PinkSnake - Elden Ring First Flame - 448

Chapter 448: I’m the Older Sister

The last glow of sunset poured through the skylight in the roof, forming a golden shaft of light that caught the dust drifting through the room.

The motes floated slowly in the glow, like tiny fairies dancing in midair.

The rubble that had once filled the room had already been cleared away, leaving only papers scattered across the floor.

A massive chandelier hung from the ceiling. Its light was somewhat dim, but it still illuminated the entire room.

Several Glintstones had been hung on the walls as makeshift lamps, giving off a soft radiance that lit the rows of bookshelves.

This was the highest point of the Raya Lucaria Academy of Magic, and also the place where the Queen of the Full Moon recuperated. The Grand Library of Raya Lucaria.

A tall woman knelt on the floor, wearing a golden crown curved like a crescent moon. Her magnificent blue Raya Lucarian Robe was adorned with runes of the starry sky and the moon.

Her face was pale, as cold and distant as the moon that hung in the night sky, yet her expression was faintly dazed.

“Mother.”

A gentle voice rang out in the room. It belonged to Ranni, the Lunar Princess.

She stood before the tall woman, her figure petite yet remarkably straight and composed.

Her mother, of course, could only be the legendary Queen of the Full Moon, Renna.

Conquering the Magic Academy had taken little more time than conquering Nokstella.

To Ancient Dragons and Flying Dragons, the Magic Academy’s towering terrain was no different from flat ground. Faced with two demigod-level Ancient Dragons and Ranni, a true Demigod, the magic professors had no way to reverse the tide.

The war dragged on until the very end. When the situation became extremely unfavorable for the magic professors, they even tried to take the Queen hostage in a desperate bid to turn things around.

But they had never expected the Lunar Princess to temporarily take control of her mother’s body.

Controlling her mother’s body, Ranni unleashed a “Full Moon” that blasted three magic professors into dust, and blew away more than half of the Grand Library along with them.

“What a beautiful Amber Egg. I can feel the divine authority of the Elden Ring in it. It really is a genuine Great Rune.”

Trina rode atop a massive red wolf. The great red wolf leaped up from the cracked wall, and her gaze fell on the golden-yellow Amber Egg in the Queen’s arms.

Ranni could not help furrowing her brow slightly. She felt nothing. This was the difference between an Empyrean and a god. After all, Trina was a bona fide pseudo-god.

“This is a gift Father gave Mother.” Ranni looked at Trina, but her gaze only skimmed over her before quickly moving away.

An unnatural look flashed across her face, and there was a trace of evasion in her eyes. None of it escaped Trina’s notice.

“But it is also Her Majesty the Queen’s shackle,” Trina said with a pout. Was this half-sister of hers showing off?

What was so impressive about that? Her father and mother might be the same person, but in the end, hadn’t Father still been stolen away by Mother?

Ranni, however, had no interest in pondering profound questions like “Is Father Mother, and is Mother Father?” Instead, she frowned.

“Are you saying Mother became like this because of the Amber Egg Father gave her?” Ranni asked in disbelief.

“You once possessed a Great Rune yourself, so you should understand what it is. It is a fragment of the Elden Ring, not some ornament to show off. It is the outward manifestation of divine authority. No matter how powerful Her Majesty the Queen is, she is still ultimately human, not a god. It is only natural that it could affect her, isn’t it?” Trina said.

“But why would Father do that? He clearly loved Mother so much!” Ranni’s voice grew agitated. She could not believe her father would do such a thing.

Trina sighed and said slowly, “Perhaps Father truly did love Her Majesty the Queen, and he loved all of you as well.” Her voice was calm and gentle.

Ranni’s breathing quickened. She did not seem satisfied with Trina’s answer and pressed her. “Then why? Why would he do this?”

Trina fell silent for a moment, then continued.

“Suppose Father had to choose between you, Radahn, Rykard, me, Malenia, and Her Majesty the Queen on one side, and the Golden Order on the other. Which side do you think he would choose?”

At that question, Ranni’s body shook violently. Her breathing suddenly became difficult, as if someone had seized her throat.

Of course she knew the answer. There was no need to think about it. Father would definitely choose the Golden Order.

In Father’s heart, the Golden Order was everything. It was the very meaning of his life.

If Father would truly have chosen Mother and their children, he would not have abandoned them back then to marry Marika.

She and her brothers knew perfectly well that in Father’s heart, nothing could ever be more important than the Golden Order.

“I know Her Majesty the Queen is powerful. Even Father, leading the invincible forces of the Golden Dynasty, failed to defeat her. But what if Father believed Her Majesty the Queen’s power had grown strong enough to threaten the Golden Order?”

A trace of awe entered Trina’s voice, but she immediately changed course.

“Her Majesty the Queen fought her way out of an age of chaos among the gods. What could she not have experienced over thousands of years? She may indeed have loved Father, but was Father’s departure really enough to shatter the Queen’s will?”

Their group of Demigods were all strange children, and Trina felt their parents bore a great deal of responsibility for how they had turned out.

Counting Morgott and the other Demigod bloodlines unknown and unacknowledged by the world, there were as many as ten first-generation Demigods. Yet among them, they could not even piece together a single normal pair of parents.

Ranni’s breathing gradually quickened, not because Trina’s words had angered her, but because she actually felt that what Trina said made a great deal of sense.

After a long silence, Ranni finally calmed herself a little and said tentatively, “Maybe... we could try separating the Amber Egg from Mother?”

“It’s not that simple. The status of the Elden Ring is not something an Empyrean or a pseudo-god can casually contend with. Besides, this is a contingency Father left behind. Let’s wait until our Lord of Cinder returns.”

Our Lord of Cinder? How sickeningly sweet.

Ranni’s small face flushed faintly despite herself, but she quickly came back to her senses, and her brows drew together again.

She suddenly realized she seemed to have fallen into Trina’s trap.

“Are you trying to make Nolan take this Great Rune?”

Not only had this sister seduced her man, she was even plotting to seize her family property!

“I admit I do have that selfish motive, but the power of a True God’s Divinity is something only Nolan is qualified to handle. Have you forgotten how we walked out of the Gate of Divinity back then?” Trina asked.

Trina’s honesty moved Ranni, but she was still conflicted. After all, it was something Father had left to Mother.

“We’ll be family from now on. You really don’t need to agonize over it so much,” Trina said with a smile, seeming to see right through Ranni’s thoughts.

Your dad is my dad, and your mom is also my dad. There’s no need to wait until later. We were family to begin with, Ranni silently grumbled.

Seeing that Ranni still said nothing, Trina sighed and leaned mysteriously toward her ear.

“The Elden Ring is what Nolan wants. If he wants it, I’ll make sure he gets it. If you agree, I can accept you as my little sister.”

Ranni instantly understood what Trina meant. Her face turned bright red, and her heart began racing uncontrollably.

But before she could even feel happy, she quickly realized something was wrong.

I’m the older sister, aren’t I?