Facing the Grafted Scion's struggles, Kaito smiled.
The Fire Keeper and Melina were nearby, protecting him. The soldiers and knights in the distance didn't intervene; they just watched silently.
Don't ask why—asking would reveal that fighting was useless, only leading to death or being a hindrance.
After seeing Kaito effortlessly pin the Grafted Scion to the ground, these thoughts only intensified.
Was this Tarnished the strongest they had ever seen!?
Their king, Godrick, was about to fight this Tarnished.
If the Tarnished succeeded, he would be their new king!
Authorization?
Ha, Godrick had declared himself king a long time ago; what authorization did he need?
In truth, many in the castle had long been dissatisfied with the cruel and terrifying Godrick the Grafted. Without power, a pincer movement was useless. How they wished to resist!
Even just once!
Think of all the terrible things Godrick the Grafted had done!!
Every time they saw him, fear gripped their hearts.
Because of him, they had witnessed countless innocent people being brutalized, including their former comrades...
Also, Tarnished actually had a decent reputation in this world. They were trying to unite this shattered world, this broken land, and forge a new empire.
To do so, Tarnished had to challenge the forces holding the Great Runes!
"Damn it! Damn it!!"
"Why! Why!!"
The Grafted Scion's body was about to burst from the pressure, but it kept struggling, it had to!
It had no way to escape!
"To last this long, you've got some skill, though I haven't used my full strength."
The more it struggled, the more excited Kaito became.
Seeing it couldn't hold on much longer, he decided to end it.
With a sudden push, his sword shattered, and with a burst of golden light, the rock greatsword split the Scion's body in two.
Grafted Scion, defeated.
"My Lord, are you alright?"
As the fight ended, the Fire Keeper rushed over to check on him.
They had to remain vigilant against attacks from the surrounding soldiers and knights, so they hadn't watched Kaito the entire time. Naturally, she was the most anxious now that the battle was over.
Melina...
She felt similarly, just a step behind.
Her eyes showed a brief moment of disappointment, then a complex gaze, as she approached Kaito while staying alert.
Fortunately, the soldiers had lost their will to fight. Seeing their king's power, they dared not resist.
"Haha, your king is strong, how could anything be wrong?"
Kaito laughed, reaching out to stroke the Fire Keeper's golden hair. After a moment, he called Melina over and stroked her hair too.
That way, there was no favoritism.
Both the Fire Keeper and Melina felt an unprecedented sense of security from Kaito.
Perhaps their king...
No.
No perhaps. From the moment they became his Maidens, they had to believe their king would become the Elden Lord!
"My Lord, the royal courtyard lies ahead, then the royal hall and chambers. Please rest a while."
"My Lord, I can replenish your magical power."
Melina cast various Golden Order buffs on Kaito, while the Fire Keeper crouched down, ready to replenish his mana.
But Kaito stopped her.
He had no desire to be watched in this place.
Besides, he hadn't used much mana; these enemies were too easy, nothing compared to the sea monster.
"Strange, Morgott isn't here?"
Kaito was almost at Godrick's courtyard, but Margit, the Fell Omen—who in the game torments players while acting as a teacher—had not appeared.
Well, the game is the game; reality is reality.
He appeared in the game, but his absence now must be for some other reason.
His absence was fine; it saved them a tough fight.
Morgott was one of the later major BOSSes; his strength was certainly greater than in-game.
Godrick was just an early-game BOSS.
But as said, that was game logic. In reality, Godrick must be strong too.
Otherwise, how could he hold onto one of the Great Runes?
He would have been robbed long ago!
So, challenging Godrick so early was unwise. Grinding more monsters and BOSSes elsewhere to level up would have been smarter.
But Kaito was strong.
His level did affect his performance, but the 5% power of [God · Morax] was enough to bulldoze through most of the Elden Ring World.
Here.
No more fights occurred.
Nor did he encounter other Tarnished from the story.
Entering the courtyard filled with golden flowers and golden trees, a massive figure came into view. Torches illuminated the area.
The most prominent was the corpse of a Western dragon impaled in the courtyard's center.
"You've come, Tarnished..."
"Those wastes were indeed useless..."
"..."
"I've killed quite a few Tarnished myself."
Godrick the Grafted slowly raised his head to look at Kaito's position. He noted the two Maidens beside him.
But what of it?
He had killed many Tarnished!
Some of the arms on his body had been taken from Tarnished and grafted on!
Raising his golden axe, Godrick slammed it into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
He certainly had presence and authority.
"Kneel!"
"Tarnished!"
"I am the Lord of Gold!"
"If you do so, I will let you die peacefully, then graft your arms onto me!"
'Ugh, disgusting.'
Kaito made a face of disgust, which enraged Godrick.
Every other Tarnished who faced him was tense, as if confronting a formidable enemy!
But Kaito?
Not only was he unafraid, he was disgusted? Contemptuous!?
Damn it!
Godrick stopped wasting words. Dragging his golden axe, he charged at Kaito.
The game had its delayed swings and slow movement; none of that existed here.
It was swift, it was explosive!
His massive frame descended like a mountain.
The Fire Keeper and Melina had retreated to a safe distance. Kaito formed a rock greatsword and smiled as he awaited the blow.
Clang—!!!
Dust exploded around Kaito. His body tensed slightly, but he held firm.
"It seems my level isn't enough to beat you."
From that one exchange, Kaito knew he needed to grind more levels.
As he was now, he couldn't defeat Godrick; he might not even last a few attacks.
So, he used his divine power to augment his combat.
No more games. He pushed upward, easily deflecting the golden axe.
Godrick's expression grew serious.
From his perspective, Kaito had reached this point likely through exceptional combat skill. His physical attributes were undoubtedly too low.
Even lower than some Tarnished he had faced!
So what was happening now?
His level was so low, yet he easily blocked the golden axe and even pushed him back!?
But he was a ruler in his own right; holding a Great Rune was testament to his strength.
Pushed back? He would strike again!
With a fierce swing, the golden axe came down again.
But Kaito easily leaped out of range. As the axe struck the ground, he swung his greatsword, landing a blow on Godrick's kidney area.
Slash—!!!
Effortless.
Godrick felt no significant pain, but his wide eyes showed surprise at Kaito's speed.
'A blow to my kidneys??'
How dare he!?
"How dare you insult your king! You will die a horrible death!!"
Boom, boom, boom, boom—!!!
Like an elephant charging at train speed,
his massive frame charged again. But mid-stride, sensing something, he swung his golden axe upward.
Crash—!
A falling boulder was shattered easily.
"Is this all you've got?"
Godrick wanted to laugh.
Kaito's tactics were acceptable, but summoning boulders with magic?
Far too weak!
"Oh? Is that so?"
"How about this one?"
Boom—!!!
An even larger boulder plummeted from the sky, so fast Godrick couldn't dodge. It was half the size of the courtyard!
"This ability reminds me of someone unpleasant!"
He was referring to General Radahn, who could also pull down meteors—Ranni's brother.
Facing the boulder, Godrick didn't panic. Leaping into the air, he slammed it with both hands, shattering it into fragments.
The Fire Keeper and Melina were sheltered within the courtyard gate, unharmed.
Kaito was fine too.
Now, he had formed a rock greatspear, aiming it at Godrick mid-air. He hurled it with full force...
"Hmph, Your King anticipated this trick!"
Twisting his body mid-air, using his multiple arms to grip the golden axe, he swung at the incoming spear.
But he underestimated Kaito's strength. Though he blocked, the impact sent him flying. The shattered spear also tore off his left arm.
Too bad it wasn't his right arm.
Otherwise, he might have clutched it and screamed "My kingly power!" or something.
Bam—
"I underestimated you... Tarnished!!"
Godrick landed with a backflip, looking at his severed left arm, his eye twitching in pain.
But no matter. It was gone.
He still had another "trick" up his sleeve.