Sealed in Steel [ Tank Litrpg ]

"Are you the floramage who created this abomination?" Abbomyr softly said, though his voice was tinged with contempt.

"Didn't I mention it a mere second or two ago?" Gideon drew up to his full height. He looked quite tree-like himself next to Abbomyr. Tendrils from Gideon's own plant symbiotes wrapped his hands and crept up the sides of his neck.

"More abominations?" Abbomyr pushed himself up on a pedestal of vine, ending a foot taller than Gideon.

Gideon raised his chin. "Your anger at my creation is misplaced and hypocritical, herbalist of the Sabyn Twins of Autumn. Are we not doing the same, fiddling with life? Have you not created new plants?" He raised the basket he carried and picked up a handful of dried petals inside. "This Goab Goab flower is far from its natural state! It couldn't have turned into this on its own. Is this not the same as—?"

"Gideon, this isn't the time to argue," Elian said, placing a hand on Gideon's shoulder. Not offending the Sabyn Herbalists was Gideon's concern, but it turned out he was the first to pick a fight with them. Elian should've expected it. On the bright side, better have this argument outside the mountain than on top of it, surrounded by way more Sabyn Herbalists.

"I'm not arguing," Gideon said. "I am pointing out the obvious."

"We are not the same as you, floramage," Abbomyr said. "We do not tamper with the essence of living things. The Goab Goab flower from whence those petals were taken has its life essence intact. We coax it, yes, nudge it to our designs, but we do not force it into this unholy abomination." Abbomyr pointed at Viney with his twig finger quaking in fury.

"You affect life essences just the same," Gideon countered. "I know that you mix them as well. Why don't you look in a mirror, if you have them in your Lodges? Don't hide behind—"

Elian stood in front of Gideon, blocking him from view. "And that's it about life essences. Let's talk about something else. We don't intend any quarrel, Herbalist Abbomyr. We only seek help. Viney here is a—"

"Viney?" Abbomyr raised what could be a brow on his face.

"It's the name of my plant symbiote."

"Such an unappealing name," Gideon muttered behind Elian.

"You gave your plant symbiote… a name?" The wrinkles and cracks on Abbomyr's face lessened. "All plants we help. Their creation is not their fault."

"What are you implying, you—" Gideon started to erupt.

"Shush, now," Elian hissed over his shoulder. "Don't you want help for your creation? We're looking for a cure, aren't we?"

"That, we are," Gideon begrudgingly replied, turning away.

"Let us see Viney," Abbomyr extended a finger toward Viney, and that finger sprouted numerous filaments. Those almost invisible strands connected to Viney's rotting parts.

Lensa stepped out from behind the counter and moved closer to observe what was going on. "The miasma of decay… of negativity. It feels familiar. What happened to, um, Viney?"

"I don't think I can share the specifics of what caused this," Elian said, "for it some private matters of the Temples of Tribulations." He had no issues telling Gideon the truth about Thalman because they were allies in the fight against the Giants. The Herbalists, on the other hand, were newly met; strained acquaintances at the most. And it was a pretty long story to tell. "But I swear that I didn't test negative energies on Viney. The short of it is that we got hit in a fight. I've mostly recovered from but Viney hasn't."

"Good fortune shines upon you, Penitent," Abbomyr said as he withdrew his finger and tendrils. "We have encountered this problem in the past." He nodded at Gideon. "Your floramage friend here is on the right tract. I presume you'll make a variant of a restorative potion with the strained juice of the Goab Goab flower and…"

Abbomyr rattled off a complex recipe. Gideon eagerly jumped in to elaborate on his plan to cure Viney, all animosity forgotten. The two had an animated discussion, as if they were lifelong friend who weren't thinking the other was an abomination moments ago. Elian understood only bits of their discussion. His basic knowledge of herbalism wasn't of much help because Abbomyr and Gideon discussed about how to heal a plant itself instead of using a plant to heal others.

Not wanting to stand awkwardly while the two chatted, Elian spoke to Lensa, who was also standing around awkwardly. "You said this felt familiar. Where did you feel the negative energies before?"

"Um, so-somewhere around the mountain," she said, clearly not wanting to give an actual answer. "I'm not sure."

"Abbomyr said he has dealt with this problem. What was that about?"

She shrugged, still averting her gaze. "I-I don't know. I su-suggest you ask him."

"It's nothing out of the ordinary, Penitent," Abbomyr said in a loud voice, suddenly switching to Elian and dropping his conversation with Gideon. Even Gideon looked surprised.

As Abbomyr neared, Elian noticed traces of yellow powder swirling between Abbomyr and Lensa. They were talking to each other. Abbomyr had said it was their rule to speak like humans in the marketplace; it seemed like this discussion wasn't part of that rule.

"Thank the heavens it's a common problem," Elian said.

"Not common, no," Abbomyr said, following Elian's expectations to correct him. Elian didn't speak, prompting Abbomyr to talk more, "It's an occurrence rare elsewhere but ordinary on this mountain. There are many magical plants here, you see. I suppose that goes without saying. Trees, especially. Even if we don't cultivate them to grow as such, trees are very likely to turn magical given their proximity to the Divine Twins. If ordinary trees outside the mountain can live for hundreds of years, magical trees can reach thousands of years. You may be surprised to know that there are tens of thousands of millennia-old trees on this mountain."

"That many?" Elian exclaimed. "And they're really thousands of years old? Incredible."

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If what Abbomyr said was true, it meant the mountain's deities had been here for thousands of years too. Right when the Covenant of the Gods was forged, the Sabyn Twins probably decided to project their forms onto the mortal plane on this mountain and had never moved since then. If so, it was odd that they'd bother with Golden Grove. What was so special about that place?

"Alas, even magical trees cannot live forever," Abbomyr said. "Some day will be their last. We can extend their lives. We can fight against fate. But the Divine Twins forbid it, mandating that these venerable trees that have seen much of the world be left to rest. Unfortunately, there are times the magical trees face an unnatural death."

"Unnatural death? You mean like getting cut down by, um… outsiders?"

"Very unnatural and violent deaths. It is less common now as the number of our Guardian Herbalists grows and our security strengthens. When it does happen, however, the stump of a venerable tree of magic exudes negative energies. It is the pained cry of a magnificent being with thousands of years ahead of it, ended by a pitiful creature who went even to live past a century."

"I'm just going to say that I've never cut a tree in my entire life," Elian said.

It was sort of true. Back on Earth, he hadn't as much as held an axe or a chainsaw. On Fellenyr, cutting logs with Wendell hardly counted as felling a tree. But during the original timeline, he had cut many, many trees to build houses and fortifications. Technically, that didn't happen since time was rewound, so he wasn't counting that.

"What's the effect of the negative energies of a dying magical tree?" Elian asked. "Is it the same as what's happening to Viney?"

"Indeed, Penitent. Let worries fall from your mind like old leaves. We will help cure your Viney." Abbomyr turned to Gideon. "As for the ingredients you lack, we shall provide them in three days."

Gideon was all smiles. It made him look more sinister instead of friendly. "Isn't it such a splendid world if everyone worked together? I may have flesh, and you, bark, but we're men of knowledge just the same. Or you're a plant of knowledge. What are—?"

"Thank you for your help, Elder Abbomyr," Elian cut in before Gideon could say something offensive. "I almost forgot. About the news of danger… I'll go up the mountain tomorrow with the Grovenians over there. They have something to talk to the Divine Twins. I'll take the turn after them."

"That, you do," said Abbomyr. "Come, Lensa. If you're not going to sell your beetles, collapse your shop and return it to the earth."

"No!" Lensa exclaimed. "I'm going to sell them. I'm participating in this. Just give me time to sort them and—"

"I task you with gathering the ingredients sought by our friends here," Abbomyr said. "That is your new assignment." To Elian and Gideon, he said, "We'll talk more on the morrow. I bid you goodbye." And Abbomyr unraveled his body into many vines once again that sank into the soil until they were no more.

"I'm going too! I take my leave, new friends." Lensa and her shop also descended into the soil. But unlike Abbomyr, Lensa left a huge hole where her shop used to be.

"What was that about the 'news of danger' you uttered?" Gideon asked. "Are you going to tell the Sabyn Twins about the Giants? I thought you were concerned they won't believe you?"

"The Elder Herbalist told me that the Twins sensed danger coming from afar, supposedly warned by plants. Very possible that the Giant invasion is the danger. I don't know how plants got wind of it, but that's that. I think there's a high chance the Twins will believe me."

"What about the second thing you were concerned about? If the Twins believe you but—"

"Wouldn't help because they'd want humanity wiped out," Elian finished. He sighed, shaking their head. "I'll just give them the news. If they won't help, that's their choice. I can't force them."

The next morning, as the sky turned rose-pink and the first rays of sunlight touched the leaves of the tallest trees, a gentle ringing echoed through the forest. Elian assumed it to be the signal that the mountain was open for business because the shops sprouted up the many holes of the marketplace. It seemed that it was also the time to start climbing because a line of people headed to the winding path past the market.

Elian was already awake for a couple of hours. It was still dark when he left the camp. Twenty minutes of heading south, the forest receded as he came up to the river. Elian went into the water for his daily Tribulation, thinking it'd deaden the sound of the impact. Wouldn't want to disturb those still asleep.

It kind of did work. It wasn't so loud.

The strike also caused a mini-tsunami and momentarily emptied that part of the river until the water flowed back in from upstream. Apologies to the fish he inadvertently killed.

"Let us go now, friends," Maveron said. He had fully geared up, armor and sword at the ready. His horse and spear, he left behind. The other Grovenians did so as well. "If this were a normal mountain, it'd take a couple of days to reach the top. But since it isn't, we'll take the stairs with thousands upon thousands of steps straight to its peak. I heard it takes seven hours of continuous climbing. Are your legs prepared?"

"Much better to climb the stairs than hike for a couple of days," Elian said. "And the descent would be easier. I'm up for it. Are you going to be okay, Gideon?"

"My plant symbiotes will do the climbing for me," Gideon said. "They'll support my legs and be my muscles."

Sabyn Mountain was green from afar, but up close, underneath the dense canopy, it was an explosion of colors. All sorts of plants painted a rainbow, crowding each other at the base of the mighty trees. As Elian climbed the stone staircase, he tried to spot any open space. There wasn't any. Everywhere other than the steps was densely packed with life.

"Unnatural," Elian muttered to Gideon. "This reminds me of the Dark Forest."

"Ah, because the trees do not starve the lesser plants of nutrients and lack of sunlight?" Gideon said. "The reason for the anomaly of the Dark Forest is the same as here—there is too much energy in the ground. The difference is that the Dark Forest is plagued by the negative energies of the Forbidden Temple, resulting in sickly, malformed, even monstrous flora and fauna."

"The Dark Forest is really dark," Elian said, looking around. "But why is it so bright around here? All these trees, their crowns covering us. I can barely see the sky. Where's the light coming from?"

"Nowhere and everywhere at once."

"That's your answer?"

"The answer is that I don't know," Gideon said, chuckling. "Add that to the list of things you want to ask the Sabyn Twins."

Elian grinned. Gideon got him there. It was rare for the grouchy floramage to joke. "The animals are enjoying the insane growth of plants. Look over there, a herd of feldeer is having an eat-all-you-can buffet. I wonder how their populations don't balloon out of control."

"What is this buffet you speak of?"

"Ah… It's a word from my hometown. It just means a great feast."

"Great feast aside, we do not need to meet the Sabyn Twins," Gideon said. "Abbomyr and that beetle lady will help us with the ingredients. The Twins most likely won't care about the invasion. Is your heart still set on—" he lowered his voice "—saving Golden Grove?"

"Of course," Elian said. On top of saving lives, which was the important part, he also wouldn't let Hinter become a withdrawn husk like that.

While having dinner with the Grovenians last night, Elian asked them about Hinter Engall, claiming someone told him that he was a good swordsman. Bizarrely, Maveron and the others laughed. They told Elian that someone was playing a prank on him. Hinter Engall wasn't a swordsman but rather a man learned in letters and numbers, taught by his merchant father to run their business someday. Elian recalled parts of Hinter's story about their family business, but Elian was sure Hinter had the training to be a swordsman. No one could become that good in a few months.

Either Hinter concealed his skills from the rest of the Grovenians, or the Hinter that Elian had known wasn't the real one.