Lucian teleported to the Academy Gate Town, intending to set out from there toward the crystal cave that led into the academy.
From here, all he had to do was circle northwest for a short while and he would arrive at the entrance to the Academy Crystal Cave beneath the grounds of Raya Lucaria Academy.
After walking some distance beyond the town, Lucian unexpectedly ran into a familiar face he had not seen in a long time.
At the foot of the stone steps outside Academy Gate Town, several Cuckoo soldiers were gathered together, surrounding a lone traveler.
The man they had encircled was none other than Kale, who had once left Limgrave in search of the Great Caravan.
Though surrounded, Kale did not appear particularly afraid.
As a merchant of the wandering people who roamed throughout the Lands Between, being forced to pay "toll fees" was hardly unusual. Even if he had not personally experienced it often, such stories circulated widely among his kin, warning others to stay cautious.
And in those stories, the Cuckoos were very often the main characters.
There was a faint anger in Kale's eyes, but he did not show it openly. Instead, he watched the Cuckoo soldiers who kept haggling and pushing their demands further and further, with a blank expression.
At the very least, these Cuckoos had not drawn their blades yet.
When the Cuckoos attempted murder and plunder, it was usually far more common than merely extorting road fees.
Kale held the reins of his skinny donkey in one hand. With the other, he pressed against something hidden inside his coat.
If things turned ugly, if the Cuckoos decided to attack, he would throw out a distraction and make a run for it. Perhaps, with luck, he could escape.
He silently cursed his own carelessness. How had he allowed himself to be cornered by the Cuckoos like this?
—
Lucian frowned as he watched the soldiers.
This was blatant extortion.
They were supposedly under the constraints of the academy now, yet they still dared to conduct such acts openly.
It seemed the construction team that had come earlier had avoided trouble only because Lucian himself stood behind them.
The Cuckoos did not dare move against workers nominally under their current "lord." But for others without protection, they reverted to their old nature—one face in public, another in private.
He had ordered the reopening of the academy to be publicized precisely to attract people here.
If the Cuckoos continued behaving like this, how was he supposed to draw anyone in?
Who gave them the courage to think he would grant them the same freedom to plunder that the academy once did?
If the Cuckoos refused to behave, Lucian would not indulge them.
They needed to be disciplined.
If they could not learn obedience, they might as well be erased.
Lucian strode forward and drove the soldiers away with a single motion of his hand.
He fixed them with a cold gaze.
"What are you doing?"
Kale's face lit up in relief when he saw Lucian. Now there was nothing to worry about.
The Cuckoo soldiers, however, were furious that their business had been interrupted.
These low-ranking troops did not even recognize Lucian's face. In their minds, nothing had changed. Even if their partner had changed, they were still the Cuckoo Knights, no one interfered in their internal affairs.
…Though, to be fair, Lucian did not look like someone they wanted to provoke.
Even alone, he exuded an air that made them hesitate.
The Cuckoos were cowards at heart—bold before the weak, submissive before the strong.
In their own view, that was simply good judgment.
Without a word, the soldiers turned and prepared to leave.
But the moment they tried, each of them felt a sudden chill at their left wrist, followed by searing pain.
Every single Cuckoo soldier present had their left hand cleanly severed at the wrist.
Blood sprayed outward. The cuts were unnervingly smooth.
This was Lucian's punishment, and a warning to every other Cuckoo in the area.
Before he had come to the Lands Between, Lucian had lived in a nation where military discipline was strict and uncompromising. He understood very well the importance of order.
The Cuckoos would do well not to assume he was like the academy.
The academy had cooperated with them.
Lucian demanded absolute rule.
If they could not correct their conduct, there was no place for them here.
The severed soldiers collapsed to the ground, screaming in agony.
At the same time, they realized they had offended someone they absolutely should not have.
Between shrieks, they threw themselves down and begged for mercy.
Foreheads pressed to the ground, they spewed every word of praise they could think of.
Lucian planted a Cuckoo soldier's Knight's Greatsword into the earth and watched their sudden transformation in attitude.
It was almost fascinating.
Ordinary soldiers, when attacked even if outmatched, would at least think, "Damn you, I'll take you down with me!"
At worst, they might beg.
But the Cuckoos' current posture was closer to groveling worship, as if Lucian's cutting off their hands had bestowed some tremendous blessing upon them.
It made him feel faintly sick.
Arrogant before, servile after, truly laughable.
In a land filled with epic heroes and legends like the Lands Between, how could soldiers exist with such a lack of backbone?
The commotion quickly drew attention.
Before long, two Cuckoo Knights arrived, accompanied by a large contingent of soldiers and even a flame chariot rolling behind them.
Seeing their men kneeling on the ground, the two knights were immediately enraged.
Someone actually caused trouble in Cuckoo territory?
But the moment they saw who stood before them, their hearts lurched violently.
Correction, this was not Cuckoo territory.
It was his.
Unlike the common soldiers, the knights knew Lucian's appearance.
Lucian had waited deliberately for them to arrive.
He wanted them to see clearly who held authority here.
He was, truthfully, long overdue for anger.
The kneeling soldiers, seeing reinforcements arrive, immediately changed expressions and prepared to shout boldly—
Only to be kicked hard by the two leading knights before they could utter a word.
The blows sent them tumbling down the steps, rolling all the way into the cold waters of Liurnia of the Lakes below.
Lucian folded his arms, face like frost.
Kale had dismounted from his skinny donkey and now stood behind Lucian, uncertain and somewhat overwhelmed.
The two Cuckoo Knights lowered their heads like ostriches, trying desperately to avoid eye contact.
Only then did Lucian speak.
"Today, I saw them looting."
"Perhaps you were used to doing this in the past. But I tolerate no such behavior."
He grasped the Knight's Greatsword he had planted in the ground. With gravity magic, shattered stone rose and encased both blade and earth, sealing it firmly in place.
A warning.
Let them remember this lesson.
"From now on, if anything like this happens again, I will kill every Cuckoo stationed at the Gate Town. Then I'll replace you."
"If it happens again, I'll kill the next batch too."
"And not just here. Anywhere."
"Understood?"
One knight nodded so violently his helmet nearly flew off.
The other trembled and, after forcing himself to gather courage, stammered:
"M-My lord… we can guarantee nothing like this will happen in Gate Town again. But other places… are beyond our authority…"
Lucian considered for a moment, then said calmly:
"You're right."
"So you will pass my words up the chain."
"Tell them this: remember what kind of bird you are."
"You are merely Cuckoos."
"And I am the Hawk."
—
After the Cuckoos withdrew, Kalé finally let out a long breath and looked at Lucian.
"Hah… The Cuckoos are as detestable as ever."
"Thank you. Without you, I might have been entangled with them for a long time."
Lucian waved it off.
"It's nothing. I needed to teach them a lesson anyway."
Though he had indeed stepped in to help Kalé, Lucian had also seized the opportunity to discipline the Cuckoos. It was not solely for Kalé's sake.
A mercenary order like the Cuckoos would never receive the same leniency as his own troops.
Of course, his own forces would never stoop to such disgraceful, undisciplined behavior.
That was why proper training mattered.
For now, however, he set the matter of the Cuckoos aside and turned his attention back to Kalé.
Kalé's clothes were even more tattered than before, and he looked thinner as well.
Yet somehow, he seemed more spirited. There was a strange light in his eyes.
Lucian looked him over once before asking,
"What brings you here?"
Kalé scratched his messy hair, a little embarrassed.
"It's about the Great Caravan."
"I've gathered some clues along the way. Enough to confirm that it truly exists."
"To be honest, I had planned to take the Grand Lift of Dectus up to the Altus Plateau."
"I'd already found a side path that led behind the north gate of Raya Lucaria."
"But further ahead, there were many Cuckoo soldiers standing guard. I didn't dare go any farther, so I turned back."
"Later, I remembered that the academy had been unsealed," Kale continued. "So I thought I'd come here to see if there were any leads. If possible, I could also do some business and save up travel funds."
"As for what happened after that… well, you saw it yourself."
Lucian nodded. So that was the situation.
Along his journey in search of the Great Caravan, Kale had gradually uncovered fragments of clues. No wonder he seemed more driven than before.
Just as Lucian was considering whether to hand over the letter, Kale spoke first.
"By the way… there's something that feels strange."
"You haven't ordered the Cuckoos to move troops toward the Grand Lift of Dectus, have you?"
Lucian shook his head.
"Why do you ask? What did you see?"
Kale thought for a moment before recounting what he had witnessed.
"Something's off. A large number of Cuckoos have gathered there. Even from a distance, you can tell the size of the camp doesn't match the number of troops."
"And I heard the sound of machinery operating. I'm guessing it was the lift."
"At first, I thought you were preparing to march on the Altus Plateau after taking control of the Cuckoos, so I didn't think much of it."
"But judging from what happened just now… it doesn't seem like your order."
Lucian fell silent, deep in thought.
So the Cuckoos weren't just engaging in petty misconduct, they were making larger moves as well.
Within the areas monitored by the academy, they behaved normally.
But beyond that surveillance, they were already mobilizing.
They were likely planning to quietly transfer their main forces up to the Altus Plateau.
That suggested deeper ties with Leyndell, the Royal Capital.
Thinking back, the Night's Cavalry he had encountered before had probably descended via the Grand Lift of Dectus as well.
The Cuckoo camp stationed before the lift hadn't even bothered to guard against Leyndell forces coming down. All of their defensive equipment had been aimed toward the academy's north gate and the Bellum Highway leading to it.
He simply hadn't noticed at the time.
If that was the case, then Lucian could no longer treat them as subordinates.
Now that he knew the Cuckoos harbored ulterior motives, he would not show mercy.
For now, he would play along, observe what they intended to do.
Meanwhile, he would have the Drakeblood Knights and the newly trained troops prepare. Once the great bridge linking Limgrave and Liurnia was repaired, they would descend together.
When that time came, they would purge the Cuckoos and take full control of Liurnia.
Having silently decided on his strategy, Lucian retrieved the letter previously entrusted to him by a merchant of the wandering people within Academy.
Kale had brought him valuable intelligence. It was only fair to return the favor.
Kale stared at the letter placed in his hands, disbelief written across his face.
"This is… a ciphered letter of our people?"
Lucian nodded.
"Yes. I met one of your kin before. He asked me to pass it along."
"If there had been time, I would have introduced you. He's much older than you and knows a great deal about the past."
"But I'm not sure if he's still there, and I don't have the time to bring you to him right now. So I'll give this to you instead."
"I think you'll be interested in what it contains."
"There's information related to the Great Caravan. It may help you, but don't expect too much."
"As for whether you'll meet that kinsman within the academy… that depends on fate."
Kale accepted the letter but did not open it immediately.
He gripped it tightly and lowered his gaze.
"Thank you… From ancient times to now, our wandering people have never been favored by the grace of gold."
"We were forced to roam, living a life of hardship and travel."
"But along this journey, meeting someone as kind as you… that means a lot."
He looked up at Lucian, visibly moved.
"The 'Great Caravan'… I only mentioned it briefly to you before. I didn't expect you to remember."
"I can't accept this for nothing."
"I've earned quite a few runes through trading along the way."
"Let's make a deal, old customer, our people's way."
Lucian smiled faintly.
As a veteran Elden Ring player, he had long known about the cut questline involving the Great Caravan. Kale didn't need to explain it for him to remember.
"No need for runes. We're friends, aren't we?"
"But I still remember how you overcharged me that first time. Next time, give me a discount."
Kale burst into laughter.
"Haha! If you're buying, I'll definitely give you one."
"Anything you want, I'll offer the lowest price."
When Lucian had first entered the Lands Between, Kale had sold him crafting cookbooks, a crafting kit, and various odds and ends.
He had been a little ruthless, two thousand runes on the very first transaction.
But Lucian was only teasing now.
He had been willing to spend that amount back then; now, it was nothing.
Kale exhaled deeply and looked once more at the letter.
"I never told you this in detail before. In truth, our wandering people once had something like a homeland."
"That was the Great Caravan."
"…But one day, without warning, it disappeared. No one saw it again."
"To many of my kin, it became nothing more than a legend."
"But I've always believed it truly existed. That's why I keep searching."
He forced a small laugh.
"With such a grand name, maybe it was filled with countless rare treasures."
The laugh turned into a bitter smile.
That wasn't the real reason he sought it.
He sighed.
"Perhaps suffering causes a person's thoughts to expand. Maybe that's what philosophy is."
"Somewhere along the way, I began thinking about things unrelated to mere survival."
Lucian felt a faint stirring in his heart.
Perhaps hardship did give rise to unique philosophies.
Kale continued quietly:
"I'm actually content being alone."
"And at this point, I have nothing in particular I wish to say to my ancestors…"
"I just want to know, where are my roots?"
"Who am I? Where did I come from? And where am I meant to go?"
Lucian listened in silence.
Kale's search was destined not to yield the answers he truly wanted.
At least, not the ones he imagined.
Gently, Lucian said, "Read the letter first."
"Keep your expectations in check. Otherwise, the disappointment may be greater."
Kale nodded and unfolded it.
The letter was written entirely in the wandering people's cipher, normally something that would require extensive decoding.
But the merchant who had entrusted it to Lucian had been terribly bored and had already translated it into the common script of the Lands Between.
Kale read it in one breath.
His eyes filled with excitement.
"So that's it! The Great Caravan truly existed, and it was in Leyndell!"
He laughed loudly.
"Even if it left after the Shattering, there must still be traces!"
"Wonderful. At last, I have a destination."
Carefully, reverently, he folded the letter and tucked it away.
It had already become the vessel of his faith.
Lucian watched his joy with a trace of unease.
Kale had the right to know the truth.
He also had the right to seek vengeance against the Golden Order's dynasty.
But such a cruel truth… might shatter him.
"What will you do next?" Lucian asked.
Kale thought for a moment, looking troubled.
"I'll probably rest here at the academy for a while."
"After some time, I plan to leave Liurnia and search for a way up to the Altus Plateau."
"Right now, I have no method and no concrete leads."
"But there's no need to rush. I'll take my time investigating."
"After all… wandering is what our people do best."