The Druid Who Devoured the Great Nature

“Kh… tricks!”

Malay hadn’t even sensed the vines until they were already coiled around his limbs. He thrashed violently, bound tight.

Normally, that would’ve decided the fight. But his resistance was vicious.

Crack!

My forearms strained with pain, the feedback from the vines pulling taut. Each time he flexed, it felt like I was being dragged myself.

He stood there, stock-still like a statue, gripping the vines with both arms and wrenching them outward.

“Khuhuhu! Is this all you’ve got?”

Vrrrm!

Steam hissed from his arms, pistons pumping, and then—the World Tree’s vines shredded like paper.

The Tree recoiled, startled, pulling its tendrils back.

“Some neat little power you’ve got. But compared to machines? Pathetic.”

“I’ll have to disagree there.”

How could cold, lifeless machinery ever compare to living nature?

I’d have loved to give him a whole speech, but time was short.

“If you disagree, then you die.”

He tore a steel railing from the catwalk and hurled it.

Whoosh!

I leapt aside, but the shriek of air being ripped open scraped my ears raw.

That much force—ripping railings apart and burying half its length into the floor—was enough to send chills down my spine.

‘The tricks I’ve relied on won’t beat him.’

Binding him with vines simply didn’t work. He wasn’t even skilled in martial arts—his specs alone, his altered body, were overwhelming.

Bang!

“Where do you think—!”

My shot did nothing but keep him wary.

Even when I aimed for the eyes, his predatory senses caught it, blocking with uncanny instinct.

Like a beast—pure killing instinct, honed sharp.

‘At least his speed isn’t untouchable.’

If I couldn’t win in a sprint, then a marathon might do. I could drag it out.

But the World Tree…

Wilt…

「The World Tree droops its leaves in dejection.」

Those sagging leaves looked pitiful.

It wasn’t pain—it was disappointment. Its power hadn’t worked, and it seemed crushed by the failure.

‘Can’t be helped.’

It was still just a sapling. Not every enemy in this city could be toppled by a single pattern.

This setback was inevitable.

I had no disappointment—only concern for my Tree.

“This is getting boring. If you’ve got nothing else, I’ll end it.”

“You’d be surprised what I’ve got left.”

I hadn’t failed to catch him—he’d just broken free. That didn’t make him invincible.

The warehouse was a ruin now, torn apart by his rampage. Machines, girders, stairwells—everything was smashed and broken.

“You think I was just running?”

“…What?”

If I tried to match his stamina head-on, I’d lose. Flesh and bone against machine and oil? He’d outlast me.

Running forever was the fool’s play. Better to abandon the job entirely.

But I hadn’t been running without thought.

“Your tantrum made things easier.”

I clenched my fists, tightening the vines I’d spread across the warehouse.

The collapsed railings. The shattered stairs. The warped steel. The crushed machines.

The World Tree had already claimed it all.

“Let’s see how much punishment that shiny machine body of yours can take.”

And I pulled.

Grrrk!

“……!”

Realization dawned across Malay’s face. Too late.

That heartbeat of hesitation sealed him.

Rrrrumble!

The warehouse came crashing down.

A mountain of wreckage buried him, crushing him beneath the weight.

Enough force to pulp a normal man instantly.

The thunderous impact echoed while I kept my eyes locked forward.

“Figures… you really did pour a fortune into that body. You lived through it?”

From the pile of debris, a mechanical hand burst free—stripped of its fake skin.

Dented, scratched, leaking some foul mix of blood and oil—but still moving.

Malay clawed himself out, a grotesque mess of flesh and steel.

“Y-you little… fucker…”

“How’s that feel, huh?”

“I’ll kill you. I’ll tear your mouth open, flay your skin, rip out your spine.”

“Quite the damage—you sound more robot than man now.”

I mocked him, but the result was disappointing.

‘At least I should’ve disabled a limb or two…’

All that effort, and he still stood. Just how much had he sunk into his modifications?

Landing the trap felt like I’d taken the hit myself.

“Your little tricks end here. No more aces up your sleeve. Now it’s your turn to die.”

His artificial eyes glowed red, malice radiating like a blade.

Thoom!

His legs coiled and burst, pistons firing, the floor denting under the launch.

In an instant he was right on me.

I crossed my arms, weaving the vines into a shield.

“Die!!”

BOOM!

His punch smashed against my guard, the shockwave blasting outward in ripples.

My muscles couldn’t withstand it—my body shot back like a firework, smashing into the wall.

“Kh.”

My back throbbed, my torn skin dripping warm blood down my clothes.

The vines had spared my arms, but they’d been flattened under the blow.

Iron Hammer—his name was no exaggeration.

“Khuhuhu… now we’re even.”

He sneered at my state.

“One more strike and you’re done. This was fun while it lasted, maggot.”

“….”

My body creaked as I pushed myself up.

One hit was enough to know—I couldn’t dodge him forever.

If I’d wanted safety, I should’ve stayed on the outside, dancing away.

“Not worth it.”

“What?”

“Fighting someone like you alone? That’s worth a bigger payout. I’ll be charging extra on top of the intel.”

Any conscience he had would never agree—but it made me smirk to say it.

His brow twitched.

“You really gone insane? You’ve burned through everything you had, and you still don’t get it? You’re already dead.”

“No. It’s the opposite.”

“What?”

“Who said I’ve shown all my cards?”

I hadn’t yet revealed the true source of my confidence.

“Bullshit.”

He scoffed, lumbering toward me.

But then his gait faltered.

His metal leg buckled with a screech, seizing up and locking in place.

“Kh… damn trickster!”

Malay hadn’t realized until too late—the vines were already coiled around him, his limbs thrashing helplessly.

Ordinarily, the fight would’ve ended there. But his resistance was monstrous.

Crack!

The strain in my arms bit deep, as though his pulling might tear me off my feet.

He stood stiff as a statue, clutching the World Tree’s vines and wrenching them outward.

“Khuhuhu… is that all?”

Vrrrm!

Steam hissed from his arms, pistons pumping violently. The vines shredded like paper.

The Tree recoiled, startled, withdrawing its tendrils.

“Some neat ability… but compared to machinery, you’re lacking.”

“I can’t agree with that.”

To compare cold, soulless metal with living nature—how absurd.

I’d have loved to preach, but time was short.

“If you can’t agree, then you die.”

He ripped a steel railing free and hurled it.

Whoosh!

Even dodging far, the air shrieked painfully as it ripped past.

Force enough to bury half the railing in the floor.

‘The old pattern won’t work on him.’

Binding him meant nothing. He wasn’t a martial artist, but his modified body’s specs were overwhelming.

Bang!

“Where do you think—!”

Even aiming for his eyes only bought me moments. His beast-like senses snapped to every threat, instincts sharpened to a predator’s edge.

‘At least he’s not faster than I can see.’

I could draw this out, wear him down.

But the World Tree…

Wilt…

「The World Tree droops its leaves in disappointment.」

So pitiful, slumping like that. Not pain, but despair—its power hadn’t worked.

‘Can’t be helped. Still just a sapling.’

No single trick would beat every foe in this city. This was only inevitable.

I felt no disappointment—only worry for my Tree.

“This is boring. If you’ve got nothing else, I’ll kill you now.”

“You think I’ve shown all I’ve got?”

He grinned savagely, pistons steaming, stomping toward me.

But then his limbs sparked, currents leaping across them, threatening to short out.

His boasts were hollow—the wreckage collapse had damaged him.

Victory was within reach.

Bzzzmmm.

A faint glow wavered—the spirit of the World Tree, drifting free.

It couldn’t touch machines. No effect here.

But I’d already planned for it.

“Heh… useless tricks.”

Malay batted aside vine after vine like gnats. His words were smug, but his face betrayed the strain.

He couldn’t muster the strength to tear through them anymore. He was saving his last reserves—for one final strike.

After testing his defenses, I had my read.

“Oh? Coming to die on your own?”

I stepped forward instead of fleeing. His grin split wide.

“Good choice! Why drag it out when we can finish quickly? Saves us both the trouble.”

Sparks burst as he slammed his fists together, broken wires exposed, electricity spitting wildly.

“The last gift—I’ll kill you clean. If your skull shatters, you won’t feel pain. Consider it mercy. Everyone else screamed. Well… not that corpses can complain, right?”

He wound his arms like turbines, forcing broken pumps to life. Steam hissed from vents, the heat searing the air.

“One last kindness before you die—tell me who sent you.”

“Brotherhood’s 102nd branch leader. Hattig.”

“Ha! I knew it. That savage, that green-skin mongrel. The higher-ups should’ve punished him, not just given warnings.”

“Green-skin”—a slur, born from goblins, the vilest insult in this world. Using it against an orc was tantamount to a death duel.

“You’ve confessed. Now tell me your last words.”

He was dragging this out. Not because he was merciful—but because he couldn’t muster the strength to crush me instantly.

He was at his limit.

“Last words, huh.”

I dug into my pocket.

Cold metal met my fevered skin.

“That’s not for me. It’s for you.”

“…What?”

“Why do you think I’ve been running my mouth this whole time?”

Not honor. Not oath. I wasn’t the kind to hand enemies comfort before death.

“Call it alms for the dead. Might as well let you walk away thinking you got something.”

There were no witnesses here. And the dead didn’t speak.

“Cheeky bastard.”

His ruined face twitched.

“Still clinging to pride?”

“Say your last words. I’ll give you five seconds.”

“Die!!”

Vrrrm!

His fist thundered forward, charged with killing force—

Thud!

—and buried halfway in the floor.

“What the—!”

“Petrification.”

Bark spread over his arm, thick, hard, consuming. From his fist to wrist, to elbow, to shoulder, the wood swelled and layered, weighing him down like a tree root.

‘Anything can be used differently.’

Armor to defend—or shackles to crush.

Already fatigued, he couldn’t bear the sudden weight.

Pinned like a fly in resin, he flailed uselessly.

“W-what is this…!”

The forced pumps stuttered, steam clogging inside, melting his components from within.

“Time’s up.”

I drew my pistol, checked the chamber.

One last bullet. Perfect.

Click.

I shoved the barrel between his teeth.

“F-fuck! You bastard—Brotherhood won’t—!”

“I told you. No more last words.”

One bullet was enough.

Bang!

Whatever parts of him were metal, his throat wasn’t.

His body shuddered, then collapsed.

The artificial glow in his eyes flickered out. The gears and pumps went still.

I fished a lighter from a corpse’s pocket—a gaudy zippo.

Fwoosh!

His body ignited, the oil in his veins burning hotter than blood. The bark, too, turned to ash.

A corpse could reveal much to trained examiners. No need to hand them proof of my power.

Hattig would cover things—but I couldn’t trust him blindly. Best to leave no trail.

Vrrrm…

“…They’re coming.”

Engines, the whine of bikes, closing in.

Too much noise, too much spectacle. His men were bound to arrive.

If I fought again, I’d die. It was time to flee.

But first—

I dug through the rubble.

My hand closed on the hard case—the one Malay had received from the proxy.

Somehow intact, even after the carnage.

‘I’ll check it once I’m back.’

Since I’d finished this job alone, no one could contest my claim.

A fitting bonus.

Clutching it tight, I slipped into the shadows, leaving the battlefield behind.

(End of Chapter)