Miquella shook his head, at a loss for words as he watched the farce unfolding before him. A dignified goddess lying on the ground, throwing a tantrum and rolling around. In all the Lands Between, she was probably the only one of her kind.
Just as Miquella found himself helpless against Trina, a tall shadow slowly fell over the two of them.
Her Highness the Saintess, who had been lost in self-blame and wailing, seemed to sense something. She abruptly stopped moving, then carefully raised her head.
The moment her gaze met that familiar, gentle smile, all her grievances and worries vanished.
The face she had longed for day and night, the one that had haunted her dreams, was now right before her. She had wanted so badly to see it again that even after all this time, Trina felt as though an entire lifetime had passed.
Her eyes locked on Nolan's smile. In that instant, all her attention was drawn to him, and everything around her seemed to fade away.
Trina instinctively reached out with her fair, delicate hands and gently cupped Nolan's face, as if afraid he would disappear the moment she let go.
Nolan still wore a warm smile, his eyes filled with fondness and care. He bent down, opened his arms, and pulled the petite little Saintess fully into his embrace.
"It's all right. We'll go get that thing back together. Given the current situation, the risk isn't actually as high as you think," Nolan comforted her softly.
"The risk isn't high? So you're that confident in your own strength?" Miquella furrowed his fine brows, his face full of doubt as he voiced the question in his heart.
The fellow clearly looked like an exquisitely carved, adorable little boy, yet he always insisted on acting so burdened and bitter.
"Yeah. Maybe I could even take down Radahn now." Nolan chuckled. At the mention of a Demigod, he suddenly realized someone seemed to be missing from his side and murmured, "Melina."
"Did you call me?"
A clear, pleasant, slightly ethereal female voice suddenly rang in everyone's ears without warning.
Everyone turned toward the sound and saw a charming hooded girl half-crouched in a light and graceful posture, standing quietly beside Nolan.
"And this is...?" Miquella asked.
"I am Melina, Nolan's partner," Melina answered Miquella, only glancing at Trina before her gaze returned to Nolan.
Nolan scratched his head and explained with a smile, "There's been so much going on, I forgot to introduce her... Wait, when did you get here?"
"I've been here the whole time. You seem to have forgotten that I can't be apart from you. Why... is there a problem?"
Melina spoke in a calm, even tone, but in a corner no one noticed, the base of her fair ears seemed to flush faintly red.
"Uh... no, nothing."
Trina sat in Nolan's warm embrace with a dazed, foolish smile on her face, while Nolan seemed unsure what to say. For some reason, a guilty feeling welled up in him, as if he had sullied a pure young girl.
This girl could not have seen something she should not have, right? Then why was there no reaction at all? Maybe he was just scaring himself. Had she been asleep?
At that moment, Miquella spoke again. "Partner? Partner in what?"
Melina turned to Miquella and replied softly, "I give Nolan payment, and he takes me to Leyndell."
"The Grand Lift of Rold has not sealed off the region, has it? If you want to go, you can go by yourself. Why would you need Nolan to take you?"
Miquella, standing before her, could not help frowning, clearly puzzled by Melina's explanation.
"I need someone to accompany me. That is my mission," Melina said, glancing at Miquella.
This famously gentle Empyrean was being rather forceful, but he clearly held an important place in Nolan's heart. Otherwise, she would not have bothered answering these questions.
"Don't worry. I believe Melina can be trusted. She's my companion now." Nolan stepped in to smooth things over, speaking up for the girl.
Everyone pressed their lips together slightly and stared silently at Nolan. His actions had already made his stance clear.
In truth, whether Melina was their sister or not was not enough to dispel their concerns.
Blood ties might matter to this family, but not that much. A single word from Nolan, however, carried enough weight.
"Since none of you have anything else to say, we can discuss the 'future' while we walk," Nolan said.
"I think we should leave this place first. The peaceful sea of flowers is beautiful, but sitting on a pile of bones rather spoils the mood. Besides, we need to retrieve the Great Rune."
The Great Rune was important. Everyone understood that without needing it said. Whether for realizing the Order or increasing their power, it would be useful.
This time, Her Highness the Saintess's deep purple garden was not in a sunless underground cavern, but at the famed Gate of Divinity in the Land of Shadow.
This was the place where the Hornsent, who worshipped the Crucible of Life, summoned gods. Though surrounded by dim yellow light, it gave off an intoxicating fragrance and a captivating radiance.
The name "Gate of Divinity" sounded grand enough, and this continent, which now appeared barren and lifeless, had not been a land of death in the distant past.
The Land of Shadow had originally been the central continent of the Lands Between, roughly located in the inland sea region between the present-day Altus Plateau, Limgrave, and Caelid.
After Marika became a god, she sealed and severed this land, turning it into what it was now. A place detached from the Lands Between, almost like an inner world.
Nolan and the others intended to search this forgotten land for Miquella's lost Great Rune.
"I can leave, but I'm afraid you cannot. The true source of the thorns wrapped around this place is the Scadutree. Its power is almost like a law," Miquella said solemnly.
"What is the Scadutree?" Ranni asked curiously.
"The shadow of the Erdtree. Our Great Rune is still at the foot of that shadow tree," Trina said, spreading her hands.
"The Shadow Tree possesses extraordinary power just like the Erdtree. Or rather, they were originally one and the same. In the past, the Hornsent called them the Interleaving Tree or the Crossed-Tree."
"The two trees were once tangled together, indistinguishable from each other, bearing the power of the Crucible. The Spiral Tower beneath our feet, or the Sacred Tower, was built in imitation of that tree's original form."
"This city surrounded by the Impenetrable Thorns is the Sacred Tower, Enir-Ilim. Like the Ancient Dragons' Farum Azula, it hangs high in the sky. It was the Hornsent's place of worship."
"The Gate of Divinity where we are now stands at the very top of the Sacred Tower. The Hornsent would hold god-summoning rituals here and receive the power of the Crucible, while we found..."
Before she could finish, her voice stopped.
Trina seemed to realize she had said too much. She suddenly closed her mouth and turned to look at Miquella.
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