After settling his brief clash with the Mother of Truth, Gawain swapped his armor—which had been completely melted and fused during the battle with the Lord of Frenzied Flame—for his usual set of storm-affinity heavy plate. His body was still covered in burn scars, and he felt it was necessary to maintain at least some semblance of his public image upon his return.
Returning to the cavern where he had first entered the Land of Shadow, he noted that the gloom here was significantly thinner than in other regions. Just as he suspected, the passage opened by Miquella had made the boundary between the Lands Between and the Land of Shadow nearly imperceptible. This allowed him to pass smoothly back into the ruins of the Mohgwyn Dynasty.
However, the Mohgwyn Dynasty was quite different now compared to when he had left. As it was currently the most convenient passage to the Land of Shadow, Asimi had dispatched a considerable number of her duplicates to garrison the site.
Additionally, the Albinaurics who had settled in the underground world were flourishing. During this time, they had even performed rudimentary repairs on the bridges connecting the various sections of the subterranean realm. Although they were only simple rope-and-plank constructions, they allowed for a steady stream of supplies to be transported.
The ability to summon large-scale portals in the underworld was a power only Asimi possessed, and she naturally didn't need to waste her time on such menial labor.
"Lord Storm King, you've returned!?"
Before he had walked far, Gawain encountered a familiar face. It was Latenna, perched atop her white wolf. He hadn't seen her in a while; her complexion looked much better than before. It seemed that having a safe environment to live in had served her well.
"Yeah. I've been gone for a bit; I had to come back to handle a few things."
He surveyed the new defensive fortifications being erected in every direction. This was vastly superior to the shabbiness of the Albinauric Village. Clearly, for the sake of their future lives, these Albinaurics were more than willing to put in the hard work of construction.
"What's that over there?"
Gawain's gaze followed the cliffside down to a corner near the edge of the former cursed blood pool, where a structure resembling a tombstone had been built.
"Ah. When Lady Asimi sent us here to repair these heavily damaged ruins, we found many corpses of our former kin. The Village Elder led a group to build a simple monument."
Latenna's mood dipped momentarily as she recalled the tragic state of her people. However, remembering that many of the kin formerly at the Mohgwyn Dynasty had been killed by the man standing right beside her, she coughed twice and quickly added:
"Most of the bodies were found beneath the now-dried pool of cursed blood. Who knows how many of our kin were deceived over the long years, coming to this place only to find madness and torture."
She paused, her eyes flickering toward the highest point of the dynasty ruins, before asking in a hesitant tone:
"If possible, I wish to gather the kin who are still in the Consecrated Snowfield. I heard that a never-ending blizzard rages there, and Ordina has been closed since the disappearance of the Empyrean Miquella. Even if they successfully reach the foot of the Haligtree, no one knows what the situation is like inside."
"The kin at the Haligtree?"
Gawain thought about the current state of that godforsaken place, the Consecrated Snowfield. On his journey, he had seen many corpses of pilgrims heading toward the Haligtree, many of whom were Generation 2 Albinaurics like Latenna.
Loretta had indeed reached the Haligtree to seek a place of rest for the Albinaurics, but with Miquella missing and Malenia in a self-imposed reclusive state, the Haligtree itself was a powder keg that could explode at any moment.
Leda and her companions were followers of Miquella, but they didn't seem particularly interested in the Haligtree. Perhaps this was related to a change in Miquella's own intentions?
"It's dangerous there. Let's finish repairing the Mohgwyn ruins first."
Seeing Latenna's crestfallen expression, Gawain considered his words and continued, "The situation at the Haligtree is more complicated than you imagine. I will go there personally when the opportunity is right. So, until then, focus on building a home for your people here in the underworld. Otherwise, if you bring your kin over now, are they supposed to sleep on bare rocks?"
"I suppose you're right. I should go tell the Elder this good news immediately."
Hearing such a guarantee, Latenna understood Gawain's intention. After moving from the Albinauric Village to the Stormveil region, she had heard much about the current state of the Lands Between. The Haligtree was indeed no longer the paradise she had once believed it to be.
"By the way, Lord Storm King, when you eventually set out for the Haligtree, please remember to take me with you. Even if I can't help much in battle, I can still convince our kin to lay down their hostility."
"No problem. You can come along when the time comes. And there's no need to be so formal with the titles; helping a friend is only natural."
Latenna nodded shyly, then urged her white wolf companion to depart.
Gawain watched the girl—who still acted somewhat reserved in his presence—and shook his head with a smile. He then left the Mohgwyn Dynasty and returned to Stormveil Castle.
However, the moment he arrived, he saw a familiar silver figure standing before him. In the dim light of dusk, he didn't see the person clearly. His body tensed instinctively, and he delivered a flying kick.
"Damn it! Where did this Silver Knight come from? Die!"
Back in Irithyll, he had slain countless Silver Knights who had betrayed the royalty to serve Pontiff Sulyvahn. Attacking that specific set of armor had become a conditioned reflex.
It was only after sending the figure flying that he realized something was wrong. Wait, this is the Lands Between. Where would a Silver Knight come from? Coming to his senses, he realized that while the armor looked very similar to his memory, there were familiar markings engraved upon it.
The "Silver Knight" he had just kicked away removed his helmet, revealing the face of Kalvin.
Kalvin coughed a few times, shakily climbing to his feet as he gasped, "That kick... certainly had some power behind it. As expected of the Storm King."
He then looked to the side and spoke in a very certain tone, "Master Iji, I can confirm that this armor is at least qualified in terms of defensive capabilities."
Gawain looked at the dented footprint on the silver chestplate and decided to cast a Bountiful Sunlight on the man.
"Sorry, I didn't see clearly just now. But why are you wearing that armor?"
Master Iji, standing nearby, lowered his hammer and explained, "This was a commission from Miss Sirris. She wished to forge armor of this design for the knightly order she is establishing. Of course, I found it a bit too plain, so I added some extra decorations based on the original."
"The first set was just finished, so I asked Kalvin, who was passing by, to test it out. But..."
Gawain's mouth twitched. Kalvin was truly unlucky. He'd been dragged over by Iji to test new armor, only to run into Gawain returning, resulting in an inexplicable kick to the chest.
Feeling a bit guilty, Gawain crushed a Hero's Rune and handed the energy to him. Although it seemed like a lot, to Gawain's current level, it was a drop in the bucket.
Kalvin, having taken a kick but gained a Hero's Rune in exchange, naturally felt he had come out ahead. He even felt a bit of regret that he'd only been kicked once. After fully recovering, he somewhat reluctantly took off the armor, already planning where to go and relax during his hard-earned time off.
Gawain studied the newly forged Silver Knight armor. Despite the eyesore of a footprint, he was very satisfied with the overall result.
While it retained most of the style of the former Darkmoon Knights, it featured many decorative patterns from the Lands Between, naturally including the crests of Caria and Stormveil.
"Lady Ranni was aware of this armor when she returned to Stormveil recently. She specifically requested the addition of symbols representing the Order of the Dark Moon and the Carian Royal Family. Naturally, I tried to integrate them with the patterns of Stormveil."
"Ranni? I was planning to tell her after the knightly order was established. I didn't expect her to be more invested in this than I am."
"So, how did your journey to the Land of Shadow progress? Did you happen to see the Twin Moon Knight, Lady Rellana?" Iji asked. "Hmm, by my count, Lady Ranni should have at least a few younger siblings by now. Though I am but a retired blacksmith, I suppose I should prepare some gifts."
Gawain put down the armor and said with a wry smile, "You probably don't need to worry about that for now. Because Rellana is still single."
"How can that be...?"
Iji was clearly shocked by this fact, silently feeling a bit of pity for the lady.
"It's a long story. Anyway, it has everything to do with the complicated situation in the Land of Shadow. This armor is excellent; proceed with forging the rest using this pattern. I have matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave."
Just as Gawain said his goodbyes to Iji and turned around, a familiar figure appeared from around the corner. Clad in the silver-white armor of the Sunless Realm with a silk veil, her face clear and elegant—it was his knight, Sirris.
"Master Iji, the armor we discussed..."
Sirris's gaze fell upon the Ashen One, and her movements froze instantly. She stood rooted to the spot. The last time her heart had fluttered like this was during those ordinary moments of respite at Firelink Shrine—since then, their lives had been nothing but an endless cycle of battle for the sake of their mission, without a moment's pause.
The two stood there quietly, their eyes meeting. There was no overwhelming excitement as one might expect, nor was there wild ecstasy at a long-awaited reunion. Instead, they were like two old friends who hadn't seen each other in a long while; in the silence, a warm sense of familiarity quietly spread between them.
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Elden Ring: In the Name of Ash
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