Under continuous, unseen assaults, Mithra was nearly pulverized. Fortunately, she had already memorized the surrounding terrain from her initial scouting of the small chapel, allowing her to make a calculated strike with her hammer.
The intense pain from regeneration stimulated Mithra's nerves, leaving her somewhat depleted.
The wolf and the bear carried Mithra through the tunnels. Having previously served as "beasts of burden" within this mine, they were somewhat familiar with the layout.
The wolf had initially intended to escort Mithra personally, but Mithra argued that since she was being actively pursued, remaining in their current location might lead to an encounter with the pursuers.
In that scenario, the outcome might prove disastrous for two beasts who had achieved such advanced evolution.
Thus, after a moment of hesitation, the wolf and bear decided to escort Mithra for a distance before making their own swift exit.
Frankly, they had been eager to flee days ago. But for beasts with nascent intelligence, without external prompting, they might not have managed the timing—they had already secured a degree of freedom.
The humans outside were currently embroiled in chaos, presenting the perfect opportunity for them to slip away unnoticed.
The wolf and bear duo were powerful enough; ordinary Cursed Beings within the mine were no match for them, ensuring a smooth passage.
Upon reaching the shallower levels of the tunnel, even though the path wasn't perfectly familiar, the wolf relied on his nose, locating the scent trail Mithra and Redwyn had left upon their arrival. He followed the fading scent back until they reached the area where the corpse pile lay.
At the corpse pile, the wolf gently set down Mithra, whose regeneration was now complete.
"That should suffice. You two utilize that cave entrance ahead, find the route with the strongest human scent, and you can exit the mountain directly. Then, live freely, and strictly avoid any contact with humans," Mithra reminded them kindly.
At this time, ordinary humans showed absolutely no mercy towards intelligent beasts. If these two were discovered by humans, they would face dire consequences.
The wolf nodded solemnly.
The bear, however, was eyeing Mithra's arm with noticeable intent.
Mithra observed this and extended her hand: "Want to try? Yes, why didn't you two eat anything on your way here?"
The wolf shuddered slightly, recalling the image of Mithra cutting meat with an "evil" smile and offering it for him to taste. He shivered, whipped his head around, slapped the bear, and then quickly bolted toward the exit.
The bear could only emit a wronged whimper and hurried to catch up with its companion.
The wolf pushed the bear forward first, as that maneuver was more suitable for the confined space of the tunnel. Before completely leaving, the wolf turned back to look at Mithra, hesitated for a moment, then still managed to raise a thumb in acknowledgment, before finally disappearing.
Mithra was slightly surprised, shaking her head with mild helplessness.
Ultimately, which one of them was learning gestures faster?
The corpse pile area fell silent once more.
The shallow level of the mine was eerily quiet. The usual sounds of Cursed Beings crawling and moving about were absent. Only the flickering of a few solitary torches remained, occasionally emitting a sharp crackling sound.
Mithra glanced at the pendant she was gripping in her hand.
If she hadn't been terrified of accidentally losing this pendant, given her temperament, she would have preferred to sever both her arms before going to fight that flying old man.
Staring intently for a moment, she looked up again, securing the pendant, and headed back along the familiar route.
A streak of firelight appeared ahead. Safin's cave was directly in sight.
Mithra's steps paused almost imperceptibly, but she quickly resumed her steady pace and walked to the cave entrance.
"I'm back," she stated, leaning against the rock framing the cave entrance.
Before her, she saw Safin's huddled form.
His body was trembling violently, interspersed with the sound of his ragged breathing and the low roar of a wild beast.
"Mithra…" A completely distorted, deep voice vaguely called out Mithra's name.
"Your pendant." Mithra started to reach out.
"Stay away from me!" A fierce roar suddenly erupted, creating a gust of wind that physically pushed Mithra back.
Mithra retracted the pendant, her expression unchanged as she looked at the figure before her—no… it was hardly recognizable as a "figure" anymore.
"Sorry…" His voice suddenly became strained and weak. "That's not what I intended… Ugh… Give me a moment… No… No time. Please keep your distance. I can't recall… Who am I… Why… Pull… You… Are… Who… Ahhhhhh, roar—!!"
That figure suddenly turned around. Its face, resembling that of a wolf or a dog, completely lacked any human characteristics. It opened its bloody maw and unleashed a mournful roar directly at Mithra.
Slice!
Its body swelled, violently tearing apart the already tattered clothes. Sharp beast claws dug forcefully into its own abdomen.
Amidst low growls and roars, blood streamed out. A black and gray hilt was wrenched from its flesh.
After a slight pull, the weapon was completely extracted.
Mithra stepped back two paces, her pupils contracting slightly as she stared at the blood-stained greatsword.
It was a greatsword glowing with a pale blue fluorescence, its blade curved smoothly, with only the tip sharply defined. The light emanating from the blade resembled still water flowing.
Gurgle—
But this striking appearance was quickly desecrated.
Eyes snapped open all across the sword's surface.
All those eyes were pitch black and dark, with black matter constantly swirling within their depths.
Eyes of Night!
Several Eyes of Night were embedded upon the sword, becoming the very source of its power!
That weapon was—
"Begone!"
A loud shout, accompanied by a blast of air, struck Mithra squarely in the face.
Slice!
Without any chance to react, Mithra was cleanly cleaved sideways!
That tall, wolf-like figure managed only this single strike before, seemingly desperate to escape, it rushed out of the tunnel carrying the sword.
Mithra collapsed onto the ground. The silver pendant rolled nearby.
Gazing at her bisected waist, she silently stood up using both hands, first retrieving the pendant, then clumsily pulling up her lower garment, barely managing to force her severed torso back onto her lower body.
As for the preceding events, she was not particularly surprised.
Deep within the ruins in the tunnel, two critical items should have been present.
One was the beast tooth, which had been claimed by the old man as his power source. The other was a weapon that should have been far more significant than the tooth, and its location remained unknown.
That weapon had caused the Nightborne Church to flee like scattered curs, yet after all their diligent efforts, they had only managed to secure the beast tooth.
Where had that weapon gone?
To someone who accessed the deeper parts of the tunnel even before the Nightborne Church.
The Holy Sanctuary reconnaissance team that was ambushed that day—the day the mountain shuddered—
Safin had no definitive proof, but he could tell Mithra with certainty that the intense curse permeating the lower levels of the tunnel had finally receded.
It was still cursed, but even from a distance, one could vaguely sense the progress being made by the Church above ground.
How did the Holy Sanctuary reconnaissance team, ambushed and driven into the tunnel, manage to survive in the depths?
Why could Safin, burdened by the curse, single-handedly blockade the tunnel entrance, forcing the Church to change its strategy?
The suspicious factors and the undeniable answer had been apparent for a long time.
When the Holy Sanctuary reconnaissance team entered the tunnel and was cornered, Safin had taken the weapon that should have been secured on the weapon rack inside the ruins.
It was the "Night Hunter's" sealed weapon.
A greatsword condensing more and more essential Night Hunter power.
Relying on that sword, Safin successfully repelled the Church's advance.
He couldn't remain stationary in the tunnel's depths because there, he would be rapidly consumed and transformed by the sword, losing his sense of Self.
He couldn't simply leave the tunnel, because only he could obstruct the Church's progress there, buying critical time for the Holy Sanctuary to investigate the situation in this Mining Town and resolve the crisis.
He waited for an extended period, an agonizingly long time, but in the end, he waited for nothing.
And the hope that finally appeared before him was ironically cruel: it was just a young girl bearing the Eyes of Night.
On a sudden whim, he decided to rely on this girl to help him recover his cherished possession.
However, he was ultimately too compassionate.
He knew he had very little time left and was perilously close to losing control, potentially dragging the tunnels and even Gross Town outside into ruin. So, he hesitated, using every possible excuse to urge the girl to leave.
Regrettably…
"I don't have any personal objectives, and I struggle to find motivation for most things, but when it comes to assigned tasks, I remain relatively obstinate for the time being," Mithra murmured to herself, finally regaining her composure.
She offered a silent thanks to Lebionce's regeneration for not warping her into a bizarre shape due to her clumsy technique, and for even assisting in mending her bones and repairing her physical form.
She stood up again, glanced back at the extinguished bonfire in the cave.
Then, without any lingering attachment, she turned and departed the location.
...
The corpse pile area.
Mithra tracked the trail of damage leading to this spot.
The pile of corpses here seemed to have served as a deliberately arranged arena.
The wolf-man figure holding the strange greatsword turned its head. Its empty eye sockets displayed no light, yet one could still sense an intense, focused gaze.
"Roar—!!" A completely frenzied roar erupted, symbolizing its current, uncontrolled state.
["Night Hunter," Sa■: He is the most fervent amongst the Wolf-Beast-men, born sightless, who pursued the light yet ultimately became a devotee of the night. "The Hunt" is his eternal plea, yet no one has ever answered his call. Gradually, he, too, became a deity revered by others. The Wandering God disseminated miracles, and with the immortality of these manifestations, he is now reborn in a weakened vessel. Though severely diminished, the hunt shall never cease.]
[—Are you the quarry, or the pursuer?]
Black energy surged. Mithra forced the pendant into her mouth, swallowing it down with a convulsive motion of her throat.
During this process, her skin receded, her hair fell out in clumps, and her bones underwent subtle, agonizing shifts.
An grotesque "walking corpse" emerged amidst the scattered remains, even more unsightly than the corpses beneath its feet.
After the body transformation completed, it abruptly lowered its head, bent over, and struck the ground forcefully with a palm.
Rumble!
An explosion erupted. A fierce blast of air violently swept away the surrounding corpses, and the ground cracked open.
Then, the twisted figure half-crouched and looked up, letting out a roar towards the newly awakened Wandering God ahead—a roar that was sharper, hoarser, and filled with the same extraordinary rage and deep-seated resentment.
"Ah—!!"
Tonight, the "Stranger" officially joined the hunt.
Both sides charged toward each other. The tall wolf-man frame and the slender walking corpse—the disparity in stature was evident.
Bang!
Both collided with full force. The initial impact involved no refined maneuvers, relying purely on simple, brutal application of raw strength!
Both recoiled. The Stranger stumbled slightly, gaining only a marginal disadvantage.
The hunter's claws pressed down towards the Stranger, and the Stranger met it instantly with a palm strike from its right hand.
The ground beneath both their feet fractured under the sheer pressure. The Stranger was immediately forced to slowly retreat, carving grooves into the earth with its feet.
Suddenly, a layer of pure white light condensed across the Stranger's pitch-black body.
Vitality! Full Coverage!
Using the power of her entire physical form, she channeled high-intensity Vitality. Combined with the Stranger's already powerful inherent physique, her body momentarily lifted, then suddenly exerted force after gathering power in its legs.
The hunter was powerfully twisted down onto the spot by the arm it had gripped!
The Believer's first milestone, "Sensory Synchronization," was merely about maintaining the miracle transmission points; it couldn't result in a fundamental leap in raw combat power, Mithra had initially reasoned. At least, she could only use miracles with her left hand, yet she could still easily suppress Redwyn, who could cast miracles with both hands.
But only after truly experiencing the sensation of her entire body being capable of channeling miracles did she realize how narrow her previous understanding had been.
The miracle transmission points indeed extended outward. What truly mattered was the more vibrant flow of Senseforce across the whole system.
Sensory Synchronization, connecting all senses throughout the body, was actually the process of liberating the entirety of the body's inspiration.
Awakening inspiration was like rousing a person from deep sleep, but Sensory Synchronization was truly about getting someone out of bed and expanding their functional reach.
The total capacity of inspiration and Senseforce wouldn't change, but the difference in miracle application resulting from the level of activity would only become markedly apparent as Sensory Synchronization progressed.
After the hunter was driven to the ground, her body stabilized for a moment, and it flexibly extended the distance from the Stranger.
The Stranger directly extended her slender left index finger across the intervening space, rapidly condensing a large volume of Vitality!
The entire body utilizing Vitality, then concentrating it into a single point, compressing it and releasing it via the technique known as Shockwave Punch!
Bang!
A semi-transparent light projectile, the size of a handgun bullet, crossed the distance instantly. It struck exactly when the hunter was just stabilizing itself, but the hunter still reacted, crossing the greatsword in its hand defensively in front of its body.
The intense explosion stirred up dust clouds throughout the tunnel. Stone Shards rained down like scattered applause.
The Stranger crouched low, all four limbs touching the ground.
In the settling dust cloud, a pale blue light shone.
The Night Hunter held the sword with both hands, covering the left side of its face. An Eye of Night etched onto the sword perfectly shielded the position of its own left eye.
The Nightborne Knight's Sword of Night Devotion was crafted to imitate this very greatsword. Their current posture was akin to a prayer ritual before the hunt for this specific hunter.
Once the hunter adopted such a focused stance toward a target, it signaled that the genuine pursuit was about to commence.
Accompanied by a burst of light, the Stranger stared intently at that illumination. At some point, only that light remained visible within its sight. It could no longer sense anything else, neither physical objects nor ambient inspiration.
It felt itself being enveloped in a gentle, profound night. No need to struggle, no need for anger, just permission to quietly fall asleep peacefully…
In a daze, the Stranger suddenly thrust its hand into its own slender abdomen, pulling out the shattered Stone Shard hammer. The stone hammer was instantly imbued with a surge of Vitality and then swung forward.
Rumble!
The sound shattered the illusory night. The greatsword landed on the Stranger's body, and the stone hammer simultaneously struck the hand gripping the sword.
The Hunter was forcibly pushed back, and the greatsword carved a deep wound across the Stranger's body.
"Ah—!!" Following this, the Stranger let out an even more tragic roar mixed with sharp pain.
There was no gentle night here. The night that truly belonged to it—the darkness of its existence—was already gone.
The hammer was flung toward the opponent. The Hunter swung its sword to intercept the hammer, then leaped upward, its tall figure darting across the tunnel walls at a speed so rapid even the Stranger's eyes couldn't track it. Simultaneously, with a casual sword sweep, it unleashed a massive, pale blue sword energy.
But the Stranger couldn't see that sword energy at all.
The true form of the Blade of the Unseen was even more mysterious and unseeable than the Blade of the Unseen itself. To outside observers, there were absolutely no traces; during its flight, it wouldn't even cause the slightest disturbance in the air.
So, it decided to simply ignore the unseen attack.
Vitality continuously stacked, bolstering the body's resistance to the invisible sword energy.
Every beam of sword energy managed to leave a wound on its body that looked capable of cleaving it in two, but the Stranger endured it all. Its completely altered face rapidly regenerated immediately after sustaining damage.
Without Calmness, the Stranger wouldn't be deterred or collapse due to pain. Injury only served to deepen its resentment.
Both hands simultaneously condensed fierce red fluctuations. Ki was churning and boiling! A massive Ki totem was sketched onto the Stranger's body, and then both hands pressed down forcefully onto the ground.
Dong!
The ground shook violently. Terrifying Ki rapidly enveloped the large area of the corpse pile. A vast amount of rocks, corpses, tools, and other debris slowly levitated under precise Ki control.
The Stranger roared, channeling more power into the sword energy it held, and finally, both hands suddenly swept forward!
The top layer of the ground, comprised of the corpse pile, was directly lifted by the Stranger using Object Manipulation, and then it flew skyward.
The Hunter was instantly trapped and enveloped by this massive quantity of debris. It swung its greatsword furiously, attempting to break free from the restraint.
But before it could fully break loose, the Stranger clapped both hands together. The Object Manipulation focused on the binding debris, and with a forceful squeeze, it slammed everything downward.
Rumble!
The Hunter was forcefully pulled down from mid-air and slammed onto the ground. Rocks, wood fragments, corpses, and tool parts—everything that had lost Ki control—fell chaotically from the sky.
The Stranger seized the opportunity to quickly recall its hammer, layering Vitality onto it again, and then charged forward using three limbs for movement, gripping the hammer in one hand.
The Hunter swung its sword at the Stranger as it cleared the debris around its body, capitalizing on the residual momentum.
The hammer and the greatsword clashed with deafening clangs. Each impact sent white and pale blue fluctuations radiating outwards, causing the entire mine to tremble under their force.
Scratch, scratch…
Under the fierce collision, the hammer began to show stress fractures.
It was, after all, merely a stone hammer intended for rough forging, and it had fought bravely alongside Mithra for so long; its durability was already commendable. Had it not been for the massive Vitality enhancement, it would have been severed by the Hunter's greatsword upon the very first contact.
The abnormality of the hammer caused the Stranger's movements to momentarily falter. The Hunter, naturally, did not pause. It struck down with its sword, immediately knocking the Stranger to the ground. The greatsword was raised again, and before the Stranger could even attempt to rise, it thrust downward with deadly force.
Hiss!
The Stranger let out a cry of pain. The thick greatsword pierced deep through its back, pinning it firmly to the ground.
The Hunter let out a low growl. Its strength had only recovered a minuscule amount. This bulky form had been burdened for too long, delayed for too long, coupled with prolonged suppression and weakening, and the crucial loss of the beast tooth meant it had forfeited the opportunity to replenish its reserves afterward.
Now, it couldn't even easily subdue this small, fledgling divine bird.
Suddenly, four swords flashed out from the Stranger's body—the body that was pinned to the ground.
Fierce Ki clung to the blades. The blood-stained edges drew chaotic, crimson arcs, then stabbed viciously towards the Hunter's four limbs.
Inferior imitations.
But they were still sharp blades nonetheless.
The four swords pierced through the Hunter's fur and flesh, embedding themselves into the muscle, and then, under Ki control, began to rotate, spiraling deep!
The Hunter felt a fierce, piercing agony transmitted through its limbs as it reached out its claws towards the Stranger's head. Just take its head, and this struggle will be over!
However, the claws it extended could not reach the Stranger's head. Instead, they met the Stranger's suddenly raised left hand.
Night Hunter: ?
A red light suddenly flashed. Ki-Siphon Hand released!
The Hunter's Ki was rapidly drained, flowing directly towards the Stranger!
It struggled violently, attempting to break free, but the Stranger raised its other hand. A vortex opened in its palm, and Ki Conduction began to absorb its very structure, the strong suction preventing any retreat.
But the wounds pierced by the swords in its limbs did not stop their agonizing work!
Although pinned down, the Stranger launched a desperate counterattack.
"Roar!"
"Ah!"
Both sides let out roars, neither showing weakness.
But no matter how fiercely the Hunter displayed its imposing aura, it was clearly at a disadvantage now.
The Stranger, other than the piercing wounds and the pinning constraint on its body, suffered no other substantial damage—that single piercing wound was merely a minor inconvenience!
The Hunter gripped the greatsword's hilt tightly. The pale blue light on the blade began to circulate again. The Eyes of Night on the blade flickered, and the blackness spreading from the eyes made the pale blue of the greatsword even deeper.
The Hunter lowered its head and faced the Stranger.
Within their empty eye sockets, who knew what silent communication was taking place.
Finally, when the four swords had completely impaled the Hunter's four limbs, the Hunter directly detonated the accumulated power in the greatsword.
Rumble!
The pale blue explosion shook the entire mine, threatening an immediate collapse.
In the silence following the blast, faint footsteps sounded, crunching on the rubble, echoing softly.
The heavy, ragged breathing of a wild beast was incessant near the Stranger's ear.
The Stranger's upper torso was hollowed out and was actively regenerating. It had completely evaded the explosion; at the moment the greatsword was about to detonate, it directly tore off half of its body and escaped the blast radius.
Right in front, the Hunter leaned heavily on the sword to support itself. Four dense straight swords remained embedded in its limbs, and its body showed clear signs of extreme exhaustion.
Its body, which had only recently reformed from human flesh, was too weak. After having a massive amount of Ki siphoned away by Ki-Siphon Hand, it fell into a state of severe collapse.
The outcome seemed certain now.
The Stranger raised its slender left index finger. The tip of the finger condensed fierce Ki, which was also being steadily absorbed from the reeling Hunter's body.
It didn't require conscious thought on how to reshape it into her own; the answer was immediately apparent.
White light stemming from Vitality layered itself upon her fingertip, directly excavating that Ki into its most primal, straightforward form.
She had no way of knowing if anyone had attempted this before, but this was a refinement of the Transformation Technique spontaneously conceived by the Stranger.
Her fingertip aimed at the Hunter, and a core pearl of red and white light rapidly condensed, radiating a dazzling glow.
It was akin to an "Illumination."
Released.
The beam of light enveloped the Hunter, which was still struggling to rise, swallowing it whole.
...
The dark energy dissipated. Mithra's body went slack and collapsed onto the ground. She panted heavily, quickly deploying Calmness upon herself.
Her mind felt a moment of acute clarity, but for a while, she couldn't suppress the internal chaos warring within her psyche.
"Ugh… Ah… I am… who… Who am I?" she mumbled, kneeling on the ground, a wave of intense nausea accompanying a retching fit.
Naturally, nothing solid emerged, only viscous saliva hung down, dripping onto the cold ground.
The expression of Self, unleashed in its frenzy, had persisted for too long, and retracting it now was proving incredibly difficult.
Her hands instinctively clutched her head, which was throbbing fiercely with dizziness and headache. Her eyes were bloodshot. Mithra looked up and forcefully banged her head against the stone floor.
Thump! Thump!
After striking it a few times, it seemed the sheer physical agony could soothe the mental torment.
The crisp sound of Calmness kept erupting intermittently. Her hands frantically dug into the hard ground. Her fingers left bloody tracks on the stone as they regenerated, only for her to dig again, repeating the cycle over and over.
"Mithra…"
As if hearing a faint voice whisper her name, she slowly raised her head, her eyes dim and clouded.
"Mithra… Name… Mithra…" She trembled, reaching out a tentative hand. Then, she forcefully scraped her hand against the ground again. After her fingers were slick with blood, she pressed down hard on the surface, slowly inscribing something.
Using familiar Chinese characters, she meticulously wrote her own name.
As the final stroke concluded, she finally stabilized. Her eyes regained their clarity, and everything snapped back to normal.
"I am Mithra," she whispered in her usual calm tone, then pushed herself up from the ground.
The mental agony receded, and she returned to her baseline self.
Everything that had just transpired seemed as though it had never occurred. She reinforced the effect by casting Calmness upon herself once more.
Ding~.
Comfortable.
[Event – "Hunting the Wandering God"]
[Faster than anticipated, you have brushed against your destiny. Continue the pursuit; hunt down these lingering, lost gods. We are observing, eagerly awaiting the outcome.]
[You may select one of the three gifts below, each accompanied by its corresponding cost.]
[Humble Remains: You can obtain a set of "destitute, lowly" "corpses." Cost: Its will must not perish.]
[Second Mouth: You can obtain the Second Mouth, which can aid you in consuming what you do not need, converting it into stronger power. Cost: You must consistently manage its appetite.]
[Fleshforge: A professional weapon master not only needs to become one with their armament but also requires knowledge of how to maintain the weapon using their own flesh. Cost: Unlock a legendary-level quest: Choose Me.]
"Fasellos, is that you?" Mithra frowned, examining the third option.
She hadn't anticipated that defeating the Wandering God would directly trigger an option linked to the novice gift package she had chosen initially.
The first option was actually the one she had deliberately declined from the starting novice package.
Which powerful entity would wish to discard such a "Figure" like that?
The second option felt rather abstract. She almost wanted to ask where this Second Mouth intended to reside. If the location wasn't clearly specified, she would pass on it.
And the final option…
A high-status terminology, a cold, clinical description—but the cost instantly broke the spell. Was this even a good deal? Didn't the entities who set the rules for this game have a slight attitude problem?
However…
Fasellos had proven extremely beneficial. The option activated during the "Brave Battle with the Beast" had been almost a free acquisition. Although the hidden cost was essentially turning her into a fanatical weapon-master, this outcome, in a way, suited Mithra's own preferences quite well.
Does the boss now have a request, an assignment to issue? Should she heed this summons?
After all, he is a notoriously "famous" boss, isn't he?
"The third one."
The text transformed into a concentrated mass and flowed into Mithra's body. She immediately felt a definite shift occurring within her core.
"Did you hear me?"
Before Mithra could fully internalize the gift she had just received, a gentle, profound male voice echoed directly in her ear.
"Hmm?" Mithra's pupils contracted instantly. She instinctively glanced around, but quickly realized the sound was resonating directly inside her mind.
"Fasellos?"
"It is I. Now that I have the opportunity, I wish to discuss a few matters with you."
"Ah," Mithra naturally conceded.
"For now, try utilizing it first. Repair your hammer. Though it is merely a mortal object, you value it greatly. You must cherish your favored weapon," Fasellos advised.
Upon hearing this, Mithra looked at the stone hammer in her hand, which appeared on the verge of fracturing with minimal added pressure. Following Fasellos's direction, she stored it directly inside her own form.
After consuming a portion of her Senseforce, she immediately drew the hammer out again.
A miracle occurred.
Hammer-Bro was resurrected, fully reinforced! And it was even sturdier than before!
"Consuming Senseforce and flesh allows for the repair of weapons held within the body. Furthermore, should you acquire materials inwardly admired in the future, you can forge and temper them all together inside your body, bypassing the tedious conventional processes," Fasellos elucidated.
"Convenient. Thank you," Mithra murmured, rubbing the newly regenerated stone hammer, reluctant to let it go, as she expressed her gratitude.
"No need for thanks. Next, we move onto my independent commission. You should depart first," Fasellos's tone remained even. Hearing this voice, a warm, gentle image of a smiling old man involuntarily materialized in her mind.
Move forward.
Mithra looked ahead. In a shadowed corner of the tunnel where the corpses lay piled, a massive opening had been blasted into the ground.
There, the Night Hunter's body had significantly shrunk, returning to its standard size. The bestial traits that had overlaid its form had also receded, leaving it looking like a strange, hybridized half-human, half-beast monster.
That was Safin.
Beside Safin, the Night Hunter's greatsword was jammed into a crevice in the rock, still emitting a faint blue luminescence. Only the eyes etched onto the blade had closed, as if falling into a profound slumber.
Mithra ignored the greatsword and walked to Safin's side.
Suddenly, Safin seemed to stir as if waking from a dream: "Oh... It feels like I just endured a terrible nightmare..."
Mithra sat down beside him, taking out the pendant and offering it over: "It was a nightmare, for both of us."
Safin trembled as he raised his weak hand. The bluish-green fur on that hand hadn't fully receded, and his fingernails remained sharp as beast claws.
"You succeeded... You completed our exchange..."
"It was an agreement. Let's keep it simple," Mithra stated.
"Yes... Yes! It was an agreement." Safin nodded firmly.
He slightly moved his fingers and opened the pendant, revealing the cute picture of a girl inside.
Misty moisture welled up in Safin's eyes, which had seemed somewhat dim.
"Tonight, I can finally sleep soundly," Mithra whispered.
Safin nodded slightly again, closed the pendant, then trembled as he took the medium bracelet from his wrist and placed it, along with the pendant, into Mithra's hand.
"I, I changed my mind slightly... This is an Omamori I gave to my daughter. My daughter returned it to me. For these past few years, even though she wasn't by my side, I could always feel her blessings, which is why I could persevere... To be able to see it one last time is already a profound comfort to me... But please, I implore you, return it to my daughter, Maria..."
Mithra took the pendant again, her expression unchanged, and finally nodded: "I understand."
Safin smiled, a genuinely happy smile. Even the strange physicality of his half-beast transformation couldn't obscure his pure, healing expression.
And with that smile, he closed his eyes.
His final breath ceased, and pale blue light separated from Safin's body.
["Night Hunter" Scattered Inspiration: Scattered Inspiration following the defeat of the "Night Hunter." It contains the inspiration of an active miracle. The stubborn wolf-dog refuses to acknowledge defeat. Absorbing it can substantially increase external Senseforce, enabling comprehension of the subtle 'Hunting Miracle.' However, it will also inherit the Night Hunter's original curse; it is perpetually awaiting an opportunity for resurrection.]
Mithra held this portion of inspiration in her hand and slowly stood up.
"Will I be imposing?" Fasellos inquired at this moment.
"No, simply tell me what you require."
"Good. Let us proceed to examine that sword."
Hearing this, Mithra turned her head to look at the greatsword lying beside her.
[Night Hunter's Greatsword: A greatsword forged from a large quantity of rare minerals combined with a substantial amount of bone material. The craftsmanship of the material is exquisite, and the technological style, though crude and wild, remains above standard. It is encircled by 34 Eyes of Night; their battle achievements attest to this, and they are the source of its power. It qualifies as a God-slaying weapon.]
[—Stripping the tendons and gnawing the bones of the kin who once mocked it, hunting and researching countermeasures against peeking techniques. This greatsword is the reflection of its entire existence.]