Reunion

After resting and regrouping, the Tarnished set off for Stormgate Tunnel. Kukla, meanwhile, nestled inside Melina's cloak and entered the Site of Grace with her. Perhaps that was one of the little privileges of being a spirit. It seemed losing one's body wasn't all bad.

"Speaking of spirits, I got a bell from the Blue-Faced Monster earlier... I think it can summon them." He had heard of the Spirit Calling Bell before. It was a tool that summoned souls that had not fully returned to the Erdtree to fight for its wielder, modeled after a certain monster with the same ability.

At the height of the golden age, golden radiance had shone everywhere, allowing departed spirits to be summoned anytime, anywhere. That was no longer necessarily possible. Now, one had to find specific locations where the Erdtree's lingering power was strong, such as Minor Erdtrees or statues of Marika.

"Quite a few restrictions, huh." The Tarnished had no intention of asking spirits to help him fight just yet. He looked up at the magnificent Stormveil Castle. Even across the entire Lands Between, few could rival its size. Apart from the golden capital of Leyndell and the legendary Eternal City, it was probably the largest castle still standing.

At that moment, the Tarnished stood before the tunnel leading to Stormveil Castle, also known as Stormgate Tunnel-the place guarded by Margit, the Omen Beast.

"Margit... let me get a good look at you." Dragging his long blade along the ground, the Tarnished walked slowly into the tunnel.

"As grand as ever." The Tarnished did not go far. He deliberately stopped there, partly to reminisce over the scenery of Stormveil Castle, and partly to wait for this so-called Margit.

Sure enough, before long, a circular magic array began forming atop the arched gateway on the stone bridge leading to the castle, accompanied by drifting golden fragments.

"Tarnished... driven by the flame of foolish ambition, dost thou too seek to claim the Elden Ring?" A steady male voice came from the magic array before its owner appeared.

"Oh...?" The Tarnished rested his curved blade on his shoulder and calmly watched the figure about to emerge from the array. A moment later, the man appeared in full: an aging, bearded figure wrapped in a large brown cloak, with curved, pointed horns growing from his head. More striking still was the enormous tail behind him.

Naturally, the Tarnished recognized the man before him. He was exactly who the Tarnished had expected.

"Margit... Margit... Heh, you certainly know how to pick a name." The Tarnished laughed as he looked up at Margit. Only upon hearing that laughter did Margit turn his gaze toward the Tarnished before him.

"!!" Margit's pupils trembled violently. He had never imagined he would encounter this man at a time like this.

"Wouldn't you agree... Morgott?" Smiling, the Tarnished sized up the towering Morgott.

"Uncle... why are you here?" Morgott looked somewhat panicked.

"You little brat. Why wouldn't I be here?" Amusement still shone in the Tarnished's eyes, but that smile made Morgott a little afraid.

"Uncle, I meant nothing by it. It's just..." Guilt rose across Morgott's face.

"What's that look for? Put it away. I don't remember raising you to hem and haw like this," the Tarnished scolded.

"I..." Morgott choked on his words.

"So you're the one guarding the castle who captured Kale Basha? You've certainly made something of yourself." Indeed, being able to contend with two Crucible Knights without using his full strength was something to be proud of in this martial age.

"Yes... Uncle." Morgott moved in a flash to the ground below. This was an elder he respected; speaking to him from above would have been discourteous.

"..." The Tarnished's expression darkened, and he continued reproachfully, "Do you know what kind of beast you're guarding?" Naturally, he meant Godrick.

"I know... but Godrick is one of my elder brother's few descendants. I truly..." Morgott naturally knew about all the vile things Godrick had done. But they were still family, and Godrick was one of his eldest brother's few descendants. If he failed to look after him, he would be letting his deceased brother down.

"You're wrong. If Godwyn were still alive, he would never let Godrick run wild. If he saw what a disgrace Godrick had become, he would have cleaned house long ago. Your elder brother was a saint, not a fool. Godrick has brought shame upon the Golden Lineage. Do you understand what that means?" The Tarnished narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing Morgott.

"Well..." Morgott really did not know his elder brother very well. As an Omen born into royalty, he had been imprisoned in the lightless sewers from the moment of his birth. He had never met Godwyn, who might not even have known he had two younger brothers.

"If you can still listen to what I say, step aside. Let me into the castle to clean house for Godwyn and Godfrey."

"Well... Uncle, may I ask why you have returned to the Lands Between?"

"Before I answer that, I have a question of my own." He had to ask this first, to make sure Morgott would not stand in his way.

"Very well... please, go ahead." Morgott answered with utmost respect.

"How do you feel about your mother shattering the Elden Ring? Tell me honestly."

"..." Morgott found it difficult to answer. After all, his birth parents, Marika and Godfrey, had shown him far less care than the Tarnished before him. Throughout his long imprisonment, their visits could be counted on one hand. Truthfully, the two brothers knew next to nothing about their parents. But...

"Though I do not understand my mother, she gave me life... I respect her deeply." There was not a word of falsehood in Morgott's answer. The Tarnished nodded slightly after hearing it. Morgott had been mature since childhood. He had never complained about the world's unfairness. All he wanted, all he fought so hard for, was to protect the world that had brought him into being.

"But I cannot understand why Mother shattered the Elden Ring. It was the very foundation of everything in this world. Why would she commit such an evil deed and plunge all living beings in the Lands Between into misery?"

"Boy, the Golden Order was never perfect. Do you think people would have lived well if your mother hadn't done that?"

"The Golden Order is fiercely intolerant of outsiders. We stained our hands with countless lives for its sake, fighting for years to subdue every power in the Lands Between and make the Golden Order supreme."

"Life cannot escape conflict, Morgott... and this Golden Order takes that to the utmost extreme." The Tarnished's tone turned icy.

"Uncle, you..." Morgott had only begun to speak when the Tarnished interrupted him.

"Hear me out before you draw your conclusions."

"In the beginning, we all fought and bled for a new age. Back then, Marika and Godfrey truly believed in the Erdtree. But things did not turn out as we wished." The Tarnished lowered his eyes.

"As time passed, Marika gradually realized something was wrong. The Greater Will, which bestowed the Elden Ring, had a very strange attitude toward the Lands Between."

"It scarcely allowed any power outside its own to exist. If attacking the giants was to protect the Erdtree, and defeating the Ancient Dragons was to proclaim its might, then what about the other races? Why did they suffer persecution without cause? The Demi-Humans, the Misbegotten, and you Omens. The Golden Order... no, the Greater Will's attitude toward you is precisely the attitude the world has toward you. That is exactly what it wants."

"How could that be..." The more Morgott heard, the more wrong it sounded.

"...I bear a curse. It is only natural that the world shuns me." Morgott still held no resentment over the discrimination and isolation he suffered.

"Then let me ask you: has this supposed curse of yours actually harmed anyone? Do you drain their lives simply by going near them? Stop talking such damned nonsense. Even kindness needs limits." The Tarnished scolded him, barely restraining himself from outright cursing.

"These are all ideas the Golden Order has drilled into you, making you believe you're beneath ordinary people. But don't forget this."

"To the Greater Will, to the Golden Order, we will always be ants. Even the humans who enjoy the Order's blessings are nothing more than its nourishment, its playthings. It has never shown us the mercy of a true god-only mockery."

"We cannot know our own fate, or whether it will discard us after using us, just as it did the giants and other races. That is why Marika acted."

"People need those above them to offer guidance and show them the road ahead. But... what they need is not a tyrant perched high above them, without mercy or tolerance."

"When oppression and unease build far enough, rebellion will always erupt... Morgott."

"I've said this much. Do you understand now?"

"Well..." A complicated, conflicted expression crossed Morgott's aged face. He did not care whether he himself was shunned. But if, as the Tarnished said, innocent people would be caught up in it... he truly could not stand by and do nothing.

"But it was the Erdtree that nurtured me, after all..."

"No, you're wrong. Yours is the bloodline of the Aspects of the Crucible. Before the age of the Erdtree, it was regarded as a blessing. Only afterward did the Erdtree come to despise it. I told you when you were little that you need not feel inferior because of your blood."

"Morgott, I know what kind of man you are. I understand you better than Marika and Godfrey do, and I don't want you to become an obstacle to my overthrowing this rotten age." The Tarnished made his intentions plain at once.

"Uncle... you mean to destroy this age?!" Though he knew there was some truth in the Tarnished's words, he still could not accept them so quickly.

"This age is already destroyed. Even if a new Elden Lord arises, it will only perpetuate the vicious cycle. Only by crushing the Greater Will that planted the Erdtree along with it can we break that cycle!" The Tarnished clenched one hand into a fist, making a crushing gesture.

"I advise you not to stand in my way. Otherwise, don't blame me for setting our old affection aside."

"...Uncle, I respect you deeply. You were the one who cared for me. It was because I wished to repay that kindness... that I came to love the people of this world." Morgott smiled, his aged face warm and gentle.

"That is simply who you are. You would be the same even without me."

"No... even so, I am deeply grateful to you... but..." Morgott raised his strangely shaped staff, which resembled a walking stick.

"At this moment, I am Margit, the Omen Beast... and my duty is..."

"To defend Stormveil and protect my elder brother's unworthy descendant. I will not abandon my duty... so, Uncle... please face me in battle. Let me see how much of your former might remains."

"Oh? Interesting." The Tarnished took the Shackles that imprisoned Margit-or rather, Morgott-from inside his clothing.

"Those..." The moment Morgott saw the Shackles, his spirit faltered. But he quickly suppressed the fear rising from the depths of his soul.

"Since you want to fight me... then I'll give you a fair fight, my dear nephew." With a chuckle, the Tarnished crushed the Shackles to pieces in his hand. Since it truly was Morgott, he could not win by using something that had once brought Morgott such humiliation.

Doing so would violate his principles.

(Honestly, buying this thing from Patches was a complete waste. What a pointless extra step.)

"Come, Uncle!"