Bai Shi looked at Rennala, whose mental state remained precarious, and felt a sense of helplessness. Wounds of the mind were incredibly difficult to heal. Moreover, the Lands Between had no psychologists to speak of. Instead, it was full of people who were infuriatingly obnoxious from the moment they opened their mouths—a certain White Mask came to mind in particular. At that moment, Bai Shi wondered: if he managed to drag Radagon back here in the future, would that solve Rennala's problem? Radagon surely held affection for his large family; his departure at the time was due to Marika's plan. If that was the case, he would need to be extremely careful about the Elden Beast's machinations after defeating Radagon. By the time the Elden Beast refined Radagon and forged him into the Sacred Relic Sword, all hope would be lost. Bai Shi took Melina's hand and led her out of the grand library of the Academy of Raya Lucaria. Sorceress Sellen stood at the bottom of the grand library's stairs. Seeing Bai Shi emerge holding Melina's hand, she broke into a smile. "You'd better treat her well, or your teacher won't be so lenient." Sellen then turned to Melina and said: "If Bai Shi bullies you, just come and tell me. I'll be sure to teach him a proper lesson." Bai Shi had already told her about Melina and his plan to resurrect her. Honestly, Sellen had been quite surprised when she first heard it. Recalling how she had teased Bai Shi while Melina had been watching from the side, Sellen wished she could find a hole to bury herself in. It was just too embarrassing! An utterly mortifying memory! Melina smiled shyly upon hearing Sellen's words. Bai Shi nodded to his teacher before leading Melina to the broken bridge in front of the grand library. At Bai Shi's request, Senessax had already arrived at the academy and was now resting near the end of the fractured bridge. The colossal body of the ancient dragon coiled upon the bridge, making the once grand and spacious structure seem almost narrow. Seeing Bai Shi emerge, Senessax stood up. She lowered her head, silently observing the approaching pair, a hint of curiosity in her heart. The relationship between Bai Shi and the woman beside him was clearly anything but ordinary. Yet she had never seen this woman before, nor had she ever heard a whisper about her. Could she be the master's consort? Bai Shi walked up to Senessax and gave her a nod. "Thank you for your trouble." Senessax respectfully lowered her draconic head. "Master, there is no need for such courtesy. Please, come aboard." Bai Shi helped Melina onto Senessax's back, and the dragon immediately beat her wings, soaring rapidly into the sky. Senessax's arrival had already startled the sorcerers of the academy, causing many to stop and stare. This was an ancient dragon, a creature most might not see once in their entire lifetime. But what was an ancient dragon doing at their academy? Only now did they realize that Bai Shi actually had an ancient dragon under his command, a fact that was simply too staggering to comprehend. Senessax banked in the air, turning to fly at top speed toward Stormveil Castle. During the flight, she deliberately controlled her pace, not flying at full speed. This was to avoid overwhelming the woman Bai Shi had brought with him. However, after sensing Melina's condition, Senessax relaxed. Melina sat steadily on her back, appearing completely at ease. It seemed there was no need to worry. Melina leaned her head to one side, gazing at the scenery below. Her newly reborn body was indeed powerful. She was completely unaffected by the high-speed flight, and her vision was exceptionally sharp. The strong wind whipped Melina's hair into disarray, but the cold air high above the lakes of Liurnia enthralled her. From the sky, Melina could overlook the entire Lands Between. The Erdtree on the Altus Plateau blotted out the sun. Beneath its canopy, numerous thick, smaller golden trees pierced through the clouds, standing tall across the Lands Between like the Divine Towers. Gazing down, their feet were above the mist-shrouded, azure expanse of Liurnia of the Lakes. Within it, glintstone crystals shimmered like starlight, resplendent and bright. To see it with her own eyes was so much more stunningly beautiful than she could have imagined. Melina shifted her gaze to the eastern shore of Liurnia. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡•𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚•𝙣𝙚𝙩 A new, sprawling battlefield had been established there. The blue-clad Cuckoos were clashing with an army raising the hawk banners of Stormveil, and their front line was continuously pushing northward. Melina recognized the newly trained troops. Their armor was entirely new and unique, a stark contrast to any other knightly armor in the Lands Between. She had drawn the schematics for this armor herself, based on Bai Shi's descriptions, which had made its forging possible. In the sky, a multitude of Stormhawks constantly relayed messages, serving as the battlefield's communication network. Behind the warriors, countless tents were pitched in the direction of Stormveil Castle. Melina watched the battle below, feeling a bit puzzled. She had no idea what had happened during the time she was asleep. But she was sure Bai Shi had his reasons for doing this. Watching Melina turn her head, curiously observing every corner of the Lands Between, Bai Shi couldn't help but smile. Even with her speed reduced, Senessax returned to Stormveil in a very short time. Senessax circled once in the air above Stormveil before landing in the square before the throne room. Bai Shi helped Melina to the ground, and Senessax transformed back into her human form. By now, a large crowd had gathered in the square. There was the ever-diligent Lanslet; Slude and Roderika, who had almost nothing to do all day; Boc; and Hettis, whom he had poached from the academy. Shivr was also sitting to the side, tongue out, waiting patiently. Hakan had been given Bai Shi's blessing earlier and had already used it to teleport back to Stormveil. His injuries were now fully healed, though his equipment looked a little worse for wear. In addition to Bai Shi's followers, guests and friends had also been invited. War Counselor Iji and Blaidd were here as well. Blaidd was now wearing a mirrored helm of a special design that covered his entire head, leaving only his two eyes exposed. Aside from the two Crucible Knights and Erlisa, who were absent due to the new campaign, Irena and her father, who were too far away to arrive in time, and Hilbert, who remained at Redmane Castle, nearly everyone was present. These were the important people Bai Shi and Melina had met along their journey. Bai Shi had summoned them all here to introduce them to Melina. Before, Melina had been a spirit, and there was nothing to be done about it. But it would be too cruel for her to still have to love in silence, without name or status, now that she had a physical body. Bai Shi would not let Melina suffer that kind of injustice again. She would be a queen revered by all, no longer a ghost. Bai Shi had not let go of Melina's hand the entire way here, and he held it still. Melina looked at the crowd before her, feeling a little anxious. She looked at each person, and she could name them, recall their histories, their origins, and their personalities. After all, she had gotten to know them all during her journey with Bai Shi. The only difference was, they had no idea she existed. As if sensing her nervousness, Bai Shi squeezed her hand, then turned to the curious crowd and began to speak: "I've called you all here today to introduce someone." "This is Melina. She is my beloved." Upon hearing this, surprise bloomed on everyone's faces. Although they had their suspicions when they saw the two holding hands, hearing Bai Shi actually say it still came as a shock. They had never heard a thing about Melina before. Was this a shotgun wedding? Among the crowd, only Lanslet's expression was calm; he even nodded in gratification. Now that Bai Shi had acknowledged Melina as his beloved, it finally meant he was coming to his senses. Boc recognized the clothes Melina was wearing as the set he had recently sewn. He was overjoyed. Finally, he had done something for Bai Shi—he had made clothes for his lady. However, Boc quickly noticed that the fit wasn't quite right; there were several places that needed alteration to be perfect. He quietly made a mental note of these areas, planning to make a new, better, and more perfect set of clothes later. Bai Shi saw the astonished looks on the faces below, smiled, and continued: "Though this is the first time you've met her, she has known all of you for a long time." "From the moment I began my journey, she has been with me as a spirit, witnessing my growth every step of the way." "And that includes all of you we met on our path." The crowd grew even more surprised, but they quickly understood and offered their blessings to the couple. Slude had a moment of realization. Back when she followed Bai Shi through the Four Belfries to that cave, she had heard him speaking to the air as if talking to himself. Now it all made sense. It was the woman standing beside him now. Roderika looked at Melina, then at Bai Shi, and covered her mouth in astonishment. As a spirit tuner, she hadn't sensed a thing. She really needed more practice... And wow, this lady was so beautiful. She and Lord Bai Shi made a perfect match. Blaidd and Iji exchanged a look. No wonder Lord Bai Shi had traveled to the academy a while back. It seemed he had used Queen Rennala's secret art of rebirth. Iji watched the intimate pair and nodded. "They will surely be very happy in the future." He hoped something like what happened with Radahn and Rennala would never occur again. Blaidd smiled and offered his blessings to the couple, though a touch of regret lingered in his heart. Whether in strength or character, he had been completely won over by Bai Shi. Moreover, Bai Shi had helped Ranni immensely along the way. As her sworn brother, Blaidd had actually wondered if Bai Shi could be the one to accompany Ranni, to help her walk that dark path. That path was too profound; neither he nor Iji were even qualified to set foot upon it. But now, it seemed that was no longer a realistic possibility. As she listened to the chorus of blessings, Melina shyly lowered her head. At that moment, the moonlight sigil on Bai Shi's body began to glow, though no one else was aware of it. Ranni had been watching quietly all along. Her voice echoed in Bai Shi's ear: ‘I wish you happiness.’ Afterward, the crowd dispersed, preparing to return to their duties. However, Bai Shi asked Hakan to stay behind for a moment. Bai Shi walked up and clapped Hakan on the shoulder. "Congratulations, you've broken through and grown even stronger." Hakan rubbed the back of his head. "Haha, it was just a stroke of luck." "This trip back not only resolved some old regrets but also brought unexpected gains in my strength." "As expected, a warrior can only grow stronger through battles of life and death." Bai Shi nodded in deep agreement. Hakan then demonstrated the new power he had obtained in the cave. Watching Hakan summon a phantom shaped like a Kaidan Sellsword, Bai Shi marveled aloud. Phantom attacks were already considered advanced weapon arts, and Hakan's could directly materialize an entire human form, like a spectral double. And this was no mere illusion. Having been to the Spirit World, Bai Shi could feel that the phantom contained countless fragmented soul echoes. Their souls had likely been cast into the Spirit World by the Deathbirds, but the lingering echoes of their thoughts had ultimately converged to form this unique shape. Perhaps it was because Hakan had always kept them in his thoughts, preventing them from becoming nameless corpses, that this echo had been awakened. Hakan was truly favored by those souls now. However, Bai Shi's attention was soon captivated by something else Hakan mentioned. Hakan had previously met a strange little creature that called itself a fairy. The creature's personality and actions were unpredictable, and it seemed to possess great power. After hearing Hakan's description, Bai Shi was taken aback. He knew that creatures like fairies had once existed in the Lands Between. After all, there was once a blue dancer fairy, who even had a talisman in the game. She had taught the Flowing Sword Arts to the blind swordsman, who, with its immense power, had even sealed away the god of Scarlet Rot. It was clear that fairies were by no means weak, but the true extent of their power was still unknown. But this fairy had already shown its capabilities when healing Hakan. Such powerful healing effects were rarely seen in the Lands Between. The fairy also mentioned "jade dew" and "sprites," things Bai Shi had never heard of. With the aid of those two, the speed of healing would be terrifying to even imagine. And according to Hakan's description, the fairy carried another legacy, though its nature was unknown. What a shame. He didn't know the fairy's origins, had no trace of its whereabouts, and didn't even know its name. He wondered who would be blessed by a fairy and receive the power of that legacy. Bai Shi pondered for a moment, then nodded. "Alright, I understand. I'll look into information about fairies." "Now, there's another task for you." "You are to take the Dragonblood Knights and head to the front lines against the Cuckoos." The Cuckoos' resistance was stronger than Bai Shi had anticipated. Although the general quality of the Cuckoo Knights was not high, their numbers were immense. During the Shattering, the Cuckoos had never fought a direct, pitched battle with any army, avoiding nearly all major conflicts. In fact, because they were constantly plundering, their ranks had continued to swell during the war. As the saying goes, a passing thief is like a comb, but passing soldiers are like a fine-toothed rake. The Cuckoos just took everything. Therefore, while the Cuckoos were not the strongest remaining army in the Lands Between, they could certainly claim to be one of the largest. The Cuckoos had no intention of fighting a life-or-death battle with Bai Shi here. They mobilized their main force and fled to the Altus Plateau. But the portion of their forces they left behind was still considerable, and they had plenty of things like Flame Chariots and catapults. Otherwise, based on the Cuckoos' own merits, the two Crucible Knights and Erlisa would have been able to take a break from the battlefield and return by now. Hakan received his orders and quickly left to lead his troops. Bai Shi planned to ask the Ancient King about the fairies later. For now, he wanted to show Melina what Stormveil Castle truly looked like. The next day, Melina found herself wandering alone through Stormveil Castle. Nearby, Slude was following her discreetly, just in case any accidents occurred. Melina was a little troubled. Having a physical body was, in some ways, rather inconvenient. Back when she was a spirit, she could follow Bai Shi wherever he went, simply watching the scenery and spacing out when there was nothing else to do. At night, while Bai Shi slept, she would quietly watch the Erdtree, the stars, the moon, and finally, watch Bai Shi. But now that she had a body, all sorts of troubles followed. Bai Shi had things to do. If she just stood by his side without saying a word, it would seem far too strange. Although Bai Shi didn't seem to mind and even enjoyed her company, Melina herself couldn't stand it. And it was the same at night. She couldn't just wander into Bai Shi's room in the middle of the night, could she? Did this mean they were supposed to sleep together now? Isn't that too fast?! For these reasons, Melina felt rather flustered. Melina didn't know where she ought to go now. Yesterday, Bai Shi had taken her on a proper tour of Stormveil, and the experience had been novel. But it wasn't that the things in Stormveil were new to her. After all, she had witnessed the castle's development and changes alongside Bai Shi. Yesterday's novelty stemmed from regaining a physical body, that accompanying feeling of seeing everything anew. Melina sighed softly. Remembering that her clothes hadn't been altered yet, she decided to visit Boc. Following her memory, Melina navigated the paths to Boc's tailor shop. However, the shop's curtain was drawn shut; it was closed for business. Melina assumed Boc had stepped out, so she glanced at the closed curtain and prepared to leave. But just as she was turning to go, she heard faint crying from within. Melina thought for a moment, then decided not to leave. She lifted a corner of the curtain and peeked inside. The entire tailor shop was in a bit of a mess, and Boc was leaning against a wall with his head buried, sobbing quietly. Seeing this, Melina grew worried. Had something happened to Boc? Having witnessed Boc's journey with Bai Shi, Melina knew he was a good kid. Melina entered, walked over to Boc, and knelt down, speaking softly: Boc looked up, saw it was Melina, and quickly wiped his tears and stood up. He hadn't heard her footsteps at all. How strange? But to have been so inattentive to his lady was terribly rude. Seeing Melina's concerned gaze, Boc opened his mouth but didn't know how to begin. Melina didn't rush him, watching him quietly. After a moment, Boc's tears started falling again, and he explained what had happened: "Today... a strange customer came here." "The clothes he was wearing were very unusual, and ordinary sewing needles were completely useless." "I wasn't going to use the Golden Tailoring Tools Lord Bai Shi gave me at first. Those are only for you and Lord Bai Shi..." "I was about to give up, but he not only mocked my tailoring skills, he even mocked Lord Bai Shi for taking on a useless person like me as a seamster!" "Even though it's true my skills are poor, I couldn't stand him insulting Lord Bai Shi!" "So... so I took out the Golden Tailoring Tools Lord Bai Shi gave me and finally managed to mend his clothes. But when I came to my senses, my needle had suddenly vanished." "I don't know if he took it, or if I lost it myself." "Sigh! I'm so useless." "I keep saying I want to sew clothes for Lord Bai Shi, but I'm hardly any help at all, and now I've lost one of the needles he gave me..." Boc grew more agitated as he spoke, then dissolved into tears again. That was a gift from Lord Bai Shi, a symbol of the hope he had placed in him. Melina understood. It was likely someone had deliberately caused trouble, targeting those close to Bai Shi. But for now, there was no way to find that person. She could only have Slude be more vigilant later. Seeing Boc retreating into his shell again, Melina didn't rush to comfort him. Instead, she quietly got up and left without a sound. She made her way to the place where War Counselor Iji usually spent his time. There, Iji and Hettis were discussing forging techniques. Iji was doing most of the talking, while Hettis listened attentively as a student. They were both a little surprised to see Melina arrive. What would she be doing in the blacksmiths' corner? Melina first curtsied slightly, wished them a good afternoon, and then stated her purpose: "I would like to craft a Golden Tailoring Needle. Is that possible?" "A Golden Tailoring Needle?" "I've seen one before, but for me to forge one... that might be difficult." "After all, given my size, I'm sure you understand." "Besides, the power imbued in that needle is something we do not possess." Melina nodded. Although Iji was an excellent blacksmith, his massive size indeed made him unsuited for such delicate work. She then turned to Hettis. Hettis thought for a moment and replied: "If you can describe its appearance accurately, it shouldn't be a problem... I can try." Melina breathed a sigh of relief. She remembered the appearance of these things clearly, well enough to describe it perfectly. "That's wonderful. I'll have to trouble you, then." Following Melina's description, Hettis continuously modified the shape of the needle in his hand, replicating even the faintest of markings. A few minutes later, Melina left the blacksmiths' area, pinching a golden needle identical in appearance to the one she remembered. As she walked, Melina pondered. The Golden Tailoring Tools were imbued with special power, which was why Radagon and Rennala had been able to use them. If it was something Radagon had brought with him, then perhaps she could give it a try. Melina was Marika's daughter, after all, one of the golden demigods. As she channeled a faint golden power into the needle, Melina successfully imbued it with strength. This should solve the problem, right? Melina returned to Boc's tailor shop. Boc was still curled up, lost in his self-pity, having apparently not even noticed her departure. Melina placed the golden needle among a few pieces of fabric and then said to Boc: "Boc, is this your needle?" "Look, wasn't it right there all along?" Boc forgot his sadness and rushed over, cupping the golden needle as if it were a priceless treasure. He examined it carefully and quickly confirmed it was his needle. Boc quickly recovered from his sorrow, his joy plain to see. "Oh, oh! It really is!" "Strange... It wasn't here just now, was it?" Melina smiled and said: "You must have overlooked it just now." "Is that so? How careless of me! And I think I might have misunderstood that customer, but I'll remember him bad-mouthing Lord Bai Shi for the rest of my life!" As if remembering something, Boc took out a nearly completed set of clothes from the side and said: "Please wait a moment. I already started making a new set for you yesterday." "If you just give me a few more minutes to make some adjustments, it will surely fit you perfectly." Seeing Boc's beaming face, Melina felt a sense of relief. A Golden Tailoring Needle wasn't some priceless artifact. If finding it was enough to make this boy happy, then why not give it to him? But... who could help solve her own problems? Boc finished the clothes and excitedly presented them to Melina, only to see her crestfallen expression. Boc's smile faded, and he asked carefully: "Lady Melina, is something troubling you as well?" Melina paused, then silently nodded. "For some reason, I feel that having a body has made me more distant from Bai Shi..." "I can't just naturally stay by his side like I used to." "And to make matters worse, he's always so considerate of my feelings that he never makes a move..." Boc thought for a moment, then said earnestly: "Lady Melina, you should speak with Lord Bai Shi and express your feelings." "Lord Bai Shi is a gentle person. He will surely understand you." "So whatever it is, please feel free to do it with confidence." With that, Boc placed the finished clothes into Melina's hands. Melina considered his words and thought they made a lot of sense. But evidently, when it came to *how* she should act, the two of them had a misunderstanding about the appropriate degree. And so that night, Miss Melina launched a midnight raid on Bai Shi's bedchamber.