A plain little house stood at the edge of the domain. Pyramid Head, antlers jutting from its rusted helmet, stood guard outside the door like it had been posted there for centuries.
"Nico, the materials I mentioned are inside," Soren said.
Nico stopped a few feet away, staring at the towering figure. "And what the hell is that thing?"
She was clearly dying to poke and prod it. If Pyramid Head hadn't been holding that massive blade, she probably would've already been climbing all over it with a screwdriver.
"Door guard. Go on in."
Soren pushed the door open.
Inside, the room was piled with everything he'd collected over the last stretch of time. The Spear of Destiny lay tossed on the floor like scrap. The strange crowbar he'd taken from Black Mountain Base rested nearby. A pair of enormous, still-damp claws from the monster sat in the corner, already starting to smell.
Nico charged straight in, snatched the Spear of Destiny off the ground, and immediately pulled a magnifying glass from her belt pouch. She was examining it before Soren even finished closing the door.
"What is this? The blood on it still hasn't clotted. This aura… was this weapon used by a six-winged angel?!"
" Spear of Destiny," Soren answered.
Nico's head snapped up. "The Spear of Destiny? The one that pierced the Son of God?!"
Her eyes lit up like she'd just been handed the keys to heaven and hell at the same time.
"If I used this to make a weapon, it would be a demon's worst nightmare!"
She suddenly noticed a plain-looking stone half-buried under one of the giant claws. She set the spear down, heaved the heavy claw aside with both hands, and pulled the rock out. She held it up to the light, turning it slowly.
"Where the hell did you find this? It looks completely ordinary, but my gut says it's anything but."
"A meteorite that fell from space. It absorbs energy and repairs itself."
Nico's eyes sharpened. "You were thinking of using this to fix your big sword?"
She shook her head before he could answer. "No. That would be a waste. With everything you've got here, we should build something brand new instead."
She turned to him, gaze intense. "Tell me what kind of weapon you want."
Soren leaned against the doorframe, looking over the scattered materials. "You think this is enough?"
Nico didn't answer right away. She spent a few minutes sorting through everything before speaking.
"The materials are messy. These claws are probably useless—toss them. They're already starting to rot."
Soren gave her a flat look.
He'd thought something that hard could at least be turned into armor or a shield. Apparently not.
Nico kept going. "This iron rod has some interesting properties. And these two feathers—"
She glanced at him. "If we completely break down the lightning sword and reforge everything together, we should have just enough to make one proper weapon."
Soren nodded. He'd already accepted that Alastor couldn't be repaired the normal way. The sword had been with him for a while, but letting it sit around as a broken trophy felt wrong. Better to break it down and let it live on in something stronger—something that actually fit him.
"You decided what kind of weapon you want yet?" Nico asked again.
Soren shook his head, a flicker of conflict crossing his face.
The exclusive skills he'd gained from the Yamato experience card all required a katana. He couldn't use them with a greatsword. So what he really wanted was a proper Japanese-style blade that could handle those techniques cleanly.
But choosing a katana meant giving up the raw, brutal, strength-over-everything style he'd been using with Alastor. The heavy, crushing swings that just broke everything in front of him.
He'd considered carrying two weapons and switching between them, but that would mean splitting the materials. And if one ended up noticeably weaker than the other, he'd just end up using the better one anyway.
Besides, he'd always preferred Vergil's style over Dante's—clean, decisive, one strike to end it. No flashy nonsense. Just results.
"I still need to think about it," Soren said. "Once I decide on the exact form, I'll come find you."
Nico looked disappointed but nodded. She understood. A man only got one chance to forge his own weapon. If it didn't feel right in his hands, all the materials would be wasted.
"Alright. Let me know when you're ready. I'll make you something that actually deserves to be called a god-slayer."
They left the house and returned to the church.
The black shadow in the sky had been almost completely drained. Only a few thin wisps of mist remained. The withered seed planted in the center of the church floor had finally sprouted after absorbing all that emotional energy. A strange plant now stood there—grayish trunk, no leaves or branches, just a single flower bud at the top that shimmered with shifting colors. All the stolen emotions had been concentrated inside it.
Soren had half-expected the seed to grow into some world-tree after drinking that much power. Instead it had only reached knee height.
He reached out and touched the flower bud.
The moment his fingers made contact, a storm of extreme emotions crashed through him—joy, rage, grief, terror—all of them at once, raw and overwhelming.
"Soren? Why are you crying?"
Nico had caught up and was staring at him in alarm. "What the hell just happened?"
Soren's eyes sharpened. He yanked his hand back.
He touched his cheek. He really had started crying without realizing it.
"Creepy thing," he muttered.
He'd only brushed it once and his body had reacted on its own. No actual sadness in his head—just the physical response. If it could do that to him, what would happen to a normal person? Would they just collapse into a sobbing, broken mess?
This thing…
If it kept growing, would Silent Hill eventually turn into some kind of emotion hell? Combined with Yutun's illusions, it would be nightmarish. Enemies wouldn't even be able to fight—they'd be too busy drowning in whatever feeling the domain decided to crank up to a hundred.
He shook his head and pushed the thought aside for now. First he had to figure out how to keep feeding the damn thing. The shadow had apparently been hanging over the town for years, stockpiling emotions, and this little plant had only grown half a meter after draining it all. Where was he supposed to get that kind of emotional fuel in the future? Kidnap people and torture them? It was already more high-maintenance than a child.
The last few wisps of emotion were finally pulled out of the sky. The strange plant didn't change at all. It just stood there quietly in the middle of the church.
Alessa waved her hand. Silent Hill withdrew back into her.
The endless fog and twisted forest town vanished in an instant. The nightmare town returned to its original state. Dawn was breaking. Soft morning light spilled across quiet streets.
Sheriff Boyd and Deputy Kenny came running up, out of breath.
"Soren, is it finally over?" Boyd gasped. "Can we… can we get out of here now?"