Enlightenment · Three (Continued)

Linking the First Flame... what a formidable threat. Indeed, in this world, no matter how one dies, one can always find a way to be resurrected. But only by linking the First Flame can one be resurrected, even as a Lord of Cinder, and success is not guaranteed—not all Lords of Cinder can be awakened by the bells. If one's resolve is not strong enough, being utterly annihilated by the First Flame is the only path.

—I really wouldn't dare gamble on that possibility.

—But... in other words, as long as I block the First Flame, you won't die, right?

The girl closed her eyes, then opened them. As she reached out and touched the earth, the entire ruins of Izalith trembled.

"Miss?" The Fire Keeper was the first to approach her.

When she saw the Fire Keeper, a pang of guilt quietly rose in her heart—she was suspicious and always wasted time on areas where it was unnecessary.

So she explained.

"I... intend to be faster." The surging fire penetrated every corner of the ruins. The desolate land and lost civilization resonated with her. Shattered stones crumbled, and ruined buildings reassembled. The entire ruins transformed from an irregular shape into a colossal humanoid silhouette!

Forged from lava and fire, she will descend deeper and deeper, even when there is no longer any need to explore the Ashen Lake. Here, she will devour all the abyssal derivatives and unclaimed souls, thus becoming supreme. Then—regardless of what happens or changes outside the surface—she will proceed to the First Flame after expanding her size to its limit!

"Is there anything I can do to help?" the Fire Keeper asked her.

She did not answer, but simply handed Clara's spellbook to her companion.

"Read it to me," she said. "Before I reach the First Flame, I need to learn all the power structures of this world."

She actually had a premonition.

But some premonitions don't need to be confirmed.

Is there a more discreet way to hide something than putting a drop of water into the ocean?

Yes, and it's very simple. The method is to hide that drop of water in the searcher's eye.

Clara might know many things, but she certainly wouldn't know that after obtaining the smelting furnace from the ruins of the Cursed Tree, she learned to forge souls into objects and pre-programmed a technique to restore objects to souls in order to bring her companions back to Terra. Therefore, given this condition, it's not difficult to deduce what method could be used to create a spellbook that seals all the knowledge of the learned witch and prevents anyone from finding her.

—But she still refused to see me.

—She wanted to prove to me that even if she were right beside me, even if the Dao Corrosion Phenomenon was constantly at work, she could still disprove my suspicions. She wanted to prove that she had absolute control!

She tried hard to control herself, not to look at or gaze at the spellbook.

She didn't know whether she hoped Clara would ultimately fail or succeed.

The girl's name is Gwyndolin, and she is Princess of Lothric.

This wasn't an identity she intentionally wanted to reveal; rather, her clothing, hair color, and accessories made it impossible for her to conceal. And after she awoke, her demeanor, speech, and experiences made it even more impossible for her to hide.

"I am being hunted! A group of unidentified knights are chasing me! Please take me to the nearest High Wall fortress on the border of Lothric, and I will pay you a very generous reward!"

After she awoke and realized from their gazes that her identity had been exposed, the first thing she said was to make a deal and ask for help.

The second sentence, however, left the two people involved with nowhere to turn.

"That knightly order knows I'm still alive, and since they dared to ambush the Princess of Lothric, it means they won't let anyone who might have come into contact with me go. Only by sending me to the border High Wall can the two of you survive—they won't accept any deals or concessions!"

The little Princess was quite frightened, and she clearly failed to maintain the composure expected of the Fire Keeper. The sudden and terrible ordeal made her instinctively grasp at the nearest straw. And she spoke too bluntly.

Immature—that's Kal'tsit's assessment of her, especially after comparing her to the Fire Keeper.

But she ultimately decided to take the little Princess with her to escape the attackers and flee into the depths of the forest. This was because Fedorlink had given her the choice. And because she knew that by helping the little Princess, she could not only enter the royal city, but even have the opportunity to enter the Grand Archives of Lothric.

According to the Fire Keeper, the Grand Archives of Lothric hold the world's deepest arcane secrets. Even an ordinary person with no talent, upon traversing the cursed shelves of the Grand Archives and successfully escaping, will acquire spells that ordinary mages could never learn in their entire lives, even if they are lazy, rude, and dull-witted.

Kal'tsit once asked the Fire Keeper how long she had been in the Grand Archives.

The Fire Keeper smiled back at her and said, "On the top floor of the Grand Archives, there is a secret door disguised as an ordinary bookshelf. Its distinguishing feature is that the only remaining copy of 'The First Flame' is placed on the top shelf. Find it and utter the name of the lady that has been forgotten by the world. The Lothric's Supreme Arcane Technique were hidden there by my own hands ten years ago."

Kal'tsit had no idea what that secret was.

But Kal'tsit intends to uncover that secret.

Because she doesn't know what she should do, she's currently acting in order to explore the mysteries and knowledge of this world.

So Kal'tsit brought the little Princess along—only because of conflicting interests, and not out of pity for the little Princess's pleas... at least that's what she convinced herself.

This incident occurred half a month ago.

That's right, half a month.

The group set off that very night, planning an alternative, more secretive route. However, on the third day, they were unable to escape the pursuit of the mysterious knightly order.

Kal'tsit sustained a minor injury, but it was healed when the Astra Spear pierced the knight scout's chest, the wound being filled with the unclaimed souls absorbed by the lance—this lance seemed to possess the strange power to absorb souls, purify them, and then nourish the wielder. And by absorbing the souls that had been pierced by the lance, one would not be lost in the memories of the dead.

This gun can only hold the will and soul of one person.

Perhaps it should be renamed Kal'tsit's Spear?

Ah...anything is fine. But that's not important. There's a limit to the absorption of souls, and Kal'tsit doesn't intend to challenge that limit. And after this battle, Gwyndolin finally agreed to reveal the details of the attack.

"I... was originally sent to Irithyll as an envoy and symbol of the covenant. This position shouldn't have been mine, but rather that of a distant sister from my clan. But for some reason, before we set off, a knight brought my brother's decree, instructing me to take my sister's place as a sign of respect for Irithyll. However, when my carriage was nearly halfway there..."

She shook her head.

"The attackers were well-prepared; there was a hidden poison in the water this morning... My knights had just noticed something was wrong. They took advantage of the lapse in attention during breakfast to launch their attack. My knight, Knight Captain Bordeaux, who was responsible for protecting me, took the initiative to attack those people to create an opportunity for me. And I seized the chance..."

Her eyes reddened as she spoke, and towards the end, she even lowered her head sadly.

Kal'tsit couldn't discern the acting or the sincerity in her words. But she could see the almost blatant scheming and calculation—as far as she knew, Lothric and Irithyll were supposed to forge a peace through the Princess's mission. But even if it failed, a princess temporarily occupying the position of Princess would be of little consequence.

But Gwyndolin is a true Princess ... she is the Fire Keeper's sister. She holds a position of great prestige within the royal family. She is not one of those common, merely beautiful but empty shells found throughout the Terra dynasties. She is a divine being, the embodiment of royal authority. And if a divine being were successfully assassinated, the authority of the royal family would be severely challenged and shaken.

It's clear that whoever made these moves wants to provoke a war between Lothric and Irithyll, and to disrupt the peace that is about to be restored. And...

Whether it was the Pope of Irithyll or the ruling prince of Lothric, they all tacitly approved of this to varying degrees.

—It is said that Pope Pontiff Sulyvahn is ambitious.

—It is said that there are two princes on the throne, and they are each in charge of different areas.

Kal'tsit had a premonition, but she didn't say it aloud. She simply looked at Fedorlink, who was examining the scout's body. The latter quickly shook his head at her.

There was no trace whatsoever to prove the identity of the Sentinel Knight—which was to be expected.

So, on the fifth day of their escape, the small trio finally made formal, and anything but friendly, contact with their attackers.

It was a fierce battle. The knights moved like the wind, their magic combined and their blades powerfully enchanted. A direct confrontation was a pipe dream. Only by maneuvering with the terrain could they escape—after three bloody battles, Fedorlink, at the cost of serious injury, bought Kal'tsit a gap to break through the lines. And when she defeated two knights with her piercing spear and successfully escaped, Gwyndolin's miracle of light finally provided them with cover.

The main force of the knights arrived, and the trio, having concealed their blood and aura, were at their closest point only a few meters away from their sentries. But in the end, the mysterious technique inherited from Oolacile prevailed, concealing their presence and luring the knights elsewhere.