Death beneath the castle

Edgar was beside himself with rage. He pointed at his old friend's nose and let loose a torrent of abuse:

"The Tarnished risked his life to take Stormveil, and now you're just handing it over? Has a dog eaten your conscience? Don't forget who helped you reclaim Fort Haight! Without him, you'd still be starving out in the wild-assuming you hadn't already become Rune Bear shit!"

Kenneth Haight shouted back, furious at the tongue-lashing. "Who's betrayed anyone? It's precisely because I have the Tarnished's interests at heart that I want Lady Nepheli to rule Stormveil Castle! Flying the First Elden Lord's banner would solve countless problems and draw countless talented people to us! Do you understand that, you idiot?"

"And the Tarnished can't solve problems as lord? He can't attract talented people?" Edgar shot back. "Those people you recruit under the First Lord's banner-who do they actually serve? The Tarnished or the First Lord?"

"It's a matter of legitimacy! Legitimacy! It's only in name, don't you understand?"

"No, I don't! All I know is that whoever's banner you fly, that's who you serve! The Tarnished worked hard to build this foundation, and no one else is going to swoop in and reap the rewards!"

Kenneth Haight was too angry to speak, but a Crucible Knight spoke up.

"If we're speaking of foundations, King Godfrey conquered the entire Lands Between. Anyone who understood loyalty and duty would step aside for a worthy successor."

"Step aside for someone worthy? Where was this worthy successor when we were starving? Where were they when the rebellious Misbegotten were slaughtering us? Now things are stable and the suffering's over, all you kings and worthy successors come crawling out to throw your weight around! Not a fucking chance! Let me tell you: yes, I betrayed Godrick! Yes, I know nothing about loyalty and duty! All I know is that the Tarnished saved us from a living hell, and he's the only one I'll answer to! I don't give a damn about your First Lord! Forget Godfrey-even if Marika herself showed up, the Tarnished would still be the one in charge!"

At this outrageous declaration, both Crucible Knights glared at Edgar.

"The fuck are you looking at?" Edgar snapped without hesitation. "You Crucible Knights might be tough, but our Banished Knights' Halberds are sharp enough!"

Kenneth Haight clutched his chest in anger. "Edgar, will you only be happy once you've driven us all apart?"

Edgar snorted. "I'm not the one who fucking started it!"

As the situation grew increasingly tense, Nepheli hurried to smooth things over. "Stop arguing! How could someone as uncouth as me hold a position as important as lord of a castle? Fighting's the only thing I'm good at!"

Then she pinched the Tarnished. "Don't just stand there watching! Say something! You're the one who took Stormveil Castle, and now your subordinate wants to give it to me!"

The Tarnished grimaced at the pinch. Whether Nepheli was uncouth or not was debatable, but she certainly had a powerful grip!

"First, Kenneth isn't my subordinate. He's my companion. Second, I agree that you should become lord of Stormveil Castle."

"What?!" Everyone was stunned.

Nepheli found it particularly hard to believe. "You finally managed to capture this castle, and now you're just giving it away?"

"That's right, Tarnished! You absolutely can't back down now!" Edgar was frantic too, urging him to reconsider.

The Tarnished shook his head. "I told you, I want to protect everyone and create a new era where everyone can be happy. That road will be incredibly difficult. I can't accomplish it alone. We only have a chance if we join forces. If a single castle can bring you, the Crucible Knights, and King Godfrey's other former followers into our ranks, Nepheli, then this isn't a retreat. It's a huge step forward!"

The Tarnished made no attempt to hide his practical motives. He intended to use Stormveil Castle to win over Godfrey's followers. Yet his sheer openness inspired not distaste, but a measure of admiration.

After all, not everyone had the resolve to relinquish power already in their hands.

The two Crucible Knights glanced at the Tarnished, once again feeling that this particular Tarnished was far from ordinary.

Silence settled over the gathering as everyone waited for Nepheli's answer.

Nepheli understood as well: a single nod would make all of Stormveil Castle hers.

In the end, however, she refused.

"I'm sorry. I can't agree to that."

"Your Highness?!" This time, it was the two Crucible Knights who grew anxious.

Kenneth Haight raised a hand to stop them. "May I ask why?"

"My foster father, Sir Gideon Ofnir, took me in when I was a child and raised me. Until I've repaid that kindness, I won't leave his side."

"What if he agrees to you becoming lord of Stormveil Castle?"

"I'd still have to ask him first."

"Please make sure you do," Kenneth Haight said earnestly.

Nepheli smiled ruefully. "Must I really become lord? Aren't things fine as they are?"

This time, Edgar sided with Nepheli. "Exactly. Things are fine now. Why make an unnecessary change?"

"Things are fine now, but they could be better," the Tarnished replied. "If we want to unite more people, we need a clear banner to rally around. Right now, people see us as a ragtag army, with nothing to inspire their trust. But with the First Elden Lord's name behind us, that would change completely. So, Nepheli..."

"I understand. I'll go back and ask my foster father's opinion. But if he objects to me becoming lord, there's nothing I can do." Nepheli sighed. She had only come to Stormveil Castle to gather information. How had she somehow ended up being asked to rule it?

The two Crucible Knights wanted to leave with Nepheli, but she stopped them.

"My foster father is at the Roundtable Hold. It's a sacred place created by a god within the void, also known as the Roundtable Hold. Those who haven't been invited shouldn't go there."

"A god? Goddess Marika?" Kenneth Haight asked curiously.

"Not Goddess Marika. The Two Fingers," Rogier answered this time. "There is a Two Fingers at the Roundtable Hold that remains active-an unparalleled existence since the shattering of the Elden Ring. Presumably, it used divine power to carve out a space in the void and establish the Roundtable Hold. Its presence also makes the Hold an exceptionally sacred and solemn place. As a sign of respect and reverence, no one is permitted to fight there."

Then he bowed his head to the Tarnished. "I'm sorry. I'm also a Tarnished from the Roundtable Hold. It was discourteous of me to conceal that earlier. Please forgive me."

"It's fine." The Tarnished smiled. "Wherever you're from, Roger, you're still my Roger. That's all I need to know."

Rogier smiled ruefully. That cheerful generosity only made him feel guiltier.

"As Rogier said, the Roundtable Hold is a very sacred place. I have no authority to bring anyone there, nor do I know how to do so. Please forgive me." Nepheli apologized to the Crucible Knights, who hastily assured her that no apology was necessary.

"Why don't you stay at Stormveil Castle for now and help the Tarnished? Consider it a favor to me." Nepheli knew that manpower was what the Tarnished needed most right now.

The two Crucible Knights exchanged a look and nodded their agreement.

Having chosen Nepheli as the one they would serve, the knights would not disobey her orders. Besides, they were certain her foster father would not object to his adopted daughter ruling Stormveil Castle. Serving the castle now would simply help build her reputation in advance.

And so Nepheli left. According to her, there would be news in a week at the earliest, or a month at the latest. Whether her foster father agreed or not, she would return to Stormveil Castle and give the Tarnished and the others a definite answer.

Both Edgar and Kenneth Haight were anxious about the outcome, but the Tarnished acted as though nothing had happened. As he had said before, he had his own goal. Whatever anyone else did, he only needed to do his own part well.

He had finally acquired two Crucible Knights. They might only be on temporary assignment, but such excellent workers had to be put to good use. The Tarnished immediately found them work.

"Roger," the Tarnished said to Rogier, "haven't you always wanted to explore the very bottom of Stormveil Castle? Shall we go together?"

"Oh? Wouldn't that take up your time?" Rogier asked modestly, unwilling to trouble anyone. "I can go alone, really, as long as Mr. Haight will give me half a day off."

Like hell. Big bodies were weak to doorways, hairy creatures were weak to fire, and Rogier was weak to wandering off alone. Last time, he'd ended up cursed to death. The Tarnished wasn't letting history repeat itself. He had to keep a close eye on him.

"Kenneth handles civil affairs, Edgar handles military affairs, and I have all the time in the world," the Tarnished said with a grin. "Besides, we've just gained two experts. We can leave all the dirty work and heavy lifting to them. Might as well make use of them!"

The two Crucible Knights: "..."

Rogier smiled ruefully. He could tell that the Tarnished was worried about him. Though he didn't understand where that concern came from, he treasured it.

"All right, then. Sorry for the trouble, everyone." Rogier accepted their kindness. In return, he would work even harder.

"Then let's go." The Tarnished snapped his fingers, then asked the two Crucible Knights, "By the way, what should I call you?"

"Rodini," said the Crucible Knight from beneath the cliff.

"Laurendi," said the Crucible Knight from the Forlorn Hound Evergaol.

The Tarnished searched his memory. There seemed to have been two ancient landmasses in Earth's geological history called the supercontinent Rodinia and the ancient continent Laurentia. Apparently, Crucible Knight names followed the same rule as ever.

Rogier committed their names to memory and sincerely thanked both knights. Then the four set out for the deepest reaches of Stormveil Castle.

They started from the Rampart Tower and made their way through ruined walls and broken structures. Along the way, they had to cross rafters, leap over broken ladders, and drive off Vampire Bats lurking in the darkness. It was a difficult journey.

"Kenneth originally planned to have rope ladders installed here, but Roger said it was dangerous, so we put that on hold," the Tarnished explained to the two Crucible Knights.

"Dangerous? Is there a powerful enemy here?" Laurendi asked eagerly.

He had a fiery temper; otherwise, Godrick would never have locked him in the Forlorn Hound Evergaol. The mention of danger made him itch for action. All this jumping across rafters was almost giving him a fear of heights. He would much rather fight a powerful enemy with solid ground beneath his feet.

Rogier shook his head, however. Since they had begun descending underground, he had been visibly excited. Perhaps he was finally about to find an answer to something he had pursued for a long time. He had become considerably more talkative, too, and explained earnestly, "The danger here doesn't come from a powerful enemy, but from a phenomenon."

"What phenomenon?"

Rogier raised a hand and pointed at the walls throughout Stormveil. They were riddled with holes in the most literal sense: round openings of varying sizes pocked the sturdy masonry, surrounded by thorn-covered brambles. These were the greatest obstacle to reconstruction. Some workers had accidentally pricked themselves on the thorns, and even a tiny wound had left them gravely ill. Everyone had initially thought the thorns were highly poisonous. To prevent further casualties, Kenneth had halted the repairs until an antidote could be developed.

"Those thorns and holes... Was that Godrick's doing?"

"Why would he do that? Punching holes through the walls would take considerable work. How did he manage it?"

The two Crucible Knights had been imprisoned too long to know where these holes had come from.

At least, there had been nothing like this in Stormveil before their imprisonment.

"Godrick didn't make these holes. They're caused by the phenomenon I mentioned," Rogier explained further. "The holes didn't appear first, with thorns growing afterward. It was precisely the opposite. The thorns grew inside the walls first, then ate away at them, leaving these holes."

"What kind of thorns grow inside walls? I've never heard of such a plant," asked Rodini, the knight from beneath the cliff.

"Because they aren't plants at all... No, they are plants, actually, but a kind that never existed before. Naturally, they have characteristics unfamiliar to ordinary people."

"Stop keeping us in suspense. What's going on?" demanded Laurendi, the impatient, hot-tempered knight from the evergaol.

"My apologies. Scholars habitually strive for precision. I suppose that's one of my bad habits." Rogier apologized and explained everything. "Those are called thorns of death. As their name suggests, they are the physical manifestation of the phenomenon of death. Everything dies, even walls built of stone. That's why thorns of death can grow inside the walls and corrode them, leaving hole after hole."

"So that's why the workers who were pricked became so ill?" The Tarnished sounded worried. "Then will they..."

"Don't worry," Rogier said. "Thorns of death are only a manifestation of death, not death itself. Contact is indeed harmful, but it isn't life-threatening. Of course, in most cases, ordinary people should still keep as far away from them as possible."

"Rather than explain how they work, why not simply destroy them?" Laurendi said. "If they're plants, burn them all."

"Unless the source of the death is removed, new thorns of death will soon grow, even if we burn the existing ones."

"Then remove the source." Rodini wasn't quite as hot-tempered, but all Crucible Knights were fearless enough to take on anything, their guiding principle being to charge in first and worry later. "Where is it?"

Rogier pointed downward. The two Crucible Knights looked down and saw a huge, hideous, misshapen face lying flat in the deepest part of Stormveil Castle. That withered visage seemed to be the true face of death itself, making their hair stand on end and chilling their hands and feet.