Chapter 389 - 292: You Can Even Pick Up Territory Like This? That’s Ridiculous

After a mad dash, Sif charged straight into Lucian's arms.

To outsiders, the sight of such a massive creature being caught so steadily by Lucian probably looked rather strange.

After all, Sif was no longer anywhere near the size of an ordinary wolf. When he ran, it was practically like a dragon carriage coming at full speed.

But to the two involved, this was nothing more than familiar horseplay.

Lucian rubbed Sif's head, which was now almost as large as his entire body, before pushing him back slightly.

As Sif's body had grown, the horns on his head had also started to become rather prickly.

Sif's huge tongue lolled out of his mouth as he panted heavily. His tail swept back and forth, smashing the fallen trees behind him into pieces wherever it passed.

Melina also walked over and stroked Sif's fur before turning to introduce him to Rellana.

"Selinsax and Sif are both important companions of ours."

"Please, don't feel like you have to stand on ceremony with them."

Rellana and Selinsax nodded to each other before both turning their attention back to Sif.

Looking at Sif's enormous body and unique appearance, Rellana could not help but marvel.

Among Caria's allies, there were already wolves. She had seen all sorts of wolves, and Red Wolves were no exception.

But a creature like Sif was something she had never encountered before.

Forget her experience as the Princess of Caria. Even the kingdom's repository of known species contained nothing like him.

While rubbing Sif's head, Lucian asked Selinsax,

"So, why did Sif come all the way here?"

Selinsax touched a finger to her chin and thought for a moment before answering.

"It was because Sif sensed the aura of an Ancestor Spirit awakening."

"So he ran all the way here from Stormveil in search of it."

"At first, I didn't know what was going on either. I only found out after following him here."

"As it turned out, by the time he arrived, the Ancestor Spirit had already completed its revival through the ritual, and the two of them started fighting."

"In the end, Sif naturally won."

Lucian was just about to ask for more details when another group of visitors appeared in the distant forest.

A large group of Ancestral Followers had followed Sif's trail and gradually emerged from the forest.

At this point, it was not only Lucian who was confused by their arrival. The Ancestral Followers were equally baffled, trying to understand why Sif had suddenly taken off running.

Earlier, after Sif had defeated the Ancestor Spirit and eaten his fill, he had finally had enough time to pay attention to the Ancestral Followers.

The Ancestral Followers had waved their hands and gestured wildly, trying to communicate with Sif, but with very little success.

Eventually, Sif had grown bored and was preparing to ignore them and return to Stormveil.

In the end, Selinsax had to step in and mediate between the Ancestral Followers and Sif before the matter could finally be resolved.

Thus, the Ancestral Followers eventually managed to make Sif understand that he was now the boss, and invited him back to their homeland.

As his guardian dragon, Selinsax naturally received the highest level of treatment and status as well.

But before they had been able to communicate for long, they noticed an unprecedented storm approaching from the distance.

There had never been anything like a tornado underground, so naturally, the Ancestral Followers panicked.

Before they could even react, Selinsax had already flown toward it, while Sif immediately began charging in the same direction.

The bewildered Ancestral Followers had no choice but to follow behind them, and now they had finally caught up.

At this moment, seeing the way Lucian interacted with Sif, the Ancestral Followers quickly understood the situation.

Clearly, that man was the master of the Ancestor Spirit!

Without hesitation, the Ancestor Spirit Shaman immediately dropped to his knees and bowed before Lucian.

Lucian looked at the group of Ancestral Followers in confusion.

Sif had come here of his own accord to look for the Ancestor Spirit, and it made perfect sense for Selinsax, as his guardian dragon, to follow him.

But what was going on with these Ancestral Followers?

And besides, hadn't all the Ancestor Spirits already been killed? Judging from their appearance, they certainly did not seem to have come here seeking revenge against Sif.

Seeing that the Ancestral Followers had followed them here, Selinsax hurriedly explained to Lucian.

"Mm... It's still because of the Ancestor Spirit."

"The Ancestor Spirits are unique forms of life, beings born under the concept and law known as 'Nature.'"

"The cycle of rebirth that the Ancestor Spirits emerge from after death resembles the cycle of 'Death,' but it is not quite the same. It is an entirely separate system."

"And Sif is also a competitor within this concept, meaning he can participate in the cruel competition of nature."

"Sif is now the victor of that competition. He enjoys the same status as the Ancestor Spirits, which is itself an expression of the law of 'Nature.'"

Lucian thought back carefully.

It seemed that when he had first encountered Sif's predecessor, Selinsax had already explained the basics of the situation to him.

At the time, however, Lucian had not understood the laws and concepts involved very deeply. Only now did he finally understand what it all meant.

It was somewhat like an ecological chain in the natural world. As long as a creature belonged somewhere on that chain, it possessed the qualifications to compete.

"Ancestor Spirit" was both the name of that peculiar life form and a position within the system.

And now, that position had been claimed by Sif.

Lucian nodded slowly, more or less understanding.

"So basically, Sif has now won the competition and replaced the Ancestor Spirit that originally occupied that position?"

Selinsax nodded.

"Yes."

"Of course, this is only at the most basic level."

"You could barely consider it a coming-of-age ceremony."

After a pause, Selinsax continued,

"The Ancestral Followers are followers of the law known as 'Nature.'"

"So no matter how fierce or cruel the struggles within this system become, it makes no difference to them."

"All they need to do is follow the victor, the 'Ancestor Spirit.' Naturally, they have accepted Sif's existence."

Lucian nodded, understanding the situation now.

Since Sif was a legitimate competitor, the Ancestral Followers naturally had no objections.

However, learning that the Ancestral Followers had willingly submitted to Sif still came as quite a surprise to Lucian.

Because this essentially solved the communication problem between the underground and the surface.

Lucian rubbed his chin, unable to help finding the whole situation somewhat bizarre.

'Heh heh heh. You can even pick up territory like this? That's ridiculous.'

He had never expected that he would not only gain another achievement, but also be able to recruit the Ancestral Followers.

The Ancestral Followers were actually a relatively friendly race, and they did not have any particularly serious conflicts with the other races.

It was only because they had rejected metal and civilization that they had become somewhat isolationist, stubbornly clinging to their closed-off way of life.

Moreover, because of the friction during Lucian's previous exploration of the Siofra River, the relationship between the two sides had been rather mediocre.

Now, with Sif serving as the bridge between them, the Ancestral Followers had essentially gone directly from neutral units to allied units.

At the same time, this also solved the previous conflicts and friction between the underground and surface.

From now on, they were all one family.

Not bad at all.

Lucian's plan for harmonious coexistence between all races had taken another major step forward.

Lucian walked over to the Ancestral Followers and said calmly,

"Since you have submitted to me, I will protect you as well."

"As children of the Sun, coexist with the other races."

The chief shaman repeatedly prostrated himself, praising Lucian in an extremely halting human tongue.

The Ancestral Followers behind him followed suit, swearing their loyalty.

After settling the matter with the Ancestral Followers, Lucian once again turned his attention toward Sif and Selinsax.

As it happened, Lucian had originally returned this time because he had something to discuss with Sif.

Since he had encountered him now, there was no reason to wait.

Lucian patted Sif on the side and said,

"Sif, after some time, I'm going to take you somewhere."

"You'll need to help me find someone there, using your sense of smell."

"As for exactly when, I'll take you there when the time comes."

"Until then, stay here underground. Don't run off anywhere else."

"Do you understand?"

Sif tilted his head, seeming somewhat confused.

After a while, however, Sif vigorously shook his head, as though trying to indicate that he understood.

Although Lucian was somewhat doubtful that Sif had actually understood what he meant, he did not dwell on it.

Sif was actually quite intelligent most of the time. Probably...

In any case, with Selinsax watching over Sif, there was no way he could get lost.

And when the time came, Lucian would personally take Sif to the Land of Shadow and bring him along for the operations that followed. There shouldn't be any problems.

Selinsax stood to the side and only asked after Lucian had finished giving Sif his instructions,

"Master, are you planning to take Sif to the Land of Shadow?"

Lucian nodded.

"Mm, yes."

"I'm searching for Miquella's whereabouts."

"Since I don't have many clues, I thought I might as well have Sif give it a try."

"Sif's sense of smell is extremely sensitive. If he can find Miquella, that would be ideal."

"If he can't... then I'll just consider it taking him out for some fresh air. There's nothing to lose either way."

After hearing Lucian's explanation, Selinsax immediately asked another question.

"Then... Master, can I go with you too?"

"I want to take a look at Jagged Peak."

Lucian thought for a moment.

Jagged Peak was the place where Bayle the Dread was located, wasn't it?

Jagged Peak was likewise a place shrouded by the Shadow, stripped away from the Lands Between. It was the land where the ancient dragons and drakes had their old grudge.

In fact, it was originally because Selinsax discovered that the location of Jagged Peak had disappeared from the Lands Between that Lucian had followed the clues and discovered information about the Land of Shadow.

Lucian nodded and did not refuse Selinsax's request.

Since he already knew the whole story behind it, there was naturally no reason for him to refuse when Selinsax wanted to visit Jagged Peak.

Actually, Lucian wasn't particularly interested in Jagged Peak or Bayle the Dread right now.

After all, there was no obvious benefit to be gained from going there, so naturally there was no reason for him to make a trip.

But since Selinsax wanted to go, Lucian could pay a little more attention to it when the time came.

The main reason was to make sure Selinsax remained safe and didn't run into any accidents.

Selinsax's strength was certainly not weak, but against Bayle the Dread, whom she claimed could even contend with the Dragonlord, she naturally wasn't strong enough.

Lucian thought for a moment before saying to Selinsax,

"In that case, you and Sif can stay down here for now."

"Once I've taken care of everything in the Lands Between, I'll take both of you to the Land of Shadow."

"For now, I need to escort our guests back to Caria."

Selinsax nodded, lifted the hem of her skirt, and gave everyone a formal bow before stepping back.

Lucian exchanged a glance with Rellana and let her give the order.

Seeing that Lucian had finished dealing with everything, Rellana immediately began directing the army.

The army of Caria set off once again.

Selinsax led Sif and the Ancestral Followers in seeing the Carian army off.

—

After groups of soldiers boarded the lift one after another and finally reached the Mistwood aboveground, the Carian warriors still found it difficult to believe what they were seeing.

They...

They had really left the Land of Shadow?

They had really returned to the Lands Between?

The warriors greedily breathed in the moist, earthy scent of the Mistwood, their hearts surging with emotion.

Every inch of land in the Land of Shadow had been soaked in blood and scorched by flames.

Everywhere, there had been the thick, lingering stench of corpses and the foul aura of decaying souls. Everyone there had seemed almost like a walking corpse.

Now, they finally felt truly alive.

Only now did they truly realize that they had set foot in the Lands Between once again.

Returning to the Lands Between from the lightless Land of Shadow was genuinely exhilarating.

And when they thought about how they would soon be returning to their homeland, every Carian warrior, including Rellana herself, was overcome with excitement.

Rellana immediately raised her arm and gave the order.

"Warriors of Caria, march for home!"

The Carian warriors raised their weapons one after another and shouted with high spirits.

This army had come alive once again.

Lucian and Melina watched the Carian army's reaction, and they couldn't help feeling gratified as well.

For now, it was merely the army of Caria.

But afterward, it would be all the warriors who had been waiting for the light within the Shadow.

Once everything in the Lands Between had been completely resolved, Lucian would surely lift the seal.

And when that happened, the Shadow would cease to exist.

Those warriors who had once been abandoned, whose hopes had been obscured by the Shadow, would see the light once again in the new age.

And it would be the radiance of the sun, brighter and more dazzling than even the light of the Erdtree.

Once everyone had entered the Mistwood region, there was nothing else they needed to worry about.

The Carian warriors traveled smoothly and rapidly, moving forward without obstruction.

The road between the Mistwood and Stormveil had been repeatedly repaired. It was now exceptionally wide and unobstructed.

If they traveled at the speed of dragon beasts, including time spent resting, they could arrive in one or two days.

But the Carian warriors, desperate to return home, barely stopped to rest along the way. They relied entirely on their individual physical strength to push themselves onward.

In the end, they reached Stormveil after only two days and two nights, falling only slightly short of the speed of the dragon beasts.

The Carian army did not enter Stormveil. Instead, they temporarily stationed themselves outside on Stormhill to rest.

Rellana, meanwhile, brought Moonrithyll and followed Lucian and Melina into Stormveil.

After returning to Stormveil, Lucian immediately headed to Master Iji's place.

At this moment, Master Iji was as usual, sitting in front of the forge and flipping through books.

Beside him were Blaidd, who could never sit still and was constantly practicing with his sword, and Hettis, who was studying glintstone tools.

When they saw Lucian and Melina arrive, the three of them stopped what they were doing and offered their greetings.

However, when they noticed Rellana and Moonrithyll, who were unmistakably dressed as Carian knights, Blaidd and Hettis were quite puzzled.

Iji, however, froze completely the moment he saw them.

When he saw Rellana, Iji's first reaction was to wonder whether he had grown too old and his mind had begun to fail him.

Why did it look as though he was seeing two people who absolutely should not be standing here?

It took Iji a moment to finally process the situation.

Once he realized that the Rellana standing before him was the real Rellana, he immediately leaped to his feet in excitement.

"Oh, oh... I'm not seeing things, am I...?"

"Could it really be Lady Rellana who has returned?!"