Chapter 69: Under the Moonlight
I talked big in front of my companions, but there was still one piece of business left to settle in Falkreath.
"Why are we here?"
Serana tilted her head in confusion as I headed toward an unexpected location. Instead of answering, I simply told her to follow me and continued my descent into the basement of the building.
If Choi Ha-neul transforms into a Vampire Lord to threaten us, then I simply need to borrow the form of a monster myself to stand against him.
Did you guess it? That's right. I was on my way to meet 'him' in the Falkreath jail to become a werewolf.
I had already secured permission from the Jarl of Falkreath, so no one blocked our path.
Thump, thump.
The basement jail, echoing with our footsteps, was submerged in a strange silence amidst the damp, heavy air.
Reaching the iron bars of a solitary cell connected to a well, I tapped lightly on the metal with my fingertip and called out to the man leaning against the wall in deep contemplation.
The man glanced at us peering through the doorway, then slowly stood up and walked over.
"Have you come to gawp at the monster?"
The man's name was Sinding. He was imprisoned in this cold cell for the crime of brutally murdering a girl not even ten years old in Falkreath.
But that fact wasn't what mattered. What mattered was that he was a werewolf, blessed—or cursed—by one of the Daedric Princes, Hircine.
"Look, I've heard the gist of your situation."
"Sigh... I didn't mean for it to happen. I just lost my mind..."
Sinding’s gaze dropped to the floor, his expression sinking into darkness.
"But people wouldn't believe me. It’s all because of this ring."
"What ring?"
Serana asked, her curiosity piqued. Sinding held up his left hand, showing a ring on his index finger embossed with a wolf’s face.
"This is the Ring of Hircine. It holds the power to control the ability to transform into a beast."
"Fascinating. But then how did you kill a child? If what you say is true, wouldn't that ring prevent such an accident?"
Serana asked while staring at the ring.
"I thought it would, too. But the ring is cursed."
"What kind of curse?"
"Well..."
After that, the full story of the quest I already knew inside and out passed between Sinding and Serana, eventually leading the conversation toward 'Hircine’s Beast' lurking in the woods.
In the end, Sinding begged us to hunt the beast.
"Please, deliver this ring to Hircine. I’m counting on you."
Ding!
[Quest: Ill Met by Moonlight]
- Reward: 30 Stamina, 20 Health, Ring of Hircine.
It had been a while since a quest window popped up. Plus, the rewards were quite generous.
"Very well. I shall help you."
"Thank you. I'm sorry I have nothing to give you right now."
"Wait, I don't get this. Weren't we busy? Why do we have to help a person like that?"
While searching for Hircine’s Beast in the forest, Serana stopped in her tracks and interrogated me.
It was understandable. From her perspective—knowing nothing of quests or werewolves—my actions were bound to be incomprehensible.
"We need a way to counter Choi Ha-neul. One of those means is the blood of this man, Sinding."
In the original game, you have to complete The Companions' questline to gain the power of a werewolf.
You inherit the power through a ritual where you receive and drink the blood of a werewolf.
'In other words, if you know the method, there's no need to actually join The Companions.'
"So you’re saying you’re going to become a werewolf? And what guarantee is there that the man will cooperate?"
Serana’s sharp gaze focused on me.
The Sinding in the game was mild-natured and would easily comply with my request once the quest was over. But how was I supposed to explain that to Serana?
"Serana."
"Yeah?"
I chose my words carefully for a moment, then faced her with a serious expression.
"Just trust me this once. It’s hard to explain right now, but I need you to believe in me."
Was that too pushy?
"Trust you? Okay."
"If you're going to be like that, I'll go alone... what?"
"I said I'll trust you."
Serana replied with a casual smile as if it were no big deal.
"Uh... thanks."
'Was her personality always like this?'
I was momentarily flustered by her unexpected reaction, but as long as things were going smoothly, that was enough.
More than that, I noticed that Serana’s personality was gradually shifting away from the cynical, purely rational demeanor she had in the game.
In the original, she would open her heart to the Dovahkiin depending on the choices made during the questline, but currently, she seemed significantly more cheerful.
'The option to turn her human again later might actually be possible.'
I was lost in such idle thoughts when...
"Shh, I found it."
Serana whispered lowly, pointing a finger in one direction.
There stood a stag with white fur. It was much larger than a typical deer, and its coat was so snowy white that it stood out vividly even in the thick of the woods.
"Leave this to me."
I could have pulled out my bow, but for a single target, a crossbow with its higher stopping power was more suitable.
Click.
After loading a bolt into the crossbow, I held my breath and watched the stag’s movements.
The beast wandered the woods for a bit before stopping by a stream, seemingly thirsty.
At that moment, I pulled the trigger.
Thwack—Thud!
"Skree!"
The bolt cut through the air and pierced the beast’s temple with precision. The stag collapsed instantly with a single convulsion.
And then, by its corpse, another entity began to slowly manifest.
A translucent spirit in the form of a stag.
Serana and I approached the entity without letting our guard down.
"Greetings, Hunter."
"The deer is talking?" Serana muttered.
The spirit introduced himself as Hircine, the Hunter of Spirits, and claimed he had been watching us since we first spoke with Sinding.
I pulled out the ring I had received from Sinding and asked Hircine.
"Can you not remove the curse placed upon this ring?"
"Hmm..."
Hircine fell silent for a moment, looking down at us.
"I’ll have to think about it."
A moment later, he spoke again.
"Very well. I shall grant your request. Provided you serve me, of course."
Hircine set a condition. The command was to hunt down Sinding, who had fled to a sanctuary, and bring back his hide.
After finishing his speech, Hircine’s form began to fade.
"Keep in mind that there are many hunters other than you who follow me."
His final words lingered in the air like an echo.
However, one thing bothered me.
'He fled to a sanctuary?'
Serana and I immediately headed back to Falkreath.
"So it turned out like this in the end."
We went straight to the jail and looked into Sinding’s solitary cell.
But the place was already empty. The ceiling had been brutally torn open, and shattered debris was scattered across the cell floor.
I had expected this since the escape happened in the game too, but having to actually go and track him down felt like a massive chore.
"Whew..."
Nothing I can do. I just have to get it over with.
Quests are, by nature, basically a series of manual labor.
"Is this it?"
By the time we reached the sanctuary where Hircine said Sinding was hiding, the sun had already set, dyeing the sky orange.
'I guess I'll just finish this quest today and look for Dawnbreaker tomorrow.'
"The smell of blood is no joke," Serana said, slightly wrinkling her nose. Being a vampire, she was sensitive to the scent of blood permeating the air.
Just as she said, wet, dark red bloodstains were scattered all over the floor and walls from the entrance. As we stepped further into the cave, the situation was even more gruesome.
The base camp of the hunters Hircine mentioned had been obliterated; broken equipment and mangled corpses were strewn about in a mess.
"Ugh... cough..."
Amidst the carnage, a Khajiit hunter was barely clinging to life, groaning as he coughed up blood.
"Hey, are you okay?"
I quickly approached and spoke to him.
"The prey was strong... much stronger than us..."
His pupils trembled hazily.
"Where is he?"
"Over... over there...!"
Squeezing out his last bit of strength, the Khajiit hunter raised a hand and pointed in one direction into the darkness, then his head slumped as he drew his final breath.
At that moment, the bushes in the direction he pointed shook violently.
And a massive beast lunged out.
Serana immediately assumed a combat stance, condensing frost Magicka into an icicle in one hand and gripping a dagger in the other.
"Calm down! And listen to what I have to say!!"
But the beast didn't attack. Instead, it wanted to talk to us.
"If following Hircine is your choice, I won't stop you. But he is powerful."
"What do you want us to do?" I asked briefly.
"Help me."
Sinding’s eyes glinted.
"In exchange, I will become a powerful ally to you."
He added that since he could never return to live among humans anyway, he would never set foot in the outside world again once this was over.
[Quest: Ill Met by Moonlight]
- Reward for helping Sinding: 30 Stamina, 20 Health, Ring of Hircine
- Reward for killing Sinding: 20 Stamina, 30 Health, Savior’s Hide
'Ho, a branching path.'
Looking at the choices appearing before me, the corners of my mouth curled up slightly.
"What are you going to do?"
Serana asked before I even had time to think. As for what I'd do? The answer was already decided.
"Sinding, I’ll help you."
In an instant, a subtle look of relief flashed in Sinding’s eyes.
"I’m truly grateful! Then we must deal with the remaining hunters."
His gaze, glowing like a golden full moon, turned toward the darkness.
"Let us hunt together."
As he spoke, other signs of presence began to stir deep within the cave.
"Aaaaagh!!"
Sinding’s claws shredded the hunters. I was drenched in sweat. The hunters we fought were quite skilled, and since there were nearly ten of them, it was a grueling fight even though I had become quite strong.
'Now I know why the reward was so generous.'
[Quest Complete!]
The window confirming the mission's success popped up. I closed my eyes and meditated to check my status screen and verify if the rewards had been applied.
A nebula of green, red, and blue flowed through my mind, and numerical values appeared.
[Ryu Yong]
- Level: 27
Magicka: 310 / Health: 286 (+30) / Stamina: 351 (+20)
Perks Owned: Armsman (40%), Fighting Stance, Bladesman, Overdraw (60%), Eagle Eye, Critical Shot, Steady Hand, Juggernaut (20%), Agile Defender (20%), Stealth (20%), Haggling (20%), Novice Conjuration, Apprentice Conjuration, Summoner, Mystic Binding.
Remaining Perk Points: 9
Through leveling up, training, and quests, I had increased my stats to an incredible degree, more than what one would believe for a Level 27. I had taken many perks, but still had points to spare, so I saved a few for later.
One regrettable thing was that I had distributed my stats too evenly. To put it nicely, I was versatile; to put it harshly, I was in an ambiguous position.
'Regardless, I've become stronger, so that’s all that matters.'
Still, to think that even after getting this strong, I’d be completely helpless against Choi Ha-neul... just how powerful is that guy?
"Sinding, there’s one thing I’d like to ask of you."
Anyway, after the quest ended, I brought up my main business to Sinding, who was thanking us.
"Could you share some of your blood?"
"You want my blood?"
I explained the principle to him: that if we conducted a ritual of receiving and drinking werewolf blood at night, I could inherit his power just the same.
"Fine. For my savior, I will gladly grant such a request."
Sinding bit his own finger with his fangs.
It was already night by the time we finished the ritual and stepped out of the sanctuary. Appropriately enough, a cold full moon radiated a mesmerizing moonlight tonight.
'Shall I test if the blood I got from Sinding works well?'
Normally, one wouldn't revert from being a werewolf until a day had passed, but with the Ring of Hircine, I could control it as I pleased, so it wasn't a problem.
"Urgh!"
My skeleton shifted and expanded, and my muscles surged. My bulk grew to nearly 1.5 times its original size, and my skin was covered entirely in jet-black fur.
"Grrrrrr!"
After about five seconds, I finally became a complete werewolf with razor-sharp teeth and golden eyes.
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