"Boss!"
The crowd scattered like a receding tide.
Even the braver ones kept their distance, stealing glances at the bizarre transformation, too frightened to get close.
Only Nora ran toward it—her face full of worry and fear.
The moment the assassin got too close, Ron had already received a system notification:
"Passive skill Vigorous Vitality has been triggered."
He turned around and was startled by the sight of the assassin's body sprouting branches.
It wasn't until he heard Nora's voice that he snapped back to reality.
By then, Nora had already reached him.
Ron grabbed her hand and quickly led her to the side, away from the transforming assassin.
"Boss… are you okay?" Nora asked quietly, her eyes filled with fear as she peeked toward the horrifying scene.
"I'm fine," Ron shook his head. Now that he understood this was the effect of Vital Bloom, the fear quickly faded. "Let's just back off a bit."
The two moved to the edge of the crowd.
The assassin's clothes had been completely torn by the growing branches, the rags scattering to the ground.
His legs had fused into one and, along with his torso, transformed into a thick trunk—about as wide as a person could wrap their arms around. Roots pierced deep into the ground, anchoring the tree in the middle of the street.
Countless thin branches erupted from his arms and back, stretching toward the sky.
The life force in his body was rapidly drained, becoming nourishment for the tree.
Fresh buds sprouted from the branch tips.
Within mere seconds, vibrant green leaves had unfurled, fluttering in the night breeze.
The colorful lanterns from the surrounding stalls bathed the scene in warm light, illuminating the towering tree and reflecting in the wide eyes of the onlookers.
"What the heck is that!?"
"Wasn't that a person? Why'd he suddenly turn into a tree!?"
"There's still a face on the trunk! Gross!"
"Must've been some evildoer—looks like divine punishment!"
Now that they realized there was no immediate danger, the crowd erupted into noisy chatter.
Some bold ones even stepped up to touch the bark curiously.
Meanwhile, atop a nearby rooftop, Commander Webster stood watching the scene—his expression solemn, eyes fixed on the now-treefied assassin.
The truth was, he hadn't intervened at all that afternoon.
He had only been tailing the three assassins so he could mark them first.
Unexpectedly, the Tier 6 assassin turned out to be even stronger than expected—killing the other two Tier 5 assassins silently and cleanly.
However, the Tier 6 assassin had suffered internal injuries during that process and had spent the afternoon recovering. That's why he didn't take the chance to attack Ron when he returned alone to the shop.
Then, by evening, when Ron left again, the assassin followed without hesitation.
And now, as night fell, he struck.
But what the assassin didn't know was that Webster had already left a marking spell on him. The moment he made a move, Webster could have stepped in and finished him instantly to protect Ron.
So… why didn't he?
Because Webster wanted to use the assassin to test Ron.
Or more precisely, test the Goddess of Harvest behind him.
But what Webster never expected… was just how much the Goddess valued Ron!
She didn't just protect him—she turned the assassin into a literal tree!
That kind of power… had already reached Legendary-level magic.
Webster's eyes darkened, and he silently raised Ron's importance in his heart once more.
He had originally assumed the goddess would only give Ron a few self-defense tools.
Even if Ron barely survived the assassin's attack, Webster wouldn't have been surprised.
After all, Ron was a Chosen One—surely he'd have something to protect himself.
But who could have guessed the goddess had granted him such a terrifying ability?
A spell that required no reaction time—automatically locking onto an attacker and executing a deadly counter.
With this kind of protection on display, who would dare mess with Ron now?
What? You think it was a one-time use?
Alright then—go ahead, try your luck.
Would anyone be that stupid?
Even if Ron himself said it only worked once…
Would you believe him?
Webster shook his head and vanished with a flash of his figure.
The patrol squad was already arriving. No need for him to stick around.
As for the assassin, he could simply send word to Ron that this one wasn't from Wild Rose.
Blame it on some other force. Easy.
Webster had no idea about the system or that Ron had already seen through his lie.
To him, it was a minor detail. He could just explain it away later.
After all, it was true that two Wild Rose assassins had died, and that he had swooped in to take over the remaining bounty slots on Ron's head.
So the numbers didn't quite add up. So what?
He and his subordinates weren't going to tell anyone.
That Tier 6 assassin? Dead as dead can be.
With no witnesses, Webster could spin it however he wanted.
He had even planned to dramatically appear and "save" Ron at the last second.
That way, he could earn some goodwill too.
But now? Clearly unnecessary.
With things settled, it was time for him to return to the Royal Capital and report to Emperor André III.
[Temporary Mission] – [Evade the Assassination]
[System: Congratulations, Host. Mission complete. Rewards have been deposited in your backpack.]
In the crowd, Ron's eyes twitched slightly as he remembered that the mission had a reward.
Normally, the system's rewards were full of jokes.
Even the mission where he resolved the misunderstanding between two Legendary-rank powerhouses only gave him a few mid-tier spells from the system store.
So this time, when the reward turned out to be a plant seed, Ron felt a bit… off.
Then he mentally cursed himself.
Why am I surprised I got a real reward? That should be normal!
Just because the system usually trolls him doesn't mean this reward is rare or precious.
And yet, here he was, feeling like he'd just been tossed a rare treat.
Hmph!
Ron resisted the urge to immediately check his backpack and decided to finish dealing with the situation first.
By now, the patrol squad had arrived and was busy clearing the area and interviewing witnesses.
Ron stepped forward, and the squad leader immediately recognized him.
"Your Highness Ron? What brings you here?"
"Mhm. That tree grew because of me," Ron said calmly. "It was an assassin who tried to kill me. Thankfully, I was protected by the Goddess of Harvest, and… this happened."
The patrol captain's jaw dropped.
He stared at the massive tree rooted in the middle of the street, his face a mix of disbelief and awe.
So this is what it means to be Chosen One…