Once again, Lloyd set foot upon the land of Limgrave.
Before him stretched the familiar, breathtaking scenery—the same view that had filled him with awe when he first arrived in this world.
Golden light shimmered where a Site of Grace swayed gently in the breeze. Nearby stood a man in a white mask. Though his posture remained as casual as ever, his once-filthy battlefield robes were now spotless, as if freshly bleached. The name above his head had changed from White Mask Varré to Blood Dynasty Physician · Varré.
"Well, who would've thought... you'd actually become the Elden Lord."
Varré looked at Lloyd with genuine admiration in his tone.
After a brief exchange, he handed Lloyd several newly developed healing items from the Blood Dynasty.
"Blood Vials—or maybe Herbal Vials. The name's not finalized yet, but the idea's the same. A portable healing concoction."
"They're not as versatile as the Flask of Crimson Tears, nor as powerful as Incantations, but they're cheap to make, easy to carry, and work great on physical wounds. If you need more, you can buy them from me with Runes—or craft them yourself with this manual."
[Obtained Item: 'Crafting Notes – Unnamed Blood Vial (1)']
After finishing his conversation with Varré, Lloyd stood and made his way down the slope.
According to the original design, a Tree Sentinel should've been stationed here. But due to certain alterations, the guardian was nowhere to be seen. The grassy clearing was empty—save for a message etched into the ground.
[To a Certain Someone]
[Though this is merely a Dungeon, given your situation and the state of the Lands Between, I've made some slight adjustments.]
[The details are too tedious to explain, but in short—if you clear it, some of the superior features within this Dungeon will be preserved.]
[Also, I've integrated the Elden Ring into your disordered state. Clearing this Dungeon won't completely resolve your condition—there's still work to do—but it will eliminate that village girl and Metyr from the shitpile entirely, stabilizing you in the process.]
[Keep moving forward.]
The message ended there.
After reading it, Lloyd nodded, then lifted his gaze toward the grand structure ahead.
A church. Not ruins—a complete, pristine church.
In the original timeline, by the time Lloyd had reached the Church of Elleh, it had already fallen into ruin. But here, it stood whole—and even appeared to have been expanded.
It didn't take long for him to find out why.
"Well, long time no see... or maybe I should say, 'we meet again.'"
In the trade quarter of the church—set aside for Nomadic Merchants—stood Kalé, dressed in formal attire that he clearly wasn't used to. He looked at Lloyd with an awkward smile.
"So, uh... should I be calling you 'Your Majesty' now, or... something else?"
"Same as always," Lloyd replied with a grin. "Just call me Lloyd."
He walked up to the counter, glanced around, and smacked his lips thoughtfully.
"A shop inside a church? That sounds like the village girl's idea."
Kalé blinked. "Village girl? What village girl...?"
"Marika."
Silence.
Though Lloyd was now the Elden Lord, Kalé had learned the news late, and Marika's image as a divine being had been deeply ingrained in everyone's minds. Even knowing logically that Lloyd's familiarity was acceptable, emotionally, Kalé couldn't quite adjust.
"Ah... yes. That proposal did come from Her Divine Majesty..."
"No need to be so stiff," Lloyd said, leaning casually against the counter. "That village girl's a lot more easygoing than you think."
He turned his head toward the nearby statue of Marika—still the old version, unchanged due to lack of time—and smiled faintly.
"Honestly, I think she prefers being seen as an ordinary village girl rather than some untouchable goddess."
As his words fell, the statue glimmered faintly, as if in response.
Truth be told, if someone had called her a village girl before, Marika would've taken offense—maybe even blown up over it.
The memory of the Numen Village was still a deep wound in her heart, and that title dredged up emotions she would rather have left buried.
But now, though the past couldn't be changed, Lloyd's antics with the Numen girls and his help in resolving the Hornsent issue had finally untied the knot in her heart.
Especially after stepping down from her divine role, she was freer than ever. If not for a shred of lingering dignity, she probably would've grabbed a megaphone and announced her retirement across the entire Lands Between—then gone after a few people she'd had to tolerate during her goddess days, hammer in hand, ready to settle old scores.
Still, Marika had spent so many years upholding a strict divine image that Lloyd didn't expect people to accept the change so quickly. He only made a passing comment and let the matter drop.
After chatting with Kalé a while longer, their talk turned to the idea of opening a shop inside the church.
Originally, the "village girl" had merely floated the idea to the Nomadic Merchants—nothing more. But since Lloyd was now both god and king, and the church would ultimately serve as a place of worship for him, she'd planned to discuss it with him later.
Instead, this Dungeon had gone ahead and implemented it directly.
"I've got no objections."
After taking a moment to inspect the inside of the church, Lloyd smiled and added,
"In fact, I actually agree with her idea."
Though commerce in the Lands Between hadn't yet fully developed, and the Nomadic Merchants were, for the most part, honest folk, Lloyd knew such a state wouldn't last forever. Even if commercial chaos never truly broke out, it never hurt to prepare for the possibility.
As for what putting a trading post inside the church had to do with preventing that chaos?
In truth—nothing at all. Moving locations wouldn't stop greed or corruption. But still...
"If it's inside the church," Lloyd said casually, "then if anything goes wrong, I don't even need an excuse. I can just kill them outright for 'offending me.'"
Kalé, standing opposite him, didn't even blink at the statement.
And the reason was simple.
This was the Lands Between—a place where humanoid stars roamed freely. Compared to the places the Nomadic Tribes had wandered through, this land was practically paradise.
So to Kalé, Lloyd's decision wasn't strange in the slightest. In fact, he was almost surprised that Lloyd would even bother finding a reason before killing someone—it felt uncharacteristically merciful.
After finishing their talk, Kalé handed him a tool belt, unlocking Lloyd's ability to craft items.
However, since Lloyd hadn't fought any monsters yet, he had no Runes to spend. And because of the constraints of the Law, Kalé couldn't simply give him items for free, meaning they couldn't trade.
Once they confirmed there was nothing else to handle, Lloyd left the Church of Elleh and started toward Stormveil.
That was when he encountered his first enemy squad.
A mixed unit of soldiers.
At the front rode a human knight, leading several retainers—Kaiden mercenaries, demi-human fighters, and more. The formation covered both melee and ranged combat, with a perfumer in the rear providing support.
A complete and well-balanced composition. Normally, in his true state—whether as his "main" or even a lesser form—Lloyd could have wiped them out effortlessly. But now, starting with nothing but a wooden stick in hand, they posed an actual threat.
As he crouched low, hidden from sight, weighing his options...
A golden summoning sign flared to life on the ground.
[Summon the helper 'Demi-human Boc'?]
A message followed:
[This dungeon is extremely difficult, with many restrictions placed upon you. In exchange, you may summon allies connected to you anytime, anywhere.]
[However, entities without a Covenant may only be summoned once per dungeon—and even then, their strength will be heavily reduced.]
[Even Covenant-bound allies have limited summons.]
[Entities designated as 'Enemies' cannot be summoned until defeated.]
[Use your summons wisely—they will be key to breaking through.]
Lloyd didn't hesitate. He summoned.
And with Boc's help—or more accurately, with Boc doing most of the heavy lifting—the two of them wiped out the squad.
The process was simple but effective.
Each took a flank. When the patrol passed, they struck in unison—Lloyd landing a clean backstab on the perfumer, while Boc swung his longsword in wide arcs, cutting down the retainers. The two then closed in from both sides, finally bringing down the knight.
And why was it such a struggle to kill just one knight?
Because he'd been enhanced—massively.
As the earlier message had warned, the dungeon's difficulty was extreme. Not only had Lloyd been placed under numerous restrictions, but the monsters themselves had received near-legendary buffs.
Strengthened by elevated Laws, infused with True Soul awareness, and—because they helped stabilize Lloyd's disorder—granted fragments of the power born from chaos itself...
The weaker mobs barely showed it, but the leading knight was a different story. He moved with unnerving speed and precision, fought with deadly intuition, and wielded a variety of golden Incantations—not just Golden Vow, but downgraded versions of Erdtree Heal and Blessing of the Erdtree. He even used items to enchant his weapon and shield. If you backed off, he didn't chase—he just pulled out a crossbow and sniped from afar.
This wasn't just a monster anymore.
It was something between a manifestation of Lloyd's Law and a reflection of reality itself.
Or perhaps... his Law was beginning to become reality.
Still, after a fierce fight, the two managed to bring the knight down. And while Boc remained summoned, they tracked down a few more squads and repeated the process—gathering Lloyd's first bit of wealth in this dungeon.
When the time limit neared and Boc's summon began to fade, he told Lloyd he was currently in Castle Morne. Though he couldn't join future battles, he offered to help later with tailoring...
With those final words, Boc disappeared.
Lloyd then returned to the Chapel of Anticipation, met with Nadisha—his Finger Maiden—to level up, and afterward Fast Traveled to the Church of Elleh to purchase a set of basic equipment from Kalé.
Fully armed, Lloyd stood before the church's mirror and studied his reflection.
He nodded once.
"Yeah... still garbage."
Even after allocating stats and putting on proper gear, he could still feel it—his own weakness.
It wasn't that his stats hadn't increased. After putting on all that gear—and especially after the last battle—Lloyd could clearly feel it. He was restricted inside this Dungeon.
And it wasn't a simple numerical limit, like halved health or stat caps. It was a restriction placed on his very existence.
Before, he could walk out naked, armed with nothing but a wooden stick, and beat a Tree Sentinel to death. Now, even when ambushing small squads, his damage output didn't come close to Boc's.
Part of it was the lack of proper equipment or stat investment. But more than that—it was him. His upper limit had been sealed.
And the source of that seal…
He glanced at the unnamed item sitting in his inventory. It burned quietly, its flame faint yet stubborn. Beside it, gray embers flickered—not so much burning, but weeping.
After a long silence, Lloyd let out a sigh.
"Looks like I'm really going to have to play the summoner this time."
But the moment the words left his mouth, something clicked. He froze in thought, tested an idea, confirmed it worked—and his eyes gleamed with sudden realization.
A slow grin spread across his face.
"Ah… so that's how this works."
With a sweep of his hand, three Demi-human Queens appeared before him—and with them, an entire army of Demi-humans.
Anyone connected to him, anyone willing to answer his call, fit the criteria. It wasn't just the famous or the named.
And while non-Covenant beings could only be summoned once, with their power heavily reduced, there was no limit to the number of summons he could make here.
Yes, he'd been nerfed—weakened to the point of absurdity, needing Boc's help just to take down a patrol. But that didn't matter.
Because now, he wasn't fighting alone.
The seeds he had sown before had already taken root, sprouted, and borne fruit. And now, those fruits had answered his call—appearing here, ready to fight for him.
Not out of strength. Not out of profit. But because he was their King. The one they recognized, believed in, and would die for—their true, rightful—
"Elden Lord!"
No one knew who shouted it first, but the cry spread like wildfire as the Demi-humans erupted in thunderous cheers.
At their head, the Demi-human Queen stepped forward, lifted Lloyd with both hands, and set him on her shoulder.
Incidentally, during some downtime before this, Lloyd had visited Castle Morne and performed a collective rebirth for the Demi-humans. Now, their entire race had been "beautified." Ordinary Demi-humans looked like smaller humans—or halflings—while the Queens resembled towering giantesses.
In short, they weren't ugly. In fact, they were rather beautiful.
But that wasn't the point.
The point was simple: their King needed them. And they would fight for him.
Lloyd raised his hand. He didn't bother with speeches or grand words. He gave a single command.
"Fight."
A roar answered him.
Then the earth itself began to tremble.
The newborn tide of Demi-humans surged forward—crashing against Limgrave's front lines.
Boom.