Elden Lord of Cinders

"...Everyone's been grafted."

Lloyd had just stepped into the run-down shack when he heard the red-hooded girl's voice. Her head was bowed, as if she were speaking to him—or maybe just talking to herself.

"The ones who came with me to the Lands Between… the ones who fought for me..."

"Heh... Only to have their arms taken. Their legs taken. Even their heads...taken. Taken and stuck to the spider. Did you know? If you're grafted by the spider, you become a chrysalid."

"It's quite the lark, when you think about it, don't you think?"

Lloyd lit the Site of Grace and paused in thought.

"Honestly, they reminded me more of sandbags. They even feel similar when you hit them."

"...?"

The red-hooded girl—Roderika—looked up at him, hesitant.

"Um… have you seen the 'Grafted' too?"

"What's grafting?"

Lloyd stared at her, puzzled.

He'd heard people in Limgrave mention the word often. Even Kalé said Godrick was 'grafted.' But he never really understood what it meant.

"You don't know what grafting is?" Roderika blinked. "Then what were you talking about earlier...?"

"Oh, I passed through this village once. They liked chopping people up, stuffing the pieces into shrouds, and hanging them. There were so many, you couldn't even walk through without stepping over them."

As he spoke, a glint of nostalgia flashed in Lloyd's eyes.

"But honestly, yeah, there were a lot of corpses, and they had all kinds of setups—like hanging limbless bodies from beams, locking people in cages to rot, or roasting them from trees. But hey, no poison swamps or dung pits, and sometimes you'd even find some good loot in there. Once you got used to it, it wasn't half bad…"

"..."

Is this guy okay?

Roderika decided to change the subject.

"You look like a Tarnished. If you're heading that way, are you going to Stormveil Castle?"

"Yeah." Lloyd nodded. "Figured I'd take a look."

He still felt underleveled to take on a Demigod, but he'd explored most of the nearby areas—might as well go see for himself. Worst case, he could just "abandon all that pomp and ceremony" and be done with it.

"Did you believe the sweet words of that white-masked man? Or… do you want to become part of a spider? If that's the case, then you're just like me."

Her body trembled slightly at the thought.

"But I don't have the courage. Having my arms and legs chopped off, my head too… it's terrifying. I really want to be like everyone else, but I'm just too scared. I'm too weak..."

"Hey, there's nothing weak about that. I still don't know what grafting really is, but I know I don't want my limbs cut off."

Seeing her tremble, Lloyd thought for a moment, then reached out his hand.

A warm, bright flame flickered into life in the air.

Roderika stopped shaking and stared at the fire.

"What is this...?"

"It's something created by a bunch of people who feared loneliness, who longed for family and warmth."

Lloyd smiled at her. "Feeling better?"

"...Yeah."

She didn't know why, but the warmth of the fire truly comforted her. Almost without thinking, she whispered,

"The person who came up with this spell must be really kind…"

"Not exactly. That bunch of maniacs were killers through and through—even among lunatics, they were extreme. I'm actually kinda scared of them."

One of them even had a "Hornet Ring +22." A single parry and riposte from that guy could full-to-zero you in an instant.

Roderika didn't know what to say after hearing that. Even the way she looked at the fire began to change.

"You really are… quite the strange one."

After a long silence, Roderika finally spoke again. Then, after a moment of hesitation, she pulled out a handful of ashes.

"Would you take this child with you on your journey? You seem so brave. It would be too sad to have her follow someone as cowardly as me. Besides… her spirit seems to like you."

Lloyd nodded, reached out to take the ashes, and a system prompt popped up.

[Spirit Jellyfish Ashes acquired]

Then, Roderika lowered her head again.

"Please take care. If you're going to Stormveil Castle, could you pass along a message for me? 'I love you all. I'm still afraid, but one day… I'll be just like you.'"

"Sure." Lloyd nodded, though he couldn't help but grumble inwardly.

Miyazaki, are you out of content? Why is there a fetch quest every few steps? What's next, unblocking someone's toilet?

Still, before leaving, Lloyd glanced around.

Limgrave looked relatively peaceful—not as chaotic as the Weeping Peninsula—and the surroundings seemed safe enough.

But just to be safe, and because there was no reason not to, Lloyd turned and called out that name again.

"Chaos."

"My kin, I…"

"Keep an eye on her for me."

Pointing at Roderika, Lloyd blew the Spectral Steed Whistle and rode off, leaving behind a subtly expressioned Melina.

Only Chaos, wearing a similarly complex expression, and a trembling Roderika remained behind, silently staring at each other.

...

After leaving Roderika, Lloyd followed the Guidance of Grace once more.

It didn't take long before he saw a castle shrouded in misty wind. There were barricades outside, soldiers stationed along the road, and a massive ballista inside.

He dealt with them effortlessly, entered through a small side gate, lit a Site of Grace in a nearby room, and walked forward—only to find a wide open space, completely unguarded.

No enemies here? Gotta be a boss.

Sure enough, after a few more steps, a dignified voice rang out just as he expected.

"Tarnished—"

From atop the castle, a towering figure appeared, holding a staff and sporting horns like those of a Misbegotten.

"Driven by the fire of foolish ambition, you dare dream of claiming the Elden Ring..."

Boom—

The massive figure leapt down from above, landing before Lloyd with a shockwave that stirred the wind.

Then he rose, slowly, gazing at Lloyd with a heavy tone.

"Then I shall extinguish it all—your fire, your delusions. I am Margit, the Fell Omen, and I will see it done."

"Didn't catch that."

Lloyd shook his head, drawing his Bloodhound's Fang.

"So basically, we're fighting."

In response, a spear came crashing down from above.

Boom!

Debris flew—but it missed.

Margit followed up with a sweeping strike, but Lloyd had anticipated it. Using the Ash of War on his Bloodhound's Fang, he dodged and slashed back.

Seeing a huge chunk of Margit's health vanish, Lloyd paused for a moment.

Hold on... are your stats kinda low?

He restored some stamina, dodged the next attack, then repeated his combo—Ash of War, dash in, slash.

Two more hits, and Margit's health dropped below half, triggering the second phase.

Which… wasn't anything special.

Sure, Margit got in a hit using a move Lloyd hadn't seen before—something with a fast-slow combo—but that was it.

Lloyd countered with two more Bloodhound Fang combos. After another couple slashes, Margit's health hit zero.

That's it?

Looking at Margit—half-kneeling, cane planted before him, eyes fixed on him—Lloyd was about to lower his weapon when a line surfaced in his mind.

When the Ashes are two, a flame alighteth.

In a place called the Painted World, there was once a nun who walked barefoot through the snow. Defeat her twice, and she'd give you a reward.

Usually, rewards dropped after a boss died. And bosses typically only had two phases.

But just when you claimed your prize, equipped the Mimic Head and the Shield of Want—ready to grind some extra runes—the corpse would rise again at those very words.

Stronger than ever.

Exactly like what was happening in front of him.

"Beneath the ashes, all life returns to chaos."

The voice came from Margit's throat—but it wasn't his voice.

As it echoed, golden flames ignited from the Omen horn atop Margit's head—or perhaps it was a blessing horn now.

"The law is absolute. The flame of chaos… must be extinguished."

A golden Law of Regression circle flared behind him. Its light spilled outward, wrapping Margit in brilliance. From his back, wing-like root branches spread.

"Hey hey hey, mind if I join in?"

His staff shattered, revealing a black, twisted blade beneath—now engulfed in vivid red Bloodflame.

'Margit' lifted his head, body wrapped in three distinct forces, radiating an overwhelming, terrifying pressure.

Lloyd sighed, staring at the now fully restored health bar.

Figures. How could a city ruled by such a powerful Demigod be easy? Even the gatekeeper boss has a third phase and looks insane. Definitely not a place for someone at his level.

Just as he was about to swap to his main build and "abandon all these formalities," a prompt appeared.

[Spirit "Melina" has been summoned]

"Huh? You came?"

Surprised, Lloyd turned to the golden spirit now standing beside him.

Melina said nothing. She simply looked at the 'Margit' before them, and silently drew her ceremonial dagger.

Lloyd hesitated, then sheathed the formalities he'd halfway tossed, pulled out the Spirit Calling Bell, and summoned the "Leonine Misbegotten Ashes" he'd received earlier.

At last, he took out the staff Sellen had given him—one hand on the staff, the other gripping his blade. With Melina and the summoned spirit at his back, he looked toward the enemy shrouded in swirling tricolor energy.

"Whatever."

"Let's see how this goes."