The following morning, after a night of deep reflection, Gawain decided to continue their journey. He was confident they could reach Nokstella before the day was out.
Before leaving, he made sure to "borrow" the Golden Tailoring Tools from the church. He planned to give them to Boc; last he heard, the fellow had opened a tailor shop in the city, and business was booming. As the seamster who had once designed outfits for Gawain himself, Boc was highly sought after by the city's residents.
Ranni had returned to her miniature form, perched upon his shoulder. This time, however, she did not hide her presence. She intended to send a clear message to the Baleful Shadow prowling the Eternal City below: she was coming for it.
Miriel watched the two of them as they bid him farewell. Though there was a trace of lingering attachment in his heart, he offered his blessings for their journey.
"Do not forget what you promised me. Find someone to repair this church soon," Miriel reminded them. "Another section collapsed recently. I can hardly find a spot to shelter from the rain anymore. When the damp morning air rolls in, my old bones start to ache. And remember to visit me once this is all over. You are both always welcome to return for a chat."
After a bit of typical elderly nagging, Miriel's gaze settled on Gawain.
"Since the union of Queen Rennala and the hero Radagon, you are the first whose bond I have witnessed and blessed. I hope you do not break Ranni's heart. If you do... let alone Ranni herself, even I will not grant you entry for a second chance at absolution."
"Master, the last sentence was quite unnecessary," Ranni muttered.
Though she voiced her displeasure, she was clearly touched by the sentiment. Her eyes darted toward Gawain every so often.
"Don't worry, I won't fail her," Gawain reassured him. "We'll be off then. Until we meet again."
"Mm. Safe travels."
After bidding farewell to Miriel, the two left the Church of Vows. The time had finally come to head to Nokstella. There were no enemies to obstruct them along the way; the Fire Monks who usually patrolled the area were nowhere to be found.
As they neared the Ainsel River Well, Gawain turned to Ranni.
"I assume you know the way? Last time I went to Nokron, those sprawling ruins gave me a massive headache."
He remembered vividly how absurdly complex the architecture of the Nox people's underground spaces could be. Even with a map in hand, it was easy to get turned around. From what he recalled of the game's layout, Nokstella was likely the best-preserved of the Eternal Cities, as the Nox survivors there bore the duty of guarding the Lake of Rot.
"Fear not. Have you forgotten whose heritage the Carian Royal Family inherited? The correct path is already etched into my mind. Simply move forward."
"Fair point. I'll leave the navigating to you, then."
Soon, Gawain spotted the Golem guarding the entrance well. After a moment's thought, he urged Torrent into a charge. At a speed the Golem couldn't possibly react to, he unleashed a precision Lightning Spear, paralyzing its power core instantly.
Golems were difficult to manufacture, and breaking one meant there was one less in the world—they didn't simply "respawn" like game enemies after resting at a Site of Grace. If he left it intact, someone could eventually haul it back to the city for repairs and use it for labor. The Golems at Stormveil were already proving to be much more efficient at moving bricks than the Trolls.
Stepping onto the familiar lift, he descended once more into the subterranean world. But as the lift came to a steady halt, before he could even survey his surroundings, the scenery gave him a rude awakening.
Deep in these long-abandoned depths, there was no ambient lighting for the convenience of explorers. Only a few bioluminescent insects and glintstone ores emitted a dim, sickly glow. In this darkness—where visibility for a normal human was effectively zero—came a chorus of skittering and chittering.
Sensing an intruder, the giant ants crawling across the cavern walls were instantly stirred. The sheer sound of countless legs scuttling over stone was enough to make anyone's skin crawl.
"Where did all these ants come from? Just die already!"
If there was one thing Gawain hated fighting, it was swarms of insects—much like the Kindred of Rot in Caelid. Those things didn't just deal physical damage; they dealt psychological damage. Specifically, the way they burst into "juice" upon death was disgusting. It wasn't high damage, but it was highly insulting; cleaning up afterward was a nightmare.
Fierce lightning accompanied by a howling gale erupted around him. Storm Assault combined with Honed Bolt swept through every corner of the underground cavern. The river water acted as a perfect conductor, spreading the electrical discharge.
Every giant ant struck by the lightning burst apart on the spot, exploding into highly acidic ant acid and crimson tissue.
Gawain observed the wriggling remains for a moment. As expected, living so close to the Lake of Rot had left these creatures tainted by the Scarlet Rot to some degree.
Yet, strangely, the rot here didn't behave like the resilient pollutant in Caelid. Ordinarily, if Scarlet Rot wasn't completely incinerated by flame, it would sink into the earth and continue to multiply. Here, however, when the tissue came into contact with the Ainsel River, the colors faded rapidly, as if the water itself was decomposing the rot.
"I see... so 'flowing water never grows stale,' is it? No wonder the Lake of Rot has been sealed for so long without spreading further."
Gawain had a theory. In legend, the Flowing Curved Sword technique came from a fairy who was the embodiment of the Ainsel River. Its effectiveness in suppressing the Scarlet Rot seemed even stronger than he had imagined.
Continuing forward, they encountered a labyrinth of riverbeds—the result of the Ainsel River carving through the rock over countless eons. There were also tunnels bored out by giant underground creatures that had mutated over time.
Scanning the area, he noticed many side paths led to dead ends. At the end of those paths were countless nests; the dense, white silken sacs indicated that thousands of unborn giant ants were still in the process of hatching.
Under Ranni's guidance, Gawain slowly cleared his way through the various monsters blocking their path—from giant ants to his "old friends," the Basilisks. Occasionally, they even ran into Claymen emerging from the shadows.
Every so often, they would encounter small mountains of piled skeletons, teeming with foraging giant ants and crawling with crimson fluids—a truly nauseating sight.
Finally, after bursting a giant ant with an absurdly large abdomen and clearing out the surrounding eggs, even the directionally-challenged Gawain could tell they had arrived somewhere significant.
A short distance ahead, the narrow tunnel suddenly opened up into another massive underground expanse.
Standing on a high ledge and looking down, he saw countless Claymen aimlessly digging into the soil below. Behind them lay a massive architectural ruin that had merged with the cavern itself.
Only the stone gate remained perfectly intact. Before the gate stood two massive statues; one was heavily damaged, with only half its body remaining. The other, relatively well-preserved, was a statue of a giant, bearded old man clutching a stone tablet. Despite the missing pieces worn away by time, there was no mistaking it: this was the Uhl Palace Ruins.
Gawain leaped down, choosing not to disturb the numerous Claymen. He landed quietly near the Ainsel River sluice. The hydraulic facilities built in ancient times were still faithfully performing their duty, guiding the flow of water.
He carefully examined the tablets in the old man's hands and those scattered throughout the ruins. The level of detail, far richer than what was shown in the game, confirmed some of his previous suspicions.
The Uhl Palace Ruins were widely distributed across the Lands Between, often in strange or conflicting locations. The Ruin-Strown Precipice on the surface shared the same style; the Siofra River beneath Nokron—territory occupied by the Ancestral Followers—had similar tablets; the Grand Cloister now occupied by the Kindred of Rot, and even the Mohgwyn Palace currently held by Mohg, all featured these bearded man statues.
Despite such a wide distribution, there was very little information about them. The Uhl Dynasty, which neighbored the Eternal Cities but had a completely different architectural style, had almost no lore in the game. Most players had to resort to looking at Mesopotamian archetypes for clues.
But since he was here in person, uncovering the history was much easier. He had a descendant of the Eternal City right beside him to confirm his theories.
"Ranni, how much do you know about these ancient ruins?"
Ranni pondered for a moment before shrugging.
"To be honest, I know very little. This dynasty predates the era of Queen Marika by a vast margin. Even I can only catch glimpses of the truth through fragments of the past. But there is no doubt: the history of this dynasty can be traced back to the distant Age of Rot. Even for me, those stories exist only in myth."
"The Age of Rot? I thought as much," Gawain said. "Can you tell me more about what happened back then? I need to know everything about the era of the Outer God sealed in the lake."
"If you are curious, I shall tell you what I know. There were things I couldn't quite reconcile before, but after learning the history from the perspective of the Nox, some pieces have fallen into place. However, the era is so remote that I cannot guarantee its absolute historical accuracy."
Ranni looked at the carvings on the stone tablet and began to recount a legend of the Age of Rot.
It was said that in the distant past, when the Lands Between were still a wilderness, two kings vied for supremacy—much like the Storm Lord was Godfrey's final opponent before his exile. An unprecedented war broke out to determine who would become the first Elden Lord.
The two sides of that war were the forces of the Outer God of Rot and the forces of Dragonlord Placidusax.
The God of Scarlet Rot needed no allies. It was the personification of life force turned twisted by over-proliferation. Any individual craving eternal life would eventually become a part of it. The ancient Age of Rot was the height of its power; it had established a sprawling dynasty across the Lands Between.
In those days, it was said that the "Great Kings" served the Scarlet Rot, wearing crowns made of mushrooms to signify their status.
Opposing the Rot God were the forces represented by the Dragonlord and the Dragon God. Which deity the Dragon God represented and what laws it served are lost to time. But one thing is certain: back then, the Elden Ring was still whole, held by the most powerful dragon race in the Lands Between, rather than the Metyr, Mother of Fingers, who was abandoned by the Greater Will. The image of the original Elden Ring is still preserved in the dragon capital of Farum Azula.
At that time, the roots of the Primordial Erdtree already spanned the Lands Between. With the Deeproot Depths as the source, the channels of the Siofra and Ainsel Rivers connected the entire continent.
The Dragonlord's era was one of inclusion, much like the early Golden Order. It could even accommodate diametrically opposed laws. Thus, most factions that rejected the Scarlet Rot united under the Dragonlord's banner to form a united front.
But the alliance was not without its fissures. A portion of the Uhl Dynasty betrayed the cause, siding with the Rot God to become part of the Great Kings. Consequently, the Grand Cloister area, originally part of the dynasty, was occupied by the Kindred of Rot.
Where there is stagnation, there is rot. The best way to combat rot is through flow. The various civilizations of the Lands Between united and, using the two rivers as a foundation, built massive hydraulic systems and transport networks. By keeping the water constantly flowing, they suppressed the rot, gradually shrinking its range of activity.
The Giant Blacksmiths developed iron tools treated with flame to fight the rot—a craft inherited by the Trolls to this day.
Perhaps because the "eternal life" of stagnant rot conflicted with the Ancestral Follower belief in new life budding from death, even the Ancestral Followers, who rarely interacted with outsiders, joined the war against the Rot Dynasty.
This meant the primordial local deities of the Lands Between also participated in the struggle against the Rot God, including the Blue-Clothed Dancer, who was the manifestation of the Ainsel River's will.
The final battle broke out in the central lake of the Ainsel River. The Dragonlord and the Dragon God joined forces, using the power of the Ancient Dragons to heavily wound the Rot God. The allied forces of the various civilizations defeated the Kindred of Rot led by the Great Kings, cornering them in what is now the Lake of Rot. Ancestral Followers, Giants, the Alabaster Lords from the stars, and humans all contributed their strength.
The battle was finally concluded by a blind swordsman. Carrying a flowing sword gifted by the Blue-Clothed Dancer, he used a masterful flowing sword technique to parry all rot-born erosion. At the moment the god was at its weakest, he successfully sealed the essence of the Outer God of Rot in the center of the lake. The surrounding, ceaselessly flowing river channels locked away the possibility of the Scarlet Rot spreading further.
But this did not mean the threat was eliminated. Wherever there is eternal stagnation, rot will breed. Later, the blind swordsman passed down his flowing sword techniques to future generations.
The blind swordsman's final legacy also helped the Blade of Miquella successfully suppress the rot within her—until the moment she discarded her pride in that great war and pulled out the gold needle to let the Aeonia flower bloom.
The victory over the Rot God confirmed the Dragonlord's and Dragon God's dominance over the Lands Between, and the Dragonlord became the first Elden Lord. The Four Belfries are remnants of that glorious and inclusive period; under the Dragonlord's rule, various civilizations lived in harmony, and the Four Belfries were built to facilitate communication between them.
That mythic era eventually ended with the departure of the Dragon God and the disappearance of the Dragonlord. It is said that a severe internal conflict broke out before that, plunging the dragon race into chaos and rendering them unable to maintain their rule.
The Nox civilization began to rise with the assistance of the Fingers. The Uhl Dynasty gradually declined due to certain events during this transition. Metyr, Mother of Fingers, attempted to nurture a new god to fully control the Elden Ring, which eventually led to the "Zeroth Shattering"—but that is a story for another time.
This was the history Ranni had deduced based on the information she currently possessed. Even if most records were lost, the ruins spread across the land did not lie.
Hearing this history, Gawain stood up after a moment of silence.
"Let's go. Nokstella should be just ahead. This time, I'll be the one to deal with that so-called 'divine essence'."
Caelid, Sellia Town
At atop the Swamp Lookout Tower, Jerren repeatedly studied the map before him. After confirming all nodes were ready, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"By tomorrow, we should launch the final assault on the Aeonia Swamp. I didn't expect to reach this stage so quickly. It seems my retirement is in sight."
"I don't think it will be that simple," said Elsa, her expression grim as she watched the center of the bubbling Aeonia Swamp. "Have you noticed? Ever since I brought reinforcements from Stormveil, the heart of the swamp has become increasingly restless."
Though it had always been turbulent, things had quieted down for a while after the strongest Kindred of Rot were cleared out. Now, it was beginning to seethe again.
She couldn't help but feel tense. This was the greatest challenge she had faced since leaving her "prison." And her King was not here. As the undisputed second-in-command and the highest military commander present, all the pressure rested on her shoulders.
For this war, Stormveil and Redmane Castle had put forth their greatest assets. The consequences of failure would be catastrophic.
Jerren merely smiled. Since the end of the Aeonian War, he had been leading the Redmane Knights to suppress the Scarlet Rot. He knew exactly how the rot behaved.
"I can tell those things are afraid. The Scarlet Rot is merely a twisted form of life. Since it is life, it naturally fears its own demise. This is normal."
He continued, "However, because of that, I expect even more Kindred of Rot to emerge from that swamp tomorrow to stop our advance. But if we can withstand their charge, it will save us a lot of trouble in the long run."
"I hope so."
Elsa clenched her fist and then opened her palm. Resting there was a ball of light only she could see. Though it appeared faint, it radiated an intense, fiery heat at all times.
That was the power she would only use in the most dire moments. Over time, it had merged deeply with her soul. She hoped tomorrow wouldn't descend to that level.
Her gaze traveled past the Caelid Divine Tower toward the Dragonbarrow. There, a small figure was flying toward the heights.
"Agheel, you'd better bring enough support by tomorrow."
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Elden Ring: In the Name of Ash (238 chapter - Ongoing)
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