Liurnia of the Lakes was a vast land where shimmering waters and mountain scenery met in breathtaking beauty.
On the lakeshore, Messmer, the beloved son of Lord Nolan, stood quietly, his gaze drawn to the mirror-calm lake before him.
Across the water, wooden boats of every size busily shuttled back and forth, leaving ripples across the glittering surface.
As far as the eye could see, islands dotted the lake like stars, each one rebuilt into a solid fortress ringed with towering walls and ramparts.
Scattered across the lake, those islands pressed in on the Magic Academy from every direction like the fangs of a vicious wolf.
They were piled high with all manner of supplies, clearly prepared for a long war.
Along the lakeshore, first-generation Albinauric Children could often be seen riding giant lake shrimp, crabs, and octopuses, leading patrols of plump second-generation Albinauric Children.
Over the years, Caria had worked tirelessly to tame these wild monsters in order to expand its forces.
After countless attempts and prolonged training, they had finally seen some early success. These ferocious creatures had now become an excellent source of troops for Caria.
Messmer slowly raised his head and looked toward the distant Magic Academy.
The academy lay clearly before him in its entirety: magnificent buildings, soaring towers, a mysterious magical aura, and the awe-inspiring figure at the top of the structure.
Yet the deep-blue protective barrier that had shrouded the academy's perimeter ever since the defeat of the Cuckoo Knights had vanished without a trace.
The magical shield was the Magic Academy's final line of defense.
Jointly constructed by the Queen of the Full Moon and two Grand Masters of Magic, it was astonishingly sturdy. Even a Demigod would have found it no easy task to break through.
The problem, however, lay with the Queen of the Full Moon herself.
She was the Lord of Caria, and Ranni, the Lunar Princess, was her daughter. Naturally, Ranni understood the weakness of that defensive spell, so destroying it had not been especially difficult.
By all rights, with the Magic Academy's last defense gone, the two Lunar Princesses, Ranni and Rellana, together with the Demigod Messmer, should have led their forces straight into the Magic Academy and begun a slaughter.
But to Ranni's surprise, the Preceptors of the Magic Academy still had another move prepared.
Not only had the Preceptors cut off the South Gate Bridge, but the Tarnished from Leyndell had also allied themselves with the Magic Academy and swiftly occupied a vast stretch of territory along the northern shore of Liurnia of the Lakes.
Messmer looked ahead. The bridge at the Magic Academy's East Gate still stood there. The academy had destroyed the South Gate Bridge but left the East Gate Bridge intact, and that confidence came from the Tarnished Ones.
"Just as Lord predicted, the Two Fingers won't sit by and do nothing," Messmer murmured. "This battle is far less simple than expected."
A tall woman in Carian-style armor hurried to Messmer's side. It was Rellana.
Rellana was tall, the lines of her armor outlining a slender, powerful figure. Her face was hidden in shadow beneath her helmet, but the heat in her gaze was still almost frightening.
After coming to a stop, she looked straight at her lord. Two seconds passed before she spoke.
"It's been confirmed. The leaders of those Tarnished Ones are Sir Gideon Ofnir and Raging Wolf Vargram. Rumor has it that the Two Fingers promised them that once they take Liurnia of the Lakes, the Golden Order Dynasty will grant this land to the Roundtable Hold."
Before she had even finished, a sarcastic voice came from behind Messmer.
"Granting my Caria's territory to the Tarnished. The Two Fingers are truly generous."
Messmer did not need to turn around to know the speaker was Ranni, the young princess of Caria.
Messmer did not respond to Ranni's remark. He only nodded slightly. "So it's those two great champions. No wonder the offensive is so fierce."
"You know them?" Ranni asked in surprise. Aside from the Firelink Army and Caria's own Tarnished, she knew little about other Tarnished.
Still, she had heard the names Gideon and Vargram before. When Morgott led his army against Mt. Gelmir, those two names had been exceptionally active.
They were not only representative figures of the Roundtable Hold, but also core leaders of Leyndell's Tarnished forces. They might even be the strongest Tarnished Ones alive today, second only to Nolan.
Messmer nodded faintly, then said slowly, "The All-Knowing and the Raging Wolf are not descendants of champions. They are true ancient heroes themselves."
"They made their names in an age long past, well before I was born."
"They took part in the Golden Order Dynasty's war to conquer the Lands Between, and later, during the same era as Lord Godfrey, they were exiled."
His gaze settled on the rippling surface of the lake, as though he could see the battles of ages past through those spreading waves.
After a moment, he slowly turned his head and looked at Rellana standing beside him.
Rellana stood there like a statue, motionless, her eyes fixed directly on him as if she had drifted into a daze.
"Is everything arranged?"
"Yes. All the gunpowder has been loaded onto the ships, and the fleet is already standing by at the shore. After resting for so long, we're finally returning to the battlefield."
Through her helmet, Rellana smiled at Messmer, and Messmer met her eyes.
This time was different from before. Messmer did not look away, and the air around them seemed to grow rather heated.
For Ranni, however, that ambiguous atmosphere was a little too much to bear.
After all, one of them was her aunt, while the other was Nolan's adopted son.
And Nolan was her... actually, it seemed they had no relationship whatsoever beyond being allies.
Although Nolan had accepted her Dark Moon Greatsword, and the two of them secretly understood each other's feelings, Nolan was not supposed to know, at least openly, that it was a token of affection.
So strictly speaking, the two of them currently had no actual personal relationship at all.
Ranni suddenly felt awful. If she had known, she would have told Nolan the meaning of the Dark Moon Greatsword. Now she did not even have the standing to stop these two from showing affection in front of her.
"It's all Nolan's fault. Why didn't he ask me why I gave him that greatsword? Then this princess could have stated her feelings outright and made him give his answer. And now he doesn't even come to Liurnia of the Lakes when he has nothing to do. Could it be that he doesn't want to see this princess anymore?"
The more Ranni thought about it, the more unsettled she became. Although the doll was still at Nolan's side, and Nolan had also asked Blaidd to send her his regards, how could Blaidd possibly be the same as Nolan?
Blaidd: ?
"I'll wait for your good news at the stronghold," Ranni said glumly.
She truly did not want to watch even another second of Messmer and Rellana together. Just seeing them stand there silently gazing at each other made her uncomfortable all over.
Why didn't these two just get married already?
The moment that thought crossed her mind, Ranni turned and left without hesitation. She decided to find Blaidd at once and have him tell her more about Nolan, hoping it would ease her mood a little.
Seeing this, Messmer and Rellana merely answered casually, seemingly paying little attention to Ranni's strange behavior.
Messmer said, "The objective of this battle is only to destroy the bridge at the Magic Academy's East Gate and cut off the connection between the Tarnished and the Magic Academy. Once the mission target is complete, withdraw immediately. Do not get drawn into battle."
"I understand," Rellana said with a slight nod. After all, who did not know that she, the Twin Moon Knight, was the most loyal and obedient knight under Messmer's command?