The room fell silent after Raphael's revelation.
The massive tree in the center no longer looked like an eccentric centerpiece. Its roots stretched across the floor like veins, its trunk alive with a hidden fire, its branches reaching beyond the ceiling as if trying to escape the confines of this place.
The glow Raphael sensed within it seemed to pulse faintly now, a heartbeat inside wood and bark.
"...That thing's been sitting here this whole time and none of us noticed it was a bomb in disguise?" Somner muttered, clutching his jacket tighter. "Fantastic. Just fantastic."
Magni's laughter boomed, echoing through the glass dome. "Not a bomb, Brother Somner! Look at it! Standing tall, roots like chains of the earth itself. A tree of glory, born from fire and sky!"
"Or born from humanity's worst nightmare." Ymir said, his voice like cold iron.
