Chapter 99: Blood Lily Secured

Silence.

The figure in the fox mask spoke.

"The blessing remains with him. It cannot be taken. It cannot be stolen. It must be given. Freely. Willingly."

"And he won’t give it."

"No. Not yet."

"But he will."

A pause.

"He has something we need. Something that belongs to us. The blessing was never meant for him. It was meant for—"

"It doesn’t matter what it was meant for. It matters what it is now. And what it is now is a weapon. A weapon we cannot allow to remain in his hands."

"Then what do we do?"

The figure in the moth mask rose.

"We watch. We wait. We let him grow comfortable. We let him believe he is safe. And then, when the moment is right—"

"We take everything."

"And the blessing?"

"Will be ours."

The candles flickered and the figures began to fade.

The room was empty.

---

Emeric woke before dawn.

The room was dark. Quiet. The inn—The Silver Dawn—was silent. The other guests were still asleep. The city beyond the windows was still waking.

He lay still for a moment. Isolde was beside him. Her head on his chest. Her hand over his heart. Her breath slow and even.

They had switched to a bigger room the day before. A suite on the top floor. A large bed. A sitting area. A window that looked out over the city. It cost more—a lot more—but he could afford it now. And after everything, after the tournament, after the ball, after what he had seen in the palace, they both needed the space.

He kissed her forehead. Slipped out of bed.

He crossed to the window. Looked out at the city.

Then he reached for the system.

---

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[CURE REQUIREMENTS UPDATE]

[BLOOD LILY — LOCATION FOUND]

[DISTANCE: 0.3 MILES]

[DIRECTION: NORTH-NORTHEAST]

[SYSTEM DIRECTIVE: PROCEED TO LOCATION. HARVEST WITH CAUTION. HIGHLY POISONOUS.]

---

Emeric stared at the notification.

0.3 miles North-northeast.

That was...

He pulled up the map that the system showed him.

---

[SYSTEM MAP — BLOOD LILY LOCATION]

[YOU ARE HERE: THE SILVER DAWN INN]

[TARGET LOCATION: THE GRAND ARENA]

[DISTANCE: 0.3 MILES]

---

The arena.

The Blood Lily was in the arena. He stared at the map, his mind racing.

The arena. Why would it grow in the arena?

He focused on the system. Reached for an explanation.

---

[SYSTEM QUERY — BLOOD LILY]

[BLOOD LILY: A RARE FLOWER THAT GROWS ONLY IN PLACES WHERE GREAT BLOODSHED HAS OCCURRED. IT FEEDS ON THE RESIDUAL LIFE FORCE LEFT BEHIND BY THE DEAD AND DYING. THE MORE BLOOD SPILLED, THE FASTER IT GROWS, THE STRONGER IT BECOMES.]

[THE ARENA HAS HOSTED THE TRIALS OF VALOR FOR CENTURIES. THOUSANDS HAVE DIED WITHIN ITS WALLS. THEIR BLOOD HAS SOAKED INTO THE SAND, THE STONE, THE VERY FOUNDATION OF THE STRUCTURE. THE BLOOD LILY HAS BEEN GROWING BENEATH THE ARENA FOR DECADES. THE RECENT TOURNAMENT—THE BLOOD SPILLED—HAS CAUSED IT TO BLOOM.]

[IT IS THE PERFECT ENVIRONMENT. AND IT IS READY TO BE HARVESTED.]

---

Emeric read the explanation twice.

Of course. It made a lot of sense.

He closed the system. Dressed quickly. Left the room.

---

The streets were empty.

The city was still sleeping. The lamps were dim. The sky was grey.

Emeric walked quickly. The map guided him. North-northeast. Past closed shops. Past silent houses. Past the fountain in the square.

The arena loomed ahead.

It was massive. Even in the darkness. A colosseum of white stone and black iron. The banners of the noble houses still hung from the towers. The gates were closed.

He approached.

A single guard stood at the entrance. Half-asleep. He straightened when he saw Emeric.

"My lord. The arena is closed."

"I know. I need to enter."

"I can’t allow that. The arena is—"

Emeric reached into his coat. Pulled out a gold coin. Held it up.

The guard stared at it.

"I need to enter," Emeric repeated. "I’ll be quick."

The guard took the coin. Nodded. Opened the gate. The arena was silent.

Emeric walked through the tunnel. The one that was used after exiting the arena.

But now it was empty.

He stepped into the arena.

He followed the map. The system guided him to the center of the arena.

Then he saw them.

The Blood Lilies.

They grew from the sand. Tiny flowers. Deep red. Almost black. Their petals shimmered with an otherworldly light. They were beautiful. Terrible.

He counted them. Seven.

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[BLOOD LILY — QUANTITY: 7]

[HARVEST REQUIRED: 1 FOR CURE. ADDITIONAL FLOWERS MAY BE USED FOR OTHER PURPOSES.]

[WARNING: HIGHLY POISONOUS. LETHAL TO TOUCH. USE PROTECTION.]

---

He reached into his inventory. Pulled out a pair of thick leather gloves— and slipped them on.

Then he carefully, carefully, began to harvest.

He dug around the roots with a small knife. Lifted each flower from the sand. Placed them in a leather pouch. One. Two. Three.

He took five. Left two.

They were beautiful. Even now. Even knowing what they were.

He stood. Looked at the two remaining flowers.

For someone else. Someone who might need them.

He turned and walked away.

He was back in bed before Isolde woke.

He slipped under the covers. Lay still. His heart was still pounding. His hands were still trembling.

He had it. One step closer. One step closer to saving her.

He closed his eyes.

Isolde stirred. Turned. Curled into him. Her head on his chest.

He held her.

---

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[CURE REQUIREMENTS UPDATE]

[BLOOD LILY — ACQUIRED]

[STATUS: 1/1]

[CURE COMPONENTS: 2/4]

[REMAINING COMPONENTS: █████████████████, █████████████████]

[SYSTEM NOTE: TWO COMPONENTS REMAIN.]

---

Emeric read the notification. Closed it.

He held Isolde tighter.

He would find the other components.

He would save her.

His mind was racing with excitement as he imagined the possibility of her getting cured. He had months to spare. ℴ

The dream he’d had a few months ago replayed in his mind.

It felt like it had been so real.

No. He didn’t care about some stupid dream.

He just had to focus on what was right in front of him.

There were two competents left and he was going to save her.