Lucian carried Millicent through the air, flying swiftly across Mt. Gelmir.
As for what had happened inside Volcano Manor after their departure, Lucian naturally knew all about it.
However, he didn't particularly care.
The only thing Lucian was interested in was Rykard's Great Rune. Whatever happened within Volcano Manor had no bearing on him.
Just as they reached the Altus Plateau and were preparing to head north toward the Shaded Castle, an inexplicable sensation suddenly stirred within Lucian.
Lucian furrowed his brows, keenly realizing that he hadn't been affected by any external force.
Ever since Miquella had bewitched him once before, combined with the tremendous increase in his strength, Lucian had become much more wary of outside influences.
He might still be affected to some extent, but it was no longer possible for something to influence him completely without his noticing.
Yet the sensation he was experiencing now was quite different.
Rather than being genuinely affected by something, it was more like a form of [Intuition].
Lucian didn't casually dismiss it. Instead, he stopped and carefully focused on the sensation.
At his current level, nothing happened without a reason.
Even an intuition that seemed to have no basis whatsoever must represent some unknown connection to him.
After all, he had already begun to grasp those so-called threads of fate in his own hands.
Lucian devoted almost all his attention and concentration to searching for the source of the sensation, leaving only a small portion of his mind to keep the two of them suspended in the air.
Millicent found it strange when Lucian suddenly stopped.
Had something unexpected happened? Were there enemies nearby? Or was he simply taking a break?
But she couldn't see anything unusual, and Sir Lucian wasn't making any movements either.
She wanted to ask what was going on, but seeing Lucian close his eyes and sink into contemplation, Millicent swallowed her question.
She didn't know what was happening, but Sir Lucian must have had his reasons.
Besides, they were still flying through the air. She could simply wait a little.
No...
Millicent suddenly realized that being in the air was precisely what made the situation dangerous.
She swallowed nervously and reminded herself not to look down.
However, in the end, Millicent still failed to overcome that damned curiosity she would come to regret.
Spread out beneath their feet was almost the entirety of the golden, dazzling Altus Plateau.
Even after the Shattering, those brilliant golden plants continued to grow luxuriantly, spreading across the entire plateau like a layer of thick honey.
Thanks to their astonishing altitude, Millicent could even make out a glimpse of Leyndell, the Royal Capital, beneath the Erdtree in the distance.
However, they were flying incredibly high.
The enormous Tree Sentinels' statues outside the capital, which should have looked gigantic from the ground, now appeared no larger than little toys.
The trenches and ravines left behind from the wars of the Shattering looked like ugly, crooked scars across the land of Altus.
And the phantom war banners, rising straight toward the heavens and standing as tall as city walls, resembled nothing more than insignificant arrows planted across the vast land.
Millicent's heart pounded as she tried to estimate the distance between herself and the ground.
Was it several hundred meters? Or several thousand?
She had never been this high up before and had no idea how to judge the distance.
But one thing was certain: they were very high. If she fell, there was no way she would survive.
Millicent glanced once more at Lucian, who was still frowning with his eyes closed as he sensed something. She decided not to disturb him.
Taking a deep breath, she tilted her head back toward the sky and silently waited.
The moment she looked up, she was met by the Erdtree's enormous branches, spreading out to blot the sky. Golden leaves seemed to flow among them like streams of gold.
The wind at this altitude was already making Millicent's eyes sting. Now that she was facing the Erdtree's dazzling radiance directly, she could barely keep them open.
So... the Erdtree was really this enormous?
Millicent couldn't help thinking to herself.
She had already felt that way when looking up at it from the ground, but seeing it from such close range was an entirely different experience.
And what would the distant Haligtree, Elphael, look like...?
It was truly something to look forward to.
—
After a while, Lucian suddenly opened his eyes in astonishment and looked toward a certain place in the distance on the Altus Plateau.
There lay a sunken basin, its entire surface concealed beneath layers of dense forest canopy. Not even the slightest glimpse of what lay within could be seen.
Lucian couldn't identify the exact location with certainty. However, judging from the general terrain and its corresponding position on the map, it should be the Woodfolk Ruins area, shouldn't it?
Lucian lowered his head and looked at the thorny ring around his wrist, the one connected to the spirit world.
Ever since he had identified the direction, the ring had begun to produce a faint stinging sensation, as though confirming that his guess was correct.
Somewhere in that Woodfolk Ruins area, there seemed to be a ritual altar established by Godwyn's followers...
But Lucian remembered that there wasn't supposed to be a Walking Mausoleum there, was there?
After thinking for a while, Lucian shook his head.
Perhaps something else had happened, causing the ritual to undergo some other change.
Regardless, Lucian would certainly have to make a trip there.
He didn't hurry over to investigate immediately, though.
He had already memorized the location, so he could set out whenever he wanted.
For now, finding Millicent a prosthetic arm was the priority. After all, he had already promised her.
Besides, Lucian couldn't exactly bring Millicent into the spirit world with him. Leaving her alone outside wouldn't be appropriate either.
Since he had already brought Millicent along, he might as well get her prosthetic arm fitted first.
That way, he wouldn't have to worry about where to leave her afterward.
Lucian called out to Millicent, then resumed their journey.
—
Standing outside the Shaded Castle, Lucian looked down at the poisonous swamp churning beneath them, its surface giving off a foul stench of decay. Disgusted, he surrounded himself with a barrier of wind.
Unlike most castles, the Shaded Castle had a rather unusual defensive structure.
It was a poisonous swamp, vast enough to resemble a lake, which had taken the place of an ordinary moat.
And that wasn't all. The Shaded Castle had two layers of walls, dividing the entire structure into three separate areas.
However, the poisonous swamp extended throughout all three areas of the castle. Even the residential quarters inside were covered by it.
Anyone seeing this place for the first time would surely be shocked by the sheer scale of this enormous cesspit.
However, after seeing the even larger poisonous pool that had submerged the entire lower section of Belurat in the Land of Shadow, Lucian no longer considered the Shaded Castle's swamp particularly impressive.
Not to mention the even more outrageous Lake of Rot in the underground waterways. Compared to that, this poisonous swamp was practically nothing.
Lucian brought Millicent down onto a corner of the ruined castle wall and activated the Site of Grace there.
He then headed straight toward the castle, only to have Millicent suddenly take hold of his hand.
Lucian turned around and met her resolute gaze.
Millicent released his hand and slowly spoke.
"Sir Lucian... there's something I'd like to say to you."
"Please allow me to explore the Shaded Castle myself."
After hearing Millicent's request, Lucian tilted his head slightly.
"Is that so?"
"There's really no problem with leaving everything to me, you know."
"It wouldn't take much effort."
Millicent nodded, refusing to back down.
"Yes. For you, something like this probably wouldn't even qualify as a battle."
"I also know that if I simply rely on you, I could easily obtain whatever I want..."
"But I don't want that."
"A person's happiness should be something they strive to obtain for themselves."
"I don't want to receive special treatment. I want to obtain everything I desire through my own efforts, as a true warrior."
Lucian met Millicent's eyes. Having understood her determination, he agreed.
"All right. I understand your resolve."
"However, I can't simply turn a blind eye and leave you entirely on your own. I'll be keeping an eye on you from the sidelines."
"So don't push yourself too hard."
Millicent smiled and turned to face the Shaded Castle.
With her back to Lucian, she furrowed her brows slightly and began thinking.
Well, she'd delivered a pretty cool speech, but...
Which direction was she supposed to go now?
Faced with a completely unfamiliar place that she had only heard Patches briefly describe, Millicent wasn't exactly confident.
Although she had sounded quite impressive when speaking to Lucian just now, the truth was that she didn't really have a plan.
After thinking for a moment, Millicent calmly chose a path.
Well, at worst, she could explore the entire Shaded Castle from beginning to end...
As long as she didn't keep going back and forth along the same routes, that should be fine.
First, she needed to find a way into the castle.
No one would leave anything valuable on the outermost castle wall.
If she wanted to explore properly, she should at least start from the inner wall or, better yet, the deeper residential areas.
Millicent began making her way along the gaps in the walls, jumping across the broken sections as she traversed the outer ramparts.
Although Millicent was missing an arm, she could still run and jump. A few gaps in the castle walls were hardly an obstacle for her.
Since she didn't want to venture into the poisonous swamp immediately after taking a bath, Millicent followed the castle walls, searching for a suitable route.
Lucian silently followed behind her, thinking about Elemer of the Briar.
There weren't many living creatures still active inside the Shaded Castle.
It seemed that when Elemer seized control of the castle, he hadn't spared anyone from a considerable amount of bloodshed.
Fortunately, there weren't many living enemies left. At least for now, Lucian didn't need to worry about Millicent's ability to fight.
Her opponents were merely insignificant riffraff, hardly worth mentioning.
Even wielding a blade with only her left hand, Millicent wouldn't be at a disadvantage against them.
What Lucian wasn't sure about was just how strong Elemer himself actually was.
He had already made preparations to intervene only when Millicent finally confronted Elemer.
Before obtaining a prosthetic arm, Millicent was undoubtedly no match for him.
As a condemned criminal awaiting execution, Elemer had managed to seize a sword from the execution grounds of the Marais family, who were themselves executioners, and then single-handedly conquer this entire castle. That was no ordinary feat.
Furthermore, the Briar Set he wore was even classified as a Hero's equipment in the game, something that had to be purchased from Enia, the Finger Reader.
That alone was worth discussing.
In other words, although Elemer's character was questionable, his strength was undeniably genuine.
Even by a conservative estimate, he was at least among the top tier of heroes in the Lands Between.
As for how the battle would turn out after Millicent obtained her prosthetic arm, Lucian couldn't say for certain just yet.
Just then, Millicent encountered the first enemy inside the Shaded Castle.
As she had just climbed over one of the watchtowers along the outer wall, a trail of sparkling dust suddenly scattered through the air in front of her.
Millicent immediately sensed danger. With a nimble backward somersault, she rapidly increased the distance between them.
The moment she had gracefully withdrawn, the floating dust particles began exploding one after another.
Large bursts of sparks flashed in succession, forming a chain of explosions throughout the area.
The Depraved Perfumer patrolling the outer wall was somewhat surprised to see Millicent evade his Spark Aromatic.
This specially modified perfume, designed specifically for combat, had an extremely short detonation delay. Moreover, he had launched the first attack.
Yet the moment his opponent saw the sparks, she had already dodged.
Just what kind of reaction speed was that?
Seeing that his attack had failed, the Depraved Perfumer took out another bottle of Spark Aromatic and began removing its stopper, preparing to scatter its contents.
This was an Aromatic bottle modified for use as a weapon.
Its opening had been specially designed to make scattering the perfume easier, allowing it to cover a wider area and reach a greater distance.
Much like the Perfumers in the Land of Shadow, the Depraved Perfumers didn't need to take on the role of healers. As a result, they had developed similar techniques for combat.
However, before he could scatter the perfume, Millicent's figure had already flashed forward from several meters away, closing the distance in an instant.
A flash of her blade.
The Depraved Perfumer's head separated from his body, and his corpse staggered before falling to the ground.
'So fast...'
That was the Depraved Perfumer's final thought. His head hit the ground alongside it.
Millicent shook the blood from her blade and continued along the castle wall.
After spending a little time searching, Millicent soon found a suitable route.
Because of the terrain chosen when the castle was built, several raised stone pillars had been incorporated between the outer and inner walls of the Shaded Castle. They served as natural obstacles against siege weapons.
Whether they were actually effective was anyone's guess, but at least now they considerably shortened the distance between the two walls.
Looking at the stone pillar jutting abruptly out before her, Millicent immediately leaped forward. She lightly touched down on the massive rock, pushed off again, and successfully jumped onto a watchtower along the inner wall.
After looking around, Millicent curiously turned her gaze toward a building at the far end of the inner wall.
Its position and layout were rather strange. It didn't resemble an ordinary defensive structure. Could there be something inside?
After examining the surrounding inner wall and the layout of the castle below, Millicent quickly worked out a route and set off once more.
Watching Millicent head in the correct direction, Lucian raised his eyebrows.
The direction she had chosen was actually leading straight toward the location of the prosthetic arm.
No wonder she had seemed so confident earlier. Had she triggered [Intuition] as well?
Lucian silently followed behind Millicent, waiting for what was to come.
If nothing unexpected happened, another enemy would appear ahead. And this time, it would be in a rather unexpected manner.
Millicent walked calmly, keeping her eyes on that building.
For some reason, she had a strange feeling that something was calling out to her.
Suddenly, a wooden crate beside the road burst apart with a loud crash.
An extremely emaciated Living Dead, one of the creatures known as the Putrid Corpses, sprang out from within and lunged at Millicent.
Caught off guard by the sudden ambush, Millicent was startled. She immediately swung her blade in a backhanded strike, cutting the creature in half.
Seeing Millicent's startled reaction, Lucian couldn't help chuckling.
Living Dead hiding in all sorts of corners and ambushing people throughout the Lands Between... No, throughout the entire Miyazaki universe, were something Lucian had long since grown accustomed to.
But seeing Millicent, who was usually so serious and meticulous, get startled like that wasn't an opportunity that came around every day.
When Millicent turned to look at him, Lucian gave a light cough, his expression once again returning to its usual calm and composed appearance.
Looking at the Putrid Corpse still writhing on the ground, Millicent felt rather speechless.
The Living Dead had once been respectable members of the Golden Order. How could one of them possibly end up hiding inside a wooden crate just to ambush someone?
And yet, she had actually fallen for such a crude hiding place and gotten startled.
Millicent turned around and continued walking.
However, the faint redness of her ears still betrayed her embarrassment. Being startled by a Putrid Corpse had clearly left her feeling a little flustered.
This time, Millicent proceeded much more cautiously. She made sure to inspect and scout each area before moving forward, clearing out enemies as she went.
As a result, the Putrid Corpses along the way no longer caused her much trouble.
Aside from occasionally hiding in some corner to give her a fright, their ambushes were practically useless against someone as agile and nimble as Millicent.
Under Lucian's watchful gaze, Millicent finally arrived outside the room where the prosthetic arm was kept.
—
Hearing the sound of a corpse falling, the Cleanrot Knight stationed outside the room sensed that a new intruder had arrived.
She slowly rose to her feet, once again gripping her sword and spear with both hands.
Everything that happened in this castle was of no concern to her. None of it had anything to do with her.
The only thing she cared about was whether she had fulfilled the duty entrusted to her.
Whether it was that ridiculous fellow, Maleigh Marais, who harbored delusions about Lady Malenia...
Or the unfathomable Elemer, with blood on his hands, who had openly seized control of the castle...
Whoever owned this castle made no difference to her duty.
She had been entrusted with guarding Lady Malenia's spare prosthetic arm and some of the Haligtree's supplies.
That was her duty.
No matter who came, she would never allow them to pass...
However, the moment the Cleanrot Knight got a clear look at Millicent, a massive spray of Scarlet Rot suddenly burst from her mouth.
Ignoring her own violent coughing, the Cleanrot Knight fell respectfully to her knees before Millicent and cried out in disbelief:
"Lady Malenia!?"