Extra's POV: My Obsessive Villainous Fiancee Is The Game's Final Boss-Chapter 129: The One Or The Many

"Maria!" Bellamy's voice reached her and she groaned, pushing herself up to her knees.

"Maria!" She looked up as Bellamy crashed into the clearing, skidding to a stop at the edge of the Green Tree's roots. Four of the veteran warriors flanked him, their eyes just as wide as they took in the carnage.

Bellamy stumbled forward, his legs carrying him without any input from his brain. The thick stench of blood tickled his nose as his eyes roved around the place.

The bark of the tree, which had been healthy the last time he'd laid eyes on it, was now marred with black veins crawling across its base. At its foot, the body of what looked like a Tribe of Stone prisoner lay crumpled and lifeless, throat cut, his blood soaked into the gnarled roots.

And beside it all, Maria knelt on the ground, her body trembling.

The veterans gripped their weapons, eyes darting between the dying tree, the curling smoke of rot curling up its trunk, and Maria.

One of them, a bearded warrior named Kael, stepped forward. "By the gods. What happened here?" He breathed.

Bellamy didn't answer. He didn't even hear the question. His eyes were locked on his sister. Her face was pale, stained with sweat and blood on her forehead.

Maria looked up, her voice cracking as she tried to speak. "Father... he... he fed the Dryad blood. Forced blood."

All eyes immediately went to the dead prisoner and they understood. They understood what it meant.

One was never to give the tree forced blood. There were tales of those who had defied the rules. However, the tales never tell what happens next.

"He thought it would give us power." Maria continued, not knowing of the thoughts running through the minds of everyone present. "But it corrupted her... it corrupted everything. Father is... he's gone."

There was a moment of stunned silence. Kael stepped back, muttering a curse. Another warrior shook his head. "And the Dryad?"

"Gone." Maria answered hoarsely, holding back sobs. She looked up, meeting Bellamy's eyes. "Father… he sealed it into me."

"Fuck!" Kael cursed. "The Dryad's gone. That tree's as good as dead now. Without her, it won't produce more berries."

"We still have the berries on the tree." Someone said. "But once those are gone, that's it."

One of the warriors turned his glare on Maria. "So what now? She's got the Dryad inside her, right? What do we do with her?"

"The answer's obvious." Kael said grimly. "We kill her."

Bellamy's head snapped to the man, a glare on his face.

"Don't look at me like that, Bellamy! You know I'm right! The curse needs to go! We need our power back! We kill her, the Dryad goes back to the tree. That has to stop the corruption. It'll save us."

Maria stood up, swaying slightly. "No. You can't. You don't understand what the Dryad is now. If she returns to the tree, the corruption goes with her. She's no longer the same."

"That... thing will consume the tree and twist everything it touches. It'll destroy the barbarian lands!"

Kael spat. "Convenient story. You expect us to believe you? That the only way we survive is by keeping the Dryad inside you?"

Bellamy stepped forward. "Enough! We need to think this through."

"We already have!" One of the warriors snapped. "You're our chief now, Bellamy. This is your call. She carries the curse. Do you protect your sister or your people?"

Maria looked at him, wide-eyed and trembling. "Bellamy, please. You know me. You know I wouldn't lie about this. Father... he made a mistake. I tried to stop him."

Kael turned to Bellamy, whispering insidiously, his eyes narrowed. "What would Chief Ilyan do in this situation? You know the answer to that, Bellamy. He would've protected the tribe. Sacrificed one to save many."

Bellamy looked between them all. His heart thundered in his chest, throat dry. Maria's eyes met his, pleading silently.

He couldn't kill his sister. He couldn't. But he could see the bloodlust in the eyes of the warriors. He couldn't let Maria go. Not here, not now. So, he'll play along.

Slowly, he turned to the warriors. "Bind her."

"No..." Maria whispered, her eyes watering at the betrayal. "Bellamy, no."

The warriors moved in.

"I'm not condemning you, Maria." Bellamy said. "I just need time to think. We can't make this decision in the heat of the moment. I need time to understand what's going on."

"Do not resist, Maria." One of the warriors said. "It'll only make things difficult for you."

Maria snarled and the moment they laid their hands on her, something changed.

A pulse rippled through the ground, and Maria screamed.

The warriors fell back, shouting in alarm.

Her eyes glowed a deep green. Vines burst from the ground around her feet, coiling and snapping like whips. Her hair fluttered unnaturally, rising as if caught in the wind.

Her arms stretched, cracking and reforming into thorned claws. Her skin shimmered and hardened, bark-like lines crawling over her limbs.

"She's transforming!" One warrior shouted. "It's the Dryad's power!"

They drew weapons.

"Stop! Don't hurt her!" Bellamy yelled.

Too late.

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Kael lunged with his axe.

Maria twisted, knocking him back with a whip of thorns. Another warrior slashed at her, but the blade glanced off her hardened skin.

She leapt back, wings of leaf and bark erupting from her back. The wings shimmered and flexed, catching the wind.

"She's trying to escape!"

The warriors whistled, and from the skies, their wyverns responded.

Bellamy watched, frozen in horror, as Maria took to the air, her wings carrying her beyond the roots of the Green Tree.

She glanced back once.

Bellamy met her eyes.

And then she was gone.

The wyverns screeched as their riders mounted to give chase.

Bellamy dropped to his knees, hands shaking as he watched everything. His heart ached with confusion and guilt.

What have I done?

The tribe would be looking to him for orders.

But Bellamy had no idea what to do.