Arthur arrived at Ranni's tower and climbed to the top floor.
There, at last, he saw her again.
"…So we meet once more, curious Tarnished, Arthur." Ranni sat poised on her seat, her voice calm yet aloof. "I'm glad to see Torrent fares well."
"Hello, Lady Ranni—beautiful as ever," Arthur greeted with a half-bow.
"Beautiful? A curious choice of words. This body was crafted in the likeness of my teacher, the witch Renna. I wonder, then, whom you're truly praising."
But she didn't dwell on it, and simply continued.
"Since fate sees fit to weave our paths together again—will you serve me still? Even knowing that I once stole Death, sought paths into shadow, and that one day, I shall betray all… and cast everything aside?"
"Of course. It would be my honor," Arthur replied without hesitation.
"…I see. Good. You are a strange one indeed. I look forward to what you'll accomplish."
Her voice always carried that unshakable hauteur.
"Then listen well. I have work for you.
There is a half-wolf warrior named Blaidd who serves me faithfully. You are to join him and seek the hidden treasure of the Eternal City, Nokron.
I have already summoned Blaidd; he awaits below. Speak with him for the details.
Also, War Counselor Iji and the sorcerer Preceptor Seluvis should be present. They are… peculiar in their own ways. Make use of them as you must. They will not hesitate to do the same.
Go now, and greet them. You need not ingratiate yourself, but know this: it has been long since any newcomer joined our fold. They will measure you in their own fashion."
These three were no strangers to Arthur—at least, not in his previous life.
Blaidd, the half-wolf sworn as Ranni's blade, gifted by the Two Fingers but utterly loyal to her. He had grown up at her side, willing to defy even the Fingers' decrees for her sake… though unbeknownst to him, they had left a failsafe within him from the very start.
Iji, the giant smith of House Caria, likewise loyal to Ranni—only to meet his end at the hands of the Black Knife Assassins.
And Preceptor Seluvis… a perverse puppeteer.
He delighted in turning people into dolls under his control. Even Ranni was not beyond his designs.
In the game, he would give the player a potion, urging them to slip it to Ranni. Once she saw through the plot, she killed him on the spot.
Still… who could resist a beautiful doll with a soul of her own?
Arthur grimaced. Damn it, am I becoming a pervert myself?
"…I sense your thoughts wandering in rather disrespectful directions."
Ranni's cool voice snapped him back.
"Cough… nothing of the sort. Well then, Lady Ranni, I shall go below."
He took his leave and descended, meeting the three figures—though only in their spectral forms.
Iji, ever stationed at the gates of Caria Manor.
Preceptor Seluvis, always skulking in his nearby tower, brewing puppet draughts.
And Blaidd, perhaps even now ranging through the Siofra River depths in search of Nokstella's entrance.
They exchanged a few words—an introduction more than anything. Blaidd tasked Arthur with joining him in Siofra later.
But instead of setting out at once, Arthur turned back and ascended once more to the top floor.
"…Forgot something?" Ranni asked when she saw him return.
"No. Merely a question I wished to ask your counsel on.
For certain reasons, I must gather every Great Rune in the Lands Between. Your mother possesses one—the Great Rune of the Unborn. But she slumbers still."
"You seek her Rune, then you must rouse her," Ranni answered smoothly, finishing his thought.
"So be it. I did not expect you to know of this as well. Go—wake my mother. She has dreamt her false dreams too long. It is time she rose again."
After a long pause, she spoke those words, voice quiet but resolute.
"My deepest thanks," Arthur said, bowing.
Then, through a Site of Grace, he teleported straight to the Grand Library of Raya Lucaria.
"Mother…"
Ranni stared absently at the space where Arthur had vanished.
"Perhaps it is time I returned as well."
In the Grand Library, Arthur found Rennala in her cocoon of slumber.
Around her crawled a host of malformed children—her creations.
Incomplete, fragile, their bodies too weak to stand, forced to crawl instead.
Even so, they flung their feeble magics at him, desperate to bar the intruder.
Arthur struck them down without mercy.
Once Rennala awoke, she could always make them anew.
At length, he shattered the barrier encasing her.
The first thing Rennala did upon stirring was reach for her children, scrambling toward the amber egg in panic, forgetting even to stand.
Arthur felt a pang of pity.
Her husband, Radagon, had left her for Marika.
Her sons tore each other apart in the Shattering War.
Only her daughter Ranni still remembered her—yet even she had her own path to walk.
So Rennala poured all her love into the amber egg, birthing fragile children from her magic, then drowned herself in false dreams.
Sighing, Arthur stepped forward to pick up the egg for her.
But before his hand touched it, black mist billowed out.
The next instant, he was dragged into a strange domain.
An endless mirror-water plain, no deeper than the ankle, stretched in all directions. Above, stars glittered brilliantly—and a single, vast full moon loomed overhead.
Arthur swore it was the largest moon he had ever seen, in two lifetimes.
Its light washed everything in a gentle glow.
"By the name of Ranni the Witch, I command: disturb not my mother's sweet slumber."
Arthur: ???
Wait—didn't you literally tell me to wake her? Why are you making me fight her now?
"…Hm? Ah, it is you, Arthur."
Don't act like you just recognized me, damn it!
"Yes, Lady Ranni," he said aloud with a straight face, though inwardly screaming.
"So, perhaps we can skip the theatrics? Given our… relationship, there's no need to fight, right?"
"No. Since you are here, let me test your strength. Feel the might of Caria's last queen—Rennala of the Full Moon, the very image of the high and hidden night."
Seriously? My wife wants me to duel my mother-in-law? What kind of twisted scenario is this?
He barely had time to complain before Rennala's phantom raised her Carian staff.
In an instant, a Comet Azur—a torrent of blue sorcery as wide as a man's height—shot straight at him.
It hurled Arthur across the field, blasting half his life away in one strike.
He staggered up, grimacing.
He'd endured hundreds of battles in the Lands Between, stacking resistances through sheer survival.
Even without runes bolstering his physique, he'd been pummeled enough to harden his vitality to level 64.
And still, half his health gone in one hit.
No doubt about it—this was the ultimate sorcery of the mage's path.
If there was no avoiding a fight, Arthur would take it seriously.
He summoned his Spirit Ashes—an entire band of demi-humans.
They weren't the strongest, but five bodies at once, aggressive and chaotic, could at least keep Rennala's summoned phantoms busy.
Because yes, his soon-to-be mother-in-law didn't fight alone. Even her clone could call forth dragons for support.
So this is the real mage meta—spamming summons, huh?
While the demi-humans distracted, Arthur kept to range, hammering her with Rock Sling.
Rennala's poise was low; three hits and she staggered.
When she reeled, Arthur swapped to the Sword of Night and Flame, unleashing its beam art.
Then she rose again, charging another Comet Azur.
The battle fell into a rhythm, almost turn-based.
At one point, Arthur tried firing his beam at the same time she cast Comet Azur—
but his stream didn't last nearly as long, and worse, he was standing on the left.
And everyone knew—the left side always loses beam clashes.
So he took another blast square in the face.
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