"When I was very small, I conducted a ritual that no one knew about."
Lily recalled, speaking softly, "My sister Anya was an extraordinary person. She was also very diligent in her studies and quite fair in her dealings. At a very young age, she had declared her intent to save this country. I couldn’t say such things... at most, I only wished to see the springti once in my life."
"I wanted to know what ’birds singing and flowers fragrant’ ant, what a ’harvest’ was. These words I read in books, I didn’t know what they truly ant."
"But later... my sister had a formidable goal. She wanted to marry Duke Ivan. At that ti, she was only fourteen—impressive, wasn’t it?"
"Because she didn’t know when Duke Ivan would find a wife, she was sowhat anxious. She wanted to impress the Duke, to use her own strength to change Winter’s plight was exceedingly difficult. My sister was not without such talent... but she was too young, too small."
"My sister wanted to perform a forbidden ritual. To summon the Silver Baron and sell her ’life after the age of thirty’ in exchange for fifteen years of triple Wisdom. But the ritual had to be kept secret from our parents, so she had to collect the ritual materials herself. I was helping her gather them as well."
"But because I was clumsy, I accidentally took a branch of a spruce that had been dry for three years instead of a cedar; and then I accidentally cut my own thumb, causing the Ceremonial Knife to be sared with blood... leading to the complete failure of my sister’s ritual."
"My sister was not a Transcendent, and the price of failure was death. The chaotic Curse Binding damaged her lungs... and I was sowhat panicked at the ti, so I used the remaining materials my sister had left to perform the ritual again, successfully summoning the Silver Baron."
At this point, Lily showed a smile that was either bitter or nostalgic, "My sister had just died not long ago... the Silver Baron truly is a fair deity. I saved her life at the cost of a third of my own lifespan; and with another third, I obtained for my sister five years of double Wisdom."
"Fortunately, the fact that we two conducted the ritual in secret was never discovered by our parents. Yet... my lifespan is very short, and if I had stayed at ho, it’s certain... no, definitely that I would die before my parents."
"I didn’t want to witness their sorrow for . Moreover, I wanted to see that place that blooms in spring like in the books. I wanted to see the legendary sea of flowers before I die..."
"Coincidentally... four years later, my friend Euphie, she wasn’t satisfied with the marriage her family, the lvin clan, had arranged for her—’Old Crow’ Nolan Geraint, was a man almost fifty, and Euphie was only sixteen."
"Aside from this, Euphie was discontent with the entire lvin family. She believed they only treated them as tools for passing on the lineage, their every move, even their diet and daily life, needed to be arranged for them, as if they were imprisoned. She was the sole resister of these traditions, and perhaps for this reason, her family decided to marry her off to Noah... to cast her off to a place out of sight."
"While Earl Nolan simply hoped to have a child with lvin bloodline. The divine blood of the lvins could give birth to a wizard progeny... he rely hoped for a child with Transcendent talents."
"—And the bloodline of the Rasputins could also achieve this."
"So Euphie and I made a deal... when Euphie was to wed, I would leave a letter pretending to run away from ho. In fact, I would take Euphie’s place and marry into Noah, while Euphie would take my na and go to the Underworld... to venture in my stead."
Speaking of which, Lily showed a tender smile, "Initially, I was also very nervous. At the beginning, I just wanted to fulfill my own little wish... and incidentally, not let my parents grieve for ."
"But then I found out... Nolan was truly good to ."
"He was the Earl and the intelligence chief of Noah, father of two children. Yet he was such a gentle man."
"He rembered my birthday, he took for walks in the fields of flowers... and when I accidentally cried out, he would sit quietly by my side, patting my back and holding ."
"I really liked the fields of flowers in Noah, silver-purple... very beautiful. Those were the flowers he showed . More beautiful than the ones I saw in books, than the ones I dread of."
"I also really liked Noah. A city with spring, sumr, and autumn... a place where a girl can wear skirts above the knees. And I hope that one day Winter can also enjoy such a blooming spring... I wish for my sister to see that beautiful, silver-purple sea of flowers."
"Of course, it’s just a thought. It’s sothing I cannot achieve. My sister will beco the wife of Duke Ivan... and a war broke out between Winter and Noah."
"Perhaps one day, when the war has ended, my sister as the Duchess could be sent to Noah. By then, I might be able to see her... to give her this ring. If not..."
At this point, Lily showed a faint, almost glowing, happy smile, "If I am fortunate at the ti of my death, that my sister, my father, and my mother are still alive... please tell them that I was very happy."
"And... I am sorry."
She sat contentedly in the chair, hands placed upon her knees. Tilting slightly forward.
...I see.
Annan couldn’t help but take a deep breath.
He didn’t say anything, only his gaze silently softened.
For so reason, his first reaction was... to want to thank the old Crow.
"The following part is the secret stored within this ring. Please consult the index and store the necessary sections."
Lily’s voice beca formulaic:
"First: The three-eyed Crow and Cyclops Crow, as well as Noah’s intelligence-gathering model;
"Second: Intelligence on the noble families of the Noah Kingdom, Earl level and above;
"Third: The secrets of the various ministers of the Noah Kingdom;
"Fourth: Intelligence related to the False God ’Faceless Poet’;
"Fifth: The process of the ’Ritual: Forbidden Exchange’ and the mysterious knowledge it requires..."
Further down were the knowledge about various rituals... and the intelligence on Curse Bindings she had collected.
Annan didn’t filter any information but chose to absorb all the knowledge.
Although a considerable part of these materials overlapped with what he already knew—such as the composition of the three-eyed Crow, the relationship between the Faceless Poet, and the Geraint family—there were many details that were exactly what Annan lacked and urgently needed.
That information would provide Annan with the ability to help Kafney.
The remaining rituals weren’t too nurous. At least they weren’t so burdenso as to feel unbearable... after all, he was now a soul of the silver rank.
And as Annan stood there, quickly absorbing all the knowledge, Lily suddenly spoke again, "If possible, after you’ve absorbed this knowledge, please go and see my son, his na is Tan Juan Geraint.
"This is a ring made together by Euphie and . With this ring... he can beco the Hand of Winter. I always feel that Lord Benjamin is not so simple... he might not be able to take care of Tan Juan until adulthood. If he is not doing well in Noah, give this ring to him... With my half of the bloodline, he will be accepted by Archduke Ivan once he becos the Hand of Winter.
"This is the last guardianship of a negligent mother.
"If he has already t with misfortune... then this is a gift for you. Thank you for being willing to listen to for so long.
"I hope you can forget ."
And after Lily’s last words fell, her phantom image completely vanished before Annan.
The introduction of this ring had changed again:
[Lily’s Love]
[Type: Ring/Amulet (Gold)]
[Description: Once Lily Rasputin’s ring of secrets, the knowledge within has been completely extracted.]
[Effect: When equipped, spells from the Disabling School below the silver rank have their cost halved; when struck by a fatal attack, automatically casts "Ritual: Precise Transposition."]
[Cost: The bearer will be afflicted with the Curse Binding "Hand of Winter."]
[Precise Transposition: You will be imdiately transported to a pre-determined safe location.]
[Hand of Winter: You must obey the commands of the "Heart of Winter" bearer.]
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