"…Powerful Tarnished, you have traveled far. I am Finger Reader Enia. The Fingers are the envoys of the Greater Will, and I am the old woman who relays the words of the Fingers."
Enia bowed her head slightly in respect.
"Greetings, Lady Enia."
He returned the gesture with a small nod.
Yet his brows knitted together faintly.
Something was strange.
Very strange.
This cycle truly felt different from the ones before it. Many things had diverged from his memories.
Even Enia's words had changed dramatically.
In previous cycles there had occasionally been minor differences, but never anything like this.
Before, she might have praised his accomplishments, but she had never spoken with such excitement or called him powerful.
And yet his strength during those earlier cycles hadn't been much different from what it was now.
What exactly was going on?
"Look closely—the Fingers are trembling."
Enia spoke again.
Her hollow gaze turned toward the massive Two Fingers beside her.
Just as she said—
The Two Fingers were trembling slightly.
They almost seemed excited.
Even more so than in any of the previous cycles.
"This means they welcome you, bearer of a Great Rune."
"…Now listen well to the words of the Fingers. The great Elden Ring is the foundation of the Golden Order.
It brings order to the world, and blessings and grace to all life.
But the Elden Ring has been shattered. To break the Order is an unforgivable sin, and the consequences cannot be avoided.
Now the world and its life are ruined beyond measure. Curses and misfortune spread across the Lands Between.
Even so, the Greater Will has not abandoned the world or its people. That is why you Tarnished are guided by Grace and entrusted with this mission.
Tarnished, the Great Rune you possess is a fragment of the Elden Ring. Go forth and claim another.
Use the power granted to you by the Greater Will. Become Elden Lord, and restore the Golden Order."
After reciting the words as if they were sacred scripture, Enia turned her empty eye sockets toward him.
"…Remember the words of the Fingers."
"…"
Hearing those familiar words, he slowly took a deep breath.
Then he raised his head and calmly looked at the gently writhing Two Fingers.
Most of what she said wasn't wrong.
But power granted by the Greater Will?
Sorry.
All of my power was taken by my own hands.
The conversion was done by my wife.
What does the Greater Will have to do with any of it?
And besides, he understood the logic.
But why should he restore the Elden Ring?
Why should he repair the Order?
The only thing he wanted—
Was to save his wife.
As for the Two Fingers?
Sorry.
You're also on my hunting list.
Because Melina's death was partly their fault.
For a long time, he had suspected something.
Did the Greater Will truly still exist?
Or, at least, was it still watching the Lands Between?
According to the historical records, the Eternal City once used the Finger Slayer Blade to kill the envoys, and as punishment the Greater Will had destroyed them.
Yet now?
The Divine Towers were littered with the corpses of Two Fingers.
Later, Ranni herself had personally slain the Two Fingers.
But until the end of the world, the Greater Will had never appeared.
Nor had any divine punishment descended.
And there was an even more important detail.
Every time he gathered the fragments of the Elden Ring and reached the Erdtree, the result had always been the same.
Rejection.
Returning to the Roundtable Hold, the explanation from the Two Fingers was always that they were communicating with the Greater Will.
If the Greater Will had truly not abandoned this world—
Why would the Erdtree reject him?
Why would the thorns of rejection exist?
And judging from the instructions the Two Fingers had given him in previous cycles…
It almost felt like they were using him to eliminate the demigods.
Considering all this, he seriously doubted whether the Greater Will was even watching the Lands Between anymore.
Were these commands truly from the Greater Will?
Or were they simply the Two Fingers acting on their own?
He knew one thing for certain—
Although the Fingers could not speak directly, they were said to be excellent manipulators.
So in this cycle, he had no intention of walking the same path again.
A strange smile slowly appeared on his face.
He bowed respectfully toward the Two Fingers.
"Thank you, my Lords Fingers."
How much killing intent was hidden inside that gratitude…
Only he knew.
"…Ah, there is one more thing," Enia continued.
"The Fingers wish me to tell you: the bearers of Great Runes are the demigod children of Queen Marika.
But long ago, the Greater Will abandoned them.
So do not hesitate.
Do not waver.
Slay them. Take their runes. Gather the fragments."
"…Even so, you must remain cautious. The demigods are all Queen Marika's children.
Only Godrick the Grafted is merely a descendant of their bloodline. His heritage is the thinnest, and he is the weakest of them.
Still—do not underestimate him."
"I understand. Thank you, Lady Enia."
"…Then go. Reforge the Elden Ring and become Elden Lord.
Only you possess that qualification."
It sounded as though she had poured every last bit of strength into those farewell words.
Under Enia's watchful gaze, he respectfully left the chapel of the Two Fingers.
If there was anyone in the entire Lands Between whom he truly respected—
It was Finger Reader Enia.
Whenever he had been lost, she had guided him.
Whenever he had hesitated, she had shown him the path forward.
Even after the Erdtree rejected him and the Two Fingers fell silent, she alone had continued supporting him.
She had known that burning the Erdtree was a grave sin.
She had warned him of the consequences.
And yet—
She still supported his decision.
She told him to follow his own heart.
Who wouldn't respect someone like that?
Even in her final moments, she had still blessed him, hoping he would become Elden Lord.
Among all the Finger Readers in the Lands Between—
He only acknowledged Enia.
Still, one thing puzzled him.
How exactly had those hollow eyes of hers seen through his strength?
"…Lord Tarnished. You've finally arrived."
"…Long time no see. I knew you would come."
While he was lost in thought, a familiar voice sounded ahead.
"Ah. It's been a while, Nepheli, Roderika."
Looking up, he saw the familiar sight.
Nepheli in her usual revealing warrior attire.
And Roderika, wearing her red hood.
"…Since you're here, I assume you've already met my adoptive father, Sir Gideon Ofnir?"
"Yes. We spoke briefly. I'd say it was… quite enlightening."
"…That's good. You two can talk. I should be leaving now. Until we meet again."
With that, Nepheli turned and walked away.
Her figure gradually disappeared from view.
There was no need to guess.
That old man Gideon had probably sent her to deal with the aftermath at the Village of the Albinaurics.
But he didn't think much of it.
After all—
In previous cycles, he himself had committed far worse sins.
He had slaughtered countless beings across the Lands Between.
"Lord Tarnished…"
Roderika's soft voice pulled him back to reality.
"Hmm? What is it?"
"N-Nothing… I just wanted to return this to you."
She took out the familiar Spirit Calling Bell and the Lone Wolf Ashes.
"Didn't I give those to you? Keep them. Why return them?"
"…No. Something this valuable shouldn't stay with me. You travel and fight far more than I do… you need it more."
"And thanks to Master Hewg's guidance, I've become a Spirit Tuner. I should finally be able to help you now, Lord Tarnished."
"?!"
His expression turned strange.
Normally, he was supposed to introduce Roderika to Smithing Master Hewg.
Yet this time—
Before he even arrived, she had already become a Spirit Tuner.
How unexpected.
Perhaps…
This cycle might truly change things.
Even if he couldn't save his wife—
No.
He would save her.
His gaze hardened again.
But when he looked at Roderika, it softened.
"In that case, could you strengthen the Lone Wolves for me?"
"Of course. But the materials required…"
"No problem. I have them."
He reached into his backpack and took out a large pile of Grave Glovewort, handing them to her.
"These should be the right ones, correct?"
"Yes. Leave everything to me."
Roderika's eyes shone with gratitude and determination.
The thought that she could finally help him filled her with excitement.
"Then I'll leave it to you, Roderika. I hope that when we meet again, you'll have become a great Spirit Tuner."
A gentle smile appeared on his face as he reached out and lightly patted her head.
To him, Roderika wasn't just one of the few people he could trust when he first arrived in the Lands Between.
She was like a younger sister—
An important one who had always tried her hardest to help him.
Afterward, he went to visit Smithing Master Hewg.
Just like always.
The first thing Hewg said upon seeing him was to bring out his weapons so he could take a look—and strengthen them.
Every time he heard those words, nostalgia filled his eyes.
He remembered how, when he had first arrived in this brutal world, Hewg had helped him.
Hewg had even once taken out his treasured materials to enhance his weapon.
And in the end…
Hewg had acknowledged him as his king.
He had died alongside Roderika in the flames, buried within the Roundtable Hold as everything faded away.
He still hadn't figured out how to prevent that fate.
But one thing was certain.
No matter what happened—
He would not allow Hewg to die again.
Even if he had to use force.
After saying farewell to Hewg, he stopped before a familiar door.
Fia's room.
At the same time, he reopened the group chat and ended the livestream.
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: So? What do you all think?
Chika Fujiwara: Umm… how should I say this… that old lady seems really nice, but those Fingers are kind of creepy…
Director of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor: Yeah. Not cute at all.
NorthernNorthernNorthern: +1
Aizen: The ladies are correct. Still, it is quite fascinating. Your world possesses such a strange creature acting as a divine messenger.
Although he said that, Aizen felt the creature resembled the Soul King in some ways.
The Soul King's commands were always delivered by the Zero Division, and the king himself was hidden away in the Royal Palace.
Meanwhile, the role of Elden Lord reminded him somewhat of Genryūsai Yamamoto.
A figure responsible for both rule and warfare.
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: Well… I can't explain much about the Two Fingers. I have plenty of questions myself. What about the rest of you? Did anyone notice anything?
Otto Apocalypse: My friend, I did notice something. The place you're in seems to have some connection to the concept of a round table.
Chika Fujiwara: Yes! Mr. Otto is right! In the center of that huge round table there were eleven weapons stuck into it, plus one empty mark where a weapon used to be!
Chika Fujiwara: According to the legend of King Arthur, there were twelve Knights of the Round Table besides Arthur himself. That matches the number of weapons!
Chika Fujiwara: And that hall is full of weapons and medieval armor everywhere. Mr. Tarnished, is that place some kind of armory?
Otto Apocalypse: Not only that. Combined with the Two Fingers we saw earlier, I suspect the Lands Between operates under a system where divine authority grants royal power.
If I'm not mistaken, the throne is currently vacant. And everyone gathered there likely possesses the qualifications to become king.
The Oldest King: Hm… Otto is correct. Interesting. Your world also operates under divine mandate.
On this matter, Gilgamesh had the most authority to speak.
After all, he had once severed the connection between gods and humans.
He was very familiar with the concept of divine authority granting kingship.
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: …
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: You're right. The place I'm in is called the Roundtable Hold. And yes, it's exactly what you described—divine authority granting royal power.
Although the Lands Between had many gods and demigods, if the Greater Will counted as the supreme deity, then the system indeed fit that model.
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: And everyone here, like me, is a Tarnished with the potential to become king.
Still…
How were their eyes so sharp?
He hadn't even realized those objects on the table were weapons until much later.
The mark left by the missing weapon was something he only noticed after a long time.
At first he had thought they were just branches.
Only after examining them closely did he realize they were weapons.
The missing one…
Should belong to Vyke.
Vyke had once been a member of the Roundtable Hold, the one closest to becoming king.
But he had been driven mad by the Frenzied Flame and imprisoned in the Lord Contender's Evergaol.
Which meant—
Before him, there had once been eleven other candidates for Elden Lord?
Was Sir Gideon Ofnir one of them as well?
Then why was possession of a Great Rune now required to meet the Two Fingers?
Could it be that the Roundtable Hold had existed far longer than he thought?
Had it already existed before the Shattering War?
Perhaps it had been established when Radagon left his former wife and returned to Leyndell.
As the discussion continued, countless questions swirled through his mind.
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