The Duke’s Eldest Son Escaped to the Military

<h3>Chapter 233: A New Divine Beast</h3>

TL: Pai_

While the demon retreated and the Phantom Tree collapsed, Iron experienced something truly peculiar.

It was a sensation he had never felt before, and through it, he gazed at the world in a daze.

Iron looked out at the polluted Great Forest, and then further beyond, at the region where the former Southern Confederation once existed. Suddenly, he felt his consciousness being pulled somewhere.

-Time’s up. Stop playing around and come back.

As soon as the deep voice calling him back ended, Iron returned to his ‘human body.’

The boundless sensations of freedom vanished, and he was now confined within the frustrating limits of his human form.

Even though his senses had reached the Master-level, it couldn’t compare to the infinite feeling that was close to nature itself.

“……”

Iron remained silent, quietly adapting to his regained senses.

His body was wrecked with severe internal injuries, but the external wounds were even more serious.

The external injuries, which had sustained fatal damage in various places, were not healing, possibly due to the demon’s energy, even with the help of Divine Power.

‘It’s going to take time.’

Iron thought as he observed his own body.

At that moment, a small bird emitting a blue light was staring intently at him.

Though it was as small as a Baepsae, Iron instinctively felt that the presence it held was no less powerful than the demon.

“Who are you?”

At Iron’s question, the blue bird silently looked at him.

After a long pause, the bird clicked its tongue and spoke.

-Tsk! To think I have to make a contract with someone like you… My fate is quite miserable.

At the blue bird’s words, Iron’s expression twisted.

It reminded him of the time when the two moons had looked down on him, and his mood instantly soured.

<p class="whitespace-pre-wrap break-words">But it was understandable, as the lofty rank of the blue bird that Iron sensed gave a glimpse of what level it had been in the past.

<p class="whitespace-pre-wrap break-words">-Hey.

Startled out of his thoughts by the bird’s call, Iron lifted his head and looked at it.

Then, with a crooked smile that shouldn’t have been possible for a bird with a beak, it said:

-I’ll make a contract with you, but I’ll be taking your Divine Beast power until I recover. Deal?

“What?”

Just as Iron asked the blue bird to clarify, a notification window appeared.

– ????? wants to monopolize your Divine Beast power as a condition of the contract until its strength recovers. Will you accept the contract?

Iron’s face scrunched up as he looked at the notification.

The other Divine Beasts didn’t seem pleased either, but the difference in power was too vast for them to protest, so they simply watched Iron.

-Tweet!

Unable to bear it any longer, the Baepsae chirped in protest, but the blue bird, with another annoying grin, spoke again.

-What choice do you have? You’ll need my help if you’re going to fight in the future. How much can you accomplish with that body of yours?

At the blue bird’s words, baepsae’s expression wrinkled, but it couldn’t refute.

-Quickly accept the contract. There’s no time.

When the blue bird practically threatened him, Iron frowned and responded.

I’m not doing it. Get lost.

-What did you just say, punk? You think I’m doing this because I enjoy it? I’m stuck making a contract with someone who barely meets the minimum conditions, and yet I’m still willing to help!

“I said no. Is my Divine Beast power yours? Huh? Who do you think you are to monopolize it?”

Iron glared at the blue bird as he spoke.

It was clear that forming a contract with the blue bird, who had such a high level of power, would allow Iron to grow stronger.

But he didn’t want to force a contract that demanded the sacrifice of the Divine Beasts who had fought with him through life-and-death situations up until now.

-Ha… Do you really think this is just for my own benefit? I’m doing this because you have no idea what’s coming your way…

“Whatever happens, I don’t care. I’m not letting you monopolize my Divine Beast power.”

-This is driving me crazy.

The blue bird scratched its head furiously with its wings, clearly frustrated.

Looking at the bird’s actions, it seemed that it, too, didn’t actually want to monopolize Iron’s Divine Beast power.

“What exactly is coming in the future?”

At Iron’s question, the blue bird stopped scratching its head and quietly looked at him.

However, its beak remained tightly shut.

It seemed like it wanted to say something, but some kind of restriction was preventing it.

Baepsae also seemed to know something but avoided Iron’s gaze, only making chirping sounds.

The other Divine Beasts were the same.

“Ugh…”

Iron could do nothing but sigh deeply, stuck in a frustrating situation. At that moment, a notification suddenly rang in his ears.

[You have made the greatest contribution to concluding the first story of the Apocalypse. Rewards are being calculated.]

– There are deferred rewards.

– Calculating what reward is most needed at this time.

Time passed after the notification sound ended.

Only a window saying ‘Calculating…’ was displayed on the semi-transparent notification window.

[The reward has been calculated. Due to your overwhelming contribution, instead of the Lord God’s blessing, you will receive a portion of the essence of the old World Tree.]

[As an additional reward for your tremendous achievement in completing the first story, your Natural Constitution and Steel Body will be upgraded by one level.]

As soon as Iron received both the deferred reward and the reward for defeating the Phantom Tree, a surge of natural energy began to flood into his body.

– Your Natural Constitution has reached MAX.

– Your Steel Body has advanced to Level 2.

– A portion of the old World Tree’s essence has settled in your body. The effects are unknown.

Endless waves of natural energy poured into him.

It felt like an overwhelming force he wouldn’t be able to handle, yet strangely enough, his body was absorbing it all.

The essence of the World Tree, located near his heart, was absorbing the energy, and his fully developed Natural Constitution was also helping to manage it.

Moreover, his Steel Body, which had grown another step, made this possible.

However, as time passed and more natural energy flowed in, it started to become increasingly difficult to endure.

At that moment, the blue bird approached Iron.

-I know you’re overwhelmed… I’ll change the contract terms.

The blue bird spoke to Iron, who was buried in natural energy and starting to feel dazed.

“…What?”

At his question, the blue bird pointed its beak toward Iron’s heart.

-This.

The blue bird tapped its beak against the area near Iron’s heart.

-Let’s make a contract using this.

Iron followed the bird’s gaze and looked down at his heart.

The essence of the World Tree was drawing in a vast amount of natural energy.

Though it was just a small portion of the World Tree’s essence, it held so much natural energy that Iron was struggling to contain it.

That was what the blue bird was asking for.

At first, Iron thought it was being greedy, but seeing the look in the bird’s eyes made him change his mind.

He gazed at the blue bird staring at the essence of the World Tree.

-There’s no way you can handle this at your current level. So, hand it over.

As the blue bird spoke, even more natural energy flooded into Iron.

Even with Baepsae and the Divine Beasts assisting him, it was becoming increasingly difficult to manage.

Honestly, he felt a surge of greed.

For a brief moment, he thought, ‘If I could completely absorb this portion of the World Tree’s essence, I might reach a level where even a Grand Masters would seem trivial’.

But he knew that would be overreaching at his current stage.

“…Alright.”

As soon as Iron agreed, the blue bird nodded.

-I’ll leave you with 10%.

The blue bird tapped its beak against Iron’s chest.

At that moment, a green-glowing orb of energy emerged from the small beak.

The blue bird used its small wings to pluck the glowing orb and gently place it back into Iron’s body.

“Ugh!”

Only 10%.

Yet when it re-entered his body, an immense wave of natural energy surged through him.

The blue bird only left behind 10% of the World Tree’s essence because that was the exact amount Iron could handle at his current level.

Having taken the World Tree’s essence from Iron, the blue bird didn’t consume it as Iron had expected. Instead, it flew toward the collapsed Phantom Tree.

-My old friend…

The blue bird gazed at the corrupted and fallen Phantom Tree.

At the sight of his old friend, who once stood at the highest of heights, now reduced to a mere remnant and toyed with by the corrupted, the blue bird felt a deep sense of sorrow.

Still, there was a small relief. The system had retained traces of his long-lost friend, and though it was just a tiny portion, that fragment had been passed on to a human as a reward.

-I hope you can one day recover your former self…

Muttering those words, the blue bird took the glowing green orb into the collapsed Phantom Tree.

At that moment, a light emanated from the once-corrupted Phantom Tree, and slowly, it began to purify.

Watching this for a long time, the blue bird finally nodded in satisfaction.

“Ughhhh…”

Seeing the human struggling, barely able to handle even 10% of the energy, the blue bird let out a heavy sigh.

Though it shook its head at the thought of having to contract with such a weak human, it couldn’t deny that this human had done a great favor by preventing his old friend from being desecrated further and giving it a fresh start.

-Pull yourself together.

“…Done?”

-Yes, it’s over. Now let’s make the contract.

The blue bird spoke, tapping its beak gently against Iron’s forehead.

At that moment, Iron’s eyes widened.

It felt just like the time when he first contracted with the Baepsae.

That same sensation was there.

[You have formed a contract with Hraesvelgr, the friend of the first tree Yggdrasil and the god of storms.]

-Having been asleep for a long time, Hraesvelgr requires time to recover its power. It will remain dormant until it regains its strength.

-Your Divine Beast power will increase explosively due to the contract with a Divine Beast of such a high level.

-All your Divine Beasts will grow beyond their original strength. Until their growth is complete, all Divine Beasts will enter a dormant state.

※You have contracted with all available divine beasts. You can no longer contract with divine beasts.

“Hraesvelgr…”

The moment Iron blankly muttered the name of the newly contracted divine beast, all the divine beasts shrank slightly and disappeared into subspace.

With this new reward, not only were the Divine Beasts able to fully recover their strength, but they would also grow even stronger.

However, it wasn’t just the Divine Beasts.

Iron himself felt that by contracting with Hraesvelgr, a being of such a high level, he, too, had grown.

It was as if something that had been blocked suddenly opened, and now, a light from afar was guiding him forward.

Though the wall had been broken, the journey to the light would require his own effort.

Iron knew that to reach his full potential, he would need to dedicate himself to constant training.

As he closed his eyes, preparing to walk toward the light and begin his growth, a new notification rang in his ears.

[Part of the essence from the remains of the ols World Tree has settled. A seed of the Great Tree has formed in the Great Forest.]

-In time, a great ruler of nature, like the World Tree that protects the Northern Forest, may be born. For creating this miracle, nature wishes to gift you.

-Instead of perfecting your Natural Constitution, nature’s blessing will now be imprinted on your weapon.

As the notification sounded, natural energy began to flow into Iron’s sword.

A sword that had been damaged in countless battles.

Yet, despite its wear and tear, it had remained by his side until the very end. Now, as nature’s energy poured into the blade, it was upgraded to a higher level.

“You’re growing too, huh?”

Smiling in satisfaction as he looked at his old friend, the sword “Iron Wall”, Iron closed his eyes, ready to grow stronger himself.

As Iron opened his eyes to allow himself time to grow in order to face the crisis ahead, a massive light surged and swept across the Great Forest.

“C-Commander?”

Iron smiled warmly as he saw Carl, the first to rush to his side.

“It’s been a while.”

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