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Oliver, using a snow-white napkin to wipe his mouth, expressed his gratitude to Merlin, who sat at the head of the table. "Thank you for the meal, Elder."

"I\'m stoked y\'found it enjoyable. Couldn\'t help but notice at brekkie too, you\'ve got quite an appetite," replied Merlin, gesturing at the towering stack of dishes next to Oliver, once filled with thick steaks but now emptied by his voracious appetite.

"The wooden puppet golems took good care of me."

"I told \'em to keep the grub comin\' till you were full. All good now, mate?"

Oliver rolled his eyes, took a moment to think, and then nodded. "Yes, I had a good meal."

"Happy to hear that. What about you, Kevin?"

"I also had a satisfying meal."

"Good on ya. Was a bit worried you\'d knock back my invite again. The older ya get, the scarier a ‘no\' feels, eh?"

"I had some spare time today… and I wanted to hear from that guy." Kevin gestured towards Oliver, referring to none other than Eve, and Merlin concurred.

"I\'m keen as mustard to hear about it. That\'s why I went through the trouble of invitin\' me disciple for a feed… Dave."

"Yes, Elder?"

"You actually told the angry Eve to be patient?"

"Yes… surprisingly, she seemed receptive to human speech," Oliver recalled the situation and answered.

Eve, freed from the Druid\'s bind, exuded intense anger and hatred towards all. It was unclear whether it was because of Shamus or accumulated information, but Eve seemed ready to lash out at anyone she could.

While silently observing this, Oliver made a request to Eve. "Could you please not be so angry and bear with it?"

"Why\'d ya go and do that?" Merlin asked, curious about Oliver\'s reasoning.

"Well… isn\'t that the norm?" Oliver responded, assuming it was self-evident.

Oliver believed that it was reasonable not to encourage someone to act recklessly, especially considering the power and will of Eve, who was a world tree.

"Sorry mate. Should be obvious, but when ya say it… it feels… right," Merlin\'s response carried a sense of contemplation, leaving his emotions somewhat ambiguous.

Perceiving their reactions, Oliver was perplexed by what he might have done to evoke such responses. Was there something unusual in his approach?

"Let\'s get a wriggle on… what went down after you put forward the request?" Merlin redirected the conversation.

"As I mentioned earlier, Eve calmed down. It seemed like she was suppressing her anger, but… she didn\'t appear as threatening," Oliver recounted.

"And then?" Kevin inquired, sipping his after-dinner coffee.

"As promised, I asked her to secure the location of the ABC investment fund information. Eve found and saved the data at an astonishing speed. It was truly impressive."

"Well, considering Eve is essentially a world tree, such abilities are only natural."

"Indeed. Nevertheless, witnessing it firsthand was remarkable."

"What happened next?" Merlin continued his inquiry.

"I advised her not to get too angry again and then told her she could leave. She seemed like she wanted to depart," Oliver concluded.

Oliver\'s demeanor was as if he were parting ways with a casual drinking buddy he had met at a bar, despite being aware of the true nature of Eve through the book Merlin had given him. His behavior was so unconventional that even Archiver Merlin found it hard to comprehend; rather than expressing anger, Merlin seemed more analytical.

"Um… did ya get a chance to read that book I gave you, ‘The Evolution of the World Tree?\'"

"Yes."

"But you still let her go? Not having a go at ya, just asking."

"Yes, because I promised I would. And…"

"And?"

"……And, when there\'s a will, isn\'t it a bit too much to keep holding her against it?"

Kevin, who had been quietly listening, pointed out that Oliver\'s reason seemed somewhat trivial compared to the value and risks associated with Eve.

"Even so, you should have kept her restrained. Having Eve with us could have revolutionized the study of the World Tree, possibly surpassing even the Druids," Kevin suggested.

"I\'m sorry. I did think of that right after I let her go, but it was too late."

"Couldn\'t you have bound her again?" Kevin asked, considering the possibility.

Oliver contemplated the idea of restraining Eve once more. While it wouldn\'t be easy due to her resistance, it might not have been impossible either. Was it a fifty-fifty chance?

After a moment of thought, Oliver shook his head. "I\'m not sure. But isn\'t breaking a promise a bit too much?"

"What if Eve can\'t control her anger and goes on a rampage? She might not cause physical harm, but she could wreak havoc using the power of the World Tree," Kevin warned, emphasizing the potential consequences.

Kevin\'s concerns were valid, as the damage caused by Eve\'s actions would be hard to predict. If she were to expose the scanned records and secrets stored in the World Tree, chaos could engulf the world, given the many individuals with dark secrets.

"She won\'t do that. She agreed when I asked her to endure."

"What if she changes her mind?"

"…Um, there\'s nothing we can do about that, is there?" Oliver responded with a hint of resignation.

Kevin found Oliver\'s emotional disposition quite distinct from that of ordinary people, giving him an unsettling feeling.

Merlin attempted to put an end to the discussion, saying, "Let\'s not dwell on it. Things don\'t always go according to Hoyle in this world; that\'s what makes it intersting… Dave?"

"Yes, Elder."

"I don\'t mean to sound like a broken record, but when you debrief the Moirai School, it\'d be best to leave out Eve\'s antipathy towards humans and the bit where you asked her to endure."

"Pardon?"

"The recent discovery of Eve havin\' a bone to pick with humans could really rattle the Moirai School, could lead to a right kerfuffle. If you spill the beans, it could cause a stir. They\'ve got a fair bit of clout, information-wise."

Oliver understood Merlin\'s reasoning and nodded in agreement. "Yes, I understand… Elder. May I ask you a question?"

"What is it?"

"This is just personal curiosity, but why do you think Eve was born all of a sudden?"

"It\'s in the book, ain\'t it?"

"Yes, I\'ve read it. It says that due to the accumulation of vast amounts of information, an artificial consciousness and Will will emerge… but I don\'t quite understand. Can consciousness and will simply come into existence because a lot of information accumulates?"

"Quantity can morph into quality, so I reckon it\'s quite possible."

"Then, why did it happen just now?" Oliver\'s eyes gleamed with scholarly curiosity.

Merlin considered the question and offered an explanation, "There\'s a reasonable reason. Throughout history, this is when the World Tree gets the most use, especially by the magic mob. As the number of users goes up, so too does the info from the outside, so it\'s less of a surprise when things like this happen. Could just be the natural order of things."

While Oliver found the explanation somewhat unsatisfying, he couldn\'t refute it. As Merlin pointed out, the recent rapid increase in World Tree users and the accumulation of information could explain Eve\'s emergence.

Yet, despite this explanation, Oliver felt that something was still amiss.

As Oliver wrestled with his lingering curiosity, Merlin decided it was time to conclude the conversation. "Alright, we\'ve had our feed, and we\'ve had a chinwag about what\'s been buggin\' me. Let\'s wrap it up here."

Surprised by the sudden conclusion, Oliver exclaimed, "Huh?"

"What?"

"Don\'t you have any other questions to ask? Didn\'t you hear about any other stories?"

Merlin hesitated for a moment before answering, "Extracting the power of nature and mixin\' emotions and mana?"

"Yes. Don\'t you have anything to say about it? My acquaintance mentioned that he had never seen a warlock extracting and using the power of nature before."

"Can\'t say I\'ve heard of it either, but it doesn\'t strike me as that odd," Merlin calmly replied.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah, some reckon this is humanity\'s heyday and the pinnacle of knowledge, but from where I\'m standin\', it\'s still an age of fools who know less than they reckon they do. So, it\'s not odd for a warlock with a novel skill set to pop up. Just fifty years ago, folks didn\'t even know black swans were a thing."

Oliver was convinced by Merlin\'s composed response. There was still much unknown in the world, and it seemed like a plausible argument.

In the midst of their conversation, Kevin interjected, eager to add his thoughts. "So, what do you think about mixing mana and emotions?"

Both Merlin and Oliver turned their attention to Kevin, intrigued by his question. Kevin appeared outwardly calm, but internally, his curiosity and eagerness shone brightly. "I\'ve never seen anything like it before. Mixing emotions and mana… Is such a technique even possible?"

Oliver gazed at Merlin with genuine curiosity.

To be honest, Oliver wasn\'t sure if the mixing was an intentional endeavor or a serendipitous accident. He likened it to someone flying in the sky without the concept of flight.

Merlin provided an answer to Kevin\'s inquiry. "The practice of mixin\' emotions and mana is a field that\'s been poked around in before, though it\'s a bit fringe and somewhat taboo."

Both Kevin and Oliver became even more intrigued upon hearing this revelation.

"Is that so?" Oliver asked.

"Righto. Among the few, there are some wizards who show an interest in both black magic and emotions. Even among past Archivers, a handful dipped their toes into this field… A few of them even tried to splice mana and emotions."

"It\'s the first time I\'ve heard of this."

"I mentioned it before; it\'s a niche and often contentious area."

Oliver readily understood why researching black magic and emotions might be met with resistance. Black magic had a negative social perception, and the required talents for studying it were different from traditional magic, making it a challenging and taboo area of research.

"But if they were researching it, there must have been a reason, right?" Oliver pointed out.

Merlin acknowledged the valid observation. "According to the research done by past Archivers, when mana and emotions are mixed, their power goes through the roof. But the risks involved are also equally steep."

Oliver immediately grasped the implications, recalling his own experiences with [Greed Fire] and [Hunger].

"What\'s the underlying reason? What specific principle enhances the power?" Oliver probed further.

"Well, since it was more hit and miss research by individuals rather than a focused dive, we haven\'t completely cracked the mystery. But there is a theory."

"A theory?"

"Yes, do you know what mana and emotions have in common?"

Oliver furrowed his brow, contemplating the question. "I\'m not sure?"

"It\'s that both originate from the soul."

(To be Continued)