Ornstein's Relics

Fingel finally understood the Princess's temperament.

This guy really likes Ornstein and everything that radiates outwards from Ornstein and can be connected to him.

For example, the Nameless King, and Smough.

However, it seems she hasn't shown any particular interest in Gwyndolin.

Moreover, Serena's "like" makes it difficult for him to define it directly.

Calling her a purely looks-obsessed person doesn't quite fit, because her affection is much deeper and more persistent than just being a looks-obsessed person. She's even willing to die multiple times in the Painting World and climb the dangerous Archdragon Peak just to see her idol.

But it's not quite right to call her a Furious Rajang fan; sometimes she goes on crazy sprees that are hard to understand, and her level of madness is comparable to the extreme Dark Moon Blade.

However, she controls these erratic emotions very well, knowing when to stop and when to let them out. Compared to people who like to project their own emotions onto others, she is more like an audience member.

Fingel suddenly wanted to see how the other person would react when they saw the end of their idol.

Although the real Ornstein is very likely already dead, if the scene of his death were to be reenacted, Serena would not be able to remain unmoved!

If Thane were to give Ornstein a branching ending like the Warrior Pot, which could change based on the adventurer's choices, the Princess would surely be deeply moved.

These are Fingel's thoughts.

The Princess had always maintained a calm and collected demeanor, so he wanted to see her Princess broke down; he imagined that expression would be quite delicious.

Serena suddenly shivered, feeling uneasy all over, as if some evil spirit was eyeing her.

Hasawi Squad set off again. The campfire where they were resurrected was the place they were teleported to after defeating the Ancient Flying Dragon. The second-floor room next door was where the snake-man summoner could summon Dragon Blood Knight and Havel Warrior.

From here, there are several forks in the road, more than half of which they have not yet explored.

Currently, we only know that one main road leads to the Serpent Legion and the Great Bell of the Nameless King, while another upward fork leads to the Wyvern Corpse and Havel Warrior, and Hawkwood's Summoning Charm is also located there.

Why does the Zane Dungeon place summoning talismans in such remote and obscure corners? Is it simply to make adventurers who want to summon helpers travel further and suffer more?

This time, they did not choose to travel further to summon Hawkwood.

"He actually abandoned us and ran away alone, what a despicable guy!"

"Don't you guys think Hawkwood's departure is a bit like someone else's?"

"Ah, now that you mention it, it does seem that way."

Serena couldn't quite understand what these people were saying. Who was "someone" they were referring to?

Fingel ran his fingers through his hair twice, seemingly to indicate that he was bald.

The Princess understood now.

Oh, it was Patch! You should have said so earlier. Why did you have to play the riddle game?

For some reason, the topic suddenly shifted from denouncing Hawkwood to Patch, and various rumors about adventurers being tricked by Patch began to circulate, filling the air with a cheerful atmosphere.

Even while fighting the snake-men and stone worms blocking their way, the topic of Patch never stopped.

Sometimes, besides hating Patch, people are also quite looking forward to seeing what other antics this guy can pull off, and how tolerant the ancients must have been to let him live and continue to cause trouble.

By deliberately quickening their pace, the group soon arrived at the location of the large clock.

The clouds and mist surged and churned. Ever since the bell was rung, the clouds and mist at the Archdragon Peak have been converging on this side and have not yet dissipated.

From the campfire, there's nothing particularly noticeable; the sky appears normal. But if you get closer, you can see the storm and lightning, as if something has changed with the ringing of the bell.

"What are you looking at?" Matilda suddenly noticed that her captain was looking in the other direction, at the altar where Hawkwood had mentioned obtaining the Twinkling Dragon Stone.

"Look, we're here at the bell now. The terrain here is much higher than the altar, right?" Fingel analyzed. "There's only one way up. If we can block the way up, can we use the terrain to attack the snake people guarding the altar? As the saying goes, high ground is for attacking the low ground, right?"

"That makes sense."

Matilda nodded, then shook her head and said, "But there's no time. The dungeon is about to close. Let's talk about it tomorrow."

"Well, there's no rush."

He turned to look at Serena, who was probably running off to ring the bell by now.

Then he saw Serena running across the clouds towards the other side of the battlefield, the bell standing there steadily without even ringing.

"Huh?"

Fingel paused, then didn't ring the bell. The fog was still there? And the area was still accessible?

"What are you doing?" he shouted. "Slow down! What if it's dangerous?"

He shouted as he followed, his feet resting on the clouds high in the sky, which felt incredibly unreal.

"Aren't you curious about what's on the other side of the clouds?"

Serena's voice sounded incredibly lively, a vibrant energy that you would never hear in the Royal Palace, like an adventurer simply satisfying their curiosity.

She bounced around in the clouds, as if she had just been freed from the foot of the Five Elements Mountain, and her silvery laughter could be faintly heard.

The Nameless King has some principles; he won't show up unless the bell is rung. Moreover, he allows anyone to freely enter the battle arena without any Fog Gate to block the way.

"Isn't he afraid we might set some traps here beforehand?"

Fingel made a sarcastic remark, and then he saw that a building had actually appeared on the other side of the foggy field, like a broken bridge that was connected by the clouds and mist.

Several Dragon Man were meditating on the broken bridge. They looked quite different from the Dragon Man by the roadside. They were larger, their skin had a texture closer to rock, and even their heads were more ferocious.

Is this a higher-level being among the Dragon Man, transformed using the Twinkling Dragon Stone?

Fingel couldn't help but take a few more glances. If it turned out like this, he could probably accept it. At least it would look a little better than a regular Dragon Man, just a tiny bit.

Besides the Dragon Man, there were also a lot of rubble scattered on the ground. Upon closer inspection, some weathered armor was mixed in with the rubble.

Over the long years, the armor's surface has become so weathered that the patterns are no longer visible, leaving only its general outline.

The armor was much larger than what a normal human would wear, like something a giant would wear.

But why did he feel that these things looked somewhat familiar?

Not far away, he saw Serena standing there and said:

"Why are you running so fast? Did your sixth sense detect Ornstein again?"

His words were tinged with mockery, and if nothing unexpected happens, Serena will retort.

This time, however, the Princess did not respond; instead, she fell silent, a stark contrast to her previous energetic demeanor.

He sensed something was amiss and went over to ask.

Serena was holding a pair of gauntlets, her brows furrowed as she examined them closely, turning them over and over, occasionally letting out a gasp.

"What's wrong?" Fingel's voice came from behind him.

She shook her head, gently put down the armor whose appearance was no longer discernible, and showed a conflicted and puzzled expression on her face. She then pounded her head twice.

It looks like performance art.

"Could you help me find these armors and collect them all?"

"No problem, no problem," Fingel nodded. "But is it alright to waste time here? Didn't you want to see what the Nameless King looks like again?"

"No, the most important thing right now is this armor!" she said firmly.

What happened this time?

Fingel didn't understand what the Princess was thinking. He greeted his companions and began rummaging through the rubble, searching for more armor.

The armor tends to assimilate with the rocks at the Archdragon Peak, and many pieces have crumbled over time, making them quite difficult to find.

Serena was also searching, and she was searching very diligently; her eyes were different from usual.

Her appearance prompted Fingel to think; there weren't many things that could elicit such an expression from Serena, and he instantly thought of Ornstein.

Once you connect these weathered armors with Ornstein, the more you look at them, the more similar they seem, even the sizes appear to match.

His lips trembled involuntarily as he thought: Could it be that I was right? Could I really witness the Lion Knight's demise here?

Maybe it's not Ornstein's armor; there are so many similar things, you never know.

"Could you help me take that spear down?" Serena's voice came again. He turned around and saw Matilda pull a spear that was stuck in the wall.

Perhaps the weapon could no longer withstand the passage of time; it broke, but its shape remained the same.

Fingel's gaze changed instantly, because he recognized that the spear was the weapon used by Ornstein!

So the owner of these scattered suits of armor is—

With Aleya finding the lion-shaped helmet in the rubble, all speculation came to an end.

This is Ornstein's armor!

A moment later, the group gathered the scattered pieces of armor and placed them in one spot. A silence fell over them as they looked at the armor.

Serena crouched in front of the armor, her back to the crowd, and no one knew what expression she had or what she was thinking.

The atmosphere was getting a bit complicated. Fingel couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

Although he joked that he wanted to see Serena crying, he never expected the joke to become a reality.

He still preferred to see other people's smiles.

Aleya suddenly nudged Fingel, who sighed, stepped forward, and whispered:

"Well, how should I put it? Just because the armor is here doesn't necessarily mean that Ornstein died here, right? You don't need to be too sad."

"Besides, look, aren't Ornstein and the Sun's Eldest Son comrades-in-arms who hunted dragons together? Comrades-in-arms meeting again will definitely be a harmonious occasion—"

Wait, I've found a blind spot!

Before he could even utter the word "peace," Fingel suddenly realized something.

Ornstein and the Sun's Eldest Son were comrades in the dragon hunt, but the latter suddenly lived with a dragon and was banished. So what was Ornstein's purpose in coming to Elder Archdragon Peak?

To take it to the extreme, could it be that the two of them started fighting?

Then Ornstein died at the hands of the Sun's Eldest Son!?

Thinking of this, he didn't know how to comfort Serena anymore, and for the first time felt that his words were useless.

What if she cries her eyes out in a moment?

Just then, Serena finally spoke.

"Hey-hey."

"?"

The members of Hasawi Squad all raised a question mark.

The sound they just heard was "hehe," right?

It's not the "woo-woo" that represents sadness, but rather the "hehe" that represents joy and even a slightly cheeky attitude.

Has the Princess gone mad?!

Fingel craned his neck to look at it with a strange expression, and then his expression became quite interesting.

Serena, clutching the lion helmet, wore an indescribable smile and muttered to herself:

"I got another original Ornstein flavor."

Are you awake?