"Is everyone alright?"
Lumina landed on the platform, which she had slowly lowered above the Golden Pool, and asked softly with a smile, seeing the others still looking somewhat shaken.
Hearing Lumina's words, the sensation of the ground beneath their feet returned, the feeling of weightlessness vanished, and the group gradually recovered from their startled state.
"I... I'm fine."
After a moment of silence, the first person to speak was actually Hyacine.
This was somewhat unexpected for Lumina. As her gaze fell upon Hyacine, the first thing she saw was her small, strong, resolute, and serious expression.
It looked so good, so cute, making Lumina's heart itch with the urge to rush forward and give her a good kneading.
A normal kneading, the kind one would use on a doll like Mem.
After all, abnormal kneading... that would have to be done in private... Of course, this abnormal kneading was also a relatively abnormal kind of kneading, at least it had nothing to do with so-called lewdness.
It was the kind of kneading where... a big sister "bullies" her little sister, making her little face turn red as she sheds a few tears.
Although this was very immoral, Lumina liked it, and as long as Lumina liked it, it was a moral thing!
"Mem..." As if sensing the thoughts in Lumina's heart, or perhaps simply recovering from the shock of just now, Mem shook her small head and made an extremely cute sound.
This made the itch in Lumina's heart grow even stronger.
Dammit, you're all tempting me, aren't you?
Can I, Lumina, withstand such temptation from you?
Isn't this forcing me to commit a crime?
Lumina fiercely complained in her heart, then suppressed all the emotions that had arisen, and turned her gaze to something emerging from the Sky Titan's corpse.
"Look, that's the Coreflame of the Sky Titan Aquila."
After taking a look, Lumina once again turned her gaze to Hyacine and gave a smiling nod.
Hearing this, Hyacine looked at the Sky Coreflame floating above Aquila's corpse and muttered to herself, "So, does this mean it's over?"
Even though they had already won, and even though the Sky Coreflame had appeared before Hyacine's eyes, her heart still felt a sense of unreality because of it.
The thing their ancestors had dreamed of for so long had been accomplished by her own hands. Even though she had long been prepared, Hyacine still felt a sense of disorientation and unreality.
"Is it... over?" Lumina did not give a definite answer. Instead, she glanced at the corpse, her voice light and natural. "Maybe it is."
Over? Lumina felt it was not over.
The soul she had seen inside the Sky Titan's body earlier was now quietly stirring, gradually taking over the Sky Titan's form. Before long, under the control of this soul, a completely new form of the Sky Titan would likely appear before everyone.
But even though Lumina knew this, she had no intention of saying it.
The battle between the two forms of the Sky Titan just now had been fierce, but in Lumina's eyes, it was far from enough.
It seemed fierce, but that was actually the fierceness brought about by the Sky Titan's mastery of the home-field advantage. And even with that advantage, it was still defeated by Phainon and the others in just a few minutes.
As a Boss, this was a bit... weak.
And not just ordinary weak, but extremely weak.
To be beaten like this while holding the home-field advantage, you might as well find a hole and bury yourself.
She shook her head inwardly at the Sky Titan's strength.
Returning to reality, Lumina found the Sky Titan's corpse, which occupied more than half the platform, a bit of an eyesore.
With a wave of her small hand, without any extra movements, the Sky Titan's corpse floated up from the platform, then, driven by a dragging force, was thrown straight out.
Rumble!
In the end, it fell into the Golden Pool.
"Seliose condemned mortals, causing them to fall into the Golden Pool. In the end, her fate was also like that of the sinful mortals..."
Watching the Sky Titan be thrown into the Golden Pool by Lumina, Hyacine did not find Lumina's actions inappropriate in any way. She merely sighed in admiration and stopped thinking about anything related to Seliose or the Sky Titan.
"Hyacine, take that Coreflame and leave here quickly. Our mission is not yet complete."
Although the truth of history was cruel, Phainon also made Hyacine feel very sad and grieved. But this was not the time to be thinking about these things. Phainon was afraid that Hyacine would get lost in this legend, so he hastily spoke up to remind and signal her.
Obtaining the Sky Coreflame could only be said to have completed half the mission. Only by sending the Coreflame into the Vortex of Genesis could the mission be considered complete.
And before that, any unexpected event could happen. They could not let down their guard, and even more so, they could not pop the champagne at halftime.
Phainon glanced at Stelle, his heart filled with both determination and caution.
Stelle had told him several stories about how popping the champagne at halftime led to the failure of all previous efforts in the end, making him have to treat this important matter with one hundred percent caution.
"Mm." Hearing this, Hyacine also understood, and naturally, it was impossible to act sentimentally here. Nodding in agreement, she started walking and came before the Sky Coreflame.
Raising her palm and aiming it at the Coreflame, she spoke softly as if treating a small animal: "Sky Coreflame, come with me..."
Swoosh—
After Hyacine's voice fell, the Sky Coreflame responded directly with actual action.
With a swoosh, it surged into Hyacine's body.
For a moment, energy overflowed from Hyacine's body as if it had been filled to the brim, causing the air to ripple with the resulting waves.
"This feeling... is truly wonderful." Hyacine closed her eyes to savor the sensation, her cute face flushing for some reason.
"It's warm, powerful, and... comfortable."
This was Hyacine's assessment after absorbing the Sky Coreflame.
However...
The slight flush on her face and her quickened breathing as she spoke caught Lumina's attention, making her raise an eyebrow. Something seemed off.
Is she... really absorbing the Sky Coreflame?
Why did Hyacine's current posture seem so similar to the state she was in when they were playing on the bed in Lumina's room?
Hmm... I must be overthinking it.
Lumina shook her head, tossing the "naughty" thought from her mind.
"With this power in my grasp, I feel as if all the winds of this world would turn for me. Summoning thunderclouds or rain and snow is all within my thought."
What followed was Hyacine's experience, which confirmed that what she said was completely different from what Lumina had imagined.
The flush on Hyacine's face and her quickened breathing were simply the result of her body adapting to the immense power she had just acquired.
When a petite body is suddenly filled with such immense power, it naturally takes some time to adapt.
Hyacine was currently going through exactly this process.
Perfectly then, the Third Form of the Sky Titan could serve as a tool for Hyacine to adapt to this power.
Thinking this way, my decision to not immediately turn the Sky Titan into bone meal and ash was an extremely correct choice.
As expected of me, I am truly amazing.
Lumina couldn't help but praise herself in her heart, showing immense approval for her previous action.
"Anyway, let's get out of here quickly. This platform is on the verge of collapsing, and we don't know how much longer it can hold up. We need to find a way off of here immediately."
Phainon hurriedly warned them, looking at the chain of reactions caused by the elevator's fall.
"Phainon is right, let's leave quickly." Lumina glanced briefly at the Sky Titan's corpse in the Golden Pool and nodded, agreeing with Phainon's words.
It would probably take some time before the Sky Titan's Third Form appeared, just in time to use this window to change the battlefield.
That soul was incredibly powerful, and its impact on the Sky Titan was naturally immense.
If things went as expected, the Third Form of the Sky Titan would probably be unbeatable for Phainon and the others if it were still fighting on its home turf.
The same would likely apply to Hyacine, who had just obtained the Sky Coreflame.
It seemed all the power from the previous two forms had been poured into the third one, but this was in line with the pacing of some games.
The earlier forms were just for testing the blade, while the final form was the one truly meant for battle.
With Phainon and Lumina both speaking up, the rest of the group naturally had no objections. After a quick scan of their surroundings, they used some equipment to make their way out.
"Are you planning to let that Third Form Big Wings help Hyacine get used to her power?" Herta asked softly, leaning in close to Lumina's ear as they walked.
Though she phrased it as a question, Herta's tone was completely certain.
After all, besides this possibility, there were no other options.
If Hyacine didn't need to get used to this power of The Sky, then the Sky Titan would probably never have seen its Third Form, right?
Unfortunately, Madam Herta was overthinking things. Even if Hyacine didn't need to get used to this power of The Sky, Lumina still wouldn't have intervened to erase the soul within the Sky Titan's body.
After all, in Lumina's eyes, this was a perfect opportunity for a "hero to rescue a beautiful maiden."
No matter how strong the Third Form was, Lumina wouldn't take it seriously at all.
Unless it were strong enough to instantly kill Hyacine and the others in a single second, Lumina would only intervene at the most critical moment, descending from the heavens to rescue the beautiful maiden from peril.
As for where the peril came from? That actually had nothing to do with Lumina.
The great Holy Maiden could not bear to kill, even if it was just a soul... So, this naturally had nothing to do with Lumina.
It was all Herta's fault.
Clearly, she could see that soul being born, yet she never stopped it?
If it wasn't her fault, whose fault could it be?
Herta: "?"
If Herta ever found out about this utterly ridiculous line of reasoning, she would definitely be left speechless, her mind drawing a giant question mark.
What did this have to do with Herta in the first place? In matters of no consequence like this, Herta always deferred to Lumina. Since Lumina had no objections, Herta naturally had no objections either.
How did she end up taking the blame for this all of a sudden?
Herta would absolutely not take the blame for this!
Even though she hadn't heard these words, Herta still felt a heavy weight on her back, as if something were clinging to her.
Herta glanced suspiciously at Lumina, then shrugged her shoulders, and the heavy sensation on her back vanished instantly.
Herta didn't even have to think about it; this was definitely Lumina's doing.
However, she had no proof, and after resolving the issue, she said nothing.
After a while, the group soon arrived at a floating platform, preparing to return to the Castle in the Clouds' dome once more.
"Hiss, hiss—"
Just then, a faint sound reached everyone's ears.
"W-what's that sound?"
The sound was very faint, like a part in a machine turning, and it failed to attract Phainon and the others' attention. But it did attract Hyacine's.
The Sky Coreflame was within Hyacine's body, and she felt a chill from the sound.
It was as if... the owner of this sound was an extremely terrifying creature.
Hyacine's slightly distressed reaction was seen by Lumina and Herta. Lumina came to her side and gently patted her shoulder to soothe her.
But Phainon and the others failed to notice Hyacine's expression at this moment.
The exit was right before them, and the area was about to collapse. No matter what, hurrying out was the only right answer.
Therefore, Phainon's attention was completely focused on observing the surroundings. Even though he heard this strange sound, he paid it no mind and gestured with a grave expression: "Everyone, as soon as the platform stops, we'll charge straight for the exit! Don't hesitate for a single second."
Although Phainon hadn't noticed Hyacine's expression, the strangeness of this sound had also caught his attention. Ignoring it could lead to disaster.
But even understanding this was useless.
Because no one knew why this sound had occurred. Instead of wasting time searching, it was better to just charge out in one go.
Thump~
Not much time passed before the floating platform stopped. The familiar Rainbow Bridge connected to another platform, which was the path the group had taken to get here.
As long as they followed this path back, they would soon be able to leave this Sky Fortress.
"Everyone, steady yourselves," Phainon reminded them as the floating platform came to a halt.
At the same time, a clear and familiar sound echoed in everyone's ears again.
This time, the sound was very clear, as if it were getting closer and closer to them. And they also knew who the owner of this sound was.
"This voice, how is it possible?" Dan Heng, who had remained silent, now wore an expression of grave concern.
This voice was undoubtedly that of the Sky Titan.
But hadn't the Sky Titan already died? Even its Coreflame had been taken into Hyacine's body, so how could it possibly revive on the spot?
What power was fueling its revival?
This was the question weighing on everyone's minds, but their current situation left them with no time to ponder it.
"Huh?!"
Just then, Lumina seemed to sense something. Her small eyes suddenly narrowed, and her leisurely expression, as if she were a carefree wanderer in the mortal world, instantly turned serious.
"What's wrong?" seeing this, Herta couldn't help but ask.
The Sky Titan was very strong at this moment, but that was only from the perspective of Phainon and the others. To Herta and Lumina, it was still weak.
So why did Lumina show such an expression? Herta was very curious.
"The Marks I left inside Castorice and Aglaea have been triggered."
Lumina's brow furrowed slightly, and she was a bit surprised by this.
The Marks inside their bodies would only be triggered when they encountered life-threatening danger. In other words...
Castorice and Aglaea were in mortal danger!