Elvynna was furious. Although she was a young woman, romance was the last thing on her mind. She had never entertained thoughts of marriage or anything of the sort. Her entire focus had always been on mastering magic.
She was the embodiment of a career-driven mage!
In her vision of the future, marriage or anything related to it was something that might happen once she had reached an unimaginable level of power—if it ever happened at all. And if it did, it would be on her terms: carefully selected, thoughtfully considered, and certainly not under the bizarre circumstances she now found herself in.
To make matters worse, the game had cast her in the role of pursuing someone! It was humiliating beyond words for a prodigious talent like her. Even without the **Regal Bone of the Ancients**, she was a first-rate genius. How could she be expected to play along with something so ridiculous?
The thought alone made her cheeks flush with shame. It was unbearable.
But she didn’t have time to dwell on her embarrassment, because the game’s notifications suddenly informed her of a significant power breakthrough.
“Strange… I feel like my magic mastery is improving even faster this time around—at least 30%, maybe even 40% quicker than before.”
Could this be the famed benefit of dual cultivation between men and women? Elvynna’s face grew even redder. However, she quickly shook off these thoughts. Time in the game advanced swiftly, and before she knew it, seven or eight years had passed.
Her strength had soared, and she had now reached **Practitioner Lv5**.
It was time. Time to face the one behind all this chaos: the Crimson Frost Duke. If she didn’t act, his demonic tree would ravage the land, turning the entire northwest into a barren wasteland ruled by demons. She could have chosen to flee, but that wasn’t her style.
Why run away when she had the chance to crush the Duke’s plans and destroy the demon tree before it grew out of control? Besides, the tree’s seed was undoubtedly a rare treasure. If she could acquire it and turn it into a magical artifact, it would be a huge advantage.
Meanwhile, Eirik was quietly celebrating. He had managed to strengthen his relationship with Elvynna, though it was just a small step forward. Still, this was a serious magic scholar game, not one of those… other kinds of games.
His main goal remained helping Elvynna ascend to become the Elf Queen. And standing in their way was the monstrous demon tree.
Though his power still paled in comparison to Elvynna’s, Eirik had reached **Practitioner Lv2**, enough to survive the coming battles. With their goals aligned, the two prepared to confront the Crimson Frost Duke.
【That night, the two of you quietly infiltrate the Duke’s estate.】
【Using your stealth artifact and Elvynna’s unique magic, you successfully slip into a hidden chamber deep within the estate.】
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【Inside, you find the demon tree seed, carefully cultivated, and manage to steal it.】
Wait, what? Just like that? The demon tree, which had been such a formidable foe in the last run, was now in his hands so easily?
Eirik was surprised. Maybe this was one of the perks of being a player.
He quickly discovered the seed had additional information he could examine:
【Ancient Seed from the Demon Realm】
【Species: Demon Flora】
【Power Level: Magic Practitioner Lv2】
【Innate Ability: Gathering Power (Golden) — Capable of endlessly absorbing the blood and flesh of living beings to grow. Once it takes root, all consumed energy will fuel its expansion.】
【Status: Dormant】
A golden ability? No wonder the tree was such a threat. With the power to consume entire regions, it made sense that it had such a powerful ability.
【You’ve acquired the ancient demon tree seed. What will you do next?】
【1. Destroy it. The demons from the forbidden zones of the Demon Realm have always been humanity’s mortal enemies.】
【2. Secretly cultivate it, hoping to control its power for your own.】
【3. Refine it into a powerful weapon.】
Eirik quickly ruled out option two. This thing may look like a plant, but it fed on people—countless people, no less. The thought alone made him queasy. And besides, could he even trust it? Raising it would be like inviting disaster.
After a brief moment of hesitation, he chose option three: to turn it into a weapon. It was safer that way—no waste, no future threats.
Elvynna seemed to have the same idea. They both chose option three.
【The demon tree seed contains chaotic, immense energy. Refining it into a weapon will not be easy, but your persistence pays off.】
【After three months of effort, you’ve crafted a wooden sword hilt.】
【Congratulations! You’ve obtained a new item: **Demon Tree Sword (Purple)**.】
Elvynna received a similar message, gaining a purple-tier sword. But when she checked its attributes, her brow furrowed.
【Demon Tree Sword: Forged from the essence of a demonic tree sapling. Though only a hilt, it holds immense potential...】
【Effect: Supreme Sword Aura (Golden) — Boosts spell power by 100%, reduces energy consumption by 30%.】
A golden-tier effect? But then why was it still classified as purple?
Eirik quickly realized why. The sword had another attribute, one shrouded in dark energy:
【Curse: Demon Tree Nemesis (Black) — Having slain the demon tree, its kin have marked you. You will be hunted by the forces of the Demon Realm.】
A black curse? This debuff was bad news.
As Eirik processed this, an ominous warning flashed on the screen:
【One night, as you study magic, a dark figure breaks into your sanctuary. The intruder reveals himself as none other than the Crimson Frost Duke!】
The Duke had been hunting them ever since they stole the seed. Now, he was here to take revenge. His strength was comparable to Elvynna’s, but she had the newly forged sword, which doubled her magic power. In no time, she thoroughly defeated him.
But just as Eirik began to relax, an unexpected event unfolded.
【As you breathe a sigh of relief, a faint dark glow seeps from the Duke’s corpse and enters your body.】
What?
【Eirik, your mind is wracked with pain as an ancient voice echoes in your head: “You thought I was defeated so easily?!”】
It turned out the Duke’s body had long been possessed by a powerful demon spirit from the forbidden zones, capable of body-snatching.
【The spirit has now taken over your body, but Elvynna doesn’t realize.】
【The demon intends to use your form to assassinate Elvynna.】
In a final act of defiance, Eirik sacrifices himself, obliterating his soul’s essence to destroy the demon.
And just like that, he was dead.
The game was over.
Though he had died, he had completed the **Demon Tree Crisis** quest and saved the world from a looming catastrophe. His final evaluation was **blue tier**, a significant improvement over his previous white tier.
But the most intriguing part came next.
【Congratulations, you’ve obtained a special reward: **Eye of Divine Insight (Gold Tier).】
Eirik’s eyes lit up in excitement. Could this ability be carried into the next run? He quickly opened the description to find out.