The two Silver Tears each transformed into humanoid forms before immediately charging toward Lucian with weapons in hand.
The Silver Tear wielding a greatsword took the lead. Leaping into the air, it brought the massive blade crashing down toward Lucian's head.
The other Silver Tear carried a towershield, guarding its companion's flank while the spear in its hand poised itself to strike at any moment.
In the next instant, the airborne Silver Tear was pierced through by a streak of golden light.
The twinblade Euporia in Lucian's hands skewered the Silver Tear and lifted it into the air, continuously drawing away its life force.
As the absorption continued, the radiance flowing through Euporia gradually grew brighter and brighter.
Seeing this, the other Silver Tear immediately lowered its greatshield and charged forward. At the same time, its spear shot out with explosive speed.
Yet a sword wrapped in crimson-black sword energy suddenly danced through the air of its own accord. Spinning gracefully, the Regalia of Eochaid effortlessly pierced straight through the tower shield.
The Silver Tear reacted with remarkable speed, immediately twisting its shield to deflect the Regalia of Eochaid away.
Taking advantage of the brief opening, the Silver Tear hanging from Euporia reverted to its liquid form and slipped free from the twinblade's tip.
By the time it transformed back into a humanoid shape, the two Silver Tears were once again standing shoulder to shoulder, no longer daring to charge recklessly.
The Regalia of Eochaid returned to Lucian's side, continuously circling around him.
Lucian glanced at the glowing Euporia in his hand and nodded lightly.
The weapon's applications were even broader than he had anticipated. It could absorb power even from artificial lifeforms such as Silver Tears.
The only unfortunate thing was that it was completely ineffective against Those Who Live in Death. Otherwise, it would have been even more powerful.
Just as Lucian was preparing to unleash Euporia's skill and finish off the Silver Tears, the Nightmaiden standing behind them suddenly made her move.
She raised a silver dagger before her chest.
As the crest of the Nox Dynasty appeared, a mass of silver-black mist rapidly spread throughout the Moonlight Altar church.
This was the unique mist used by the Nightmaidens, capable of generating a corrosive silver fog that devoured the life force of those caught within it.
Even the caster herself would be affected, dealing damage to anyone who came into contact with the mist.
That said, the composition of this silver mist was fundamentally identical to that of the Silver Tears themselves.
Precisely because of this, the Silver Tears were completely unaffected and could move through the fog freely.
Not only did the mist fail to harm them, it actually provided benefits.
For example, by absorbing the mist, they could slowly recover from their injuries.
As for Lucian...
The mist seemed to have absolutely no effect on him.
Lucian scratched his head in confusion.
Originally, he had intended to personally experience the damage caused by the mist before dispersing it.
However, when the fog came into contact with him, it failed to produce any of its intended effects.
In fact...
As the silver-black mist enveloped him, Lucian almost felt as though he was enjoying it.
The mist continuously invaded his body. By all logic, it should have eroded his life force from the inside out.
Yet for some reason, Lucian remained completely unaffected.
If he had to describe what effect it actually had on him, it merely made his lungs feel slightly itchy.
Lucian examined his body internally and quickly discovered the source of the strange sensation.
It was much like what had happened after he drank from the Tear Chalice.
Asimi's core had already devoured the Nightmaiden's mist that had entered his body.
Since the mist that invaded him had been completely neutralized, there was even less chance that the fog surrounding him externally could do anything.
The mist couldn't even corrode his skin.
At most, it served as a visual obstruction.
Meanwhile, taking advantage of the cover provided by the fog, the two Silver Tears charged once more.
Euporia shone brilliantly in Lucian's hands before floating in front of him and beginning to spin at incredible speed.
As it rotated, the surrounding mist was drawn into a vortex and dispersed. The Silver Tears and the Nightmaiden were instantly exposed.
Lucian locked onto the enemies before him.
In the next moment, Euporia erupted with a dazzling light of destruction.
Wherever that radiance passed, everything was utterly annihilated.
By the time all the power accumulated within Euporia had been expended, every enemy standing before Lucian had vanished without a trace.
Lucian looked at the church, now bordering on collapse thanks to his attack, and clicked his tongue.
Hopefully I didn't destroy the place where the Moon of Nokstella was stored...
With that thought in mind, he hurried toward the small chamber ahead and began searching.
Fortunately, the carefully preserved chest enshrined within remained completely intact.
Lucian opened the treasure chest.
As expected, he found the most valuable item of this entire expedition.
Resting quietly atop a luxurious deep-purple cushion was an exquisitely crafted talisman.
A metallic Black Moon sat at its center, while countless stars circled around it along the outer edge.
This was the secret treasure of the Eternal City of Nokstella, the symbol of the Black Moon itself.
The Moon of Nokstella.
After obtaining the talisman, Lucian immediately began examining the power contained within it.
A short while later, he opened his eyes.
Just as expected, this talisman symbolizing the Black Moon possessed an effect similar to a Memory Stone.
The difference was that its enhancement was considerably stronger, to the point where the increase was clearly noticeable.
While the effect was undeniably useful, it wasn't particularly valuable to Lucian.
Before any of his attributes broke through their limits, he still preferred talismans that directly increased his stats.
Once those limits had been surpassed, however, special-effect talismans like this would truly begin to shine when paired with a solid foundation of attributes.
Given his current circumstances, Lucian ultimately decided to give the talisman to Ranni instead.
He took out the miniature Ranni doll.
At the moment, the frosty aura surrounding the doll was extremely faint, almost nonexistent.
By now, Lucian had learned to judge whether Ranni was paying attention based on the state of the doll's frost aura.
This level indicated that Ranni was maintaining only the bare minimum connection with the doll.
As long as he didn't do anything overly outrageous to Little Ranni, she wouldn't pay attention to what was happening on his side.
Holding the Moon of Nokstella in one hand and the miniature Ranni doll in the other, Lucian carefully placed the doll in his palm.
Like someone posing an articulated figure, he gently lifted one of her arms and placed the Moon of Nokstella into her embrace.
After setting it in place, he adjusted all four of her arms, arranging them into a pose that looked as though she were hugging the talisman.
Once he finished, Lucian nodded in satisfaction.
The miniature Ranni was indeed very small.
The Moon of Nokstella she was holding was nearly half her size.
Yet because of that, as Little Ranni sat kneeling in the center of his palm with her legs tucked beneath her, tightly hugging a moon that seemed slightly too large for her, she looked exceptionally delicate and adorable.
Just as Lucian was about to put the doll away, the miniature Ranni suddenly blinked.
Frost spread across her body, and cold air continuously radiated from the small vessel.
As the chill enveloped her once more, Ranni's consciousness fully descended into the doll again.
Little Ranni looked down at the unusual ornament in her arms before lifting her head to gaze up at Lucian.
"What is it thou art about?"
—
Some time earlier, in a hidden cavern unknown to anyone else.
Ranni sat upon a chair formed from ice.
Beside her lay several crimson-black shadows that were slowly dissipating into nothingness.
These were all Baleful Shadows she had deliberately lured here by releasing traces of her presence.
This location was completely separate from the place where she normally hid, chosen specifically for her own safety.
Although a few Baleful Shadows had indeed been drawn here, she had used this tactic several times already. By now, the Two Fingers had become far less likely to fall for it.
While contemplating her next move, Ranni carefully repaired the damage to her body.
The doll's exterior gradually returned to a pristine state, looking almost brand new.
Although she had been using this body for a long time, she had rarely bothered maintaining it. In many places, the stuffing beneath the fabric had become exposed.
In Ranni's eyes, it was merely a vessel that could be replaced at any time.
There had never seemed to be much point in repairing it.
When it broke, she could simply acquire another.
Because she had always thought that way, her current body had long since become tattered and worn.
But now...
Well, it had been damaged while fighting the servants of the Two Fingers.
Naturally, she needed to repair it properly in order to remain in peak condition.
Absolutely.
At that moment, Ranni suddenly sensed movement from the doll she had left with Lucian.
Without question, Lucian had taken it out again.
The memory of him nearly seeing beneath the doll's skirt last time immediately filled her with embarrassment and irritation.
Ranni hurriedly projected her consciousness into the doll, intending to see what exactly Lucian was doing this time.
Yet the instant her consciousness arrived, she felt a weight settle into her arms.
Looking down, she discovered that it was some kind of ornament, though from her current angle she couldn't see its full appearance.
Originally, she had planned to stop Lucian from doing anything that might damage a witch's dignity.
While she was at it, she had also intended to ask him for help dealing with the remaining Baleful Shadows.
However, the moment she noticed the strange item in her arms, she decided those matters could wait.
"What is it thou art about?"
She pointed at the ornament she was holding.
"And what is this?"
Lucian had not expected Ranni to appear personally.
Still, that worked out perfectly.
This way, he could give it to her directly.
So he answered without hesitation.
"This is a gift for you."
Ranni froze for a moment.
She had not expected that answer.
"A gift..."
It had been a very, very long time since she had heard that word.
She had once believed she had long since become indifferent to such things.
Yet when she truly received a gift from Lucian, she discovered that she was still capable of feeling something called happiness.
"I thank thee. Truly, it pleaseth me well…"
Lucian scratched his hair.
"Aren't you going to ask what it is first?"
Little Ranni pursed her lips.
To be honest, what the gift actually was didn't matter all that much to her.
She had once been the Princess of Caria.
Later, she became a witch operating from the shadows.
Over the course of countless years, she had seen every sort of treasure and wonder imaginable.
It was much like how a wealthy person rarely judged a friend's gift based on its monetary value.
To her, what mattered was the act of giving the gift itself.
Still, since Lucian had brought it up, she decided she might as well examine it.
Surely he wouldn't give her something unworthy of notice.
Little Ranni stood up and, with some effort, flipped the ornament over.
Immediately, the metallic Black Moon and the countless stars clustered around it came into view.
Standing beside the Moon of Nokstella, Little Ranni carefully inspected the precious talisman.
Gradually, a trace of surprise appeared on her face.
This thing seemed to share the same origin as the treasured possession of sorcerers, the Memory Stone.
Yet its power was considerably stronger.
Moreover, it contained the power of another moon.
The benefits it provided to her sorceries were substantial.
Looking at the Moon of Nokstella, Little Ranni smiled softly.
This talisman suited her perfectly.
And it would be of tremendous help to her as well.
Standing in Lucian's palm, she tilted her head up toward him.
"Thou hast my thanks."
"In sooth, I am glad of it. These words I speak are no false courtesy, but mine honest sentiment."
"Yet... for the present, I would have thee take it back into thy keeping."
Lucian blinked in confusion.
From Ranni's reaction, it was obvious she genuinely liked the item.
So why was she suddenly asking him to take it back?
"What is it?"
"Don't you like it?"
Lucian pulled out the Stargazer Heirloom hanging around his neck and continued:
"You don't need to be polite with me."
"After all, I already received your pendant."
Ranni shook her head and quietly gazed at him.
"Nay… that is not my meaning."
"I would have thee give it unto me thyself."
"Unto the body thou knowest."
"Mine own true form."
"Not this fleeting vessel I now bear."
Lucian immediately understood what she meant.
A smile appeared on his face as well.
"Alright."
"I'll deliver it personally."
"But you still haven't told me where you are."
"You can't expect me to search the entire Lands Between on my own, can you?"
Ranni smiled and shook her head.
"Of course not."
She turned and pointed toward a distant area of Nokstella.
"Beneath this place lie remnants left by the Two Fingers."
"I deem that Baleful Shadows shall assuredly manifest there."
"Next, I shall deliberately unbind my presence, and so draw them forth."
"I have employed this stratagem on several occasions aforetime. They may already be wary of it… thus I know not how many shall come."
"Yet be it many or few, shouldst thou fell them, it shall greatly aid me."
"Therefore… I leave them unto thee."
After explaining her plan, Ranni spoke again.
"And once that is done…"
"Make thy way unto the Altus Plateau."
"I have been tracing the path of the Two Fingers."
"For now, mine inquiry hath led me unto the Altus Plateau."
"As for mine exact whereabouts…"
"When thou arrivest there, I shall myself guide thee."
Understanding Ranni's plan, Lucian nodded.
"Alright."
To him, a few Baleful Shadows were hardly a challenge.
Baleful Shadows?
Under the sun, there are no shadows.
Once the miniature Ranni became motionless again, Lucian knew her consciousness had departed.
After putting Little Ranni away, Asimi walked over from nearby and came to his side.
She had actually returned a short while ago.
However, she had already learned that there were times when it was better not to interrupt.
"My lord, I brought back the Tear Chalice!"