On the other side, the towering and radiant Erdtree stood like a slumbering giant.
Under its faint golden glow, specks of light flickered now and then among the branches and leaves.
The residents of the territory were still lost in pleasant dreams, and the entire land lay wrapped in quiet stillness.
In the silence, the early morning breeze drifted through, carrying thin strands of white mist.
Like soft veils of gauze, they slowly rose and spread across the land, lending the once-clear world a faint air of mystery.
Clop. Clop. Clop.
A light but steady rhythm of hoofbeats broke the calm. The sound came from afar, growing steadily faster.
Nolan had been standing around with nothing to do. Hearing the sound, his spirits immediately lifted.
He had just been thinking of heading to the training grounds to find Vyke.
Turning his head, he caught sight from the corner of his eye of a strange shadow gradually emerging on the wide road hidden within the mist.
The little bull horse was finally back.
Nolan felt no sense of danger. Seeing the familiar figure, that thought surfaced at once.
Other horses could be ridden, of course, but none shared the same unspoken understanding he had with the little bull horse.
A shift of his hips was enough for it to know where to go. Few fine horses could match that kind of bond.
The hoofbeats grew faster, pounding like an excited drum.
Soon the happily galloping little bull horse burst through the heavy mist.
But unexpectedly, perhaps because it had been running too fast and was overly excited, it accidentally flung the rider from its back.
The rider turned out to be a girl.
She landed heavily on the cold ground, sitting there in stunned silence.
She looked a little disheveled, but the dazed expression on her face made her oddly endearing.
The Erdtree suddenly shone with brilliant light, like a golden sun suspended in the sky.
Its dazzling glow pierced the lingering mist, casting soft, dreamlike light across the dim landscape.
The golden radiance mingled with the flickering torches, and within the shifting light and shadow there was a faint sense of mystery.
The girl sat quietly on the damp ground. She tilted her head slightly upward and looked forward through the thinning mist.
A man and a horse were slowly approaching her.
The situation was rather strange. The whistle used to summon the spirit steed was still in the girl's hand, yet Torrent behaved obediently toward the approaching man.
The man wore a gentle smile. His silver hair drifted in the wind like a flowing river of stars, giving him an ethereal presence.
He simply stood there and extended a hand.
"Torrent seems a little too excited. You are not hurt, are you?" he asked with concern.
"No… I am fine."
The girl stared at the stranger before her, someone unfamiliar yet strangely warm.
For a moment she was lost in thought. Their eyes met.
In that brief instant, it felt as though countless unspoken words passed between them.
Finally, as if making up her mind, the girl reached out and took the broad, warm hand offered to her, rising from the ground.
"You do not seem surprised at all."
"I have had a feeling for a long time," Nolan said with a faint smile. "You have been watching me all along."
"Oh? I see. Then you have known this child for a long time as well?"
The girl pointed to Torrent, who was happily prancing beside her.
"Of course. We are very good old friends, right, Torrent?"
Nolan turned his head toward the little bull horse.
Hearing his name, Torrent became even more excited.
He eagerly pressed his head into Nolan's palm, almost as if asking to be petted.
The graceful girl stood up, and a soft breeze gently lifted the hood from her head.
A breathtakingly beautiful face was revealed.
It looked as though it had been delicately sculpted, her small pink lips as soft and tender as newly blooming petals.
Her straight, well-defined nose supported the delicate structure of her face, giving it a refined, sculpted look.
Her short light brown hair swayed gently in the breeze, catching the light with a soft sheen.
When the girl opened her eyes, one of her pupils revealed a deep brown color, rich and inviting like dark chocolate.
Her left eye, however, remained tightly closed, marked by a claw-like scar that gave her appearance a touch of mystery and danger.
With such a distinctive look, Nolan recognized her identity at a single glance.
Watching the interaction between the man and the horse, the girl could not help feeling surprised.
Torrent had never shown her this level of affection before.
"So, miss, where exactly did you find my companion?"
Nolan took the initiative, the corners of his lips lifting slightly as he asked.
As soon as the words were spoken, the girl fell into silence, as if searching deep within her mind for the answer.
Time passed slowly. After a while, she gently shook her head.
Her voice carried a faint note of confusion.
"I don't know…"
Nolan nodded and did not press further. He already knew that something was wrong with the girl's memory.
In any case, it almost certainly had something to do with that woman, Marika.
Having reached that conclusion, Nolan looked again at the somewhat absent-minded girl.
The faint smile remained on his face as he spoke softly.
"So then, lovely young lady, what brings you to me?"
With those words, it was as if a hidden switch had been triggered, opening the crucial moment when the NPC offers a quest.
The slender girl paused slightly, then raised her pale hands and removed the hood covering her head.
The small incident from earlier seemed to have had no effect on her expression.
Her face remained calm and still, though beneath that calm there lingered a trace of stiffness.
She lightly pressed her lips together before speaking in a voice that was soft, slightly low, and faintly hoarse.
"At last we meet. Greetings, traveler who has crossed the mists to reach this place."
"My name is Melina… I have come today to propose an accord."
Nolan did not interrupt. He simply watched the girl with quiet interest, remaining completely composed.
He had more or less figured it out. Torrent had most likely guided the girl to him.
In the game, this girl's role was similar to that of a Fire Keeper.
When it came to choosing whom she would follow, Torrent's opinion carried considerable weight.
"…Have you heard of Finger Maidens?"
"They are those who serve the Two Fingers. Their duty is to assist and guide those who have become Tarnished."
At this point she paused, her gaze fixed on Nolan as she carefully observed his reaction.