5. Mushroom House
What was she searching for exactly?
Han watched her actions in silence.
Certainly, she must have been freezing intensely.
Not to mention the threat of monsters lurking.
In the midst of such concerns, Irina cautiously made her way forward, scanning her surroundings attentively.
“Ah, here it is.”
Soon, as if discovering something, her steps came to a halt.
What is she looking at?
Suddenly, something caught Han’s eye as he glanced around.
“Oh? Wait. Could that be?”
Soon, he recognized what it was, and his mouth slowly opened in surprise.
A small tree standing in front of Irina.
It was disproportionately large, almost as tall as a person’s waist.
It was clearly a type of tree he had seen before.
[The Frozen Tree of Lost Life.]
A frozen broccoli.
Because that was exactly what was in his freezer.
“But why is it here?”
The broccoli labeled as the World Tree was planted right in the center square of the city.
Facing it, Irina muttered with a face full of emotion.
“I finally found it…”
She knelt in front of the World Tree, clasping her hands together in prayer.
A faint blue light emanated from Irina, gently enveloping the World Tree.
It was the manifestation of mana.
In that moment, a miracle occurred.
The seemingly dead World Tree began to regain its original glow.
[The Frozen World Tree begins its recovery.]
In an instant, the frozen broccoli regained its original green color.
The white frost melted away.
Even that wasn’t all.
The frozen ground was thawing, and a green lawn was rapidly growing, reclaiming its original terrain.
The land was recovering.
“Goodness.”
It was truly a sight that was hard to believe even when seen with one’s own eyes, like a lie.
***
The next day.
The first thing Han did upon waking up was to open the refrigerator door.
He checked inside immediately.
“What, where did it go?”
Irina was nowhere to be found.
Han, who had fallen asleep eventually due to fatigue while observing until late yesterday, woke up early to check, but she was nowhere to be seen where she should have been.
Only the sapling that Irina had miraculously grown on the World Tree was left standing alone.
But as he zoomed in on the screen to examine more closely, he caught a glimpse of her trace.
Faint footprints were visible above the fresh snowfall.
Irina had disappeared somewhere.
Han followed that trace.
Before long, he was able to find Irina.
Step by step.
Irina was wandering amidst the ruins.
Looking around as if searching for something.
It didn’t take long for Han to figure out the reason.
“Oh, there it is!”
With a bright smile, she found nothing other than in a secluded corner.
[Mana Mushroom]
A low-grade mushroom subtly imbued with magic, edible.
It was a mushroom.
Though the faint blue glow and dripping appearance seemed somewhat dangerous, it definitely looked like a mushroom based on its appearance alone.
Irina, who had picked it from the wall, put it in her mouth while leaning against the wall, and started chewing.
“Dangerous…!”
Han was momentarily surprised, but soon lowered his hand.
He didn’t think she would lack that level of common sense after spending a long time here.
When it came to survival, she should have been the most knowledgeable.
“Delicious.”
Soon, a clear smile spread across Irina’s lips.
Indeed, contrary to his concerns, it seemed edible.
After finishing the meal, Irina plucked a few more mushrooms growing nearby and walked away.
Irina returned to the snow-covered square where the World Tree stood.
She began planting the mushrooms one by one on the grass next to the World Tree.
Han watched her actions closely.
It was a bewildering sight.
“What. Is she really trying to cultivate that?”
The surroundings were a harsh environment where snowflakes swirled all around.
Although the vicinity of the World Tree had melted the snow, revealing a green grassy field, it was only a very small part.
Logically, such mushrooms couldn’t grow in this cold.
But at that moment.
An unbelievable phenomenon occurred before his very eyes.
The planted mushrooms began to grow!
So much so that even from a distance, it was clearly visible to him.
As if fast-forwarding time, the mushrooms grew rapidly, becoming tall and large in an instant.
“…What on earth is happening?”
Han simply watched in silence, observing the strange phenomenon.
It was a spectacle like an incomprehensible fantasy, beyond any human logic accumulated so far.
The mushrooms that had grown in an instant.
Had now grown even larger than expected.
What on earth was going on?
But the bizarre sight was not over yet.
“Haah.”
Irina, after a light sigh, began to dig into the interior of the giant mushroom that had grown.
Her work continued for a long time.
The astonishing point was that the mushrooms continued to grow throughout her work.
Now, the mushrooms grew layer by layer, taking on a shape resembling a small tower with multiple floors.
Irina made several small holes and then re-dug a large entrance for passage.
Han peered into the interior of the mushrooms through the holes she had made.
To his surprise, what she was diligently creating inside were small things that looked like tables and beds.
She was making furniture inside.
“Amazing.”
She even laid out a torn tent to create a flat bed and bedding.
“Goodness.”
At that point, Han couldn’t help but be amazed.
Surprisingly, she was not only carving out the interior but also creating a living space where she could dwell!
This was a home.
Moreover, not only did she carve out the interior, she also ate the remaining mushroom chunks after digging.
Dealing with the large amount of leftover mushroom chunks, simply putting them outside was sufficient.
A refrigerator was unnecessary.
This world was covered in a serene, snowy silence.
Meanwhile, the continuous growth of the mushrooms finally came to an end.
The giant mushroom, growing to a height of at least 3 to 4 meters, stopped growing and stood tall.
It was a sight akin to magic.
Even after that, Irina’s adventures did not end.
She split a large mushroom in half to make a folding door,
and then began to build a low wall around her mushroom house with the remaining pieces.
Her work continued until the late afternoon, as the sun began to set.
***
In the meantime, Irina’s mushroom house was somewhat complete.
But her ongoing work seemed endless, and at some point, he started to nod off.
It was when he suddenly heard her voice that he snapped back to reality.
“God. Are you still here?”
Abruptly, her voice echoed.
At the sound, Han woke up instantly.
Irina was seen, hands clasped, politely praying to him.
Why is she doing this?
Is something needed again this time?
He widened his view and zoomed in on Irina.
As the distance closed, Irina’s voice became clearer.
“If possible… could you once again bless me with that warm embrace?”
‘Warmth? Ah, she must mean the campfire.’
Come to think of it, the campfire that Irina was enjoying before was now gone.
During the battle with the goblins, the tent collapsed, extinguishing it.
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Although the area near the World Tree seemed to have warmed up a bit with the green grass growing back, it was still quite cold.
No wonder, with only the mushroom house standing alone in the middle of the vast plains.
He was fully exposed to the chilly winds.
As Han was about to make a fire inside, he suddenly paused.
“…Wait, is it okay to light a fire inside that mushroom house? It seems like it might catch fire? That’s completely different from the tent item I summoned.’
[If you are worried about a fire, you don’t need to be concerned. Fires are considered negative effects, so they will not occur.]
‘Is that so.’
The removal of all negative effects.
As felt before, it was truly amazing.
The power of the gods worked entirely differently from the common sense of Han’s world.
Regardless, with the system’s guarantee, he lit the fire without worry.
Flames flickered up in the wall furnace Irina had made.
In an instant, the dark interior brightened, and warmth began to spread.
“Wow.”
Irina, with hands clasped in prayer, widened her eyes.
With a smile on her lips, she looked up at the ceiling and expressed her gratitude.
“Thank you so much, God.”
‘You’re welcome.’
Now he had some leeway in points.
With his level raised, he had accumulated a total of 900 points as a reward.
There was enough extra stamina for Irina.
Even after that, Irina’s work seemed endless.
Watching her gaze at the ruined land covered with snow while crawling up the top of the mushrooms, I couldn’t help but ponder deeply.
She was looking at the ruins.
“…As expected.”
For that reason, I at least easily understood.
“Irina is guarding against the monsters’ approach.”
She settled here.
She’s also trying to protect the world tree planted in the square, not broccoli.
If Irina had been concerned only about her safety, she should have chosen one of the tall buildings scattered everywhere to hide.
But she didn’t do that.
She chose to guard the world tree in the exposed grassland.
Therefore, I became curious.
“Is that world tree… really worth risking her life for?”
Why is she trying to protect the world tree so desperately even in such danger?
“System, what exactly is that world tree? Come to think of it, it was in my freezer too.”
[The world tree is the root of all elves in the world. It is their mother, and at the same time, the center of the earth’s energy for restoration.]
[It helps the surrounding plants grow well.]
[It can also be a precious medium that can help the deities of the races to manifest.]
…Wait, a medium? A precious medium?
At the bewildering sound, his eyes blinked a few times in confusion.
The moment he heard the sound, something clicked.
“Could it mean I could possess it?”
[Correct. If the world tree succeeds in regaining its original power to some extent, you will be able to communicate with the elves at a closer distance using it as a medium.]
“Moreover, the elves, who are always in a state of poverty, will become even healthier than they are now.”
It was definitely a story that could not be ignored.
Listening roughly to the system’s words, without the world tree, wouldn’t he be unable to fulfill his role as a deity of the race?