Although Lucian searched very carefully for loot...
He really shouldn't have expected too much.
With a slight sigh, he shook his head.
Then again, that was only natural.
He had practically plowed through the entire Lake of Rot moments ago.
After an attack of that magnitude, there probably wasn't much left intact.
Besides, he had already earned an absurd amount of runes here.
That alone was more than enough to satisfy him.
In the end, the only notable treasures he found were two weapons that also existed in the game.
One of them was the Scorpion's Stinger, a weapon of special significance to the Kindred of Rot.
A dagger fashioned from the stinger of a giant scorpion.
Scarlet Rot venom continuously dripped from its blade.
It was a ceremonial tool used in heretical rites, supposedly crafted from a relic left behind by the sealed Outer God.
Unfortunately, Lucian had no intention of using it.
The weapon could inflict Scarlet Rot buildup, but compared to the new Euporia, it was little more than a toy.
So he simply stored it away as a collectible.
The second weapon was the Dragonscale Blade, which in the game was normally dropped by the Dragonkin Soldier of the Lake of Rot.
A weapon forged by studying the immortal essence of the ancient dragons and refining fragments of stone scales into a crystal-clear blade.
It had been embedded within the giant tree at the center of the lake, partially swallowed by the trunk.
The thing was enormous.
One glance was enough to understand that it wasn't meant for human use.
A sword so large it could let someone run forty meters before it finally hit its target.
Lucian enlarged himself with the power of his Great Rune and grasped the hilt.
Only then was he able to pull the blade free.
Once the Dragonscale Blade emerged from the tree, its transparent stone-scaled surface immediately drew his attention.
Within it, he could sense traces of Selinsax's aura, mixed together with the lingering essence of other ancient dragons.
The people of Nokstella must have scoured the entire Lands Between for materials before barely managing to forge this weapon.
And in the end, it had been carried off by a Dragonkin Soldier and never fulfilled its intended purpose.
Even after the God of Rot had taken over the Dragonkin Soldier's body, it had treated the creature as nothing more than a puppet.
Its original weapon and abilities had been completely ignored.
Although Lucian possessed more than enough strength to wield the weapon comfortably, its sheer size was excessive.
Even at maximum enlargement, it looked awkward in his hands.
If this Dragonkin Soldier had brought a specially forged Dragonscale Blade all the way here, then perhaps other Dragonkin weapons still remained in Nokstella.
After all, there was another weapon in the game that was clearly designed for Dragonkin Soldiers.
The Dragon Halberd, imbued with the power of icy lightning.
Lucian had thoroughly searched Nokron.
He was certain there were no weapons left there.
Which meant the Dragon Halberd might still be somewhere within Nokstella.
He casually stabbed the Dragonscale Blade back into the giant Rot-infested tree and rested his chin in thought as he recalled Nokstella's layout.
When he returned, he could bring the Dragonscale Blade to the Dragonkin Soldier residing in Nokstella and let him use it as a proper weapon.
Now that the Dragonkin Soldier possessed self-awareness, it wasn't appropriate for him to continue fighting like a wild beast.
Finding the Dragon Halberd would be even better.
But even if he couldn't, the Dragonscale Blade would serve as a reliable backup.
As for everything else...
It was mostly miscellaneous crafting materials and assorted junk.
After obtaining those two weapons, Lucian completely lost interest in digging through the garbage scattered across the Lake of Rot.
The living environment of Rot creatures was exactly as unpleasant as one would expect.
With that, Lucian prepared to continue deeper and explore the Grand Cloister.
—
Just as it had in the game, the Grand Cloister stood silently at the far end of the Lake of Rot.
Throughout the course of the Ainsel River, both its upper and lower reaches flowed with normal water.
The Lake of Rot sat between them.
This corrupted region served as the seal upon the God of Rot.
Beyond the Grand Cloister, one left the domain of the Lake of Rot and entered the downstream portion of the Ainsel River once more.
Thanks to the devastating battle earlier, the lake's water level had dropped to a mere thin layer.
The waters flowing toward the Grand Cloister had become gentle as well, slowly seeping downward.
Following the stairs, Lucian entered the Grand Cloister without difficulty.
As the endpoint of a divine sealing mechanism, the structure remained remarkably intact.
Its scale was breathtaking.
One could say it displayed the full glory of the Ancient Dynasty civilization.
Lighting the Site of Grace at the base of the stairs, Lucian looked around and couldn't help feeling nostalgic.
Back during his first exploration, he hadn't known that stepping on the pressure plates would raise platforms throughout the lake.
He had stumbled into the Dragonkin Soldier in the middle of the Lake of Rot.
The swamp's absurd damage values had nearly killed him.
After exhausting almost all of his Flask charges, he had barely won.
Then, completely out of healing and FP, he had desperately sprinted all the way to the Grand Cloister.
Only to die from Scarlet Rot right beside this very Site of Grace.
At the time, staring at salvation just a few steps away yet impossibly out of reach had been agonizing.
Still, Lucian could only shrug.
That's just how Souls games are.
As the saying went:
"Miyazaki abuses me a thousand times, yet I love him as if it were the first time."
Chuckling to himself, Lucian began exploring deeper into the Grand Cloister.
The Rot creatures inhabiting the structure hadn't been directly affected by the battle outside.
They continued their usual activities.
Still, the commotion had been impossible to ignore.
They were now on high alert.
Glancing at the remaining duration of his five-times rune multiplier, Lucian didn't hesitate.
He charged straight into the defenses of the Kindred of Rot.
Cutting down every Rot creature that stood in his path, he eventually reached the deepest point of the Grand Cloister.
At the end of the path stood countless Rot creatures.
They paid absolutely no attention to the chaos behind them.
Every one of them knelt motionless before a massive statue in solemn worship.
The statue depicted an elderly man, much like the other Ancient Dynasty sculptures Lucian had encountered before.
But unlike those statues, the upper half of this one had been completely engulfed by Scarlet Rot fungi and crimson slime.
A gigantic Rot tumor had formed upon it.
This was the object of the Kindred of Rot's devotion.
The symbol they used to represent the God of Rot in their hearts.
The sealed God of Rot had never left behind its true form here.
Thus, the Kindred could only comfort themselves through this substitute.
Lucian steadily approached the congregation of Rot creatures.
Yet none of them seemed aware of the destruction drawing near.
Or perhaps they simply didn't care.
There was only one exception.
A peculiar figure leaned against one of the Grand Cloister's pillars.
Its entire suit of armor was covered in fungal growth.
A massive mushroom sprouted from its head.
At first glance, it looked like a corpse that had died long ago and been discarded where it fell.
But at that moment, it slowly rose to its feet and turned toward Lucian.
The armor it wore was ancient and heavily damaged.
Fungal threads filled every crack and seam.
Dangerously colored mushrooms grew from every surface.
Naturally, Lucian immediately noticed this unusual individual.
Upon encountering an enemy he had never seen before, Lucian observed it with great interest.
When he noticed the mushrooms growing all over its body, his thoughts inexplicably drifted toward whether they were edible.
After all, they looked exactly like the kind of mushrooms people would cook and eat in certain dungeon-crawling fantasy manga.
The figure's helmet glowed with eerie green light.
It stared at Lucian like a wandering spirit.
As Lucian steadily approached, the strange armored humanoid reached to its side and picked up the weapon that had accompanied it for untold years.
It was a straight sword sheathed in a decayed scabbard.
The weapon was so weathered that it was impossible to tell whether the blade inside had already snapped.
One could even question whether it could still be drawn at all.
Its owner clearly had no such concerns.
Raising the sword before itself, it smoothly pulled the blade free.
A flash of green illuminated its face.
The blade was covered in dangerous venom.
An eerie emerald glow flickered continuously across its surface.
This was a weapon personally blessed by the Mushroom Kings of ancient ages.
The moment the poisoned blade left its sheath, the mushroom-covered figure moved like a phantom.
Several afterimages appeared in its wake as it instantly crossed the distance and arrived beside Lucian.
Alongside the venom-coated sword came several floating globes of tracking poison.
Lucian immediately transformed into his spirit form and dashed forward.
Every attack missed effortlessly.
Yet the moment he reappeared, the mushroom warrior's blade was already pursuing him again.
Lucian couldn't help showing a trace of surprise.
This creature was incredibly fast.
Among all the enemies he had encountered, its speed ranked near the very top.
The poisoned sword swept toward his side.
Should the blade cut flesh, the deadly toxin would immediately invade the victim's body and rapidly claim their life.
This time, Lucian did not dodge.
Instead, he casually raised two fingers.
His fingers curved slightly.
With perfect precision, he caught the venom-coated blade between his knuckles.
The sword became completely immobilized.
No matter how hard its owner struggled, it could not advance even a fraction.
Under the scorching heat of his Kindling, the poison hissed and crackled continuously.
Meanwhile, the tracking poison spheres finally arrived.
A ring of Glintblades materialized around Lucian and shattered them one by one.
Seeing its weapon restrained, the strange mushroom warrior immediately changed tactics.
A massive cloud of poisonous mist erupted from beneath its helmet and surged toward Lucian's face.
Unfortunately, the attack it had placed so much hope in accomplished absolutely nothing.
The poison inexplicably dispersed before it could even reach him.
Only then did the mushroom warrior finally attempt to flee.
But the moment its sword fell under Lucian's control, its fate had already been decided.
With his free hand, Lucian grabbed its head.
His fingers closed around the helmet like a vise.
The creature struggled desperately.
Mushrooms fell from its body in clusters.
None of it mattered.
Purple gravitational magic gathered within Lucian's palm.
A beam of violet light instantly pierced through the creature's skull.
Even after that, the corpse continued twitching and convulsing.
Lucian fired several more gravitational lasers, repeatedly punching holes through its body.
Only after confirming that it was truly dead did he finally let go.
The corpse dropped to the floor.
Lucian casually burned away all traces of mushroom slime on his hand.
With its wielder dead, the continuously dripping poison blade lost its power as well.
It reverted into nothing more than a ruined and featureless relic.
Lucian glanced at the weapon that had just moments ago been so dangerous and ferocious.
Then he shook his head.
He genuinely enjoyed collecting weapons.
There were many enemies whose stories he would never fully understand.
Some he would never meet.
Others he would never have the chance to battle personally.
Weapons, however, were different.
They were symbols of warriors who had fought bravely.
The clearest remnants of their stories.
Defeating an opponent, taking their weapon, and preserving it—
that too was a form of respect.
By all logic, this broken sword held no practical value.
Yet Lucian still stored it away.
As a memorial to this unique enemy.
Turning his gaze toward the Rot worshippers still kneeling before the statue, he casually wiped them out as well.
Fanatics really were something else.
There had been a battle happening right beside them, yet they hadn't reacted in the slightest.
That seemed a little excessive.
Cold, unfeeling Kindred of Rot transformed into warm, comforting runes.
A happy ending for everyone involved.
At the end of the Grand Cloister, however, Lucian did not find a stone coffin or anything similar.
He didn't particularly care.
The coffin had merely been a transportation device used during Ranni's questline in the game.
Now he could simply go find Ranni directly.
There was no need for a coffin anymore.
If necessary, he could just have Ranni carry him around herself.
After a moment of thought, Lucian turned and headed toward the opposite side of the Grand Cloister.
If memory served, there was still a Putrid Tree Spirit lurking here somewhere.
Might as well kill it too.
A few extra runes never hurt.
Following his memories, Lucian made his way toward the Tree Spirit's location.
Before long, he reached the far end of the Grand Cloister.
The path ahead abruptly ended.
Beside it sat a strangely suspicious corner.
The moment Lucian saw it, he knew.
This was the place.
Stepping around the corner, he immediately found exactly what he expected.
A Putrid Tree Spirit.
Partially submerged within a pool formed from accumulated Lake of Rot waters, the enormous creature lay hidden in ambush.
Or at least, as hidden as something that size could possibly be.
The instant Lucian rounded the corner, the Tree Spirit exploded from the water.
Its gigantic jaws opened wide as it lunged toward him.
Lucian let out a cold laugh.
"Oh, so you're one of those corner-camping ambush monsters?"
"Today, you're getting what's coming to you."
He activated the power of his Great Rune.
His body rapidly expanded to its maximum size.
The Putrid Tree Spirit was already upon him.
He could even smell the nauseating stench pouring from its mouth, a mixture of decay and Scarlet Rot.
Lucian didn't retreat in the slightest.
A faint layer of Kindling ignited around his body to ward off the Rot.
Then he simply opened his arms and met the charge head-on.
The Tree Spirit's charge came to a complete stop.
Lucian caught its upper and lower jaws with one hand each.
The massive maw was instantly restrained.
Gripping both halves tightly, he slammed them together.
The Tree Spirit's open mouth snapped shut.
The twisted wooden structures forming its jaws shattered from the impact.
The creature thrashed wildly.
What awaited it, however, was even greater force.
Lucian did not release his grip.
Instead, he pulled outward with terrifying strength.
The Putrid Tree Spirit's body split apart from the mouth downward.
Its massive form peeled open like a grotesque wave, separating into upper and lower halves until the tear reached the middle of its body.
Only then did the ripping stop.
A sphere of blazing flame condensed before Lucian.
He fired it directly into the Tree Spirit's torn-open body.
Brilliant fire erupted.
The creature's already ruined form was pierced through by scorching flames and completely swallowed by the explosion.
The Tree Spirit was annihilated.
Its runes flowed into Lucian.
Dusting off his hands, he looked around one final time.
There was nothing left worth investigating.
Neither the Grand Cloister nor the Lake of Rot held anything of interest anymore.
Satisfied, Lucian turned and departed.
Carrying the Dragonscale Blade, he returned to the Eternal City, Nokstella.