At the distant mountaintop, the temple of the Mohgwyn Palace had already been reduced to ruin.
Stone pillars lay toppled, masonry shattered. The violent explosion had torn apart what was once a place of solemn grandeur.
And yet, at the very center of the wreckage, a cocoon formed of blood remained completely intact.
In the instant the attack struck, Mohg had commanded the blood to surge forth, sealing and protecting the cocoon he shared with Miquella.
Mohg stirred from within that cocoon and opened his eyes.
The moment the Sanguine Nobles had begun to fall, he had already sensed it. By now, there was no stopping their advance.
Lucian's voice carried across the entire dynasty, reaching the temple at last.
"Mohg! I have come! I BRING THE DESTRUCTION OF MOHGWYN DYNASTY!"
At the sound of that familiar voice, the one that had thwarted him time and again, Mohg dissolved into blood and flowed out from Miquella's cocoon.
"So… you've come."
He let out a low chuckle and drew forth the Mohgwyn's Sacred Spear from the void.
Unlike the crude imitations formed of blood, this was the true weapon of his dynasty.
A dark expression settled over his face. His lips curled back, baring sharp teeth in a dangerous grin as he muttered through clenched teeth:
"So you've finally come, Lucian."
"I must commend your courage… and your ignorance. To dare step into my domain."
"Very well. Today will be the day you die."
He turned back toward Miquella's cocoon and gave a slight bow.
"Ah… Miquella. Pray, wait just a little longer."
"I will deal with them shortly."
"Once this final obstacle is removed, our wondrous dynasty will soon be at hand."
With a sweep of his sacred spear, cursed blood surged outward, sealing the area around the cocoon.
Now, aside from Lucian himself, no one would be able to take Miquella away while he was gone.
After a moment's thought, Mohg reinforced it further.
Layer upon layer of thick blood wove together like veins, spreading through the shattered temple and enclosing the cocoon within a dense, protective lattice.
Only after securing everything did he finally relax.
Even if Lucian attempted a sudden strike during their battle, the cocoon would hold, for a time.
Mohg cast his gaze down the mountain, violence burning in his eyes.
His form dissolved once more into blood, vanishing in an instant.
—
Lucian stood at the very front, cutting his way forward without pause.
Any enemy who dared block his path was swiftly slaughtered.
The lines of Sanguine Nobles and Albinaurics offered no resistance. They were torn apart with ease.
A Sanguine Noble thrust forward with his rapier, aiming for Lucian's throat.
Lucian answered with a thrust of his Swordspear.
The noble twisted away using the dynasty's fencing technique, narrowly escaping the weapon's reach.
For a brief moment, he reveled in it, thinking he might earn favor before his lord.
But before that thought could even settle.
The crystalline Swordspear flared with light. A deep blue beam shot from its tip, piercing straight through his body.
The weapon had been modified by a master smith, allowing it to condense magic to an extreme degree and release it as a beam of devastating penetrative force.
The Sanguine Noble collapsed.
Lucian flicked the spear in a casual flourish, splitting a nearby Bloody Finger clean in two.
By the time Mohg reappeared, he stood within the vast lake of cursed blood at the heart of the dynasty.
He raised his head and looked toward the cliffside approach leading into his domain.
It had already been carved through.
Bodies of his followers lay scattered, some tumbling into the abyss, their blood flowing down into the lake below.
As Mohg fixed his gaze on Lucian, Lucian seemed to sense it, and looked back from afar.
A wild, defiant smile spread across Lucian's face.
"Mohg, today your pathetic dynasty disappears with you."
Before Mohg could respond, the remaining Sanguine Nobles on the slope rushed forward, unable to hold back.
Lucian frowned slightly.
"I'm speaking to your master. Learn some manners."
"If you're going to prove your loyalty, at least do it properly."
He raised his right hand, as though grasping something unseen, then pulled sharply toward the cliffside.
In an instant, overwhelming wind and gravitational force crushed everything along the path, slamming the enemies into the cliff wall.
Their bodies burst apart like fragile vessels, blood splattering across the rock face.
From the moment he entered this place, Lucian had already taken advantage of the conditions here.
The enemies of the Mohgwyn Dynasty were empowered by cursed blood, stronger than their usual kind.
And more importantly.
They carried runes in abundance.
One by one, as they fell, those runes gathered within Lucian.
In just this short span of time, he had already amassed a staggering amount.
Standing before Mohg, Lucian wiped out every last enemy along the approach.
Mohg's expression darkened. His teeth clenched, his body trembling faintly.
He knew well that these underlings were no match for such a battle.
Even so…
He would never tolerate someone slaughtering his followers before his eyes.
It was an affront.
Lucian no longer paid any attention to the remaining "workers" of this blood-soaked domain. His focus shifted entirely to Mohg.
Mohg moved across the surface of the blood lake, avoiding the spear Lucian hurled toward him.
In the next instant, a blood crow was skewered instead, nearly torn apart.
Lucian's figure followed, landing atop the spear's shaft where it stood embedded deep within the blood.
From above, he looked down at Mohg, his gaze filled with mockery.
"You didn't expect me to find you this quickly, did you?"
"Then again, that little blood-soaked scheme of yours was so carefully hidden. You probably still think it was your masterpiece."
"Too bad for you… you have no secrets in front of me."
Mohg stared at Lucian, hatred plain in his eyes, and raised his sacred spear high.
"I admit, you have some skill."
"But you should never have come to Mohgwyn Palace."
"This place will be your grave. Your head will become an offering to my dynasty!"
Endless cursed blood surged around him, roiling with power.
The domains he had once cast through mere projections were nothing more than trickles compared to the vast, seething lake before him.
Now this vast, ocean-like lake of blood, this was Mohg's true domain.
Bloodflame ignited across the cursed pool, and in an instant the entire mire turned into a blazing sea.
At its center stood Mohg, staring coldly at Lucian.
Faced with flames that spread in all directions with no room to evade, Lucian only gave a faint, indifferent smile. He stepped forward, dropping down into the blood and pulling his Swordspear free.
Mohg let out a low, mocking laugh.
In his eyes, Lucian would surely rely on that same trick as before, some method of rapidly restoring his body.
But this time was different.
Here, within Mohgwyn Palace, the reserves of cursed blood were beyond measure, even he could not fully account for them.
If Lucian thought he could escape again through sheer luck, then he was a fool.
Yet the moment the bloodflame truly began to burn against Lucian's body.
Mohg's smile froze.
Why… isn't it working?
The bloodflame seeped into Lucian's flesh, just as before, spreading inward as it always had.
But this time, the once-unstoppable fire barely did anything.
Its spread was painfully slow, so slow it no longer resembled bloodflame at all.
Lucian was flesh and blood, not some construct without circulation.
And Mohg had used this very power against him before. It had worked then.
For a moment, disbelief roared through Mohg's mind.
Lucian raised a hand, watching the faint traces of bloodflame flicker across his body, the same power that had once forced him into desperate measures.
Now, it could barely harm him.
After receiving the blessing of the sun, his resistance to flame had risen to an overwhelming degree.
The bloodflame simply could not take hold.
"Hard to believe?" Lucian said lightly.
"I've been wanting to see that look on your face for a long time."
He advanced, spear in hand. Faint embers began to glow across his body.
A power he had long set aside flared to life again.
He ignited himself.
With that residual flame burning within him, the bloodflame found even less purchase. It was forced outward, unable to penetrate at all.
Seeing this, Mohg abandoned the tactic without hesitation and lunged forward with his sacred spear.
But Lucian was faster.
Moving second, yet striking first, his Swordspear pierced straight through Mohg's body, then tore downward, splitting his chest open to the waist.
Even so, Lucian showed no satisfaction.
Instead, his brow furrowed.
This didn't feel right.
The figure impaled on his spear pressed forward regardless, as though the wound meant nothing.
Mohg's spear struck back, piercing Lucian's armor and leaving three shallow wounds.
At once, the surrounding cursed blood surged inward, seeking to flood into those openings.
Lucian felt the invasion begin, and immediately intensified the flames within him, burning the corruption away.
The waves of blood rushing toward him were likewise held back by the blazing heat.
The body before him collapsed, dissolving into blood and sinking into the pool below.
Lucian turned just in time to block another strike.
Behind him, Mohg had already reformed.
Their weapons locked together as Mohg pressed forward, a smile curling at his lips.
"I am, in truth, a man who fears death greatly," he said.
"No matter what, I intend to live."
"I once witnessed the battle of Radahn. I coveted the power of his Great Rune."
"But such power is singular… so I sought another path."
Lucian met his gaze.
Within this endless sea of cursed blood, Mohg possessed near-limitless regeneration.
He truly believed himself untouchable in a battle of attrition.
"It doesn't matter," Lucian replied calmly.
"I'll kill you as many times as it takes."
The air around him surged. Storm winds mixed with draconic lightning lashed across Mohg's body.
Solar flame radiated outward, devouring the cursed blood again and again.
Still, the fire did not affect Mohg as much as it should have.
A being steeped in bloodflame for so long naturally held resistance to fire as well.
Mohg pressed the attack without regard for his own injuries, striking again and again.
Gradually, wounds marked with cursed blood accumulated across Lucian's body.
Unlike Radahn whose fighting prowess was overwhelming, Mohg remained at a disadvantage in direct combat. It often took several exchanges just to land a single effective blow.
But here, on his own ground, he was far more troublesome.
With each successful strike, more cursed blood seeped into Lucian's body.
Even the flames within him could not purge it all immediately.
At last, after a barrage of relentless attacks, Mohg lashed out with a sweeping strike. Several claw-like arcs detonated in the air, forcing Lucian back.
Seizing the moment, Mohg retreated, gliding across the blood and widening the distance between them.
From afar, a twisted grin spread across his face.
He raised the Mohgwyn's Sacred Spear high and thrust it upward.
"trēs."
Lucian saw the spear's tip pierce into empty space, sending ripples through the air itself.
A sudden, inexplicable sense of dread rose within him.
Through the spear, Mohg had reached out, bridging a connection to the Formless Mother beyond the stars.
As her blood descended, the cursed blood within Lucian responded instantly.
A crimson ring manifested around his body.
Lucian reacted at once, hurling a blazing spear of sunlight toward Mohg.
But Mohg had already shifted position, reappearing far from where he had stood.
His smile deepened.
"duo."
A second crimson ring formed around Lucian.
Realizing he could no longer interrupt him in time, Lucian focused entirely on purging the blood and breaking the rings.
But the rings, born of a god's power, would not disperse.
Even the cursed blood within him had entered a strange, untouchable state.
This was no ordinary affliction.
It was a divine curse.
Mohg closed his eyes, murmuring something like a prayer.
When he opened them again, he looked upward, his gaze filled with reverence.
Gripping the spear with both hands, he thrust it skyward once more with absolute devotion.
"ūnus."
The final ring locked into place around Lucian.
At that moment, the curse was complete.
Drawing upon the power of the Formless Mother, Mohg unleashed the full force of his altered Great Rune.
And roared:
"nihil!"