Though Sellen rarely went out with Lloyd due to her research, she knew her foolish disciple was capable of pulling off strange things. But she never expected something like this.
A finger—Three Fingers, no less—the Frenzied Flame Three Fingers.
For the Graven Witch, the very existence of such a thing was already abstract. What was even stranger was that this finger and Lloyd were acting unusually close, their interaction... well... It was hard to put into words.
Not only did Sellen's main body fall silent, even the Sellen Sphere stopped spinning when the finger came in and wrapped itself around Lloyd. After a long pause, Sellen gave up trying to make sense of it. She exchanged a few brief words with Lloyd before going to fetch the documents he'd asked for.
Fine. Whatever he says goes.
When dealing with this fool, you just can't think too much.
After receiving the documents from Sellen, Lloyd flipped through them. Once he got the gist, he followed the instructions and made a few adjustments to Three Fingers.
The Crucible Fragment was drawn out. Golden flames flared, and a palm-sized Three Fingers appeared on his shoulder. After moving around to adjust to its new form, it immediately leaned close to his neck, affectionately rubbing its face against his.
Sellen wasn't surprised at how quickly Lloyd grasped this technique.
After all, while he might fall short in other areas of knowledge, when it came to manipulating and studying souls, he could probably outdo even the peak of the Nox. Picking up this skill so quickly was only natural. In fact, if it weren't for the extremely unusual structure of Three Fingers' body and soul, Lloyd wouldn't even have needed her expertise—he could have crafted the whole thing himself right there.
Still, even with the Incarnation created, the matter wasn't completely settled. If Lloyd wanted to keep Three Fingers, he still had a few problems to deal with.
The first was where to place its original body.
Though Three Fingers signaled with finger gestures that it could just return—after all, with an Incarnation staying at Lloyd's side for daily closeness, the real body could simply be left underground to slumber—Lloyd thought it over and felt that wasn't right. After some consideration, he came up with a better idea.
"Come to think of it, Chaos, isn't your room a bit empty?"
Chaos nodded. She certainly didn't mind letting the Three Fingers move in. But the problem was...
"Would the Two Fingers agree to that?"
"I'll just go ask."
With that, Lloyd teleported to the Roundtable Hold and entered the chamber where the Two Fingers resided.
But unlike before, this time he found its posture strangely different. Normally, the Two Fingers would plant its lower half on the ground, bent forward like a beast arching its back. But now, both fingers were pointed skyward, pressed tightly together, as if standing at attention.
No matter how he greeted it, there was no response. While Lloyd was still puzzled, Grandma Enia explained from the side.
"I understand well. The Erdtree has rejected you."
"The noble Finger has also fallen still—something unforeseen has occurred, leaving it in confusion. It is now communing with the Greater Will."
"When that communion ends, the Fingers will once again speak to guide you."
"But that might take thousands, even tens of thousands of days... What will you do?"
Under Enia's watchful gaze, Lloyd stepped forward and placed his hand upon the Two Fingers. After a brief inspection, a strong surge of soul energy rose from his body, gathering into his palm. Then—
Boom—
A soul shock erupted. With the sound of something shattering, the upright Two Fingers trembled, then slowly drooped.
As if waking from a long dream, it gradually returned to its usual posture. After recovering, it even overlapped its two fingers, scratched its head, and looked a little embarrassed.
"How did you manage to trap your own souls?"
Lloyd looked at the Two Fingers before him with confusion.
The latter scratched its head for a moment, then wiggled toward Enia, who had fallen silent. After a long pause, Enia began interpreting once more.
"The Fingers Lord says the question He raised this time went unanswered, so He tried to probe deeper... But unexpectedly, during that search, He fell into endless Darkness and could not return. He was prepared to wait there for a reply, but you pulled Him back..."
"Remote connection not responding, huh?"
After that quip, Lloyd got to the point.
"I came here to ask if pets are allowed in the Roundtable Hold."
What kind of question is that?
Both Two Fingers and Enia were puzzled, but since this man's absurdity wasn't new, they didn't press the issue. Without Enia's translation, the Two Fingers simply tapped.
Then...
"You fucking mean this thing as a pet?!"
After the outburst, Enia quickly clarified.
"Not my words—that's exactly what the Two Fingers said."
"Ah, right."
Lloyd calmed the Three Fingers clinging to him as he looked back at Two Fingers.
"I figured it couldn't be a Knight of the Round Table, and calling it a retainer didn't sound right either, so I thought 'pet' might be closer... Plus, I already asked its original body, and it doesn't mind the title..."
No, that's not really the issue here, is it?
Even the Two Fingers, staring at the Three Fingers wrapped around Lloyd, didn't quite know how to respond. After a long silence, though it had no mouth, a weary sigh seemed to echo through the Roundtable Hold.
Fine. Let this fool do whatever he wants.
So the Three Fingers' original body was left in Chaos's room.
Afterward, since Chaos had been corrupted by Lloyd all at once, she needed time to absorb and process. After teasing Lloyd a little, she stayed in the room as well.
...
Once that was dealt with, Lloyd returned to the Royal Capital and found Morgott.
"Um, Old Margit, about your brother..."
After a brief silence, Morgott sighed.
"Go find the path first. I'll handle things in the Capital. When you arrive, come call me directly."
"Got it."
Lloyd nodded, then looked at the lantern in his hand.
"Uh, Old Margit, about this thing..."
"Just remember to return it when you're done."
With that, Morgott handed the lantern to Lloyd before turning back to his work.
After receiving the lantern and exchanging a few words with the spirit inside, Lloyd carried it to the corpse of the great Ancient Dragon. Looking down at its remains, a flicker of remembrance passed through the head within the lantern.
"Gransax... I'll probably never forget it..."
As he sighed, Lloyd raised Bolt of Gransax in his other hand. After checking his inventory, adjusting his stats and equipment, and confirming everything was in order, he opened the system.
[Temporal Dungeon: 'Ancient Dragon War' – Leyndell]
[Entry Requirement: Possession of any temporal artifact from either the Golden Order Dynasty or Ancient Dragon faction]
[Current Possessions: Godwyn Fragment, Bolt of Gransax]
[Detected artifacts from both factions. Simultaneous use grants special access]
[Proceed now?]
After selecting Yes, the Eternal Core Seath had given him floated out of his inventory. As it rose into the air, both the golden lantern and Bolt of Gransax were pulled by some unseen force, glowing with golden and crimson lightning.
The lights condensed into motes, drifting upward toward the Eternal Core. Once absorbed, the Core began to pulse, then suddenly burst, engulfing Lloyd.
A wave of familiar dizziness washed over him.
When his senses cleared, Lloyd found himself outside the Royal Capital walls—right where he had first faced the Draconic Tree Sentinel.
But the Sentinel was gone. Instead, an Ancient Dragon descended from the sky.
Four legs, four wings, its hide covered in pale, rock-like scales, and its body crackling with red dragon lightning. As it fell, it raised one massive claw, lightning gathering upon it, ready to smash the city walls.
But just as it neared, poised to strike—
With a thunderous roar, several arrows larger than men ripped through the air. Carrying immense force, they slammed into its head with explosive impact.
BOOM—
The once-menacing dragon was blasted backward. Struggling to recover, it flapped its wings and rose, only for several golden spears of light to lance out from within the Capital, piercing its body in an instant.
Boom—
Skewered by the light, the Ancient Dragon crashed down before Lloyd. As its massive body faded away, a notification popped up before him.
[Ancient Dragon War: Leyndell]
[Dungeon Status: Temporal Disruption]
[Temporal Disruption: This dungeon is merely a simulation constructed within temporal turbulence using the Eternal Core. It does not represent actual history. Due to the nature of temporal turbulence, unexpected events may occur. Please proceed with caution.]
After watching the cutscene and reviewing the system information, the dungeon officially began.
Though he didn't quite grasp what this "temporal distortion" meant, nor was he entirely sure what exactly he was fighting here, it didn't matter. Lifting his head, Lloyd surveyed the Royal Capital before him, then glanced at the Ancient Dragon circling overhead. He drew his White Dragon Sword, a staff now in his other hand. Then, he stepped forward.
Kill them all, that's all that matters.
The map exploration began. Then, the map exploration ended. Yes, it ended quickly. Having already explored the Royal Capital several times before, Lloyd had a good grasp of its terrain. As for the monsters inside...
Although, in this instance, the Golden Order Dynasty was at its height during the Ancient Dragon War era—so the soldiers within the Royal Capital were far greater in both number and quality than the defeated remnants he'd encountered before—the issue was that Lloyd was stronger. One could even say his strength bordered on the abstract.
After equipping all his spell-related gear, he didn't even need to get close. Upon spotting monsters, a simple wave of his staff from afar eliminated them all. Regular soldiers fell with one strike, elites with three. Shield-bearing elites were trickier, but he only needed to time his attack for when they lowered their guard. As for minor bosses like the Crucible Knight—if they weren't shielded—half their health was gone before they could even charge.
Then, when they switched forms at half health, they had to perform a stiffening animation. By the time the form change completed, their health bar was already empty.
Beyond the soldiers and knights native to Leyndell, dragons would occasionally appear due to the Ancient Dragon War. Sometimes, a named boss with a health bar would even show up.
[Lansseax]
Faced with these majestic, powerful, beautiful creatures descending from the sky, Lloyd's choice was—
"Comet Azur!"
Comet Azur: a spell that unleashes a torrent of Magical Power forward after a brief charge.
It demands high Intelligence, consumes massive Magical Power, and persists as long as the caster maintains concentration—preventing movement and interrupting upon taking damage. Sounds useless, right? High cost, demanding requirements. But those limitations grant it one major advantage: massive damage output. Borderline absurdly high.
Sorcerer's Talisman, White Dragon Sword, plus a Golden Vow. Lansseax had barely appeared—still in the cutscene—when a Comet Azur struck. By the time it finished howling, its health bar was already empty.
[Obtained Incantation 'Lansseax's Glaive']
As for the remaining ordinary Ancient Dragons? He didn't even use half a mana bar.
So clearing the map was a breeze. He slaughtered grunts, knights, and Ancient Dragons alike—everything in sight. Anything that breathed—small targets got smashed with Glintstone Pebble, big ones got hit with Comet Azur. He pushed through effortlessly.
Until he reached the Elden Throne.
Reaching out toward the Fog Gate, he stepped through. A golden figure stood there, gazing skyward. Hearing footsteps behind, it slowly turned.
It was a tall man.
Tall and handsome, with golden hair cascading to his shoulders, he wore ornate armor and carried a massive golden greatsword in his hand.
[Godwyn the Golden]
Strangely, though his name appeared above his head, there was no health bar beneath it. And he seemed to be...
"Godwyn?"
Lloyd blinked.
"It's me."
Godwyn made no attempt to conceal his identity as he continued.
"When you entered, I was drawn in as well, inheriting this role... And it seems I'm not alone. I can sense a familiar presence that came with me..."
"By rights, I should fight you here. But instead, I have a better proposal."
"Let's go find Fortissax. I'll speak with it, and then the two of us will fight you together. That way the challenge will be greater, and you should earn a better reward. What do you say?"
Lloyd thought it over. The offer sounded good.
But just as he was about to nod, a shadow vast enough to blot out the sky fell over them.
It was a colossal Ancient Dragon.
Its size was enormous even among its kind, so vast it eclipsed the heavens. In its claws it held a spiral spear so huge one could leap across its ridges like stepping stones. Spotting the two below, it raised the weapon high, claws clenched tight around the shaft.
Thunderclouds rolled in, crimson lightning gathering in terrifying arcs, condensing into the spiral spear.
That massive figure loomed within the storm, its shadow smothering nearly half of Leyndell. Within that darkness, countless soldiers and knights lifted their heads, staring at the lightning above. Weapons slipped from their hands and clattered to the ground.
This was no foe mortals could ever withstand.
No one—not even the most elite of the Leyndell Knights, nor the towering Tree Sentinels—could look upon that vast form without feeling the weight of their own insignificance. Doubt and fear spread like wildfire through their hearts.
Could they truly resist such a monster?
Then, the dragon descended.
Like the collapse of the heavens themselves, the spreading storm crashed down upon all of Leyndell. The looming figure, wrapped in dragon lightning, carried an aura of unstoppable ruin as it came hurtling toward the two below.
And then—
BOOM!
Light erupted skyward.
But it wasn't dragon lightning.
It was golden sword energy, and a torrent of sorcery.
The sword energy split the thunder apart. The magic flood blasted straight into the dragon's maw. One strike scattered the stormclouds, the other blew its head apart.
In an instant, the incarnation of destruction was nothing but a corpse.
Headless, its massive body plummeted from the heavens, crashing down with earth-shaking force that made all of Leyndell tremble. Even the Ancient Dragons circling overhead reeled in confusion at the sight, startled into disarray by the fall of their kin.
Then, from beside the Elden Throne, a voice spoke again.
"Who did you say Fortissax was?"
"A dragon friend of mine."
"A dragon friend? You're the Crown Prince... Oh, I see."
"...What do you see?"
"Nothing. Don't worry, I don't discriminate against dragon-lovers."
"No, Fortissax and I aren't like that. He's male..."
"But I heard you Ancient Dragons don't have genders."
"We lack physical sexes, but our minds still have them..."
With idle banter and nonsense drifting between them, the Gold One and Ashen One walked away.
Behind them, the dragon's headless corpse—punished for breaking the rules—lay sprawled across the ground, slowly dissolving into nothing. From beginning to end, it never managed to earn so much as a glance from either of them.
...
[Upto 20 chapters ahead for now]
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