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[HSRGSS] Chapter 17: Mystery of Lucian
🕑 Added 2025-07-14 05:26:13 +0000 UTCCastorice looked completely dumbfounded, staring blankly at the flock of chattering little Tribios.
'Isn't it supposed to require gathering all twelve Coreflames to trigger Era Nova?'
'Then how could Lady Tribbie, Lady Trinnon, and Lady Trianne bring the dead back to life just by taking a ten-minute nap?'
'Do we even still need to continue this Flame-Chase Journey?'
As Castorice questioned life in her mind, Aglaea's fingers moved rapidly, sending out golden threads that shot out in every direction, covering the entire Hero's Bath.
'Unless Lucian is a demigod, there's no way he could pull two demigods into an illusion at the same time.'
Aglaea had no choice but to be cautious and suspicious.
She carried the future of all Chrysos Heirs on her shoulders, as well as the fate of the whole Amphoreus, so there was no room for even the slightest mistake.
Unfortunately, she found nothing, as every thread told her that everything was normal, with no anomaly.
"It's Trissha, Trilla, Trillie... They're all alive again!"
As Trianne shouted with excitement, Tribbie's eyes widened in disbelief, while Trinnon quietly said "Oh~" to express her surprise.
Very soon, a red figure emerged from behind the shadowy gate, surrounded by a group of little Tribios.
She was a tall, red-haired beauty, poised, elegant, and carried a noble air.
Who else but Mortis?
Tribbie: "Mother?"
Trianne: "It's Mother!"
Trinnon: "Mother is back..."
Upon seeing their mother, the three immediately rushed toward Mortis.
Aglaea hesitated, unsure whether to stop them.
She couldn't help it.
In her eyes, the current situation was extremely absurd and illogical, so she couldn't be sure if it was safe.
However, she couldn't bear to get in the way of their reunion.
As the three little Tribios ran toward Mortis, they suddenly began to emit glowing green specks of light before a surge of vibrant vitality burst out, causing the surrounding plants to grow rapidly.
In the next second, the other little Tribios experienced the same thing, and soon enough, the glowing specks gradually gathered, enveloping each little Tribios and forming a sphere of light.
Finally, the spheres merged into a single large one, then burst into points of light.
Now, the thousand little Tribios had vanished, replaced by a tall, graceful young woman with long, flowing red hair.
"Mother, the dream was real... Big Brother Lucian too..."
Tribios threw her arms around Mortis and spoke with tearful eyes.
As soon as Tribios returned to her true form, countless memories pieced themselves together, and her own power of Abundance was undeniable proof.
Meanwhile, Aglaea and Castorice were utterly speechless.
It was only natural.
They had never seen Tribios's true form before—only a few portraits in the history books.
To actually see a thousand little Tribios merge into the manifestation of the first demigod from a thousand years ago—how could they not be shocked?
"Could this not be an illusion... but the work of Thanatos?"
Aglaea murmured to herself, her mind racing.
She sifted through all the knowledge she had ever learned, but still found no answer.
Suddenly, she recalled a certain lavishly dressed man—a dangerous figure who had tried to use alchemy to bring his dead sister back to life.
Upon remembering that man, Aglaea couldn't help but think that Lucian was perhaps an alchemy master who had truly achieved resurrection.
If that man ever learned about this, wouldn't he turn the world upside down looking for Lucian?
As Aglaea pondered this, the Century Gate soon vanished, and everything around them became calm once more.
Only Aglaea, Castorice, Mortis, and Tribios remained in the Hero's Bath.
"Teacher..."
Aglaea called out to Tribios nervously, who immediately looked at her and smiled.
"Agy, you've worked hard all these years. It must be exhausting..."
Tribios walked over and gently hugged Aglaea.
Aglaea, suddenly being hugged, froze for a second before relaxing and closing her eyes.
Meanwhile, after observing the surroundings, Mortis looked at Castorice.
"Excuse me, what year is it now?"
Hearing Mortis's question, Castorice, knowing this beautiful woman was Tribios's mother, instinctively grew more reserved.
"It's Year 4929 of the Light Calendar."
"I see..." Mortis nodded slightly, sorting through the information in her mind. "It's been that long..."
At this moment, she had two sets of memories—one ending in 3750, when she fell off a cliff, and another ending in 3761, when her beloved left her and her daughter.
'Did I die of grief the day Lucian left?'
Mortis could not figure it out, no matter how hard she tried.
On the other hand, it was Tribios who seemed to know everything that had happened, simply because she had survived until now as Tribbie, Trianne, and Trinnon.
However, that was the first set of memories without Lucian, the memories of this life, while her other set of memories with Lucian, just like Mortis's, ended in 3761—the day he left.
Neither mother nor daughter could understand the truth behind this.
Perhaps, overcome with grief, they both cried themselves to death?
Otherwise, why would there be no memories at all after Lucian left them?
Regardless, there was one thing they could be certain of: Lucian definitely existed—the blessing of Abundance they possessed was proof of that.
"Teacher, could you tell us about your dream?"
Aglaea asked Tribios seriously.
Tribios didn't hide anything and told the story of herself and Lucian, including Aeon, Emanator, and Abundance.
"In that case, he will be a key force in the Flame-Chase Journey... I think we absolutely have to find him."
Soon after hearing Tribios's story, Aglaea immediately made up her mind.
Someone that powerful could definitely sway the outcome of the war.
If that so-called Emanator of Abundance joined them, wouldn't they just steamroll everything?
Maybe they could even take whichever Coreflame they wanted.
Could the Council of Elders possibly withstand the might of the legendary Butcher of Amphoreus?
Castorice also raised her hand in agreement.
"Just now, I sensed Thanatos's aura behind the gate." Castorice said with seriousness. "Maybe Lord Lucian knows where Thanatos is. We should try to find him."
"Actually... this won't be easy because he has left this world..." Tribios looked downcast, her longing for him obvious. "I don't know when he'll come back, and I don't even have a way to contact him."
Compared to Tribios, Mortis wasn't as affected because she had fewer memories and felt as if she had only said goodbye to Lucian yesterday.
Tribios, on the other hand, had endured a thousand years apart.
"No matter the case, it's worth celebrating that Teacher has regained her original power."
Aglaea planned to announce to everyone that the first demigod had returned.
===
At the same time, in the Grove of Epiphany, a man known as Anaxa was secretly flipping through ancient books in the archive, searching for records of alchemy.
In Amphoreus, human alchemy was forbidden, so he could only conduct his research in secret.
—In the Month of Balance, Year 3761, Divine Envoy Lucian executed over ten thousand nobles and officials, giving commoners the chance to receive an education.
—I once personally saw the holy maiden beheaded, only for the divine envoy to casually reattach her head, after which she could surprisingly walk and talk as usual, as if nothing had happened.
—Upon witnessing the divine envoy's power to reverse life and death, I was inspired to establish the discipline of alchemy.
—Sadly, my skills never matched his power.
"Heh, if this Lucian was really so incredible, wouldn't everyone know his name by now? How come I've never heard of him?"
Anaxa searched through more ancient books but never found the name 'Lucian' again.
He concluded that this must be a made-up legend—someone who had been mythologized far too much.
