A small town emerged within the hazy light in the distance.
"That should be Ordina, Liturgical Town," Melina said. "It is the frontier leading to the Haligtree. If we wish to enter Elphael, we cannot bypass it, but the normal path is likely sealed."
Having wandered The Lands Between for many years, she was clear on rumors of this magnitude.
There was treasure!
Following the prompt, Frieren walked up quickly and saw armor on a corpse. It was a familiar style—a slender and flexible scale armor with a flowing cloak. It belonged to the famous assassins of The Lands Between.
[Black Knife Armor]
[Armor worn by the Black Knife Assassins. Scale armor that makes no sound.]
[Traces of power yet remain in its concealing veil, which muffles the sound of footsteps.]
[The assassins that carried out the deeds of the Night of the Black Knives were all women.]
[It is said that they were Numen, scions of the same stock as Marika herself.]
Frieren had come into contact with Black Knife Assassins several times, but this was the first time she had obtained their armor. It looked nice, similar to the armor of the Dancer of the Boreal Valley she had seen back in the day, and it suited her quite well. However, since she already had armor forged by the craftsmen of the Soul of Cinder Army, there was no need to replace it.
The key was the intelligence.
Frieren looked around and asserted, "There are enemies in the dark. A battle is coming."
Her ultra-wide-range detection had been active the whole time; a single sweep left nothing to hide. Fighting in the vast expanse of heavy snow would indeed be a bit troublesome, but the town seemed to be a haven where the blizzard from the outside could not enter, allowing for careful observation of the enemies.
"The passage to the Haligtree is sealed." Ranni frowned slightly. "It shouldn't be easy to lift the ritual spell under these circumstances."
"Trina, do you have any intelligence?" Melina asked.
"Black Knife Assassins are hiding in Ordina, Liturgical Town... I recall that Her Majesty also has Black Knife Assassins under her command, correct?"
"You mean Miss Aura, right? She has been responsible for intelligence work, so we rarely chat."
Ranni said, "I keep in touch with her. In fact, I have had contact with most of the Black Knife Assassins. They will remain invisible and attack from behind, so just be careful."
Frieren then remembered the contents of the report.
Not just Aura, but Tiche, the daughter of the Black Knife Ringleader from the Evergaol, had also been released. This faction of Black Knife Assassins had been cooperating with Ranni all along.
"Additionally, to break the seal, we must light the candles on the statues."
Trina's reminder brought a sudden realization to the group. Everyone exchanged glances and immediately made a judgment.
Split up.
A single person would certainly be targeted by concentrated fire and interference. Moreover, the enemies included the tricky Black Knife Assassins; getting hit by the Rune of Death was no joking matter. Although it couldn't compare to the Destined Death in Melina's hands, it was still not to be underestimated.
Furthermore, according to Trina, there were also Albinauric Archers present. Each one possessed marksmanship capable of piercing a willow leaf from a hundred paces; otherwise, they wouldn't have been sent to guard the entrance to the Haligtree.
She abandoned any thought of negotiation; the loyalty of these people was unshakable.
The only option left was a fight to the death.
Naturally, Frieren was the first to act. Raising her staff high, a Sorcery: Stars of Ruin ascended into the sky, immediately aiming at every enemy's aura for a precise strike. One move to draw all aggro—even if they knew it was cover, it was useless.
She used reverse positioning to instantly annihilate two archers, then teleported and vanished, staging a fireworks show in Ordina, Liturgical Town with a bombardment of colorful magic.
The rest was left to her two partners.
Melina and Ranni exchanged a glance and headed towards the statues separately, preparing to light the candles one by one.
Don't expect Frieren to solve the puzzle; Her Majesty, now deep in combat, would not let the matter rest easily. She would likely only stop after clearing the town completely.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a dazzling grey ghostflame flew down from the sky.
A Death Rite Bird had actively sought them out, attracted by the magical power, and especially sensing the aura of the Prince of Death's Staff. Any necromantic creature would go crazy for it.
Upon its debut, it released condensed ghostflame that gathered into long spears, surging up from the ground like bamboo shoots to cover the area.
In that instant, Frieren jumped onto the eaves, barely dodging the Death Rite Bird's attack. This power was much stronger than the ones encountered in the south; truly a product of the Consecrated Snowfield. Furthermore, these enemies seemed to enjoy coordinating their aggro.
Swish!
At the same time, an arrow was actively intercepted by a Glintblade Phalanx floating beside Frieren.
It was an Albinauric Archer. The arrowhead was imbued with considerable magic power; if it hit the body, it would inevitably cause staggering.
The real danger, however, was the Black Knife Assassin who had not yet shown herself.
In other encounters with Black Knife Assassins, it had mostly been one-on-one, preventing the enemy from utilizing their assassin's advantage. Now, with the Death Rite Bird in the air and the Albinauric sharpshooters on the ground, the two sides coordinated to cover the most lethal enemy.
Frieren focused her perception mainly on Ranni and Melina, actively exposing openings to attract the Black Knife Assassin while also protecting her companions.
The first candle was lit.
Sure enough, the seal in the deepest part of Ordina loosened slightly, something everyone could sense.
The aiming of the arrows became noticeably more frantic, which precisely became their weakness.
Right back at you.
The silver-haired girl opened a Greatbow (Loretta's Greatbow), firing a continuous stream of magic arrows that thundered against the eaves.
Debris exploded outward, instantly burying two Albinaurics, causing the opponent's offensive to falter.
She immediately switched to the Golden Order Greatsword. Brilliant Holy light shrouded the blade, forming ripples along its surface.
The next moment, she swung out a wave of golden sword qi that hit the Death Rite Bird's wing. The creature let out a wail, its body swaying, yet it still managed to spew out ghostflame.
The crashing grey energy aimed for Frieren.
However, she reached out and grabbed it, actually gathering all the ghostflame into one spot and extinguishing it within golden light, remaining completely unharmed.
When it came to controlling necromantic power, she was currently no inferior to a Death Rite Bird. Not only did this surprise attack fail to be a breakthrough point, but she had also caught it in an opening—the timing was perfect.
Sorcery: Comet Azur!
The torrent instantly pierced the Death Rite Bird's skull, evaporating it in an instant.
It wasn't over yet. The brilliance swept toward the remaining Albinauric Archers in one breath, outlining the scene like a paintbrush, erasing every potential threat in Ordina.
Suddenly, the aura of the Rune of Death pierced from behind—
Clang!
As if she had eyes in the back of her head, Frieren turned and delivered a precise kick to the Black Knife Assassin's wrist. The latter was shocked.
What a fast reaction! Immediately after, a similar Black Knife pierced her chest. A zero-distance rapid assassination was impossible to block. The energy of the Rune of Death flowed into her body—so this is what it feels like.
The silver-haired girl slashed upward with the Black Knife, carving open the heart and giving the enemy a quick death. It was over.
How could she, who had been on guard the entire time, be ambushed?
Giving the opponent an end with the same Black Knife could be considered poetic justice. Looking at the remaining enemies in the dark, the Albinauric Archers were wiped out and posed no threat.
At this moment, Ranni and Melina had just lit the third candle.
They cast surprised glances her way. Frieren nodded to indicate everything was fine; everything within her perception range had been dealt with.
With some free time, she began to study the new magic dropped by the Death Rite Bird just now:
[Sorcery: Explosive Ghostflame]
[Sorcery of the servants of Death.]
[Strike the ground with the staff, triggering an explosion of ghostflame that burns a wide area.]
[In the time when there was no Erdtree, death was burned in ghostflame.]
[Deathbirds were the keepers of that fire.]
It was already a wide-area attack spell, but in Frieren's hands, its power would be even superior.
Thinking about it carefully, she did lack necromancy-based wide-area offensive magic. This made up for that shortcoming nicely, providing one more option.
The Haligtree was a dense and isolated area, suitable for attacks with Explosive Ghostflame. If a large-scale conflict truly broke out, she would let the Haligtree Army have a taste of it.
A moment later, all candles were lit. The seal on the entire town of Ordina was lifted, and the transfer gate leading to the Haligtree was unobstructed.
The group reunited in front of the sealed gate.
Trina pointed into the distance and said, "You can reach the Haligtree through that directional teleporter. You must be careful; the terrain is complex and very high. Be more careful of your footing than the battles."
"Understood. Anyway, just don't get too far from me. My gravity magic can cover you at any time."
Frieren turned back, holding Melina with one hand and slightly protecting the Ranni doll with the other. A magic barrier covered everyone; they were ready.
"Remember to hold on tight."
After giving this instruction, the silver-haired girl stepped into the transfer gate.
Buzz!
After a long-distance teleportation, the scenery blurred and shifted to the top of a giant tree.
Melina, following closely behind Frieren, was slightly stunned and subconsciously grasped the corner of the silver-haired girl's clothes tightly.
It was too high. Looking down, branches crisscrossed, and if one listened carefully, the faint sound of waves echoed. Was this Miquella's Haligtree that stood above the ocean? The legendary paradise and pure land? A place of refuge.
Sorcery: Unseen Form.
She started by setting up a stealth spell.
In terms of intensity, the Haligtree was second only to the Royal Capital, and the danger lay more in environmental kills; falling would be very troublesome.
Such complex terrain gave even Frieren a headache despite her perception—twisting and turning, ups and downs, winding paths. Moreover, guarded by all sorts of monsters. Leaving combat aside, it would be very easy to get crowded off and fall.
Fortunately, their squad had an insider guide to point the way:
"Right now we are at the Haligtree Canopy. Go forward, bypass the Oracle Envoys and the Giant Ants, then go to the first platform with stairs. Be quick, be precise."
Trina pointed out the direction.
Hearing this, Frieren acted immediately, quickly traversing the branches with Melina.
Even as strong as they were, they didn't want to fight in a place like this. It was too troublesome; it was better to avoid it.
After experiencing two high-difficulty stealth operations in the Shadow Keep and the Royal Capital, the two were now familiar with infiltration. Coordinating tacitly, they easily bypassed the sentries on the branches. From beginning to end, they remained undetected.
The other two companions simply had to witness with bated breath.
After all, Trina and Ranni—one acting as a cape, the other as a doll—felt weightless, and a single spell could conceal them all.
The reason they adopted this squad configuration was that they had carefully considered various situations. For efficiency, magic and stealth were best, such as now, allowing them to easily get through the early stage.
Everything went smoothly.
After the initial maladjustment, the squad gradually got used to the complex Haligtree area.
Although it extended in all directions, as long as they remained vigilant, they wouldn't get lost, especially with a guide present.
During this time, they didn't even perform any assassinations.
They could sense that the guards of Elphael had raised their alertness. The exposed terraces naturally monitored each other; one missing person could expose them. Since that was the case, they might as well maintain stealth throughout and pass through the Haligtree's perimeter just like this.
"Wait, ahead is Loretta's garrison."
Trina's reminder was timely, but the opponent had already blocked the only path. It was difficult to sneak past, and flying would expose them on the spot. For a moment, they were in a dilemma.
Frieren, leading the team, attempted to pass from a branch on the other side, but it just so happened to coincide with Loretta's patrol position.
"Who goes there?"
Just as Ranni intended to respond, the silver-haired girl made a shushing gesture, remaining motionless.
As a result, the Royal Knight rode her horse and left.
Truly an experienced old veteran; she was feinting just now and almost tricked Ranni into revealing herself. Seeing this, everyone raised their vigilance. One could not underestimate the alertness of the Haligtree Army; these people kept a taut string in their minds.
"I sense Millicent's aura." After penetrating a bit deeper, Frieren's gaze flickered. "She has arrived here as well."
"If we want to resolve the matter of Miquella and Malenia, we cannot do without her help. Millicent and I represent the human side. Even if we cannot merge again, we can advise..."
"They cannot be advised," Melina rejected Trina's viewpoint.
Ranni proposed, "Kill the Haligtree Twins, at least on the spiritual level, and then use the consciousness led by Millicent and Trina to actively absorb the defeated ones."
"Correct, just like a rebirth."
The three finally looked to the decision-maker. Frieren spoke firmly:
"That depends on whether they are at a point where they are beyond saving. If they are, I will make the judgment."
She had thought about this question long ago. The Haligtree Twins and their twin offshoots shared glory and shame. She could let them go once in the Land of Shadow without fuss, but at this critical juncture deciding the fate of The Lands Between, hesitation was not allowed.
The threat must be eliminated.
If they were willing to submit, then all would be well. If not, and they stubbornly resisted using moves like Scarlet Rot, then it must be ended.
Although Frieren was very fond of Trina and Millicent, she understood the significance of making trade-offs.
The topic passed, and by tacit agreement, everyone stopped discussing it. Next, it was basically Trina guiding and Frieren providing early warnings, while Melina and Ranni were occasionally asked to pick up collectibles.
Sure enough, even at a time like this, the collector's spirit was not delayed.
After bypassing Loretta, the road ahead was much easier to walk. They basically didn't encounter any decent strong foes.
Following the prompts of the treasure map, Frieren climbed all the way up a tower. There was impressively a treasure chest at the top, and no one was even guarding it, so she naturally accepted it.
[Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone]
The Soul Cinder King's keen sense of smell amazed them once again; it was too accurate.
Ranni murmured, "Now you should still be able to forge more than one god-slaying weapon. what will you choose next?"
"Of course, the Dark Moon Greatsword." Frieren's unhesitating answer delighted her. Then she heard: "Radagon recklessly modified the Carian Royal Family's Moonlight Greatsword, a waste of a heavenly gift. The reinforcement level isn't enough yet; it's time for a fully reinforced Dark Moon Greatsword."
She spoke as if it held some commemorative significance.
Little did she know, Frieren was certain that the legacy of the Moonlight Greatsword lay within the Dark Moon Greatsword, and naturally, it had to accompany her to the very end.
____
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