Squirm-
I arrived at the World Tree with Mark2.
“Mark2 Apostle!”
Frey flapped her wings enthusiastically and hopped onto Mark2’s head.
For someone calling him an apostle, that was a rather casual attitude.
“Apostle, Apostle! The World Tree has borne fruit!”
“It bore fruit?”
Finding the phrasing rather novel, I set Mark2 down near the fruit, which was surrounded by children.
Mark2 began closely examining the massive acorn.
“What do you think?”
Did he figure something out?
Then, Mark2 approached the World Tree and started communicating with it.
An incredible ability—to converse with the World Tree!
Of course, it had never been of much use until now.
Squirm, squirm.
Wobble, wobble.
It looked like he was communicating with an alien.
As the children and I watched, I noticed Ara pulling out popcorn from Bokkeum and sharing it.
Wait a second.
Did I even have popcorn?
Squuuirm!!
“Ohh! What is it? Did you figure something out?!”
Seeing Mark2’s intense reaction, I quickly ran over to check.
Then, Ara, still munching on popcorn, provided a translation.
“The time has come!”
“The time has come?”
Hoping for more details, I stared expectantly at Mark2.
Mark2 bounced energetically.
Wobble, wobble!
“It is time to propagate its descendants! The World Tree must spread!”
“Ohhh.”
So that means this giant acorn really is the World Tree’s fruit?
Squiirm.
“We shall conquer the world.”
Squirm, squirm!
“The fruit must be planted elsewhere to expand the influence of Gluttony!”
Huh?
What the hell was that?
Mark2’s words suddenly took a turn, sounding like some demon king’s plan to invade the human world.
Or rather, it was the World Tree’s words.
“W-What do you mean by that, World Tree…?”
Wobble!
“We shall conquer the world!”
At this point, I wasn’t sure if Mark2 was just saying whatever he wanted or if Ara was deliberately mistranslating.
But since I could vaguely understand Mark2’s intent with my Slime Overlord abilities, I knew Ara’s translation wasn’t wrong.
[Quest updated.]
[Awakening Quest: Stronger Hunting! and Awakening Quest: Amazing Crops! have been removed.]
[New Awakening Quest: The First Step to Becoming the Demon King.]
[Plant the World Tree’s fruit on Earth! The Demon King’s influence must spread across the world!]
New World Tree: 0/1
“W-What is this…?!”
I couldn’t believe it.
No, the quest title itself was already completely wrong!
“The first step to becoming the Demon King?!”
Even after checking the quest window again, the words were crystal clear.
The two previous awakening quests had vanished.
Now, the only ones left in my quest log were the Hidden Quest: Conquering the Seven Deadly Sins and The First Step to Becoming the Demon King.
“Hah, haha, hahaha…”
Why the hell did I have to be the Demon King?!
“I just won’t do the quest!”
After laughing hysterically for a moment, I raised my fist and declared.
After all, I was already enjoying my life without completing any more quests.
A quest? I could just ignore it!
Wobble.
“If the World Tree’s descendants are not spread, the current World Tree will wither.”
“What?!”
That’s not fair!
I looked up at the World Tree with a panicked expression, and it almost seemed like it was waving at me.
Wobble.
“A new World Tree must be planted for resonance to occur.”
Wobble, wobble.
“Resonance will replenish energy, making the World Trees healthier.”
You’re not just making this up, are you?
I was skeptical, but under the piercing gazes of Frey and the fairies, my whole body felt prickly.
“Will our village disappear?”
“(°0°)!!!”
“(°;~;°)-”
“(TOT)”
T-That…
Flustered, I waved my hands in denial.
Mark2 continued squirming reassuringly.
Wobble.
“Spreading the World Tree is not a bad thing.”
Wobble, wobble.
“It bestows new resources and strength upon that land. It is a blessing.”
Now that I thought about it, Mark2 had a point.
Aside from the unsettling quest title, there didn’t seem to be any real problem.
‘If I plant the World Tree, wouldn’t that area actually become more prosperous?’
Of course, I couldn’t plant it in a densely populated area, like the middle of Seoul.
But wouldn’t it be fine to plant it in a remote, underdeveloped area or an uninhabited desert?
That is, assuming I could successfully grow the World Tree.
‘The quest specifically says to plant it on Earth.’
Hmm. I had never grown a plant outside of a dungeon before, so I was a little worried.
And this wasn’t just any plant—it was the World Tree.
Wobble, wobble.
“There is plenty of time. However, if too much time passes, the World Tree will wither.”
“Why does it feel like you’re rushing me, World Tree?”
Despite claiming there was plenty of time, it kept threatening me with the idea of it withering.
This was completely different from the majestic image of the World Tree I had in my mind.
“Should I just store it for now? I don’t have a proper place to plant it immediately, and even if I did, there’s no guarantee it will grow.”
Wobble!
“The World Tree is strong! It will grow anywhere on its own!”
What a convenient trait for world domination.
I was starting to get suspicious about the true nature of this World Tree.
With the World Tree’s fruit safely in my possession, I returned to the village.
On the way back, I walked with the kids and happened to see Jun-gyul and Sian preparing ingredients in the open kitchen.
“Oh, you guys haven’t introduced yourselves yet, have you? Say hello. This is Park Jun-gyul and Seo Sian, our new restaurant staff.”
“Uh, hello.”
“Hey, kids.”
Jun-gyul greeted stiffly, looking slightly shy, while Sian lazily waved.
They had completely different personalities.
But they somehow fit well together.
‘Sian was originally going to join Iron Blood Foods, but she followed Jun-gyul and ended up working for us instead.’
Anyway, they looked good together.
“I am the Goblin King, Mammon!”
“I am Ras.”
“I am the true Queen, Frey!”
With their unique self-introductions, the new staff warmly welcomed them.
They had already gotten used to monsters thanks to Ashu and the Breeding Tribe, so they didn’t seem too surprised.
Meanwhile, after much deliberation, I decided to take the World Tree’s fruit to Ara’s hat storage.
It was called a hat storage, but in reality, it was more like a treasure vault—an inviolable sanctuary.
No one but Ara and I dared to enter.
“Mr. Kyu-seong. Did everything go well?”
“Oh, Kyler. I just ran into a bit of trouble.”
I gave an awkward smile and showed him the World Tree’s fruit.
Kyler tilted his head, then nodded.
“So, you’ve started harvesting acorns now?”
“Haha.”
“Actually, I found a forest with nut-bearing trees like acorns and chestnuts. They seem to be a different species from Earth’s. Would you like to check it out?”
“Oh, really? That sounds amazing.”
Chestnuts and acorns!
And if there were nuts, maybe there would be walnuts or hazelnuts too.
As a nut lover, I was really looking forward to it.
‘Wait, no, that’s not the point.’
My thoughts had wandered towards nuts for a moment.
I quickly pointed to the World Tree’s fruit.
“This isn’t just an acorn. It’s the World Tree’s fruit.”
“The World Tree’s fruit? You mean from that tree…?”
“Exactly. But there’s a bit of a problem with it.”
“What kind of problem?”
After a brief hesitation, I explained the quest but left out the part about the Demon King.
“Planting the World Tree on Earth… that’s quite a unique quest.”
“Yeah, that’s how it turned out.”
“And if the fruit isn’t planted, the World Tree here will wither. That’s a serious issue. Even though I haven’t been here long, I’ve noticed that the World Tree has a huge influence on this place. If it withers, nearly half of this dungeon’s environment could become barren.”
“Whoa.”
That serious?!
No wonder the World Tree kept threatening me about withering.
At first, I thought it was just about the fairy village disappearing…
“I guess I need to plant it quickly.”
“Hmm. The real challenge is finding a place on Earth large enough to accommodate a tree of that size.”
“Yeah. If location weren’t an issue, I’d already have—”
Then, Mark2 and Ara, who had been quietly listening, spoke up.
Squirm.
“Rather than deciding on a location first, we should germinate it first.”
Squirm, squirm.
“Then we should raise it into a small sapling before moving it to the final location.”
That’s true.
Mark2 and Ara had a point.
“Still, wouldn’t it be better to pick a location first and then grow it into a sapling?”
“Yes! That is also correct!”
Hmm.
I should discuss this issue later with the Guild and the Awakening Headquarters.
The real problem was whether there was even a suitable place in Korea for the World Tree.
The country was small, so space was limited.
For now, I decided to store the fruit in the hat storage and step outside.
Before I knew it, it was time to sleep.
After dealing with the World Tree and the quest all evening, I just wanted to get some rest.
“Mr. Kyu-seong, if you’re free tomorrow, would you like to go nut foraging with me?”
“Oh, that’s a pleasant surprise. Sounds great! I’m a total nut fanatic.”
“I’m glad you like the idea. Let’s meet in the morning then.”
As Kyler left, Ara’s eyes sparkled as she threw her arms up in excitement.
“Nuts!”
“That’s right. You know what nuts are, Ara?”
“Peanuts!”
“Oh, our Ara is so smart!”
“Yes! I am smart!”
Seeing her brimming with anticipation, I couldn’t help but look forward to tomorrow’s foraging trip.
Earth’s summer was coming to an end, and autumn was around the corner—the perfect time for chestnuts!
‘If we collect chestnuts and sweet potatoes, we can make roasted chestnuts and sweet potatoes. That would be amazing.’
When I was a kid, my dad used to gather fallen leaves to start a fire and roast chestnuts for us.
It was an unforgettable memory.
That tradition seemed to have faded these days, but when I was young, it was a common sight.
“Let’s get some sleep and go chestnut hunting tomorrow.”
“Okay!”
Meanwhile, somewhere else, a message appeared.
[The law of causality is in motion.]
[The Demon King and the Hero have been chosen.]
Someone froze upon seeing the sudden message.
Those nearby stopped in confusion.
“Is something wrong, Eli?”
“…It’s nothing.”
But in his mind, things were far from fine.
‘What the hell is going on?’
Eli Green.
One of the Level 9 Awakener, possessing the ability of “Tuning.”
He could see hidden information through messages that others couldn’t perceive.
And one of those pieces of information was about significant events unfolding on Earth.
Recently, he had received messages about the continued disappearance of the Seven Deadly Sins.
And now, “Demon King and Hero selection” appeared?
‘This isn’t normal.’
Was a world-ending scenario about to begin?!
Should he alert the world’s top Awakening nations?
Of course, this was all just Eli’s misunderstanding.
Being chosen as a Demon King and Hero didn’t necessarily mean anything catastrophic was happening.
But given the circumstances, it was natural for him to be suspicious.
Eli ultimately changed his plans and stopped walking.
“Contact the world leaders immediately.”
Meanwhile, Kyu-seong was fast asleep, cuddling Ara and Cheong, completely unaware of what was happening.
Cliche Novel 
So he’s gonna become the Demon King by making everyone addicted to his food.
LikeLike