Gatefront

The deep darkness suddenly split apart.

Xia Tong slowly opened his eyes.

Cold, damp, fetid.

He found himself lying in a patch of muck, barely clothed, with nothing but a rag wrapped around his waist to preserve his modesty.

All around him lay ruined walls and shattered rubble.

"Who am I? Where am I?"

Xia Tong slowly sat up, his brain still somewhat frozen.

He looked around and found the place utterly unfamiliar, yet it carried an eerie sense of familiarity.

In the distance, figures seemed to be moving.

Wait... that outfit?

A red-and-green tabard, a huge shield...

Wasn't that a Godrick Soldier from Elden Ring?

Xia Tong forced himself to his feet, bracing against a crumbling stone wall as he narrowed his eyes at the wandering figure in the distance.

Since he was wearing nothing, the wet mud clung to his skin, and the moment the cold wind blew, goosebumps rose all over his body.

Xia Tong's heart immediately sank to the bottom.

"Don't tell me I really transmigrated!"

He looked down at his outfit—oh, right, there was no outfit.

But there was a massive wooden club by his hand.

Starting with a stick, all gear comes from killing?

"And what's this?"

Xia Tong noticed a pendant tied around his wrist.

Calling it a pendant was a stretch. It was actually an irregular grayish-white crystal, no larger than his little finger.

Its texture resembled unpolished amber, and its surface was rough.

Yet through the faint light, he could see two smoky, twisted shadows swirling within it.

When Xia Tong concentrated and stared at it, the shadows gradually became clearer.

They were two grotesque little monsters.

Fanged Imps!

"Could this be summonable Spirit Ash?"

"But... I don't have a Spirit Calling Bell right now."

At this point, Xia Tong had basically accepted reality.

He had transmigrated into the world of Elden Ring, and his starting class was the most miserable one of all: a "Wretch."

With a thought, he summoned it.

Sure enough, just as he expected, a translucent character panel appeared in his mind.

[Character Data]

Level: 1

Runes Held: 0

Vigor: 10

Mind: 20

Endurance: 10

Strength: 10

Dexterity: 10

Intelligence: 18

Faith: 2

Arcane: 10

Sure enough, his level was only 1.

Wait?

Xia Tong froze.

"Why is my [Mind] 20?"

"And my [Intelligence] is as high as 18?"

"And [Faith]... why is it only 2? That's way too low, even lower than an ordinary person's."

This made no sense!

After thinking it over carefully, Xia Tong suddenly came to a realization.

Could it be because I was a transmigrator?

It seemed those nearly sixteen years of schooling in his previous life hadn't been for nothing. His Intelligence had gone straight to 18.

And as an atheist raised on modern scientific education, having only 2 Faith seemed... quite reasonable?

Xia Tong remembered clearly that in the game, the Wretch was the only character in Elden Ring that started at level 1, with every stat fixed at an unremarkable 10.

His current panel was clearly a "special edition."

"Whatever. Since I'm here, I'll deal with it."

Enough thinking about that. He needed to focus on what was in front of him first.

So Xia Tong gripped the rough wooden club tightly with both hands, hunched over, and used the ruins as cover to sneak up behind the lone Godrick Soldier.

One step, two steps...

Crack!

A crisp snapping sound rang through the silent ruins.

Xia Tong looked down at his feet.

There lay a dry branch he had stepped on and broken.

"I'm screwed."

The Godrick Soldier ahead paused, then slowly turned around.

He wore a filthy earth-yellow tabard, with a grimy golden lion crest painted on his chest and shield.

That was the symbol of Godrick the Grafted.

Though the soldier's eyes were numb and vacant, the instant he saw Xia Tong, they filled with instinctive killing intent.

Without a word, he raised his Lordsworn's Straight Sword and slashed at Xia Tong!

"Let's do this!"

With nowhere to dodge, Xia Tong immediately raised his huge wooden club and held it horizontally before him to block!

Crack!

Wood chips flew everywhere.

A deep gash immediately appeared in the thick club, though fortunately it did not break.

The tremendous recoil numbed Xia Tong's hand, but a flicker of delight flashed through his eyes.

"Wait! This body of mine... seems pretty decent?"

Though his previous form was a Wretch, he still had the physique of a Tarnished.

Beneath his dark skin were sharply defined muscles, brimming with strength.

With the club held before him in a block, the Godrick Soldier's heavy slash had actually not put Xia Tong under much pressure.

Moreover, the instant he gripped the club, a strange memory surged into his mind.

"This is... an innate Ash of War?"

Ash of War—Barbaric Roar!

Just then, seeing that his strike had missed, the Godrick Soldier raised his sword and attacked again.

Since he was not wearing clothes, Xia Tong felt light as a swallow, unburdened by any armor.

He rolled sideways, awkwardly but effectively dodging the attack.

Then he sprang forward hard with his right leg, crashing directly into the Godrick Soldier's arms!

"Roar—!!!"

Xia Tong suddenly let out a savage roar.

Invisible sound waves spread around him as though they had substance, and even the air seemed to tremble.

Ash of War activated!

At once, Xia Tong felt his blood begin to race wildly. His entire body heated up as power flooded through him.

The wooden club in his hands seemed much lighter.

He swung it with both hands and smashed it viciously into the Godrick Soldier's enormous shield!

Bang!

The first blow made the shield shake violently!

Bang!

The second blow made the Godrick Soldier's arm go limp, leaving his center wide open!

Two upward swings followed by a horizontal swing!

That was the heavy attack combo after Barbaric Roar!

Bang!

The third heavy blow slammed down!

The Godrick Soldier's poise instantly shattered. He staggered backward like a drunk and fell onto his back.

An opening!

Xia Tong seized it in an instant.

He raised the massive club high with both hands, put every ounce of strength into it, and smashed it down onto the soldier's forehead!

Thud!

The hit landed solidly.

The Godrick Soldier collapsed to the ground, his helmet dented. Dazed and disoriented, he swayed as he tried to struggle back to his feet.

"Stay down!"

Xia Tong's eyes reddened as he unleashed several more frantic club strikes!

At last, the soldier collapsed completely and stopped moving.

At the same time, a faint golden glow drifted out from the Godrick Soldier's body and flowed into Xia Tong.

"So this is a Rune!"

Xia Tong sensed it.

That Godrick Soldier had given him 64 Runes.

"Huff... huff..."

Xia Tong panted heavily, just about to celebrate his first kill.

Suddenly, dense footsteps and the clatter of armor came from nearby.

It turned out that the enormous noise Xia Tong had made when using Barbaric Roar had drawn the attention of other Godrick Soldiers in the area.

These soldiers had suffered mental damage from the shattering of the Elden Ring and had become exceptionally violent.

Hearing the commotion, their basic instinct to pursue enemies drove them to begin surrounding him.

"Run!"

Xia Tong's expression changed.

The world of Elden Ring was simply too dangerous, and this was not a game!

He had transmigrated here in the flesh. If he died, he would really be dead!

He looked down at his arm.

There was a wound where the Godrick Soldier's blade had grazed him earlier. It was not deep, but blood was already gushing from it.

The burning pain instead made Xia Tong's mind clearer.

Without caring about anything else, he grabbed the club and sprinted into the depths of the nearby forest.

As he ran, he noticed several flames lighting up at the edge of the woods.

Each flame meant a Godrick Soldier carrying a torch.

Xia Tong held his breath and slipped into the forest beneath the cover of night, carefully avoiding those lights.

Finally, behind a concealed thicket, he found a small cave.

After crawling inside, Xia Tong dropped onto the ground.

"I'm so hungry... and I don't even have clothes. I'm seriously numb!"

Cold wind poured through the cave entrance.

Xia Tong truly wanted to throw back his head and howl at the sky.

Being a programmer in his previous life had made him work like a beast, but it was still far better than being a "naked man" in the world of Elden Ring!

Fortunately, the Godrick Soldiers at Gatefront did not pursue him deep into the forest.

"No, I can't just sit here and wait to die."

"In weather this cold, if I don't wear clothes, even if I don't get hacked to death, I'll freeze to death."

After a while, once he had confirmed that it was safe outside.

Xia Tong endured the pain from his wound and quietly walked out of the cave, looking toward the ruins from before.

There, the corpse of the Godrick Soldier Xia Tong had killed was still lying where it had fallen.

He hunched over and stealthily approached through the grass.

After great effort, he dragged the Godrick Soldier's corpse into a corner—an area hidden from view.

Then Xia Tong began "looting the corpse."

First, he stripped off the filthy outer tabard.

Then he laboriously undid the leather buckles and took off the chainmail underneath.

Then came the greaves and breastplate.

Finally, he took the slightly rusted Lordsworn's Straight Sword.

It had to be said that the clothes smelled rather pungent, mixed with sweat and blood.

But survival came first. He could not afford to care about that.

He tore several strips of cloth from the tattered cloak and roughly bandaged the wound on his arm to stop the bleeding.

The armor was covered in mud and blood. He could not wear it directly right now.

Xia Tong carried the stripped-off gear back into the dense forest.

By the light of the moon, he carefully washed it in a small puddle, then hung it near the ventilated part of the cave to dry.

By the time he finished all that, Xia Tong was panting and completely exhausted.

His stomach began to rumble disobediently as well.

"Right, there seemed to be some red Rowa Fruit in those bushes..."

This kind of fruit could be found everywhere in Limgrave's forests.

Suppressing his hunger, Xia Tong carefully searched around the cave entrance and gathered some.

Using the scraps of cloth he had left, he made a full pouch and began wolfing them down.

"Mm..."

"Not very juicy, a little sweet, not bitter, but not exactly tasty either."

"Still, it's enough to fill my stomach."

Looking through the narrow cave entrance at the several flickering lights wandering beyond the distant forest, Xia Tong still felt uneasy.

He arranged some dry branches in front of the cave entrance.

That way, if anyone came in and snapped the branches, the sound could wake him.

After making his final defensive preparations, exhaustion crashed over him like a tide.

Curled up in a corner, he finally fell into a deep sleep.

Late at night.

All was silent.

"Torrent, is this person in the cave... the one you were looking for?"

Cold moonlight slowly spilled across the cave entrance.

A translucent, graceful figure gradually appeared, like a ghost.

Beside her stood a grayish-brown steed with two horns growing from its head.

The spectral steed called Torrent looked at the sleeping Xia Tong inside the cave and snorted twice, seemingly in agreement.

The girl's single eye beneath her hood gleamed with curiosity as she softly said:

"This person was originally dead... He had fallen among the ruins of the buildings at Gatefront, cut down by two groups of Godrick Soldiers accompanied by white wolves."

"But..."

There was a trace of confusion and surprise in the girl's voice:

"This afternoon, he actually came back to life."

Torrent lowered its head and nuzzled the girl's palm.

The girl fell silent for a moment, gazing deeply at the scantily clad man inside the cave before her figure slowly faded into the darkness.

"Since he is the one you chose... let's observe him a little longer."

"Perhaps he truly has a chance to become a lord."