Chapter 132: Just Pour the Holy Water Directly

“Alright, we’re ready.”

“Okay! I’m ready anytime too!”

We were in the sky. Floating high above the forest, we had used our three-dimensional movement skill to transport the entire home garden.

Far below us, the giga golems still circled Fafnir, engaging the monstrous dragon in battle. Even after taking countless attacks, Fafnir didn’t seem to be showing any real signs of weakness.

Beneath our feet, large fruits lay scattered across the floating garden. They looked like coconuts, but inside each one was nothing but holy water.

Exactly as Sena had suggested—“Why not just douse him directly with holy water?”—we were preparing to drench Fafnir in a torrential rain of sanctified liquid. Using the vast expanse of the second home garden, we had grown a massive supply of holy water remotely, then harvested it from afar.

Of course, not all of it fit beneath our feet. More than half remained stored using the harvest preservation skill, ready to be retrieved in succession. And even now, we were cultivating a second batch, just to be safe.

“Throw them!”

“Sena, it’s your turn.”

“Got it!”

We hurled the holy water–filled fruits into the air. Immediately, Sena followed, releasing her flying blades toward them.

Swish—swish—swish—SPLASH!

“――――――!?”

A sudden downpour of holy water rained from the sky. The instant it touched the cursed miasma surrounding Fafnir, the air cleared, and the dragon began to falter in confusion.

“It’s working so well!”

Anii’s exclamation was spot on—the effect was incredible. I was glad we had upgraded from medium-quality to high-quality holy water after all.

“Keep throwing!”

One by one, we continued to drop the fruits, and with every hit, the black miasma covering Fafnir thinned. With the golems’ attacks combined, the damage to the dragon grew more pronounced.

“Aaaaah…”

Before long, Fafnir was barely hanging on. Finally, with a deafening tremor, the massive body collapsed.

“We did it!”

“Did we actually bring him down…?”

Fafnir didn’t move a muscle. It seemed we had successfully defeated him.

“…Something’s wrong?”

“Huh?”

The first to notice was Shifa-san. As she looked closer, the scales covering Fafnir’s body began bubbling and frothing.

We braced ourselves, unsure what might happen next—then, suddenly, Fafnir’s massive form exploded.

“――――!?”

A jet of pitch-black liquid, almost indistinguishable from the miasma itself, shot into the air like a fountain. Then it rained down across the entire forest. Without the protective barrier, we would have been drenched by it.

“The forest…”

Shifa muttered in horror. The forest had already been suffering from widespread miasma corruption, and now it would endure even more devastation.

Even though Fafnir was dead, the miasma did not recede. At this rate, the forest might be completely swallowed.

“T-This is the terrifying part of Fafnir’s miasma… Even if you defeat the main body, the surrounding miasma doesn’t disappear… I’ve heard of entire countries where half the land became uninhabitable…”

Sarassa-san’s words were chilling.

“C-Couldn’t we just… cleanse it with holy water?”

“There’s no way we could cover the whole forest! By the time we did, it’d be dead already!”

Anii’s frustration was justified. Even if holy water could purify the miasma, the sheer scale of it now made the task seemingly impossible.

“We need to return to the village for now. We have to warn everyone…”

“Shifa…”

We rushed back to the elves’ village. Waiting for us at the entrance was Shifa-san’s grandfather, as if he had been expecting our return.

“Shifa! You’re safe! I was worried sick!”

“Grandpa, it’s bad. If this continues, the forest will die.”

“What!?”

We explained the situation briefly. His eyes widened in shock.

“A… a monster that dangerous… and you actually defeated it…?”

“But the miasma isn’t subsiding. Even the village might be consumed.”

“I-I understand! We must go to the elder immediately!”

Guided by Shifa-san’s grandfather, we made our way to the elder’s home.

“I am the elder. What on earth has happened?”

The elder looked every bit the part of an old man. I wondered what his true age might be… but that didn’t matter now.

After we recounted the events, the elder grew visibly alarmed.

“W-What!? Then we must evacuate immediately!”

“Elder!? You mean… abandon the village our ancestors have protected for generations!?”

Shifa-san’s grandfather’s voice rose with anger. I could understand his reluctance; leaving their home was no easy matter.

“Fool! Life is far more important!”

The elder’s voice cut through firmly. His conviction was unwavering—he knew exactly what should take priority.

“I’m not ready to die yet!”

…Wait, hold on. Did he mean that literally—just because he didn’t want to die?

No, it had to be his responsibility as the guardian of the elves’ lives, right? I had to believe that.

“Um… Elder…”

“Hmm? What is it?”

I spoke cautiously to the elder, who was already rising to prepare for evacuation.

“Actually, there might be a way to avoid evacuating…”

“What!? What do you mean?”

“What if we… just rebuild the entire forest?”

“…Huh?”