After having granted Kadashayka a name, the three of them continued their journey toward the World Tree. However, Xochipilli pouted and whispered under his breath how he hadn't been given one. Aloe didn't know if he thought he was being stealthy or if he was actually making a petition, so she just ignored the boy with a smile.

  The closer they got to the Heart of the Evergreen, the darker everything became. Not because the night was drawing near – though they were past high noon already – but because the tree was just that massive. It wouldn't be wrong to affirm that it rivaled some mountains. And the most mindboggling thing was that it was this dark even when they hadn't stepped foot underneath the canopy yet.

  "Are there trees underneath the World Tree?" Aloe asked Kadashayka.

  "Yes, mother! There are many plants at the foot of the World Tree! Flowers, bushes, trees, and more! So Kadashayka says!"

  "You don't need to describe your actions in the third person," the dressed woman put a hand before her mouth and giggled.

  "But then how will everyone know that Kadashayka is Kadashayka?" Kadashayka tilted her head to the side with inhuman ductility. There had never been a more appropriate use of that epithet, for the dryad was truly not human. Though Aloe didn't think of it as a bad thing.

  "You can tell them," she responded as a matter of fact.

  "I can!" The dryad's eyes opened like plates, showing her glowing yellow sclera. "I can tell everyone that I am Kadashayka!"

  Aloe smiled at the trivial realization and the gestures of her… daughter. It was still awkward to think of it, especially because she was a plant, and the concept of reproduction was wholly different from a human. She may not have come out of my belly, but like a flower that pollinates or a tree that spreads its seeds, she has been born of my vitality.

  "But coming back to my question," Aloe continued, "how is it that plants can grow there? There isn't much light here, so plants shouldn't be able to grow."

  "The soil is very very yummy, so plants don't need light!" Kadashayka replied.

  "Right…" Her mother was at a loss for words. "So how can you see yourselves there? Is it because of the light in your eyes?"

  "Our eyes?" She tilted her head again. "No, no. Eyes don't produce light. They are glowing because of that," she pointed at the Radiating Undergrowth.

  "Oh." Just to prove her words, Aloe blocked the infested pebble with her hands. The mushroom tried to sear her hands, but she was tougher than metal now, let alone stone, so her skin just sizzled a bit.

  Sure enough, as the surroundings drowned in penumbra with the lack of light, Kadashayka's eyes stopped glowing.

  "Interesting," Aloe released her hold on the pebble so Xochipilli could see again. "So your eyes reflect light and aren't glowing as such. Sort of like a cat's. But that only confuses me more. How do you then see yourselves on the World Tree?"

  "It's not as dark as you are thinking, mother. It's like… like… Hmm…" The dryad closed her eyes and swayed her head back and forth thinking of something. "It's better if you see it."

  "We'll do that," she smiled at her cute gestures, and they continued walking.

  The journey was quite long as Xochipilli couldn't keep up with the two women and he was too proud to be carried by either of them. Not that Aloe wanted to carry him, for she fretted that she could kill the child if she even used a fraction of her might. Kadashayka was the better option, but he vehemently refuted the proposal. The child was still mad at the dryad for the previous events, even if she was completely free of guilt. Not that he could understand that.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  For now, they stopped to eat. Aloe got a few pastries and a cup out of her Slowtide and she filled it with a nearby Flourishing Spring. They are so common… but how? No, the right question would be how is it that I haven't seen that many in cities barring the park? Free water sounds way better than free light or lighter dresses, but I haven't seen buildings with Flourishing Springs on them. Am I missing something? Now that I think about it, the massive pool in the public baths also didn't have any…

  As Aloe lingered on her thoughts, little Xochipilli ate his pastries. Not all of them were sweets, so they worked well enough as improvised travel rations. A day on pastries won't kill him.

  The same couldn't be said for her and Kadashayka, who were without the need for food, but if just to get her answers on paper, Aloe asked her.

  "You've mentioned before that the soil on the Heart of the Evergreen was 'yummy', Kadashayka," the dryad nodded at her words. "So I must ask, are you like any other plant? Can you sustain yourself with soil, water, and sunlight alone?"

  "Yes," the green-skinned woman nodded once more. "My sisters and I need to take root once in a while, but we are not bound to the ground like the rest of our brethren."

  Brethren, huh? The usage of the dryad's words didn't escape her. "So you are truly plants."

  "Shouldn't you know?" Her daughter tilted her head to the side. "You are one yourself."

  Her breathing, heartbeat, and blinking stopped. Her eyes might not have been looking at him, but she noticed how Xochipilli was paying close attention to their conversation.

  "Don't jest," Aloe let out a wry giggle. "I'm not a plant or a dryad, I am… myself."

  "Of course! Mother is mother!" Kadashayka nodded to her mother's words as she hummed. Whether it was out of understanding or misunderstanding, her mother couldn't know.

  Aloe contained her tremble, glamour glaring at its maximum potency, as she portrayed pure stoicism. She was herself. It was no lie at all.

  No lie at all.

  After Xochipilli finished his food, they continued with their march. Kadashayka selected the best path for them, allowing for an effortless journey whereas before they had to go up and down valleys and tread through the treacherous undergrowth. Of course, these had only been problems for her disciple.

  As they closed onto the World Tree, darkness reigned around them as they finally reached under its canopy. Aloe was horrified at how they were still a handful of kilometers from the trunk, yet the ter'nar's canopy still reached this far.

  How can life get this big? She constantly asked herself, paradoxically scared yet enthusiastic about the idea of this being her doing. Could this be recreated? That was one of her most common thoughts, even if she was well aware that it served no purpose whatsoever having a tree this big around. In any case, it's detrimental. Kadashayka has said it herself, plants only grow in this darkness because the soil is too fertile. If it weren't for the Evergreen's bustling vitality, there would only be desert underneath the World Tree.

  The closer they got to their destination, the weirder the landscape became. Aloe had never been in a forest, the Evergreen had been her first, but she imagined the woods surrounding Selen pretty close to the ones she had heard in stories or read about in botanical papers. Yet the same couldn't be said for the Heart of the Evergreen. It was its own land with its own rules. Too much vitality, fertility, and humidity but not enough sunlight created unique ecosystems.

  In one word: fungi.

  She had noticed them since they entered the Evergreen, but the closer they got closer to its Heart, the more abundant they became. And the more massive.

  Only the size of a fist by now, but when would they stop growing? When were they the size of a head? Or perhaps as massive as a tree?

  But the fungi growths weren't the most impressive things underneath the shadow of the World Tree. Not by a long shot. Other growths were, though.

  "What are those?" Aloe pointed at a massive arch on the horizon. Xochipilli squinted at what she was pointing at but didn't seem to be able to see it. She didn't blame him, even with the Radiating Undergrowth, it was dark as night here. It was only thanks to her enhanced sight that she could see it.

  "That?" Kadashayka pointed at the same place with a wooden claw and Aloe nodded. "Those are roots."

  "Roots?" The dark-skinned woman frowned before her head added one plus one together. "Do you mean that…?"

  "Yes," the dryad nodded. "Those are the World Tree roots."

  Massive as Asina's walls – not even Sadina's at this point – with tens of meters of height, as much in width, and taking into account that there still were a couple of kilometers until they reached the trunk, only two words came out of Aloe's mouth.

  "Great heavens…"

  But above all else, Aloe didn't fail to notice the roots were dark brown.