Elden Lord of Cinders

"What's wrong?"

The Formless Mother noticed something off about Lloyd.

"Uh, well, how should I put this..."

Lloyd paused as he looked at the giant turtle in front of him.

"I guess I have a bit of psychological trauma when it comes to marriage..."

Trauma about marriage? Isn't that supposed to be a joyful thing?

At that, not just the Formless Mother and the turtle, even Melina turned to look at him.

Seeing how curious they all were, Lloyd thought for a moment, then pulled out a green-blue greatsword with a ring-shaped hilt.

"In my memory, weddings involve this thing called a contract sword..."

"Isn't that normal?"

The Formless Mother gave him a puzzled look.

"Using symbolic items or exchanging gifts at weddings is pretty standard, right? Or... did something happen during the ceremony?"

"No."

Lloyd shook his head and made a downward stabbing motion with the contract sword.

"It's not symbolic, and it's not a gift."

"The bride lies there with a white cloth over her face, and then I stab her like this, scrambling her brain."

"That's what marriage is, in my memory."

At that, not only Melina and the turtle, but even the Formless Mother stepped back, her expression growing more and more baffled as she stared at Lloyd.

"And you were saying I'm the twisted one? You've got me beat!"

Then, all of a sudden, her expression changed.

"Wait a sec—if that's your idea of marriage, want to try it with me later? I can lie down for you."

Lloyd: "...?"

This is bad. She's a total maniac.

Ignoring the now overly eager Formless Mother, Lloyd sheathed the contract sword and walked over to the turtle, striking up a conversation.

Though taken aback by Lloyd's earlier comments, the turtle was clearly well-traveled and wise. After steadying himself, he began to speak with Lloyd normally.

"My name is Miriel. I'm the one tasked with managing this church. Though... seeing it in such a state of ruin is quite shameful..."

"I was wondering if you've heard any stories about the history behind the Church of Vows..."

"No, I haven't."

Lloyd shook his head and replied honestly, "Could you tell me?"

"Of course. I'd be happy to."

Miriel seemed to enjoy conversations, and after being asked, he slowly began to recount the church's history.

"It's perfectly understandable that you're unfamiliar with this place."

"After all, since the outbreak of the Shattering, people have forgotten many important things. In the past, the royal families of the Erdtree and the Moon sought peace through union..."

"Red-haired Radagon and Full Moon Rennala—they formed their pact right here in this church."

"That's why this church remains connected to the Erdtree in the Royal Capital, and to Raya Lucaria Academy as well..."

After hearing the story, Lloyd nodded.

"Oh, so Marika got married to the Queen of the Full Moon here?"

"Yes..."

Miriel nodded reflexively, then paused—something felt off.

Wait... who did he just say got married?

Before Miriel could react, Lloyd realized he could hand over spellbooks and prayerbooks to this turtle and learn magic from him. So, he took out the magic tome he had snagged from the academy earlier.

Sellen was caught up with safety concerns, and Ranni either didn't have—or didn't dare to take on—the role of teaching magic. So Lloyd figured he might as well learn from the turtle.

"Oh, that's actually pretty good."

Since the earlier topic had been a bit awkward, the turtle simply skipped over it, accepted the sorcery book, and smoothly shifted the subject.

"Let's study together—learning is a two-way street."

As he spoke, he seemed to remember something and let out a quiet sigh.

"This world originally had no heresies. Everything could coexist and merge naturally..."

"Oh, you mean sorceries and incantations come from the same source? The Queen of the Full Moon just told me that recently."

"Huh? You know that too? That's really..."

Miriel nodded, then suddenly realized something was off.

"Wait, who did you say told you that?"

"The Queen of the Full Moon. Didn't you just say you officiated her wedding with Marika?"

Lloyd paused, then caught his own slip.

"Oh, right—forgot to mention. She's able to regain lucidity for a short while every day now, so I sometimes drop by for a chat when she's awake."

Silence.

"...That truly is... surprising news."

Miriel let out a deep sigh.

"But sadly, with the academy in its current state, even if the Queen were fully lucid, the problems couldn't be solved. And with what happened to the children... it's hard to say whether madness or clarity is really better for her..."

He paused, as if remembering something.

"Do you possess any Celestial Dew?"

Lloyd nodded. He had picked up a few while exploring the map earlier.

"Yeah, I do. Why?"

Miriel nodded again, then began to explain.

"In that case, I must tell you about the miracle hidden within this Church of Vows."

"In the past, Lord Radagon bathed in Celestial Dew to sincerely repent for his wars of aggression and to vow eternal love for Lady Rennala."

"When the laws of the Erdtree and the destiny of the Moon were united, everything—along with the scars of conflict—was reset to zero."

"Since then, that miracle has remained within this church."

"If you follow Lord Radagon's example, perhaps broken, seemingly irreparable bonds can also return to peace."

Lloyd nodded.

Got it—classic atonement arc.

After hearing Miriel's story, Lloyd still couldn't recall if he had wronged any NPCs, but figured it was worth a try.

This is a Souls game, after all. If there's no sin to atone for, the item won't be consumed. No harm in trying...

Boom!

The moment he stepped into the pool, took out a Star Tear, and selected "Atonement"—

The statue before him shattered into countless pieces.

The once-clear pool beneath him turned instantly into thick, churning blood. From within came faint, agonizing cries.

The sky dimmed for a brief second. A chilling whisper spread through the air.

A pitch-black rift unfurled from the ruined statue, twisting and spiraling, as if something inside was peering outward.

What the hell is this...

But before Lloyd could react, a small hand suddenly reached out and seized the rift.

Then, golden light burst into the sky as golden threads wrapped around the crack. Guided by that little hand, the rift was slowly forced shut.

In the end, it collapsed into a shard and landed gently in her palm.

"This isn't something you need to face right now."

Alice turned to Lloyd, her expression serious.

"And besides, this isn't your 'sin'."

A flicker of residual flame flared on Lloyd's body for a brief moment before vanishing.

Huh? What did I even do?

Lloyd stood there, confused for a second, then suddenly realized something and glanced over at Miriel.

"Uh, you saw that, right? The statue blew itself up. Had nothing to do with me."

Miriel: "..."

He looked at Lloyd standing in the blood pool, then at Alice beside him. After a long pause, he decided to just pretend nothing had happened.

"It seems... this church really is getting old."

No, that's definitely not just age showing.

The Formless Mother's mouth twitched. She hadn't planned to say anything, but then her eyes caught the pool of blood beneath Lloyd's feet.

She froze for a second, then instinctively stepped closer, dipped a finger into the blood, and brought it to her lips.

And then, she saw it.

A massive heart bound in thorns hung high in the sky, riddled with countless wounds.

Dark red blood—more agonizing and frenzied than Accursed Blood—seeped from those wounds, dripping endlessly, forming a vast sea of blood and tears.

What lay at her feet was just a small pond, a mere reflection of that fragment.

"...Truly delicious."

She turned to Lloyd, eyes gleaming with a strange light.

"...What's with that look?"

Lloyd caught the Formless Mother's gaze and felt a shiver crawl up his spine.

"It's nothing. I just wanted to ask—are you really not going to consider 'forming a bond' with me?"

She stared at Lloyd seriously.

"Honestly, I only came here to see you up close. What I said about bonding earlier was just out of a passing interest."

"But now, I really think we could be a good match."

"So... you're really not even going to think about it?"

Think about what? Hell no.

Lloyd shot her a look and didn't bother replying.

Sure, by the Lands Between's standards her behavior wasn't anything particularly extreme, but he wasn't into that kind of thing.

Surprisingly, the Formless Mother turned out to be rather reasonable. She wasn't upset by his rejection. Instead, she gave it some thought and nodded.

"You're right. I did rush things a bit. Strictly speaking, this is our first real meeting—trying to bond right away might've been a little much."

"So how about this? To show my sincerity, let me do you a favor."

"That guy named Yura—he's your friend, right? But there's no way he's a match for the 'Eleonora' he mentioned before."

"When he finds her, that'll be the day he dies."

"But I can help you find Eleonora first—and you won't have to kill her. Just help me restrain her. Once you do that, I can extract the 'Accursed Blood' from her myself."

"In exchange, once I'm done, you'll fight me."

"Deal?"

Lloyd nodded without hesitation.

Obviously a side quest.

The kind where you save Yura, fight another boss, and score extra rewards. No way he was turning that down.

"When are we setting off?"

"If you're up for it, we can go now."

"Then let's go now."

With a nod, the two left the Church of Vows and headed for the hiding place of Violet Bloody Finger Eleonora.

Truth be told, her hideout was well-hidden, and Eleonora herself was no slouch. But the problem was... well, the two people she was about to face were on a whole different level.

In the end, there wasn't much to say about the process of capturing Eleonora and reclaiming the Accursed Blood—it was almost too easy.

Once the Accursed Blood had been reclaimed, she felt the power swelling within her. She gave a nod, then picked up the double-headed blade, Eleonora's Poleblade, from the ground and looked toward Lloyd.

"Oh, right. Come to think of it, I still don't have a name."

The Cursed Blood surged, Bloodflame ignited, and a pair of blazing wings unfurled slowly behind her. The twin blades in her hand shimmered with a foreboding hue.

"How about... Elizabeth, for this Incarnation?"

The Bloodflame roared to life, casting everything around her in a vivid red glow.

She slowly lifted her head, a cruel smile playing across her delicate features, and the wings at her back gave a light flap.

Then—

Boom!

A storm of blood blades tore through the space where Lloyd had been standing. Wherever they passed, the Cursed Blood erupted and exploded after a slight delay.

She turned back to look at Lloyd, who had dodged the strike, and casually twirled the double-headed blade in her hand.

"Just so you know, I won't be holding back."

"Funny, neither will I."

Lloyd raised his Bloodhound's Fang.

Then—

The fight was over in an instant.

Naturally, it was Lloyd who stood victorious. Yet as he looked at Elizabeth, kneeling before him and gasping for breath, he felt no thrill of triumph. His expression was... complicated.

How to put it—

Elizabeth wasn't weak. In fact, she was incredibly strong. Hyperactive, relentless like a rabid dog, spamming flashy light-show combos and effects.

She wielded a blend of Accursed Blood and Bloodflame techniques with alternating speeds, followed by delayed explosions. Nearly every strike built up a massive bleed effect.

She had all the hallmark traits of a boss, and was just as abstract and over-the-top as the Three God Old Margits he'd fought before.

But the real problem?

She had no poise.

Not low poise—none at all. You could poke her with a tiny dagger, and it would interrupt her attack. Hell, you could counter her with a full combo right after.

During the fight, Lloyd felt like he was the boss, watching her jump around and show off for ages—only to cut her down in a few clean hits.

Just... yeah...

And even that wasn't the worst part. The worst was, thinking back after the fight, Lloyd realized every bit of her kit seemed designed to provoke others into fighting her.

Combined with her... peculiar interests...

Looking at Elizabeth—half-kneeling, flushed red, gasping for air—Lloyd suddenly felt like he was the one who lost.

"I lost. I was hoping to carve a few more wounds into you, but... barely got any blood out of you."

After catching her breath, Elizabeth stood up. She paused, then reached out and broke one of her own fingers. After wrapping it in filthy blood, she handed it to Lloyd.

[Obtained "Accursed Blood Finger"]

"I'd love to stick around. Watching you kill all day—it's bloody, full of wounds, kind of my thing."

"But I'm not exactly popular in these parts, and I've got other stuff to handle right now. If you ever need me, use this to call me."

"Alright."

Her tastes were... questionable, but outside of that, she seemed surprisingly dependable.

So he took the finger and, as requested, performed a brief "Incarnation Farewell" by running her own double-headed blade through her heart.

"Until next time..."

Elizabeth gave him a bloody smile and waved, then tilted her head.

Dead.

Her body melted into a pool of dark red Accursed Blood that wrapped around the twin blades. The weapon's nature changed along with it.

[Weapon Obtained]

[Elizabeth's Poleblade]

...

[Upto 20 chapters ahead for now]

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