Martial Elf

「Wake up, my first children.」

A memory of an unconscious state that is hard to articulate.

The voice that opened the second life was singular.

It was a warm and cozy memory, reminiscent of a mother’s embrace.

As perception awakened with light and the chill of the world was felt,

the first emotion experienced was bewilderment.

What was in front of my eyes was not a midwife receiving a child.

As my retinas adapted to the light, the first thing that caught my eye was a tree.

It was immense.

So gigantic and divine that it felt impossible to take it all in at once with mere momentary vision and perception.

No, not merely momentary vision; even when trying to clearly recognize the tree’s presence, it could not be grasped in a single glance.

The size was such that it was impossible to see its end even when looking left and right.

The reason I recognized it as a tree was solely that its outer skin unmistakably resembled a tree.

Would the trees planted in my yard in my past life have to gather a million soldiers to be compared to this tree?

In a daze, I gazed up at that colossal, overwhelming presence and felt a presence nearby.

‘…Huh.’

In my previous life, due to my grief, I hadn’t seen diverse human figures, but I could assure this much.

‘Ordinary humans would be no match for dried fish beside them.’

Their hair was like melted gold, splendidly flowing as if spun from pure gold.

Eyes akin to jade.

Limbs that looked beautifully elongated, as if sculpted from white jade.

Their skin was so immaculate that it seemed to shine softly from the surrounding gentle lights.

Those appearing as men seemed like reincarnations of noble beings, and those appearing as women reminded one of the beauty of celestial maidens.

However, what was unique was that their ears were exceedingly elongated.

Were they, too, just awakening their consciousness like myself? They stood up, gazing blankly at the gigantic tree.

After briefly observing these stunning, naked beings, I felt the need to grasp the situation.

‘I died. My heart could no longer endure; it stopped with all its might.’

After that, naturally, there were no memories.

A dead person cannot contemplate.

Then, is this place the afterlife?

Yet, to say so, the positive life force radiating from that inexplicable, gigantic, divine tree affirmed that assumption to be wrong.

Although I lived a brief life in my previous incarnation, death was always a companion by my side.

There could be no doubt about my sensitivity and understanding of the energies of life and death.

Despite merely being a giant tree, it radiated a warm energy, as if affirming all life, which would not exist in the world of the dead.

If I had to argue, it was not merely an afterlife, but perhaps a realm of divine beings?

The space where this massive and divine tree existed was filled with auspicious energy, extending as if encompassing the entire world.

Moreover, the peculiar sense of connection with this great tree and the warm vitality it invoked in me.

When I thought of a treasured artifact like an elixir nurtured by the queen mother, it would not be surprising for such a tree to exist in the divine realm.

‘And, you see…’

I looked up at the placenta from which I had ‘born.’

Specifically, the flower bud that had served the role of the placenta.

‘Not a lotus, mind you.’

The tale of the deity who was born from a lotus flower.

Or the extraordinary births often seen in ancient national histories, where beings were said to have been born from an egg or flower to reinforce royal authority.

I hadn’t expected myself to be one of those examples.

From the giant tree that seemed to overshadow the world, I noticed seven massive flowers extending from the trunk.

And I, along with the beautiful beings beside me, seemed to have been born from those flowers.

The beautiful beings next to me must be my siblings.

Indeed, an extraordinary birth is extraordinary.

To think that a race could be born from a flower in the vast cosmos that embraces the stars of the night sky.

It’s astonishing enough to be born from a flower, but even more astonishing is being born as an adult without passing through infancy.

Even having skipped infancy, we had stepped into adulthood… as adults?

‘…My vision seems a bit limited.’

The children who might be my siblings were clearly adults in every observant eye.

Those who appeared to be born male were not only tall with significant muscles but also showcased elegant development of numerous minor muscles. (Even their embarrassing parts were quite impressive.)

Those who appeared to be born female were undoubtedly larger than women from the mortal realm, with ample and pleasing breasts and a build that wouldn’t seem out of place even if they were to marry immediately.

In comparison, my own body was as beautiful as white jade, and although my limbs were elongated, it was clear that this physique was distinctly lacking to be considered fully formed.

Furthermore, unlike my male siblings who had quite impressive endowments, there was nothing where I expected even the slightest of something to be.

Was it a defect?

‘No way… Am I wrongly born in this life too?’

While the occurrences of disabilities and poor births are rare in the broad spectrum of humanity, they certainly exist.

I had gone through many medical cases to correct my body.

Children born without arms or legs, children born with one eye, those born with closed anuses, those born without genitals.

In any case, there were almost no cases that lived a normal human lifespan, and their lives often ended tragically, detached from ordinary life.

Like myself, who died young before truly reaching adulthood.

This reincarnation, though born differently from typical humans, seemed to present itself in a form closer to full maturity when considering my siblings.

However, what of myself…?

As the joy of having gained a new life and body began to swell within me, the anxiety stemming from memories of my past life’s heart condition shook my mind.

There is nothing more terrifying than being ‘born differently.’

‘In this… life too, am I to be born with that misfortune?’

Rejoicing in the new life was delightful, but despair soon washed over me as I wondered if I was to suffer again due to being malformed, just like my previous life.

As I was drowning in such thoughts,

「With my body blossomed, my first creations, my children.」

The resounding, filled, auspicious voice reverberated through my mind, shattering the despair that had sunk like a swamp.

The warmth that could not be concealed emanated from the voice.

‘No… It’s not just a voice.’

At first glance, it appeared to be a pinnacle of telepathy akin to the utmost realm of harmony, but it was not a language of sound but rather a language of will.

It seemed to belong to a supreme domain similar to higher communication via the seed of enlightenment.

‘A realm that exists theoretically…’

A realm that, even in the martial world, is known only as a myth.

‘I have witnessed such a formidable domain for the first time, and yet it is not even directed at a human but a tree.’

The curiosity of a scholar surged within me uncontrollably.

As I gazed at the clear clarity rising from the jade-like eyes of my other siblings, a thought came to me.

「My body is vast, with branches that can touch every corner, yet the number of my branches is not infinite, so not all places in the world can bear my branches.」

「With my brothers, I created this world, and my role is to enrich it broadly, but I cannot be omnipotent as a single body.」

「Therefore, with my power, I nurtured my seven avatars with love for ten years, and you are they.」

A warm thought filled with compassion.

Not only I but even my siblings, who still seemed not to have achieved full clarity, began to show expressions as if enveloped in the will of this colossal tree, as if cradling souls instead of mere ‘words’.

「In my name, El·Prigyon, you shall be called ‘Elf,’ and you will become the first seven Elves among them.」

「Value harmony and balance with the world, and if there is a place where the balance of the world collapses, take it upon yourselves to become the tune.」

「Bring widespread benefit. This will be my first and last command to you.」

With the conclusion of that thought, no additional thoughts followed, and all of us who had been dazed atop that immense flower began to look at one another.

Then, the first man who stood by the first flower lifted his head and asked El·Prigyon.

“O great mother, who brings benefit to all the world. We understand your will. However, our bodies are small, and there are only seven of us. What good can come from adding seven small branches to one great branch?”

「I have shared my power with you, so you shall lack for nothing.」

“O mother. Your branches may reach the ends of the world, yet our arms can touch but one before our eyes.”

「Child, what do you wish?」

“We need others to join us. We need beings who will prosper with us.”

「You, my children, possess power, and while the lives of the world might endure only for a moment, living like you is akin to living an eternity. If many like you increase, the balance of the world will be disrupted.」

“We do not need to possess the same strength. However, it is equally vital to spread even a small amount of power wherever we can.”

El·Prigyon fell silent, agreeing with them, feeling that such a thought was accurate.

However, that exact sentiment was felt.

「My siblings, excluding myself, have also each taken on great roles in this world, so I alone cannot disrupt the balance.」

In that moment, El·Prigyon’s colossal form trembled, and green enveloped the world.

Even the tiniest of leaves were colossal in size.

As soon as the leaves touched the ground, they began to transform into human forms, no, into Elf forms.

「These children are like you, yet different. They have not inherited my power, so they will be weaker than you. You desired the promise of prosperity, but if the Elves were to prosper, the balance would be disrupted. Thus, you shall live long lives, love only once, and you may perpetuate your kind solely through that love.」

“Thank you for your mother’s love.”

「Hmm— I am delighted.」

‘…This is absurd.’

As I witnessed the leaves around me transforming into newly born Elves, a shiver ran through me.

Creating new life and a new race?

I had thought being born from a flower was an extraordinary situation, but was this not a scene straight out of a creation myth?

The scale of this narrative was so immense that it reminded me of the story of Pangu from my previous life.

Conversely, I felt relieved due to this.

The divine entity who was my mother in this life, El·Prigyon, would surely not have created me by mistake, and if they possessed the power to enact creation on a race level, they would be able to repair any issues that might arise.

As I reassured myself in my heart, a woman on the second flower opened her mouth.

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