After Rosa announced that she'd taken Miko as her own, something strange happened in the forest.
On the first night after Miko's arrival…
the forest was silent.
Then, suddenly—
the first green leaf fell in ten years.
Then the first bird emerged.
Then the spirits began returning, one by one.
On the second day, the withered trees stirred back to life and began to bloom.
On the day after that, the small spirits returned, circling through the branches, singing for the first time since the massacre.
Within days, the forest had woken as if it had reclaimed its own heartbeat — and the barrier returned, stronger than it had ever been.
The spirits gathered around Miko, playing with her, drifting through the branches at her side.
The days passed. The Elf people grew in number. And Miko turned ten years old.
—
Ten years after the forest's rebuilding began, in the quiet of Diablo's royal palace…
a messenger burst in, trembling.
He shoved past soldiers, past servants, past anyone standing in his way. Then, by accident, he slammed the throne room doors open with far too much force.
A powerful gust of wind tore through the hall, forcing the messenger to his knees.
Diablo spoke, reclining on his throne, his voice thick with fury:
"It looks to me like you don't value your head."
The messenger stammered, terrified:
"I have news… please, listen to me. They've returned."
Diablo let the moment stretch, then smiled.
"Tell me."
The messenger raised his head, still shaking.
"Your Majesty… the Elves. They've returned."
Diablo laughed, a laugh full of terrible authority, the moment he learned that some of the Elves had survived — and that the Jewel had fully restored its power.
He rose from his throne and walked out onto the balcony.
No one dared lift their head. Even his ministers kept their eyes fixed on the floor.
Then…
Diablo smiled.
He drove his sword into the floor of the palace.
The impact thundered through the entire kingdom.
He didn't need to send a single messenger.
That sound alone was his declaration of war.
Within minutes…
demon armies began pouring in from every direction. Soldiers with nothing left in their eyes but the hunger for slaughter.
The news hadn't even settled for a full minute before the roar of his soldiers rose into the sky. His army — fifty thousand demons strong, gathered to invade the Elves once more — filled the courtyard of his palace in the blink of an eye.
He raised both hands and delivered his address, his voice thundering:
"Hear me, my soldiers… Hear me, my army… Hear me, conquerors of this earth…"
With every word Diablo spoke, their feet, their swords, their weapons struck the ground in a rising storm of fervor.
Diablo continued:
"Listen to me well. They've returned. They've shown themselves again. The Elves have returned — and with them, the Jewel has returned. We will end every last one of them. We will wipe them out down to the last root. We will not leave a single one of them breathing. Their forest will be erased from the map entirely. We will leave not one spirit, not one tree, not one villager alive.
You failed once before. But now, twenty years later, I will finally achieve my dream — absolute power. No one will ever dare challenge my seat, or even think of trying.
My soldiers… you are free to do with them whatever you wish. When this war ends… I want the name 'Elf' to no longer exist in this world.
The rest is up to you."
The thunder of their war cries rolled far beyond the borders of their kingdom, all the way to the Kingdom of Falvaris.
The moment Falvaris heard it, they fortified their kingdom, filled it with soldiers and adventurers, and braced for war.
But while Falvaris heard the sound… someone else, standing in far greater danger, hadn't heard it at all.
The instant Diablo finished his address, he moved out immediately, not sparing a single second. The flowers around them began to wither. The spirits began to burn. The sky, once blue, turned to a black so deep it seemed to smother the light itself. The aura surrounding them was pure poison.
As they marched toward the forest, there were those who had no idea what was coming.
—
The forest rested in peace. The nightmares of war faded a little more with each passing day.
But deep in the heart of the forest…
a young girl woke up crying.
Rosa ran to Miko and froze at what she saw.
On Miko's forehead was a green mark — shaped like a crescent moon, with glowing veins branching out from its center, as though a single leaf had been etched directly into her skin.
In that moment, Rosa understood: at only ten years old, Miko had become the Guardian and Heir of the Jewel's power.
Miko began to scream and cry.
Rosa summoned everyone in the palace to tell them that Miko was the Heir.
Within seconds, the hall filled.
Servants…
soldiers…
ministers…
every eye fixed on Miko.
No one dared speak.
They all understood something was terribly wrong.
Rosa lifted her into her arms and tried to soothe her — but Miko's screaming only grew louder, and louder still.
A powerful light burst outward, so strong its glow reached all the way to Rosa. When Rosa turned toward its source, she found it was coming from the Jewel itself.
Rosa carried Miko toward it.
Her people watched, gripped by shock and terror, certain that Diablo had already discovered where they were hiding.
The moment Rosa reached the Jewel, Miko fell silent. Her crying stopped completely.
Silence settled over the hall, and the light faded. A voice rose from the Jewel:
"He is on his way to you."
The breath caught in Rosa's throat, as though she were choking on it. Her eyes narrowed, and for a moment all she could see was the past — her brother's death, her people tortured beyond mercy.
Rosa was afraid. She had no idea what to do.
Then, with pure innocence, Miko reached up and cupped Rosa's face, smiling at her.
Rosa's grief and fear eased, just slightly — and every thought in her mind narrowed down to one thing: survival.
The Jewel spoke again:
"The barrier is strong. But it's weak in one particular place."
"But they'll still die," Rosa said. "The Demon King will be among them."
"No," the Jewel said. "He won't be."
Rosa didn't believe it. "How can you say that with such certainty?"
"You'll understand for yourself."
"How am I supposed to understand for myself?"
The Jewel gave no answer. Rosa's temper flared. "Then tell me!"
No one answered her.
Not even the Jewel.
It became nothing more than a glowing stone once more.
Rosa gave up trying, and steeled her resolve instead.
She went straight to her palace and summoned everyone before it.
Everyone gathered — children, the elderly, men, women — all of them anxious.
Rosa stepped forward onto the balcony and said:
"Hear me, my people… hear me, all of you who wish to survive. Diablo is coming, and he brings an army that will show us no mercy. We survived once before… but this time… only those who fight will survive."
Everyone was afraid, anxious — some even covered their ears.
Rosa saw the fear, the anxiety etched across every face.
She set Miko down so she could finish her address.
Miko looked up at Rosa and saw how tense she was. She smiled, took Rosa's hand, and said:
"Don't be afraid, Mother."
Rosa turned to her in astonishment. "What?"
Miko reached out her hand, and the entire forest bloomed with green light. The trees stretched and wove together, and the forest itself became a fortified sanctuary.
Rosa understood — this was the moment.
She continued her address:
"I'm not telling you to run. I'm not telling you that you must fight them. I was afraid too. I wanted to run too. But if we run today… who will carry the names of the ones who died?"
Her words began to take hold, and she pressed on:
"I say we take our revenge on them. How many have we lost? Some of you lost your families. Some of you lost your grandchildren. Some of you lost your children. Some of you were violated. Some of you were tortured. Some of you were sacrificed. Some of you sacrificed yourselves so the rest of us could live.
And so many others…
Do we let their deaths mean nothing? I will not let their sacrifice, their deaths, go to waste. I — Rosa, your current Queen — declare that I will be the first to fight in this war. Who will stand with me?"
Fire began to spread through their veins. Their voices rose in agreement with everything Rosa had said. The forest ignited with fervor. More and more stepped forward, their voices rising together.
Rosa continued:
"We will have our revenge. Our family's blood will not have been spilled for nothing."
They roared in response.
Rosa raised her sword and said:
"Whoever wants to carry this hatred with me… step forward."
No one hesitated.
Thousands of hands rose at once, proud and unwavering.
Rosa said:
"Then… to your positions."
She continued:
"The Jewel is with us. Their entire army will march toward the weakest point in the barrier — on the western edge of the forest. Go there. I'll wait for Diablo at the Jewel myself."
—
While Rosa gathered her army… someone had already reached the border.
(End of Chapter 54)