Hearing Boc's words, the Tarnished turned and looked toward the distance.
Sure enough, a blind girl was standing there.
And he recognized her.
"Oh… Hyetta."
He muttered quietly before walking toward her.
Hyetta was quite a mysterious person.
Her appearance, body shape, and hair color were strikingly similar to the deceased Irina.
Yet Hyetta herself had never admitted to being Irina.
Perhaps she had some hidden reason?
Or perhaps, like Shabriri, who resurrected himself using Yura's corpse in the Mountaintops of the Giants, she had taken over another body?
There was also something strange about her appearances.
He did not encounter Hyetta in every cycle. Sometimes she simply never appeared at all—even when Irina had died.
But whenever she did appear, it was always like this.
Standing there.
Waiting for him.
She would speak of her wish to become a Finger Maiden, saying she traveled in search of the distant guiding flame, and she would ask him for something called Shabriri Grapes.
But the truth was—
Those were not grapes at all.
They were human eyeballs scorched by the Frenzied Flame.
He had never understood why becoming a Finger Maiden or searching for the distant flame required eating eyeballs.
"…Is someone there?"
Hyetta's sharp hearing picked up the faint sound of grass snapping beneath his steps.
She lifted her head toward him.
"Hello. My name is Hyetta. I am traveling in search of the distant guiding flame."
"Hello. I'm Tarnished."
"Oh, Tarnished!"
The moment she heard the word, her voice trembled slightly with excitement.
"Tarnished, if it is you, could you listen to my request?"
"You want Shabriri Grapes, right?"
"Ah… yes."
Hyetta nodded, clearly surprised.
"…Have you perhaps met someone else who wished to become a Finger Maiden?"
"Something like that."
The Tarnished shrugged casually.
"I once met a girl like you before. After asking me for grapes several times, she disappeared. I'm not sure whether she's still alive."
As he spoke, his gaze remained fixed on Hyetta.
The person he referred to was Hyetta herself—from previous cycles.
Of course, she had no way of realizing that.
"…I see."
Hyetta fell silent for a moment.
"…Then, if you happen to have Shabriri Grapes, could you share some with me?"
"I was born with weak eyesight and cannot clearly see where I should go. But when I eat those grapes, I can feel the guiding flame deep within my eyes."
"Following that flame and becoming a Finger Maiden—that is my purpose."
Aside from the part about the distant flame, everything she said sounded almost identical to Irina.
But at this point, whether they were the same person or not no longer mattered.
It would only answer a lingering suspicion.
Since she wanted Shabriri Grapes, he simply gave them to her.
After all, he usually squeezed them for amusement when bored.
They were soft, warm, and oddly satisfying.
Besides, he had plenty in his pack.
He casually pulled out a few Shabriri Grapes and placed them in Hyetta's hands.
"Oh… thank you, Tarnished."
Her hands trembled as she received them.
She clasped them to her chest and bowed deeply in gratitude.
"With these, I can feel the guiding flame once again."
"Thank you for your generosity. May the Fingers bless you."
Hyetta bowed again before straightening slowly and placing one of the grapes into her mouth.
Each time she chewed, a strange look of happiness spread across her face.
"Oh, what delicious grapes… so soft and sticky when bitten… sweet, yet slightly hot."
"They must be beautiful fruit, don't you think?"
When she asked, he simply watched in silence.
He watched as each eyeball disappeared into her mouth.
Watched as she sank deeper into her pleasant illusion.
Even though he had witnessed this scene many times across many cycles, he still couldn't help but look at her strangely.
The first time he had seen Hyetta eat one, he had almost vomited up the roasted meat from the night before.
But after countless cycles, he had gradually grown used to it.
He always waited until the end.
Only then did he finally speak.
"I don't know whether they're beautiful or not."
"But those are human eyeballs."
"..."
Hyetta froze instantly.
Her chewing stopped.
She stood there in stunned silence for a long time before finally stammering out a sentence.
"…H-how could that be…"
Shock overwhelmed her so completely that even her voice changed.
It was the kind of realization that shattered one's entire worldview.
"…But… those represent… everyone… those voices…"
"…Ugh…!"
She clamped a hand over her mouth, fighting the urge to vomit.
Yet she forced herself to swallow the last bite.
"…Haa!"
But she nearly retched again.
"Are you alright?"
"…I—I'm fine… ugh!"
She had never imagined that the grapes she had been eating were actually this.
It was impossible to accept.
When she remembered the first time she ate one, the nausea surged again, climbing up her throat.
Her body trembled violently.
Only after a long time did she finally suppress it.
Perhaps she had always suspected the truth.
She simply refused to believe it.
After all, she had sacrificed everything to become a Finger Maiden.
"…I'm sorry. I'm fine now."
"…Please don't worry."
"You even told me the truth, yet I reacted like this… please rest assured. I truly am alright."
Although she said that, her hand never left her mouth.
As if she feared she might vomit at any moment.
Seeing her predicament, the Tarnished decided to leave.
"Alright then. I wish you success in becoming a Finger Maiden."
"…Yes. Thank you once again. May your journey be safe."
With Hyetta's farewell behind him, he set off again across Liurnia of the Lakes.
But after only a few steps—
A violent retching sound erupted behind him.
"Bleugh—!"
It surged like a crashing wave.
The scene was far too vivid to imagine.
So he simply continued walking without looking back.
As for whether he would meet Hyetta again?
Based on his experience from previous cycles, probably not.
Whether she would truly become a Finger Maiden… he had no idea.
"Still… I should probably bury my Finger Maiden back at the Chapel of Anticipation."
After killing White-Faced Varre, of course.
Afterward, he visited Thops, who was hiding in the Church of Irith, and gave him a large sum of runes.
Thops had once been a student of Raya Lucaria Academy.
After leaving the academy, however, he lacked a Glintstone Key and could not break the magical seal to return.
Aside from Sellen, Thops had once been his earliest magic teacher.
The academy called him a "dull glintstone," and Thops himself believed it.
But in the Tarnished's eyes, Thops was an outstanding sorcerer.
The spell he created—Thops's Barrier—could counter both sorceries and incantations.
It was a revolutionary spell that could have overturned the entire magical system.
It could have founded an entirely new school of magic.
Yet in the early cycles, the conservative elders of Raya Lucaria murdered him brutally.
That was one of the fundamental reasons the Tarnished intended to cleanse the academy completely.
Those people deserved to become nothing more than runes.
That was their only proper fate.
Later, he entered the Crystalian Cave near Liurnia, defeated the Bloodhound Knight, and finally arrived at the Slumbering Wolf's Shack.
There he found Latenna, the Albinauric, beside the long-dead body of her wolf.
But when she saw him, her expression turned cold.
"…I already told the All-Knowing's servant that I don't have the medallion."
"Was killing my wolf not enough for you?"
"You've taken my companion. Isn't that enough?"
"All I wanted was to live quietly here with my partner. Why must you continue to harass me?"
Though her voice was weak, her anger was unmistakable.
"I'm not here on Gideon's orders."
"Albus from the Village of the Albinaurics asked me to find you."
He took out the half of the Haligtree Secret Medallion and placed it in her hands.
Latenna looked at the medallion fragment, then at him.
"…I see. Albus entrusted it to you…"
She sighed softly.
"…If this was his final wish, then I will trust you."
"Really? Aren't you afraid I might want something from you?"
He joked lightly.
But Latenna shook her head.
"I trust Albus."
"If he entrusted this to you, then you must be worthy of trust."
"And even if you tried to take it by force, it would be impossible."
She was right.
If Albus had not handed it over willingly, the Tarnished would never have found it.
No one knew where he had hidden it.
Don't ask how the Tarnished knew that.
He had tried before.
"And besides… my companion is dead."
"This broken body of mine holds nothing you could possibly want."
Her voice grew more despondent.
If not for her mission, she might have already chosen to sleep forever beside her wolf.
"Well… you're not wrong."
He smiled helplessly and extended a hand.
"My name is Tarnished. Just an ordinary Tarnished."
Although Latenna was beautiful, she was much larger than him, and he had no interest in taking advantage of someone disabled.
Besides, she was a tragic figure.
"My name is Latenna."
"Like Albus, I am an Albinauric."
She briefly shook his hand.
"I apologize for my earlier rudeness."
"I assumed you were like the All-Knowing's agents simply because you are Tarnished."
"…I'm sorry."
She bowed deeply.
"It's fine. I'm used to it."
He shrugged.
Compared to the hostility he usually faced, this was actually polite.
At least she hadn't attacked him immediately.
"This medallion… should remain in your care."
She returned the fragment to him.
"But may I ask something of you?"
"Of course. I came here to help you reach Miquella's Haligtree."
"It was also Albus's final wish."
"Then… thank you, kind Tarnished."
"As repayment, I will tell you where the other half of the medallion is."
"According to legend, the other half lies north of the Erdtree, deep within the Forbidden Lands—in Castle Sol."
"I know."
He interrupted her.
"That castle is in the Mountaintops of the Giants. You have to pass through Leyndell, Royal Capital to reach it."
Latenna lowered her gaze.
"…You already knew?"
"It seems my information was unnecessary. I apologize."
She then turned to the corpse of her wolf.
"Lobo… it is time for us to say goodbye."
"My wolf, my loyal companion."
"So that our efforts will not be wasted, I will now travel with this Tarnished."
"Please forgive me, Lobo."
The Tarnished remained silent, watching.
He had tried before to prevent the massacre of the Albinaurics.
He had tried to save Latenna.
But every time, the tragedy had already occurred—either before he arrived or while he was fighting Godrick.
He had the will.
But not the timing.
When he arrived, the outcome had always already been decided.
All he could do now was mourn.
Mourn the loyalty of this wolf.
And mourn Latenna's tragic fate.
Under his gaze, Latenna slowly dissolved into shimmering light.
It was the first time he had ever seen someone willingly become Spirit Ash.
"…Call upon me whenever you need."
"I will fight for you."
As he obtained Latenna the Albinauric's Spirit Ashes, her gentle voice echoed beside his ear.
Truthfully, he should have realized long ago that Spirit Ashes possessed their own consciousness.
But he had never thought about it that way.
And none of them had ever spoken.
Which was why he had always believed Latenna was special.
Still…
The nickname "All-Ears" suited Gideon Ofnir perfectly.
With spies scattered throughout the Lands Between, the title could not be more fitting.
Thinking of it, the Tarnished's lips curled into a mocking smile.
When he returned to Roundtable Hold, it would be time to deal with Ensha and Gideon.
But for now—
It was time to visit Rose Church and have a proper conversation with White-Faced Varre about the matter of the Finger Maiden.
After all, Varre surely had a hand in that incident.
Otherwise, how could he have been waiting so conveniently at the Stranded Graveyard?
New Tarnished had not appeared in the Lands Between for a very long time.
"Hmph."
"What a twisted sense of humor."
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