"So why did you want me to kill Malenia?"
A moment later, Lloyd looked at the Spirit Ash of Seriel that he had just pulled out, asking with a hint of confusion.
"Aren't you two the same person?"
Seriel, suddenly yanked out, stared in silence. "...?"
Wasn't she supposed to be dead?
She was, after all, a fragment of a demigod's soul— not the complete Malenia. Her death didn't equate to Malenia's end. If anything, it might bring the other closer to wholeness.
So when she chose to bloom the Flower of Abundance, she had already resolved to die. That was why she endured the pain and used her last strength to leave a parting message for Lloyd.
But now...
"Oh, I can pull souls out of bodies. I figured the flower's bloomed already, your soul should be fine, so I just pulled you out."
In truth, just pulling her out shouldn't have been possible. Her soul was one of the nutrients that fed the blooming of the Flower of Abundance.
But of all things, a soul was something Lloyd was never short on.
He'd realized the issue as soon as the flower began blooming and had already started nourishing her soul then. That made the flower bloom even more fully—while preserving a thread of her consciousness.
And now...
Seriel glanced at the flower still blooming steadily beside them, then at Lloyd, who stood there looking genuinely puzzled. She remained silent for a while.
"Then what was all that just now...?"
"The mood was already set, y'know? Felt wrong not to play along."
Lloyd looked entirely sincere.
"So... care to explain what you actually meant?"
Silence.
Seriel quietly stared at the man before her, momentarily at a loss for words.
She had long suspected something was off about him during their time together.
But now, it was clear—he was far more broken than she'd imagined.
After a prolonged silence—awkward, really—Seriel looked at Lloyd, who still wore that serious expression. She hesitated a little, then finally opened her mouth.
And said...
"Just put me back in the flower."
Seriel pleaded.
She would've rather died in that bloom than keep talking to him.
"Hey, come on..."
After a very familiar back-and-forth, Lloyd returned her to his Spirit Ash box.
As for the reason...
[Obtained "Incomplete Seriel's Spirit Ashes"]
Even with Lloyd's help, the strain of forced blooming had damaged the core of Seriel's soul.
Their earlier conversation had gone smoothly only because she had just died—her soul still lingering with warmth, letting her flit about briefly.
But that grace period was over.
And judging by her soul's current state, even though Lloyd had managed to catch it while it was still "fresh," the burden had shattered it worse than the Finger Maiden's Ash at the very beginning.
No, that's not entirely fair—because the Finger Maiden's soul was just... old. Time had eaten away her awareness.
But Seriel's soul wasn't just incomplete from the strain of blooming—it had been shattered, scattered like pieces of a puzzle by the overwhelming burden.
Besides the usual replenishment, Lloyd would have to painstakingly reassemble those fragments. The time and effort needed to repair her might even surpass what it took for the Finger Maiden.
"Okay, but hear me out—what if, just what if, her soul wasn't that broken at first, and someone—while chatting with her—landed a few emotional crits? And that's what made her fall apart."
Alice deadpanned.
"Impossible. Absolutely impossible."
Lloyd shook his head without hesitation.
Then, with the joke out of the way, his expression returned to normal. He tilted his head back, gazing at the slowly blooming Flower of Abundance in front of him.
"So beautiful..."
It truly was.
Golden, radiant, surrounded by a vibrant aura of life. Under its influence, the Scarlet Rot that had plagued all of Caelid for who knows how long began to visibly recede.
In its place, golden abundance took root.
On the once dry, reddish-brown ground, golden grass began to sprout. Withered, twisted branches bore fresh golden leaves. The grotesque giant dogs, mutated by rot, slowly returned to their natural proportions, and their cracked black skin began to grow fur once more.
The monstrous crows that once chased and bit at passersby began to regrow their wings—twisted stubs thickening with feathers until they could stretch out and soar again.
The Miranda flowers that spewed scarlet poison mist, the pools of rot, the grotesque red-and-white growths like tumors littering the land...
Everything was changing.
Even the Kindred of Rot—those white, grasshopper-like things that launched homing projectiles—seamlessly transformed into the Kindred of Abundance.
After all, rot and abundance were two sides of the same coin. As much as they were servants of decay, they were also followers of life's overflow.
And then, the blooming ended.
As the golden light of the Flower of Abundance dimmed, Caelid's transformation halted. But the scarlet hue had vanished.
In its place stretched a golden world of abundance, swaying gently in the breeze.
Peaceful. Harmonious. Beautiful.
Of course, Lloyd knew it wouldn't last.
On the eve of the Battle Festival, with death looming, Seriel had come to him and entrusted him with all she knew about Abundance and Rot.
"Abundance and corruption are two sides of the same truth. If either one is missing, all things eventually warp."
"Clear river water becomes syrupy and sickening. Fruit that keeps ripening will crush its own branches. Mountains of uneaten bounty breed all kinds of 'worms of abundance'—grotesque, repulsive things more horrifying than the spawn of rot…"
"Right now, because this land has been steeped in Scarlet Rot for so long, even pure Abundance can sustain prosperity for a time."
"But when that time ends, when the last remnants of rot are spent, everything that once seemed sweet and beautiful—those fruits and that golden plenty—will become the most vicious curse."
"That's why I want to ask you for a favor. After the Flower of Abundance blooms tomorrow, find the remaining Law of Rot and merge it into the flower."
"When abundance and rot combine, when the laws are complete and shaped into a cycle by flowing water, then and only then will Caelid be truly reborn."
"I know this isn't your responsibility. I have no right to ask anything of you. I already owe you far too much."
"But you, Mr. Lloyd, are the only one I can trust now."
"So I'll ask shamelessly—please look after Millicent. Help her fulfill her purpose. Return what Malenia lost to her, and deliver the Law of Rot to Caelid, so that everything may be made whole again."
"If you refuse, that's fine. I'll still repay you for everything. When the Flower of Abundance finishes blooming tomorrow, I will offer you everything I have."
"My strength is small, and I don't have much to give… but I hope you won't find it lacking."
[Obtained item: Blessed Dew Talisman +1]
[Obtained weapon: Seriel's Poleblade]
[Seriel's Poleblade]
[A twinblade born from the Flower of Abundance]
[Its hilt is formed from the resolve to die]
[The golden blade symbolizes Abundance]
[Strikes build up radiant brilliance when damaging enemies]
[However, brilliance does not accumulate when striking Those Who Live in Death]
[Unique Ash of War: Bloom of Abundance]
[Emulates the blooming of the Flower of Abundance, spinning the entire blade in a spiraling force before slamming it into the ground]
[The more brilliance stored, the greater the power; can be further enhanced by charging]
[When brilliance and charge are maxed out, triggers an illusory bloom of the Flower of Abundance]
[Provides a healing aura to nearby allies for a duration]
[All brilliance is consumed upon activating the skill]
The Blessed Dew Talisman is a charm that slowly restores HP when equipped. Though the recovery is minor, the key is that it heals unconditionally.
While it might not be something you'd use regularly, in a completely chaotic dungeon, this talisman can be a lifesaver. After taking a hit, you can swap it in and just sit tight while it slowly heals you—no need to waste a Flask of Tears. In some scenarios, it's actually quite handy.
But that Poleblade... well...
Let's just say it feels more like a toy.
Sure, it's got a flashy description and the skill sounds great—especially if you manage to fully charge it. You'd deal massive damage, break enemy poise, and even bloom a radiant Flower of Abundance reminiscent of Melina's Erdtree, providing continuous area healing.
The catch? To unleash its full power, you first need to land several hits to build up brilliance, then commit to a long charge time.
If you do land the hit, the damage is no joke.
But with those requirements? Normal enemies die in two hits. Even elites probably won't give you enough time to charge up.
And against bosses? Even if you somehow get it fully charged, a quick dodge or interruption can completely shut the skill down.
So yeah, the description sells a dream, and it's strong in theory—but in practice, it's clunky and hard to use.
Still, it's not completely useless.
After some testing, Lloyd found that the weapon can accumulate brilliance even when held in the off-hand.
With the game's dual-wield system in place and the Poleblade's decent stats, it pairs nicely as an off-hand weapon with Elizabeth's Poleblade.
And if you manage to build enough brilliance while dual-wielding, you don't even need to hit anything—you can just stand still and unleash a fully charged skill. That creates a sizable healing zone with a good duration and decent recovery.
Not game-breaking, but it definitely has its uses.
...
After waiting for the Flower of Abundance to fully bloom and retrieving Seriel's legacy from her remains—along with a few quick tests—Lloyd gave the area one final sweep.
Once he was sure he hadn't missed anything, he used a Site of Grace to teleport back to the battlefield.
Or rather, what used to be a battlefield.
The fighting was over. With the fragments gone, the spirits had returned to slumber.
Their general had regained his senses—and, wielding his twin blades, used the power that once sealed the stars to shatter the gold that blocked him, allowing the Flower of Abundance to bloom.
Otherwise, even with the bloom's potential to disrupt the unchanging gold, it could never have achieved this scale on its own.
As for the heroes who had participated in the festival, they had sheathed their weapons. Now they stood in small groups, gathered based on who had fought whom and how well they knew each other, talking among themselves.
But the red-haired giant, now free of madness, didn't join them.
Instead, dragging his legless body, he hunched forward, dropped to one knee, and bowed over the emaciated corpse of the small horse lying before him, grief etched deep into his face.
Though Radahn's Scarlet Rot had been cured by Lloyd's battle-born intervention...
That kind of healing only worked for beings like Demigods—those who were too powerful to die easily.
For a normal soldier, a full blood purge would have meant death ten times over.
Yet throughout that brutal battle, the little horse beneath Radahn had carried him without fail, serving as the legs he no longer had.
And while it was called a "little horse," it really wasn't that small. In fact, it was even bigger than Torrent.
But next to Radahn's towering frame, it barely reached his knees. Long exposure to Scarlet Rot had left the creature gaunt and barely alive.
And the reason Starscourge rode this undersized horse despite their size difference wasn't out of cruelty or disdain.
Quite the opposite.
Radahn's bond with that little horse was beyond words.
One of the main reasons he chose to study Gravity Sorcery, rather than the traditional Glintstone arts of Caria, was precisely because of that horse.
Back then, as Radahn's body continued to grow, the little horse that had always been by his side began to seem smaller and thinner—eventually unable to carry his weight.
But Radahn didn't want to part ways, and the little horse, too, still wished to fight alongside him.
So, unwilling to be separated—and moved by his companion's devotion—Radahn apprenticed himself to the Alabaster Lord and dedicated himself to mastering Gravity Sorcery. In time, he became the Starscourge General.
But the title itself never really mattered to him.
What he truly wanted was to use Gravity Sorcery to lighten his own body—so he could continue to ride into battle beside that little horse, together through life and death.
And the little horse never let him down. Even after being infected by Scarlet Rot and driven into madness, it silently bore his weight, serving as his legs, and holding on to that last thread of his sanity.
But in the end, it was still just a small horse.
After so many battles, and after enduring the corruption of the Scarlet Rot for so long, its bones were showing through its emaciated body. And it had just endured another brutal fight.
It should've died midway through the battle—maybe even earlier. But it clung to life, unwilling to leave Radahn behind, and carried him to the very end.
Once it saw that he had finally come back to his senses, and even caught a glimpse of the Flower of Abundance in full bloom, it collapsed to the ground at last. With a content expression, it slowly closed its eyes.
Radahn knelt before his old friend.
The man who had just shattered gold itself showed no joy or triumph on his face—only profound sorrow.
He reached out with a gentleness completely at odds with his giant form, and softly stroked the body of the little horse lying before him.
Until footsteps sounded beside him.
"Hey, uh... if you want, I can bring it back. Just a heads-up—it might look a little different. So, you know... brace yourself."
Radahn's hand paused. As he processed the offer, he gave a firm nod.
"Alright."
He didn't know who this man was, but he had just cured his Scarlet Rot and saved Caelid. That was reason enough to trust him.
And as for appearance?
That was the least of his concerns.
He was never one to judge by looks—and with the bond between them, a change in form wasn't going to change anything...
Right?
...
A moment later, Radahn stood face-to-face with a red-haired horse girl.
His brain shut down.
...
[Upto 20 chapters ahead for now]
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