The forest changed the moment I followed the Verdant Echo.
The path beneath my feet became less a trail and more a suggestion—roots winding in patterns too symmetrical to be random, branches bending just enough to let me pass. It wasn't guiding me. It was… letting me in.
The Echo didn't speak. It didn't need to. Its steps were slow, deliberate, almost ritualistic. Every movement stirred the forest. Leaves trembled. Stones rolled softly out of the way.
It was like the entire woodland held its breath as I passed.
After what felt like hours, we reached a clearing.
Except… clearing wasn't the right word.
This place wasn't open.
It was hidden.
A ring of trees enclosed the space like guardians, their trunks twisted into spirals that reached toward the sky. Moss coated every surface. The air shimmered faintly with green light, like mist woven with mana.
And in the center stood another tree.
Not as large as the Dormant One.
Not as dead either.
But old. In a different way.
I stepped forward slowly.
The System buzzed, low and uncertain.
[Unknown Energy Field Detected.]
[Location: Verdant Grove.]
[Ambient Life Saturation: 97% — CAUTION ADVISED.]
"Why?" I whispered. "What is this place?"
The Verdant Echo turned to face me.
It raised both hands.
And the grove responded.
Vines slithered from the ground. Not threatening. Curious. They wrapped gently around my feet, my arms, my chest—not to bind me, but to read me.
And then—
[Life System Link Extended.]
[New Trait Unlocked: Verdant Imprint.]
[Your body now resonates with high-density life zones. Vital Threads will grow stronger within such places, but caution, your presence may awaken what sleeps within them.]
I sucked in a breath.
The vines let go.
I stumbled back, heart racing.
"What does that mean?" I said aloud. "Awaken what?"
[...Processing.]
Great. Even the System needed a minute.
The Verdant Echo stepped aside.
Behind it, the moss had shifted.
Revealing stone.
Carved stone.
Stairs.
Leading down.
Because, of course, there were stairs.
I stared at them.
The System pinged again.
[Quest Progression: Roots of the Forgotten.]
[New Objective: Descend into the Grove's Heart.]
[Caution: Vital energy levels are unstable below.]
[Reward: Unknown.]
[This is not a tutorial. You might die.]
I looked at the Verdant Echo. "Are you coming?"
It didn't answer.
Didn't follow.
It simply turned its back and stepped into the trees, vanishing like mist in sunlight.
Leaving me alone with a staircase into the earth.
I exhaled, glanced once at the sky through the canopy, and took the first step down.
It was damp. Cold. The walls were slick with vines that pulsed faintly as I passed. The deeper I went, the stronger the pressure in my chest became—like diving too far underwater.
Ten steps.
Twenty.
Thirty.
Then the walls opened up into a cavern.
I froze.
Roots coiled across the ceiling like veins. Crystals jutted from the floor, glowing faintly green. And in the middle, suspended in the air like a cocoon, was a body.
A human.
No. Not quite.
His skin shimmered like bark. His hair flowed like moss. But his face, what I could see of it, was peaceful. Eyes closed. Chest still.
Still breathing.
[Entity Detected: Verdant Kin.]
[Status: Life-Suspended.]
[Link to Dormant Tree: Confirmed.]
[Do you wish to attempt connection? Y/N]
I didn't answer right away.
This wasn't like the deer.
This wasn't like the vine.
This… was something sacred. Ancient.
I stepped closer.
Raised my hand.
And placed it gently against the cocoon.
The glow surged.
[Vital Thread Engaged.]
[Warning: Thread unstable.]
[Stabilizing…]
A rush of images slammed into me.
Forests burning.
Roots screaming.
The Dormant Tree—alive, once. Vast. Divine. A god among flora.
Then betrayal.
Fire. Metal. Chains.
Cut down not by nature, but by humans.
Mages.
Bloodlines.
People like my family.
I staggered back, gasping.
My vision blurred.
The System shouted.
[WARNING: Energy spike detected.]
[Verdant Kin Reacting—!]
The cocoon burst open.
The man fell forward.
I caught him instinctively, even as my knees buckled.
His eyes snapped open.
They weren't green.
They were white.
Blinding.
He opened his mouth—
And screamed.
Not words.
Power.
Pure, unfiltered life force exploded out from him like a shockwave.
The cavern cracked.
The vines shrieked.
And everything went white.