I Became a Crazy Swordsmanship Instructor in the Game - Chapter 66:

In an instant, the Divine Being leaped up to the high spot and opened its mouth wide, attempting to bite the golden fruit hanging from the branch.

Surprisingly, at that moment, the World Tree’s branch moved significantly, evading the Divine Being’s bite.

Startled, the Divine Being twisted its body and landed on the ground before thrusting its front paw forward.

“No, really, it’s not going to work. It’s not so easily obtainable.”

Philip nodded as if he had expected this.

“Is that so? Isn’t the World Tree a benevolent being? As a Divine Being, it shouldn’t refuse to give the fruit….”

“Do you think just leaving it there to fall and rot is the same as taking it? The World Tree also values it.”

Philip believed that the World Tree was an existence far beyond human common sense. Even just functioning as part of the ecosystem with its own consciousness made it equivalent to a god.

Now that he was facing its actual form, Philip was feeling a strange sensation.

Awe. And an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

It was a peculiar familiarity that seemed unlike anything else.

“… Do you dare to disrespect me?”

Meanwhile, Privia appeared quite angry. She clenched her fist and trembled slightly, and upon seeing her, the Divine Being sneered.

“I haven’t done anything wrong, so why should I fear you?”

Dragons were beings with many constraints despite their might. Privia trembled as she instructed Philip.

“Go and scratch that little bastard with your sword a few times. The moment that creature defies you and attacks, I’ll tear it into a thousand pieces. Either kill it outright.”

It was an order issued with the understanding that if Philip, under her protection, were attacked, it would at least provide a minimal justification. Without hesitation, Philip rejected her command.

“No, thank you. Didn’t you not help when we were fighting the demons? And attacking a Divine Being isn’t a good idea.”

When Privia was reminded of her lack of assistance during the Count Eloy incident, she looked at Philip with a glare, seemingly feeling betrayed.

“Did you just keep that in your mind, you little brat?”

“At times you call me a youngster, don’t you? It’s because I’m a youngster that my temper is small. Don’t be so uptight and calm down a bit. Besides, it doesn’t seem like the World Tree intends to give the Divine Being the Golden Apple.”

“That’s not the important part. That insignificant little bastard dared to disrespect me, didn’t he?”

“… When you live a long life, you can experience being ignored and stuff like that… Ugh!”

When Philip continued his nonchalant attitude, Privia kicked his buttocks hard.

“After acting all high and mighty, now the little brat is crawling back.”

Although she said that, Privia didn’t seem genuinely angry. If she were truly angry, she would have used magic instead of a kick.

“Hmph! You figure it out on your own.”

Privia muttered as she stepped back.

Then Philip approached the Divine Being.

“Please, just step aside. Right? Are you going to stare at a fruit you can’t even eat for dozens or hundreds of years? This isn’t even your territory.”

“Insolent human. That is not your concern.”

“Then let me make it my concern. Well, your territory is a forest to the north of here, about a day’s journey away, isn’t it? It has a valley and a spring. By the way, I should mention that I’m a very wealthy noble. If I give myself ample time, in about two months, I can clear that entire forest and build a castle. Just so you know.”

The Divine Being understood Philip’s intention and displayed a puzzled expression. It was remarkable that a wolf’s face could convey such an expression.

“…You’d do something like that? Do you even realize how many lives resides in that forest?”

“That’s probably not my concern, right? If you’re concerned, why don’t you go see for yourself? Anyway, if you know that much and if you’re worried, I’ll come back in two months. Human lifespans might be short, but I can wait a couple of months.”

When a Divine Being loses its territory, it soon loses all its power and reverts to being an ordinary beast.

No matter how tempting the Golden Apple might be, it wasn’t worth sacrificing one’s identity for, so the Divine Being’s buttocks twitched.

“Let’s go. Come on, you guys.”

Philip said so and was about to leave without any hesitation. However, the divine being let out a loud growl.

“Stop it! Stop it! You heartless human brat!”

If Privia hadn’t been present, the Divine Being would have attacked Philip immediately. With venomous eyes, it glared at Philip and bared its teeth, growling.

“You’d better hope you never see me again.”

“Sure thing. Whatever.”

When Philip gestured for him to go quickly, the giant wolf kicked the ground nervously and disappeared in an instant.

Then, Phillip had to meet the gaze of Sentinel Urcil, who looked at him as if he were a terrible villain.

“Why?”

“Oh, no, it’s nothing.”

“Would I seriously try to clear the forest? I’m not that kind of person.”

Despite Philip’s explanation, Urcil hesitated and retreated, trying to keep her distance from him. Philip sighed and signaled to Lua and Janis.

“Come here.”

“Yes.”

“Yes, Instructor.”

Philip took the two girls closer to the World Tree. Even if it weren’t him, he thought that at least one of them might be willingly given the Golden Apple by the World Tree.

Philip placed his palm on the stem of the World Tree and muttered a few words.

“If you give me that fruit, I’ll make good use of it.”

As if speaking to a mountain spirit, he murmured a few more words. The branch holding the Golden Apple moved as if alive, and slowly descended.

Then, rather than taking it quickly, the World Tree seemed to ask, “What will you do with it?” It placed the Golden Apple in front of Philip’s eyes. As if entranced, Philip reached out his hand, and suddenly the branches of the World Tree extended infinitely, wrapping around Philip, Lua, and Janis.

“Hmm?”

Since there was no evil intent, Philip obediently surrendered himself. After all, if the World Tree intended to harm him, there was no way for him to defend himself.

“Huh?”

Lua was slightly surprised, but she soon seemed amused. However, Janice’s reaction was different. She immediately screamed in terror.

“Uh…uhhh? Kyaaah!”

Soon, the branches of the World Tree wrapped around Philip and the girls, shooting upwards and then descending slowly. Once back on the ground, Philip blinked.

The recent action seemed to hold little significance.

It was akin to an adult playfully lifting a baby into the air.

In a way, it was an expression of familiarity.

“Why is it doing this?”

Philip shook his head with a puzzled expression as he cradled the fruit in his arms.

“… I’ve never seen the World Tree behave like this.”

Sentinel Urcil looked at Philip in astonishment.

“It seems the World Tree quite likes you. It seems like you, as an inexperienced youth, are destined for something significant in the world. There were people like you, loved by the World Tree, even thousands of years ago. They worked tirelessly for the world, suffering for centuries until their hair turned white, and then they found peace.”

In the meantime, Privia collected a few ordinary fruits and stuffed them into the pouch attached to her robe, chuckling.

“… Ah, it is.”

Suddenly feeling uneasy, Philip furrowed his brow.

“Close your eyes gently if you don’t want to be hit.”

“Yes. Yes.”

Philip responded vaguely while taking care of Janice, who was still trembling. She seemed to have some sort of intense phobia.

“Uh, In-Instructor. Um…”

“Why?”

“Who exactly is she…?”

Lua didn’t seem to mind much, but Janice appeared quite curious about Privia’s identity. Philip gently stroked her hair and answered.

“Ask her later. She’s not someone difficult to get acquainted with. She’s also the older sister of Instructor Priscilla.”

“But the feeling is quite different. Instructor Priscilla… um… Well, she’s really friendly.”

“She’s not that different… probably?”

In response to Philip’s answer ending with a question, Privia chuckled, and Janice raised an eyebrow. As soon as the blood from Philip’s nose dripped onto her clothes, Janice was surprised and examined Philip’s condition.

“Instructor, you’re bleeding from your nose!”

Janice, Lua, and Urcil, who couldn’t hear the Dragon’s language, couldn’t understand why Philip was bleeding. Philip raised his hand to her shoulder as if it were no big deal.

“I must have been a bit tired. Sorry for staining your clothes. Let’s go back now.”

* * *

Returning to the Elder’s chamber, Philip and his group soon encountered Lisriel, who seemed engrossed in something.

“I’ve prepared some higher-quality items. How do they look?”

She seemed to be inspecting the state of the items brought by the elven elder, and to Philip’s eyes, these items were mithril ingots.

Mithril, a metal that could only be refined using elven techniques.

Unless it was a skilled elven smith who had honed their skills for hundreds of years, even a proficient dwarf wouldn’t be able to easily work with it.

Lisriel nodded in satisfaction as she examined the state of the ingots.

“As the Elder said, the quality seems better than usual. It might even be close to perfect mithril. Thank you very much.”

Those mithril ingots were the price the elves paid for receiving the tools and materials they needed from Lisriel every quarter.

“Oh, you’re back? Did everything go well?”

In response to Lisriel’s question, Philip nodded.

“It went well. Is everything finished here?”

“Yes. It is. I don’t know if the journey back will be smooth, though. We’re planning to depart tomorrow morning. Do you have any tasks to attend to?”

In response to Lisriel’s question, Philip nodded. Since he had come all the way here, there was something he wanted to find.

“I’d like to look around this area and see if I can find any spirit stones.”

Hearing that, the elven elder smiled.

“Spirit stones, you say? That’s something humans cannot detect… Ah!”

Unless one was a born spirit mage, humans couldn’t recognize the presence of spirit energy. However, she soon noticed the presence of the dragon by Philip’s side and nodded her head.

“… If you’re going to cause trouble again, just know that I won’t stay quiet this time.”

Upon Privia’s warning, Philip shrugged his shoulders.

“I didn’t plan to go together. I can find spirit stones on my own.”

“… You didn’t plan to go together? How dare you?”

As Privia flared up in anger, Philip let out a sigh.

“I was actually thinking of going together, but I purposely said that because I thought you might find it bothersome. Plus, I have something to discuss. Will you join me?”

“If you want, I suppose I can’t refuse.”

———-

Happy New year everyone! Sorry for the late update. I was preparing a little gift for you all.

Enjoy!