A Chance Encounter

Kal'tsit offered no opinion—she knew very little about the world, so she wouldn't. Perhaps in the past she would have been more vocal, but now she chose silence to express her stance.

The Fire Keeper, of course, said nothing... The Fire Keeper had always supported and trusted her. This noblewoman, with the blood of the Lothric royal family, believed she would inevitably win in the end and steer the world in the direction she desired, which could objectively be described as 'good'. Therefore, she had only one response to Miss Surtr's actions.

"Would you like me to promote this for you, Miss? I have some channels at my disposal; would you like me to help you amplify this momentum?"

"There's no need," Miss Surtr waved her hand. "I did it on a whim, and it doesn't involve any complicated plans. There's no need to embellish it; it's fine as it is."

"I understand, Miss," she said, and after taking over Surtr's driving position, she did not deliberately maintain the pomp and circumstance of the Sky Passage, but continued to drive the caravan, but chose to travel forward in the sky where there was no cloud bed.

"You need to rest, miss." She was particularly serious about this matter. But then she added, "If I come across something I think you would be interested in, I will wake you up."

She spoke clearly and logically. Miss Surtr felt no need to refuse.

And so, the voyage was handed over. Surtr returned to her carriage and watched Kal'tsit continue writing and drawing at her desk.

She had to admit that, aside from beings of Persephone's caliber, Kal'tsit was indeed a first-rate talent on Terra —in the following days, through the Fire Keeper's library and by supplementing her data during breaks in the voyage, Kal'tsit gleaned much useful information not presented in the game—

—For example, the general situation of each country. For example, population, terrain, distribution of mineral veins, places with strange legends, and areas where hidden treasures are buried. She even predicted the military movements between Lothric and Irithyll based on the current situation, and estimated that a war would break out in a very short time.

For gamers, knowing this stuff isn't really valuable. At most, they might offer a couple of compliments like "the realism is pretty good."

But for Miss Surtr, who aspires to drive the wheels of time and change the way the world operates, this information can come in handy at the right time.

—Stronger than Athena.

—Although Athena has more computing power, Kal'tsit understands me, knows my needs, and some of my thoughts.

—That's good.

She thought about how, while lying on the bed, she couldn't help but stare blankly at Kal'tsit's back.

Then, a few minutes later, she witnessed Kal'tsit's restless state, as if she had a pink remote control that had been switched on.

"Interesting," she thought, knowing that her gaze held power. Even if not used as a weapon, the effect of her gaze on someone with high intuition was the same as her hand caressing their skin, as long as she didn't deliberately suppress it. And she also knew that Kal'tsit now shared perception, inspiration, and intuition with Mon3tr, reaching unprecedented heights.

In a rare situation, she couldn't resist teasing Kal'tsit —after all, Kal'tsit had always made her very unhappy in the past, so it was only right to get some compensation now.

So her gaze slowly moved, from her ankles to her neck, from her hips to her waist, and wherever she looked, a faint blush appeared. Strangely, Kal'tsit didn't object, didn't change her clothes, didn't slam her hand on the table, didn't issue a warning, or simply throw something at her. Instead, she sat calmly at her desk, her legs trembling slightly, but she appeared completely unaffected.

—Is he just pretending to be calm?

—Was it in such a strange place that your competitive spirit arose?

Miss Surtr thought to herself that she ultimately didn't dare to go too far, and soon she looked away. As she did so, a sigh of lingering satisfaction seemed to echo in her heart and in her ears.

In her ears? Hmm... that must be her imagination; she didn't think she was making a sound. So, with this subtle regret, she gently closed her eyes and took an unnecessary nap.

She didn't dream, but in her sleep she heard rustling sounds of changing clothes and the soft sound of something touching the water—clearly, someone had taken a bath while she was asleep. Whether it was Kal'tsit or the Fire Keeper driving the vehicle... well, that didn't matter.

And so a beautiful day passed—and when night fell, Miss Surtr once again took over the duty of driving.

This time, as her gaze swept across the land, she caught sight of a special sign.

As the Twilight flames descended from the sky, a band of thieves who made their living by plundering merchants met their demise in an instant—they were attacking a crude camp before their deaths. Only one person survived in the camp.

A bald man with shifty eyes.

He wore filthy leather armor, holding a spear in one hand and a shield with a double dragon design in the other. The man exuded the aura of an undead.

His eyes lit up when he saw Miss Surtr.

"It seems the rumors are true. The Fire Keeper of Lothric has left the Firelink Shrine... You really have come back to life, Surtr."

Miss Surtr nodded, staring at the man before her.

"Yes, it is indeed me." Her voice held a sense of longing, as well as a kind of inexplicable entanglement.

Patches, in the world of Dark Souls, if you were to ask who is the best at surviving, it would undoubtedly be Patches —this bald man seems to possess a special constitution. Regardless of the intensity of the flames, he walks the world as an undead. Perhaps it is because his will to survive is so strong that even the will of the world cannot subdue him. And this glib-tongued fellow, who clearly isn't a good person, has relied on this obsession to live from the age of the gods all the way to the end of the world, to the day the Oolacile Township was revealed.

While playing the game, players often have mixed feelings about the character Patches. He's always sabotaging them, lying about hidden treasures only to pull traps and block their escape route. Patches becomes the non-player character who gets killed the most. However, with the conclusion of the Dark Souls series, those familiar with the story gradually realize that he wasn't as malicious as he appeared.

He's actually a cold-on-the-outside, warm-on-the-inside guy, and rather awkward in his expression. He doesn't intentionally harm people, but rather gives them a push when greed overwhelms them. Besides that, he always repays kindness—in Dark Souls III, if you tell Greirat about his journey to Irithyll, he'll disguise himself and go to rescue him. And at the edge of the Firelands, having lost his memory, he'll take the name Lapp and wander the Oolacile Township.

He will fight alongside the Ashes, offering exceptionally generous help and rewards. And once he regains his memories, he will mischievously guide the player onto the right path when the Ashes are lost. Furthermore, the rune that summons him during the final obstacle to meeting Filianore will appear at the entrance to the Spears of the Church.

Interestingly, his summoning rune is the least noticeable one in the entire Dark Souls story. Hiding behind a door, he has an awkward air about him, as if to say, "Of course I want to help, but it's your problem if you can't find me." This perfectly reflects his image—inherently kind, outwardly awkward, behaving strangely, and displaying arrogance.

Miss Surtr turned her head and glanced at the ground—the order of the fires was her marker. It was the same sword outline as Laevateinn's. Clearly, the well-informed Patches knew of the Fire Keeper's relationship with her and knew that the Fire Keeper had left the Firelink Shrine half a month ago. His presence here now, presumably, meant he had something to convey to her.

So she nodded slightly.

"Long time no see, Patches."

"Is there something you need from me?"

Chapter 199 - A Chance Encounter

Patches brought a message, a message that always fit his usual style.

"Something has changed underground, something strange and scary. I don't know what it is, but it's very restless."

Could you describe it in more detail?

"Ah... well, I only saw it from afar. I didn't dare get too close. It looked like a lump of black mud... I know, I know that most of the products from the Abyss look like black mud. But this one is quite different from the ones I've seen before."

He hesitated for a moment, then his expression turned anxious. "I... I feel like there are eyes moving in that lump of mud. I'm not kidding! It's true, that strange feeling. Those eyes. I... can't describe it."

Surtr raised his hand and lit a Warm Flame. In the firelight, Patches, whose face had been contorted by his words, breathed a sigh of relief and calmed down.

"Take your time, don't rush," she said reassuringly, her words carrying a persuasive power.

"I've seen the Abyss, the ruins of Oolacile, the desolate city of Izalith —I've been there." Patches, bald, took a few light breaths. "I even plan to travel to the edge of the world someday, to explore the Oolacile Township, which is said to have fought against the power of the Abyss in ancient times... I know exactly what they are. They are humanity, byproducts of the First Flame. As long as you don't crave their power, and don't stay in contact with them for too long, they aren't actually that harmful. But what I saw... was different."

"I think it's some kind of curse. Something... something that will bring you bad luck if you look at it too much."

Miss Surtr, that sounds familiar.

"I understand." She nodded, accepting the offer. "I was planning to go down to Ashen Lake ... well, it should probably be called Smoked Lake now. But I think there must be a secret passage there that leads directly to the abyss. I'll keep a close eye out for it."

"Take care on your journey." Patches seemed relieved. He nodded to Miss Surtr and prepared to leave.

But before they could walk far away, they stopped.

"Oh, and here's another piece of information—about forty miles north of here lies the border of Fran. In the woods, there's an abandoned tower—occupied by a giant who refuses anyone approaching. However, the giant seems to possess a powerful treasure that you might recognize. If you obtain it, it might be helpful in your upcoming actions—of course, the giant is dangerous. But you certainly wouldn't care about such a thing, would you?"