I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-437

**Chapter 437: Crossing the Line**

—

“······.”

“······.”

For a moment, silence fell.

The elves could not believe their ears.

To declare, right in front of the queen, *“A new queen must be chosen”*?

And in a place where all the elves—including the High Elves—were gathered.

The impact was anything but small.

Even the queen herself had not expected the Druid of the Golden Scale to speak so boldly before her.

“Should I take what you just said to mean that you intend to depose me?”

The Elf Queen spoke in a voice hardened with tension.

This forest was the elves’ forest, and the queen of this forest was herself.

Naturally, no matter that he was the Druid of the Golden Scale, unless he had gone mad, he had no right to say such a thing.

Standing at the center of everyone’s gaze, he shrugged his shoulders.

“The World Tree is dying. Because the queen is postponing her own death. The World Tree is forcibly sharing its vital energy.”

“······!!”

“W-What is he talking about?”

“The World Tree is dying because of Her Majesty?”

“Wasn’t it the World Tree weakening that caused Her Majesty to weaken as well?”

The elves were horrified.

They had never been able to pinpoint the exact reason the World Tree was dying.

Rather, they had believed that the World Tree was weakening first, and that the queen’s power was diminishing as a result.

If the queen of her prime had still been in the forest, the Dark Elves would never have been able to run rampant.

But that wasn’t the case?

And worse—was he saying the cause was the opposite?

He was the Druid of the Golden Scale.

When it came to the World Tree, druids were experts, so it couldn’t be a lie.

He drove the point home.

“The Elf Queen’s lifespan has already ended. She must have surpassed the average lifespan of elves long ago. And you, Queen, knew why the World Tree was dying.”

“···I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

The Elf Queen frowned and shook her head.

But inwardly, she was shaken.

*How does he know?*

It was a mystery that would never be solved unless she herself revealed the cause.

Just as she had feared, the moment the druid saw the World Tree, he grasped the problem.

*Still, nothing changes.*

She was the queen.

The one and only ruler and sovereign of this forest.

“Do not cross the line, Druid of the Golden Scale. No… perhaps I should call you Phantom. You are an outsider. And you were not even born a druid, were you?”

Through this war, Phantom’s true nature had been peeled back.

The Druid of the Golden Scale, one of the Five Pillars, and beyond that—*Phantom*.

That meant his origin was human.

The queen spoke in a solemn voice.

“I do not know what basis you have for such absurd claims, but this is the forest of the elves. Do not slander me with the ridiculous accusation that the World Tree is losing its life because of me. No matter that you are our benefactor, that does not give you the right to cross the line.”

“Evidence, huh. Would evidence alone suffice?”

“······If there is evidence that everyone can understand, I will accept it.”

There couldn’t be any.

Only the queen herself was connected to the World Tree of the Primordial Forest.

No matter what tricks that druid might attempt, there was no way he could present *objective evidence that everyone could understand*.

At last, the queen felt at ease.

Yes. There was no way an outsider could bring her down.

That was when Phantom smiled.

“Fine. I’ll present the evidence right here.”

*

*

 

Objective proof that the queen was consuming the World Tree’s life in her stead.

If that were shown, everything would be settled.

Still, it was deeply disappointing.

*This is an absolute mess.*

The elves were undoubtedly his allies.

And yet, this was chaos beyond measure.

First, they were ignorant of their own problem.

Second, the queen’s attitude—killing the forest for the sake of her own desires.

Any trace of pity vanished.

Especially toward the queen.

*The one who crossed the line isn’t me—it’s you, Queen.*

The queen seemed convinced that he would be unable to present any evidence.

She had crossed the line.

Had she merely acknowledged it and shown remorse, he might have sought another solution.

He would not have resorted to the extreme measure of replacing the queen.

The queen was gravely mistaken.

“There is a race that can read the voice of the World Tree. Do you know of them?”

“···I’ve heard that such a race existed in the distant past.”

“That’s right. They were called ‘those who sing the song of nature.’”

The queen knew.

All the elves here knew.

But knowing alone changed nothing.

“However, they went extinct long ago······.”

“What if ‘those who sing the song of nature’ still remain?”

“···Then they could convey the voice of the World Tree.”

Druids discovered the problems of the World Tree, and ‘those who sing the song of nature’ conveyed its voice.

The two were like paired races.

But the singers of nature had disappeared in ages past.

As most World Trees vanished, they naturally went extinct as well.

However—they remained.

“Tomorrow, ‘one who sings the song of nature’ will arrive at the Primordial Forest. If we confirm the World Tree’s voice through him, that should be more than enough as ‘objective evidence.’”

“······.”

Once again, the queen’s expression darkened.

Still, she had not yet lost her composure.

She likely thought he was lying.

It would be nice if it were an empty threat—but unfortunately, it was the truth.

He let out a small chuckle and said,

“Then let us gather again at this same time tomorrow.”

*

*

 

In the Rustling Forest.

The Dryads’ ears twitched.

“He is looking for us.”

An androgynous-looking child.

A child who sat beside the Verdant One and barely spoke a word in an entire day—yet now suddenly spoke.

And there was only one person the child could mean by *he*.

“That one? You mean our brother?”

“Yes.”

“Our brother is calling for us? Then even if it’s the edge of a cliff, we must go!”

The Rustling Forest had grown to a scale incomparable to the past.

Especially the Dryads, lords of the forest, who had experienced tremendous growth through the Verdant One.

Thanks to their brother and the ‘singer of nature,’ the Verdant One had grown to near–World Tree levels.

Dryads who surpassed the max level and possessed transcendent power had begun to appear, and even a ‘Dryad Lord’—one qualified to be a High Dryad—had emerged.

Naturally.

The one who made all of this possible was their brother.

And if their brother called them—

“Our brother is calling us!”

“Let’s go! To the Primordial Forest!”

“All units, depart immediately!”

“Whiiiiiirl—!”

Every Dryad in the Rustling Forest set off toward the Primordial Forest at maximum speed.

*

*

Crunch!

The queen bit her nails.

At first, she had thought Phantom’s move was reckless—or merely a threat.

She had assumed he wanted something.

Humans were all like that, after all.

But her prediction was proven wrong in less than half a day.

*The Dryads are passing through the warps?*

Elves and Dryads were similar races.

Both lived rooted in forests and served as their guardians.

Yet the two races never lived close together.

Dryads were fiery in temperament, while elves were closer to fire or wind.

How they managed to select only the warps leading to the Primordial Forest was unclear.

······And among them, it was said, was a ‘singer of nature.’

*There’s no way to stop this.*

She had to block it.

If a true ‘singer of nature’ conveyed the World Tree’s voice, the queen’s lie would be exposed in an instant.

But the problem was the number of Dryads heading for the Primordial Forest.

More than five thousand Dryads were on their way.

There was no way to secretly stop the ‘singer of nature’ without anyone noticing.

*So it wasn’t a lie…!*

The Druid of the Golden Scale truly intended to present evidence.

Realizing this, the queen hurried to find him.

But he refused to see her.

There were too many eyes watching for her to take further action.

If this continued…

*I cannot allow a new queen to replace me.*

The queen clenched her fist tightly.

She would not let things proceed as he intended.

*

*

The next day, at the same time.

‘The singer of nature’ stood before the World Tree.

As the child placed a hand upon it and closed his eyes—

Hooooooong!

Hooooooong!

“The World Tree is responding!”

“Wow! I’ve never seen it like that before!”

The World Tree was responding.

It was surely speaking to the child.

When the child finally opened his eyes, he spoke to the elves.

“······The World Tree is grieving.”

“Why is it grieving?”

When Phantom asked, the child replied,

“Because it knows that when it dies, this forest will disappear.”

“Does it know why it is dying?”

“Yes. It said that the queen is consuming its vital energy indiscriminately. However, it does not blame her. The desire to live exists within all living beings.”

The World Tree did not condemn the queen.

Rather, it protected her.

But the queen herself did not.

“Lies! That’s a lie!”

“······I am one who conveys the words of the World Tree. One who listens to their voices. I must convey them exactly as they are—I cannot lie.”

The child was resolute.

Moreover, everyone knew that one who sang the song of nature could not lie about the World Tree’s words.

The queen’s face stiffened completely.

“Now then, Queen. I have presented the ‘objective evidence.’ Will you allow the World Tree to die like this?”

Abandon the throne.

And accept death.

The Elf Queen’s body trembled as she spoke.

“Very well. If I truly am the cause, then I will relinquish this position.”

“Refreshing. I like that.”

“But… there is a condition.”

“A condition?”

“Only an elf superior to me may ascend the throne.”

“Not refreshing at all.”

Say what you will.

She was still the queen.

The strongest elf here.

The Elf Queen looked around.

“Is there anyone who would challenge for the throne?”

“······.”

“······.”

Silence followed.

There was no elf who wished to fight her and seize the throne.

*Of course. There couldn’t be—*

“I will.”

“······!”

The queen and the elves alike stared at the challenger in shock.

An elf now standing boldly at the front.

She was—

“······Auril.”

“I will challenge you, Your Majesty.”

Among the elves, the most outstanding individual.

Recently, she had even received the World Tree’s blessing.

She had always been ambitious and daring.

After encountering humans, she had grown greedy.

Especially after ascending the Tower of the War God, Auril’s growth far surpassed that of any High Elf.

Among all elves in history, there was no one comparable.

Yet—to think she would aim even for the queen’s seat.

Of course, even so, she could never defeat the queen herself.

A battle between the queen, who had directly inherited the World Tree’s power, and Auril, who had merely received its blessing, was a contest whose outcome was decided from the start.

And yet—

Auril grinned, grasped her sword, and provoked her.

“Surely you won’t dodge this, will you?”