Enlightenment · Seven (Continued)

Operation begins.

'Boom—boom—'

The bell tolls, and the large lever pushes down.

Steel clad itself together, boulders rubbed and pressed against each other. Vast Thunderclouds above the giant city, then erupted into a sea of Tidal Wave of Lightning. All the pipes connecting to the Giant Tree glowed red-hot in an instant, like the pulse of a heart, like the pumping of blood. Countless flames surged through the Ley Line, and countless wisps of darkness were drawn back to this heart from every corner of the land.

This is a wonder, this is the Heart of the World.

Miss Surtr took a step forward, ascending from the very bottom to the very top of this world's heart. She inspected every pipe, every storage and conversion facility in this colossal city, modifying or reinforcing key sections according to her own aesthetic sense—her gaze swept across the distant horizon, where darkness once again stained the far reaches of the lake.

That too was an abyss, destroyed by her, yet manifested again in the preceding minutes due to the gathering of darkness in people's hearts. She raised an eyebrow, slightly adjusting the pipes piercing the Ley Line. The next moment, the darkness no longer formed at the edge of the Ashen Lake, but instead gathered directly within the heart of the world she had forged.

The capture of the Abyss is complete.

She specially designated a vast area in the central part of the city to accommodate the darkness that manifests in people's hearts.

The Profaned Flame gathered here. In just a few seconds, the nascent darkness was completely assimilated by the Profaned Flame. The turbidity of the Profaned Flame also increased by a tiny margin that perhaps only she could perceive at that moment.

—Is it because I'm not here to purify it?

—As expected, the Profaned Flame alone cannot sustain the perpetual flames of civilization... I still need the Dark Souls as a conduit. As a substitute, it will allow this system to operate for a long time even without my maintenance.

She reached out, touching the tainted Profaned Flame. Fragments of memories immediately flooded her mind. This time, there wasn't much, just hundreds of betrayals and dozens of killings. She was both victim and perpetrator, both abuser and victim.

It's not worth mentioning.

The pain of being hurt, the anger of being betrayed, the pleasure of tormenting the weak, the cowardice of committing crimes—no matter how clear they were, they were all insignificant to her.

—I do everything.

—I am in charge of all evil deeds and the sublime.

The Flame-haired maiden tilted her head slightly, clearing some jumbled thoughts from her mind—overconfidence is arrogance. And while pride isn't entirely a wrong quality, it always needs to be carefully considered.

—Anyway, it's not like I can't do it.

—Hmm...what is this?

A wave of hatred from the dead washed over her, and she saw its final moments—it was an assassin, tasked with killing a high-ranking knight described in intelligence as lacking significant combat prowess. It had been lying in ambush by the roadside as the knight traveled alone to the Lothric Grand Archives. And then it struck.

A verdant dragon pierced the assassin's chest; the pain was clear and distinct, accompanied by the activation of a self-destruction technique within his body. Only then did the assassin realize he had been nothing more than bait. And as he died filled with hatred and resentment, the lynx ears of the green-haired girl appeared in his peripheral vision.

—It seems Kal'tsit is doing quite well.

—A high-ranking knight? Hmm, I remember they wear blue robes, right?

She blinked, but wasn't particularly worried. Kal'tsit wouldn't be killed by such petty tricks, but that didn't stop her from more meticulously reading other fragments of memory related to the Lothric Castle —she quickly learned that nearly a year had passed since she entered Lothric. During that year, the capital city was in turmoil, rife with intrigue and power struggles, and a knight from another land had gradually gained glory amidst this political upheaval.

It seems Kal'tsit is living a fulfilling life. She has found her career and a direction to strive for. And now that Kal'tsit has appeared in the royal capital, it is unlikely that a war will break out between Lothric and Irithyll.

"That's great. Even though the Fire Keeper says she doesn't care about her father and siblings, she'd probably regret it if anything happened to them. With Kal'tsit there, at least the situation won't deteriorate to the worst possible extent. It's a pity I can't help her right now; I can only do so from afar..."

The girl raised her finger, and a wisp of heat flowed through the Ley Line with her will and a pulse. Through the Ley Line maintained by this newly formed 'Heart of the World,' it instantly traversed the vast distance of time and space and seeped into the underground of Lothric's royal city.

Kal'tsit still has a lot of pride. Offering her help unless absolutely necessary would feel like mocking her. The seeds have already been sown, and they can be triggered when the time is right. Until then, remaining silent is the best course of action.

Looking back now, that slap was definitely too much. I don't know how I should face her when I get back to Terra.

But there's no need to regret what's done. Since I can't turn back time here, I should bear the consequences of my actions.

I lowered my eyes, ceasing to dwell on those disheartening thoughts. If I was rejected, then I deserved it. But whether I was or not, I should take responsibility for my actions at that moment and make amends.

Turning back, we entered the heart of the Heart of the World. This colossal city would require maintainers in the future, so the central area was habitable. And at the very top of the city, the palace of the fire giants stood majestically.

Miss Surtr entered her court—she saw the Fire Keeper had regained her composure, but her knees beneath her skirt were still trembling slightly—ah, she had indeed gone a little too far. Had the Fire Keeper not possessed extraordinary physical abilities, the Princess Highness might not have been able to recover from her coma.

"Miss." The Fire Keeper gazed at her, her face flushed and her eyes brimming with tears.

—Great, looks like I can't stick to this girl now. If I hug her now, I feel like it's hard to predict what might happen next.

Fortunately, I have other options.

"Well, rest a bit longer. I'll be heading to the Oolacile Township soon, and until I return with the Dark Souls, the city will need your protection." She said softly, returning to her throne and picking up Clara's spellbook.

This is also a sticker.

If she says so, then it is.

She had already finished studying the original runes, and theoretically, she no longer needed to read them. And it was precisely because of this that when she picked up the book, she clearly sensed the heat that suddenly rose from within it and was immediately suppressed.

Ah... so even witches can be shy. Or was she frightened?

She thought to herself that she didn't know the truth. Because the pages hidden inside the cover appeared to her as a jumble of disordered characters.

So she cooperated and didn't open the book, lest she see some strange content that would cause embarrassment for both of them. She simply placed the spellbook, which was about the size of an encyclopedia, on her lap, and then, as if to pass the time, she gently stroked the cover with her palm.

This journey is coming to an end.

No matter how much Filianore has prepared in the Oolacile Township, she is confident she can defeat her and seize ownership of the Goddess along with the Dark Souls. In the previous trial runs, she was already over 90% certain of the successful operation of the Fire of Civilization system. With the addition of the crucial component, the Dark Souls, Lordran will transform from a closed system into a completely new one capable of expansion.

No more need for linking the First Flame, it will grow stronger and more vibrant each day, growing stronger with the rise of the nation.

This is a viable strategy.

This strategy has flaws, but no structural errors—the flaw lies in the fact that the Heart of the World must be guarded, maintained, and corrected when necessary. The choice of this person to execute it requires careful consideration.

—I am the most suitable. I can stay here for a million years and I will never change my mind.

—But I will eventually leave, so the only ones left to guard this place are the last remaining gods of this world.

Mortals are no good; they are too fickle and too easily swayed by external things. They are too easily tempted by various ideas, wonders, or other things. This is why they can outcompete the gods in the tides of time. But they cannot stick to the old ways, and as a result, at most a few hundred years later, they will tire of this dreary duty.

The Flame-haired maiden rested her chin on her hand, deep in thought.

—Perhaps they won't abandon their duties, but I don't trust them. Who knows if another Prince of Lothric will emerge wanting to put out the fire? And that guy who abandoned his duties as Lord of Cinder is only half mortal... After all, while the masses can certainly create an era, it's often heroes who guide its direction. Those in key positions are sometimes truly irreplaceable, because opportunities often only come once, and if it's not the right person, it's gone forever.

—But I cannot abandon them either... The gods are indeed true to their covenant, able to uphold it for tens of thousands of years without wavering in their hearts. But tens of thousands of years is not a long time. After that, who can guarantee that nothing will go wrong? Since I am confident that I can maintain order for a million years, then I must at least design a mechanism that can operate for a million years. But I cannot be sure that tens of thousands of years later, a Dong Yong who stumbles upon the Seven Fairies will appear.

—So, the only solution is mutual checks and balances... Ah, damn it, a power structure with only two extremes is unstable. Besides humans and gods, I need to create a third party to ensure stability.

—But where am I supposed to find a third party? Gu Long? They're all dead except for Midir!

Her head was throbbing; she was even considering letting Abyss go to save the entire 'foreign threat.' But such a deliberate vulnerability would only cause greater instability to the entire system. So, she regretfully had to abandon the idea.

—There's no other way... Anyway, let's first build this framework of the Flame of Civilization, which can operate for at least tens of thousands of years. Ah... that's true. Although this world has experienced tens of thousands of years of history without any fundamental changes, once the Flame of Civilization system succeeds, an expanding world will obviously undergo rapid and dramatic changes... My million-year plan was based on the premise that the social structure wouldn't change even after a million years. But that idea doesn't apply now.

—Fine, I can't be a babysitter anyway. Let me make some arrangements first; at least this binary opposition can hold out for a while. At worst, I'll come back to Lordran again in tens of thousands of years. Until then, what this world becomes will be decided by its inhabitants.