Gawain spent a total of three days in Castle Morne, dedicated entirely to practicing his Storm combat arts. Since his attribute levels were already more than sufficient, he supplemented his training with the repetitive use of Ashes of War. Even without a natural gift for it, he managed to learn the techniques through sheer rote imitation.
Occasionally, during his practice sessions in the castle, Irina would come out for a walk. She didn't do much—she simply stood to the side, "watching" him train. Though her eyes could not see, she could sense the flickering red silhouette of his presence.
In the brief moments of leisure after training, Gawain would sometimes tell Irina stories of his past. He described landscapes she could never have imagined, from the towering, majestic spires of Lothric to the frigid, decaying Painted World.
Looking at the young girl listening so intently, he sometimes fell under an illusion: that he was back at the warm Firelink Shrine. Back then, the Fire Keeper had listened to him just like this—listening to him ramble about everything on his journey, his complaints, his boasts. Sometimes, she would even comfort him after his repeated deaths, encouraging him not to lose heart and to keep walking the righteous path.
No further incidents occurred within Castle Morne over those three days. Gawain had initially suspected the existence of another mole, but it seemed any remaining traitors had fled before the castle fell. After all, by the time he had arrived, the situation was at its most critical; if they hadn't run then, they would have been hacked to pieces along with the other residents.
The only good news was that after the rebellion was suppressed, residents who had fled in the chaos began to trickle back. Many had managed to escape before the Golems went haywire, hiding out on the outer walls or in secluded corners until now.
Seeing the movement within the city, they naturally "lubricated" their way back in. After all, the wilderness was no safe haven, crawling with wandering demi-humans and Misbegotten.
This allowed the undermanned Castle Morne to catch its breath. Reconstruction efforts in various sectors could now proceed in an orderly fashion. Of course, this also introduced new risks, such as the possibility of ill-intentioned individuals slipping in with the crowd.
Edgar, rendered paranoid by the rebellion, became extremely focused on security as the numbers grew. Consequently, Irina was temporarily restricted from wandering and had to remain in her room.
On the morning of the fourth day, Gawain sought out Edgar. He felt it was time to leave Castle Morne and begin exploring the world beyond.
"Leaving so soon?"
"Yes. I feel these three days of practice have been enough," Gawain replied. "Next, I plan to explore other parts of the Weeping Peninsula. The map you gave me shows several things that caught my interest."
Edgar nodded. He now possessed enough strength to protect himself, so his mind was on only one other thing. Seeing the look of "heavy hinting" on Edgar's face, Gawain knew exactly what he wanted.
"Don't worry. I'll be practicing the method I mentioned while I'm on the road. By the time I return, I should be able to heal Irina's eyes."
"Then I can rest easy. Be safe on your journey."
After personally seeing Gawain out of the castle, Edgar looked toward his daughter's room. After a moment of internal struggle, he made his decision and ordered a servant to bring Irina to his office.
Sitting in his chair, Edgar opened a drawer containing items he considered very precious. As he sat there lost in thought, footsteps sounded at the door. Led by a servant, Irina pushed the door open and entered.
"Father, you wished to see me?"
"Yes. Irina, get yourself ready. Starting tomorrow, you will stay by my side. I will teach you the basics, and from now on, you will help me handle the various affairs of Castle Morne."
Surprised by her father's decision, Irina was momentarily at a loss for words.
In truth, she had grown weary of a life spent confined to her room. She had often wondered if she could be of any help to her father; even though she was blind, she believed there was much she could do.
But before this, her father had always insisted she stay in her room and not worry about such things. Even when he was overwhelmed with work, he would entrust tasks to a few close confidants. Why the sudden change? She didn't think it was just because of the labor shortage following the rebellion.
Sensing his daughter's confusion, Edgar didn't give her a specific reason. He simply answered with a firm, certain tone:
"We will start with the basics. Trust me, this will be useful in the future."
Elsewhere, Gawain, who had left Castle Morne, was looking at his map with a stunned expression. While the map was indeed far more detailed than the one in the game, the terrain was also significantly more complex. In the Limgrave area alone, he could see several villages and cave markings that hadn't existed in his memory.
This presented a very serious problem: he was a chronic "directional idiot." Back in the day, even the High Wall of Lothric could make his head spin. In reality, he couldn't just manifest a beam of light to guide his way, so for the moment, he could only follow the main road.
Fortunately, his first objective was very distinct: the Ailing Village on the cliffside. Aside from the "frenzy-heads" there, the village housed the Callu Baptismal Church, where he could find a Sacred Tear to upgrade his Flask.
Galloping through the outer walls of Castle Morne atop Torrent, he took a narrow path up the cliffside. Because the Frenzied Flame cultists in the village had already been lured down by Irina to attack—and subsequently burned to ash by his Pyromancy—the place now looked like any other ordinary, dilapidated ruin.
Gawain glanced at the unfortunate souls tied to poles and burned, but he simply pursed his lips and ignored them. Although there were Frenzied Flame incantations and related items here, he honestly didn't care for them.
Even Howl of Shabriri, one of the strongest damage-buffing incantations in the game, was something he likely wouldn't touch.
First, there was Melina's feelings to consider; she was extremely wary of anything related to the Frenzied Flame. She didn't even care about the Dung Eater's ending, but the Frenzied Flame was an absolute taboo.
But the main reason was that he looked down on the power of the Frenzied Flame from the bottom of his heart. He despised those "crazy bastards" who wanted to destroy the world just because they were in despair. As Melina said, there was still beauty in this world.
This wasn't the doomed, hopeless world of Dark Souls. There were countless better ways to solve things besides total destruction.
After dealing with some lingering rats, he entered the dilapidated interior of the Callu Baptismal Church. Several corpses contaminated by the Frenzied Flame lay before the massive statue of Marika, as if they had been praying in their final moments.
Gawain stared at the statue. He didn't know much about the complex figure of Queen Marika; his understanding of her was almost entirely derived from the few proverbs Melina repeated.
Melina's figure appeared beside him. Looking at the statue of her mother, a trace of a complex expression crossed her face. Nevertheless, she leaned down and picked up a golden cup.
"This item is the Sacred Tear I mentioned to you. As you can see, they generally appear in churches such as this. With this, I can replicate the ancient miracle of receiving the tears of the Erdtree to enhance the restorative effects of your Flask."
"Right. I don't really understand that stuff, so I'll leave it in your hands."
After Melina nodded, she and the Sacred Tear vanished into thin air. Gawain then proceeded to clear the village of its Frenzied Flame contamination. Just walking through the area made his madness meter rise slightly—it was the kind of damage that wasn't high, but was immensely irritating.
That night, Gawain stowed Torrent back into the ring and sat by a Site of Grace outside the Ailing Village, scratching his head as he studied the map. His next stop was the Minor Erdtree on the high ground to obtain the Crystal Tears from the Erdtree Avatar. Although the Crimson Crystal Tear wasn't very useful, the defense-boosting effect of the Opaline Bubbletear was very attractive to him.
Within the warm space of the Grace, Melina sat opposite him, focused on the ritual to enhance the Flask. It didn't take her long to finish the work. She looked up at Gawain, who had spent the day getting lost multiple times, and finally couldn't help but offer a reminder.
"Next time, if you wish to go to a specific location... let Torrent look at the map. He is more intelligent than you realize and will lead you directly in the right direction."
Being called out like that made Gawain feel a bit embarrassed. No wonder Torrent had looked back at him with an exasperated expression so many times during the day; he was probably telling Gawain to stop giving blind directions.
Still, he hadn't realized Torrent could function as a full auto-navigator. That was a win for him, as trekking through dense forests was a nightmare for someone with his sense of direction.
"Here. This is your Flask of Crimson Tears. I have finished it."
"Thanks. And... looking at your face, do you have something else to say?"
Melina nodded, a hint of apology on her face. "I am sorry. These past days, I have been observing your resolve, doubting if you were truly led by Grace and whether you would stand against hardship. As it turns out, I was worrying over nothing."
"Whether it was your actions in saving Castle Morne or your attitude toward the Frenzied Flame, you have proven you possess precious qualities—the temperament of a true King. Torrent believed in you from the start, yet I was not sincere enough."
Gawain shook his head. To Melina, he had been a complete stranger before arriving in the Lands Between. It wasn't like the Fire Keeper, who had known everything about him before he even crawled out of his grave.
"There's no need to apologize. In this Lands Between, full of betrayal and schemes, it's normal to be suspicious of everyone. At the very least, you are my maiden now, and your help is greater than anyone else's."
"In fact, I have many little secrets I'm keeping from you as well. In that regard, we're the same. Regardless of who we were in the past, at least for now, our goals are the same: to make this broken land better. As long as we agree on that, I will always be a companion you can trust."
A look of relief appeared on Melina's face. she had worried he would be angry at her lack of trust. Deciding to trust him only after such a long observation made her feel somewhat ashamed compared to Torrent's intuition.
Furthermore, she had gained some understanding of the power within him over these past few days. It was a great power from outside the Lands Between, but it didn't seem to be a manifestation of the Frenzied Flame or any other Outer God's will.
She didn't know what he had experienced in his past, but he had indeed lived up to the promises he just made. He was a companion she was willing to believe in. Therefore, she would support him with all her might on his path toward becoming Elden Lord.
"As an apology, I can take you to the Roundtable Hold. It is a place where Tarnished led by Grace gather—a hall of heroes. If you are willing, I can take you there. However, my identity cannot be revealed to outsiders, so what you find there will depend entirely on you."
"The Roundtable Hold? Sounds interesting. Lead the way."
"Very well. Please, take my hand. Just for a moment. I shall lead you to the Roundtable Hold."
Gawain looked at her outstretched palm, still marked with those distinctive scars. He felt a sudden pang of sympathy for this steadfast girl and her mission.
After her body had been burned away, she had wandered with nothing but a horse all the way from the Royal Capital to the Weeping Peninsula, all to fulfill a mission she couldn't even fully remember: to become a kindling to burn herself and ignite the Erdtree.
He wouldn't stand by and watch her meet that end this time. When it came to "flammability," he was far superior to Melina. Though that day was still far off, there were things he could do now.
He gripped her hand tightly. Simultaneously, the effect of the Grafted Blade Greatsword activated, and with the bonus from the Priestess Ring, his Faith temporarily hit 35. A radiant glow, representative of a miracle, enveloped Melina.
"What is this...?"
"Don't panic. This is a miracle called Bountiful Sunlight," Gawain said softly. "Close your eyes. Imagine your ideal self. Forget the pain of the past. Right now, you are bathed in the grace of a miracle."
Melina nodded and closed her eyes to imagine. Her fragmented memories had lost most details of her physical form before it was scorched, but enveloped in this warm light, she felt as though she had returned to a village overflowing with flowers. It was a long-lost feeling of peace.
She didn't linger in it for long. When she opened her eyes, she found the scars on her hands and body—scars that had been etched into her very soul—had vanished. In their place was the normal appearance she had imagined, a small wish hidden in the depths of her heart.
"Thank you," she whispered.
With her quiet thanks, she brought Gawain to the Site of Grace within the Roundtable Hold. She slowly pulled her fingertips away, as if afraid of being discovered by others. She vanished into the air like she was escaping, a faint trace of red lingering on her face.
Gawain stared blankly at the spot where she had disappeared. That warm sensation still lingered on his fingertips. A line of lyrics from his memory drifted into his mind, and he spoke it softly:
"The beauty of your fingertips slowly pulling away is an aesthetic."
After a while, he shook himself out of it and stood up from the Site of Grace. He realized he wasn't at the "Table of Lost Grace" in the center of the Roundtable Hold. Moreover, the scenery around him was vastly different from his memory.
"Wait a second... where the hell did she send me?"
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Elden Ring: In the Name of Ash (35 chapter - Ongoing)
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