Ever since Xiao recovered the Law of Death from Those Who Live in Death and created a law known as Necromancy, this should have already been one of Godwyn's schemes.
"The Deathbed Companion, is it? I'll keep an eye out for her!"
Rykard stroked the red beard on his chin, his eyes sharpening as though he were contemplating something.
Soon, he understood. If his guess was correct, then this Deathbed Companion was the contingency Godwyn had left behind for his own resurrection.
The Deathbed Companion sleeping beside heroes and absorbing their life force was clearly collecting the Blessing of Grace from them and then using specific methods to resurrect Godwyn the Golden as one of Those Who Live in Death.
In this way, the prophecy would become reality: Godwyn would become the first of Those Who Live in Death, and all Those Who Live in Death would originate from Godwyn himself.
And Fia, as the mother of Godwyn—the Prince of Death—would naturally become the mother of all Those Who Live in Death.
Rykard then said, "It seems we need to keep a close eye on this Deathbed Companion.
If she truly is Godwyn's contingency plan, then she may become a threat to us.
However, now that we know of her existence, we can also think of ways to deal with her."
Xiao nodded slightly, a faint enigmatic smile appearing on her lips as she replied, "You handle it. The Prince of Death is not so easily born. Don't forget, his greatest enemy is the Golden Dynasty itself!"
After saying that, she cast Rykard a meaningful glance from the other side of the phone.
"Hmm???"
Hearing this, Rykard was momentarily stunned. Then, as though he had suddenly realized something, his expression shifted into one of understanding before he burst into hearty laughter.
"Yes, yes, Your Majesty the Queen, you are absolutely right, hahahaha~~~"
The fundamental law behind the existence of Those Who Live in Death was still, at its core, a variation of Destined Death. Even if Godwyn had integrated his own understanding into it, it still remained governed by the Law of Death and inherited its essential characteristics.
The relationship between the Law of Death and the Golden Order could be described as two completely opposing and conflicting forces.
The power of the Law of Death comes from death itself. As long as life continues to perish, the power of the Law of Death will continue to grow stronger.
The power of the Golden Order, on the other hand, comes from life. As long as life exists, it continuously exercises the most fundamental principles of the law.
Moreover, the longer people lived, the more law power they would generate in turn.
Therefore, every member of the Golden Lineage was granted eternal life and could not truly be killed no matter what happened.
Because as long as they remained alive, they served as the greatest source of strength for the Golden Order.
Thus, during the flourishing age of the Golden Order, there was no death within The Lands Between, and the Law of Death itself was sealed away.
Having lost the possibility of exercising the fundamental principles of the Law of Death, the power of death naturally stagnated.
Even after tens of thousands of years, it remained incapable of reviving.
Death and Gold—one advocates death, while the other advocates eternity.
These two laws were fundamentally irreconcilable.
And for the Prince of Death to be reborn, he would inevitably need to rely upon the power of the Law of Death, yet the Golden Order could never tolerate his existence.
If Morgott wished to maintain the Golden Order, then he would have to personally eliminate his beloved elder brother.
But if he wished to resurrect his elder brother, then he would have to destroy the perfection of the Golden Order and allow flaws to appear within it once again.
For Morgott, a hopeless brother-con who worshiped the Golden Dynasty, this was an unimaginably cruel dilemma. He would be forced to choose between protecting his faith and protecting his elder brother.
Someone like Rykard, who was cold-blooded and obsessed only with power, would probably choose the former without hesitation. After all, he could even betray Radahn without the slightest remorse.
But Morgott, who was both kind and loyal, could only waver painfully between the two choices.
This might even ultimately lead to a conflict between his ideals and his law itself, causing his Law of Holy Light to shatter completely and forcing him to fall back down to the realm of an ordinary demigod.
Law is the power of the world's rules, the ultimate sublimation of personal skill—the Dao itself.
But law is also the embodiment of a person's chosen path. It originates from humanity's dissatisfaction toward divinity, a trace of gentleness bestowed upon mortals by the world itself.
Mortals believe that the rules of their own laws are even more perfect than the rules of heaven and earth.
Thus, the Elden Ring came into existence. Marika replaced the will of heaven with her own will, replacing the world's original laws with her Golden Order.
Therefore, laws also carry an intensely personal will, representing a person's deepest aspirations and desires.
The core of the Law of Holy Light is "Holy," followed by "Light." Morgott revered the Golden Order above all else and regarded it as sacred.
Any existence that violated the Golden Order was an insult to the holy law and had to be purified by Holy Light.
So, when Morgott eventually discovers that the Golden Order he has always worshiped stands in opposition to the elder brother he loves most,
and that his beloved elder brother has become an existence he himself must purify,
that situation will undoubtedly become extremely interesting.
When a person's emotions run contrary to their own law, and a demigod begins doubting his own heart,
then the inevitable result is the collapse of his own law, causing him to fall back to the realm of a mere demigod.
As a judicial officer and executioner, Rykard possessed hundreds of years of experience. He could accurately locate the most painful point in a person's heart.
However, his previous methods had always been limited to physical torture, and he had long since grown tired of them.
It was only after meeting Xiao that he discovered an entirely new method of tormenting people—mental torture.
Just imagining the dilemma and psychological torment Morgott was about to face, ultimately leading to the collapse of his Dao heart,
filled Rykard with unprecedented excitement.
The vivid imagery produced by this psychological torture brought him a level of pleasure he had never experienced before. He felt practically intoxicated by it; it was simply too wonderful!
"Alright, don't get too high. You still need to head to Leyndell together with Radahn. You should prepare for battle. The intensity of this war may become unprecedented in the history of the Golden Dynasty. Don't die, my Elden Lord!"
Xiao reminded Rykard once more before hanging up the phone.
Rykard listened to the disconnected tone from the other side, and a delighted smile gradually appeared on his face.
"Don't worry, my Goddess. I'm not a stubborn fool like my elder brother, nor am I like that Valkyrie who suffers for the sake of appearances!"
Deep down, he understood that this was Xiao's concern and warning toward him.
More importantly, through this video call, Rykard—who had originally planned to completely sever ties with Xiao—felt his fighting spirit reignite once more.
Under Xiao's repeated calls of "Elden Lord," he gradually lost himself, and now his blood boiled throughout his entire body, leaving him with only one desire: to assist the Gloam-Eyed Queen in ascending to true godhood.
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