Chapter Summaries

Linden discovered a key that could open the Tidal Sanctuary’s Secret Passage and a slate capable of damaging the Demon King’s seal, while the scepter had to remain embedded until the seal was repaired. He ordered the Sanctuary cleared and planned to use it as a base to study the mist; meanwhile, Inanna’s delegation reached the Dwarf Mountain Kingdom and met an unfriendly reception.

• Linden learned the scepter could only be removed after the seal was repaired and identified Tanaka’s silver ring as a key to the Secret Passage.
• Linden examined Tanaka’s other items, including a Seal-Breaking Slate that could damage the Demon King’s seal, and learned that a Water Elemental Lord had guarded the Sanctuary before vanishing into the mist.
• Linden told Norris that the Slime-folk had been a fragment of the Demon King, prompting different reactions from Norris, Ming, and Piggy.
• Linden decided to secure the Tidal Sanctuary as a base for the Puji Navy and to study the mist, then ordered Piggy to clear out the remaining mist monsters.
• Inanna’s delegation reached the border of the Dwarf Mountain Kingdom, where the dwarves regarded them with hostility.

The United Kingdom's envoy group reached Ash Furnace City to discuss a new alliance agreement, but the Dwarves greeted them with closed gates and open hostility. From his tower, Dwarf lord Bardley Deepfurnace rejected the idea of trusting the humans.

• Cave Four gave up its Cultist trophy and let Inanna wash it after Pink Puji refused to hug it.
• The envoy group crossed into The Mountains and traveled by High-Horn Goats to Ash Furnace City.
• A Dwarf captain made the envoy group wait outside the closed gates despite Ronan's advance notice and Inanna's status.
• Cave Four told Inanna that the captain had called the human envoys faithless villains behind their backs.
• Bardley Deepfurnace watched the envoys enter Ash Furnace City and dismissed them as cunning humans.

Ronan's delegation faced deliberate obstacles in Ash Furnace City, while Linden saw the dwarves' widespread forging skills as a chance to recruit craftsmen for the Fungal Fortress. The chapter ended with Inanna challenging Little Badley to an honor duel and presenting Sword Saint Puji as her representative.

• Ronan objected to the cramped lodging, but the dwarf official refused to offer the delegation another place to stay.
• Cave Four plugged Inanna's ears so she could sleep through the noise, while Knight Puji watched the nearby forges and Linden considered recruiting ordinary dwarf craftsmen.
• Inanna emerged rested the next morning, unlike most of the delegation, while Cave Four and Fourteen were also in good spirits.
• Little Badley demanded inspections of the delegation and singled out Inanna, then threatened to send them away if they refused.
• Inanna called Little Badley's conduct insulting, challenged him to an honor duel, and carried Sword Saint Puji forward as her representative.

Inanna accepted an honor duel on behalf of Number Fourteen, with the winner deciding whether the delegation could pass through The Mountains. The duel was held in Ash Furnace City, where Little Badley faced the Sword Saint Mushroom as a crowd gathered.

• Inanna challenged Little Badley to an honor duel, wagering that her group could pass if she won and that she would be barred from The Mountains if she lost.
• Little Badley accepted the challenge and set the terms, then told his father, Old Badley, that Inanna had proposed the duel.
• Old Badley lent Little Badley his battle armor and planned to let the delegation pass after his son won.
• The next day, Inanna prepared Sword Saint Mushroom with Mana Potion while Little Badley waited on the dueling platform in enchanted armor with a Red Iron Great Axe.

At Ash Furnace City, Little Badley defended his demand to inspect Inanna’s delegation before the honor duel against Sword Saint Puji began. Sword Saint Puji struck so quickly that Little Badley’s axe and armor fell apart, leaving him in his shorts with half an axe handle.

• Little Badley addressed the gathered dwarves, claiming the delegation had refused a wartime inspection for Demon Race spies and won their support.
• Inanna worried about Sword Saint Puji facing the Diamond Rank Little Badley, while Cave Four assured her that Fourteen was stronger.
• Elwin set aside his four swords, chose a plain dagger, and returned to the platform as Little Badley prepared with his battleaxe.
• Old Badley announced the duel’s terms: Inanna demanded an apology and safe passage, while Little Badley demanded her expulsion and a ban from the mountains.
• When Old Badley started the duel, Sword Saint Puji vanished from Little Badley’s sight and instantly broke apart his battleaxe and armor.

Sword Saint Puji defeated Little Badley in an honor duel, securing the envoy’s passage and forcing Little Badley to apologize to Inanna. Elsewhere, Knight Puji offered struggling young Dwarven blacksmiths a chance to hone their craft near the Demon Race border, backing the offer with a valuable A-Rank Magic Crystal.

• Sword Saint Puji swiftly dismantled Little Badley’s armor and weapon, then held a dagger at his throat until Old Badley stopped his attack and declared the duel over.
• Old Badley made Little Badley apologize to Inanna as agreed and promised supplies and guides for the envoy’s journey.
• Old Badley recognized Sword Saint Puji’s strength and decided the clan needed to reassess the Mushroom Race.
• Cave Four collected the beard Sword Saint Puji had cut from Little Badley as a trophy, while Inanna celebrated with Sword Saint Puji.
• Knight Puji secretly showed a dozen struggling young Dwarven blacksmiths a promise of abundant materials and forging opportunities near the Demon Race border.
• Knight Puji left an enormous A-Rank Magic Crystal with the young Dwarves, whose reactions split between greed and hope for the promised blacksmith’s paradise.

As the delegation traveled toward Forgefire Capital, Cave Four revealed that its tentacles could become Delicious Mushrooms, sending the party into ecstatic fits after they tasted them. The next day, they reached the scorched outskirts of Golden Flame City and encountered a squad of armed Dwarf warriors.

• Bardley Deepfurnace provided the delegation with a veteran Dwarf guide, supplies, and an official travel document for their journey to Forgefire Capital.
• At camp, Bloom Stoneanvil praised Forge Stew, while a human warrior said it could not compare with Delicious Mushroom.
• Cave Four cut off part of its own tentacle and added it to the stew, and Inanna tasted it as Delicious LV10.
• Bloom, the warrior, and many other delegates tasted the tentacle stew and collapsed in bliss, while Ronan hesitated over his bowl.
• The delegation reached the scorched land outside Golden Flame City and ran into a squad of fully armed Dwarf warriors.

Bloom’s envoy encountered a closed road near Golden Flame City because dormant Ember Seeds could awaken into fire elementals. Inanna’s mysterious influence calmed two of them, and the Dwarves escorted the group to General Dvalin, who saw nearly a hundred fire elementals following them.

• A Dwarf officer told Bloom the road was closed because fire elementals had scattered Ember Seeds near Golden Flame City, and he ordered the envoy to take a detour.
• Two fire elementals emerged from the scorched earth, while Linden studied their Panels and realized they had awakened from a dormant state.
• Inanna stopped the envoy and the Dwarves from attacking, then approached the fire elementals as they circled her docilely.
• Ronan recognized the fire elementals’ behavior as the Favor of the Elemental Spirit, and Inanna asked the officer to let them pass.
• The Dwarf officer brought the envoy to General Dvalin, who saw nearly a hundred fire elementals following the group and mistook them for an attack.

Inanna guided a group of Fire Elementals back into the Molten Dungeon while Dvalin let the diplomatic mission pass. Meanwhile, the real Knight Puji infiltrated the dungeon for Linden, but the enraged Elemental Lord sensed an intruder and sent the surrounding Elemental Spirits into a violent search.

• Dvalin recognized that Inanna could command Fire Elementals but agreed to let her return them to the dungeon rather than destroy them.
• Inanna drew the Fire Elementals away from the Dwarf defenders with an Illumination Orb, giving the Dwarves time to reinforce their positions.
• Eiding revealed through the Mycelium Network that the Knight accompanying Inanna was a Phantom, while the real Knight Puji slipped into the Molten Dungeon.
• Linden observed the Elemental Spirits and their mental-energy patterns as Puji explored the dungeon, finding evidence that Dwarves had once enslaved them.
• Puji reached the dungeon's lowest level, where the Elemental Lord detected an intruder and sent the nearby Elemental Spirits into a rampage.

Linden sent Knight Puji into the Molten Dungeon to see the Fire Elemental Lord and discovered that the intelligent creature had no soul but possessed a core resembling the Yellow Book. As negotiations with the Dwarves continued, he weighed whether Pink Puji could safely control the Lord and planned to meet the Dwarves’ leaders before deciding what to do.

• Knight Puji reached the Fire Elemental Lord, saw the metal ring embedded in its chest and the door to the Dungeon’s core, then fled after the Lord attacked.
• The Fire Elemental Lord’s contradictory orders disrupted its forces, allowing Linden to escape with Knight Puji while the Dwarves retook the Dungeon entrance.
• Two days later, Inanna welcomed Knight Puji back in Forgefire Capital and noticed that it seemed whiter.
• Linden concluded that the Fire Elemental Lord had no soul but possessed an illusory core, and he suspected it might be an artificial creation like the Yellow Book.
• Ronan and the envoy delegation gained leverage as the Dwarves hinted they wanted Inanna’s help with the Molten Dungeon.
• Linden worried that Pink Puji might not be able to control the intelligent Fire Elemental Lord safely and decided to meet the Dwarves’ upper ranks before choosing a plan.

Vimark Deepfurnace planned to investigate a letter from his missing brother while his clan prepared to negotiate with Inanna about reclaiming Molten Dungeon. The delegation’s talks were interrupted by Baduo Firebeard, who challenged Inanna’s reputation and nearly fought Sword Saint Puji before Vimark intervened.

• Vimark Deepfurnace told his father he wanted to investigate a letter he believed Torin had written, but his father dismissed Torin and insisted the negotiations with Inanna take priority.
• Vimark’s father explained that Inanna’s ability might help the Dwarves reclaim Molten Dungeon and proposed that Baduo Firebeard serve as her fellow war hero and guard.
• Linden observed that the Dwarves’ Magic Puppets were crude and confirmed that their Battle Puppet technology had been lost.
• Baduo Firebeard introduced himself to Inanna, boasted about his victories, and lost respect for her after she said she had personally killed only one or two enemies.
• Sword Saint Puji prepared to challenge Baduo, but Vimark intervened and reminded Baduo that the Clan Council had yet to punish him for injuring a master at the Public Forge District.
• Baduo left, and Vimark apologized to Inanna and led the delegation toward the negotiations.

Inanna and the Dwarves entered the Molten Dungeon to confront the Fire Elemental Lord, relying on her unusual influence over Elemental Spirits and a manual for the Lord’s Binding Ring. The Fire Elemental Lord attacked when they reached its lava lake, but after Inanna spoke, it approached her with the same docile fascination as the lesser spirits.

• The Dwarves gave Inanna instructions for operating the Binding Ring and prepared an elite force led by General Dvalin and Baduo to accompany her.
• Inside the dungeon, Fire Elementals and Earth Elementals gathered around Inanna, while Baduo struck down an attacking Earth Worm.
• After two days, the team reached the Fire Elemental Lord’s territory, where Inanna’s Illumination Art calmed the spirits despite the Lord’s commands to attack.
• Inanna spoke of finding a path beyond war, and the Fire Elemental Lord became entranced before resisting her influence and unleashing a wave of lava.
• Baduo hurled Inanna to safety and split the lava wave with his hammer, after which the dimmed Fire Elemental Lord slowly approached her like a docile spirit.

Inanna calmed the Fire Elemental Lord with Pink Puji’s influence, then let it bless her with fire and sealed it inside the Binding Ring. As the group prepared to leave the Molten Dungeon, the ring struck an Air Wall marked [Guardian Forbidden to Leave Core Area].

• Linden worried that Pink Puji’s [Favor of the Elemental Spirit] could control intelligent beings and wondered whether its bloodline held other dangers.
• The Fire Elemental Lord approached Inanna cautiously and tried to give her a fire blessing, but [Frost’s Blessing] extinguished the flames and provoked its rage.
• The Fire Elemental Lord attacked Inanna, but her ice gown resisted until it melted, after which [Blessing of Blazing Fire] appeared and let her withstand the heat.
• Inanna adjusted the Binding Ring’s runes, and the Fire Elemental Lord willingly entered it, shrinking the ring into her palm.
• As the Dwarves celebrated the prospect of reclaiming the Molten Dungeon, Inanna tried to leave and found that the Binding Ring was blocked by an Air Wall bearing the message [Guardian Forbidden to Leave Core Area].

After sealing the Fire Elemental Lord, Inanna tried to leave with the Binding Ring, but the Deepfurnace Clan Chief demanded that it remain with the Dwarves. Baduo sided with Inanna, and the dispute nearly erupted into battle before the Dwarf King's envoy arrived to stop them.

• Baduo praised Inanna for her courage and discussed battle tactics with her on the way back to the surface.
• The Deepfurnace Clan Chief blocked Inanna from leaving with the Binding Ring, arguing that the Dwarves needed it to control the dungeon's Elemental Spirits.
• Ronan argued that the agreement did not prohibit Inanna from taking the ring, while General Dvalin stood with the clan chief.
• Baduo struck the stone floor with his hammer and defended Inanna's right to the spoils, then entered combat mode when the clan chief rebuked him.
• The Fire Elemental Lord's power flowed from the ring, frightening the Dwarves as both sides prepared for a fight.
• The Dwarf King's envoy arrived and halted the confrontation just as Baduo was about to attack.

At the banquet in Forgefire Capital, Four Ji proved its deliciousness to Baduo, while the delegation celebrated the Molten Dungeon’s recapture before leaving. Linden revealed the party’s gains and plans for the Elemental Lords, and a flashback ended with Vera reacting to news of a beautiful Elf.

• The Dwarf King awarded the Binding Ring to Inanna, and the dwarves held a banquet to celebrate the Molten Dungeon’s recapture and send off the delegation.
• Four Ji fed Baduo a slice of its own fungus, and Baduo fell into a wine barrel and passed out after tasting it.
• After the delegation departed, the Deepforge Clan’s residence was robbed, and the thief took valuables from the outer hall and clan chief’s study.
• Puji produced stolen treasures in Inanna’s carriage, while Linden explained that the Fire Elemental Lord and the Binding Ring’s seal were the trip’s real gains.
• Linden planned to repair a damaged Binding Ring and use it to contain the Frost Elemental Lord, while worrying about Inanna’s readiness to become humanity’s strongest fighter.
• In a flashback, Vera grabbed an adventurer and demanded confirmation after hearing about a beautiful Elf.

Vera, Feiling, and Feiyin sought help from the Relic Association for Vera’s selective amnesia, which had erased his memories of Sirian. The Association’s test produced a startling result, and its vice president recognized Vera as a Virtue Holder before putting him back in the instrument for confirmation.

• After a pharmacist and a Priest failed to explain or treat Vera’s amnesia, Feiling and Feiyin took him to the Relic Association.
• Redgrave warned the group that Puji resisted interactive mental magic, then ran Vera through the Association’s advanced Identification Instrument.
• Redgrave saw Vera’s results, became visibly shaken, and rushed off to fetch his teacher.
• The vice president arrived and Vera and Feiling recognized him as the person who had rescued them near a Dungeon.
• The vice president recalled saving Vera and said he was a Virtue Holder, then ordered a second test while the sisters wondered what that meant.

Vera learned that his Virtue, Sacrifice, likely consumed his memories as its price, and Feiling feared he would lose everything he remembered. After Duke Lorenzo ennobled Vera, he and Saren discussed the Puji’s growing presence and the danger facing humanity, ending beside the sealed president of the Relic Association.

• Saren identified Vera’s power as the Virtue of Sacrifice and explained that using it might erase his memories.
• Feiling demanded that Vera never use the power again, and Vera and Saren concluded he had triggered it during his battle against the Cultists.
• Duke Lorenzo visited Vera in Oath City and offered him a viscount’s title for his past contributions, including protecting Jingu City’s civilians from the mist.
• Vera initially refused the title but accepted after Lorenzo insisted his sense of responsibility made him worthy of it.
• In a secret chamber, Lorenzo and Saren discussed the Puji’s presence near major figures and events, then looked toward the sealed president of the Relic Association.

After Vera’s squad learned that Sirian was alive, the newly ennobled Vera reunited with him in Oath City but could not remember him. Sirian discovered that Number Five shared the soul signature of the dangerous Voice Puji, while Linden celebrated a small victory over Divine Tree.

• Vera, Feiling, and Feiyin heard from an adventurer that Sirian was alive in Mushroom Capital and asked others to pass him a message while they stayed in Oath City for Vera’s ceremony.
• Sirian used Puji Navigator to learn that Vera’s virtue had been exposed and that the squad remained in Oath City, then set out to find them.
• Sirian arrived in Oath City and embraced Vera, but Vera instinctively stepped back before recognizing him only by name.
• Feiling and Feiyin reunited with Sirian and explained that Vera had lost his memories of him after using the virtue of sacrifice.
• Sirian picked up Number Five and realized that its soul perception was almost identical to the Voice Puji’s, while Linden crossed off Divine Tree’s first record of criticizing his voice.

After reuniting with Sirian, Vera and his companions traveled to Longwu Fort, his new fief, and discovered that unmanaged mushroom growth had made much of the territory hazardous. Number Five demonstrated that it could turn fungal growth into a Mushroom House, offering a surprising bright spot as Vera faced the work of governing the land.

• Sirian told Vera and the twins how he survived the mist and searched for Vera, while Number Five trembled and curled into a mushroom ball when Sirian approached.
• As the party camped on the way to Longwu Fort, Feiling worried that Vera's viscountcy would bind him to the kingdom's wars, and Vera said he would contribute whether or not he held a title.
• Butler Harold explained that the previous lord, Viscount Clement, had fled during the Demon Race raid, leaving Longwu Fort depopulated and its mushrooms to grow unchecked.
• Vera and his companions reached Longwu Fort and found towering hallucinogenic Fluorescent Mushroom Trees and a petrified Mushroom Forest that restricted the subjects' activity.
• Number Five used the Fungal Carpet to decompose two young Mushroom Trees and grow a Mushroom House, then invited the astonished group inside.

Number Five Puji helped restore Longwu Fort’s environment by replacing dangerous mushroom growths with harmless Giant Mushroom Trees, and the praise made it feel useful and at home. Meanwhile, Cave Thirteen was left alone in the Fallen Zone, where it feared Linden had abandoned it.

• Excess magic in Longwu Fort caused dangerous mushroom variants to spread, so Sirian assigned Number Five Puji to help restore the territory while Vera organized people to reopen mushroom fields.
• Vera bought the gathered mushrooms and arranged for merchants to ship them to military forces and regions with poor mushroom supplies, despite making almost no profit.
• Number Five transformed petrified and hallucinogenic mushroom growths into harmless Giant Mushroom Trees as Feiling and Feiyin praised it.
• Feiyin bought a Telepathy Stone to communicate with Number Five, and Number Five felt happy to be needed and appreciated.
• Sirian called the group back for a meal, and Number Five hid inside Feiyin’s robe because it still feared him.
• Linden left Cave Thirteen in the Fallen Zone, where it saw no Fungal Carpet and feared the Fungal Lord no longer wanted it.