Landfall

"Splash—"

"Splash—"

The seawater washed back and forth across the beach.

A naked man wearing only a loincloth and carrying a small bag lay sprawled on the shore.

Beside him lay a huge scrap of blue cloth and various scattered pieces of equipment.

That naked man was Lucian.

Storm had thrown off his sense of distance, compounded by the pressure in his own mind.

Lucian had activated Invincibility too early. The moment it ended, his face made intimate contact with the sea.

The impact knocked him unconscious on the spot.

What Lucian did not know was that, after he lost consciousness, a storm rose and carried him all the way to this beach.

A cloaked figure rode slowly toward Lucian on horseback.

The horse, covered in long gray fur, stopped before Lucian. Though it was clearly a horse, a pair of enormous horns rose from its head.

It lowered its head, intending to nudge Lucian's head and see whether he was still alive.

However, a piercing eagle cry came from Lucian's bag, and wind gradually gathered around him.

The person who had been sitting sideways in the saddle dismounted, and a gentle female voice spoke.

"Ancient and powerful soul, please do not worry. We mean him no harm."

"We found him because we saw in him the qualities needed to become a king."

"He will surely seek the Elden Ring... even if it means betraying the Golden Order."

The Ancient King calmed the storm and accepted their explanation.

The rider and horse did not linger. They would wait for another opportunity to approach Lucian.

Lucian slowly woke, feeling soaked from head to toe and unable to react at first.

Lucian pushed himself up. The beach was filled with tall, broken stone pillars and the ruins of massive buildings, while steep cliffs rose farther away.

Looking around, he saw equipment scattered everywhere, making the place resemble the aftermath of a shipwreck.

"I actually mistimed Invincibility. I thought I was going to die..."

"But... I survived? Is this body really that tough?"

Lucian, who had been a complete shut-in in his previous life, could not help marveling at this body's resilience.

"That makes sense. The later stages of the game were practically mythological wars. Even the early-game stats being far beyond human limits would be perfectly normal."

As he sighed, Lucian's hands did not stop moving. He gathered up all the equipment scattered around him.

"The Knight Set's gloves, armor, pants, and the twinblades, straight sword, and halberd are all still here."

"Nothing is missing from my carry bag."

"The helmet, Iron Shield, and greatshield are gone. No big deal."

"Most of those noble accessories are gone too. That's a little regrettable."

Lucian had originally planned to trade those items to merchants for some Runes.

Still, it was fine without them. He had some savings on him anyway.

"But where is this? According to the game's story, I should have woken up in the Stranded Cave."

There was the stranded part, sure, but where was the cave?

Lucian put on a full suit of armor, gripping a sword in his left hand and a halberd in his right.

He tied the twinblades to his back with rope. Anything else that could fit went into his bag, and whatever could not fit was discarded.

Once he had finished organizing himself, Lucian headed toward the cliffs.

Before long, Lucian stopped walking. It was not because he had reached his destination.

He had spotted a flickering fire ahead.

There were people ahead, but Lucian did not rush over. In the Lands Between, people who could be reasoned with were the minority.

The ones sitting by the fire might be merchants, or they might be all kinds of enemies.

Lucian crept closer bit by bit and finally got a clear look at them.

He wore Viking-style armor and clothing. He was tall and powerfully built, with a warhorse beside him, and he was roasting fish.

In the Lands Between, only one group wore such attire: the Kaiden Mercenaries.

They were hired by every major power and rode across battlefields. Kaiden's reputation shook every battlefield.

At the same moment Lucian spotted him, a wolf howl rang out.

Lucian looked toward the source of the sound. It was a White Wolf, staring at him warily.

Wolves were the companions of the Kaiden Mercenaries. They fought together and were inseparable.

Hearing the wolf's howl, the Kaiden Mercenary turned around and saw Lucian as well.

The situation immediately fell into a standoff.

For the sake of plot consistency, the scrapped landing location was used.