Chapter Seventy-Eight: Protecting "Miracles" with "Miracles".

The light dimmed.

Colin realized that this time the radiance would soon fade, and it would be troublesome to approach any later. Moreover, the wooden wheel still lay at the opponent’s feet. He had no idea how the priest had wielded this weapon before, but his own first strike had been quite effective—whether in posture, special effects, or even sound. Yet, running over to retrieve the weapon was rather awkward.

“You all stay here. I’ll go ahead and take care of something, then return,” Colin decided in less than a second, mainly because he believed that, as a follower of the priest and given the mission’s description, this person shouldn’t be playing tricks at such a time.

“I’ll go with you,” Shana stepped forward and said.

Colin nodded without much thought; he had planned this all along, only Shana voiced it first. With two people, as long as he didn’t die instantly, he could rely on the “Knight’s Notarized Shield” to survive for a while.

Without another word, Colin led the way, advancing quickly, reaching the area within seconds and stepping into the light untouched by darkness.

He first picked up the still-glowing wooden wheel. Then, squinting against the stinging brightness, he glanced at it, took out a pile of barrels of explosives to leave here just in case, and retreated.

Shana stood about ten meters away, holding the “Notarized Knight’s Shield” aimed at him, ready at any moment to declare a duel and pull Colin out of danger.

But nothing unexpected happened.

Colin successfully retrieved the wooden wheel and retreated ten meters away. He then took crimson blood from his backpack and poured it directly onto a root at his feet.

This root’s bark was cracked like volcanic stone, branching out in many directions, extending all the way to Kimino’s ankle. Clearly, it was an olive tree root formed from his foot.

The crimson, writhing blood touched the root and was instantly absorbed. In a moment, as the blood was taken in, the root originating from Kimino writhed and began to emit red light.

Suddenly, a terrifying aura burst forth from Kimino, a dreadful pressure pouring down like a mountain crashing into the sea. Colin staggered, dizzy, retreating without hesitation.

The glow of the wooden wheel in his hand faded even faster.

And as Kimino absorbed the blood, his body swelled, becoming even more monstrous.

“Ah…”

A painful, low cry escaped his throat. His skin became exceptionally rough, riddled with cracks, like an ancient tree…

The speed of the “Miracle of Suffering” increased.

The black metal bindings splintered and bent little by little, struggling ever harder to restrain Kimino, this terrifying lifeform.

Finally, when Colin and the others had retreated nearly a hundred meters, Kimino broke free.

At that moment, Colin clenched his fists, held his breath, and fixed his gaze on the dreadful, now unbound creature.

Fortunately, the danger they anticipated did not occur.

No longer quite human nor tree, radiating a horrifying presence, the terrifying being that was—perhaps—Kimino, upon breaking free, immediately rushed in a single direction.

He carved a path through the dense olive grove with brute force.

Colin and his companions watched as it happened, clearly sensing that his destination was the cave.

“Should we follow him?” Li Chou asked.

Colin was about to reply, but his expression changed as new sounds echoed from afar.

The living olive trees that had abandoned their pursuit due to Kimino’s awakening now stirred once more.

The low, mournful wailing began to echo around them again…

From the prompt, Colin knew that in less than a minute, they would charge.

“Let’s follow him and see,” Colin said, wasting no time gathering the explosives, leading everyone along the path Kimino had opened.

The trail wasn’t large, but it was remarkably flat, pushed aside with wild force.

And the lingering aura of a lord-level aberration meant the living olive trees wouldn’t approach for a while.

Yet, halfway down the path, Colin suddenly heard from the direction of the cave a tremendous wailing cry.

The piercing lament stabbed at their minds, filling them with irritation.

It unmistakably came from Kimino, his grief overpowering all the olive trees’ cries.

…Is he competing with the olive trees over who can cry louder? Colin couldn’t help but rub his forehead and mutter.

Rumble…

At that moment, Colin felt the ground beneath his feet tremble, the vibrations clearly coming from the cave.

Despite the disturbance, Colin didn’t let anyone stop, pressing forward in pain.

Soon, as Colin’s steps grew uncertain, he arrived and saw that all the olive trees in the cave had been torn apart.

A passage had been opened in the entrance.

Faint, intermittent cries continued to echo from within…

The sound gradually faded.

It seemed it might disappear at any moment.

There was also the sound of branches growing inside the cave.

[You realize that now is not the time to enter; you must wait.]

Seeing this prompt, Colin decisively chose to stay outside the cave.

Now, all the living olive trees seemed to have returned to silence. Though Colin sensed they were still alive, they no longer stirred.

Soon, Kimino’s wailing ceased completely.

The terrifying aura vanished…

This time, Colin did not hesitate. He beckoned, relit the lantern, and led everyone into the cave surrounded by countless living olive trees.

The passage was strewn with the shattered remains of olive trees, and gleaming stones embedded everywhere ensured it was not dark even without a lantern.

As Colin and the others entered, the wind that brushed past seemed to carry the sound of a young girl crying.

They couldn’t help but feel a chill.

But fortunately, the threat had been eliminated; Kimino had dealt with everything.

Yet, just as they stepped into the passage and saw the scene inside the cave, everyone could not help but gasp.

Before their eyes lay a vast cave hall, less than ten meters ahead.

A colossal, human-shaped olive tree—over a hundred meters tall—seemed to be bowing its head in tears.

Its humanoid form was less than ten meters, maintaining a general human posture, hands covering its face, with countless olive branches extending from its back, enlarging and supporting the entire cave.

“Is that… Kimino?”

Colin recalled the sound of plants growing inside the cave.

He looked at it, and a prompt appeared in his mind.

But this time, for the first time, Colin couldn’t help but whisper the prompt aloud.

“In the end, the sufferer named Kimino could not escape the fate of becoming a ‘miracle.’ Here, he transformed into a giant olive tree, its face covered as it weeps.”

“And not far ahead lies the resting place of the girl he secretly loved in life.”

“He has become the olive tree she loved most, forever guarding her here.”