After trusting my instincts, I decided to make use of my Clairvoyance and looked in the direction of where I felt the dark presence. And I was surprised to find a handful of airships approaching the island, all carrying battalions of soldiers. And at their head was a Erune woman who held a dark crystal that just screamed bad news.

Damn it, why would an army come to this island?! Wait... if I remember correctly, wasn't the main antagonist of the first arc of the game an empire seeking to control Primal Beasts or kill them? Don't tell me that's them... If that's the case, then their target must be... Fuck my luck, why did they have to come the day we appeared in this world?

Running quickly towards the inn, I gritted my teeth in anxiety and as soon as I reached the place, I immediately headed for our room, only to stop short when I saw a scene happening in the dining room with Artoria and Merlin, seemingly in the center of it.

"How is she fitting everything in her stomach?! She's like a black hole."

"And she keeps ordering food! The old man won't be able to last long at this rate, he'll pass out!" I heard people screaming as they watched Artoria gobbling down dish after dish, not even bothering about table manners. Meanwhile, I saw a bunch of men kneeling before Merlin who just gave them a smile.

"Please give us your order, Lady Merlin!"

"We will do whatever you ask us to do!"

"How about you pay my little sister's meal bill? If you boys do that, I'll consider stepping on you as a reward." Merlin said, giving the men a coy smile that made them excited as they all nodded so fast I thought they were going to break their necks.

"With pleasure!"

"Please step on me!"

Letting out a sigh, I walked through the crowd of people and approached Merlin who just smirked at me when she noticed me.

"Hi, honey~! You're late. We already started eating without you." Merlin sweetly said as she stood up and hugged my arm in hers, causing the men to look at us in shock, and I swear one of them looked even heartbroken.

Why did this have to happen the moment I took my eyes off them?

"I'm sorry but can you all leave her alone? I don't have the time to deal with you right now..." I muttered the last part, frowning at the men who suddenly paled when I projected my killing intent at them. And without saying a word, they all quickly stood up before they left the inn.

Then, I glanced at Merlin who looked at me with a wide smile, prompting me to hit her head with a karate chop.

"What was that for?"

"For trying to cause trouble. Anyway, I need to talk to you so let's go to our room. Artoria, sorry but finish your dinner quickly, it's an emergency." I told the girl who nodded before she cleaned her dishes as fast as Kirby could suck things into his mouth.

"Humm... Excuse me?" Hearing a voice coming from behind me, I turned to see nobody, only to have the hem of my shirt being pulled, making me look down to see a Harvin holding a piece of paper in her hands.

"Could you pay the meal bill before you go back to your room?"

Taking the receipt from the... young lady? I looked at the fees and quickly paid the amount using the Catalog's bank account, making a bag full of rupies appear out of thin air which then fell in my hand.

"It should have the exact amount." I said, giving the bag to the stunned waitress before I walked back to my room with the girls following me.

"An army is approaching the island?!" Artoria shouted after I explained to the girls about what I saw with my Clairvoyance.

"You're right...And it looks like one of them has already landed on the island. I can see some soldiers entering the forest." Merlin said, using her own Clairvoyance to observe the current situation after I gave her permission to do so, and I could only frown at her words.

Damn, it was faster than I thought.

"But why would they come to this island? Did they come to conquer it?" Artoria asked me while I shook my head.

"Perhaps, but I think that they came to make Yggdrasil their puppet, to take her under their control."

"Her? But why?"

"Yggdrasil is a Primal Beast, a being that was created by a race called the Astrals to be their weapons of war, possessing god-like power. I'm sure controlling such a being would be appealing to anyone if they have the means to, and I heard some unpleasant rumors about them when I walked around town. So, whatever they came here for, I doubt it's with the best intention."

"And, what are you planning to do? This isn't our world, so I don't see why we should interfere with this place's problems." Merlin asked me and I could see her point.

Like she said, we're basically strangers to the world. We have no connection or attachment to this place. If I wanted, I could just abandon the mission and take the girls with me back to our original world. However...

"If their target is really Yggdrasil, then I plan to fight them all. I'm not the kind of person who leaves someone who helped us in trouble. It's only fair for me to repay her for the help she gave us, even if it's a small one."

"I'm going with you, brother." Artoria said as she stood up from her bed but I quickly shook my head, not wanting her to come.

"Sorry, Artoria, but I want you to stay in this town with Merlin. This time, our opponents won't be monsters like earlier, it will be people. Are you really ready to kill someone? To dirty your hands with the blood of others?"

"I... I can do it, so please let me come with you. Brother, you taught me that it is our duty as knights to do the right thing, and right now, I believe it is to protect that person who helped us earlier." Artoria said as she clenched her fists, seemingly determined, while I could only grumble under my breath since I knew how stubborn she could get.

"Just let her go with you."

"Merlin..."

"I believe it's a good opportunity for her to get used to taking people's lives. And she's already fourteen, nearly double the age you were when you took your first step on a battlefield. Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on Artoria so nothing bad will happen to her. In return, I'd like to be generously rewarded when it's all over." Merlin said, whispering the last part which made me let out a sigh, shaking my head in exasperation.

"Please, be more concerned about her well-being, not a reward... Anyway, I'm counting on you." I said before I focused my Magical Energy in my eyes and closed them, activating my Clairvoyance to project my view in the direction of the forest where I saw a vision of a group of soldiers approaching Yggdrasil's home, but also felt something malicious coming from one of them.

"Looks like we have no time to waste. Merlin, can you teleport us to the forest? We have someone to repay a debt to."

As she looked at the starry sky, Yggdrasil couldn't help but think back about the young human she met earlier in the day.

For unknown reasons to her, she felt a bond that linked him to her... No, a bond that linked him with nature itself. And as a Primal Beast based over the concept over the cultivation of nature itself, she was also affected by that bond which surprised her. But it didn't bother her at all.

As a tool created by the Astrals for the singular purpose of storing information, she, like any other tree, would simply watch the world around her, without any curiosity, or desires, merely watching and recording everything that happened within her domain. And it was the first time she experienced such phenomena, much to her surprise.

So, instead of attacking them for intruding in her home, she decided to observe the young human closer as she took him and his companions to the local town. But much to her disappointment, she didn't manage to learn more about him.

Deep inside her core, she slightly hoped to see the young man again, in order to know more about him.

"We have located the Primal Beast."

Hearing a voice coming from the forest, Yggdrasil turned in its direction to see a group of humans approaching her, and when she laid her eyes upon them, she felt a shiver go down her spine when she felt the power of her creators coming from them.

Just as she prepared to attack them, one of the soldiers took out a dark crystal from their pockets and exposed it in the air, its black light shining in a dark light which made Yggdrasil clutch her head in pain.

"As expected from the dark essence. Even monsters like her can't do anything against the Astrals' powers." One of the soldiers boasted with his companions laughing as they looked at Yggdrasil struggle. But then, they blinked when a translucent sword appeared out of nowhere, piercing both the crystal and the soldier's hand holding it, destroying the former.

"Ahhhh! My hand!!"

"Where did that sword come from?!"

"We're under attack! Quick! Report the situation to the Prime Minis-"

Before the soldier could finish his sentence, his head was separated from his body by a glowing blue sword, surprising both the soldiers and Yggdrasil as neither felt the presence of a third party in the surroundings. And then, the others died just like their comrades as they couldn't react in time to the speed of their assailant.

Yggdrasil, free from the headaches, looked at her savior only to see the young man she wanted to see, much to her surprise and joy.

"Are you alright?"

When she heard his concerned voice, she gave him a nod, smiling at him.

""

"Brother, we managed to take care of the others."

"However, it seems we didn't manage to stop them from informing their headquarters in time."

Coming from the forest, she saw his companions walking in their direction, the blonde-haired girl wielding a sword in her hands while the white-haired one was floating in the air, a trail of pink flowers blooming under her feet which surprised the Primal Beast.

"I see... Well, I guess it's only a matter of time before they send their troops...?!"

Then, to everyone's shock, the airships started firing their cannons at the forest in the area where they were.

"What's going on?!" Artoria shouted, not knowing about cannons while Kay simply glared at the flying airships, clicking his tongue.

"Tch! Merlin, Artoria, I'll leave the remaining soldiers on the island to you two. I'll take care of them."

"How?!"

"Do your best~"

And then, Yggdrasil was surprised when she saw the young man float in the air and blinked in shock when she started to feel the power of Providence emanating from him. The power that is the very foundation of their worlds, the laws of the universe and the will of the Omnipotent.

"Alright, it's time to finish this."