Ascension of the Sylvan Cosmos.

 Cinderielle had to take a carriage from Fortuna City to a neighboring city. Verdantia's house was quite far away from Fortuna City, unlike Cinderielle's parents, who bought a residence in Fortuna City to help her attend the Academy she was currently attending. Verdantia's parents just sent her over there in carriages.

With the carriage ride prepared and a few weeks of vacation still at their disposal, Cinderielle seized the opportunity to venture to Verdantia's place. The prospect of getting to know each other better was a needed one if she wanted to speak about Liu Shu.

From the quality of the wood and metal used for the Carriage, Cinderielle could tell that Verdantia's family was anything but simple. She had always given that aura of not being a normal person.

Her attitude was polite yet elegant. When she spoke, her word choice was casual, but there were times when that classiness of high-born people showed up.

Cinderielle's family was the most common type. Her parents had a decent income, and her house was big enough for them to live comfortably. She could afford some luxuries during her childhood, and she never had any real hardships.

Looking across her, she saw Verdantia carrying a few books with her. Interestingly, the books were about a wide variety of themes: potion-making, creature summoning, politics, Woodcrafting, economy, basic infrastructure, self-sustainable energy sources, and much more.

There were around 25 books with complex and diverse themes. "Do you like to read?"

Verdantia looked up from a potion-making book, and her verdant green eyes looked around before she answered. "I don't dislike it. I've gained a few interesting hobbies lately, though."

Cinderielle smiled and teased. "It feels like you are trying to learn how to lead a city or something of a similar nature."

Verdantia smiled calmly. "Why might Miss Cinderielle be curious about my interests?"

Cinderielle crossed her arms with a laugh. "It's not quite nice to be on guard with a guest, right?"

Verdantia lifted an eyebrow. "What if I don't treat you like a guest, Miss Cinderielle?"

Cinderielle snorted. "Don't try to scare me. We both more or less know why we are having this meeting. I'll wait to ask more direct questions later. However, know that I can tell why you are like you are and what your general intentions are."

The voluptuous woman placed the book aside after leaving a page marker between the page she was reading and looked at Cinderielle seriously. "Miss Cinderielle. The reason I've invited you was to show your faith and intent to speak and reach a conclusion. I didn't want to stay in Fortuna City because of several reasons, but the main one is that Fortuna City is…" Verdantia paused and said meaningfully. "…guarded."

Cinderielle's orange eyes flashed with deep thoughts. 'While it was expected, this is nothing but an admission about or confirmation of my doubts.'

Verdantia continued. "So, Miss Cinderielle, let's wait until we reach my residence, and we can speak in private."

The journey was a few hours, and by the time they arrived, it was near lunchtime. After they stepped down from the carriage, Cinderielle's mind was not focused on her increasing hunger. Instead, she was looking at the large mansion with her mouth agape.

The large building, made of beautiful wood branches, was crowned with several large canopies that provided natural shade while allowing sunlight to pass through. It felt as if the manor was a mix of several trees whose trunks interlocked to form a building-like shape.

Verdantia spoke when she saw Cinderielle's startled expression. "Our house was built by using our family's hereditary skills to manipulate life. I am a Life-related sylvan, and so were my mother, grandmother, and previous generations. Moreover, our family has never mixed with human lineage, making us pure Sylvans."

Cinderielle frowned. "Are you calling me impure?"

Verdantia looked at Cinderielle deeply. "You are an exception. You seem to be completely pure while being born from the mix of a Human and a Sylvan. Either your mother's genes completely overpowered the father's genes or…" Verdantia smiled but didn't follow her words.

Cinderielle frowned, not getting her hidden meaning. "Or what?"

Verdantia shrugged. "Don't worry about that, Miss Cinderielle. Let's go inside… Oh!" Verdantia exclaimed. Since you are here, how about you eat lunch with my mother, her partner, and me?" She clarified. "Of course, if Miss Cinderielle feels uncomfortable, we can eat in my room."

Cinderielle blinked. "Do you have servants?"

Verdantia shook her head. "Nothing as such. Our family has plenty of techniques to summon creatures. Between them, there are many who were created to summon house-cleaning beings."

As they walked through the path that crossed the frontal garden, Cinderielle asked with curiosity. "What's your stance about summoned creatures?"

Verdantia looked back with a puzzled expression. "In what meaning?"

Cinderielle commented. "Aren't there people who said that summoning creatures to do your bidding is evil?"

Verdantia snorted. "Ignorant people who don't know about the matter, but because their lives are worthless if they don't get themselves to be known, they rather spew nonsense than research about the matter." Verdantia shook her head. "Don't tell me that explaining can do anything, though. Do you think someone who didn't bother researching a subject and has a strong and unbending stance can be reasoned with? Naïve!"

Cinderielle was startled when Verdantia raised her voice. It was the first time she heard something like this coming from her. Until now, even when she was annoyed in class, she always kept an elegant and somewhat soft approach to her words. Yes, her way of speaking became sharp when she was annoyed, but Cinderielle could swear that she had never heard Verdantia raise her voice.

As if the tall and voluptuous woman had realized as well, she cleared her throat and spoke. "Excuse my rudeness, Miss Cinderielle. I didn't mean to elevate my voice. However, such matters have always been a delicate spot for me."

While she was surprised, she was quick to regain composure and smiled. "Don't worry, Verdantia. It is normal to get agitated about things you truly hate." The fire Sylvan remembered her fight against those Level 11 monsters and sighed. "Recently, there was a moment when I also lost my cool, and I did an idiotic thing. Well, everything went well in the end."

They entered through a hole covered in clean vines that acted like a curtain and a door. The vines had three layers: an outer one with thick vines, a middle one with extremely thin vines that looked like greenish hairs, and then another one behind made of regular vines.

This surprised Cinderielle. "There is not a door?"

Verdantia smiled without explaining. "Whoever tries to enter without permission will not have a good time."

Cinderielle's hand stopped before touching the vine curtain, looking at Verdantia carefully. "I have permission, right?"

Verdantia placed a hand on her mouth and smiled. "Who knows~?"

Then, she entered without waiting for Cinderielle.

The fire Sylvan's eyebrow twitched a few times, but she just sighed and extended her hand. The touch of the vines was smooth and comfortable. However, there was a strange sensation on her hand, as if something was moving around her palm.

Curious, she looked and saw the vine's very faint movement. 'Oh? They are active vines.'

Curious, she analyzed it.

***

Level: 20

Aether Mana Shards: 13,006/13,006

Phoer Body Shards: 40,290(40,290

Anima Energy Shards: 21,651/21,651

***

Her heart skipped a beat, finding these numbers quite terrifying. 'No wonder she said that intruders won't have a good time. Because one wouldn't expect it, even higher-level creatures would fall prey to this thing. Scary, scary. Verdantia's family is really not simple.'

After crossing the vine door, Cinderielle was welcomed with a charmingly adorned front hall. The beautiful nature-like ambiance around the house gave Cinderielle, as a Sylvan, a really positive, welcoming feeling.

Moreover, there was a scent in the air that relaxed her senses, making her feel at home. Verdantia's voice reached her ears, snapping her out of her reverie. "Welcome to my humble abode, Miss Cinderielle."

Looking over, she saw Verdantia looking at her with a courteous expression. Since she was a guest, she decided to return the courtesy. "Thank you for inviting me as well, Miss Verdantia. It is a pleasure to enter such a magnificent house."

Verdantia chuckled. "It really doesn't suit you."

Cinderielle asked with a frown. "What do you mean?"

Verdantia smirked. "Being lady-like. It's quite the contrast."

Cinderielle's lips began twitching. "You really like teasing me, don't you?"

"Let's go. We are just in time for lunch. Mother and her partner must be waiting."

'Verdantia's mother, eh.' Her gaze couldn't help but roam the green-haired woman's curvy body once. 'She really is… full where it matters. Moreover, she looks slim beside those places. Tsk, tsk. What a body.''

"Mother, I've arrived with a friend."

"Oh? That's rare. Welcome, and don't be shy. If you are Verdantia's friend, you should treat this house as if it were yours."

Cinderielle was instantly mesmerized by the woman's calming and gentle voice. Even before she could land eyes on her, her aura was similarly powerful and profound, eliciting a sense of respect within the comfort her aura provided, like a gentle ruler.

As she raised her eyes, unlike the bombshell body that she expected, Verdantia's mother was relatively slim. Her body type was much closer to Cinderielle than Verdantia.

Regardless, when she compared Verdantia's and her mother's faces, she couldn't help but exclaim in her mind. 'Alike. Incredibly alike.'

Other than the body, their faces were almost identical. Verdantia's mother had soft almond eyes with green irises. Her long eyelashes and beautiful eyebrows highlighted the elegance and softness of her facial features, while her beautifully shaped jaw and neck added grace to her overall appearance.

Cinderielle smiled politely. "My name is Cinderielle, Madam. I'm sorry for coming so abruptly. Madam must've been surprised."

Verdantia's mother laughed and gestured to the chairs on the other side. "Don't worry, pretty girl. It is really rare for my daughter to bring someone with quite a lot in common."

Verdantia and Cinderielle were puzzled at her words. If anything, they were pretty different from each other. One of them controlled Aether Mana and Fire, while the other focused on Anima's energy and Life.

Of course, the mother added. "I'm not referring to your appearance." She chuckled softly and smiled. "So, there is a new World Tree around? Quite an interesting find you both did.

Cinderielle's body tensed up as her heart constricted, but with quick acting and perfect wording, she acted curious. "Madam, I don't know any new world tree."

Instead of adding a long explanation, a short and concise denial would come a long way.

However, Verdantia's mother sipped on the tea and smirked. "I can smell the same World Tree fragrance from you, the same one my daughter has around her staff."