Looking at that layer of golden coating, Lucas felt increasingly familiar with it.
It seemed like he had seen something similar somewhere before.
Wait, isn’t this the same material as the sword he had conjured out of thin air during the battle with Serfi?
Only this time, it appeared as a coating on his saw spear.
It can be used like this too?
“Looks like this is part of your ability as well?”
Ivina guessed roughly.
“Yeah, I think so.”
“The Goddess of Creation really gave you quite a lot of power…”
Ivina gently patted Lucas on the shoulder.
“Make good use of it.”
What followed was a very routine affair.
This elven space seemed to have been Kohen’s residence before he died.
After searching around for a long time, all they found were various daily necessities.
Looking at the remains of the skeletal beast Kohen had turned into, Lucas recalled the substance Kohen had tried to drink earlier.
Scanning the ground, the liquids had already seeped in and were nowhere to be found.
What a pity—if they had a sample, they might have been able to identify what it was.
After leaving the elven space, the group thoroughly searched Kohen’s office.
They took all his books and notebooks back to the capital for inspection.
As for the slaves they captured, once unified and sent back to the capital, the knights arranged for them to receive treatment at an infirmary, with further arrangements to be made later.
Except for the elves.
The captured elves, regardless of gender, bore not a single wound.
Their health was excellent, and there was no sign of malnutrition whatsoever.
According to these elves, their treatment in the prison was surprisingly good for slaves.
Not only was the environment relatively comfortable, but their meals were lavish as well—big fish and meat every day, as if they were worried they might be mistreated in the slightest.
Lucas pondered and decided it was better not to reveal the final outcome.
According to his memory of Noli’s fate, their eventual end was to be dragged away for sacrifice.
Since they were offerings for some entity, of course they’d be well fed with lavish food.
“You did well this time. Good job.”
On the way back, Ivina praised Lucas.
“What now? Is there anything else I need to do?”
“We’ll take care of the remaining investigations. For now, you can do whatever you want.”
Whatever he wanted to do… he hadn’t really thought about it these past few days.
If he had to say, he just wanted to be with Lelia.
The books and documents seized from Kohen’s office were all taken by Ivina to the knights for investigation once back in the capital.
Noli wanted to talk with her former tribe members, so in the end, only Lucas returned home.
“Lucas?”
Not long after leaving the knights, Lucas heard a familiar voice calling him.
It was Lelia, who had just left the palace.
It seemed the princess’s business there had been completed today.
Perfect, he had company on the way back.
Lucas recounted the day’s events to Lelia.
She remained silent the entire time, listening attentively.
“That’s really scary. People can actually become like that.”
After hearing Lucas’s account, Lelia expressed her fear of Kohen’s transformation.
“If drinking that substance causes that, could there be something wrong with it?”
They had already discussed this possibility on the way back.
At present, the source of that liquid was mainly suspected to be Serfi.
After all, among the Eight Sins, she was the one who liked to tinker with such things the most.
But even making medicine needs raw materials.
What kind of thing from Morovira could produce an effect like that?
“According to the Goddess, Morovira is now being invaded by something from outside. Could that ‘something’ be from beyond Morovira?”
Lelia’s words reminded Lucas.
Right, why hadn’t he thought of that before?
“That’s definitely possible. I’ll ask Ivina tomorrow and see if she can find out anything.”
“Don’t rush. Ivina has a lot on her plate too. Why not wait a few days? You’ve been running around a lot lately; you must be tired.”
Indeed, Iveena had said he could rest until the investigation results came in.
So he should take a good rest and not exhaust himself with physical labor.
“By the way, what about Noli? Didn’t she come back with you?”
“She wanted to talk with the comrades who were rescued. I came back alone.”
“Did you ask her what she was thinking?”
Lucas shook his head, realizing he had forgotten.
But it didn’t matter—there was plenty of time to ask.
“No worries, there’s still time. But more importantly, Lucas, what do you want to eat tonight? Shall we pick something up on the way?”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
The two of them held hands and headed toward the market.
***
Noli hadn’t been seen for days.
Lucas had even looked for her at the knights’ headquarters but found nothing.
Ivina was also nowhere to be found these past few days.
After asking around, no one knew where she had gone.
Lelia confirmed that Iveena hadn’t been to the princess lately either.
Both of them seemed to have vanished into thin air, which made Lucas somewhat puzzled.
Four or five days passed before someone knocked on Lucas’s door.
Lelia should still have been working at the princess’s side—who could be visiting at this time?
When he opened the door, standing there was Noli, who hadn’t been seen for several days.
Only now, she looked quite different from before.
Originally wearing a long dress, she was now dressed in a form-fitting white leather outfit embroidered with golden and green patterns.
The leaf-shaped pauldrons blended perfectly with the attire on her shoulders.
The outfit accentuated her figure flawlessly.
Her hands were clad in long white gloves, and the white corset had white and platinum ribbons embroidered on the sides and back.
Lucas was seeing for the first time just how good Noli’s figure was—curvy in all the right places.
Her legs were wrapped in long stirrup socks, primarily white with golden embellishments.
Below, Noli’s dainty feet were perfectly displayed.
The entire ensemble was stunning—anyone seeing a beautiful girl dressed like this wouldn’t help but be captivated.
“It’s been a few days.”
Noli greeted Lucas, but he clearly didn’t have the energy to respond.
What was with this outfit?
“Can I come in?”
“So, what’s with this look?”
Lucas poured her a glass of water and asked directly.
“Oh, this? Miss Ivina designed it for me. I still can’t get used to such a comfortable life, and I can’t return to my original tribe now, so I’ve decided to stay here.”
Ivina’s taste wasn’t bad, Lucas thought silently to himself.
“So, what are your plans going forward?”
“You said you want to save the world and that you need me. I’ve thought it over these past few days, and I’ve decided to join you.”