Reunion

After doing all that, Lucian could no longer hold on and sat down on the ground.

He was utterly exhausted. First, he had slaughtered over a hundred Misbegotten, then he had to fight the Leonine Misbegotten strengthened by the Ruins Greatsword.

Right now, Lucian only wanted to hurry to a Grace, heal his wounds, then find somewhere to get a proper night's sleep.

But it was not time yet. He still had to leave the city and bring Irina back. He could recover at a Grace along the way.

"I am Edgar, lord of Castle Morne and Irina's father. Forgive me for introducing myself only now."

Edgar waited until Lucian had finished what he was doing before approaching him.

"Lucian. Just an ordinary Tarnished."

Edgar firmly committed that name to memory.

"You are a true warrior. Thank you for everything you have done for Castle Morne."

"Once Castle Morne has been fully reclaimed, I will surely offer you a grand reward."

Lucian did not refuse. He had not come for that, but he had earned it. Why should he turn it down?

"We can discuss the reward later."

"I'll rest for a while first. Then I'll go bring Irina back. Don't let her wait outside for too long."

Edgar thanked Lucian once more, then stopped disturbing his rest.

He also had many things to deal with: clearing out the remaining Misbegotten in the city, settling the residents, disposing of the corpses...

Though he worried about Irina, now that she was safe, his duties as the lord of the city were more urgent.

Evan also sat down beside Lucian.

After fighting side by side, Edgar temporarily trusted Evan. He merely allowed him to stay here for now and would decide his fate later.

As Evan sprinkled healing powder over the two of them, he said:

"You are the bravest warrior I have ever seen."

"If not for you, those Misbegotten would have continued ravaging the city..."

Evan fell silent halfway through speaking.

"I caused this disaster, yet I could not even stop those Misbegotten."

"Thank you."

Lucian said nothing. He did not know what to say.

Evan and Singh had wanted to save the Misbegotten, yet they had caused the massacre at Castle Morne. Even if they had been used, it was still a guilt that could not be absolved.

They knew it themselves.

In the end, Lucian merely sighed.

After resting for a while, Lucian took the lift back down to the main gate below.

The light of Grace washed over Lucian's body. His wounds rapidly healed, and his spirits were restored.

He was still mentally exhausted, but at least he had recovered.

Melina appeared beside him, still shaken. She had watched the battle the whole time and knew how perilous his situation had been.

"That was a truly brutal battle. It is a pity I have no physical body, or I could have helped you during the fight."

Lucian shook his head.

"Leave the fighting to me. You already help me a great deal in ordinary times."

"By the way, is it all right for me to use that Flask of Crimson Tears I picked up from the Confessor?"

Melina took the Flask of Crimson Tears Lucian handed her and examined it. Only after confirming that no mark had been left on it did she return it to him.

"No mark was left on it, so there will be no problem. Just wash it clean."

It had been drunk from by someone else, so Lucian found it a little unpleasant, but it was a Flask of Crimson Tears. He could not waste it.

"Lucian, I'm sorry."

Melina stared into Lucian's eyes and suddenly apologized with great seriousness.

"I have been observing whether you were truly guided by Grace, whether you would step forward to challenge hardships."

"It turned out I had worried for nothing. Torrent trusted you from the very beginning, yet I was not sincere enough. I'm sorry."

Lucian did not actually think much of it.

"It is all right. You must have a very important reason for wanting to reach the foot of the Erdtree."

"I understand your concerns. It is necessary to find a companion worthy of trust."

"So I have passed the test now?"

Melina's feelings were somewhat complicated. In truth, she had not needed to tell Lucian any of this.

But she still confessed and apologized to him, because she was simply that earnest a girl.

She had already prepared herself for Lucian to be angry. They had clearly embarked on this journey together, yet she did not trust her companion and secretly tested him. It was a form of distrust.

Yet Lucian did not care in the slightest. Such generosity earned Melina's admiration.

"Yes, you passed perfectly."

"As an apology, once you have finished everything you need to do, I will take you somewhere: the Roundtable Hold, where heroes gather."

Lucian stood at the city gate and blew the Spectral Steed Whistle, waiting for Torrent to bring Irina over.

Lucian was very happy now, not because Melina was going to take him to the Roundtable Hold, nor because of the large number of Runes he had just gained.

It was because Wind Spirit Moon Shadow had recovered one use.

While at the Grace just now, he had taken a glance at Wind Spirit Moon Shadow's panel.

A new vertical panel had appeared beside the original one, and the icon of a Leonine Misbegotten had lit up.

The other icons remained pitch-black, waiting for Lucian to light them up.

They were game achievements.

With the first achievement unlocked, this information had also become available to Lucian.

This achievement panel did not belong to Wind Spirit Moon Shadow, so it had not appeared at first. Yet the panel was directly connected to Wind Spirit Moon Shadow.

Every achievement completed restored one use of Wind Spirit Moon Shadow.

Now that he knew how to restore Wind Spirit Moon Shadow, Lucian let out a sigh of relief.

He had previously feared that it could not be restored at all. Now that there was a way to restore it, he had nothing left to fear.

Torrent carried Irina over from afar and stopped before Lucian.

Torrent affectionately rubbed its face against Lucian's.

"Mr. Lucian, are you all right?"

"My father... is he all right?"

Irina had waited anxiously outside the city. The situation within was likely even worse than when she had left.

"It is fine. I have killed most of the Misbegotten in the city. Those few remaining ones are no challenge for me."

"I have already met your father and fought alongside him. He is safe and sound too, so don't worry."

Irina finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"That is wonderful. Thank you."

Lucian took Irina's hand and helped her onto the lift.

As the lift continued rising, Irina caught the thick scent of blood.

Her face turned pale. She could not imagine what the city looked like now for the smell of blood to be so overwhelming.

At last, the lift reached the top. Edgar, who was in the courtyard, noticed Lucian and Irina on it and immediately ran over.

At the sight of Irina, Edgar could no longer suppress his emotions. His eyes brimmed with tears.

"Irina..."

"Father!"

Father and daughter were finally reunited safely, embracing each other.

Watching their touching reunion, Lucian smiled happily as well.

His countless battles along the way had not been in vain. He had saved this father and daughter and allowed them to reunite.

Next, he would give even more characters a perfect ending.

There were forty-two achievements in total. Even if he did not unlock them all, it would be more than enough to clear the Lands Between. From now on, he would not have to be so stingy with Wind Spirit Moon Shadow's uses. Please vote daily, meow ∩_∩