Inside the towering Graveyard of the Soul Cairn, Valerica softly narrated her conjectures.
"Although the Lord of Truth is blind and foolish, it still possesses some basic behavioral logic. It is a merciless soul devourer, and the soul-stealing fiends summoned by soul traps are its creations—or rather, its offspring. It instinctively craves the spiritual power of souls, and for this, it will do its utmost to drain every last bit of emotion from each soul. But it is fair; as long as you can withstand its attacks, you have the right to survive in the Soul Cairn."
Serana sneered, "Is that considered fair?"
"It believes it is fair, and with its chaotic and unclear nature, it is far from arrogant, my child. If you dealt with Daedric Princes more, you would know how annoying some of them are, for instance..." Valerica lowered her voice, ultimately not speaking the blasphemous words. "All in all, this friend's soul was originally incomplete, but he received the spiritual power of his beloved, and thus appears very natural."
"I see. So, that dragon seeing him in a suddenly confused state was a manifestation of insufficient spiritual power?"
Gaelina raised her head and actively explained, "It's not that simple. My husband and I experienced the bloody game of a Daedric Prince together, receiving a Mara Charm as a reward. It helped us connect, so we don't experience a lack of spiritual power. It's just that sometimes he gets very tired, and I am unwilling to appear in his place."
"That is rare. Do Daedric Princes and Divines still have dealings?" Valerica smiled, lowering her eyes, lost in thought.
"Who knows? Now I must go save my son. You two can leave."
Serana quickly said, "I'll go too."
Valerica nodded, "Madam, your child has shown us kindness; we cannot stand by idly. Furthermore, having been trapped in the Soul Cairn for thousands of years, I am probably the only one in the world with a deeper understanding of this place."
Gaelina shook her head at them, "This is a matter for our family, and it is a long-cherished wish of my husband and me—you are Vampires, so you probably don't understand such feelings—war took our previous generation, our origins were not happy, our experiences were not glorious, and our love was not long-lasting, but we have our child. As a mother, you should know what a child means. Even if my husband's and my souls are completely annihilated, as long as our child lives, isn't that a form of eternal life...?"
Listening to her words, Valerica's heart almost broke. She turned and looked at Serana with a gentle gaze. Although the young lady was also very moved, she was not Gaelina after all and could not relate to her experiences. The painful past of becoming a Vampire made her feel that eternal life was not something to be praised. She now felt secretly awkward under Valerica's warm gaze.
"Mother, tell us how we can help."
"Of course, we will now go confirm your child's state. If we can find his body, that would be even better, as I could then determine his condition. As for you two, husband and wife, there is also a way to heal you, but it will require some 'nourishment'."
Gaelina's expression was calm, "We are already dead. There is no good or bad distinction. I only wish for my son to grow up healthy."
Serana's expression was strange, "Grow up? With all due respect, your child is already a grown man."
"Is he? It seems I've slept for too long."
Valerica took a bone bottle from the cloth pouch at her waist. "The soul pods that grow throughout the Soul Cairn thrive on the omnipresent ectoplasm and have miraculous effects. This bottle contains the extract. Drink it; it can replenish the spiritual power you have lost."
Gaelina took the bone bottle but did not drink immediately. "I have something to say to you."
"We are all ears."
Gaelina hesitated, remaining silent for a long time. Her silence also caused the two listening Vampires to fall silent. Serana looked at the ghost before her, somewhat bewildered. What exactly was this woman enduring for?
For descendants, for family, but what did these things mean?
Serana thought of her mad and disheveled father, her autocratic yet loving mother. What did family and descendants mean to them respectively?
Some things, if not thought about, will evolve along a natural trajectory like invisible air. But once one begins to think—no matter what kind of thought, profound, foolish, crude, insightful—it is always a very tiring and terrifying thing.
Baishan once told her, "Time will prove everything."
And for Vampires, this might be the ultimate footnote to all their joys and sorrows.
Gaelina softly said, "With endless gratitude, I pray to the Divines and Daedric Princes, blessing you. I want my child to have a complete soul, not to leave a part of it here to suffer. If all efforts yield no results, you can offer my husband and me to the Lord of Truth in exchange for my son's soul."
According to that profound truth, souls that survive the assault of Durnehviir gain the quality of freedom and can leave the Soul Cairn to travel to the realms of the Divines and Daedra.
"Is it worth it?" Valerica asked in a low voice.
"My child, you will know him, for he is a fated hero, destined to compose endless epics. He cannot die here."
"I understand, sister."
Valerica was also a Nord; how could she not understand what honor meant?
...
In the Corridor of All Beings, an endless place, even if all the souls in the world came here, they would never see each other.
At this moment, the path Simon walked was filled with dry hair and scales. Ectoplasm seeped out little by little, forming a long, ethereal blue line, at the end of which was a wriggling chaotic form—it, or rather, he, no longer had any bright light on his body, only the illusory floating of ectoplasm scattering like fireflies, preventing the darkness from completely engulfing everything.
The more one bears, the longer the road. Simon lived five lives, so the road he had to walk should be five times longer—exactly how long, no one could know anymore.
Simon, in a twisted and distorted form, arrived before the Candlelight.
This flame, seemingly out of reach, was actually always before his eyes. It had merely transformed from illusory to real, nourished by Simon's continuous memories. A faint orange-red glow, the kind any candle in the world could emit, not at all rare. But here was all of Simon: his joys and sorrows, his persistence, his courage, his thoughts. This Candlelight was himself, like the beautiful illusion of a butterfly breaking free from its cocoon.
The disgusting spiritual entity wriggling on the ground grew scales on its skin, like eyes, bathing in the Candlelight.
The Candlelight was the Lord of Truth's collection and feast.
At the end of the passage, an eye watched the flame, filled with extreme greed.
"Sacrifice, sacrifice..."
"He will give, he can exchange for everything he desires..."
Choose, Simon, to exchange your soul for your mother's memory, or to retrieve your soul and allow yourself to live.
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