The knights barely reacted—all except Thops, who hesitated before speaking.
"Specialized projects are manageable. We've got the fluid puppet schematics, so implementation should be smooth. The golems are another matter. No one can reproduce them now."
"Study them. Battlefield viability is all that matters. You'll be compensated handsomely."
Throne didn't care about methods. Biological armor, floating crustaceans, Lords of Cinder—if it killed, it was valid.
"My lord, any additional orders?" Allen asked again.
"Drop the 'lord' crap. And wipe that smirk off your face—I'm not signing your paychecks."
Throne drove a fist into his breastplate.
Even Moongrum laughed. The tension shattered like thin ice. Allen rubbed his sternum, muttering, "Half the garrison's betting you'll wind up as the Lunar Princess's consort."
"Gossip is worthless. Shut your mouth before she hears it and skins you alive."
Throne jerked his chin toward the gnarled tree looming over them.
"Until we burn that abomination to ash, none of us have the luxury of idle speculation."
"Taller order than you siring Ranni's heirs."
"Hmm?"
The glare Throne leveled could have flayed flesh. Allen sobered instantly.
Good.
Children with Ranni? Scientifically impossible—but Marika had rewritten the rules of biology before. Throne shook his head.
"Anything else? No? Dismissed. Taking Raya Lucaria was just the first step toward breathing easy."
Solemn nods all around. These were Caria's elite. They knew the true enemy, knew peace was still a distant dream.
Throne turned to leave. Three steps in, Allen caught up.
"Mission complete. We bagged that Tarnished—dungeon's holding him."
Vilhelm the 'Stray Sorcerer' had tried to slip Raya Lucaria's ironclad perimeter. Failed spectacularly.
"Good. I'll interrogate him after debriefing the Lunar Princess."
The Tarnished himself was irrelevant. But the stench of Sellen's magic clung to him like rot. Throne hadn't abandoned his search for the old witch.
Boarding the groaning waterwheel lift, he peered into the abyss below. Secrets festered in the academy's underbelly. A teleporter lurked down there, keyed to Mt. Gelmir—Rykard's domain. No rush to investigate. Backtracking had advantages: no surprises, no ambushes.
And if things went south? March five hundred Carian halberdiers through the tunnels. No trap survives being stomped flat by an army.
The lift shuddered. Throne pulled off his bulbous helmet, cradling it like a sleeping child. He shut his eyes.
Right on cue, Melina materialized. She'd perfected her timing.
"Scheming again?"
"Planning how to usher in a golden age for The Lands Between."
He grinned at Ranni's audible eye-roll.
"Fine. Liurnia's checklist. Moonlight Altar's off-limits, but the Four Belfries are ripe. Frenzied Flame Village too—who knows when that lunatic will start sermonizing?"
He hadn't heard news of the Frenzied Flame for a long time, and the silence gnawed at him. Was Turtle Pope still holding vigil at the Church of Vows? Would a Godskin Noble be coiled in the Divine Tower like a waiting serpent? Ought he leave flowers at the Chapel of Anticipation? Most of Ainsel River remained unexplored, didn't it?
Throne massaged his temples. The Lands Between was too gods-damned big.
Raya Lucaria lay conquered, yet vast stretches of land remained untouched. No rush. The meat simmered in the pot—it mattered little when he chose to feast. No perilous terrain could withstand the might of a grand army. The magic academy now served as their stronghold.
......
Throne and Melina strode to the plaza scarred by battle. Adula sprawled before the gates while puppets filled the gaping crater. Ranni's casual approach left much to be desired. A palace demanded renovation.
Throne addressed War Counselor Iji: "Request a black sphere from the Nox. Install a teleportation gate beneath it. If invaders breach our walls, let the sphere roll down the stairs."
"A clever device?" The Troll's smile widened.
"Indeed. Careless foes will plunge into the abyss. A headache for any invader."
Throne's grin turned sinister. Fingercreepers lurked in every corner. The scene appeared tranquil, but danger coiled beneath the surface.
The Bloodhound Knight stood vigilant in the courtyard, guarding the sole path. He nodded silently to Throne and stepped aside.
To the right loomed the Academy Committee, its upper floor housing a massive wooden door. Throne pushed it open. Hinges groaned as the Grand Library unveiled itself.
The name suited it. Shelves groaned under the weight of countless tomes, a testament to the royal family and academy's accumulated wisdom. A colossal chandelier hung from the high dome, bathing the room in soft, daylight-like radiance.
Beneath it, suspended mid-air, floated a woman of imposing stature and striking beauty. She cradled an amber orb, her crescent moon hat casting an eerie silhouette. Her eyes remained closed, as if in slumber. Around her, apprentice boys slumped like the disabled, their stillness unnerving.
Magic sealed their forms, sparing the air of their unsettling laughter.
Rennala, Dean of Raya Lucaria, Queen of the Full Moon of Caria.
Throne stepped inside, musing that without Ranni's intervention, another great battle would have erupted. The Queen's first phase posed no challenge, but her second would have overwhelmed him. Where had that ring-bearing box vanished to?
"Are you finished?"
"Yes. Mother sleeps deeply."
Ranni stood before the seal array, her back to Throne. Her expression remained hidden, but longing radiated from her posture.
Throne ignored Melina, who wandered the room, and approached Ranni, gazing up at Rennala.
"I didn't expect Her Majesty to be so tall. Over two meters, surely?"
Rennala appeared frail, yet her presence loomed like a female Yao Ming—oppressive and commanding.
"Ancient humans were tall—a mark of strength. Myself included. Do you think I desire this fragile form?"
Throne nearly forgot: Ranni, too, was a red-haired force of nature. Thankfully, her height didn't rival Rennala's, or he'd feel like a disabled man beside her.
Years spent together had accustomed Throne to Ranni's doll form. He turned his gaze back to her wistful figure and spoke without thinking: "You're cuter like this."
Cute? Ranni's teeth clenched. She fought the urge to refute such an undignified word. Glancing back, she saw only Melina flipping through a book. With a resigned wave, she conceded.
"Fine. In the future, keep such remarks quiet. No one else must hear."
Time had tempered the Lunar Princess. Humiliation had become routine.
Change crept in slowly. Ranni herself might not have imagined she'd ever speak this way. Once incomparably dignified, then merely pretending. Stern reprimands gave way to tolerating humiliation, and finally, helpless acceptance.
Throne blinked, caught off guard. He hadn't expected such a shift in her emotions. How to describe it? Less pride, more coyness?
He hadn't thought he'd ever get to tease Ranni. Expecting an eye roll, he smirked—only to catch an elbow sharply in the ribs.
"Don't make that detestable face. Especially not in front of Melina."
Melina glanced up, confused. Seeing Throne standing tall and Ranni coldly composed, she shook her head. These two schemers were undoubtedly plotting something again. She returned to the ancient giant's story collection in her lap.
"Alright, alright," Throne said, suppressing a grin. "Keep it serious. Don't let your mind wander."
Ranni cleared her throat, smoothing her expression.
"I can only keep Mother sealed for now. I'll restore her sanity later. By the way, do you want the great rune in her arms?"
Throne's gaze fell on the amber egg clasped in Rennala's arms. A gift from Radagon, it held a great rune within. His azure eyes stayed clear, untouched by greed.
After a pause, he shook his head.
"Better not provoke Her Majesty Rennala. If I'm not mistaken, that's the key to waking her."
Ranni exhaled softly, relief flickering across her face. A faint smile tugged at her lips. She knew how much the great rune meant to him. If he absorbed it, he'd step directly into the realm of a demigod. Yet he'd resisted the lure of power.
"You're willing to give it up?"
"What kind of question is that? Your things are my things. If Her Majesty regains her sanity, that matters more than my strength increasing."
Throne spoke with conviction, though he had his reasons. Godrick's great rune wasn't fully absorbed yet. Besides, The Lands Between teemed with power. Energy was energy—why limit himself to a great rune?
Ranni only caught the first half of his reply. She lowered her head, hiding her face beneath her hat's brim.
"Do not talk nonsense! What do you mean, my things are your things?"
Throne shrugged, knowing better than to push her further.
"Because you're mine too. Why draw lines between us?"
He circled the seal, studying the slumbering Queen.
"I've always found Her Majesty's mental state strange. A hero like her—what suffering hasn't she endured? How could her husband's departure break her? Their love couldn't have been so unforgettable, could it?"
"Father and Mother always had a good relationship." Ranni's voice sharpened. "Could someone have interfered?"
Her thoughts turned instantly to Marika, the woman she blamed for her parents' separation. And Radagon—leaving her mother for the throne—was no better than a scoundrel.
This involved family affairs and also involved Melina, so it wasn't easy for Throne to say much. But as he gazed at the sleeping Queen of the Full Moon, he sensed the situation wasn't so simple. Who was Rennala? A hero who forced the Erdtree to marry into her family. A king who conquered Liurnia. Something deeper lay beneath her broken spirit.
Putting aside these qualities necessary for a hero, sorcerers were also known for their intelligence and reason, and could even be immune to mental shocks.
Radagon is Marika, Marika is Radagon... He muttered this sentence, as if he had grasped something, but as if he were missing some key point. In the end, he simply threw it to the back of his mind and shrugged: "Whatever. The important thing now is to wake Her Majesty up. Actually, in terms of soul research, I have always felt that the Primeval Sorcerer could help."
That was a group of ruthless people who materialized souls, able to change bodies at will without weakening their power, achieving another kind of 'immortality'.
"Hmph, recommending your teacher again?" Ranni lifted her chin with some dissatisfaction.
She was very smart and of course could hear that there was more to his words.
Throne of course didn't admit it and immediately refuted: "Don't talk nonsense. This is entirely out of public interest, but Teacher Sellen will definitely be able to help, so we must find her."
Going such a long way around, wasn't it just for this purpose? I didn't stop you from looking for her.
Ranni took it as a default, found a high-backed chair to sit on, but found the chair was very low and she had to look up at Throne, so she simply stood up.
"Let's not talk about this. The situation in Liurnia is settled, and the Nox will come to see me soon. What are you planning to do during this time?"
That's right, Throne suddenly became idle.
Ranni had the big plans, and War Counselor Iji was in charge of the small things. His sharpest blade, aside from offering some suggestions, actually had nothing to do. Throne was already thinking about this issue.
Start the next journey? Caria hadn't fully controlled the situation yet. If Morgott went crazy and attacked, he would have to turn back halfway, wasting effort in vain.
"I'll stay at the academy for a while to settle down. Professor Miriam is also here, so I can learn some magic from her. And there are the collections of those magic professors; each has a research direction that can improve my strength quite a bit."
"Are you sure you aren't planning to slack off?"
Someone behind him suddenly complained.
Throne glared at her, but the young girl was still reading seriously, as if everything were an illusion. Ranni's eyes became meaningful, as if asking why she didn't know he would slack off, while she knew.
Isn't it because you Carians have so many things going on, making me rush around in a panic? Throne had nothing to say and could only answer sullenly: "Half of my strength comes from learning. I have to seize the time to study magic. This Grand Library is quite useful."
"Then why look for Miriam?" Ranni tapped her chest gently, full of pride: "You have the strongest spellcaster in The Lands Between in front of you. I can spare some time to teach you."
Throne's eyes were happy at first; Ranni was indeed the strongest spellcaster, and was more proficient in frost magic.
He was happy at first, then became suspicious, and laughed as he cracked a joke: "How did you suddenly become so relaxed? Hahaha, you wouldn't be trying to take the opportunity to keep me by your side, would you?"
As soon as the words fell, for just a moment, Ranni was stunned. She was puzzled for a moment, as if asking herself why she said that.
She clearly had a lot to do, so why waste time teaching this 'poorly qualified' idiot? But then, she trembled, clenched her fists, and the ice mist surging from her body was like a storm, immediately covering Throne in a layer of frost and making him shiver.
Not good. Sweat beaded on Throne's forehead.
It was fine to joke with an ordinary girl; a shy little fist would instead give people the feeling of acting coquettishly, but a demigod's 'coquettish' little fist was truly fatal.
What are these two idiots doing again? Melina looked up in confusion. She saw Ranni, who was embarrassed and angry, but didn't feel any killing intent.
She kept silent, clutching her book as she retreated to a corner.
That useless Melina hadn't lifted a finger to help. Throne seethed. Ranni stood wreathed in glacial mist, her voice stripped of regal grace, raw with fury.
"Your first lesson begins with the bite of frost."
The afternoon sun beat down. Throne shuddered.
His breath fogged the summer air. Ranni was no teacher—just a relentless drillmaster hammering spells into him. Pain breeds retention, she claimed.
"Serves you right." Melina strolled past with an armload of books, every inch the scholar turned librarian.
"What was that?"
"I warned you about provoking the Lunar Princess. Her moods shift like winter winds."
Throne lacked the strength to argue. Open your eyes. Who in their right mind taunted Ranni? Those who tried didn't live to regret it—only her wrath remained, cold and absolute.
"Only friends joke like that. Tell me—was she the same as that night?"
Melina paused. No. That night, the Lunar Princess had been untouchable as a god. Just now, she'd been... alive. No distant throne, no veiled disdain.
"That privilege is mine alone. Same as our friendship."
Throne grinned at Melina.
"See, blockhead? You're not even mad."