"The Goddess Of Rot has been routed. Though that was only a part of her manifestation in this world, that part alone was enough to display the Lord's renown... Of course, you were already a Lord. You do not need that Goddess's recognition to be one."
Trina's voice was calm and firm, as if this were the most obvious truth in the world.
Nolan raised an eyebrow, the corners of his mouth lifting into a faint smile. Yet his expression did not match his words at all. There was not the slightest tension on his face.
"I haven't lost my way. But isn't it a little too early to be this arrogant?" His tone was relaxed, as if he did not care about this so-called arrogance at all.
"The moment you defeated Malenia, you had already stepped onto the path to the throne. There is no need to build momentum for you anymore. That praise and adoration are merely the respect due before a throne."
Trina's gaze rested on Nolan, her words still calm.
Nolan was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "To be honest, the process of becoming Lord is far more complicated than I expected."
There was a touch of emotion in his voice. After all, it seemed he had never truly been a proper Lord.
Being alone was the normal state of a Lord of Cinder. Being surrounded by others had only ever been a brief respite.
It was just that he, as a Lord of Cinder, was a little different. He was far too attached to brief tenderness and fleeting beauty.
"You incompetent man. Power and majesty are the iron hooves a Lord must have to rule the world. The lingering prestige of the previous Lord is still sung throughout the Lands Between even now!"
Trina rolled her eyes as she spoke.
"Oh? This previous Lord you're talking about couldn't be my father-in-law, could it?"
"Of course not. Father was only a Lord Consort, not a Lord. And he also had no grand achievements of slaying gods or killing Lords."
Radagon.
The Golden Champion who had risen to fame several centuries ago. That Lord Consort's right to sit beside the Queen had always been heavily disputed.
After all, he had neither slain a god nor possessed any glorious record of fighting another Lord to the death.
The only Lord he had faced was the Queen of the Full Moon of the Carian Royal Family.
From the perspective of war, Radagon had undoubtedly been defeated in the end.
Not only had he failed to defeat the Queen of the Full Moon, he had instead used the humiliating method of marriage to form an alliance between the Golden Order Dynasty and the Carian Royal Family.
For that reason, the heroes had never hidden their doubts over whether he was qualified to become Lord Consort.
"You have already reached the most visible position. The wars and conquests that follow will make you thoroughly become the next... Lord Godfrey."
There was a certainty about the future in Trina's words, as if she had already seen Nolan seated on Leyndell's throne.
Nolan, however, scratched his head and looked unconvinced.
"Honestly, compared to becoming a rough, muscular brute, I'd rather remain a quiet, handsome man named Nolan."
His tone was light, as if he did not care much about becoming the legendary Lord everyone longed for.
Trina crossed her arms and replied flatly,
"It was only an example. You do not need to become Godfrey, because I like the Nolan you are now."
"Of course, if Nolan could truly be a quiet, handsome man instead of flirting everywhere, I would like him even more."
Her gaze fell on Nolan, carrying a hint of helplessness and reproach.
Nolan was not angry at Trina's evaluation. Instead, he said calmly, "Those two things don't actually conflict."
His voice was low and firm, as if he had his own unique understanding of his behavior.
Trina glanced at Nolan and nodded slightly. "It seems someone still has self-awareness. He just knows he's wrong and refuses to change."
Nolan helplessly spread his hands. "What can I do? There are too many wonderful things, and I want to hold on to them. Besides, if we're really talking about it, Trina came rather late."
"Then forget it. Staying true to yourself is indeed a good thing."
Trina's little face puffed up like an angry little pufferfish. Then she sat cross-legged across from Nolan with surprising composure, folding her arms in front of her chest.
"I only hope you stay this greedy forever."
"Putting that topic aside, it's settled that I'm going with you. Now back to the main issue. What should we do next?"
"My suggestion is still that we cannot abandon Elphael. The Haligtree's location may not be ideal, but there is no reason to hand it over to Morgott for nothing."
"Then let Malenia continue staying here," Nolan suggested.
"Isn't that a little unfair?" Trina hesitated. If she spoke personally, her sister would definitely agree to stay, but making that decision now still made her feel somewhat sorry toward her.
"The Haligtree needs her. There's no way around it. I'll convince her to consider the bigger picture." Nolan nodded.
"You'd better be gentle. Don't think you can bully Malenia just because she doesn't understand. Otherwise, I won't forgive you." Trina raised her fist.
"You should be saying that to her." Nolan pursed his lips. The scene at sea could not help appearing in his mind.
That woman truly was a warrior by nature, much rougher than he was.
"Malenia doesn't understand these things. You need to be considerate of her." A faint blush rose on Trina's face, and she gave a somewhat awkward smile.
Nolan paid no mind to it. His gaze fell on Trina's soft pink cheeks, and he could not resist reaching out to gently pinch the flesh on both sides of her face.
"You really do know how to treat people differently," Nolan said irritably, a trace of teasing in his tone.
Trina waved her little hands like a child. The skin on the backs of her hands was white as snow, like snow beneath the moonlight, giving off a faint sheen.
"I can't help it. Malenia is my very, very, very favorite little sister!"
"If you like her that much, then protect her properly. Don't hand her over to a scoundrel like me so easily." Nolan released her cheeks as he spoke.
"Miquella and I alone don't have enough power to deal with that hateful Goddess Of Rot. That's why we need Nolan too."
Trina raised her little fist again, her expression serious.
"I did clean the Goddess Of Rot out of Malenia's body, but that Goddess's true body is still out there, isn't it? Don't celebrate too soon," Nolan said.
"If she could really come out and cause trouble, would she have needed to hide inside my sister's body for all these years?" Trina asked back confidently.
"Since it is a seal, the day it breaks will come sooner or later. We now have a way to deal with her," Nolan said calmly. "Perhaps we can settle this problem."
"You're right." Trina was silent for a long time before nodding. The Goddess Of Rot could "curse" her sister. Who knew whether she might "curse" someone else?
Leaving her be would always be a hidden danger.
Nolan said nothing. Once the decision was made, there was no need to dwell on it any further.
Seeing him quiet down, Trina slowly stood from the wide, soft bed.
She moved lightly, like an elegant butterfly, and walked to the edge of the bed.
"Things always have to be handled one by one," Trina said, her voice clear and gentle. "You came this time for Limgrave's affairs, didn't you?"
"In that case, when do we set out? We can't let the lands we worked so hard to take be seized by that elder brother."
"The sooner the better. Once we handle the Haligtree's affairs, we'll leave. I'm going to convince Malenia now."
Nolan said this while pinching his chin. Then he pinched the Goddess's little face once as he walked past Trina, opened the door, and stepped out.
Inside the room, Trina stood there in a daze, unconsciously touching the cheek Nolan had pinched, as if she could still feel the warmth of his fingertips.
Only after several seconds did she come back to herself. She quickly walked out of the room and, with the help of the knights outside, stood on tiptoe to close the door.