Looking at the specimen of the Horned Beast's remains, Lucian could not help but marvel.
Within this enormous Specimen Storehouse, there were many other creatures of all shapes and forms.
These were all species that had emerged during the flourishing age of the Crucible of Life. They were now difficult to find anywhere in the Lands Between, with many having gone completely extinct.
Seeing the curiosity on everyone's faces as they looked at the creatures preserved within the vault, Messmer also wore a faint smile.
"Pray, take thy time and look about thee. Only see that thou dost not lose thy way."
As it happened, reaching the top floor where his private chamber was located required passing through most of the Storehouse.
Messmer had already had a convenient elevator built for direct access, but since they were all interested in the exhibits, he decided to take them through the vault and show them around along the way.
However, before they could even leave this floor, Lucian suddenly noticed another elevator nearby.
It was built inside a room tucked away in the corner, extremely well hidden and apparently ignored by everyone.
Not only that, there was no one stationed nearby, and the area had even been cordoned off.
Judging from the sealed ceiling above it, however, the elevator clearly led somewhere below.
Lucian pointed toward the elevator whose destination was unknown and asked,
"Does this Specimen Storehouse have an underground section too?"
Messmer's brows furrowed slightly, as though he had remembered some unpleasant memories.
"Down there…"
"That is where the wounded are tended."
"'Tis likely best that thou dost not see what lieth within."
Hearing this, Melina immediately realized what her brother was talking about.
"Is it the Numen?"
Messmer glanced sideways at Melina.
"…Aye."
"Thou rememberest what befell this place?"
Melina shook her head.
"I really don't have any memories of what happened in the Land of Shadow."
"I only know because we've already encountered them, and we managed to cure them."
A look of astonishment appeared on Messmer's face.
"Thou… didst cure them?"
Melina nodded and continued explaining.
"Yes. After we arrived in the Land of Shadow, we were on the Gravesite Plain, near the Tower Settlement."
"We discovered survivors inside a hidden gaol, and that was how we learned about the tragedy."
"After that, we tried to treat them, but our efforts had very little effect at first."
"Fortunately, we eventually found a way. Thanks to Lucian's and Irina's powers, we were able to cure them."
"They're currently staying at a nearby church, where the physicians and perfumers Lucian brought with him are taking care of them."
Messmer looked at Lucian with an expression of disbelief.
Ever since they had rescued those survivors, the entire Shadow Keep had pooled its knowledge and resources together, yet they had been completely helpless.
But how long had it been since Melina and the others entered the Land of Shadow and encountered those survivors?
It wasn't that Messmer doubted Melina's words.
After witnessing the condition of his fellow Numen, he naturally wished more than anyone for them to be healed.
It was simply… far too difficult to believe.
Hearing that there were still Numen waiting to be treated, Lucian immediately walked toward the elevator.
"There's no time to waste. Let's treat them first."
"The sooner they're healed, the sooner they can begin recovering."
Messmer nodded and followed close behind.
They would know whether it was truly possible to cure them once they went down there anyway.
As they stood on the elevator, Messmer also began asking about the survivors Lucian and the others had rescued.
"Where didst thou find the survivors?"
"During the crusade, mine army searched the Tower Settlement from top to bottom. I had not thought that any would yet remain whom we had overlooked."
Melina thought for a moment before answering.
"Northwest of the bridge, beneath the cliffs on the other side of the lake."
"The gaol was extremely well hidden. Its entrance wasn't inside the Tower Settlement, but its location was beneath it."
Messmer thought for a moment and immediately understood where she was referring to.
"I see… So that was where they were."
"To have failed to discover them during the crusade was my responsibility."
"Fortunately, thou didst find them."
As they spoke, the elevator finally reached the bottom.
Although it was underground, the entire place was unexpectedly brightly illuminated by countless candles, leaving none of the oppressive darkness one might expect from a basement.
The underground chamber was also surprisingly spacious.
Much like the Roundtable Hold, it consisted of two levels connected by stairs.
Large quantities of weapons and armor were arranged throughout the first underground level, clearly serving as an armory.
The level below had originally been a church where the Battlefield Priests preached the faith of the Erdtree. It had later been converted into a treatment ward.
Under Messmer's guidance, Lucian and the others continued deeper inside, finally arriving at the treatment room on the second underground level.
Beds filled both sides of the treatment room, with Numen whose bodies had become completely fused with masses of flesh receiving care from the perfumers.
However, perhaps the long and fruitless treatment had already made them accept reality, as several of the horribly distorted Numen survivors were not lying in their beds.
They were slowly wandering around the spacious center of the treatment room, playing with the Jar children.
This was one of the few forms of entertainment they had left.
The perfumers did not stop them. They simply watched the Numen's condition in silence.
After being helpless against their illness for so many years, the disease had inflicted tremendous torment on the minds and spirits of the physicians as well.
As the highest-ranking medical practitioners, the perfumers possessed a strong sense of duty. That was precisely why their inability to do anything about the disease caused them even greater pain.
Looking at the condition of the Numen here, Lucian quietly shook his head.
These should all be survivors who had already been rescued during the crusade.
Progress in their treatment had remained painfully slow. Even after the entire Shadow Keep had pooled together its knowledge and strength, they had been completely powerless.
But after such a long time, their minds and spirits had naturally become much more stable.
Of course, there were also patients who could not accept their current appearance and had chosen a more radical approach.
Several strangely shaped Numen were lying on the beds, their unusual appearances immediately catching Lucian's attention.
Most of the masses of flesh on their bodies had been removed, leaving them barely recognizable as human.
According to Messmer, this had been an attempt they themselves had requested.
If they were going to spend the rest of their lives trapped in such twisted forms, they would rather make a bold attempt and gamble on the possibility of living like ordinary people again.
Unfortunately, the final results had still been far from satisfactory.
Seeing Messmer arrive, the perfumers responsible for the patients immediately stepped forward and bowed.
Messmer waved a hand, signaling them to wait for further instructions.
He then turned toward Lucian, still somewhat uneasy, and asked,
"How dost thou intend to treat them?"
"Could it be that thy cure merely rids them of one affliction, whilst leaving behind another harm in its stead…?"
Facing Messmer's concern, Lucian smiled faintly.
"Don't worry. I'll make sure they're completely cured."
"Other than a little pain during the process, there won't be any other harm."
"Have the perfumers prepare some pain-relieving perfume."
Lucian gave Irina a meaningful glance, signaling that they could begin the treatment.
Irina nodded and walked over to one of the Numen survivors, gently taking her hand.
Spiritual power continuously gathered within the Numen, just as it had countless times before, marking the distinction between the two different types of flesh.
Lucian summoned the Great Rune and slowly activated it, while Melina cast the Minor Erdtree, soothing the hearts of her fellow Numen.
Golden radiance once again illuminated the abandoned church, filling the entire place with an almost sacred light.
The perfumers realized what was about to happen and held their breath, afraid that even the slightest disturbance might interfere with the others.
In their hearts, they silently prayed for a miracle.
Under Lucian's Gravity Magic, the flesh belonging to the Numen and the Hornsent was gradually separated.
The Numen's flesh was preserved, slowly reshaping itself into its original, normal form.
The Hornsent flesh, meanwhile, was directly broken apart and destroyed, decomposing into tiny, completely inert particles.
As Lucian continued the treatment, the Numen's appearance gradually returned to normal, restoring the form they should have possessed.
Sunlight fell upon their scarred bodies. As their bodies were reconstructed, every injury healed completely, and the treatment finally came to an end.
After witnessing a genuine miracle unfold before their eyes, the perfumers could no longer maintain their composure. Tears of excitement streamed down their faces.
No one understood the suffering these survivors had endured better than they did.
Messmer let out a long breath, and much of the heavy burden in his heart finally dissipated.
As he watched Lucian immediately begin treating the next survivor, Messmer's expression became incredibly complicated.
—
Over the next several days, Lucian and the others simply stayed in the underground treatment ward.
There were far more Numen in the underground chambers than the survivors Lucian and Melina had rescued from the gaol.
With such a huge number of patients, the workload was truly astonishing.
Several consecutive days of treatment were not particularly difficult for Lucian. As long as Irina had rested sufficiently, they could begin working again at any time.
Finally, after four days, the treatment was completely finished.
Every Numen survivor within the Shadow Keep had returned to their original appearance.
During this period, Lucian had also sent people to bring the Numen from the church over to the Shadow Keep.
As members of the same people, it was better for them to live together. Being surrounded by their own kind would help them recover psychologically as well.
After several days of treatment, Messmer's opinion of Lucian had changed considerably.
Previously, he had disliked and rejected Lucian precisely because he was a Tarnished.
Now, however, Messmer found himself regretting that Lucian was a Tarnished.
Aside from his status as a Tarnished, Messmer could not find a single flaw in him.
If Lucian were not a Tarnished, Messmer would undoubtedly be delighted to have such a morally upright and powerful brother-in-law.
Of course, whenever he thought about how Melina had somehow been whisked away by Lucian, Messmer still felt his teeth itch with irritation.
But there was no denying that, just as Melina had said, Lucian really was an exceptionally good person.
—
After the treatment was complete, Messmer once again invited Lucian and the others to his chambers.
This was originally something he should have done on the very first day as their host.
Lucian naturally accepted without hesitation.
Irina, however, was simply too exhausted. Moreover, to avoid any possible awkwardness, she took Liliana with her and went to rest somewhere within the Shadow Keep.
This time, Messmer had no intention of making Lucian and Melina climb through the Specimen Storehouse floor by floor.
As the master of this place, Messmer naturally knew how tortuous the route to the top floor and his private chamber was.
Not only would they have to pass through several levels of the Storehouse, they would also need to travel along the external stairway structures attached to the outside of the tower.
So, for convenience, Messmer led the two of them to another elevator within the Specimen Storehouse.
It had been constructed specifically to make it easier for people to visit him and was rarely used under normal circumstances.
The elevator went directly to the exterior of the top floor of the Specimen Storehouse, connecting to the bridge leading straight to Messmer's private chamber.
After returning to his room, Messmer turned toward Lucian and Melina and said,
"There are no outsiders here now."
"If there is aught concerning the Land of Shadow that thou wouldst know, then ask me freely."
Lucian naturally did not hold back. He intended to use this opportunity to gather as much information as possible.
His first question was something he was particularly eager to ask.
"The armor I was using before could no longer keep up with the increasing intensity of my battles, so it was destroyed."
"If possible, I'd like to find some excellent materials and have a new suit of armor forged, something capable of actually keeping up with my battles."
Lucian's stats had already increased tremendously, leaving him with very little room for further improvement.
But strength was not determined entirely by physical attributes. There were plenty of other external factors, such as weapons and armor.
With Godfrey potentially returning at any moment, Lucian felt it was necessary to make thorough preparations.
Even Godfrey obediently wore armor during his first phase.
Lucian certainly wasn't going to fight him bare-chested from the beginning.
If the battle became intense enough, they could always take everything off together once the second phase began.
Messmer glanced at Lucian's current robe, which served little purpose beyond decoration, and immediately understood.
After thinking for a moment, Messmer retrieved a huge map from his room.
The two Winged Serpents each pressed their heads against one side, pushing the map open in front of Lucian and Melina.
It was a map of the Land of Shadow, recording the entirety of the land.
However, quite a few details on the map were blurred or incomplete, clearly indicating that even its creators had not fully explored every region.
Messmer pointed toward the location of a ruin with the tip of his great spear.
"This is the Ruined Forge of Starfall Past."
"These forges were wrought by the hands of giants and trolls, where once they honed the ancient arts of their craft."
"Yet after the War against the Giants, they fell at last beneath our dominion."
"In ages long past, Ancient Meteoric Ore was fashioned into the weapons of gods. That alone speaketh to the quality of the material."
"A great quantity of Ancient Meteoric Ore remaineth stored within these ruins. Whether thou wouldst forge weapons or armor, thou couldst scarcely ask for a finer material."
Messmer paused before continuing.
"Yet Ancient Meteoric Ore demandeth rather particular conditions for its keeping."
"If it hath not yet been fashioned into a finished work, it must remain within the flames of the forge here in these ruins."
"Regrettably, we possess no smiths who have mastered the techniques required to work it. Thus, we have been unable to make use of the ore, and it hath remained within these half-abandoned ruins."
"The craft required to forge Ancient Meteoric Ore is exceedingly demanding. Indeed, thou mayest find that the forge here itself must be used."
"If thou hast no smith capable of working such a material, I can aid thee in finding another more suitable."
Although Messmer made it sound difficult to forge, Lucian wasn't concerned in the slightest.
Forging techniques?
That, he was familiar with.
Lucian himself didn't know how to forge, but he could always find two master smiths to do the work for him.
And if he was going to have armor forged, Lucian intended to have Master Iji handle it.
On the surface, Master Iji was merely an ordinary Troll blacksmith.
But his true identity was none other than a genuine giant.
He had simply used a secret technique to reduce the size of his body.
Compared to forging weapons, Master Iji was even more skilled at forging armor. Lucian's previous armor had been forged by him personally.
Using a material that he was so familiar with would surely bring Lucian some unexpected surprises.
Lucian nodded and asked Messmer his second question.
"I want to know whether you've ever been in contact with a demigod named Miquella."