Within the world where death spread, time seemed to stop the moment the eyepatch-wearing woman appeared. Everything fell into utter silence.
Only when she slowly stood and spoke did the flow of time resume.
"...Long time no see."
Lloyd looked at her and spoke in a quiet, unreadable tone.
Though they were long familiar with each other—and in a sense, had always been together, never truly apart—that togetherness had not been companionship. It was more like two corpses clinging to each other, keeping what little warmth remained to preserve the faint thread between them.
But now, she stood before him.
Even if she had not fully awakened, even if both of them were still incomplete. Even with so much unfinished, even with this world still shattered and fragmented...
She stood here now, right before him, within reach.
That was enough.
At least, for a weary soul, it was enough.
But...
"If you're here, then what about over there...?"
"I asked those two children to help me cover things."
"No, what I mean is—I'm worried about them."
Knowing she wasn't the type to abandon her duties lightly, Lloyd had guessed the moment he saw her that her condition must have improved. She had probably arranged for someone to take her place temporarily, stepping away just long enough to answer his call.
But that was precisely what worried him.
"Are you sure they won't do something to me while you're gone?"
"It's fine."
The woman smiled.
"Because they do the same things even when I'm there."
Lloyd: "............"
"You're not going to stop them?"
"Why would I?"
She looked at him, amusement flickering in her expression.
"Besides, isn't this situation the direct result of someone's tendency to... wander?"
Lloyd went silent for a few seconds, then raised his head.
"Let's just talk about the dungeon."
Seeing him try to change the subject only made her smile widen. A faint trace of nostalgia softened her eyes.
He really hasn't changed at all...
Then, with a small laugh and a shake of her head, she let it go. She listened as Lloyd explained the current situation and the details of the dungeon.
"I see... so that's how it is."
When he finished, she nodded, having pieced everything together.
"In other words, your accumulated 'deaths' have been drawn out here. With Nito's assistance, they were channeled out of you and, once within your rule's domain, manifested as monsters that must be dealt with through combat."
Hearing her summary, Ranni's expression shifted, caught somewhere between surprise and confusion.
Wait... how did she even understand that explanation? And how did she deduce all that from what he said?
Noticing Ranni's look, the eyepatch-wearing woman turned and smiled at her.
"Spend enough time with someone, and you learn to understand them better."
Ranni froze for a moment, then turned toward Lloyd.
"And this is...?"
"Just call her the Fire Keeper."
The Fire Keeper had no name—or if she once did, it had long since been washed away by the river of time.
Just as she always called Lloyd the "Ashen One," names had lost their meaning for them. Only titles remained—symbols of their bond, reminders to themselves and each other of who they were, so neither would be lost in the endless flow of time.
And now...
"Yes. I am the Fire Keeper."
The Fire Keeper met Ranni's gaze and nodded gently.
"Or, to be precise, I am Lloyd's Fire Keeper."
"And also his companion..."
"One of them."
Having already teased him once, this time she didn't emphasize the last words. She simply stated it as fact.
Ranni wasn't surprised. Having traveled with Lloyd long enough, she was used to women connected to him appearing out of nowhere. Part of why she still followed him was simple curiosity—to see just how deep this pattern went.
Still, while she'd grown accustomed to Lloyd's many "companions," the Fire Keeper—especially one who had "spent a lot of time with him"—was another matter entirely.
Her curiosity stirred.
Since joining the library, she'd read fragments of old records, and her curiosity about Lloyd's past had only grown. Yet even Alice, who worked closely with him, knew almost nothing.
As for Lloyd himself—he would tell her if she asked, but given his erratic explanations and tendency to mix incomprehensible terminology... Ranni wasn't that reckless yet.
But now, a new possibility stood before her.
A woman of mystery, calm and composed, and most importantly—someone who looked far easier to talk to than Lloyd.
And judging by her words, she didn't seem entirely familiar with the current state of the Lands Between.
So...
"Would you care to chat with me, Miss Fire Keeper?"
"Of course."
The Fire Keeper nodded gently before speaking.
"But we'll have to wait until this 'Dungeon' is cleared first. Deaths are accumulating here, and if we don't hurry, things might spiral out of control..."
"Fair enough. Then we'll talk after we finish."
Ranni wasn't the type to ignore priorities. Her intent wasn't to linger and make small talk anyway—just to open conversation while advancing through the Dungeon.
But since the Fire Keeper had said as much, Ranni set that thought aside for now and drew her staff.
Seeing Ranni ready herself for battle, Asimi covered Lloyd's body in silver fluid, while the Lilies drew their talismans.
As for the Fire Keeper...
She didn't move.
She drew no weapon, cast no spell. She simply stood there in her black robes, quietly following at Lloyd's side.
"Miss Fire Keeper... what kind of spellcaster are you?"
Seeing her so unarmed, Asimi couldn't help but ask.
"I'm not skilled in combat," the Fire Keeper replied honestly.
"Or rather, to be exact—I can't fight at all. In the past, the Ashen One always protected me."
"And now...?"
The Fire Keeper didn't answer. She only turned to look at Lloyd.
Sensing what she meant, Lloyd nodded.
"It's fine. Just do as you've always done."
She hadn't lied. She truly wasn't a fighter. Even after Lloyd's arrival had changed everything—after he'd taught her some combat techniques and granted her power—she'd never once taken part in a real battle. Naturally, her strength was modest at best.
And as she had said, with Lloyd's protection, there had never been any need. He had plenty of warriors at his side, and enough researchers and support staff to fill any gap she might have covered.
Yet, even so, she had something that was uniquely hers—a way to help Lloyd beyond combat.
That was companionship.
"I'm not good at fighting, nor do I have any special talents. Whether it's battle, research, or anything else, I'm afraid I can't help you much.
But even so, I'll stay here and keep this shrine in order.
Perhaps it won't mean much, but if—and I mean if—you ever grow weary and wish to rest, you can come to me.
I'll always be here, waiting for you, ready to offer a place to rest, to serve tea and listen to your stories."
It hadn't seemed like much at the time. Compared to those who fought and bled for him—those who sacrificed their souls to find ways to save the world—it felt insignificant.
Even Lloyd hadn't reacted strongly when she said it. And she herself hadn't thought much of it either. Afterward, she'd simply shared a quiet moment with him before letting him go.
But none of them—not even she—had foreseen what would come of that promise.
That simple, unremarkable vow—to stay with him—endured from the beginning to the end, across the flow of time itself, all the way to its final, quiet conclusion.
The most ordinary companionship. The most extraordinary endurance.
But that wasn't the issue right now.
The issue now was how the Fire Keeper—someone untrained in combat and lacking any specialized skill—could help Lloyd here, in this dungeon teeming with monsters, thick with death fog, and now carrying a debuff that drained one's maximum vitality.
Even skilled fighters could barely survive here. Anyone else would only drag him down.
But the Fire Keeper was different.
Even without battle prowess, she could still help him. Tremendously.
She stepped forward slowly, standing before him. Then she lifted her head and opened her arms.
And so came the act—Touch Darkness.
Though his hand reached toward her chest, though it looked like he was touching her—and indeed, he did—this wasn't mere contact. His hand passed through, touching the deep Darkness hidden between spirit and flesh.
Or rather, his own Darkness.
Years of companionship had bound them in ways beyond form or language—an abstract connection forged through time.
Especially after the end of everything, when only the two of them remained—
the sleeping Ashen One, and the Fire Keeper holding him close.
Across unending ages, they had built something stronger, deeper, and more enduring than anything else.
Was it love? Attachment? Emotion? Something else entirely?
No one knew.
But through that bond, even within this dreadful city of Darkness and Death, the Ashen One could still kindle his flame.
And it would not disturb the Dungeon's balance.
Or perhaps it could be said—
"It's time."
When he withdrew his hand, embers flared across his body.
And the Death surrounding him, drawn to that warmth, began to burn.
"Time to bring out the main account."
Clang—
The blade slid free from its sheath, its edge glowing faintly as embers flared to life.
With the final Fire Keeper by his side, the last Ashen One reignited amidst an endless sea of death.
And then came battle.
Or rather—
Slaughter.
To be fair, the number of Those Who Live in Death in this Dungeon was downright absurd. The deeper he went, the more they appeared, and not only in greater numbers but with higher strength as well. Together, the quantity and quality created an overwhelming storm of enemies.
But strength is always relative.
Against Lloyd's weaker builds, all those stacked numbers might've posed a challenge—a fight that demanded caution, precise movement, and planning. Add the reduced max health effect, and there was always the risk of getting wiped.
But now...
Deathborn foot soldiers? Dead.
Deathborn archers? Dead.
Deathborn giants? Deathborn krakens? Deathborn hybrids?
Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill.
As said before—this wasn't a battle. It was a massacre.
Even with restricted healing, endless waves of enemies, and monsters growing stronger by the minute, none of it mattered. Not when Lloyd was fighting with his main account active—no, two accounts—and under Asimi's Covenant, backed by ten White Witches stacking damage reduction behind him.
For example, even if Lloyd didn't dodge or block, charging straight into a horde, the combined damage reduction from both builds and the Covenant meant the attacks from Those Who Live in Death only dealt single-digit damage.
If they couldn't hurt him, recovery was irrelevant.
As for his offense—under the amplification of two merged powers, even without using an Ash of War, Lloyd's simple sword swings wiped out waves of Deathborn in a single strike.
Behind him, the Lily group continued to cast support incantations, while Ranni handled distant threats or enemies in awkward positions with precision sorcery.
With such coordination, even though the number and strength of enemies in Phase Three had sharply increased, their progress only grew faster. They cut through the hordes with unbelievable efficiency, and after activating the third Site of Grace, Lloyd's party reached the fourth stage.
Compared to the earlier phases, the fourth didn't bring any new surprises—just faster health-drain from the Death Blight and slightly stronger enemies.
Without the Fire Keeper, that might have been troublesome.
But now, with both builds active, these conditions barely registered.
So the fourth stage was crushed without resistance.
Then, a golden fog gate appeared before Lloyd.
He pushed it open—
—and a massive figure came into view.
Lloyd froze.
He had gone in fully prepared, ready for an epic boss fight—only for the victory prompt to pop up the instant he stepped inside.
As for the reason...
[I'm not fighting you]
[Tired. Done. Going back to sleep.]
[Anyway, Phase One's pretty much cleared. Nothing left. You can go now.]
[Back to bed.]
Such was the message scrawled before the enormous corpse.
Lloyd looked down at the words, then at the motionless deity before him—one who hadn't fallen in battle, but had been dead all along.
After a long moment of silence, he sighed, pulled out his Golden Dragon Thunder Claymore, and began to charge it.
"Get up, damn it."
"Don't you dare try to slack off."
Boom!