led directly outside.
The building required removing one’s shoes, like in Japan, but footwear for visitors had been properly prepared.
The path was like the grounds of a shrine and was well-maintained.
This path was apparently managed by Shiomara alone, but essentially, it did not fall into disrepair due to the work of the spirits.
About ten minutes after leaving the building, Kousuke was presented with the scene he had expected.
A giant tree, even larger than the World Tree that was Esena’s main body, appeared before him.
Of course, this giant tree before him was also a World Tree.
Just like in another Elf Village Kousuke had seen when he first came to this world, it was probably hidden by a barrier or something to conceal its form.
However, the giant tree before Kousuke now exhibited an even greater presence than the one he had seen then.
It was only when comparing them side by side that he realized the World Tree he had seen at that time had clearly lost some of its presence.
For a while, Kousuke was awestruck by the sight of the World Tree before him and the spirits flitting around it.
He had seen Esena’s main body many times, but compared to the giant tree before him, Esena was indeed a young sapling.
It was a majestic sight, truly a tree that supports the world.
Perhaps, Kousuke was able to perceive some things because he himself had become a god.
He didn’t grasp what exactly that was, though.
“…Kousuke-sama?”
Shiomara called out to the still-standing Kousuke, tilting her head.
Kousuke, having been called by name, had a startled expression.
“Ah. I’m sorry. I was overwhelmed by the sight of the grown World Tree.”
As Kousuke hurriedly apologized, Shiomara smiled and looked at Esena.
“Eventually, you too will grow like this. It’s something to look forward to.”
“Yes. That’s right.”
Esena, whom Kousuke knew, had also grown significantly compared to when they first met.
However, thinking about her growing into the form before him now, it did indeed become something to look forward to, as Shiomara said.
Walking along with Shiomara while having such a conversation, they proceeded onwards.
Despite the giant tree being visible before them, it took about ten minutes to reach its base.
As they walked along the approach surrounded by trees, the base of the giant tree came into view.
Its roots were numerous, each as thick as the surrounding trees.
Considering the surrounding trees were quite old, their size was immense.
Between such roots, there was a gaping space.
In that space stood the very person who had summoned Kousuke and the others here.
Upon approaching, it became clear that, whether by coincidence or destiny, her features closely resembled Esena’s.
The woman, dressed in clothes similar to the shrine maiden outfit Shiomara wore, was indeed the fairy of the World Tree towering before Kousuke and the others.
This is the third World Tree Kousuke has encountered in this world.
Unlike Dolly, this World Tree is a being that is actively fulfilling its role as a World Tree.
