Chapter Summaries

Methode joined Lowell, Frieren, Fern, and Liletta on their journey north. The group decided to meet Serie in the Empire Eisberg rather than return to Oysast, and Frieren looked forward to seeing Methode pat Serie’s head.

• Methode joined Lowell, Frieren, Fern, and Liletta, while Fern warned her not to touch her head.
• Lowell asked Genau to escort four restrained Demons toward Oysast and make sure they reached the border and the academy.
• Methode told Frieren and Fern that Serie could grant them spells for their recent contributions and asked if they wanted to return to Oysast.
• Lowell said they would meet Serie in the Empire Eisberg, where she was headed soon, and Frieren asked Methode to pat Serie’s head in front of her.
• Lowell led the group north out of the village, with Frieren, Fern, Liletta, and Methode following.

Frieren and her companions reached a village in the Dorah Region that had been devastated by a group of dragons, and accepted the villagers’ commission to drive them out in exchange for a spell. Lowell hurriedly sealed the deal and led the group toward the dragons’ mountain home.

• Frieren asked an old villager what had happened, and he explained that a group of dragons had attacked and settled in the nearby mountains.
• The old man asked the travelers to get rid of the dragons, warning that the damaged village could offer only a meager reward.
• Frieren agreed to help in exchange for the village’s spell, “Never Stumble While Saying Tongue Twisters,” while Fern called it useless.
• Lowell mused over how the village’s tongue-twister spell compared with Frieren’s similar spell, then firmly shook the old man’s hand to seal the commission.
• Methode teased Lowell for intercepting Frieren’s handshake, and Frieren said she had thought the old man simply wanted to shake hands.
• Lowell led the group toward the mountains to slay the dragons.

Lowell, Frieren, Fern, Liletta, and Methode returned from a simple dragon commission, and Frieren enjoyed the magic book reward while Methode admired her. Elsewhere, Edel transferred her memories to Duncan as Lairen assigned him to maintain the barrier around the Golden Land, where Macht remained a threat.

• Lowell, Frieren, and Fern discussed how the flying dragons were little more than lizards with wings as they walked back from the village.
• Liletta questioned why they had accepted a commission whose reward was too small, and Lowell said it was a good deed and Frieren might like the reward.
• Frieren found something pleasing in the magic book, while Methode openly admired her and Frieren moved closer to Lowell to avoid her gaze.
• Lowell subtly shielded Frieren from Methode, while Fern observed and Liletta gave up trying to understand their interaction.
• Lairen introduced Edel to Duncan, and Edel transferred her memories to him before Lairen assigned him to maintain the Golden Land's barrier.
• Edel warned Duncan that he could not save his hometown, and Lairen said Duncan intended to face Macht of the Golden Land alone.

Frieren and Lowell lingered in bed together, lazily deciding that Lowell would buy groceries and prepare her favorite pudding. Frieren fell back asleep after telling Lowell she loved him, while Fern quietly left them undisturbed.

• Frieren woke briefly in Lowell's arms but said she did not want to get up, and Lowell encouraged her to sleep longer.
• Frieren asked who would buy groceries, then claimed she had forgotten their rock-paper-scissors agreement; Lowell agreed to go shopping for her.
• Frieren requested Mercury Pudding with honey and caramel and asked Lowell to feed her.
• Frieren settled back into Lowell's arms, told him she loved him most, and fell asleep as he held her.
• Fern knocked at the door, stopped when she received no answer, and quietly walked away without disturbing them.

Lowell and the others subdued the Kraken and rode on its head through the storm while Lowell surfed the waves. Frieren told Fern she was one of the most important people in her life, and Fern later suspected Frieren had eaten her missing pudding.

• The Kraken swung Lowell, Frieren, Fern, Methode, and Liletta through the air until Frieren purified it.
• The five sat on the docile, pale-gold Kraken as Lowell raised a barrier against the storm.
• Lowell rode a board across the raging waves, shouting dramatic declarations while Fern and Methode watched.
• Frieren told Fern that she was one of the most important people to her, leaving Fern flustered.
• Fern found her pudding parcel empty and questioned Frieren, who denied knowing what happened to it.

Frieren’s group found Gaan’s stone bridge across Tuo Creek Grand Canyon, but Riftwind Cloud Eagles made it dangerous to cross. After Fern swiftly killed a patrol, they accepted Gaan’s offer of a pancake-making magic as their reward for clearing the eagles’ nest.

• Lowell, Frieren, Fern, and Methode chose to travel upstream to find Gaan’s bridge rather than wait for the wind to stop or take a difficult mountain route.
• The group found Gaan beside the completed bridge, and he explained that Riftwind Cloud Eagles used powerful winds to knock travelers off it.
• Fern killed five patrolling eagles with a rapid volley of magic.
• Gaan warned that at least three hundred eagles remained in the nest and offered the magic “Always Having Success When Making Pancakes” as a reward.
• Frieren, Fern, and Lowell agreed to help Gaan in exchange for the pancake-making magic and a breakfast of pancakes.

Lowell explained that Gaan had spent two hundred years finishing the bridge because he could not forget the villagers lost when Demons attacked, and that Lowell had funded the work. After the group cleared the Riftwind Cloud Eagles from their nests, Gaan revealed that his village had been rebuilt long ago, and Frieren returned to reading her pancake magic book.

• Lowell told Fern and the others that Gaan had built the bridge to help prevent another tragedy like the Demon attack on his village, and that Lowell had supplied the money to finish it.
• Frieren reminded Lowell that funding the bridge had cost her many desserts, then secured his promise to make her Mercury Pudding and asked Fern to make pancakes.
• Fern, Methode, and Liletta rapidly defeated the Riftwind Cloud Eagles gathered on the rocky summit while Lowell stayed out of the fight.
• Gaan handed Lowell a magic booklet, and Lowell passed it to Frieren when the group returned to the bridge.
• Gaan said he planned to retire and return to his village, then explained that it had been rebuilt long ago; Frieren read the booklet titled Always Having Success When Making Pancakes.

Frieren, Fern, Lowell, and Methode went to an adventurers’ camp on the Shumal Snowfield to sell anti-magic ore and earn travel money. When the ore attracted no buyers because it could leave mages defenseless, Lowell proposed taking commissions or mining holy snow crystals themselves.

• Fern scolded Frieren for spending most of their travel money on magic books and tools, and Lowell explained that their wealth was tied up in assets they could not readily sell.
• Frieren and Lowell remembered an adventurers’ camp on the snowfield, where people sought valuable holy snow crystals.
• At the camp market, the group found supplies priced far above their usual cost, while Frieren spotted magic items she wanted to buy.
• Lowell offered the anti-magic ore below market price, but no one showed interest in it.
• Methode explained that adventurers would not want to carry ore that could leave a mage unable to fight, so Lowell put it away and suggested taking commissions or entering the mine.

Frieren, Fern, Lowell, Methode, and Liletta fought a powerful ice-crystal wolf guarding a vein of holy snow crystal, then watched it shrink into a puppy-sized companion. They camped on the snowy plain, where Lowell and Frieren reminisced about their former party as the group settled into a quiet night.

• A local employer hired the group to clear monsters from a holy snow crystal vein and install a barrier to keep people away.
• The group found a huge ice-crystal wolf resting on the ore and fought it with magic and blades until the battle ended.
• The defeated wolf approached Fern, transformed into a small silver-white snow wolf, and let Fern pet it.
• Methode asked Fern for a hug, prompting Fern to hide behind Frieren and Frieren to hide behind Lowell.
• Lowell set up camp, and the group gathered around a fire while Fern cared for the snow wolf.
• Lowell recalled evenings by the fire with Himmel and the others, and Frieren leaned against him as the group enjoyed the night.

Frieren and her companions watched the morning sun illuminate the holy snow crystal before returning to the adventurers’ camp for their reward. After Frieren spent much of the money on a magic tool and old scrolls, Fern led the group toward more requests.

• Frieren, Lowell, Fern, Methode, and Liletta watched the sunrise shimmer across the holy snow crystal, and Frieren placed a barrier over the vein.
• The local adventurer paid the group and explained to Fern that he wanted to protect the scenery rather than mine the crystal.
• Lowell handed the reward pouch to Frieren, who ran off and bought a magic tool containing two old scrolls.
• Fern pointed out that the market prices were ten times higher, and Frieren sheepishly tried to justify her purchase.
• Fern headed for the request board, while Lowell promised Frieren they would take more requests to buy her additional magic tools.

Frieren and her companions accepted a personal commission from First-Class Mage Lairen and met Duncan at the edge of the Golden Land. After revisiting the memories preserved in his hometown, Duncan resolved to gather enough information to face Macht and see whether his home remained beautiful beneath the gold.

• Fern told Frieren that Lairen had sent a personal commission and offered three grimoires as payment, prompting Frieren to accept it.
• Frieren explained that Macht had turned Fortress City Weise and its surroundings to gold fifty years earlier, and Duncan revealed that his hometown had been swallowed by the expanding Golden Land only a few years ago.
• Duncan said he had become a First-Class Mage and barrier administrator to return to the place where he had lived with his wife, Lektüre.
• As Duncan recalled his life with Lektüre and saw that their familiar surroundings remained unchanged beneath the gold, he realized their happy days had never been a lie.
• Duncan apologized for Lairen's commission and said he would fight Macht only after gathering enough information, determined to see whether his hometown remained beautiful beneath the gold.

Fern asked Lowell whether he could undo Macht’s curse that had turned the Golden Land to gold, and Lowell explained that he could neither understand nor reverse it. Fern then asked why Lowell had not used Future Prediction to prevent the Golden Land from coming into being, and Lowell fell silent.

• Fern asked Lowell if he could undo the curse that turned the Golden Land to gold, and Lowell said he could not.
• Fern described how the gold blocked mana detection, and Frieren explained that Diagoldze was a curse that disrupted perception and assimilated everything inside it.
• Frieren said she could not defeat Macht and believed only Lowell or Serie might be able to do so.
• Lowell explained that Macht had mastered his natural specialty and that he could not imagine turning gold back into people.
• Fern asked Lowell whether he had failed to notice the danger or chosen not to stop Macht despite his Future Prediction, and Lowell hesitated before answering.

Lowell explained to Fern why he had watched Macht create the Golden Land instead of intervening, citing the uncertain consequences and the lives and growth that followed. He also described how Duncan’s losses shaped the man he admired, leaving Fern to consider Lowell’s choice.

• Lowell told Fern he had chosen not to stop the Golden Land because intervening might have caused other innocent people to suffer, and he had no duty to act as Weise’s guardian.
• Lowell said erasing the Golden Land through Future Prediction could have changed history and prevented people, including those saved by later advances in curse research, from ever existing or being saved.
• Lowell explained that Duncan had pursued power and status after losing his family, only to find that no one remained at home when he finally wanted to return.
• Lowell said he admired Duncan for turning back to challenge Macht despite knowing he would die, and for finally wanting to go home.

Lowell explained to Fern why Duncan had chosen to face Macht himself rather than ask for help, despite being willing to accept Lowell’s intervention if it offered the best chance of saving Weise. He believed Duncan’s love, regret, and resolve would carry him into the fight determined to win.

• Fern asked whether Lowell would help Duncan defeat Macht and suggested asking Heiter to lift the curse, but Lowell said Heiter could not undo Diagoldze.
• Lowell explained that Duncan could have asked Serie to kill Macht, but instead obtained a curse-reversal spell from her so he could fight Macht himself and seek a way to undo the golden transformation.
• Fern guessed that pride kept Duncan from asking for help, and Lowell explained that Macht was also Duncan’s teacher and that Duncan’s painful regret drove him to pursue redemption personally.
• Lowell said Duncan would accept his intervention because it offered the greatest chance of success, but did not want it because he wanted to save his beloved and hometown with his own hands.
• Lowell recalled that Duncan had fallen silent when Frieren asked if he wanted help, fearing he would abandon his own chosen path if he accepted an easy victory.
• Lowell declared that Duncan was ready to face Macht and would not lose while carrying his beloved and hometown with him.

Duncan arrived at Lowell’s cabin to explain the situation surrounding his fight with Macht, while Lairen told Edel why he was determined to help Duncan save Weise. Lairen reflected that he and Duncan had no time left to put off what mattered, and hoped Duncan would face his hometown’s fate with courage.

• Fern found Frieren already awake early and fed her porridge while Liletta massaged her shoulders and Methode watched.
• Lowell told Fern that he would not interfere in Duncan’s fight with Macht but could help in other ways.
• Duncan arrived and began explaining information gathered by Lairen and Edel, but Frieren asked him to give only the conclusion.
• In a carriage, Edel asked Lairen why he cared about Duncan, and Lairen explained that they had been old friends since their days serving at court.
• Lairen recalled that Duncan had stood up for him and said he wanted to help Duncan return to Weise, which had been swallowed by the Golden Land.
• Lairen told Edel that there was no someday for them and hoped Duncan would stake everything on saving his hometown.

Duncan told Frieren, Fern, and Lowell that he could not defeat Macht or counter Diagoldze, but that Macht had spared him and had no immediate intention of killing him. He used Memory Transfer to show Lairen recruiting Edel to investigate the Golden Land and repair the Dominating Stone Ring worn by Macht.

• Duncan said Macht had spared him when he visited his wife in Weise, then began explaining the Golden Land and Macht’s history.
• Duncan projected Edel’s memories, including scenes of Methode petting Edel and Edel meeting Kanne, Rabiñe, and Lairen at a bakery.
• In the memories, Lairen commissioned Edel to investigate the Golden Land and explained that her expertise in Mental Magic made her the best choice.
• Lairen showed Edel a replica of the Dominating Stone Ring and said Macht’s ring might be damaged or changed, making its repair potentially crucial to defeating him.
• Edel accepted the commission despite doubting her chances, and Lairen promised to take her and run if the plan failed.

Lairen and Edel discovered that Macht had turned the scouting party into gold and examined the Golden Land from outside its barrier. After Edel read a survivor’s memories about Macht receiving the Dominating Stone Ring, she realized its command might not prevent Macht from harming Weise because he was not human, leaving their planned operation potentially useless.

• Fuliu returned from scouting and reported that Macht had instantly turned Tao and the rest of the group into gold.
• Fuliu herself transformed into a golden statue before Edel could read her memories, and Lairen concluded that Macht had let her escape as a warning.
• Lairen and Edel viewed the Golden Land from a cliff and discussed its barrier and the unusual, indestructible gold.
• Lairen brought Edel to an elderly survivor of Weise, who consented to having his memories read.
• Edel saw Lord Gluck command Macht to obey Weise’s people and never harbor malice toward them, then realized the wording might not constrain him because he was a Demon.
• Edel urged Lairen to enter the Golden Land, warning that their planned operation might be meaningless.

Lairen and Edel confronted Macht in the Golden Land, discovering that the Dominating Stone Ring still controlled him and that demons could turn Weise to gold without malice. Edel read Macht’s memories while Lairen fought to buy time, and the pair escaped after Macht turned their giant Golem into another golden statue.

• Edel questioned the story that Macht had been shackled for riches, and she and Lairen entered the Golden Land, where they found the corpses of people Macht had turned to gold.
• Macht appeared and attacked Lairen, while Edel tried to repair the Dominating Stone Ring from a distance; she found that its Mental Magic was still functioning normally.
• Edel explained that Macht’s destruction of Weise did not require malice because demons killed humans as an innate habit, and she confirmed that only the ring’s user could add new orders.
• Lairen released a small Golem and claimed he and Edel would retreat, but Macht severed the Golem’s arms and badly wounded Lairen with a sword strike.
• Edel touched Macht’s neck and read his memories, then fainted; Lairen released a giant Golem and used the distraction to escape with her.
• Macht turned the giant Golem into gold and walked deeper into the Golden Land, leaving it as another statue on the street.

Frieren and the others discussed Edel’s feat of reading Macht’s memories before Duncan explained that he negotiated with his former teacher each day in hopes of undoing the Goldification. Lowell revealed that Gluck had knowingly left Macht’s orders vague, then told Duncan he had already seen another way to reverse the spell.

• Frieren explained how extraordinary it was that Edel had entered Macht’s mind and read his memories.
• Duncan said he went to negotiate with Macht every day and hoped the demon might undo the Goldification.
• Liletta argued that Macht would not obey highly coercive orders, and Lowell praised her for speaking up.
• Lowell suggested Gluck had deliberately left Macht’s orders as they were because he understood his old friend.
• Duncan reaffirmed his wish to persuade Macht, but Lowell said Serie had already failed to make Macht undo the Goldification and disclosed that he had seen another possible solution.
• Lowell pointed out that Duncan called Macht “he” and “teacher,” and Duncan quietly realized that he did.

Duncan brought Frieren, Fern, Lowell, and Methode to the Golden Land to meet Macht and investigate how to break Diagoldze. Frieren provoked Macht to test him, then concluded she could not defeat him as she was and that he was not flawless.

• Lowell warned the group that Macht might attack and that his Diagoldze magic would be difficult to evade, while Duncan said Macht would likely spare his friends.
• Duncan led the group into the Golden Land, where they found Macht waiting at the Gluck Family mansion.
• Frieren reminded Macht that they had fought six hundred years earlier and provoked him when he failed to remember her.
• Macht briefly turned hostile toward Frieren, but Duncan stopped him and Macht returned to his obedient manner.
• In the parlor, Frieren told Fern she had provoked Macht to confirm something, then said she could not beat him as she was and that he was not flawless.
• Macht's fingers paused around his teacup as Frieren stated her conclusion.