Link turned back to the survivors, his face dead serious. "I need your help," he said. "The blade is sleeping, but it isn't dead. It responds to the spirit of Hyrule. To you."Vola didn't hesitate. She sheared her scimitar into the dirt and knelt by the stained weapon. Toren and the young woman exchanged a look, a flicker of renewed hope replacing their exhaustion, and quickly followed her lead. Together with Link, the four of them formed a tight circle around the Master Sword, placing their hands near the blade without touching the corrupting Malice."We haven't forgotten," Toren whispered, closing his eyes. "We still remember the light."The young woman began to hum an ancient, soft lullaby of the royal family. Vola focused her iron clad will, and Link channeled everything he had left. For a long, tense moment, nothing happened. The black fog pressed against the edges of the clearing.Then, a tiny, emerald-green spark flew out from the hollow of the Great Deku Tree. One of the Koroks had joined in. Then another. Soon, dozens of tiny wooden spirits were floating over, adding their faint, pure woodland magic to the circle.The dark, pulsing purple veins on the metal began to shudder. A brilliant, blinding white light suddenly burst from the crossguard, shattering the corruption like glass. The Malice evaporated into harmless gray steam, leaving the blade pristine, silver, and singing with a high, holy frequency.The blade of evil’s bane was awake.Link reached down and wrapped his fingers tightly around the leather hilt.The moment his skin made contact, a violent jolt of pure celestial energy surged up his arm. Link gasped, falling to his knees as the blinding white light raced up his forearm, engulfing his shoulder. But it didn't burn him. It felt like ice-cold mountain water rushing through a fever.The black, calcified skin began to peel away. The jagged, angry scars faded, replaced by clean skin and glowing, golden Sheikah runes that settled permanently into his forearm. The ancient Guardian injury that had paused his death for a century was completely gone. He was finally whole.He stood up, lifting the Master Sword high. The blade cast a brilliant, warm glow across the dead clearing, pushing the black fog far back into the trees. For the first time, the Koroks began to cheer.Link looked down at his healed arm, flexing his fingers, feeling the immense strength rushing back into his body. He looked at Vola, Toren, and the young woman, who were staring at him in absolute awe.They had a weapon. They had a healed hero. Now, they needed a path to the dark Princess.
Toren pointed a shaking finger at Link’s waist. "Look! The artifact—it's changing!"Link unclipped the Sheikah Slate. The fractured glass was no longer bleeding crimson static. Instead, the holy light of the Master Sword had surged into the device, repairing the digital grid underneath the cracks. A brilliant azure map of Hyrule bloomed across the screen.A single, golden coordinate pulse blinked wildly in the center of the Lanayru Promenade, right at the base of Mount Lanayru."That's the Spring of Wisdom," Toren murmured, leaning over the screen. "A hundred years ago, that was where the Princess went to awaken her sealing power. If she left a data log there before the Calamity took her, it might tell us exactly how to bypass the crimson lightning around the castle.""Then we move," Vola said, tightening her gauntlets. "Before the Calamity realizes the blade has been drawn."Leaving the cheering Koroks behind in their glowing sanctuary, the group navigated out of the clearing. With the Master Sword sheathed on his back, the black fog didn't just part for Link—it actively fled from him. They marched southeast, crossing the ash-choked canyons until the jagged, skeletal peaks of the Lanayru region rose before them like broken teeth.By the time they reached the stone arches of the promenade, the sky had grown terrifyingly dark. The permanent twilight was choking, and the smell of ozone filled the air.As they rounded the final cliffside leading to the snowy base of the mountain, they stopped dead in their tracks.The ancient stone archway leading to the spring was blocked. Standing guard in the freezing ash was a monstrous silhouette. It looked like a Hylian knight, but it was twice the size, its armor forged from jagged black iron and dripping with pulsing purple Malice. In its hands, it held a massive, rusted claymore.It was a Lynel-armored Iron Knuckle, a corrupted guardian created by the dark Princess to protect her secrets.The moment Link’s boot hit the snow, the giant armor creaked. Two glowing, blood-red eyes ignited behind the iron visor. It raised its massive claymore, the blade instantly igniting with a crackling, dark-red fire.
