After completely destroying Mohg and Morgott, Lucian finally felt the gloom lingering in his heart dissipate.
Although what he had destroyed were merely two avatars, and their true bodies far away had suffered no real loss, the emotional satisfaction was still quite considerable.
Lucian cut off the flow of magic sustaining the sun.
The energy consumption was simply too great. In normal circumstances, a miniature sun was more than sufficient.
Without magic to sustain it, the blazing sun slowly faded from the sky, and Stormveil Castle returned once again to the embrace of night.
Lucian turned around and looked toward Leda and the others.
"So it's you."
"Since the Festival of Combat we attended together, it's been quite a long time."
"I never expected you to come to Stormveil, and even become involved in this incident."
"That was rather unexpected."
Leda slightly lowered her head.
"At the time, we were nearby. When we noticed the disturbance here, we came to investigate."
"Who would have thought it would turn out to be the avatar of the Lord of Blood, Mohg."
"You seem to already know quite a bit about him, so I won't bother explaining his identity… although, truth be told, we don't actually know much about him either."
A hint of anger crept into Leda's voice.
"This may be something you're unaware of."
"As early as the time of the Shattering, Mohg had already formed a deep grudge with our Haligtree."
"It is a blood feud."
"As a knight, I will absolutely make Mohg pay the price."
After speaking, Leda lifted her head and looked at Lucian.
Her helmet concealed her expression completely, leaving Lucian unable to read her face.
"Lord Lucian, from the conversation you had with Mohg earlier, it seems you also share some enmity with him…"
Lucian listened quietly and nodded.
"Long ago, I fought Mohg once before."
"At that time, I wasn't strong enough. Although I managed to survive in the end, I paid a heavy price."
By which he meant burning through one of his cheat-like abilities, and enduring phantom pain for days afterward, so intense that sleep became nearly impossible.
"I had already guessed that someone with his personality would stir up trouble behind the scenes."
"But even I didn't expect him to dare cause such large-scale destruction within Stormveil itself."
"I hadn't originally planned to deal with him so soon."
"But now…"
"It seems I have to teach him a lesson."
Beneath her helmet, Leda revealed a faint smile.
But she quickly suppressed that fleeting joy and returned to her usual calm demeanor.
"I see."
"In that case, since you also have grievances with Mohg, why not allow us to assist you?"
"If we cooperate, defeating him should become much easier."
Lucian looked at Leda and shook his head.
It was obvious that Leda and her companions were eager to kill Mohg.
But why?
If Miquella had truly been abducted by Mohg, Lucian could trust their motives.
Unfortunately, Lucian had known for quite some time that Miquella was not in the Mohgwyn Dynasty.
On the contrary, there had been traces of Miquella moving about the Lands Between even after the so-called blood conspiracy.
Since these movements occurred after Mohg's supposed kidnapping, it meant Miquella had not actually been restrained by Mohg.
And Leda's group could not possibly be unaware of this.
After all, Freyja herself had been saved personally by Miquella.
So if their goal was merely revenge on Miquella's behalf…
Lucian didn't believe it.
There was a good chance that the actions of Leda's entire group were part of Miquella's own arrangements.
Better not let them interfere.
Of course, Lucian did not say any of this aloud.
Instead, he offered a different reason.
"Even if you say that, it still isn't a battle you can participate in."
"I don't mean to be harsh, but you simply don't have the qualifications to come along."
"Mohg is not like General Radahn."
"Even after losing his sanity, Radahn remained a warrior. He wouldn't rely on underhanded tricks."
"But Mohg…"
"You've already experienced his techniques firsthand."
"Against the weak, his power is nothing short of slaughter."
Lucian's words were blunt, but Leda and the others showed no particular reaction.
Because they all knew he was telling the truth.
Lucian's meaning was clear.
He had no intention of bringing them along.
But Leda did not appear discouraged.
Their goal was Mohg's death.
As for how that happened, or whether they personally participated, it wasn't truly important.
She had no intention of giving up.
She would try once more to persuade Lucian.
In her possession was a piece of information Lucian almost certainly didn't know.
It was very likely to convince him.
Lucian's techniques were simply too terrifying.
Even if Mohg fought on his home ground, there was a high chance he would still be defeated.
Under such overwhelming attacks, whether Mohg's body would even remain intact was questionable.
And that—
Was part of their plan.
An extremely important part.
Seeing that Lucian was about to leave, Leda spoke again.
"We understand the dangers awaiting there."
"That is why we won't insist that you take us along."
"But there is one piece of information you absolutely need to know."
"If you don't…"
"Even you might fail to defeat Mohg, and could even fall there."
At those words, everyone present except Lucian was startled.
Lancelot frowned.
He could tell that Leda was still unwilling to give up on persuading Lucian.
Instinctively, he assumed she was simply bluffing.
After all, this kind of tactic; feigning retreat to entice someone, was something he had seen countless times.
Lord Lucian's strength was already overwhelming.
Judging from the performance of Mohg's avatar earlier, even if Mohg were twice as strong, it still shouldn't be enough to threaten Lucian's life.
The others also felt her claim was unbelievable.
But faced with their confusion, Leda offered no explanation.
She simply looked quietly at Lucian.
Lucian himself was already considering her words.
Her earlier statement had indeed caught his attention.
He knew he had grown very powerful.
But he also understood that he was not invincible.
If there existed a power that surpassed the level of the demigods, something capable of seriously injuring him.
Then…
The Mohgwyn Dynasty might actually possess such a thing.
Mohg's "mother" from the Leyndell Subterranean Shunning-Grounds—
The Formless Mother.
As an Outer God, her true body existed somewhere in the distant cosmos, yet she could still project power into the Lands Between through the Mohgwyn Sacred Spear.
'Could Leda be referring to information about the Formless Mother?'
After some thought, Lucian decided it was worth hearing them out.
"Interesting," he said.
"Go on."
Seeing that she had successfully piqued Lucian's interest, Leda relaxed slightly.
She organized her thoughts before speaking clearly.
"In truth, there is a special barrier surrounding the Mohgwyn Dynasty."
"It cannot be seen with the naked eye and has no physical form."
"But it is extremely terrifying."
"It is said that only those with extraordinary perception can even sense it."
"After our attempts, we discovered that it is absolutely impossible to pass through that barrier using physical means."
"Every living creature that tried disappeared without exception."
"According to our special tracking methods, they all vanished completely from the Lands Between."
"That is undoubtedly the power of an Outer God."
Lucian recalled the barrier he had encountered previously when traveling to the Mohgwyn Dynasty with Selinsax.
What Leda was describing had to be that very same thing.
Disappeared…
Could it be that the Formless Mother had directly eliminated them?
If that were the case, then it truly was something that required caution.
However, Lucian still had another method, using the portal in the Consecrated Snowfield to teleport directly into the Mohgwyn Dynasty.
The only issue was that the portal's location was extremely remote and very difficult to find within the snowfield.
Speaking of the Consecrated Snowfield…
Lucian suddenly understood what Leda meant.
He raised his eyes and looked at her, signaling for her to continue.
"You have a way to bypass that barrier?"
Seeing Lucian take the bait, Leda continued.
"As expected, nothing escapes your notice."
"That's right. We discovered a portal connected to the Mohgwyn Dynasty located in the Consecrated Snowfield."
"If you wish to go there, we can accompany you."
Lucian nodded.
So that was it.
After going around in a huge circle, they had returned to the same solution.
He could locate the portal himself if he tried, but that would inevitably consume a great deal of time.
After a moment's thought, Lucian agreed to travel with them to the Mohgwyn Dynasty.
After all, with their strength they wouldn't be able to cause any real trouble.
If anything unusual happened, Lucian could suppress it with ease.
Even if Miquella personally appeared at the last moment, hoping to reap the benefits like a fisherman waiting for the catch…
Lucian could simply activate his cheat ability once and show him what true power looked like.
"If you want to follow along, I don't mind," Lucian said.
"But once we reach the Mohgwyn Dynasty, I won't go out of my way to protect you."
Leda finally relaxed.
As long as he agreed, that was enough.
"My deepest thanks."
"I must witness Mohg's death with my own eyes."
Lucian waved his hand and instructed the attendants to arrange accommodations for Leda and her companions.
The rooms provided were far more luxurious than the ordinary lodgings available in the castle, special quarters reserved for honored guests.
After the conversation ended, Leda and the others followed the attendants toward the guest rooms within the castle.
A thin layer of sweat had formed on Leda's face, yet the joy in her heart was impossible to suppress.
Lucian seemed even stronger than he had been during the Festival of Combat.
At his current level of power, even noticeable improvement was astonishing.
And most importantly.
That mysterious power of the sun.
If given a choice, it would be better not to include him as part of the plan at all…
But at this point, there was no turning back.
Even if he posed a massive threat, they had to ensure Lucian killed Mohg.
Otherwise, Lord Miquella's plan would never move forward again.
—
Meanwhile, Lucian had already returned to his bedroom.
Melina was sitting beside the bed. Seeing him return, she stood and asked,
"What happened outside just now?"
Lucian thought for a moment before answering.
"Two fairly powerful enemies showed up in the city earlier, along with a group of troublemakers."
"Even Asimi and Selinsax couldn't easily defeat the strongest two. They're on the same level."
"One of them was the 'Lord of Blood' Mohg that we encountered before."
"As for the other one… I couldn't figure out his identity."
Of course, Lucian actually knew.
But explaining it to Melina would be rather difficult.
When Melina heard that Mohg had appeared, she was startled.
The battle at Castle Morne was still vivid in her memory, it had also been the moment when she and Lucian truly opened their hearts to each other.
"So… are you planning to eliminate Mohg soon?"
Lucian nodded.
Things had already reached this point.
Mohg had to pay the price for what he had done.
Melina looked worried at first, but remembering Lucian's current strength, she gradually relaxed.
"Then let me go with you."
Lucian immediately shook his head.
"What if you get hurt by accident? That wouldn't be good."
"I can handle it alone. There's no need to take unnecessary risks."
Melina looked somewhat dejected at his response.
"I just want to stay by your side…"
"When I didn't even have a body, I could always remain with you. But now I can't?"
"Wasn't everything we did meant to let us travel together for real?"
"And you don't need to worry about me. This body of mine is actually very strong."
Lucian knew that Melina's current body possessed considerable power.
But there was no way he would allow her to risk her life in battle.
Speaking of her physical body, Lucian suddenly remembered the dusky-colored eye Melina had opened earlier.
That wasn't supposed to appear yet.
"By the way," Lucian asked, "what's going on with the eye you opened earlier?"
When Melina heard the question, she momentarily forgot about the Mohgwyn Dynasty.
She brushed the hair beside her face aside, her gaze drifting slightly.
"That… well…"
Lucian stepped closer, lifting her hair away to observe the eye that had once been sealed.
"Let me take a closer look."
Melina's eyelashes trembled slightly.
Slowly, she opened the eye she had never opened before.
The dusky-colored eye appeared once more before Lucian.
Seeing it, Lucian couldn't help swallowing.
The seal had truly been lifted.
But since Destined Death was still in Maliketh's possession, there shouldn't be any problems… right?
Melina closed the eye again.
"The seal is already gone. Doesn't it feel uncomfortable to keep it closed all the time?" Lucian asked.
Melina shook her head.
"I'm more used to it this way."
She then remembered the original purpose of this conversation.
Initially, she had intended to speak with Lucian properly and confess everything.
But saying it now was just as good.
So Melina began telling Lucian everything she had experienced during her rebirth.
After listening to her story, Lucian finally understood her true origins.
To be honest, he had suspected it before, but hearing it confirmed was still shocking.
Melina was truly Queen Marika's child, a hidden demigod.
If that was the case…
Then Lucian's own status had suddenly become quite legitimate as well.
But then again.
Melina actually had a brother.
So now he had gained another brother-in-law.
…Wait.
Lucian suddenly remembered the warrior mentioned earlier by the Ancient King, the one who had led armies to massacre the Hornsent.
In Elden Ring, the naming patterns among siblings were usually very obvious.
Could it be that the brother Melina mentioned…
Was Messmer?