After Gawain shared his proposal with Eivor, the Crucible Knight found it somewhat far-fetched, yet she had to admit it was a pragmatically effective solution. She soon departed the Night's Sacred Ground to notify her companion at the aqueduct; otherwise, her partner would likely grow restless waiting.
His plan was actually quite simple: if spirit soldiers could contain the expansion of the Prince of Death for so long, then Silver Tears should be able to do the same.
In essence, Silver Tears were artificially created entities existing between soul and matter, and spiritual forms were largely immune to status effects like Death Blight.
While Gawain wasn't entirely sure of the Ancient Dragon Fortissax's current condition, his memories suggested the dragon could hold out for a while longer. If it couldn't, Fia wouldn't be so desperate to find a 'champion' to enter the dream and finish the job.
With the residents of Albinauric Village soon to migrate here, the cooperation between the Albinaurics and the Nox would allow the production of Silver Tears to resume quickly, provided there were no external threats.
Once that happened, Nokron would serve not only as a vital underground artery connecting Caelid and Limgrave but also as the forward base for the Deeproot Depths. Of course, this meant the Ancestral Followers—those "brave bulls"—were in for a rough time.
There was no helping it; those primitive shamans had no intention of communicating and attacked on sight. Against such hostile entities, Gawain had no qualms about using a heavy hand.
Oh? You say they believe in the Ancestral Spirit, where new life sprouts from death and they can be reborn? Fine. I'll just camp their spawn point and kill them every time they resurrect. You like making offerings? I'll dismantle the Ancestral Spirit's bones myself.
By utilizing Silver Tears—which were even cheaper and more efficient than Tarnished—and the underground river transport lines, he could send dozens of coffins full of "filler" units upstream to alleviate the pressure at the Prince of Death's location. This would allow him to focus on settling the Academy's affairs first.
Having made this pleasant decision, Gawain wasted no more time. He found Avina and detailed his plan to her.
Avina considered his proposal carefully before offering her input.
"I generally agree with your suggestions. The transport system at the aqueduct was constructed by an ancient civilization; parts of it even date back to the wars against the God of Rot.
In the distant past, these transport systems, which traversed the entire underground water network of the Lands Between, were fundamental in curbing the spread of the Rot. Though those glorious eras have passed and many lines lie in ruin, I believe I can modify them to suit your requirements—provided the other Crucible Knight at the aqueduct does not interfere."
"You don't need to worry about that," Gawain replied. "She has already returned to regroup with her companion. Now that the Fingerslayer Blade has been taken, I imagine you no longer have a reason to maintain your standoff."
Avina nodded. They possessed sufficient self-defense capabilities, and now that they had the strongest possible external ally, she didn't need to worry about whether the two Crucible Knights were truly sincere in their cooperation.
Even living in Nokron all these years, she had heard of the Deathroot; the curse spreading via the Greattree roots throughout the Lands Between was hard to ignore.
"Still, to think that after all this time, everything remains the same," she mused. "Every pursuit of eternity eventually becomes a breeding ground for corruption. Whether it be the Scarlet Rot or this twisted death... perhaps it is an inevitable conclusion."
Gawain recalled the Sea of Humanity he had seen in the Ringed City. It was the same in every world: the more things clung to a lingering existence, the more pathetic the end became. Eternity like that... is better left alone.
"Does true eternity even exist?" Gawain asked. "For most, the price of pursuing eternity is the beauty of the present moment."
"The beauty of the present... truly, a phrase I have forgotten for far too long. I suppose that kind of corruption would not manifest in someone willing to burn themselves for the sake of the world, would it, Ashen One?"
He touched the scar on his neck left by the burning of the Flame, simply stating:
"When everything burns down to ash, there is no room left for corruption to grow. I believe that is, by definition, the opposite of so-called eternity."
"I will make the preparations here," Avina said. "Whatever the future holds, I wish you success in what comes next."
Avina and Lilian remained in Nokron to prepare. As the representative of the Sellians, Lilian had much to learn before she could successfully lead her people into this magnificent lost city.
Furthermore, Avina needed time to restore the production of Silver Tears. Many essential facilities had been damaged during ancient conflicts, and with the external threats gone, she finally had the conditions necessary for restoration.
Before long, Eivor returned to the Night's Sacred Ground from the aqueduct. she had explained the situation to her companion; although it sounded somewhat absurd, her partner had accepted the explanation.
The aqueduct could not be left unguarded, so she departed alone for the surface. She needed to reunite with more of her comrades to seek reinforcements and ensure nothing went wrong in the Deeproot Depths.
Gawain wasted no time and left Nokron with her. Upon reaching the surface, he saw Calvin still "slacking off" by the pit, lying back in his hammock.
If the first time he'd been caught slacking had caused some anxiety, he was now completely unburdened by psychological pressure.
However, when he saw the giant figure emerging from the pit behind Gawain, he nearly fell out of his hammock. If his eyes didn't deceive him, this woman was a warrior famous among the tribes of the Mountaintops, according to the stories told by his ancestors.
During the Giant Wars, several brave shield-maidens had been chosen by the First Lord Godfrey to become members of the Crucible Knights. But those legendary warriors had scattered after the Night of the Black Knives, many vanishing from the Lands Between entirely. Who could have known one was hiding deep underground?
But why is her armor so battered? Her helmet is gone too. What kind of enemy could have beaten her into such a state?
Eivor also noticed the Kaiden man. She hadn't expected to meet a fellow highlander so soon after coming out. She clapped a hand on his shoulder and sighed.
"I didn't expect to see a Kaiden man here. A tribe once so fierce in battle... you look a bit diminished now. Well, though I don't know how much your combat prowess has regressed, your quality of life has certainly improved."
Calvin looked up at Eivor, who was half a body taller than him. He couldn't find the words to argue. His ancestors who fought in the Giant Wars were legends who went toe-to-toe with Fire Giants, and the War-Lord Godfrey was the strongest warrior among the mountain tribes—which was why he was honored as the First Lord.
But the Shattering had dragged on for years, and the heroes of old were almost all dead. The age of abundance, where the sap of the Erdtree flowed constantly, was long gone. How could their descendants replicate the glory of the past?
"Alright, enough play," Eivor said. "Lead me back. I need a blacksmith to repair my armor."
"Fine, fine," Gawain interjected. "I wonder what Naxir is up to right now."
After letting the Kaiden man be, Eivor gazed toward the majestic Stormveil Castle in the distance, feeling a surge of nostalgia. The last time she had been to Stormveil was when she'd stormed the gates alongside Godfrey.
She had been preoccupied with the Deathroot issue, but now that she was on the surface, she wanted to know how the Lands Between had fared in her absence.
"I haven't left that dark underground since the Night of the Black Knives. I could only feel the wars between the demigods erupting above.
You are clearly a newcomer to the Lands Between, so tell me: who ruled Stormveil, the last bastion of the Storm Lord, before you?"
Gawain considered Godrick's lineage and was thinking of how to introduce him when Eivor interrupted him with her own deductions.
"With Godwyn killed, I imagine General Radahn, being so close in Limgrave, wouldn't have missed the chance to expand his power. That would be a fitting match. I feel the General's Great Rune on you; if I'm not mistaken, it's your trophy of war."
Eivor saw Gawain's face twitch and realized she'd guessed wrong. She began considering other possibilities.
"I recall the Carian Royal Family and their knights were able to fight the Golden Order to a stalemate twice during the Liurnian Wars. Radagon only settled the conflict through marriage.
Though I heard the Full Moon Queen lost her mind and withdrew from the world, if she were willing, she and the Academy sorcerers could have taken Stormveil with ease. Am I right this time?"
She saw him shake his head again. She grew a bit frustrated, feeling as though the blow she'd taken earlier had scrambled her brains. Finally, she blurted out her last guess.
"Then it must have been Gofroy of the Golden Lineage. He had a decent head for administration. I remember everyone in the Capital saw his ambition after Prince Godwyn's death.
Though his combat strength wasn't much to look at, his ability to train and manage troops was commendable. He even made use of Misbegotten outcasts. He should have been able to hold his own fief."
That was a "close" answer, but still incorrect. Gawain finally provided the right name. Eivor fell silent for a long time before asking one question.
"Who is Godrick? Is he a descendant of Prince Godwyn?"
"Just a pervert who likes grafting extra arms onto his body," Gawain replied. "Who he is doesn't matter. What matters is that he turned himself into a Living in Death and almost destroyed all of Stormveil. You can ask your comrades in the castle for the details."
"It seems you did mention such a demigod earlier. Whatever—just some nobody from who-knows-where. Let's make haste."
A Crucible Knight's charge was faster than one might expect, so Gawain didn't have to slow down. He rode Torrent, chatting with her as they traveled.
"Can you tell me what happened to Godwyn's body after the Night of the Black Knives?"
"Let me see... based on what I saw when I was handling the aftermath with Siluria, the curse on the Prince had many similarities to the Scarlet Rot.
Except the Scarlet Rot represents a form of life flourishing to a grotesque extreme, while that curse represents death. There's no need to mention the ancient hero graves—any large-scale cemetery is liable to be infected by this thing, giving birth to new husks. 'Those Who Live in Death,' as you call them.
I remember when the Prince's body was discovered, the mutation was already spiraling out of control. When his personal guards tried to approach, they were consumed by a mass of black flesh and assimilated into similar creatures.
Later, Queen Marika herself performed a miracle of Grace to contain the profanity and stop it from spreading. Consequently, everyone who witnessed this fundamental flaw in the Golden Order was sent into the Nameless Eternal City beneath the Capital."
Gawain wondered what Marika felt when she saw Godwyn turned into that monster. After all, she had at most 'allowed' the Night of the Black Knives, not directly participated. If she really wanted someone dead, she'd just send Maliketh to do it; there was no need for such convoluted schemes.
He had previously thought about using the passage from the aqueduct to go to the Nameless Eternal City and then taking a shortcut to the Capital to stab Morgott in the back—maybe even kill the Three Fingers while he was at it.
But if he'd teleported up there without knowing the situation, he probably would have landed face-first in a pile of Godwyn's corruption. Even if it weren't dangerous for him, the thought was disgusting. He'd let the Silver Tears clear a path first.
Around noon, the two finally reached their destination.
"Stormveil Castle is just ahead. Your comrades are usually at the second wall. If you want to catch up, go right ahead. I'll handle the Nokron logistics; just talk to them if you need anything."
"Got it. I can't wait."
Walking through the main gate—now repaired and even more grand than before—Gawain naturally drew some looks, but Eivor had a 100% head-turn rate. Very few people had ever seen a Crucible Knight without a helmet, especially one who was clearly a woman.
Naxir hadn't noticed the commotion at the gate. He was leaning against a wall, resting. He had only been back for a short while, and after maintaining his weapons and armor, he'd stayed in the castle to help train the soldiers. It was certainly more comfortable than standing on a broken bridge.
Nearby, Finn and Cain, with their sharper senses, felt a familiar aura in the air. They both looked toward the gate. Although they thought about going over to say hello, they shared a look and wordlessly agreed to stay back and watch the show.
By the time Naxir realized someone was behind him, Eivor was already close. That familiar pressure—there was no mistaking it.
"Oh no... why is she here!?"
Realizing who it was, he tried to unfurl his wings and flee, but a manifested Crucible Tail swept him out of the air.
"Got you. Stay down and don't move."
Eivor showed no mercy. She lunged forward and delivered a rapid succession of punches. Naxir's scream after the sixth punch wasn't because he was tough; it was because he'd been hit six times in a single second.
Eivor pinned him down with a knee to his back and locked his arms behind him. A classic 'grapple of dominance' that left Naxir face-down in the dirt, unable to rise.
"Cough... Big Sis... what are you doing here? How long has it been? You look... great. I'm so happy to see you."
"Good. It seems you haven't forgotten who I am. Did you forget everything I taught you? Just how stupid do you have to be to get yourself trapped in a place like that?
If I hadn't seen it myself, I might have let it go. But I saw everything from the aqueduct. You aren't escaping this beating today."
Gawain watched the 'philosophical' scene with a twitching lip. He didn't know the full story between them, so he didn't intervene. He just asked Finn and Cain what was going on.
The two simply laughed and waved it off.
"Oh, those two? This is a normal Tuesday," Finn said. "Naxir was just a tribal kid Eivor saved on the battlefield long ago. His entire tribe had been wiped out by Fire Giants.
Eivor saw his talent for combat, took him under her wing for training, and then recommended him to the War-Lord to become one of us. In the mountains, that kind of relationship was common—comrades who survived the battlefield were no different from family.
Even during the Giant Wars, we all thought the kid was a bit dim. He was always doing something stupid and getting a lesson from Eivor.
And then he went and got himself stuck on a broken bridge. I didn't expect you to bring Eivor back too... yeah, he's definitely getting that beating."
"Uh, okay then. You guys keep at it. I'll be going now. Eivor will fill you in when she's finished."
Gawain looked at Naxir, still pinned and being pummeled, and didn't know what to say. The scene was quite brutal—how did ice magic even get involved in the beating? Was she icing the bruises as she made them?
One punch to shatter the hero's dream; Big Sis is from the mountains.
Still, Naxir's luck wasn't half bad. Being taken in and personally taught by a three-meter-tall Amazonian warrior sister... the thought alone was quite a mental image. The only downside was that Naxir was clearly missing a few screws—whether he was born that way or had them beaten loose was anyone's guess.
Gawain ignored Naxir's cries for help, bypassed the "touching scene of teacher-student affection," and entered the inner castle. There, he met Elsa, who had come to see what the noise was about. After a brief explanation, she understood the situation.
"I didn't expect to return from the border for a rest and run into this," Elsa said. "So she's back. No wonder I felt a familiar presence."
Elsa's armor was still stained with various colors—likely from a skirmish with Kindred of Rot. She hadn't even had time to change.
"You know Eivor?" Gawain asked. "Actually, that makes sense. The ice magic she uses looks a bit like yours."
"Well, long ago, the mountain tribes united under Lord Godfrey to fight the Fire Giants. Everyone was quite united against the Giants, and it was common to learn from one another's techniques.
Don't forget, I was once the greatest hero among the Zamor, so I dealt with the Crucible Knights often.
Most of those chosen for Godfrey's personal guard were selected from the battlefield and underwent unified training. Backed by the constant Grace of the Erdtree and the power of the Crucible, even the strongest Fire Giants struggled against them.
I saw Eivor and her... unreliable apprentice... on the battlefield back then. I didn't expect to see them again after all this time. It's quite nostalgic.
By the way, judging by your look, your trip was a success. Did you find the treasure of the Eternal City?"
"That's a long story," Gawain replied. "But overall, I got what I came for. Come on, let's go back and I'll give you the details. There are some unexpected developments you need to know about."
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Elden Ring: In the Name of Ash (218 chapter - Ongoing)
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