This return to the Roundtable Hold was quite unexpected, but since he was already here, he figured he might as well visit some old friends. However, the Hold was primarily a temporary home for the Tarnished; most spent their time adventuring across the Lands Between.
Only those without a home or those unable to leave would reside here for long. Currently, the hall felt somewhat deserted. There was no D, no Rogier, and even Corhyn was not present in the main hall.
Glancing around the hall, the Tarnished's gaze eventually rested on the large door in the center—the room where the Two Fingers and the Finger Reader Enia resided. At present, the Tarnished possessed three Great Runes. Aside from the Great Rune of the Unborn, which had relatively vague capabilities, the remaining two were exceptionally powerful.
The chosen rune at the center of the Elden Ring, Godrick's Great Rune, and the Great Rune of Radahn, which held the burning lion's flame of the strongest demigod. Now, the Tarnished also possessed a Remembrance belonging to Radahn.
However, the Tarnished did not intend to use this Remembrance yet; it would serve another purpose in the future...
"Tarnished, you have come. It has been a long time, and your harvest is quite bountiful." Enia's expression was kind. She hadn't seen such a Tarnished in a long while. Though some time had passed since their last meeting, acquiring three Great Runes within this period surpassed all other prospective Lords.
Even the Two Fingers were dancing with excitement, seemingly holding this Tarnished—who had a high chance of becoming the next Elden Lord—in high regard.
"Hehe, the Two Fingers are very fond of you." Enia nodded repeatedly. The Tarnished, however, felt nothing as he watched the twitching fingers. If Ranni succeeded, these Two Fingers would be nothing more than slightly larger ants.
Just then, the Two Fingers stopped twitching. The Tarnished initially thought they had read his mind, but in the next moment, they began dancing and twitching again. This time, the message conveyed was utterly confusing.
"Strange... why are the words of the Two Fingers so vague?" Enia, the Finger Reader, was also completely baffled. "The sewer...? Great Two Fingers, what is the meaning of this?" Enia wanted to inquire further, but the Two Fingers stood stiff and straight, intending to say no more.
Enia looked lost. In all her years as a Finger Reader, this was the first time she had seen the Two Fingers deliver such a vague decree. What did "the sewer" mean? Weren't the sewers of the Royal Capital the place where the Omen and other filth were imprisoned?
Could the Two Fingers want the Tarnished to purge the Omen? Or was it that that person had awakened? But that didn't seem right—hadn't that notorious fellow visited the Hold a long time ago?
Looking at the deep-in-thought Enia, the Tarnished said nothing. He, too, was quite interested in the sewer the Two Fingers mentioned.
However, there was one other point he was even more interested in—a question that had puzzled him for a long time: were the words of the Two Fingers truly the will of the Greater Will? Various signs suggested that while the Two Fingers were messengers sent by the Greater Will, they still possessed their own independent thoughts.
As long as one has thoughts, one inevitably has selfish motives; the Two Fingers were likely no exception. It was because he had considered this point that the Tarnished's perception of the Golden Order had undergone a world-shaking change.
In itself, Marika's Golden Order was not perfect, but at least in the beginning, Marika could intervene. However, as the Two Fingers spoke more and more, conveying more of the supposed will of the Greater Will, the Order became less about Marika's lead and more about her being a mere agent for the policies set by the Greater Will and the Two Fingers.
Marika was no saint, but she wasn't a pedantic fool either. Her transformation occurred when the Omen twins were born. After that, she remained preoccupied until she eventually brought herself and Godfrey together to negotiate that "treasonous" act...
The Tarnished did not trust the Two Fingers. In the past, they were eloquent; now, they were as dull as wooden blocks, looking like crude objects that could only twitch two hairy fingers to speak nonsensical words.
"Ah, right. Tarnished, is there something you need from this old woman? From your appearance, you don't seem to want to turn a Remembrance into power." Enia stopped her pondering and turned to ask the Tarnished.
The Tarnished simply said he had come to see the recent state of the Hold, curious if any changes had occurred in the layout after his long absence.
"You certainly have a leisurely interest. But worry not; the Hold will not change. Even if you smash the things here, they will restore themselves... You can consider this the power of the Two Fingers." Enia smiled.
"However... you now possess the opportunity to enter the Royal Capital, have an audience with Marika, and become King... This old woman has nothing much to give you, so take this." Enia pulled a small, withered pouch from beneath her chair.
The pouch bore a faint, mottled mark of the Elden Ring. This item was called a Talisman Pouch. Though small, it could store many talismans—a miraculous item given by the Finger Reader Crone to a King or one with the potential to become one.
Looking at the pouch, the Tarnished thought of something interesting: Godwyn... Godwyn's birth was incredibly glorious, so the standards he received were supreme. No one else in the Royal Family had such a standard—he had a vast number of wet nurses.
A "wet nurse" was not just for breastfeeding but also for the duty of looking after the infant. And Godwyn's wet nurses were the various Finger Reader Crones. This was enough to see the importance the Golden Dynasty placed on Godwyn at the time.
"Go, Tarnished... march toward the Royal Capital." Enia left these words, and the Tarnished did not linger. He went to the Table of Lost Grace, stroked his chin, and then produced two large bags of stones.
Those were the two types of Smithing Stones he had collected along the way. Since the opportunity was rare, he might as well have Hewg further refine his weapon.
"Ah... Lord Tarnished, you've come." Entering the corner, the first to meet the Tarnished was Roderika, the "Little Red Riding Hood." However, she had now removed her red hood, revealing her blonde hair.
"Oh... you look even more the part than the last time I saw you." Before Roderika lay various small tools. Although the Tarnished wasn't familiar with them, he knew they were for Spirit Tuning.
"Mmh! It's all thanks to Master Hewg's patient guidance." Roderika looked at Hewg with deep gratitude. Hewg, who was buried in his smithing, only gave a soft huff upon hearing this.
"Acting all cold over there. Wouldn't it be better to just be honestly happy?" He was even more awkward than Ranni.
"What, are you here to smith? I thought you'd died on the road, since I hadn't seen you for so long." Hewg was still the same Hewg.
"Regrettably, I'm doing quite well. Didn't go as you wished." The Tarnished tossed the two large bags of Smithing Stones in front of Hewg, giving him quite a shock. He even couldn't help but ask if the Tarnished had gone on a robbery; otherwise, where did all these Somber Smithing Stones come from?
"Lord Tarnished wouldn't do such things... right?" Roderika didn't have much confidence as she said this, because no matter how she looked at it, the Tarnished seemed like the type who would kick a passing dog twice just to pluck some fur... For some reason, the little hood felt this way.
"That's not exactly a comfort," the Tarnished said, somewhat speechless, as he lightly tapped Roderika's forehead. He turned to Hewg and said, "Time for the big job. Use all these stones on my blade."
"Smithing a weapon... that's fine... Wait, what happened to this weapon?" Looking at the crescent-like greatsword, Hewg could hardly believe his eyes. What on earth could have happened to turn the blade into its current state?
However, his professional discipline remained. He only expressed his surprise for a few moments before burying himself in the work. This might take some time. During the interval, the Tarnished sat beside Roderika and chatted idly.
Gradually opening up, Roderika mentioned for the first time in their conversation that she had an older sister. But this sister was different from her; she could see the Guidance of Grace and was very strong, unlike her past cowardly self. Calculating the time, she should have reached the Altus Plateau where the Royal Capital is located.
Before long, their duo-conversation became a trio. Fia, hearing the Tarnished's voice from the opposite room, pushed open her door and joined the talk. This was Roderika's first time speaking with Fia.
Though not of royal blood, she possesses an elegance and etiquette no less than theirs. That was Roderika's first impression of Fia.
"Have you not been resting well lately?" The Tarnished lifted a strand of Fia's hair, finding it somewhat dry. This was the result of overwork. Although people in the Lands Between were largely free from illness and physical exhaustion due to Grace, excessive self-exploitation would still manifest negative reactions in the body.
Not to mention that the Grace had long since faded.
"My apologies, Lord White Wolf... I worked a bit too hard... but fortunately, I've completed it. Please wait a moment." Fia bowed slightly and then retrieved a sorcery book from her room. On it was a wolf with wings.
"Does Lord White Wolf remember what I said? To lend you my strength, I specifically modified this based on the intent in my mind—a new sorcery combining the Deathbirds and the Deathbed Companions." Fia wore a smile amidst her fatigue.
"Silly girl." The Tarnished stroked Fia's head. "I'll accept your hard work."
"Inside this book are my annotations... even when you travel and Fia is not by your side, I believe that with your aptitude, you can understand it on your own."
Prepared flawlessly; Fia was a woman more than capable of being a supportive partner.
"Miss Fia can actually create sorceries, wow..." Roderika looked dazed. She had been a bit spaced out since earlier, but she finally reacted. To be able to create magic—she was a true genius.
"A minor modification, nothing worth mentioning. In my eyes, Miss Roderika's talent is also quite enviable..." Communicating with spirits... if a typical Deathbed Companion had such an ability, perhaps the methods to revive the dead would be more numerous, and they could understand the deceased's true wishes.
After all, some of the dead did not wish for rebirth. Deathbed Companions often did the right thing for the wrong reasons... Even if the Tarnished had liberated the Companions from their forced fate, these things were unavoidable. The chasm between life and death was too vast; conversation was even more difficult.
"Um... I'm still just an apprentice... not that excellent." Roderika was a bit embarrassed.
"That is what talent is, Miss Roderika. Aptitude allows you to progress at a speed far beyond others... besides, spirit tuning is something others couldn't achieve even if they tried." Fia, like a wise older sister, had a very pleasant conversation with Roderika.
The Tarnished found it hard to interject in the women's topics, so he walked back to Hewg.
"Stand back. I don't have time to talk to you."
"Sigh... fine." Thus, the Tarnished spent a period of peaceful time, which came to an end with a brilliant flash of light.
The Crescent Moon had completed its transformation! It was more ethereal, sharper, and the power contained within had been refined to absolute purity. The weapon seemed to have reached its limit; with current resources, it could not be enhanced further... or perhaps even the highest-tier smithing stones could not forge it any further...