Elden Lord of Cinders

In front of the Grand Library at Raya Lucaria Academy...

A figure in blue and a figure in purple stood on opposite sides, quietly watching each other. The air between them felt... complicated.

How to put it...

The relationship between Ranni and Trina was a little delicate.

Not that there had ever been any real conflict between them, unlike with Old Margit. In fact, although they were technically sisters, they barely knew each other, let alone had any kind of bond.

But the real issue wasn't between Ranni and Trina—it was between Ranni and Trina's other half: Miquella.

To put it simply...

One major reason Ranni initiated the Night of Black Knives was her refusal to be bound by the old Empyrean-Lord system or to accept a "Lord" appointed by the Two Fingers.

And the roots of that mindset... besides her own nature and the influence of her royal lineage, were—at least in part—shaped by Miquella.

Freedom, tolerance, love...

She'd spoken a few times with that brother who oddly clung so closely to her own brother. Those conversations didn't lead to any dramatic epiphany, but they did nudge her thoughts in a new direction.

During the chaos of the Night of Black Knives, Ranni claimed to be the mastermind. But that night was a complete mess, with countless powers secretly meddling behind the scenes. Even she couldn't fully reconstruct everything that happened.

Still, one thing she was sure of: in that bloody, chaotic night, traces of a certain delicate little hand were unmistakable.

Then came the Shattering.

Ranni's open strategy had been disrupted by two demigods who emerged from the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds. But even if they hadn't broken through to the Royal Capital, the combined power of the three siblings of the Carian line wouldn't have crumbled so easily—they could've at least held the line from behind the city walls.

Until Malenia, the Valkyrie, appeared—and brought down Scarlet Rot.

Radahn, the Starscourge, her brother and the mightiest demigod, was left crippled, infected by Scarlet Rot. His mind shattered, he devolved into a beast that fed on corpses, dragging the entire region of Caelid into a living nightmare.

Before that, her other brother, Rykard—more scholar than warrior—had already been purged by the Royal Capital's forces. Backed into a corner, in desperation, he tried to consume the Great Serpent... only to be consumed by it instead. Now he lingered as a grotesque hybrid of man and serpent.

So while Morgott had been the visible obstacle to her plans, the one who truly wrecked everything from the shadows was that explosive appearance by the Valkyrie.

At this point, someone might ask, "Wasn't that Malenia's doing? What does Miquella have to do with it?"

Well, Malenia has another title—"Blade of Miquella."

Simply put: she only acts on Miquella's orders.

Now, looking back—from her yearning for freedom, to the traces left from the Night of Black Knives, to Malenia's sudden arrival, and so many other little details she once overlooked...

Miquella—born with a flaw that prevented him from growing up, gifted with the power of charm, and long regarded by many as pure and kind...

It felt like he'd been plotting something all along.

Ranni never saw herself as particularly good, and she'd admittedly used Miquella before, so she didn't feel in a position to judge him. But still, for someone who'd covertly pulled so many strings—and ended up being the root of her current ruin—there was no way she could feel anything remotely positive toward him.

That's why, the moment she laid eyes on Trina, her first reaction was one of caution and wariness.

After all, the two were one and the same—who knew if this was another trap?

But soon enough, she realized something was off.

Because the Trina standing before her really was just Trina. Not a single trace of Miquella lingered on her.

Had they separated?

Ranni stared at Trina, momentarily unsure what to make of it.

Opposite her, Trina was also watching.

Unlike Ranni, however, once her initial daze faded, a clear look of wariness and hostility appeared on Trina's small face.

Ranni wasn't surprised. Her reputation among her siblings had never been great.

And with Miquella having recently triggered that explosion involving Malenia and Radahn—whatever the reason might've been—it was likely directed at her. If that was the case, then it made perfect sense for his other half to be openly hostile.

Or at least, that's what Ranni assumed. The real reason... who knew?

Either way, after a moment of silent staring, neither of them made a move to speak. For various reasons, they both turned their gazes away.

Now wasn't the time for infighting. And even if it were, the friction between them was nothing compared to what she'd dealt with before. It barely even registered.

Once it became clear the two sisters had no intention of interacting, Lloyd didn't linger. He moved ahead, heading straight into the Grand Library where the moonlight had flared earlier.

This time, there was no cutscene—just a full-scale scene.

Riding up the classic black elevator, he emerged into a space encrusted with crystal, a vast library-like chamber.

He pushed open the door, thick with crystalline growths, and the interior of the Grand Library unfolded before him.

It looked like some kind of ritual sacrifice.

There were the true bodies of the Twin Moon Knights who had fought Lloyd earlier. Primeval Sorcerers Azur and Lusat. Countless uncrystallized sorcerers. And figures that looked like magical knights.

All of them knelt on one knee in a circle around the central figure. From their spines, golden chains extended and connected to a golden amber egg cradled in that central figure's arms, pouring magic into it.

At the center, the one being worshipped—was the Queen of the Full Moon, Rennala. Ranni's mother.

She floated in midair, eyes closed, surrounded by a ring of golden barriers. She appeared to be asleep. Even as Lloyd and the others approached, she gave no reaction.

"Mother..."

Ranni spoke without thinking. Her tone was gentler than usual.

The woman within the golden light stirred slightly, eyelids twitching—but they did not open.

"Ranni... my child..."

"Don't... come any closer..."

A faint voice rang out as she recognized who stood before her.

"Leave... now..."

"He... is far stronger than we imagined..."

Hearing her mother's trembling whisper, and feeling the pain and concern laced within, Ranni froze.

She always told others she was a cold-hearted witch, someone who had cast everything aside and would betray everything in the end. She acted like she was above all attachments.

But who had it been, even while in mortal danger, who left behind a clone just to stay by her mother's side?

Who, after finishing her plans and knowing full well her former follower had likely fallen, still wanted someone to go back and say goodbye?

Who claimed she needed no lord, said that the loneliness beyond the dark would be hers alone, then secretly tossed him the key to a chest holding a wedding ring—and, the moment he put it on, gifted him the Dark Moon Greatsword, a weapon that had taken immense time and power to prepare?

Even if people in the Lands Between still debated whether the Nox civilization had really been crushed from above, at least one thing Sellen said had been true:

If Carian sorcery were half as tough as their rhetoric, the Nox wouldn't have been wiped out so easily.

And now...

Looking at her mother, hearing her faint, pain-filled murmur...

Even though Ranni felt the dread behind those words, even though she knew the most rational thing to do was turn and walk away—

She still drew her staff, pointed it at her mother cloaked in golden light, and said, solemnly.

"In the name of Witch Ranni, I command you—"

"I'm talking to you, Seath."

Ranni had only just begun when Lloyd stepped forward, casually rapping his knuckles against the golden barrier.

"I'm at the Grand Library. Where are you?"

Silence followed for a moment, thick and heavy.

Then—something clicked. The moonlight surged to life.

Its brilliance shot straight through the roof of the Grand Library, piercing the sky itself and dulling the stars above.

Inside the golden barrier, the Queen of the Full Moon slowly opened her eyes and looked down at the figure below.

The moment she recognized that familiar face, she let out a roar.

"Lloyd!"

It was a sound Ranni had never heard before.

As a demigod of the Golden Order, she'd encountered dragons plenty of times. She had even been in contact with the Ancient Dragons before the Night of Black Knives.

But even then—never, not once, had she heard a dragon release a roar like this.

Agony. Despair. Madness. Rage. Hatred.

Every twisted, violent emotion imaginable was packed into that one scream.

Its sheer force shattered the crystal coating the library, and the entire academy quaked in its wake.

Then, amid the moonlight and the roar, space itself began to fracture.

The Queen of the Full Moon started to transform.

Her body swelled. Her robes strained and lifted. White, membranous wings unfurled from her back. Scales crept along her arms and legs.

Her eyes turned to vertical slits. Crystalline soulmasses began to cluster around her staff. Even the amber egg she cradled trembled, as the golden shackles attached to it snapped one after another.

When the final shackle shattered and the golden barrier vanished, the Queen—now a white dragon—landed with a crash, shattering what remained of the space around her.

When Lloyd opened his eyes again, he was standing before an endless sea.

At the sea's edge, a full moon floated—crystallized and massive.

The transformed queen stood before that moon and raised her staff.

Chains—those same ones that had once bound her—rose again. But this time, they were hers to command, wrapping around the souls drawn into her service.

Those who had once shackled her now appeared here in spirit, summoned to fight on her behalf.

The Twin Moon Knights, Azur and Lusat, royal Carian Knights, and countless hooded scholars from the Academy...

She had altered Lloyd's rules—an act that could only be described as blatant cheating—and summoned them all.

Just as Lloyd was about to switch characters and ring the Spirit Calling Bell, a hand reached out beside him.

"Rest now, all of you."

For the first time in a Souls game, Lloyd saw something impossible—a negative FP bar.

Draining his Focus Points completely, Trina raised her hand. Purple light coiled around her wrist, then spread outward, coating the golden chains behind each soul with a soft violet glow.

And with that...

They slept.

Freed from the chains, the summoned spirits dissolved into nothing.

"Lord Lloyd, this is all I can do."

She spoke quietly. Then, after gently brushing his cheek, she leaned onto his shoulder...

And fell asleep.

Even drooled a little.

After confirming that Trina had only passed out and there was nothing seriously wrong, Lloyd, with a slightly conflicted expression, returned her to his inventory.

Then, he turned back toward the Queen of the Full Moon.

Or rather—

Seath the Scaleless.

"It's been a while..."

The faint ember glow on his body flickered as Lloyd pulled out the Moonlight Greatsword and waved it before Seath, meeting the dragon's hateful gaze.

"Glad to see you're still so full of energy."

Boom—

A pillar of pure destruction fired back in response.

It erupted without warning, so fast it was nearly invisible—but Lloyd, as if expecting it, stepped forward and tilted his body just enough to let it skim past him harmlessly.

"Tch... laser beams, huh? Brings back memories."

Just as he spoke, a frigid Dark Moon dropped from the sky and smashed directly into Seath's head.

Bang!

Even though the vessel was her own mother's body, Ranni didn't hesitate. She wasn't the type to get tangled up in sentiment.

Either it got out of her mother's body—or they'd be destroyed together. She wasn't about to hold back.

"Lloyd!"

But strangely, despite being struck by Ranni, the dragon roared out Lloyd's name again.

And usually, when a boss lets out a roar like that, it means an attack is coming.

But Ranni saw nothing—no casting, no charging, no signs of a strike...

Wait. No!

A sudden premonition hit her. She looked up.

The night sky, which had been pitch-black, was now dotted with countless white specks—growing rapidly in size.

They weren't stars.

They were spears—massive, soul-crystal spears formed from Homing Crystal Soulmass.

Boom. Boom. Boom—

Larger than a man, the crystal spears rained down like divine retribution, covering nearly the entire ocean in a flash.

Explosions, crashes, and the scatter of souls.

Destruction spread like wildfire.

Ranni had planned to counter with a Dark Moon, but before she could act, a great shield suddenly rose in front of her, blocking the barrage of crystal spears entirely.

"I can't use too much power here. If I go all out, it might use the chaos to escape to the Lands Between," Lloyd explained while deflecting the incoming projectiles.

"But you're different. You carry a stable Law—and you're linked to the Queen of the Full Moon. You won't destabilize this place. So go all out. Leave the rest to me."

As he spoke, Full Moon Seath raised its hand.

A massive dragon claw, large enough to blot out the sky, materialized and came crashing down.

Boom!

Right after that, a beam of searing white destruction followed. All six of the white wings on its back flared to life, firing off a storm of Glintstone Meteors straight toward them.

But once the light and magic cleared, the scene it expected didn't appear.

The two figures remained unscathed—and had entered an unusual formation.

Lloyd stood on the surface of the sea, shield in one hand, Moonlight Greatsword in the other—like a hero striding across the waves.

Behind him, Ranni had wrapped both arms around his neck, her other two holding her staff. She leaned against his back, like a princess ready to elope with her chosen knight.

Then, together, they looked up at the full moon dragon before them.

"It's time."

"Ranni."