The moment he touched the withered arm, Lucian felt a strange force wrap around his entire body.
The sensation was uncannily familiar, like the first time he had used the power of Grace to travel. It carried the same peculiar quality, as though it originated from the same source.
In the next instant, Lucian vanished from where he stood.
Back in the temple, Melina remained behind. Watching Lucian disappear, she simply stood before the cocoon and waited in silence.
Leda lifted her head and looked up toward the sky.
The sun that had once hung in the eternal night above had already vanished, and the false firmament shimmered once more with starlight.
She turned to Melina and spoke.
"Mohg's body is about to lose the effects of the Unalloyed Gold. I need to leave for now and reinforce it again."
"What do you and Lord Lucian intend to do with the corpse?"
Melina shook her head slightly.
"What to do with the body…"
"We'll wait until Lucian returns. He can decide then."
Leda nodded.
"Very well. I will await your decision."
She silently hoped that everything would proceed as Lord Miquella had foreseen.
—
Lucian opened his eyes and surveyed his surroundings.
He found himself within a narrow space enclosed by jagged rock.
Looking ahead, he saw a small path stretching forward, its destination unknown.
He did not immediately follow it.
Before exploring, Lucian lowered his head and quietly examined his body, checking for any changes.
After carefully sensing himself, he found no trace of any power connected to Miquella.
So there was no way to determine on his own whether he had fallen under some kind of charm.
In his mind, he spoke to Asmi.
'Asimi, did you notice anything when we came here?'
'And… have I shown any abnormalities so far?'
Asimi considered for a moment before answering.
'Hmm… My lord, you feel completely normal to me.'
'Maybe you're just worrying too much?'
'Still, I'll keep an eye on things when you interact with others. If something's wrong, it should become obvious then.'
Lucian thought it over.
As expected, there was nothing he could discern just by checking himself.
Still, it probably wasn't an issue. There was no real reason for him to come into conflict with Miquella anyway.
Compared to anything mental, the physical changes were far more apparent.
A layer of dim, shadow-like substance now clung to his body, suppressing his power.
Lucian considered it for a moment and released the power of the sun.
Yet despite resembling shadow, it was completely unaffected. It did not disperse in the slightest.
He withdrew his power and stopped testing.
This shadow-like layer seemed to be a unique rule of this place.
While isolating the Land of Shadow, it had also altered its laws to some extent.
It appeared to impose a special suppression on those who came from outside.
Still, if he truly needed to, he could use his "cheat" to negate abnormal effects. This should be removable as well. Not a real concern.
Lucian clenched his fist, gauging how much strength he could currently exert.
The suppression was quite severe. He felt even weaker than when he had challenged Starscourge Radahn.
He couldn't yet tell whether the reduction was proportional or a fixed amount.
Even so, using one charge of his ability just to remove this debuff would still be worth it.
Having finished assessing his condition, Lucian looked around once more.
The area wasn't completely dark. A faint, dim light filtered down from above.
He tilted his head back, trying to glimpse the sky.
Through the narrow opening between the cliffs, he saw a cramped and murky expanse overhead.
A thin, dark veil seemed to cover the sky, dimming everything beneath it.
And that veil was nearly identical to the shadow currently clinging to his body.
Lowering his gaze, Lucian turned his attention to a structure perched atop the cliff.
The building stood right at the edge, making it easy to spot from his position.
Judging by its form, it was unmistakably a church.
In fact, it appeared far more intact and clean than many of the ruined churches scattered across the Lands Between.
Most churches there had long since fallen into disrepair, with barely any complete structures remaining.
After examining it for a while, Lucian found nothing particularly different from what he had seen before.
For now, there was no need to rush back.
He discovered that the power of Grace still functioned here. If he wanted to leave, he could simply teleport using it.
So before anything else, he needed to find a Site of Grace… if one existed.
Once he located one, traveling back and forth would become much easier.
Since this place had once been part of the Lands Between, there was no reason to worry about the absence of Grace.
Lucian stepped forward and entered the narrow passage.
After passing through the mountain, a vast plain unfolded before his eyes.
The wide expanse was covered in withered yellow grass. Illusory gravestones stood in dense clusters, while strange stone markers of unknown purpose were scattered everywhere.
Yet Lucian's attention wasn't on the plain itself.
Far in the distance, at the very edge of his sight, a colossal black tree stood between heaven and earth, capturing all of his focus.
Golden light flowed along its pitch-black trunk, like dripping honey, or like flames flickering to life.
The tree was enormous, towering as though it pierced the sky itself, reminiscent of the Erdtree.
And yet, it was unmistakably different.
The most obvious distinction lay in its form.
The Erdtree stood tall and straight, stretching upward into the sky, its branches lush and full.
Even now, with the Elden Ring shattered and the Golden Order in disarray, it still continuously radiated its light.
But the tree here was entirely different.
Its trunk was twisted, its branches barren and jagged, devoid of leaves.
In place of a canopy, a vast veil-like shadow spread outward from its crown.
That veil draped down from the top, covering the entire land, as if no light could ever penetrate it.
Looking up at the shadow in the sky, Lucian finally understood why this place was called the Land of Shadow.
No explanation was needed. At a glance, he could recognize the tree.
Without a doubt, this was the Scadutree.
As he gazed upon it, anticipation for what lay ahead in this land began to rise within him.
Though the plain stretched wide before him, the terrain was elevated, allowing him to overlook much of the surrounding area.
At the base of the Scadutree in the distance, clusters of grand buildings could be seen scattered across the land.
Unfortunately, they were too far away, and the haze obscuring them made it impossible to discern their true form.
Beyond that, the plain was encircled by mountains. What lay beyond them remained unknown.
A smile spread across Lucian's face, excitement rising within him at the thought of what lay ahead.
This was a completely unfamiliar land.
Up until now, every step of his journey had taken place along paths he already knew. There had been nothing truly unknown, to the point where he could roughly recall where everything was.
Because of that, it had been difficult for him to feel deeply about the journey itself. Its meaning had come almost entirely from Melina and the people he met along the way.
But now, this kind of exploration… this was what a true journey felt like.
Just thinking about it was enough to stir anticipation.
Lucian took a deep breath and shifted his attention back to the plain before him.
He had already noticed it earlier, but something out there had caught his curiosity.
A massive creature wandered the plains, its entire body engulfed in flames.
Scattered across the land around it were vast stretches of ruins, endless in number.
Some were small, no more than village remnants. Others were large enough to have once been proper towns.
And they all shared one common trait.
Every last one had been burned black.
Lucian watched the roaming creature, intrigued.
It was likely the culprit behind the destruction of those settlements.
He summoned Torrent and followed the guiding light of Grace, which conveniently led him closer to the giant.
After activating a Site of Grace on the plain, he found himself close enough to finally make out the creature's form clearly.
It was obviously not a living being.
If anything, it looked like a walking brazier.
It had no head. Instead, a stone mask hung at the top, surrounded by twisting flames.
Strangely, two heads resembling those of the Fire Giants were attached near its legs.
Its entire body consisted of a round furnace-like core supported by cylindrical limbs.
Its structure was made from interwoven metal strips, like hollow railings, allowing flames to pour freely from within.
It resembled a golem of some sort, but completely unlike the restrained and simplistic designs he had seen before.
Its sheer size and blazing form brought to mind the "Wicker Man" of Celtic legend.
In those tales, people wove enormous figures from wicker, placed sacrifices inside, and burned them alive, praying for a bountiful harvest amid their screams.
In later interpretations, such figures often appeared as powerful enemies or symbols of fanatic faith.
Lucian hadn't expected to encounter something so similar here in the Lands Between.
After observing it for a while, he used Grace to teleport back to the temple of the Mohgwyn Dynasty.
A brief moment of disorientation passed, and he returned.
Lucian glanced at his body.
The shadow from the Land of Shadow still clung to him, but it no longer suppressed his strength.
As expected, its effect only applied within that land.
Seeing him return, Melina quickly stepped forward.
"How was it?"
Lucian shook his head.
"Nothing unusual, as far as I can tell."
"But for a while… you might want to keep an eye on me."
"As for that place, I think we're in for quite the journey."
Melina nodded, then suddenly asked.
"What do you think of Miquella?"
Lucian froze for a moment.
Did that even need to be asked?
Of course he was completely devoted to Miquella—
"Miquella is… someone we need to 'pay close attention to.'"
Melina stared at him.
The answer itself wasn't wrong.
But something about it felt off.
A strange, familiar unease crept in, like something important was being stolen right out from under her.
She placed both hands on Lucian's shoulders and looked directly into his eyes.
"Lucian, for my sake… use that power from beyond this world. Remove any abnormal condition."
Lucian blinked.
He didn't feel anything strange about himself.
But he trusted Melina completely.
Right. I need to use it immediately.
He had always considered Melina his final safeguard. No matter the situation, she was someone he could trust without question.
Without hesitation, Lucian used one charge of his ability.
A faint chime rang out.
[Remove Status Effect…]
[Cleared.]
As his thoughts returned to normal, he recalled what had just gone through his mind and covered his face.
What was that…
Damn it, Miquella actually made me think like that!
At that moment, a golden emblem surfaced on Lucian's body.
Looking at it, he felt a flicker of surprise.
The mark left behind by Miquella was still there, and now he could clearly sense it.
But under the effect of removing abnormal status, it had completely lost its function.
The mark hadn't disappeared.
It had simply been rendered inactive.
Now, it was nothing more than decoration.
Feeling its presence within him, Lucian let out a cold laugh.
Fine. Let it stay.
This worked out perfectly. He could pretend to still be under its influence.
That way, he could remain among them and quietly gather information, figuring out exactly what Miquella was planning.
Surely, Miquella wasn't trying to impose some kind of dream-like control over everyone in the Lands Between…?
Surely, it's not the same as a certain Ghost of the Uchiha's Infinite Tsukuyomi plan...
That would be the classic "create a perfect world" scenario.
At present, Miquella didn't have the power to charm everyone.
So there must be something in the Land of Shadow, something that could help him achieve it.
From here on, Miquella became Lucian's top priority.
Someone like that couldn't be left unchecked.
Ideally, he would be stopped.
At the very least, his movements and progress had to be monitored.
Lucian raised Miquella's threat level to the highest in his mind, then began examining the other changes in his body.
This time, the effect of his ability seemed to go beyond just removing Miquella's charm.
The shadow-like haze covering him had also lost its suppressive effect.
Now it was nothing more than a visual layer.
Even within the Land of Shadow, he would be able to use his full strength without restriction.
And…
Lucian took out a talisman pouch and opened it, looking at the item inside.
It was the Radagon's Scarseal.
Previously, it increased the damage he received.
But now, that negative effect had been completely removed, leaving only its benefits.
From now on, he could wear it without any drawbacks.
It seemed that removing abnormal status didn't disable items entirely, it simply stripped away their negative effects.
An excellent result.
Lucian was more than satisfied with this outcome.