As for Harry, at most he would just go through a few more heart-pounding, adrenaline-filled incidents.
There wouldn't be any real danger to his life. And even if there were, he'd always manage to turn misfortune into safety.
Thinking this far, Hermione suddenly found herself looking forward to Voldemort meeting Harry again.
At the same time, she also hoped Voldemort would show up sooner rather than later—she was already eager for another clash with him.
Then another thought crossed her mind.
"Now that I think about it," Hermione said thoughtfully, "Harry being chosen as a champion… that might also have something to do with Voldemort, right?"
Arthur nodded.
"That's very likely. But it's better not to tell Harry about it for now. No need to make him anxious all day."
Hermione agreed immediately.
Just preparing for the Triwizard Tournament was already stressful enough for Harry. There was no need to burden him with even more worry.
The Lands Between
Mountaintops of the Giants — Stargazer's Ruins
Arthur's exploration of the Lands Between had now brought him here.
This place was once home to the Astrologers, the predecessors of glintstone sorcerers.
Later, ash from the Giant's Forge on the neighboring peak obscured the sky, making it impossible to see the stars.
Forced to migrate, the Astrologers moved to Liurnia of the Lakes—eventually giving rise to the Academy of Raya Lucaria.
Incidentally, when Arthur first entered the game in his previous life, the class he chose was Astrologer.
However, Arthur hadn't come to Stargazer's Ruins in search of treasure.
He was simply escorting a girl home.
Her name was Kurara—or more precisely, she was a spirit ash Arthur had obtained.
Through the system, Arthur could see her description:
"A weeping girl in search of her distant home. She will valiantly spew poison.
The spirit jellyfish is named Kurara."
Yes—she was a Spirit Jellyfish.
The Lands Between had many bizarre lifeforms. Jellyfish that walked on land and were as large as humans were somehow considered normal.
Arthur didn't know why Kurara had been turned into spirit ash.
But he did know that this place was her homeland.
As he stepped into the ruins, another spirit jellyfish drifted into view.
She murmured softly,
"Where are you, sister…? Didn't we promise to watch the stars together when we turned fourteen? I've been waiting for so, so long…"
Her name was Kurariss.
And the sister she was calling for—was Kurara.
Arthur took out the Spirit Calling Bell and Kurara's ashes.
With a gentle chime, Kurara materialized before her sister.
Upon seeing her, Kurariss floated forward, her tendrils swaying excitedly.
The two jellyfish drifted close together—Kurara pale and translucent like a faded soul, Kurariss still retaining the soft blue glow of a living spirit.
In a sense, they were already separated by life and death.
Yet thanks to Arthur, they had reunited once more.
Kurariss happily wrapped her tendrils around Kurara and said,
"Sister! You finally came! Come on, let's go—let's watch the stars together!"
But Kurara couldn't reply.
Souls turned into ashes could be summoned endlessly, but the process always left scars.
Loss of speech, fragmented memories, or even complete loss of sentience were common.
The inability to speak was especially widespread among spirit ashes.
The only spirit ash Arthur had ever met who could speak was Latenna the Albinauric, who had likewise asked him to escort her back to her homeland.
Kurara hadn't lost her mind and retained most of her memories—but she could no longer speak.
Fortunately, Arthur could communicate with her through mental links.
That was how he'd learned where her home was in the first place.
Kurara waved her tendrils urgently, trying to express something—but no sound came out.
She turned toward Arthur, her tendrils wrapping around his arm, transmitting a pleading emotion.
Arthur connected to her with his mind and relayed her message.
"Your sister says… she's very happy to see that you're still here."
Only then did Kurariss notice Arthur's presence.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"My name is Arthur. Before this, your sister traveled with me for a long time," he replied.
"Oh! So you're my brother-in-law!" Kurariss exclaimed happily.
"Thank you for bringing my sister back to me!"
That single sentence completely broke Arthur.
…Just as I thought. She's a pure, natural airhead.
Everything about her behavior confirmed it.
Kurara had promised to watch the stars with her at fourteen, and Kurariss had waited here all these years.
Luckily, spirit jellyfish didn't need to eat. Otherwise, she would've starved to death ages ago.
Earlier, she hadn't even noticed Arthur's existence until he spoke.
In modern society, someone like her could probably be sold off and still help count the money.
And now she was casually calling him brother-in-law.
Incredible.
"I'm not your brother-in-law," Arthur said helplessly.
"I'm just your sister's companion."
"Oh! I see—I'm sorry, I misunderstood!" Kurariss apologized repeatedly.
"It's fine," Arthur waved it off.
"Then… why can't my sister speak?" Kurariss finally asked the important question.
"Your sister lost her ability to speak due to certain experiences," Arthur explained.
He didn't tell her the truth—that Kurara had already died and become spirit ash.
One reason was to avoid worrying Kurariss.
The other was that… explaining it properly might be too complicated for her to understand.
"So if I want to talk to my sister," Kurariss said, "does that mean I have to ask you to pass on my words?"
"Yes," Arthur nodded.
"Then come watch the stars with us!" Kurariss said brightly.
"I have so many things I want to tell my sister!"
Arthur sighed.
"Have you not noticed… there aren't any stars visible here anymore?"
"Huh? You're right!" Kurariss looked up, then drooped sadly.
"Why is it like this…? I finally reunited with my sister, and now we can't even see the stars…"
Arthur sighed as well.
So she's been staying here all this time and never noticed the sky changing?
"I want to watch the stars with my sister," Kurariss said earnestly.
"Can you help us?"
"How about you and your sister follow me for now," Arthur suggested.
"I'll take you to see the stars later."
He definitely didn't trust Kurariss to lead Kurara on her own.
Who knew if this airheaded jellyfish might drag her sister up the Giant's Mountaintop and get them both stepped on by giants?
"Really?! You'll take us to see the stars?" Kurariss beamed.
"That's amazing! I knew you were a good person!"
She enthusiastically handed Arthur a Good Person Card—metaphorically speaking.
Then she leaned in conspiratorially.
"Oh! By the way! There's something good under these ruins! I don't tell just anyone!"
Arthur already knew there was something beneath the ruins.
In Elden Ring, every ruin hid at least one weapon or item underground.
But in his previous life, he'd never come here, never done Kurara's questline—so he had no idea what lay below.
He grew curious.
What kind of "good stuff" would even impress a natural airhead spirit jellyfish?
Arthur extended his mental perception, located the hidden entrance, and tapped the ground with his Staff of Death.
The illusion covering the entrance instantly dissipated.
Incidentally, the Staff of Death was formerly known as the Prince of Death's Staff.
Arthur had renamed it.
Every time he thought of the Prince of Death, he was reminded of that sewer-dwelling mermaid abomination.
He really didn't want to associate with that imagery.
Descending into the underground chamber, Arthur found it identical to other ruin basements.
Game design was game design, after all.
A single chest rested in the center.
Arthur opened it.
Inside lay a jagged, spike-covered stone blade.
A rope was tied to the hilt, and the blade itself was stained with fresh, crimson blood.
Despite who knew how many years had passed, the blood hadn't dried.
Arthur instantly recognized the material.
It was identical to Sellen's Primeval Glintstone.
The system scan revealed the item's description:
Primeval Glintstone Blade
A blood-soaked ancient glintstone knife.
Ancient sorcerers used this blade to carve open their hearts, transforming their souls into primeval glintstone and stepping into death.
Effect:
– Reduces FP consumption for sorceries and incantations by 25%
– Reduces maximum HP
So this was how Sellen's Primeval Glintstone had come into being.
Although the description mentioned death, it actually symbolized rebirth.
The blade transformed a person's soul into primeval glintstone.
In that state, comprehending glintstone sorcery became far easier.
To put it bluntly—
The Primeval Glintstone Blade could turn someone with zero magical talent into a genius glintstone sorcerer.
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