Melina

Night fell, and the enormous moon gradually rose into the sky as the Erdtree's radiance slowly dimmed.

Lucian, waiting in the bushes, stared at the moon as his thoughts began to wander.

"That shouldn't be possible. The moon obviously exists, so why is there no sun during the day?"

"No, Sunshade City and the legendary weapon, the Eclipse Shotel, are both related to the sun."

"Why did the sun disappear?"

Before long, Lucian gave up thinking any further. Those questions were still far too distant from him.

The Erdtree's radiance was constantly spread across this land. Even at night, it only reduced visibility somewhat.

But that was enough for Lucian.

Lucian emerged from the bushes and flexed his left hand. The wound had completely stopped bleeding.

Lucian carefully approached the ruins before the checkpoint and arrived at the spot he had chosen beforehand, where no soldiers were standing guard nearby.

He took the Kukri from his bag and hurled it high in the direction away from the checkpoint.

The curved blade traced a huge arc through the air, flew over most of the camp, then crashed down.

Clang~

The crisp impact startled the nearby soldiers. They drew their weapons, raised their torches, and converged on the sound.

Lucian quickly ran toward the gate beneath the checkpoint.

Under cover of the night, he intended to dash through the gate in one go, minimizing the time his figure would be visible to the soldiers behind the walls.

Keeping his movements as quiet as possible, Lucian ran from the left side of the gate to the right as quickly as he could.

The soldier inside the gate holding a crossbow only saw a blurry figure flash past the entrance.

His body instinctively raised the crossbow, but by the time he did, the target had vanished.

He stared blankly at where the shadow had last been, then slowly lowered his crossbow and resumed his aimless watch.

By then, Lucian had reached a Grace.

This Grace lay beneath the junction of the city wall and the cliff face. With walls behind him on two sides, Lucian felt considerably safer.

"Plan successful."

"Ah, wisdom is precisely why I am fit to be king. These soldiers will never understand my world-shaking intellect."

Lucian muttered smugly to himself.

After praising himself, Lucian did not forget the greatest purpose of this trip. He reached out and touched the Grace.

A warm sensation enveloped Lucian.

He felt the Grace inviting him, inviting him to accept it more deeply.

Lucian did not know what to do. After some thought, he imitated the action from the game and sat down beside the Grace.

At once, the Grace's light spread outward, enveloping the surrounding space as well.

Lucian's vision blurred. The distant scenery became hazy, as if he had entered another space entirely.

Warm light washed over Lucian's body, and the wound on his left hand began to tingle.

Lucian removed his bracer and untied the rag he had used as a bandage. The wound had already healed completely, without even leaving a scar.

He took off his helmet and shook his head. The exhaustion from a day of traveling vanished, and his spirits were fully restored.

Lucian hurriedly opened the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow panel, but unfortunately, its uses had not recovered with the Grace's cleansing.

Lucian inwardly laughed at his wishful thinking. Wind Spirit Moon Shadow came from another dimension; how could it possibly be recharged so casually?

Then, thinking that he would soon meet Melina, Lucian could not help but feel happy.

But he quickly became flustered again, thinking:

I'm filthy all over, and even my helmet and bracers were cobbled together. Will she dislike me?

How should I talk to her when we meet? Should I be warm and proactive, touching the shy heart of that little block of wood? Or should I act cool and aloof to pique her curiosity?

Lucian was amused by his own thoughts.

Oh dear, I barely spoke to girls in my previous life. It'll be embarrassing if I stammer so badly that I can't say anything later.

Come to think of it, I haven't looked in a mirror yet. Is this really my face, or the game's default face?

Hey, if I suddenly went crazy and confessed to her, what expression would she make? I really want to see it...

What Lucian did not know was that Melina was sitting nearby in spirit form, secretly observing him.

Watching him grin foolishly one moment and cover his face while shaking his head the next, Melina was somewhat speechless.

As she stroked the spirit steed's fur, she asked:

"...Torrent, is it really him?"

The spirit steed named Torrent snorted, seeming to say, You don't trust my judgment?

Seeing that Torrent had set his sights on this person, Melina sighed as though resigning herself to fate.

After all, when she had chosen him on the beach, Melina had also acknowledged that he possessed the qualifications to become king.

The powerful, ancient soul quietly dwelling within him was the best proof of that.

Melina rose to her feet and pulled up the wide hood of her cloak.

As she walked toward Lucian, her body gradually materialized.

Lucian was still agonizing over his thoughts when he suddenly saw a beautiful figure gradually appear beside him.

Tall leather boots wrapped around slender legs, while a glimpse of pure white skirt beneath her wide cloak swayed with each step.

The large hood concealed her face, revealing only soft, sweet, candy-like lips and a delicate nose, with several strands of hair framing her pretty cheeks.

She parted her cloak with both hands and knelt beside Lucian.

She lifted back her hood, letting a full head of rose-gold hair spill down. Her left eye was tightly shut as though sealed by strange runes, while her right eye gave off the golden light of Grace.

After settling down, Melina addressed Lucian in a sweet voice:

"Hello, one who came through the mist. My name is Melina."

"I wish to make a bargain with you."

When Melina truly appeared before him, Lucian found it difficult to describe what he was feeling.

Was it excitement and joy? Panic? The emotion of a long-awaited reunion? Or affection?

Perhaps it was all of those things.

But more than anything, sorrow surged into his heart.

Melina, my second Maiden... in the end, I still failed to protect you.

You asked me before the Giant's Cauldron whether I was ready. At the time, I thought I was...

Even if I could embrace the Frenzied Flame, how could I trample on your resolve and deny the meaning of your life?

Even after using the Unalloyed Gold Needle to suppress the Frenzied Flame, you never returned.

My Maiden burned to death in the fire. No matter what I chose, my Maiden burned to death in the fire.

Seeing Melina standing before him alive and well, Lucian wanted to say something, but he could not open his mouth.

Lucian merely looked at Melina sadly, saying nothing.

Melina silently met Lucian's gaze, but as time slowly passed, she gradually could not keep it together anymore.

?

Why isn't this person saying anything? Why is he just staring at me?

Did I make the wrong entrance?

The light of Grace swayed faintly, leaving only Melina standing there in disarray in the wind.

Melina! My Melina! /(ㄒoㄒ)/~~