Construct Golem Subjugation!

The griffin on the door knocker, its eyes blazing with crimson fire, enveloped Ada Emin and Ailin.

"Buzz~"

After the Wolf Emblem hummed, Ailin suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

The Sea Serpent, its scales rubbing against his feet, coiled around his legs and ascended upwards.

But when he looked down, there was nothing there.

"Don't resist."

Ada Emin transmitted a message, Ailin immediately suppressed his discomfort.

The eerie sensation accelerated, rapidly spiraling upwards and enveloping his entire body.

Immediately following.

A flash of dark purple light appeared before his eyes, and Ailin felt his body lighten, while a strong suction force came from all around him.

When I came to my senses, my feet were already on solid ground.

"Have we arrived?"

"Yes, we've arrived," Ida Emin gestured.

A bright orb of light rose into the air, dispelling the thick darkness.

The first thing you see is an archway carved with leaf patterns, and the ground is paved with printed stone bricks, all in a typical elven style.

However, both the archway and the stone bricks were covered in thick dust, making them look extremely dilapidated.

The archway leads into unfathomable darkness, while the opposite side is filled with rubble and mounds of earth.

This place has only one exit: the archway they are facing.

"It looks like Auction House," Ada Emin said, looking down at the patterns on the floor tiles. "It's also an arena and an art gallery. In Dufusov's time, big cities in the Mountain Folk would have Auction House like this."

"The summer and autumn seasons are mild, serving as arenas for duels of swordsmanship and magic. In winter, the artists of the Mountain Folk will retreat to summarize their insights of the year into their works, which will be appreciated and auctioned in the following spring."

"You're very familiar with this," Ailin observed Ida Emin. "Are you from the time of Dufusov?"

Ida Emin's lifespan remains a mystery.

When she first appeared in the original work, she was an expert who had lived in seclusion deep in the Blue Mountains for many years. Not only did she have little contact with humans, but she also had no interpersonal relationships with her own blood relatives.

Not long after her appearance in the original work, she joined the Conclave of Sorceresses and became one of the most mysterious Sorceress in the Conclave of Sorceresses.

However, judging from Ailin's experience with him...

Ida Emin was not as indifferent to the fate of her fellow countrymen as depicted in the original story.

On the contrary, whether it was Ban Ade six months ago or now in Kaer Morhen, this female elf from the Blue Mountains seems to be doing her best for the Free Elves.

There is actually an explanation for this change.

In the original story, Francesca Fantaby breaks completely with her father, Himles Fantaby, the ruler of the Free Elves and another knower.

Francesca Fantaby is still young now, so it doesn't matter much, but in a few years, such a break will surely shatter the Free Elves completely.

Ada Emin may have been disheartened by the infighting and fratricide within the Free Elves in the future, which is why she went into complete seclusion deep in the Blue Mountains.

Of course, this is just speculation.

However, Ailin was indeed very curious about her.

"Didn't anyone teach you never to test a Sorceress's age?"

Ada Emin looked away and glanced at him.

"I was not born in Toussaint, Mountain Folk in Shaer Lavhed. I can recognize my surroundings simply because all the big cities of the Mountain Folk are much the same."

"Shaer Lavhed also had such a fighting arena."

She did not deny that she came from the era of Dufusov... Ailin thought that meant she was born at least four hundred years ago, before 781.

Over four hundred years old, twenty years per generation, that's twenty generations.

Is this what Long-lived race is...?

"I can sense you're thinking something rather impolite, Ailin." Ada Emin frowned.

Upon hearing this, Ailin calmly dismissed the thoughts in her mind and changed the subject:

"I was just thinking about what the old cities of Beauclair and Shaer Lavhed would have been like?"

Ada Emin gave him a deep look, but didn't delve into it further.

She waved her right hand, signaling Ailin to follow.

The sphere of light moved accordingly, illuminating the path ahead.

"The Beauclair of the past is not much different from the one of now," she said softly. "Although the Mountain Folk sank the Valley of Nine into the Sansidore River, the Valley of Nine were once the core of the entire world."

"Elves, dwarves, halflings, goblins... and even humans, countless races will come to the Valley of Nine to contribute their skills."

"Therefore, most of the craftsmen Ludovic hired to repair and expand the city had been here before."

"As for Shaer Lavhed..."

Ida Emin's tone softened slightly:

"That's a city completely different from Beauclair."

"At its center was once a fountain, with sculptures depicting the Sea Goddess and her sisters frolicking in the sea, and pure, sweet spring water spouting from the mouths of sculptures of dolphins, seashells, seahorses, and more..."

"White roses, as beautiful as lilies, surround the fountain all year round and are tended by the Mountain Folk."

"Because that is the Sea Goddess's favorite flower on land. It is said that she would specially return from the sea to the land just to admire the flower and bless every river, stream, and lake she passed by..."

"Now, very few people in the Northern Continent know about the Sea Goddess. Since the destruction of Shaer Lavhed, no Free Elves have worshipped her anymore."

"Of course, almost no one knows that Shaer Lavhed's White Rose are the sacrificial flowers of the Sea Goddess, just as carnations are to Meritellie..."

Ada Emin waved and lit the torches along the way.

"Indeed," Ailin nodded, walking around a pile of rubble and up the stone steps. "I only know of another Shaer Lavhed's White Rose."

Ida Emin paused, letting out a long sigh:

Do Laurelin?

"She upheld the honor and dignity of the Mountain Folk, but lost all hope."

"However, she is a good child."

Laurelin, the tragic leader of the elven rebellion, was called "the Shaer Lavhed's White Rose" by the elves.

One hundred and twenty years ago, faced with humans constantly encroaching on the elves' living space, Laurelin did not follow the passive strategy of the elven elders who hoped to wait for humanity's demise by living in seclusion and enjoying longevity. Instead, she incited the young elves to follow her in launching a hopeless battle against humanity that was destined to fail.

Almost all the young elves went to war with Laurelin.

They see Shaer Lavhed as a symbol, and fight to protect the city of the elves, for freedom and honor.

But the war was destined to be a failure; the young elves were slaughtered by humans, and the Ain-Shidi race forever lost the chance to rise again.

Even in later generations, she remains a symbol of the fight for freedom.

Under Francesca Fantaby's rule, the Squirrels elves will still go to war in the names of Laurelin and Shaer Lavhed.

In Ailin's opinion, it's difficult to judge the merits and demerits of the Laurelin.

While exhausting all the young and strong of the fertile elves, she did not extinguish their fighting spirit, and even into the future, she remained a banner of resistance.

It's really hard to evaluate the former and the latter, and which one is more important.

It can only be said that the era of elves is completely over. The population gap is there. Elves are good at magic, but their skill level is completely insufficient to cover the population gap. So no matter what they do, it will be wrong.

When Ariel Ryan was mentioned, Ada Emin fell silent and led the way in silence.

Thomas Moru's laboratory was significantly larger than the one in the previous game.

Or rather...

Thomas Mori's laboratory was actually only a small part of Valley of Nine was once Ain Siddi's largest arena.

Just as Ida Emin had envisioned before going underwater, because it was a laboratory, not a mausoleum meant to wipe out the enemy, there were no traps set up as soon as you entered.

For a considerable period of time, it was a tedious and boring journey.

The journey became even more tedious because of Ida Emin's silence.

The sound of their footsteps on the gravel and stone slabs echoed in the empty arena, sounding particularly eerie.

It wasn't until Ailin walked through a rather long hall and stepped into a corridor-like passageway that Ada Emin spoke up to remind him:

"We're almost at the lab. The first obstacle ahead is the guardian statue of the Black Panther Ritual."

"Understood." Ailin nodded, becoming alert.

His right hand instinctively reached for Elsa's sword hilt, but after thinking about it, he switched it to Balmor.

Reality isn't a game. Even monsters with diamond bodies in The Witcher 3 can be damaged by any sword.

In reality, let alone gargoyles, even the sturdiest longsword will chip if it accidentally hits an ordinary rock, and it might even break if too much force is applied. This is even more true for a silver sword, which is softer than a steel sword.

[Name: Balmor]

[Type: Curious Item]

[Functions: Sever steel, slay demons, break armor, exorcise evil, destroy fate]

[Note: This sword's history is even more legendary than that of its owner, Zatrete Volta. And here's a little secret: Zatrete Volta was also Child of Miracle.]

Although Balmor is not very obedient, it has the labels of "steel-breaking" and "armor-piercing", which at least indicates that it is very sturdy.

Moreover, after hunting the incarnation of the Evil God during the Summoning Ritual, I hunted small monsters such as Ghoul on a daily basis. Although I couldn't reach that state of excitement and it wasn't as useful as Elsa's sword, it was still comparable to an ordinary silver sword.

"Clang~"

He drew his sword.

Balmor did indeed give him face by trembling slightly, like a yawn, as a response.

"This is..." Ada Emin seemed to sense something, stopped in her tracks, and turned around in surprise.

Ailin smiled and twirled his sword, "A steel sword."

Ada Emin gave him a deep look. "I have a way to disable the Panther Ritual Guardian Statue. Are you still planning to deal with it yourself?"

"Give it a try," Ailin nodded.

Ada Emin didn't say much, but pointed to the passage at the end and changed the subject, saying, "That's it."

He finished speaking.

The bright orb of light flew straight into the archway, illuminating a small circular passage between the two archways.

Inside the passage, four black panther stone sculptures guarded the four directions.

Ailin looked up and saw that there was also a mechanism on the nearby archway, which must lock as soon as one entered the passage...

Smack!

With a wave of her hand, Ida Emin sent an Ice Spike flying from her hand, which pierced the center of the top of the archway.

The mechanism on the archway was easily disarmed.

Without further delay, Ailin slightly bent his thumb and forefinger, drew a triangle in front of him, and gave himself a lesson in the Quen Sign before stepping straight into the passage.

"Tap~ Tap~ Tap~"

The crisp sound of footsteps echoed back and forth in the corridor.

He moved his shoulders, making a clacking sound as his bones rubbed together.

Bring it on!

Let me try the warlock's methods!

"Click~"

When his right foot stepped into the center of the circular passage, a strange sound echoed throughout the entire space.

Then, a pale purple light membrane appeared on the other side of the archway.

"It feels a bit like playing a game, like going into a dungeon." Ailin raised an eyebrow and rushed over in a few steps.

After sensing the intensity of the light membrane's magic, he flipped his right hand holding the sword, and the longsword instantly pierced through the air, striking the light membrane directly.

The purple light membrane flashed suddenly, and a strong rebound force came from the longsword.

It would require at least nine swords at full strength... Ailin estimated, but how many people have his power?

"Buzz~"

Balmor trembled with displeasure.

The ordinary, rough longsword flashed with a cold light, piercing straight through the membrane of light as if it were a piece of tofu.

"Click~"

The light membrane froze for a moment, then shattered like glass, turning into swirling purple dust.

This is... a demon slayer?

Ailin grasped Balmor, feeling as if it were an extension of his right hand.

This was the first time he had used Balmor to break a spell, and he hadn't expected it to be so effective.

If a magical barrier can be pierced directly, what about other types of magic?

If Balmor were to get a little closer, could he perhaps cleave the giant fireball with his sword and parry Alzure's lightning strikes...?

"Phew~"

A sudden gust of wind swept up behind me, and the back of my head felt slightly cool.

Ailin felt a chill run down his spine, crouched low, and looked back as he rushed out of the archway.

"Click!"

A lifelike stone sculpture of a black panther, baring its sharp fangs, suddenly closed its gaping maw where its head had been, emitting a heavy thud.

If he hadn't dodged, his head would probably be smashed to pieces by now.

"Roar~"

Black Panther missed its target and landed lightly on the ground.

It's hard to imagine that a stone sculpture could move so gracefully, almost like a real jungle beast.

The other three black panthers also landed on the stone platform and slowly approached Ailin in a staggered manner.

The two sides were locked in a standoff.

Since the black panthers were completely unaffected by the oppressive Chaos Magic, Ailin tried to find their weaknesses from their actions.

At this moment.

"Should I kill two of them?" Ada Emin asked from outside another archway.

"Need not."

"Then you should go into the passage. These Panther Ritual Guardian Statue cannot step out of the two archways..."

Ailin, who was holding a sword in front of him and was on guard, froze and looked down.

really.

Although the four stone-carved black panthers had ferocious expressions, they remained huddled together and never stepped outside the archway, only baring their teeth at him in a constant threatening manner.

He's flirting with a blind man.

In a slightly awkward silence, Ailin was about to step through the stone gate when he suddenly remembered something and paused.

He pulled a Dimeritium Bomb from the reagent bag and threw it at the center of the four black panthers. At the same time, he twirled his sword with his right hand and was about to step into the passage.

The next second...

Smack!

Ailin's body stiffened again.

[Ding! Monster "Construct Golem" defeated!]

[Reward Settlement:...]