I Supported My Fiancé for 10 Years After He Said, 'Let's Get Married When I Succeed,' but When He Finally Did, He Dumped Me. By the Way, I'm a Witch and Turning 30 Next Year!! - Episode 48

“Hey, can we return to the Holy Church?”

“I have no idea!!”

Carbuncle declared confidently, puffing out its chest. It gave me a headache just hearing that.

“To be honest, I was only thinking about checking on the World Tree.”

It clapped its hands together and apologized with a firm, “Sorry!!”

“This isn’t something that can be solved with just an apology, but it’s also my fault for not asking before we entered.”

I vaguely remembered hearing something about the Great Forest before.

This place was a unique space in the world, where time flowed differently.

There were stories of people who spent ten hours in the Great Forest, only to find that twenty hours had passed in the outside world.

If we didn’t find the World Tree and escape quickly, we’d probably be treated as missing persons.

“I think I remember hearing that there’s a teleportation circle somewhere in the Great Forest for escaping.”

“Oh! Then, after we check on the World Tree, we just need to find that teleportation circle!”

Carbuncle sounded optimistic, but would things really go that smoothly?

To be honest, I had never expected to venture into the Great Forest, so I wasn’t prepared at all.

Going forward, I would be traveling through this forest with only Carbuncle, who seemed to have no combat abilities… No, not just a little—this was seriously worrying.

“Hey, just in case, I want to ask—what exactly can you do?”

Carbuncle was a sacred beast meant to protect the Saint. Maybe it could at least use some offensive magic.

“Me? I’m adorable and can use offensive holy magic! But… I can only use holy magic when I’m near the Saint!”

“So, right now, you’re just an adorable, charming little Carbuncle?”

“That’s right! Well, I can use some minor support magic, like invisibility.”

It seemed I couldn’t rely on Carbuncle for combat.

That meant I had to do something myself.

“I’ll try summoning Merv Maple.”

“Can you do that?”

“I’m not sure.”

Merv Maple was bound to me by contract, meaning I could usually summon it from anywhere. But this was the Great Forest, and things were different here.

Still, I had to try! With that determination, I cast the summoning spell.

“Come forth, Merv Maple!!”

Please, come here!!

I poured my desperate wish into the spell.

A magic circle appeared, glowing brightly.

And within the light, a silhouette that looked like a radish began to form—

“I’m Merv Maple.”

Raising its leafy hands, Merv Maple responded.

“Merv Maple, I’m so glad!!”

Without thinking, I hugged its small body.

Even though it didn’t understand the situation, Merv Maple gently patted my back.

“I’m sorry, Merv Maple. I accidentally ended up in the Great Forest.”

“It’s okay. Merv Maple has been here before.”

“What? Really?”

Merv Maple nodded. Apparently, it had come here once with the previous Herbal Witch.

“Then, do you know where the World Tree is?”

“The World Tree?”

“It’s an unbelievably huge tree.”

“If it’s a big tree, then this way.”

To my surprise, Merv Maple actually knew where the World Tree was.

It started walking, its little steps slow and steady, guiding us forward.

“Not that way. There are monsters.”

Somehow, Merv Maple could sense the safest route, avoiding encounters with monsters. I was so relieved I almost cried.

The Great Forest was filled with creatures so strong that even groups of Holy Knights struggled to defeat them. Every expedition here was a life-or-death situation.

I took out my pocket watch to check the time, but the hands kept spinning wildly, likely due to the distortion in space-time. It was completely useless.

Since we arrived in the forest, I estimated we had been here for about three hours.

By now, Ie might have already resolved the situation and returned.

He was probably looking for me. The thought made my chest ache.

But after coming this far, I couldn’t leave without confirming the state of the World Tree.

“Merv Maple, how much farther?”

“Almost there!”

I had expected the journey to take hours or even days, but apparently, we only had about ten minutes left to walk.

Maybe we’d be able to return sooner than I thought.

That was what I had been hoping—until we reached a massive gate covered in sinister black vines.

“Merv Maple, is this the entrance to the World Tree’s area?”

“Yes.”

Just touching those vines looked dangerous.

“This… is dark magic, isn’t it?”

“This ominous aura… There’s no doubt.”

Did that mean a dark magic user had already reached the World Tree?

The thought alone sent chills down my spine.

“If something happens to the World Tree, would the Holy King or the Saint notice?”

“No, probably not. They are merely symbolic figures now, without the miraculous power they once had.”

“Then… that means the World Tree—”

I didn’t even want to say it out loud.

There was a possibility that the World Tree had already fallen into the hands of a dark magic user.

“For now, we need to do something about those sinister vines.”

But the only thing that could counter dark magic was the Saint’s grand holy magic.

“Hey, Carbuncle, can we call the Saint here?”

“Uh… hmm…”

“Be clear! Answer me quickly!”

“Well, sorry, but… I’ve been keeping quiet about this—the current Saint doesn’t have any power.”

“Is that because her soul was switched?”

“No, that’s not it. Even before the soul switch… the previous Saint, and the one before her… none of them were real Saints.”

“You’re lying.”

“Would I lie in a situation like this? I’ve been hinting at it all along—the Saint has no miraculous power. She’s just an idol.”

“Why…? Since when?”

“I don’t know. Ever since I became a sacred beast, that’s how it has been.”

The Saint was nothing but a fake, incapable of saving anyone.

Hearing that truth, I was left speechless.