"Then you'd better hurry up and think of a solution..."
Maggie sighed and looked at Harlanthel helplessly.
It seems that this person has not yet obtained the position of the Forest God and can only be considered a false god for the time being, but even as a false god, he should be many times stronger than an ordinary elf.
How could they just stand by and watch the Elf Mother Tree gradually decline without doing anything?
"..."
As soon as she finished speaking, Harlanzel seemed to be put on pause. The once energetic elf was instantly enveloped in a gloomy aura.
He remained silent, his lips pressed together, unable to utter a single word, and the vines that entwined his body had completely withered.
The atmosphere instantly fell silent as Maggie looked at Harlanther, whose reaction was clearly off.
She suddenly realized that what she had said had hurt him.
With just a little thought, I can figure it out.
Haransel must have already made every effort to save the Elven Mother Tree. If he hadn't been helpless, he would probably be on his way to the sacred mountain to participate in the war of the gods.
Instead of staying in this almost desolate Green Forest, circling around the Elf Mother Tree and never leaving.
She said the wrong thing.
Maggie was somewhat annoyed by her thoughtless words after all the danger was over. Even if Harlanther would become the god of the forest in the future, he wasn't yet, and she shouldn't be so harsh on him.
"Feel sorry."
Realizing her mistake, Maggie was never one to be afraid to admit her wrongdoings out of pride or face, so she readily apologized to Harlancer.
Harlanser seemed surprised to receive an apology. He looked up blankly at Maggie's pale gold eyes, and finally shook his head gently, without blaming Maggie.
"fine......"
After they finished speaking, the atmosphere between them froze again. Maggie couldn't hold back any longer and broke the silence by speaking again.
"How are you?"
Maggie asked cautiously.
"Ah? It's alright... But it was indeed my fault that the mother tree was tainted by the filth. As the Elf King, I couldn't think of any way to restore the mother tree's vitality. It was truly my dereliction of duty."
A faint bitterness appeared in Haransel's eyes. Whether it was because he had no one to confide in or because Maggie had apologized to him, he did not hide the predicament the elves were currently facing and appeared quite remorseful.
The once handsome and refined young elf, now displaying such a vulnerable expression, would surely evoke pity even in the gods.
However, Maggie didn't pay much attention and didn't react much. Instead, considering the potential impact on the future, she decided to ask her if she had any useful suggestions to share with him.
"Is there anything I can help you with?"
Maggie asked tentatively.
"You're human, you can't. Besides, even if you were an elf, I still wouldn't agree."
Harlanser glanced at Maggie and firmly refused.
"You mean, if I were an elf, I could be of some help to the Elf Mother Tree?"
Maggie keenly noticed the pause in Harlanser's speech, lowered her head thoughtfully, and after a long while asked a question in return.
Harlanser was surprised by Maggie's persistent questioning attitude, so he could only sigh and continue.
"The elves all receive the blessing of the Mother Tree, and part of their power comes from the Mother Tree. Therefore, the elves and the Mother Tree are connected. In other words, the Mother Tree can give the elves power, and the elves can also absorb the impurities of the Mother Tree back."
The explanation was very detailed, which made Maggie understand something.
"So, you're using this method to alleviate the erosion of the Elf Mother Tree?"
This is equivalent to distributing the poison evenly among the elves, so that everyone shares the burden.
However, this is only a temporary solution and cannot completely eliminate the root cause of the pollution, so the mother tree will continue to be eroded.
"That was true before, but we can't keep going now. Many elves have fallen ill. As the Elf King, I can't just stand by and watch them harm themselves to save the Mother Tree's life."
As Harlanthal spoke, his expression grew increasingly guilty, as if he were saddened that he had not made the elves stronger, but instead had brought disaster upon himself.
"Is this the reason you didn't participate in the God War?"
Maggie suddenly asked another question.
"The race is facing a life-or-death crisis. If I leave now, it would be irresponsible. Without the Mother Tree, no elves will grow up. If the underage elves do not receive the blessing, they will die on the day they turn three hundred years old, and no elf will ever come of age again."
Harlanser paused for a moment, then nodded.
"At worst... after the war of the gods ends, I will seek the favor of one of the gods and become his servant, as long as he can protect the Elven race."
He spoke in a somewhat difficult tone, clearly indicating that this decision was not easy to make.
The elves once ruled an era, but now they are forced to become subservient to a god. No one can accept that.
However, given the current state of the Elven Mother Tree, Haransel is absolutely unable to leave, as the Elven Mother Tree is not far from its complete demise.
If you leave now and come back after the war of the gods is over, the mother tree will definitely be dead by then.
Even if Haransel truly seizes the throne, the Elven race will lose all hope of reproduction. Even if newborn Elves are born, none will survive to adulthood, and the remaining Elves will dwindle until the last one dies.
The Elven race was completely wiped out.
Only Haranthal remained as an elf, sitting on the throne of a god.
From Haransel's current perspective, the future of his race is more important than his own personal ascension to godhood and immortality.
"That's not a good idea."
Maggie stroked her chin and said.
Each god's favoritism towards its own race is obvious, and the protection one can obtain from gods of other races is probably negligible.
Harlanser gave a soft "hmm". He had considered all the possibilities that Maggie had taken into account, but he really had no other choice.
Maggie was actually a little puzzled, because even the erroneous version of the continental history did not record this part of the story, and she had no idea that the Elven race had encountered such a disaster before the Age of Gods.
The corruption of the Elven Mother Tree was a devastating blow to the Elven race, and it's strange that not a single historical record was left behind.
Moreover, if we extrapolate the process from the result, Haransel must have solved the problem encountered by the Elven Mother Tree in order to become the God of the Forest, and the Mother Tree would have lived healthily through the Age of Gods, allowing Haransel to see her in reality.
So Maggie reached out and patted Harlansel on the shoulder, and said to him earnestly.
"Don't worry, the Elven race will not perish; there will definitely be a way."
Perhaps the 'trust' in Maggie's eyes was too strong, for Harlanser was momentarily distracted.
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