Chapter 146: The Center of the Earth
Kvernheim did not feel subterranean. It didn’t even resemble a cavern. Above stretched a vast, open sky bustling with brilliant blue by day, deep indigo by night, shifting just as naturally as any sky above the surface. A sun and moon alternated in perfect harmony as if they were on surface world.
Their cycles eerily synchronized with the daylight hours of the Dead Sea Shore along the Jordan–Israel border. There was no scientific explanation for it, as it was only suspicion. Some supernatural scholars believed there might be a hidden gate to Kvernheim within the waters of the Dead Sea, but Yggdrasil had never opened that passage, if it even existed. No proof had ever been found.
And so, the mystery persisted.
If one didn’t already know they were in an underground city, they would never guess it. Kvernheim appeared as a radiant and self-contained world. As it was a pocket dimension built around the sacred root of Yggdrasil. The tree itself was unmistakable, though it was technically only a root from the legendary World Tree. Still, it towered like a divine monument in the heart of the city, its bark streaked with glowing veins of gold and green. It’s leaves shimmered high above, gently rustling despite the lack of wind.
Its leaves look like betel leaves, only larger and thicker. At the top of the tree, the leaves are smaller and crimson red. As they grow, they gradually change color, turning into a deep emerald green near the bottom. The leaves constantly glow, casting a radiant display of colors over the surroundings.
Beneath the foliage, glowing white veins descend from its golden bark, connecting to the ground around the tree.
The tree’s brilliant display of colors makes it look like more than just a tree... it resembles a deity descended from the heavens. Even though supernatural beings don’t believe in heaven or hell, the sight of the tree makes everyone feel as if heaven might truly exist.
The tree stood at the center of a vibrant inner circle, a forest of immense beauty and peace. Tall, multicolored trees surrounded Yggdrasil like devoted companions... some with silver leaves, others with blossoms of crimson, lavender, or dusk-blue. Hidden within these trees lived the fairies, their homes seamlessly woven into branches and bark. From a distance, the dwellings were invisible and perfectly camouflaged within the foliage. Only when one drew close could the intricate architecture be seen: homes carved into bark, bridges of silk-thread spanning tree to tree, lanterns that glowed with natural light like dew drops suspended in time.
Yet, the fairies needed no tools to tend to Yggdrasil. Their very existence nurtured it. Each of them exuded a subtle healing aura... something that permeated the air, the soil, even the roots beneath the ground.