Horns?
Is this really my mother? She looks completely different from the last time I saw her.
Aside from those strange horns, her hair—now a blend of green and silver—was unlike what I remembered, and overall, she looked… younger.
Could it be that the appearance she used to show me was entirely fake?
Or… did I come to the wrong person?
If I really came to the wrong person—
No, stop thinking like that.
"Your guest has arrived, my lady."
She turned around…
I suppose the time to run away has long passed, hasn't it?
"A guest? Who could it—wait… you…!"
The moment she saw me, tears burst from her eyes.
With a shocked expression, she stepped toward me slowly.
"My son… my dear boy? Is it really you?!"
I couldn't find any words. I was overwhelmed by the image in front of me…
Had she really changed this much?
"My son… why are you silent? Don't tell me… you've forgotten your mother already?"
She then threw herself at me, embracing me with all her strength…
As if she was afraid I might vanish in front of her at any moment.
"Waaaah… my son, you finally came back! Do you know how much I missed you? How I suffered from the fear that you'd vanish forever without returning?"
"Mother… I've returned~"
As soon as she heard my voice, she completely lost control, bursting into tears with no end in sight…
The tears of joy from a reunion after many long years apart.
...…
"I apologize for my disgraceful display in front of you all."
"It's alright, dear. You've just reunited with your long-lost son—anyone would react the same."
I'm honestly surprised…
Is this really my mother?
The mother who always wore that terrifying smile?
The mother who never showed emotion—unless the topic was about her 'partner'?
Or is it that my memories have become distorted?
"You've reached Half-Virtue already! As expected of my son~"
"Yes, about five years ago."
"But… I feel like you've changed somehow."
I remember the last time we met, she had only reached the peak of Sovereignty…
But now, she had also become Half-Virtue.
No wonder she noticed something different about me.
Before arriving at the Dryad Tribe, I used Chaos Mana to shift my true form back to how I looked before I fell onto the Path of Despair…
But even so, she still sensed a faint change in my appearance.
"Maybe you mean 'self-forgetting'? I'm currently going through that phase, as my teacher said. Some of my memories are lost."
"But… but isn't self-forgetting something that only happens to those at the pinnacle of their strength of Half-Virtues? Why is it happening to you now?"
"Well… I reached my peak not long ago…"
Okay, I wasn't lying…
It's true that I've forgotten everything about her, but saying I reached my peak recently is accurate—if you count normal time instead of Dragon Nest time…
I felt that massive wall when I tried converting my mana to Chaos Mana.
Also, hiding the fact that I forgot everything about her adds a layer of safety for now…
"You've really been through a lot, my son…"
Why is she sad again?
I truly don't understand why things become so irrational around her…
"Enough talking, both of you. Even if he's your son, he's still our guest today. Let's head to the Tree Palace and continue there."
"You're right, Master… but wait a moment—my son, who are these two~?"
What now? Why is she suddenly angry??
"Mother, let's continue this conversation inside…"
"No! You're not taking a single step until you explain why you brought these two harlots into my tribe!"
What the…
"Harlots? What are you talking about?!"
'Seriously? Weren't they just reuniting lovingly a moment ago? How did the atmosphere turn this fast? If anyone moves recklessly, it could endanger the innocent tribe members nearby.'
I couldn't believe what I'd just heard—"Harlots"? I stared at my mother in shock, then turned to my two disciples whose faces were filled with fury and disbelief.
"Mother, say that again…" I began, but she cut me off with her voice.
"Yes, harlots! Why did you bring them with you when you came to see me after all this time?!"
She shouted as she marched toward me, her eyes burning with rage—like she had turned into someone else entirely…
I'd never seen her this furious before. But her words were way out of line.
Kugssa stepped forward. Though she maintained her usual calm appearance, her eyes burned with restrained fury.
"We're not here to cause trouble. We're here with our beloved Master to visit someone he'd longed for, even though we were always by his side all this time. These accusations are unacceptable."
Kugssa, who had always been the calmest of all, standing up like this? Even in front of me?
"He… forgot me?" my mother scoffed. "Forgot who? His mother?"
"Kugssa!! Be quiet…"
I didn't even understand how the situation escalated like this, but I tried to intervene again—though things were clearly spiraling out of control.
"Mother, please calm down. I'll overlook what you just said about them, but I won't allow any more insults. Over the past years, they've been the ones by my side when I desperately needed someone to soothe the despair inside me…"
"And what makes you think I wasn't there for you?" Mother screamed. "Wasn't I enough as your mother? I waited for years with a broken heart after our bond was severed, and now you tell me those two brats did what I couldn't?!"
I didn't know how to respond.
She took a step back, took a deep breath. "Fine then—since you won't talk, I'll just kill them both, is that okay?!"
As she spoke, a massive ice spear formed in an instant, aimed directly at Kugssa—who had just shielded me a moment ago…
The spear was so fast, I lost hope of stopping it with my hands…
"Path of Time… [Thousandfold Slow]"
I had no choice but to slow time by a thousandfold in a fixed radius to stop that deadly strike aimed at Kugssa.
Once I shattered the spear with my hands, time resumed.
"Mother… what the hell are you doing?"
"Tch, so you protected her… then let's see how you'll protect her now!"
She soared into the air, summoning thousands of spears of various elements—fire, poison, wind, ice, and even light…
Was it because she was now a Half-Virtue, or because of her role as a Magi?
Either way…
To stop this attack, I'd have to exert myself…
But to calm her down? A little effort wouldn't be enough. She's a Half-Virtue, too.
Then I'll need to get serious.
"Back off, all of you. It seems she's gone insane enough to target even members of her own people."
I gathered Chaos Mana around my fist, slowly until it became fully visible—a thick gray flame from its density.
Then I thrust my fist toward the oncoming spears…
"Path of the Body… [Void-Shattering Fist]"
The space around the attack began to stretch and crack…
But before my strike could reach the spears, an incredibly powerful barrier formed between me and my mother.
The barrier couldn't cancel my attack, but it did dispel her spears. Due to the impact and the shattered space, I was sent flying into a void zone.
"Sir Telodeos… were you planning to kill your own mother?"
"Kill her? Ask her why she launched a fatal strike at my two girls first!!"
To think she could summon such a strong barrier with no preparation…
This tribe elder is powerful—no doubt about it.
"And you, Ruler! How dare you behave like this in front of our tribe's guests?!"
"Guests? All I see are two whores and a traitorous son. Hmph, I'm leaving!"
Sigh…
I thought her personality would've changed after all these years…
Turns out she just got more hot-headed.
"I apologize for the disgraceful scene caused by our Ruler. What do you say we host you in the palace until this all settles down?"
We agreed to enter the palace and continue the conversation inside. The walk to the Tree Palace was filled with uneasy silence. My mother walked beside the elder, but the piercing looks she gave us felt like she'd devour us whole. It reminded me of the days I spent in the Flute Village in the Continent of Delight.
Memories flooded back with each step—memories weighed by the years we'd been apart.
...…
Inside the palace, my mother sat upon her throne made of branches from the World Tree…
She slowly opened her right eye to see if we were following her to the throne room, but alas, I had followed the elder to the guest rooms she prepared for us instead.
"DAMN IT!!!!!"
I heard her scream from afar.
"It seems talking won't help now. Should I speak with her first?" the elder asked.
"Thank you, elder. But there's something that's been bothering me ever since I arrived…"
"There's no need to call me 'elder.' You're far stronger than me—I'm not worthy of the title in your presence."
"Even so, I insist on calling you elder, since you're my mother's teacher. Anyway, most Dryads I've seen were calm and gentle in nature. So… what's with my mother's wild mood swings?"
The elder hesitated, eyes lowered to the ground. She couldn't answer me.
I think I've gotten an idea of what's going on here.
"I'll leave you the task of calming her down, Elder."
"…Forgive me."
And then she left.
What a crazy day…
Sigh Because of all this, I didn't even get a chance to admire the World Tree from outside…
...…
At the same time, in the throne room of the palace…
The elder returned to find my mother crying, hiding her face in her knees as she sat on the throne.
"What's gotten into you today, child? I haven't seen you like this in ages…"
"Master… Master… did I do something wrong? So wrong that my beloved son screamed in my face? That he'd even attack me… for those two brats?!"
"Then why did you provoke him like that? If I hadn't placed the barrier, you would've lost your legs from the force of that blow…"
"I just… just wanted to see how much he cared about them. I never expected he'd choose to attack me for their sake…"
Sigh "Seems you don't know your son at all. Did you not realize he's walking one of the Ten Forbidden Paths?"
"A Forbidden Path? Is it… the Path of Love?"
"You fool!! If it were the Path of Love, do you think he'd attack the ones he loves like that?!"
"Then what path is he following? And why??"
"…It's the Path of Despair. As for why—all I can say is, what he endured during your separation… wasn't easy at all."