Hello everyone! Welcome to this... Unique crossover.

Just remember that most of the lore of DS is vague and understandable by just reading, so don't be afraid of not knowing the characters!

Enjoy reading!

In the land of Drangleic, brought together by despair, sat it's king on his throne, the throne of desire.

The Throne of Want.

The king who united the Crowns of the lands, the Crown of Drangleic, the Crown of the Ivory King, the Crown of the Sunken King, and lastly, the Crown of the Iron King.

The one whose ultimate goal was never reached, to end the plague of hollowing.

The Curse.

Where there's a will there's a way, is the saying.

But his seemingly endless willpower mattered not a grain of sand, as The Curse seemed to be indestructible.

In his chamber, thinking endlessly over and over for possible ways, any clues or evidence, but nothing would present itself.

But then a voice, a voice so strange, it spoke, but from everywhere.

The king stepped outside and stood in the middle of the arena he once fought the great witch Nashandra in, and the voice continued.

{Confirmed, time and space of this world has been connected to the Central World, beginning merge..}

The ground shook, nothing could stand still, and yet the king held on with his two swords.

{Merge success, sending individuals to the Central World...}

The king's expression was not visible behind his shining silver helmet, but it was obvious he was not happy with what was going on.

"..."

He did not say anything, for he was never one to talk much.

And the world seemed to collapse, and then, a void.

He almost fell asleep from a weird force, but he resisted.

{Granting individual _ Unique Skill [Bearing Curse]...

Success.

"Bearing Curse"

"The Curse", is an attached fate to the person bound by it, it never allows the person to fully die and makes the person practically immortal, the holder is also more prone to enemy attacks all around, as feelings of hostility rise from ill-intended people.

Sub-Skills:

[Bonfire]: Special areas that the holder can create and rest at, although at an extremely high cost of both Magicules and Souls.

Those area, when used, can completely restore the user, and they act as spawn points for the holder after a death.

[Hollow]: Everytime the holder suffers a fatal blow, they are reborn immediately at the last [Bonfire] they used, but every time this passive skill is activated, the body suffers a "Hollowing" effect, seemingly growing weaker and changing it's shape for the worse.

[Souls-Born]: Every enemy has a measurement, for most if not all people, "Magicules" is the essence of power, for the Bearer of the Curse, it is both "Magicules" and "Souls", every enemy the Bearer slays is turned into souls that can grow his power further and further.

However, all the souls unused are lost at death, and can never be regained, or maybe..?

[Path of Many]: This skill grants the holder the affinity for any kinds of weapons, spells or arts, and the holder is able to learn those things faster than the average person by a good margin.

Additionally, after getting the basics of any combat related item, the holder can attain "Mastery", which allows the holder to learn the type of weapon or magic or art faster, at the cost of reducing the speed of learning for everything else.}

That voice announced an ability that took in all what the king had faced, all the hardships of dying over and over again.

The king hated that, he hated having to hear of his hardships once more.

He wanted to forget.

But there was the voice, reminding him of all that.

{Granting individuals skills..

...

...

...

...}

And only after a long pause, did the voice speak once more.

{Success.

Finishing skill-creation.

Complete.

Confirmed, Central World has been reached, and all individuals will rise from sleep with new abilities.}

Individuals.. Such an unspecific term.

What individuals? But there was no time to think, for it was lights out for the king.

North of Ingrassia, Demon Frontier

A body of shining armor laid knocked out with two massive great curved swords beside him, as creatures ran rampant a fair distance away.

A while passed, as warcries and shouts of pain were all that was heard in the area.

The King rose from his sleeping state, and observed the perimeter.

"..."

He picked up his two swords, and entered his battle stance as he approached the battlefield.

A lot of "Creatures" turned to him, and rushed at him when they understood that he was a human.

So it was written in their fates, they opposed him, and the moment they decided to go up against him, their death was certain.

The "Creatures" dissipated as they were hacked down to the tiniest pieces.

A left to right diagonal slash from his left "Murakumo" sent 3 of the creatures torn in half with their innards showing, another decapitating strike with his right ended 2.

He crushed the face of one inwards with the handle of his blade, and then flung one's head off with a full-power kick.

Then came a "Creature" he felt to be stronger than the others.

The "Creature" spoke to the king with an extremely arrogant tone.

"You, you must be a human mercenary offering his life for any kinds of money, right?

What a guttural creature, absolute lowlife you are.

Those good for nothings you fought are merely a fraction of the higher power, so come, face the might of the demons of the Red Lineage!"

Demons, it seems, creatures not unfamiliar to the king, although they looked so different, this one has a human looking body, most of the ones he fought had beast-like features, save for a few with resemblance to humans.

The demon in question charged him and casted what seemed to be magic, but it was a weird colored magic that had no equipment to act as a medium, and it was fast, almost impossible to keep track of, but the king's sense of battle was hardened to the extreme, and he immediately rolled skillfully and the magic went flying past him.

"What?! You evaded that? It must have been a fluke, or a failure in casting, both were on my part.

Eat this!"

The demon turned into nothing, and the king had no view of it anymore.

"..."

The King prepared an attack.

This was not new to him, for he has faced practically invisible ghosts in the Shaded Woods, an area obscured by fog to the extreme.

'Is he brave? Or stupid?' The Demon thought to itself and moved like a predator circling it's prey.

SLASH

The demon's body was destroyed and split into 4 pieces, the head and parts of the neck, what remained of the neck and the torso and his arms, the crotch area, and lastly, the legs.

"B..but.. how..

No! Lord.. Gu-"

And then the demon was turned into the familiar souls the king has so long gathered.

Even in this world there was [Soul Power], but if there was no Firekeeper to help him channel those souls, what would be the point?

So much souls, equivalent to the ones he obtained from the Hollowed King Vendrick, were just "There".

He let his weapons lay low and moved forward, nothing but breaths could be heard from behind his shining silver helmet.

All the demons that observed this battle began to change course, and tried to evade this man, for he has just slain something equivalent to an almost newborn Demon Lord Seed, and no one in the nearby area could hope to match.

But who are they to flee? They are attacking a nearby settlement it seems, and he needed information, and so he needs that settlement.

So he will kill every single one.

Moving with pace, like the weight of the two great swords on his shoulders did not matter, he remembered the first time he strove forward, fighting what seemed to be an impossible enemy, The Last Giant, those days were long gone, as The Last Giant was nothing compared to his power, not even his memory version, The Lord of Giants.

The demons scattered, he was using visually beautiful but terrifyingly effective spin attacks that paired well with his weapon type, and all sorts of those demons were now attempting to flee for their lives.

"..."

The king had realized something, his weapons were not just purely physical anymore, they had a different feeling, and by his guess, they had to have gained power when they appeared in his world, much like him.

Previously, his weapons were considered the strongest in the lands, as proven by how sharp they still are after so many continuous battles.

It was thought that his two "Murakumo" blades once went through 6 battles without a sign of ceasing attacks.

All this was what he was thinking amidst his slaughter, but at one point, he saw another person fighting those demons.

Not a person, an insect-human combination, fairly tall, and giving off the same air as him, silent and cold.

A stern gaze was what the "Insectoid" gave the king, and an even sterner tone was what questioned him.

"..Who are you?"

Who is he? Who had he become? Both questions were what puzzled the king for such a long time, and now he had to combine the answers into one, to even give a remotely satisfying answer.

he was The King of Drangleic and the ruler of the Four Crowns.

The King.

But his identity was not just that, he was whatever the legends and chronicles viewed him as.

Some viewed him as the God of War of Forossa's human incarnation, Faraam.

And even now, he wears the "Faraam Armor", one meticulously crafted down to the tiniest detail, to reflect the deity.

He is the incarnation of a god, the God of War himself, Faraam, is who he is.

"..Faraam."

That answer could send you freezing to death from how cold it is, the voice echoed throughout the helmet, and Razul took the answer with thought.

"Faraam..?

I have never heard of you, are you a mercenary."

The tone did not even sound like an inquiring one, it was like he was ordering him to answer.

"No.

I am just that, Faraam, the one who searches.

..."

Complete quiet, as the demons had already halted their attacks seeing as two seemingly equal powerhouses were staring each other down.

The King, no, Faraam, had his wrists raised up, which meant the swords were pointing directly at Razul, which got Razul on his guard.

"What are you?"

What is he? He thought there couldn't be a harder question than "Who are you?".

He knows his identity, but what race is he? He is human, but he no longer views himself within the reach of normal humans.

He is worse, far worse.

"A Hollow."

When Faraam answered that question, Razul raised his arms to fight, and went for a punch straight through the heart.

Clang

Faraam blocked by crossing both his swords in a perfect X shape.

Razul jumped back immediately, to create some distance for himself to analyze what had just transpired.

To block his attacks, this man must be powerful.

'Is it because of his race?' Razul thought to himself, as he regained his guard and stood his ground.

"You are dangerous and strange."

Razul slowly approached, moving in a curved line, rather than a straight line.

But Faraam was having none of this, he was not going to waste time, and ran firmly in a straight line at Razul.

Both of Faraam's weapons were ready, and so was he.

Razul raised his arms to block, but Faraam shifted from a slam down to a diagonal slash, which lead to both swords hitting Razul's left arm with a heavy amount of strength behind those hits.

Said left arm was pushed low, but it was not as damaged as Faraam thought it would be.

Razul, using his free right arm, attempted to grab a hold of Faraam's neck, which only lead to Faraam's right sword hitting Razul's right Inner Elbow area, once again, not much visible damage to be seen.

Trying once more to regain his guard, Razul jumped back again, but was immediately chased by Faraam, who tackled him to the ground.

They began exchanging blows, Faraam using his gauntlets, and Razul using his armor-like hands.

Again and again, Faraam hit Razul's head, but his exoskeleton kept together, not sustaining that much damage.

Pushing Faraam aside, Razul immediately grabbed Faraam from the back of his neck and pulled him into a headbutt, which sent the latter stumbling backwards a little.

Taking that chance, Razul followed up with such speed, and released a blow with such force to it, it would shatter the normal skull with just the shockwave.

But for Faraam, this meant much more, he can't have his helmet breaking, it's almost sacred to him now, this was his identity that Razul was attempting to break.

Faraam, using whatever power he could muster within those few moments, strafed to the right, and the attack went flying past him, but the harder part was maintaining his balance from the shockwave when he had bad footing.

That is what Faraam thought, until he grabbed a hold of one of his swords that was on the ground, and immediately spun around and hit Razul's head with an almost equal force.

Razul staggered a little, and then they began wrestling each other.

This all was happening as the demons took this chance to advance on Ingrassia, leaving the frontier in utter chaos.

There was no one in the clear advantage, Razul's body was maybe tougher than even the armor of legend he sought after, Havel's Armor.

As for Faraam, his physical strength might have been higher, and he might be more experienced in these life or death situations...

But both had experience and combat prowess that put entire armies to shame, and so, the battle continued.

Someone was watching this battle with a particular interest, not directly, however.

Through one of his demon proxies, and in his boredom, the Lord of Darkness, Guy Crimson, observed this fight.

He wondered who was this person that just arrived out of nothing, he wanted to confront him, but he decided to keep watching.

He can't have Razul dying, the "Guardian God of the West" is far too valuable to the balance to be killed.

But it didn't seem like anyone of these two would come out as the victor regardless.

"Interesting..

Raine, keep track of this.. "Person"..."

"As you wish, Lord Guy."

A smile crept on Guy's face as the battle dragged on for over an hour at this point.

In a vast land, stood two entities fighting each other.

An Insectar with a body nigh-unbreakable, and a man with an unbending will and an armor shining like the moon.

It had been long since both began combat, and it seems like the combat was beginning to end as both were nearing their limit.

But Faraam and Razul showed no signs of backing down so long the other wanted to continue.

Faraam grasped his weapons tightly and sent himself going at Razul with his will to keep fighting fueling him.

Razul prepared to deflect the attack with his arms, but ultimately...

Razul was knocked to the ground as he could not maintain holding Faraam back anymore.

Faraam stood over Razul, who managed to barely stand up.

Both of them looked like they were about to lose consciousness..

"Enough.. of this.

I must get back to serve my duty."

"..."

Faraam lowered his arms as they started to flail around, his stamina was completely exhausted.

"Good fight."

Razul left to continue killing more demons, as Faraam fell on his knees.

His exhaustion had caught up to him, this fight was extremely close, any of them could have shattered the other with any hit at any time.

After what seemed to be hours laying there on the ground, still no signs of his stamina coming back, Faraam decided to use one of those "Skills" he had obtained.

He sat upright and thought of that skill, he thought of the bonfires he used to rest at and refill his Estus Flasks at, those bonfires he used for ease of traversal.

And then, he felt himself lose the souls he had just gained from the demons, and he lost something deep within his soul, he didn't know how, but he felt weaker.

But a bonfire appeared after a cloud of smoke erupted, as always.

The bonfire ignited with his command, and he rested.

He felt himself refreshed, his injuries slowly but surely healed, but the missing power within did not recover.

He did not care, for now he can move forward once more.

Going back to being a demon slayer, Faraam once more engaged in battle with all sorts of demons, with no set destination.

He thought they would stop coming at some point, oh how wrong he was.

But at one point, a clearing made itself.. well, clear.

A gate, a gate that stood tall, and it seemed to have nothing behind it.

Of course, Faraam has entered gates such as these, cauldron like gateways to the other crown lands, but it's always a confusing experience, getting used to the new feeling of the area.

He looked around, as demons came pouring from everywhere around the gate.

And then, he opened the doors, and saw the lands there.

Hellish, lush, fiery, fertile.

Total opposite worlds were what laid there, some destroyed, some guarded.

He decided to enter, maybe he'd find out where he is from here.

One thing he knew for sure, this is no normal human settlement, this is demonic territory.

The world shifted around him, and then, he stood over a meadow, lively and green.

But this meadow was tiny, as all the land around it was ablaze.

Such was the paradoxical world where the demons lived.

His journey anew, Faraam began moving through the lands, killing the demons that once stood in his path.

That is... Until he came across the abyss itself.

The one who embodies the abyss.

Within ages long lost.. Long gone, the First Lords fought the Everlasting Dragons in battles so severe, and only after obtaining god-like powers and proclaiming themselves as such, did the battle end.

The Lords were as follows:

Gwyn, The "Lord of Cinder", the one who linked the First Flame in hopes to maintain the Age of the Gods, the one who created an entire dynasty of maintainers of the fire, Gwyn wielded the strongest lightning magic, which he used to peel apart the scales of the Everlasting Dragons, which allowed them to fall and be defeated, but never killed.

Nito, The "Great Dead One", the first of the dead, who administered death, and did his best to keep the deceased resting through later creations, and he who used illness-inducing miasma to end the battle with the Everlasting Dragons.

The Witch of Izalith, whose name and title were never given, and her Daughters of Chaos, the one who attempted to bring in a new flame, but only ended up creating the demons of the hellish land that laid beyond Blighttown, she used her great power to conjure up firestorms to push back the Everlasting Dragons.

Lastly, the Furtive Pygmy, who maintained his "Lord Soul", unlike the others, and decided to split it instead of aiming for power, creating the human race, and in splitting the "Lord Soul", he hoped one day that the fire would be extinguished, and a great age of darkness would come about, the Furtive Pygmy's power that helped defeat the Everlasting Dragons was lost and never heard of ever again, but his help lead to the Great Lord Gwyn giving him a place at the ends of the earth, the Ringed City, and something else... Someone.

Those Lords were all but lost to history, as in the times where the Kingdom of Drangleic was established, the hero of the current era was Vendrick, who defeated the "Four Great Ones", and defeated the Giants.

But, as time should have passed, and as Drangleic should have fallen, an undead with a goal in mind ventured out, and in doing so, he claimed Drangleic for himself, and in hopes of curing the Curse that haunted Vendrick and his brother Aldia for so long, defeated the Three Kings of the Three Crowns, but even then, the Curse did not waver.

Praying to whoever had created this world, the King of Drangleic wished to explore more uncharted territory, he was certain that if he searched all the lands he'd find the answers and cure to the Curse the greatest minds of the time could not find.

And his prayer did not go unheard, as the world that had suffered for so long shifted and turned, the time that was already convoluted halted, and space began to collapse, and faraway, something could be seen.

Re-establishing all those who have existed to give the undead answers, the "Voice" the king hears sends him somewhere else, to another reality.

But, he was not alone, for another person, an ancient all-powerful legend emerged from time ceasing and appeared in this new world as well, he heard the "Voice" speaking, and at one point, the "Voice" spoke directly to him.

{Individual "Gwyn, Lord of Cinder" has been summoned, and has been granted the Unique Skill "Great Lord", a skill that acknowledges the individual's past achievements as the one who linked the First Flame.

Sub-Skills:

-"Primordial Flame": A skill completely dedicated to allowing Gwyn to draw the power of fire and control it, this skill can be fueled further by combining lightning with it, allowing the creation of "Primordial Fire", a stronger variant and mix of both the lightning element and the fire element.

-"Miracles of Light": The individual's power that stemmed from the "Lord Soul" he once found, allows usage of many "Lightning" related attacks that bear the name of "Godly Miracles"

Sunlight Spear: Individual uses Magicules to conjure a spear made of the purest form of "Lightning", that which Gwyn uses.

Sunlight Blade: Enchants the weapon the individual uses with a "Lightning" effect of the same purity as "Sunlight Spear".

Wrath of the Gods: The Individual emits a large shockwave which pushes everything away, the sudden on-rush of Magicules can cause low to medium damage.

Blinding Bolt: The Individual creates a condensed ball of "Lightning" that moves in a single direction, anything that comes in contact with this ball will suffer from paralysis, and when the ball is halted or comes in contact with a solid structure, the ball will explode emitting a flash of light.

-"Link the Flame": This Sub-Skill allows Gwyn to ignite the First Flame once more after finding it, which will evolve this skill further, unless challenged.

Additionally, individual Gwyn is a highly skilled combatant, with weapon mastery of the sword, and has been granted the body of when he fought the "Everlasting Dragons".

This concludes the summoning.}

Gwyn, the one who has wished to keep the power of the gods maintained for years, but perished in sacrifice for the flame he served, has risen once more.

"..The flame.. Where is it?"

His first words after resurrecting out of nowhere are about the flame, this should give you an idea of how obsessed Gwyn is with said flame.

He began getting up, on one foot, then the other.

"Anor Londo.. Where are you?

Where are the buildings I have long waited to be built?

The Great Soul remains, but it is different..

The Everlasting Dragons, have they invaded once more?"

He could not organize his thoughts, as they were all over the place, he wondered where his people were, where his city was, what land he is in, who are those humans wandering about so carelessly.

He pondered where has the flame that pushed back the Age of Humans went?

Picking up his great sword that was thrust into the ground beside him, Gwyn began moving towards this city he resurrected besides.

"I must reach the flame once more.
I can feel it, calling for me.
I am.. the Lord of The First Flame!"

Gwyn moved towards Lubelios, where every inhabitant visible to him was human.

"Has the Age of Darkness finally come? The Pygmy was correct in his futuresight then..

I must see for myself."

Somewhat angered and confused, Gwyn reached the walls of Lubelios, where guards met him immediately.

"Who are you? Why do you come in such a rush? And why are you heading against the walls?"

Gwyn stared at the two guards, and then at the one questioning him.

"Human, who leads this area? Who is your god?"

The two looked at each other, before breaking out in laughter.

"Why do you speak as if you're not human yourself? Do you think you're higher than us? Hah!
And what stupid question is that you just asked, who is our god? Do you live under a rock? You kind of look like a caveman with that beard you have."

"You tell him! Bwahahah! I can't stop laughing at this non-sense!"

Choosing to be the wiser person and just ignoring their laughs out of being in a hurry for answers, Gwyn asked them one last question.

"Where is the flame? "

The soldiers stopped laughing and stared at him.

"Listen, you have the wrong address, old man, you might be lost.
This is no time for jokes."

Reaching his wit's end with these fools' ridiculous responses and attitude, Gwyn raised his swords and slammed it down with such strength it tore the two humans apart immediately, as they got cleaved into nothing but blood fountains.

The other soldiers were immediately notified and high on alert, and began attacking Gwyn.

Gwyn, irritated by such futile and useless attacks, decided to destroy the walls with his own sword.

It did not take much effort to destroy the walls, as a massive breach in them occurred, and the city was now being infiltrated by Gwyn head on.

Taking in the moment to see the idols of worship, Gwyn realized there was only one, and the streets were filled with said idols.

"We have been lost to time, truly.."

If only he could see Drangleic, where they were lost to time there as well.

He still thought himself standing atop Anor Londo's former grounds, his past home.

If only he realized where he was, if only.

Abruptly stopping movement after noticing he is being surrounded by more soldiers, Gwyn raised his sword up to the sky.

To him, humans were a plague to his Age of Fire.

He cursed the day the Pygmy found the Dark Soul, even if it was wrong to do so.

"Stand down, enemy of God!"

"I am the god here, know your place, humans!"

"Blasphemy! Leave no trace of him! Use your magic!"

"Attack!"

"Formation! You fools!"

Most of the soldiers entered a defensive formation, and the magic and arts began to form.

Gwyn simply activated his Miracle of Lightning, [Sunlight Blade], and the sky crackled.

His blade was set alight with pure lightning, strong and unyielding, it made his weapon blaze like a flame, one of Gwyn's characteristics.

And before the soldiers attacked him, Gwyn sent a massive wave of the same lightning imbuing his sword at the soldiers, which cut through most and caused them to be completely torn apart and burned from the inside.

You could see the corpses of the soldiers split into uneven parts, with their organs spewing out everywhere, a mushy ground is what resulted.

The citizens of the nearby area began fleeing in terror, and Gwyn continued his onslaught against all the incoming soldiers.

The entire west side of the city of Lune was almost completely destroyed from Gwyn's rampage, split heads and torn eyeballs, blood and iron, was the view of this new battlefield.

"Chief Hinata! It's bad! This infiltrator is too strong! We must evacuate!"

Turning to the panicked soldier, Hinata said in a cold tone:

"Go, leave if you must, I am not leaving this city to fall, send for the Ten Great Saints, now!"

The soldier suddenly felt a rush of bravery enter him, and he changed his mind about fleeing.

"I will stay, Chief Hinata, the Ten Great Saints are already up ahead!"

"Good on you, join them and tell them to wait for me."

"Yes, Chief!"

It is safe to say that the soldier did not make it five steps ahead before being annihilated by a stray wave of lightning, as his body erupted into a massive explosion of blood.

Hinata was taken aback, but she moved on.

When she reached the center of battle, she could not believe her eyes.

The Ten Great Saints were all but crushed, as only three out of the ten shakily stood, while the others laid everywhere.

She didn't want to believe it, but they had suffered heavy casualties, so heavy in fact, Lubelios as it is may never be the same.

She saw a tall man with a beard standing over one of her comrades, Leonard, the Child of Light, and it looked as the man was about to kill him.

"Chief... cough... Hinata...
Run..."

"Let him go! Die!"

Losing her composure at this scene, Hinata attacked Gwyn with a speed the normal eye cannot hope to keep up with.

But.. She only ended up getting a backhand to the left of her forehead, which sent her along with her momentum crashing into whatever remained of a building, causing it to explode even further.

The city was all aflame.

"Gah...

..

Astral.. Bi-"

Almost using her pendant that would've sealed Gwyn's fate, Hinata only saw a lightning bolt headed her direction, and she knew her fate was sealed.

"La...dy..

Luminas.."

The lightning bolt disappeared, and so did Hinata's consciousness.

Not her life, however, as a sword seemed to cut through the lightning bolt right before it hit Hinata.

"You! You laid waste to all of my land!"

Gwyn, seeing the lady in front of him talking to him in a mighty tone, realized that this is the same person the humans worship.

He was enraged, and brought out a massive bolt.

"You, you're the one who stole the might of the gods of old!

You dare bring your ugly sight in front of me!

Anor Londo will be rebuilt over this human infested land!"

Her face held a shocked expression, eyes wide open, no one ever talked down to her that way, she could almost feel... Nevermind.

"Ugly? Says you!"

"Enough of this foolishness, I, Gwyn, the Lord of Cinder and Sunlight himself, shall turn you to ashes!"

Raising an eyebrow, the lady responded.

"Gwyn? Lord of Cinder? Never heard of you.

Are you sure you're not just some crazed old man?"

Gwyn appeared right in front of her within that instant she insulted him, his sword enchanted by the Miracle of Lightning, [Sunlight Blade].

But the lady held her ground and actually managed to push him back with her stronger sword, that sword being "Night Rose", a mythical-tier sword used by the "God" Luminas Valentine.

But it didn't last long, as a ball of lightning being powered-up by Gwyn forced Luminas to jump back a fair distance, but the ball gave chase at high speeds.

Clashing their swords multiple times after the ball erupted into a hundred lightning strikes, Luminas seemed to be gaining the upper hand.

"You! Who are you? How can you contend with me? I have never felt one with such an aura."

"I am Gwyn, the Lord of Cinder and Sunlight, and you humans are the Pygmy's end goal."

"Humans? Who says I'm human?"

"..?"

"Are you foolish enough to think the world is only humans? What perfect fantasy do you come from?"

"Perfect fantasy? You think the hardships I've faced to become a God are from a world of perfect fantasy?!

You think curing an age of dying gods and eternal life is something from a fiction?

I will show you what it means to have seen what I've seen."

Gwyn's Sunlight Blade miracle crackled even more and Luminas prepared her sword for a barrage of attacks.

Luminas started an on-burst of tens of attacks that Gwyn blocked most of, and when he got hit, he made sure to respond with his own attacks.

The main difference was that Luminas had him beat in speed, while he had her beat in strength.

And him using a greatsword didn't help his case much either, as his attacks were much easier to evade.

But he grabbed a hold of her neck at one point, and went straight for a stab through the chest area.

Then, pulling back his sword by pushing her off it, Gwyn moved to jump back, but Luminas managed to appear behind him and bit into his shoulder.

[Embrace Drain] is a Sub-Skill of [Lust], a skill which Luminas holds.

It drains a target's vitality while also sending pain signals straight to their soul.

And Gwyn was not able to resist it, as he dropped his sword and staggered still as Luminas kept latched on him.

Recognizing this dangerous situation, Gwyn used a Miracle of Lightning, Wrath of the Gods.

Emitting a gigantic shockwave, it send Luminas flying back, and all objects small or big in a relatively small radius were sent crashing into further things.

"Your blood is exquisite, it leaves me wanting for more..

More..."

Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, Luminas' eyes spoke for her, she was very highly intrigued by Gwyn's "Blood", and to her, that blood tasted divine.

"But it's unfortunate.. For you that is, that you destroyed my city without a hint of a reason.

Not that I would let you do so if you had a reason, but you still did.

Prepare, for I am not in the mood to be playful anymore."

Luminas' aura flared and she attacked Gwyn once more, Gwyn barely managed to pick up his sword in time to block some of the attacks, all of these attacks ended in his body being damaged.

Gwyn activated one of his other Sub-Skills, [Primordial Flame], and the Sunlight Blade empowered sword was set ablaze now, fire and lightning combined.

Now they stood on a somewhat equal ground, but Luminas was still ahead in terms of total results.

Luminas, pointing her sword straight at Gwyn, questioned him.

"Why do you say you're a god?"

"I am the ruler of Anor Londo, the city of gods.

How do you forget such worldly matters, pretentious god?"

Luminas thought for a second.. Then it hit her.

He's definitely an Otherworlder.

"You might be.. from another world.

You, Gwyn, are an Otherworlder!

You have come to this world somehow!"

Gwyn immediately ceased attacking and listened to what she said.

"Another world? What...

You're serious?"

He found that term "Otherworlder", as a form of hope.

Hope that the flame has not died out in his original world.

All he had to do, was return.

Return..

"But that does not entail me forgiving you.

I will still kill you.

You're far too deep in trouble, Gwyn~"

He didn't know what to make of this woman.

Her tone was serious yet so lustful.

Gwyn closed his eyes and lowered his sword.

"Are you going to give your life? Wise, really.

This is the second time my city has been destroyed! Can you believe it?! Atleast you recognize your mistakes..

And Hinata, you almost killed her.

Why can't you ask?!"

Then Luminas turned to the two dead of the Saints, and revived them.

"Now, the blood I took from you was just to revive them...

Give me your essence, Gwyn~"

Luminas approached Gwyn slowly, and she extended her hand.

"Com-"

And she didn't even get to touch him before a massive blue light fired like a canon, it could only be..

"Daughter!"

Turning to the direction of the canon-like blast, which was known as [Sphere Shot], Gwyn saw his.. "Daughter".. Gwyndolin, firing said blast.

"When did you get here?!"

"Father, concentrate! Much more is going on than you realize!"

Luminas had just barely dodged that attack, and she didn't feel like messing around anymore.

But looking at her attacker, Luminas could swear she felt her heart pound, she found Gwyndolin to be the epitome of beauty.

Such a hidden beautifully pale hidden face, with large cloaks to cover the perfection.

Such a shame.. She thought.

Such a shame.

She took a quick glance at Hinata, making sure she is fine, before leaving no distance between her and Gwyndolin.

Almost striking her helmet, Luminas was denied by Gwyn with a slash to the right side of her face.

"I won't have you hurting my daughter."

"Tch! I can't be messing around like this."

Luminas began to attack Gwyn over and over, but when she did, Gwyndolin would attack her with homing blue orbs.

And when she went for Gwyndolin, she would be attacked by Gwyn.

"AGHH! THIS IS ABSOLUTELY PREPOSTEROUS!"

She slashed Gwyn in a sudden onslaught of anger, which caused him to fall backwards, and then Gwyndolin was left exposed.

"D-Daughter!

Stop! No!"

Luminas stopped before killing Gwyndolin.

"Stop? You destroyed my capital! You killed my people!

I won't leave a hint of you!"

She turned super angry compared to when they started, with such a fierce tone, with no hint of questionable acts.

"Louis! Roy!"

Two identical men appeared at the same time Luminas called them.

""Yes.""

"Get the unconscious away from here.

And get Hinata out.'

""Yes, Lady Luminas.""

They did just as she said, and she flared her aura one more time, with an obvious hint of rage.

Gwyn slowly stood up and put all of his skills to the maximum, his entire stomach area had a large slash wound on it, and he was bleeding profusely.

"You still stand up, you shameless fool? Even after being the cause of all this, you still stand up? Refusing to fall?

I will show you despair, you have not suffered enough it seems."

What has Gwyn suffered, to be precise?

The dying embers of the First Flame, the abyss, the Bed of Chaos, the Dark Age's looming.

All those are horrifying events that no mere lord can shield his world through.

Gwyn, in his own eyes, was the one who held the world together during those moments.

But all those moments came with loss:

The First Flame was at it's charred end, the Abyss had taken over much of his beloved land and even arguably his greatest knight, Artorias.

The Bed of Chaos, the amalgamation that used to be Gwyn's friend and close ally, the Witch of Izalith, and her Daughters of Chaos, that amalgamation laid waste to the underground of his land.

The Dark Age's looming.. The Furtive Pygmy's certain future of choice..

Where humans take the world for themselves, and all the gods are no more.

This is what he thought happened when he first came into this world, Gwyn thought that the Furtive Pygmy had hit the nail on the head, which enraged him so.

Seeing how Luminas was angry, made him question one thing:

Is she a reflection of how he felt when his world was crumbling?

He took it for an easy trip at first, then it struck him as he realized how wrong he was.

She thought it was just a large enemy that needed a bit of a powerhouse to be dealt with, but she was wrong, and by not immediately stopping all of that, she lost much of her land, and much of her subordinates, even if she can revive them.

Truly, she was much like him.

And she slowly seemed to realize that, as she looked into Gwyn's eye, and he did the same.

Both of them bore the same look, incredibly distraught.

Luminas distraught for what just happened, and Gwyn distraught by how his past mistakes only just caught up to him.

He had cared only for his power, but never for the lives of those lower than him or his allies.

Gwyn, the Lord of Cinder, had finally embraced his faults.

And his next step with Luminas would be interesting, and Gwyndolin could only watch as both "her" and "her" father's fates would be dictated.

Artorias, the Abysswalker, one of the Great Lord Gwyn's Four Knights, alongside Hawkeye Gough, Lord's Blade Ciaran and Dragonslayer Ornstein.

He was the famous person who was so valiant in his battle against the darkness, the abyss itself, his legacy was so large thousands of years later his spirit carried on in the form of the Abyss Watchers, ones who adopted the identity of Artorias himself, mimicking his look and his greatsword, and his job, which is fighting back against any signs of darkness.

Artorias was arguably the Great Lord Gwyn's strongest knight, and with his signature "Wolf Ring", which dispelled any and all abyss from corrupting him, his destiny was set for him.

But all changed one day when a princess by the name of "Dusk" was abducted, and on the mission to save her, Artorias and his wolf companion, Sif the Great Grey Wolf, were ultimately overwhelmed.

Artorias was fighting until his last dying breath, then right when he felt like he lost, his mind was lost to eternity.

He died within that moment, and all that was left is a hollow vessel that had the same look as Artorias.

He was no longer who he was.

But all of that past storytelling mattered not anymore.

In a seemingly instantaneous moment from his death, Artorias heard a voice right after he lost consciousness.

{Confirmed, individual Artorias has been summoned and given the Unique Skill [Abysswalker].

Sub-Skills:

- [Hextouch]: The holder has the ability to use many special "Abyss" element abilities, which are called hexes, almost all of these hexes are used to empower the holder, they are extremely powerful, but used for an extended period of time can lead to terrible side-effects.

Hexes the holder has the ability to use currently:

[Abyssflow]: The holder's body strength is empowered, allowing for ease of movement, examples include: Leap attacks will be easier to perform.
The cost of this empowerment is immense exhaustion after the conclusion of this ability's usage.

[Blade of the Abyss]: The holder can empower their weapon with the "Abyss" element, increasing the power of their weapon.
The cost of this empowerment is the weapon's durability deteriorating quicker.

[Unlimited Abyss Works]: The holder can manifest the power of the abyss into different shapes that take on physical properties.
The cost of manifestations is high draining of Magicules.

- [Greatest Knight]: The holder has extremely sharpened senses of combat, and any attack made against the holder in sight is viewed broken down in full detail.

This ends the summoning.}

The world, it was in sight.

He was seeing a distant light, hope, hope that he will be able to save his companion in time.

In plain sight.

He heard a familiar sound.

Whimpering.

The pained whimpering he barely could make out in the same abyss he fell in..

'...Sif! I hear him!

I'm.. Still alive..?'

Reaching the light and going through it, Artorias' eyes shot open, and he entered a sitting position.

But he could not maintain it for long, as his companion lunged at him making him fall over.

All he could hear were the relieved and happy noises Sif was making.

"Woof! Woof!"

Artorias was just as joyous as Sif was, he was petting him and hugging him.

"Sif... You had me scared I lost you..

Never.. Again..

Okay?"

"Woof!"

The Great Wolf Sif, the closest friend to Artorias, the one who shared all his pain and grief, was reunited with Artorias once more.

They stayed like that for a few more minutes.

Artorias' eyes, though unseen, were teary.

He really thought he lost it all..

"Lord Gwyn, I am back.

The Abyss.. We need to stop it.

Sif, do you know where are we?

This doesn't look like Darkroot Garden."

Sif, although an animal, had expressions as clear as any human's in Artorias' eyes.

And from Sif's current expression, Artorias could tell that he was just as confused as him.

"Well, let's move around a little..

I wonder how we just got here so quickly?"

Artorias was lost in thoughts for a little as he wandered.

But then he stopped after he heard some noise.

Someone turned to look at his direction, before coming closer slowly.

-"Y-You there! W-Who are you!"

The panicked look on this humanoid's face said it all, they thought of them as danger.

Artorias understood that, and immediately raised his arms.

-"Easy there, I am not here to attack you.

I am lost."

The humanoid slowly approached, that humanoid was marginally shorter than Artorias, but still, it came closer.

-"...Are you here to see Great Rimuru..?"

'Great Rimuru? Is this an unidentified tribe? No.. Not possible.

Actually, what was that voice I heard when I woke up...'

-"..Who?"

-"?"

Confusion, all around, was what's going on.

Then a voice calls out to the humanoid.

-"What's going on?"

-"M-Master Souei.. This individual just appeared out of no where.."

-"I see, I felt them as well.

Come with me, Great Rimuru has just returned."

Artorias just pondered who could this Rimuru person be, and where is Anor Londo.

This was all happening quite fast in his perspective.

-"Alright, take the lead."

Stepping out of the forest and into the clearing which had the view of the town in plain sight, Artorias' full stature showed.

A man with a body bearing a height mighty, and that body was clad in armor, his helm was very curious looking.

And beside him was his wolf companion that stuck to Artorias' leg.

But chief above all was his greatsword, it was peculiar looking, the grip was quite long, and the base of the sword was large.

The sword gave off an extremely weird feeling, it felt.. Empty.

That was all Souei could describe it as.

They moved through the hill that slowly began descending into a lower area.

That area had a town in it's center.

Artorias looked puzzled, what town existed outside of Anor Londo, in such grassy lands?

'Maybe I am not in Lordran...'

Souei, leading Artorias into the town, picked up the pace.

-"Hurry, try not to attract much attention."

Artorias nodded and matched Souei's pace.

Of course, he still got a lot of attention, but the walk was over quickly.

"Wait here."

Souei entered the tent, and some talking could be heard inside.

Artorias and Sif waited patiently, as some crowd gathered behind them.

After some time, Souei called him in.

Artorias entered, and he saw an outstanding woman sitting on a chair.

She had hair of blue like the skies, eyes as gold as the lightning of his Lord Gwyn.

The woman stared directly into his soul.

-"Hello... Er.."

-"I am Artorias, Artorias of the Abyss."

-"Artorias, what a wonderful name you have.

I am Rimuru, Rimuru Tempest, the leader of this small town."

One quick glance made it clear as day.

Artorias could easily tell that Rimuru was not acting normally, Rimuru was tensing up to appear like a serious ruler.

"I heard from Souei that you woke up in the Jura Forest?"

'Jura Forest..?'

-"Jura Forest? What is that? Is this a new extension of the Darkroot forest? No.. Maybe it has connections to Oolacile.."

They both just stared at each other, equally confused and weirded out.

Then Rimuru had an epiphany.

-"Oh, I think I can tell what's going on.."

-"Do tell."

-"You are not from this world, you must have.. Died and came to this world."

Artorias put his hand on his sword, gripping it tightly, which lead Souei to immediately prepare to attack.

-"Great Rimuru, that ma-"

Rimuru stood up, and approached Artorias.

-"I am like you, I also died and reincarnated."

Sif began pulling on Artorias' cloth with his mouth, trying to calm him down.

Artorias took a deep breath and let go of his grip.

-"So you mean to tell me that I am not in my former world anymore, and there is no way to return to my Lord."

-"..Yes."

Sif let go of the pulling, and maintained his position beside Artorias' leg.

-"What in damnation happened for me to be pulled into another reality..?!

How does that even happen?

Lord.. Gwyn.."

Sif whimpered, and Artorias lamented.

-"Shall we talk somewhere else? I think I can answer some of your questions at least."

Artorias was lost in thought, but he managed to gather together a

-"..Yes."

-"Join me, come."

Artorias and Sif followed, and Souei disappeared.

"By the way, you can let your wolf buddy hang out with mine."

-"..?"

Then, out of Rimuru's shadow, a wolf as big as Artorias jumped out.

The wolf was very excited, and it shrunk down to Sif's size.

-"This is Ranga, my buddy pet.

Ranga, go have fun."

-"This is.. Sif.

Go have fun."

The two wolves went and started doing whatever wolves do to have fun.

Then, Rimuru and Artorias continued.

It was hard to avoid attention now, as everyone looked at the two.

"""Great Rimuru!"""

Three humanoids with horns came to Rimuru.

Thing is, Artorias was a fair bit taller than all of them.

He was dwarfing Rimuru, and the red hair who came running was shorter than him by a fair bit.

The other was a violet haired woman and another smaller pink haired girl.

The three took on a prepared stance, the pink haired girl stood beside Rimuru, meanwhile the other two stood between Rimuru and Artorias.

-"...What do you think you're doing?" Artorias questioned this sudden outrageous act.

-"Guys, it's fi-"

The red hair slowly drew his sword, and the violet hair pulled her massive sword and smashed it down at Artorias.

"NO STOP! SHIOOON!"

But it was too late.

Well... too late to stop the violet hair, but it wasn't really an issue.

Artorias pulled his sword out with inhuman speed and easily deflected Shion's attack, and her sword was sent flying.

"Shion! What have you done?! Why did you attack him!"

-"U-Uh.. Great Rimuru... I sensed this au-"

Then it just collapsed into an excuse factory by Benimaru and Shion.

Rimuru was just trying to get them to stop talking for a second, but they wouldn't stop coming up with excuses.

Artorias' patience was ticking off.

-"Can you all just stop talking for a second?

I don't care that you tried to attack me, all's well that ends well for now.

We were going to talk more in the room you were taking me to."

-"Y-Yes.. Please forgive my subordinates for.. Attacking you so.."

The two began walking off, and as the other three were beginning to follow..

-"And get some training, you hit like you can barely lift that sword."

Shion's eyebrows twitched.

-"Shuna.. Benimaru.. I think I'm going to kill someone today."

The pink hair, Shuna, and the red hair, Benimaru, both just followed silently.

Shion wandered off to pick her sword from wherever it landed.

Entering a large hall, Artorias saw the gathered beings.

A green haired human with vines coming out from behind her, the same blue hair that suddenly disappeared, apparently he was named Souei, three dwarves, and behind Artorias was Shuna and Benimaru.

Everyone stood up and looked at the four people entering.

Benimaru and Shuna took their seats, while Rimuru sat in the big chair.

The only chair left was the one facing Rimuru's, and Artorias took a seat.

Now, before the meeting began, something needs to be understood.

Rimuru's train of thoughts were all about how strong Artorias is.

Roughly speaking, they were close, but Rimuru could not get an exact estimate.

Artorias was maybe less powerful in just raw power, but it was obvious to Rimuru that Artorias was very much an extremely distinguished individual, with his semi-instantaneous reaction to Shion's attack, his skill with a sword showed, even if it was for just a second.

Artorias didn't seem to have any malicious intent, infact, he just seemed to be sad, and had no motive to attack Rimuru regardless.

-"Okay, now we're all here.." Rimuru spoke, beginning the meeting.

-"Great Rimuru, who is that if I may ask?" The green haired lady asked politely, Artorias stayed silent to see how Rimuru will paint him in front of them.

He also found out through their short walk that Rimuru is a male, and he decided to not be surprised anymore.

-"Treyni, this is Artorias, Artorias, this is Treyni.

Treyni is a Dryad, basically, a caretaker of the Forest of Jura, which we are in right now.

Artorias is an individual from another world, it seems he's an immensely strong fighter with long experience in serving his former lord, er..."

-"Gwyn, Lord Gwyn." Artorias finished Rimuru's sentence.

Everyone else in the room looked quite surprised.

-"I see, so he must have ended up here by chance?" One of the dwarves asked.

-"Yes, Kaijin, he did, one of the Goblin scouts found him right outside the perimeter." Souei answered the dwarf, Kaijin's, question.

The Dryad, Treyni, was relieved for a reason Artorias could not tell.

-"Anyways, Artorias, this is not your world as I told you before..

Did you die? Or did you just appear whilst doing something?"

-"..." Artorias took a moment to recall his lost life, and then he spoke.

"I was on a mission to rescue an abducted person.

That mission happened to be located in an area called "The Abyss", near a city.

I didn't realize how dangerous that mission was, and in that mission, with my friend Sif, I suppose I perished after I got overwhelmed... But that was the last thing I remember, I proceeded to wake up here.

My crushed arm was normal, my armor is as shiny as my glory days.

Sif seems to have missed me like he hasn't seen me for ages, but I don't know if that's just because of our extreme bond or if it's something beyond my comprehension."

After saying all of his part, the mood settled, and one could only sympathize with Artorias' story.

"My life's mission was to serve Lord Gwyn first and foremost, and now...

I do not know what to think, I am lost both in the physical terms and in spiritual terms,

A wandering body."

Rimuru tilted his head a little bit, thinking of something.

-"Well...

I know it's not much compensation, but you can stay here, if you wish so.

This is most likely the only place with any signs of a developed land for a long distance.

You'll get the basics.. It is likely nothing close to your former life.. But food, shelter and extra services are what you'll get."

Artorias responded with words that put a smile on Rimuru's face.

-"I am a knight, luxuries were never meant to be expected to begin with.

I thank you for anything you'll grant me, I accept your offer."

Everyone got excited, and a few cheers were heard.

-"Well then, drinks?" Shuna asked an obviously easy to answer to question.

-"You know the answer already, Shuna!" Rimuru laughed and the room was lively.

Artorias excused himself and stepped out for a little bit, and Benimaru followed him.

-"Hey, uh, sorry for earlier."

-"No worries, I wouldn't take anyone endangering my Lord either, but he is far stronger than me."

-"Great Rimuru is immeasurably stronger than me aswell, so that's something we share.

But-"

-"I don't rely on him much, I do not want to be viewed as weak."

Benimaru and Artorias looked at each other as they were thinking the same thing, and they exchanged a light laugh.

"Ah, it seems I mistook you for an inexperienced young fellow.

Seems like you suffered your fair bit."

-"Yes... We were about to discuss our attack plans on an army of Orcs, that army ravaged and destroyed our home village..

I, my sister Shuna, Shion, Souei, and another two, were the only ones left and we had to wander together, until we stumbled across Great Rimuru.

I have never been more grateful for such a chance encounter."

Artorias read Benimaru's expressions, and he seemed genuinely happy to be here, no regrets.

-"He really is great then, eh?"

-"Yes, yes he is, a lord worth serving, Great Rimuru is."

-"...Attacking an army, you said...

I guess I have nothing else to do then, I will join you."

Benimaru looked surprised, but he smiled more.

-"Great! I will tell Great Rimuru about this then!"

-"I will go and observe this town then, I will see you later."

Benimaru entered the room again and Artorias left to see the newly built town.

Once again he found himself lost in thought, but that wasn't long lived as Shion came back to "talk" to him.

-"You!"

'Not her again..' Artorias thought to himself.

-"What?" Artorias tensed his voice turning to face her.

-"You didn't tell me, how can you tell I'm not strong?! What makes you sure?!"

-"It doesn't take a genius to figure out you're relying too much on the weight of the sword."

Shion approached angrily, no one can talk about her not being strong enough without getting a taste of her strength.

But she didn't realize that approaching him was like approaching a wall.

He was tall.

She thought she was intimidating to most of the populous, but he did not care.

Comedic moments like this were the norm for Shion, but she didn't realize some people had too hard of a life to even consider faking emotion.

She stared up, her neck feeling sore, if we were to put it into measurement, he was taller than a door.

Shion didn't get the same feeling the others have when she acts intimidating, and she stepped back.

"It was not meant to be an insult, and I did not mean to say you're weak.

But maybe your skill is not honed, so put into consideration the need to practice."

Artorias gave his piece, and his piece is heavy, as he himself has experience far more than most people in this world.

Shion decided to take it easy and listen at that moment, the moment she realized he means good.

Faraam stood over the meadow, small as it was, it felt relaxing to stand on it.

But there was such a familiar feeling near him, he swore to himself that there was a piece of his soul just a little way's off.

He stepped into the blazing land that somehow surrounded the green meadow without consuming it, but Faraam did not question it, for he has seen things that can be called into question more than this.

The entire land felt eerie, he knew he did not belong, but how could anything belong here? A question that did not cross his mind for one second, because he was focused on one thing right now.

His suspicions were slowly turning into reality in his mind, and when they fully turned so, he knew what it was immediately.

He saw an approaching darkness, that of a cold and still source.

This was..

The humanity, the same humanity he can gain from the human effigies he uses.

It was such a nostalgic feeling, it had not been long since he was separated from his former world, but when you lose something so dear, it's like you lose years off your life.

He kept drawing closer to this "source", and soon enough, the entire area was shrouded with this cold and ominous presence.

..

Who was that..?

Long ago, in the lands of ages past, long before Drangleic, where Faraam hails from, was a land known as Oolacile.

It was a land of many a people, creatures, and tales.

But among these tales was a tale of a human who was considered an ancient one, a primordial.

His resting site laid a visit to the populous of Oolacile, where word of his past was exchanged, everyone tried understanding the secret of who laid in the grave.

Those who held the knowledge and ability to dig into the origins of this land, and the origins of the gods, could only get as close as relating Manus to the "Furtive Pygmy", but they could not go beyond that.

But the mark was hit, he was indeed a Primordial Human, from the ancient times of the gods themselves, when Gwyn defeated the Everlasting Dragons.

Now, the story to be told is that of his, and how the Abyss came to be.

He was long dead, but some who can only be described as foolish came for his rest.

Why? Why must they excavate that which they cannot comprehend? How idiotic can one get?

No matter, but it was certain someone pushed them to do it, otherwise no one would be in their right mind to think doing that is a sane thing to do.

And as they dug, dug and dug, they unleashed horror upon this world.

The now enraged Primordial Human had no mercy for such idiocy, and his core, his essence, his humanity itself began to shake, it exploded like nothing had ever had before, and the world was never the same.

The Abyss.

Darkness, darkness all around.

The entire land was consumed, it was void, pitch black.

Every human and every single living thing was turned to darkness.

The land lost it's color, and one massive creature stood in the midst of everything.

It was then that the legend of Manus, the Father of the Abyss, came to fruition.

Oolacile, Lordran, and even future kingdoms would never be the same, as all would fight against this abyss one way or another.

Manus, having lost his pendant, his sacred gear, was filled with rage, and with his rage so mighty, he pulled people through time and space itself, any person with the hint of his pendant, any person with any hint of his dear object.

What does that broken relic mean to Manus?

The answer was yet to be known.

And as long enough time passed, he came to fight against the legend himself, the one who sought to destroy the heart of the abyss, the one who was "destined" to destroy Manus, Artorias, "The Abysswalker".

The fight did not even begin, as Artorias' life and mind was lost to the overwhelming strength of the abyss.

Yes, even the legend himself, the man who was supposed to be the frontline against the abyss, fell to it, such was the terrific power of Manus' anger.

Returning to the present, Faraam had arrived at the silhouette of a man, Faraam felt like he belonged here, finally, a place he could call home.

The longing feeling that emanated..

Wait, no, this is wrong.

This is all wrong.

Faraam is a man without any feeling, he has long gotten over such trivial matters.

This is all induced.. By the enormous humanity cloud covering the entire vicinity.

He approached like he was walking down a road, he did not care after realizing that all these feelings were fake, for a moment, he thought he was free of his curse.

He ceased moving when the figure turned to him, it was clear who he was.

His body lines weren't visible under such a massive mantle, and his head fully visible either, but he could make out the important features.

The man in front of him was tall, taller than him by a large margin, his hair and iris were both as dark as dark can get, but his skin tone was closer to pale than fair.

The man approached Faraam as well, but stopped a few steps away, and so did Faraam.

-"A cursed one, I see.

You are on the quest to cure it."

The man's voice was blank, it had no tone of interest nor did he sound like he didn't care.

Faraam had studied the abyss before, alongside his greatest supporter, who taught him everything he needed to know about what a great king is.

And from what he studied, he learned a little about the abyss.

It was necessary to learn about the human effigies he used, it helped him connect more with the essence of the humanity.

Truth be told, he sort of admired the abyss.

He favored Manus and Vendrick, both humans with power beyond comprehension, to the old gods who wished to do nothing but link the flame.

Faraam appreciated Manus for who he is because he showed the world what a mere human can do, much like what him and Vendrick did when they both vanquished their greatest enemies.

He, after learning how the abyss came to be, hoped that in some way, somehow, unleashing his humanity one day would cure his curse.

But that day was yet to come.

For now, Faraam nodded.

And Manus continued his talk.

"You are really powerful, so strong in fact, you're beyond any of my kind.

Well, our kind.

You are like me, yes?

A human.

If so, I do hope that in the time you exist in, the Age of Dark has settled in."

Faraam nodded once more at the first part, then stayed silent at the latter.

-"..."

Manus understood what he implied, he was a great wise person, no matter how monstrous the legend put him as, this was nothing like that.

-"Hm, this is not Lordran you say, nor Oolacile.

Another world.

I did hear a voice before waking here.

And when I woke up, I felt that same rage I felt when I sealed Lordran's fate.

But I was quickly calmed down by something, and I found myself in a body to the exact likeness of my old self.

It said something about skills, did you hear something like that?"

Manus inquired a fantastic inquiry, and Faraam did a long nod.

"So that confirms my theory, that we are indeed in an entirely separate reality as well.

A world that does not follow the old world's laws.

A world that.. Does not have a flame to link.

Muhaha.. I like the sound of that.

Say, what do you think about me and you exchanging information about our past lives in that world as we walk through this landscape?"

"The Four Great Lords were forgotten to history? How interesting.

Gwyn, The Witch of Izalith, Nito, and my ancestor, The Furtive Pygmy.

All forgotten? Truly?"

His tone, that was just a few moments ago, blank and disconnected, was now surprised and lively.

And who wouldn't, this was completely outrageous for anyone that lived in their time.

Faraam spoke in a low tone through his helmet, a short sentence.

-"Tell me.. How does one gain power from the abyss..?"

Faraam finished his sentence and turned back to silence, he had not moved his head to look elsewhere once during that question, and that left Manus wondering even more.

What an essence.. What a humanity..

Is this the man who was meant to truly link the flame?

Manus asked himself these questions, which left him zoned out for a little while, to which Faraam waited patiently.

They were moving across the Underworld, or the demon realm.

And just up ahead, they would see a magnificent mansion of sorts, surrounded by gardens of flowers, an elegant white palate was established across the entire mansion.

It was, as was in this world, completely different to what was right beside it, a flaming pool of lava.

Manus snapped out of his zoned out state, and looked to Faraam through his hood.

-"To answer your question, we will first confirm this world's hostility.

What do you think?"

Faraam did not even nod to that, he moved forward, unsheathing his two Murakumos.

"Calm down, you shouldn't rush into action.

Although the realm is harsh, we should not consider everyone an enemy."

Faraam looked over his back, at Manus.

-"...You can never be too sure."

-"..."

Manus just followed after giving a quiet sigh.

A sigh that translated not into disappointment, but into preparation.

Walking forward to just outside the perimeter of the mansion, they both heard a voice.

-"Halt!

Which do you serve, you in that helm."

A voice that called out to Faraam, the voice must've recognized Manus, but something must've been more peculiar about Faraam, but Manus couldn't complain, he thought the same of Faraam.

"Take off that helm, and state your purpose!"

Faraam just looked up at this man.

White hair, elegant clothing to match the mansion.

He must be a guard.

Prior to Manus finding himself in this world, he was in the midst of something that can only be loosely related to battle, a resemblance of a fight between him and a person he had pulled into his world through a dimensional crack, that person held it, his greatest treasure.

His broken pendant.

But that person proved far too strong, he put everyone Manus knew to shame, he dwarfed Artorias' power, and he outmatched any and all gods he has seen.

Manus fought him out of pure rage, had he not been blinded, he would've definitely took the peaceful approach.

But that was in the past.

In the very recent past, that is.

The fight came to a close as Manus found himself struck down by that person.

And in the next moment, he heard that voice.

At first he thought the person was talking to him, but then he realized he couldn't feel anything anymore.

Then he heard it..

{Confirmed, individual "Manus" has reincarnated and has been granted the body of his human form.

Additionally, individual "Manus" has been granted the skill [Humanity], a Unique Skill with the conceptual power of the "Abyss" element.

Sub-Skills:

- [Humanize]: The Holder has the ability to temporarily restrain any effects of degradation or hollowing on any human, restoring them to their basic status, additionally, this skill operates with the premise of the holder always being alive and is a human, which grants the holder immortality and youth.

- [Volatile Power]: The Holder is able to exploit their incredibly powerful humanity to spread a corrupting "Abyss Element" which overtime takes over the mind of any infected by it, it also degrades and destroys most things it comes in contact with.

- [Father Of The Abyss]: The Abyss the holder creates can cause many things to spawn out of it, creatures of many powers, and if the holder chooses to activate this skill, they will temporarily assume a massive beast-like form made purely of the "Abyss Element", this body is immensely powerful but requires a set amount of Magicules to maintain.

Lastly, individual "Manus" has been given title "Herald Of The Age Of Darkness", a title signifying the holder's deep desire to bring about the end of the exploitation of the gods.

This ends the reincarnation sequence, Manus will now awaken in the Central World.}

And when that voice ended...

A great prince, that he was destined to be.

A great lord, the other was destined to be.

A great tyrant, the third was.

In Lothric, a kingdom forged to inherit the legacy of the ancient lords, it was a tradition to provide an able heir and Lord of CInder.

However, in the last years of the Kingdom of Lothric's lifespan, two princes destined to take the world into their hands appeared.

One was named after the kingdom in hopes he holds its future and dreams, Lothric, the future Lord of Cinder.

The other was named Lorian, and he was born to be a king, to rule alongside the Lord of Cinder that Lothric would become.

Lorian was born a mighty man, his stature tall, his strength unmatched, he took up noble knighthood from an early age, he was renowned throughout the kingdom, cherished by everyone, especially after his victory against the hellspawn champion, the "Demon Prince", which caused his sword to be permanently charred with scorching flame.

He was given armor befitting his achievements, and in further recognition of his feats, Lorian was granted the crown of Lothric, patterned with flame, of course, the armor and crown are now scorched black because of the battle with the "Demon Prince".

Lorian's skill in combat was unrivaled, and as was previously mentioned, all eyes were on him.

But grief struck, when his born into illness brother, who was meant to be the Lord of Cinder of the time, was forced to connect his soul to his brother's in hopes Lorian shares some of his vitality, but, it backfired severely when Lorian came down with the same illness, stripped of his ability to move on his feet, and with his body weakened, Lorian could no longer become the future king of Lothric he was meant to be.

Lorian and Lothric, two brothers, eternally bound together by a greedy kingdom's curse.

Lothric, the younger prince, who was, from birth, sick and ill.

He was never able to fulfill his potential any longer after the illness rose further before his ceremony of becoming a Lord of Cinder, and he was confined to his room, but, in his despair and sadness, he found sorcery and magic to be of great help.

He wanted to aid his brother in whatever way he can, and his teacher, the "Scholar of the First Sin", did so.

He taught him everything he needed to know, and Lothric reignited his hopes.

But it once again came crashing down when his brother contracted the same illness he had through the forced soul link they had undergone.

Two brothers who had once stood atop of the world.

Now bound to their deathbeds.

Lothric gave up and left for the highest levels of his castle, taking Lorian with him, thus ending the age of the Kingdom of Lothric's prominence.

It was never the same, as their father, the Mad King Oceiros, had left long long ago.

And even their mother, the Queen Gwynevere herself, the descendant of the ancient God Gwyn who fought and destroyed the Everlasting Dragons, faded out and was never seen after some point in time.

Lothric and Lorian met their demise at the hands of a certain someone, they professed their disdain of the system of rekindling the flame, Lothric with his words, Lorian with his sword.

The two princes faded, their final effort for proper combat blown away by that certain someone's own fighting prowess.

Yes, that certain someone was indeed too strong for them, but no matter, they had longed for proper rest.

The spot that marked their grave, decided their future.

Yes, a future beyond death.

A future in another world.

..

-"Mark.. my words.. - -... You'll never find peace so long that flame is not extinguished..
Do it... Destroy the flame...
Nothing will come of rekindling it.."

-"..."

A sword shove was heard, it was the sound of the battle ending.

A sword, long and sharp, was driven through Lothric's body, who was clinging to Lorian's to aid him in combat with his magic.

The sword also naturally drove right into Lorian's.

Lothric saw the expressionless face that the opposite side bore, it was only for a moment;

But the opposition paid them no mind, and just took the sword out, and proceeded to ignite the bonfire that spawned in place.

-"...Your kind.. Are what we need..
Usher in that age..
The age of darkness.."

His brother grunted a little bit, but it seemed like he had given up and lost life before Lothric had.

"Brother.. Lorian..
Let us forsake this dogged fire and it's dogged seekers..
Let us go to the next.. World.. Where no things exist..

Let us..

Live again..."

{Confirmed, individual "Lothric" has accessed the reincarnation cycle to the Cardinal World, beginning reincarnation sequence...

Confirmed, individual "Lothric" has been granted the Unique Skill "Prince of Cinder",

Sub-Skills:

- [Heir To The World's Power]: The holder's destiny is to link the flame, and this Sub-Skill draws directly from the holder's desire to do so.

The stronger the holder's true desire to link the flame grows, the more this skill grows in power.

The power of the skill is its ability to use any and all magic the user knows without needing a Magicule supply, effectively cancelling the cost requirement of magics.

However, the skill needs to grow in power to use larger-scale spells.

- [Frailty's Compensation]: The holder can sacrifice endurance and vitality to draw in more power, increasing the total offensive attributes the holder has, however, when this skill is used, it cannot be reversed.

- [Scholar's Teachings]: The holder is able to conjure up magic spells in the form of skill-like abilities, all of those are based on the holder's old master's teachings, and as the holder is extremely proficient with magic, they require no catalyst.

- [Unholy Target]: The holder summons countless orbs made up of purely magical energy, which will lock on a target and home them down, each orb summoned takes no Magicules, as this is the most basic form of magic that the holder possesses.

- [Soul Spear]: A conjured spear made up of purely magical energy, this attack is automatically aimed at the enemy's core, their soul, it is a large attack that allows no room to dodge and forces the enemy to face it and defend.
This attack takes a large portion of Magicules, and requires further fueling of the Sub-Skill [Heir To The World's Power].

- [Emit Force]: The holder can cause a large shockwave in a selected area, it can cause objects to implode, and it can be any and all sizes so long the holder has enough Magicules to fuel it.
This attack takes a huge portion of Magicules, and requires further fueling of the Sub-Skill [Hier To The World's Power].

- [Holy Revival]: The holder can instantly revive any fallen comrade, the Magicule cost of this ability can go from costing a high amount to costing almost all of the holder's Magicules.

Additionally, individual "Lothric" has been granted the same body of birth, and as per someone else's desire, they will be summoned by their side.

Lastly, individual "Lothric" has been given the title "Future Holy King Lothric".

This ends the reincarnation process.}

Silence..

What... What was that..?

Lothric thought to himself.

How do I not die? Why must I cling to this pathetic state of existence..?

He was desperate for answers.

Lorian.. Do not leave me.. alone..!

And that was the last thing Lothric thought..

The last thing he thought before he realized he was hearing clashing noises.

He decided to overcome his fear, yes, fear, he was scared that he would open his eyes to the distant noises that might turn out to be the Unkindled still hacking away at his body and at Lorian's.

By the gods..! How..!

-"You and the tiny Prince of Nothing, you two are the key to my empire!"

A man with a villainous tone spoke in a loud voiced fashion, to..

Lorian..!
He lives.. We live..?!

-"I will never give into your demands, Pontiff!
Lothric and I are not your objects of play, fool!"

Sounds of clanging steel and crashing pillars, cracking stone and roaring thunder were all that filled Lothric's ears.

-"...Lorian..!..
Sulyvahn..?"

The same self-proclaimed "Pontiff" Sulyvahn, he who sent outrider knights to "protect" Kingdom of Lothric territories.

Lothric and Lorian despised this man, but they could not for the life of them do anything to him, he was far far too powerful, holding influence over the Way of the White, which in turn means he holds power over Anor Londo, the city of the gods, and he also has influence over the entirety of Irithyll of the Boreal Valley, and his influence extends as far as the Profaned Capital and the Kingdom of Lothric's lower states, and even the Farron Keep's perimeter.

Lorian turned his head towards Lothric for a second, and when their faces met, both of them were stricken with great relief, those brothers were inseparable, and even at the toughest of times, they found each other's comfort to be of greatest help.

-"Lothric! Don't you worry, I will deal with this scum!"

-"Do not make me laugh, fool, you cannot even hope to match the power of ambition when you have none!"

A spinning slash from Sulyvahn sent Lorian jumping backwards, Lothric was almost taken away by Sulyvahn but Lorian would not stand for it.

-"Begone! You are not welcome in any land we stand!"

Lorian sent an enormous sword thrust right at Sulyvahn, the entire area shock as the winds violently brushed past everything in an outward flying manner.

Sulyvahn was forced to take a hit, which sent him crashing against a wall.

-"Curses you fools..
I am the Pontiff! The one who voices for the gods! How dare you defy Allfather Lloyd's will!?"

-"You voice no one now, the kingdom cares not for who you might be, dimwit!"

Sulyvahn, through his injury, dashed forward and attacked Lorian with a ferocity far greater than before, a slash, two, three, then a thrust, then another slash, it was an unending chain of attacks.

Lorian's armor stood firm, but even the ancient Brass Armor that was passed down from an ancient lineage has its limits, especially when the sword that clashes against the armor, or rather, the swords, are endowed with the Profaned Flame's powers.

Lorian was forced to finish his blocking phase using his sword, that same greatsword charred black because of his battle with the "last" of Demonkind's hopes, the "Demon Prince", all of that culminated in Lorian being pinned in further attacks.

-"...Lorian..
I must.. Help.."

Lothric attempted to get up, this was the first time in a long time he attempted to do so, he had forgotten how sickly and frail he was just to help his brother.

And yet he could not stand.

Curse this body.. Curse this life..!
But so long he does not suffer for what I've suffered, so be it!
What did that voice speak to me, the power of..

Lothric activated a skill after deep thought, he activated [Soul Spear], he felt a large part of his existence go faint, but the familiar shape resembling a spear he always used as sorcery fired, and Sulyvahn was taken aback, having been hit directly in the arm, Sulyvahn immediately ceased his attacks and jumped back to recover.

But Lorian gave him no chance to do so, as he rushed with a large swing of his blade, which once more shook the entire area, and afterwards, Sulyvahn disappeared.

Neither prince could tell if Sulyvahn disappeared from fading away, or if he teleported away.

But, all that mattered was the two were now together once more.

"Lorian.. Oh dear brother.."

Lorian rushed to Lothric, his armor making clanging sounds as he moved faster.

-"Lothric, it is good to know you live..
I can speak.. I can walk..
I can finally help you."

The two were in shock, such was the reason they couldn't express their happiness in a more open way.

"Come, brother, let us move forward how we used to, but, with more mobility.
That 'Pontiff'..! He makes me sick."

Lorian let Lothric cling to his body, and Lothric did just that, wrapping his arms around Lorian's neck, and once more, they stood in the same position, but one of them was cured, now all hopes laid on curing the other.

"Are you good brother? Are you feeling well? You have not spoken."

-"...It is just, surreal to me, to have been able to see you finally able to walk on this earth once more..."

Lordran.

The city of gods.

By now, it is already established who it housed, what it means to the world's history, and so on and so forth.

But there is always one missing legend, one whose statues were brought down in hopes he is forgotten.

One exiled for "Treachery".

It was he, the first born of the Great Lord Gwyn, one whose name is forgotten, one who embraced that fact, and took up the title of the "Nameless King", and later on, "King of the Storms".

Who was he exactly? A god of war? A deity? All long past.

Now, let the story flow.

His name is still lost, but he once served and aided his father, the Great Lord Gwyn, in the battle against the Everlasting Dragons.

But all along, he was a man deeply mesmerized and entranced by the dragons.

No matter how much his father tried to emphasize how evil and how dangerous the dragons were, the son never listened.

In fact, he only grew more tired of his father's persistent attitude, and one day, he was found aiding a dragon in escaping from captivity.

His father, having had enough, exiled him, and not just any form of exile, it was a level above excommunication, it was total erasure from history's books itself.

He removed any trace of the king, any statue of him, and to this day, you can see an empty stand where his pillar is supposed to be, in the great castle of Anor Londo.

But, the son cared not, he knew he was free, he was thankful that his father bore no heart to kill him, and so, he sought the dragons, or, whatever remained of them.

After a journey filled with slaughter, the Nameless King found himself enlightened, finally achieving his eternal dream, to enter the land of the dragons.

The Archdragon Peak.

A land filled with worshipers of dragons, the Nameless King found himself very much at home.

He was, afterall, finally getting his reward for such a perilous travel.

And overtime, as the world crumbled, and the flame began to flicker and fade, the Nameless King sat atop the world as a man whose strength and will to protect the land he claimed were unbreakable.

He refused to bend to any order from his father requesting aid, nor requests from his brother and sisters.

But, coming to a day of reckoning, where the entire world, or what remained of its collapsed remains anyways, stood as an observer of the glorious combat between him and a mere human.

But the Nameless King does not look down on anyone, for he himself, was once the lowest of the low, an outcast of Lordran.

The fight lasted what seemed to be ages, as the Nameless King's dear friend, his own steed, his dragon, lost its life, he claimed its power for himself, and unleashed his thunder.

His enemy, dying, again and again, took a toll on the Nameless King, as the enemy would not give up no matter what.

Eventually... The Nameless King lost his life in battle.

All his glory was finally laid to rest, but he did not hate this.

It was much better than losing his life, his dignity, to his father or anyone from Lordran.

He did not know it ceased to exist long ago, that is how isolated the land was.

In his final moments, the Nameless King fell onto one knee, using his spear to keep himself up.

He looked at the contender who had just defeated him.

They both nodded to each other, once.

It was a sign of mutual respect, and a pact forming, it is so the contender slays dragons no more, and just leaves this land, after finishing his quest here.

Both parties left their nods as their respective signatures of agreement, and that was the last thing the Nameless King saw, before his vision faded to black.

And after that, the contender walked off, and never came back ever again.

Which leads us to..

{Confirmed, individual...

Failed to recognize name...

Repeating.

Confirmed, individual...

Failed to recognize name...

Repeating.

Confirmed-}

It just went on and on and on, over and over and over again, endlessly.

But it stopped at one point.

{Confirmed, granting unidentified individual the name "Faraam"...

Failed, reason:

Another individual named Faraam already exists.

Granting another name...

Success.

Unidentified individual has been granted the name "Gwynnen".}

Gwynnen, a name signifying the fact that he is the son of the Great Lord Gwyn, something he would surely not accept.

{Confirmed, individual "Gwynnen" has been granted the Unique Skill [Storm King].

Sub-Skills:

- [Wind Manipulation]

- [Herald of Thunder]: Using the power of the storm, the holder can summon thunder to empower his attacks or cause lightning strikes at any given location within a set radius.

- [Call of Dragons]: The holder is able to tame any and all dragons that roam free and have no proper conscience, at a cost of Magicules.

The dragons tamed have absolute loyalty to the holder and do not miss an order from the holder.

- [Path of Exile]: The more dragons and creatures that oppose the primordial flame the holder aligns with, they gain more strength, and the opposite holds true, the more creatures that have an alignment to the primordial flame the holder allies with, they grow weaker.

Individual "Gwynnen" has been reincarnated.

This concludes the window of reincarnation.}

And in the next second, the Nameless King, no longer nameless, found himself awake, at the highest peak of a mountain.

Where was he? He knew not.

But, the second he awoke, a small smile crept on his face.

He sat upright, and saw countless dragons flying everywhere.

Was this paradise? Maybe it was.

He stood up and roamed the mountain he awoke on, he instantly knew he was no longer in his world, he had clearly listened to the entirety of the announcement, for he had nothing to worry about then, and nothing to worry about now.

He can enjoy the serenity of the view uninterrupted.

Nothing appealed to him more than a view like this.

But nothing lasts forever, as he felt a creature approaching from behind, a creature that was in fact a dragon.

The king, now Gwynnen, turned around to meet this being, as he felt no hostility from it.

A towering dragon of the darkest black color.

Its mouth was emanating a chaotic black colored effect.

This was an old old friend of Gwynnen.

It was this dragon that he tried to free, this dragon that the then young Gwynnen tried to save.

It was the ancient dragon of legend, the Darkeater Midir.

The same Midir the gods sentenced to never ending damnation fighting off the abyss, which lingers on in its existence, though, not as much as Gwynnen expected.

Midir was a descendant of the ancient dragon race, the Everlasting Dragons, and had been raised by the Gods to fend off the abyss.

But Gwynnen saw no need for that, as he thought that if the abyss was such a danger, the gods themselves must fight it off an quell it eternally, but he was denied all of his proposals.

In truth, the gods feared the abyss, and Gwyn viewed it as the pinnacle of his nightmares; for the abyss spreading means the end of the Age of Fire...

Now, back to the moment at hand.

From Gwynnen's point of view, he saw a pulchritudinous black dragon, one free from all its shackles, aiming to wander the entirety of the world, but also wanting to finally enjoy its life with its dragon brothers and sisters.

From Midir's point of view, he saw a mighty warrior that has given his life for the path of the dragon.

One man equal to hundreds of dragons.

The dragon lowered its head, and Gwynnen approached.

He, remembering one of his skills, [Call of Dragons], activated said skill after a quiet thought.

Magicules left his body, but he cared not.

He saw two long trails of energy flying directly into Midir's existence, and Midir completely laid down.

{Confirmed, the dragon "Midir" has been taken in as a dragon pet for individual "Gwynnen".

Confirmed, individual "Gwynnen" has been granted the title "Storm-Dragon King"

Confirmed, the dragon "Midir" is entering evolution stage into "Abyss Arch-Dragon".}

Midir lost his consciousness in front of Gwynnen, and he entered evolutionary slumber.

Gwynnen finally opened his mouth for the first time in ages, because he needed not communication in Archdragon Peak.

-"Rest.. Well.

I shall require thy aid..."

He coughed a little, for his throat has not experienced movement for so, so long.

He stood up, and wandered the mountains, he came across multiple dragons, none of which attacked him, in fact, they all acted more peaceful around him.

It was almost like a manipulating effect.

He wandered more and more, and he reached a great great discovery.

A bonfire.

He reached it, and went to ignite it, but it exploded, but, thankfully, he reacted in time and jumped back.

A great tree-like creature emerged, it was massive in size, and it rose slowly from the bonfire.

The creature ceased emerging after its body showed.

Gwynnen looked at such a beast, but his view on this creature immediately changed when it spoke.

-"Son of the Old One, I am Aldia, one who has longed to reduce the power of the flame, and fight against it.

I, like you, have no intention of siding with the accursed gods of the weakening flame.

I have acquired kinship of dragons, much like you.

I am your earlier image.

I am your end result.

Have you decided to give yourself in to the path of the dragon, like my own creations and chosen ones?

Have you decided to search for higher power to destroy that which you have long despised?"

The Arch-Tree lifeform in front of him was a legend among legends, he who taught many a disciples, and he who sought to shed the yolk of an ancient curse.

But all of that was unknown to the former Nameless King.

Sealing the deal on the spot, since he had long ago made his decision, Gwynnen agreed.

-"O' Great Aldia, I, the King of the Storms, have long since made my decision.

I ask thee to teach this humble outcast all there is to the wondrous dragons."

The talker knelt, knowing his future is right in front of him.

He needed not knowledge of the person in front of him, all he needed was the fact he knew all there was to dragons.

A small laughter echoed from Aldia.

-"So be it, Son of the Old One, I suppose you will want to forsake this title as well?"

The questioned party responded with an affirming nod, which once again, incurred a quiet laughter from Aldia.

"Very well then, I shall call you by your title.

Storm-Dragon King.

But remember this, the flame was never eternal, your ancestor's sacrifices were for naught.

I have seen it all, and no matter how tender, how exquisite.

A lie will remain a lie.

That is the truth of the flame, nothing but a mere extension of power all humans have.

I have seen you as well, you have already shed your godhood and embraced being an outcast among humans for a long time.

You are well prepared for the end."

Gwynnen stood, having gained the recognition of his now new idol, he felt much more proud.

He had also finally forsook everything but his name.

He will get to it eventually but now, he also felt stronger.

That, from what he remembers, is the effect of another Sub-Skill.

"Go and meet Seath, I will find you there."

Seath..?

He heard these words and felt great curiosity.

There is no chance that is the same Seath.

He absolutely had the right to feel that way.

For all his life he has lived by the way of "Work, for coincidences do not exist", that way was shattered the second he met Midir and Aldia, but, now it's going too far.

He must've meant another Seath.

In ancient times, when the Dragons prior to Lordran came to be, they were numerous.

They were the ultimate life forms.

But, all their supposed beliefs were shattered when the "First Flame" came to be, that same flame they so despised.

They thought that there was no way it could do anything to harm them, but they were wrong, so wrong.

One of their own, had betrayed them;

Seath the Scaleless.

He was mocked by his brethren, for he was born without the mighty and supposedly invulnerable scales, he was pale and weak.

Almost a reflection of the future of the dragons, Seath was.

He had enough, and defected to the side of the Great Lords, and told them the secret of the Everlasting Dragons.

And for his great contribution to causing the Age of the Gods, Seath was awarded his own library, large enough to contain the world's wisdom, the "Grand Archives."

That labyrinth housed him and all his research, his research for immortality, nothing that ever entered the archives left the same.

Monstrosities, horrors...

The Eldritch Crystalline..

Seath was ruthless, but, overtime, he lost himself, and at some point in time, was slain by a brave someone.

That same brave someone which would later on claim Lordran's dying flame from its kiln.

But, after his death, Seath found himself in a journey across time and space, he was fascinated.

He was moving and not moving, he was alive and dead, he was...

Transdual.

He was all of space and none of it at once.

But, he just watched.

He dared not interact with the greatness he was witnessing, fearing ruining perfection.

He heard a voice near and far.

In his head, and also not.

{Confirmed,}

When it said that, he felt resonance throughout all of existence redirect into his mind.

But, he listened, and maintained his silence.

{Individual "Seath" has began the reincarnation cycle.

Granting special dragon class "Everlasting Dragon"...

Failed..

Failed..

Failed..

Failed..

Confirmed, individual "Seath" has been granted the dragon-type class "Arch-Dragon".

Confirmed, individual "Seath" has been granted the skill [Crystal Sage], Sub-Skills:

- [Immortal Knowledge]: The holder is granted immortality from any fatal blow and aging along with Soul immortality, so long they have half their Magicule removed, and all their knowledge is instantly engraved in their soul and is never forgotten.

- [Sorcery Incarnate]: The holder is able to use all Soul-Magic possible, including any and all Nuclear Magic, although at a high Magicule price.

- [Idle Transfiguration]: The holder can alter any physical body they interact with, and the more Magicules that are expended, the more transfiguration happens, at one point, the transfiguring can go as far as changing the entire soul of a person.

- [Inventive Mind]: The holder can create materials out of manipulating Magicules, the denser the Magicules are packed, the stronger the material, this can also be used to empower the sorceries the holder has.

This ends the reincarnation cycle.}

Seath reached a point where he was dropped into a hole of space, ripping away the non-existence he just was, and he dropped onto land with speed irrelevant.

He was on top of a mountain, wind was brushing past his gargantuan body.

-"Hm...

Not Lordran, my dear archives..."

He was regretting not having seen the full extent of his works, but when he thought about it, he found out he has perfect memory of all the things.

He laughed.

He was just deeply saddened by the loss of his Grand Archives, and now he was sounding like a psychopath.

"Uhahahaaha! Is this.. My dream?

Eternal Knowledge!

Immortality!

UHAHAHAHAAHAAH!"

Seath laughed, a laugh maniacal beyond belief.

"But I still retain this ugly form... Tch.

So be it."

Seth slithered around, his tails crushing mountains with their movement.

But he stopped at one point, seeing an Archtree springing up.

Seath scoffed, Archtrees bring bad memories to him.

Those Archtrees are the homes of Everlasting Dragons, his kin, the same kin he betrayed.

But, to his surprise, the Archtree spoke.

-"Scaleless one, have you found the answer to your research yet? Have you found eternity?"

Seath heard the Archtree question his new found powers, and he was very wary, for talking spirits are bad omens in Lordran.

So, to stay cautious, he did not speak, rather, he just waited for the Archtree to continue its monologue.

"Your silence speaks volumes.
It seems you have indeed reached my likeness, although you were far older than I."

A wall of flame erupted around the Archtree, and within that second it did, the Archtree took the form of a man.

Seath was astonished, as much as he had searched for immortality, he had never been able to fully shape shift freely.

He was the greatest researcher according to his time, and he was still firm on that fact.

But seeing what he just saw, he realized there is more which he had not discovered.

Seath was prideful, egotistical and very possessive.

Everything had to be his or because of him, helping the gods had gotten to his head badly.

But, he was seeing things in a new light now.

A darker light.

He had seen the potential the Archtree had, and now he wanted to experiment on the Archtree.

He wanted to create an artificial Everlasting Dragon.

But, his thoughts were quickly shut down by the now transformed Archtree.

"You are a perfect ruler, Seath, one who seeks to claim everything.

Desires of which the gods themselves wanted, those of the same mind as yours.

Shed your mind of such wants.

For the Throne of Want has already found its suitable claimant.

And now, he wanders, and he will come tear you down if you have such thoughts.

He has all the bearings of a human, yet all the power of a God, he is far stronger than you and I, far stronger than the Great Dead One, and his willpower raises him to be even above the Old Great Lord.

If you so wish to experiment and create, I shall tell you where to start.

For I have already achieved all of your desires.

Immortality is naught but child's play.

Sorcery is the essence of the soul, and from what my hollowed eyes tell me, you have obtained it all.

And now, you seek to create an Everlasting One.

That, I have already created.

My assistance is yours, so long you cease those foolish desires."

Aldia finished his speech, and, Seath's mind was shattered.

-"Im-Immortality.. You.. you obtained it..?!

When?

How do you know I have all the..."

Seath's surprise was all answered immediately by Aldia.

-"I am a scholar, a scholar of the first sin."

-"The.. The first sin..?"

Aldia approached Seath.

-"The greater mistake known to mankind, their eternal punishment.

The linking of the fire.

I have been immortal since time immemorial, but not as old as you.

My brother acknowledged the mistake that was linking the flame, and he did not link it.

And neither did the young hollow who took my advising to his soul.

I am, in fact, a reader of souls.

Such is the power I was acknowledged by.

So, will you accept your destiny? Or alter it like that young hollow?"

Flowing brown hair stretching as long as the night, wearing robes befitting his title, a scholar.

That was the image of Aldia as a human.

An image so beautiful, yet, Seath's mind was stuck thinking of the words Aldia just said.

The two were just staring at each other, but Seath decided to speak up after a long pause.

-"..I see.
You are wise, maybe more than I am.

I will be honest, I have never expected this level of knowledge and ability in one person, be it a god or a human.

But, I will take your words.

What is this change of destiny you speak of?"

Aldia smiled a faint smile, and he invited Seath to take a small walk with him down a long path.

That small walk changed Seath's mind forever.

He saw a gigantic dragon, one larger than he is, and he could only think:

Could it be..? No, they are long gone!

How could he acquire one, and I could not..?

He saw...

An Everlasting Dragon.

But, seeing this sight, something fired off in his mind.

He knew one thing for certain.

This was no ordinary Everlasting One, this was..

An Artificial dragon.

The same kind he sought for so long.

The same kind he wanted to make.

Aldia felt the surprise exploding inside Seath's soul, and he smiled further.

-"This is what I spoke of.

My greatest creation, one that shattered the stakes.

The one that began everything.

The one that lead me to believe the flame lures and devours.

The same one that made my former King Vendrick shun me, for the safety of all.

An Everlasting Dragon made out of a soul of giant.

The same giants you old ones used to work with, used to employ.

They were the key to the future of our kingdom, our work, but, he refused to go further along.

And, for that, I do not blame him, but that is why he is an incomplete king.

That is why King Vendrick, my dear brother, will never be fulfilled."

Aldia professed all of this to Seath, and by then, they had entered the walking line of someone coming their way.

It was the encounter all three of them need to go any further.

Aldia pointed to that person, that person was looking up at Seath, and Seath was looking at Aldia.

"That outcast over there, the son of the Old Great One, you and him must aid each other.

He will help you, and you will help him.

Neither loses.

Neither fades away and crumbles to dust like the lie that is the flame.

Because Seath,

No matter how exquisite, how tender,

A lie will remain a lie."

Seath looked at him, and sure enough, he was indeed the exiled one, the Nameless King, the rumored traitor.

He was his opposite, his inverted image, for Seath was a dragon who betrayed dragons to aid humans, and the man before him was a human who betrayed humans to aid dragons.

It was perfect poetry, Aldia thought it was the perfect way to mend all their past mistakes and forge them anew.

The God approached, and so did the Dragon.

-""You are..""

-"Seath, the Scaleless traitorous dragon."

-"The Exiled Nameless."

-"So it was true, Aldia, he is indeed alive and here as well.

Coincidences be damned, for I have not wanted to see this fool for another eternity."

Seath looked puzzled at the human in front of him..

He knew who he was, but he didn't expect this level of hatred.

Nevertheless, Seath corrected him.

-"Formerly an aide of Lord Gwyn.

I respect him, but now, I must cast my loyalty aside, the greater beings demand it."

The Nameless Exile approached him and looked up at him.

-"Do you speak truth?"

And, instead of Seath affirming that, Aldia did.

-"I can promise you he does; you and he are the duality of destiny.

One is the incarnation of chasing destiny; the other is the incarnation of still flow.

You, Gwynnen, are the former.

And you, Seath, are the latter.

Now, I can only hope you two accept my proposal."

Aldia settled the issue down between them, and Gwynnen, whose name was now introduced to Seath, accepted this proposal with an audible "I accept.".

And now it all came down to Seath to accept the proposal, which he also did.

Aldia thought to himself one line only:

One grows stronger...

The son of the Old Great One has forged three alliances now, and his power is exponentially stronger.

I can only hope to lead them away from the flame, as I need no foolish gods rising.

Now, the dragons, I must teach them of the ultimate lifeform, alongside mine.

I must let them be prepared for such a world they will explore, for we are isolated now, but not later.

I can read souls.. But that is not all.

Skills.. What powerful tools.

Aldia's skill was something beyond the scope of any skill.

It was the skill [Binding Soul], a skill that, when used..

It links entire beings to the soul of the holder.

The skill itself seemingly has no use, but the linking of souls allows one immortality from everything so long the other souls are alive, it also allows one to take forms and shapes reliant on the basis of binding, which in this case, are bonfires.

Which goes along well with Aldia's other skill, [Corrector], a skill that allows one to create bonfires, and allows one to draw out the true power of the soul with [Soul Manipulation], which gives one access to an endless well of Soul Energy, which Aldia knows the technique to use.

But, he himself stumbled upon this power, for he did not die and reincarnate.

Aldia was, is, and will be immortal forever.

He managed to foresee the collapse of the former world right as the king he served at that time connected to the Voice of the World, and he instantaneously took precaution, and used a bonfire creation the second obtained his skill and traversed to it, which allowed him to maintain his form, skipping past the reincarnation cycle.

Although Aldia might come across as a villain, he is nothing but one who seeks to guide, raise and use the people he develops to destroy the flame and all its allies.

That is Aldia's nature.

He is not evil.

The flame is.

Thus begins the story, we can finally see more interaction between the two worlds, beginning with the story of the two old friends.

I can only hope all of you enjoy the story.

In the Cardinal World, there lays a desert to the far west, a desert of utter calamity.

It is a land in which nothing lives, save for the race of the Giants.

The Giants are a relatively quiet race, save for a few quarrels with the Kingdom of Lubelios here and there.

Though called "Giants", they are not the Giants you would expect, rather, they register a height about one and a half times that of a human, but, that only goes for the normal Giants.

The True Giants, the Giants of origin, of which there are few, are different.

They possess different attributes, and can grow taller.

One of these Giants, is Dagruel, who is known to be the leader of the Giant race, and also the guardian of the Heavenly Star Palace, the very same place where The Creator was born.

Dagruel, who goes by the title of "Demon Lord", or, by an epithet, "Earthquake", is possessive of neither titles' general qualities, like Demon Lords being evil, or "Earthquake" entailing his raging strength.

He is strong, just, not the brawler kind.

Now, as Dagruel sits down near a dune of sand, he is surprised to see a massive humanoid walking towards his town.

Dagruel stands up, thinking it's a True Giant that has gone berserk and activated full form, but, he was quickly convinced otherwise.

He approaches, and sees the entity walking alongside a human bearing a height akin to average, wearing armor which puzzled Dagruel.

He approached, but the two seem to have sat down, opposite each other.

The figure seemed smaller when he approached, and to Dagruel's puzzlement, they started.. Drinking?

He heard the two cups hitting each other, and down the hatch the drink went.

And after one round, the two began talking, and Dagruel just stood a fair distance away, completely dumbfounded.

-"Yhorm.. Old Friend..
Nothing beats a Siegbrau!"

The human cheered as he slammed the cup down.

And he was cheering for another reason.

"And once more, I drank faster than you! Hahahaha! 50-24!"

The figure grunted in frustration.

-"Your cup is smaller anyways, you would never outdrink if you and I had the same size!"

The figure exclaimed, before turning his head to the left, noticing the standing Dagruel.

"Oh.. Hello there, are you perhaps from the areas around here?"

The figure, as tough and as imposing as he looked, was quite calm and gentle-sounding.

He was, to an extent, much like Dagruel.

Answering the figure's question, Dagruel approached.

-"Pardon my intrusion, we do not get visitors often, I am Dagruel, the ruler of this land.

I cannot help but wonder, what race of giants are you?"

Dagruel took to questioning out of enormous curiosity, and it was Yhorm's turn to be confused, as he wasn't a "Giant" per se..

-"I am not.. Sure.. What you mean...

Race of Giants..? There's multiple races..?

I am a Lord of Cinder.. Or did we end up in the wrong area by a misplaced teleportation sorcery..?"

Now it was both staring at each other in confusion.

The weird-looking armored human stood up and spoke.

-"Now now, let's get this to work.

Hello, Dagruel, this is Yhorm, my old friend, he is a Giant from the lands of Lordran, I am Siegward, a knight of Catarina, do not mind the armor.

We seem to be in quite the pickle, we suddenly awoke and found ourselves here..

And I could swear I slew my friend.. But it was all just a bad dream.

Where are we, exactly?"

Dagruel slowly started to understand, and then..

Ah.. They must be reincarnated..

..

How do I break it to them?

-"Uhuh..

Alright, listen to this.

You two are not where you were, you are in a different world.

This is called the "Cardinal World", and wherever you were, you cannot go back to it.

I am sorry if it's such a surprise."

Dagruel put a hand behind his head and scratched it, he was a little worried they'd go mad and attack him thinking he's a liar.

But they didn't, they merely looked at each other and laughed.

Is this a sarcastic laught-

-"Ah.. Forgive our surprised laughs, we are just taken aback, we'd never thought we'd end up like this in a new world!"

Siegward exclaimed, these two were truly strange.

How calm! These two are absolutely ready for any situation.

What a dynamic duo.

Dagruel was absolutely correct to think that.

-"Yes, although it may seem like a paranormal situation, a thing of the extreme, we are always calm together, we have faced many hardships together, and, to that extent, nothing surprises us anymore."

-"I understand, and that makes things easier.

Do come with, we will talk more on the way."

Yhorm, Siegward and Dagruel moved along the dunes to the town of the Giants, and a visible catastrophe could be seen.

And the only thing the two could possibly think...

-"The.."

-"Abyss?"

Siegward started, and Yhorm finished, which instantly left Dagruel confused again.

-"Hm? The Abyss? What might that be?

If you are talking about that eyesore, it is an ancient relic of a battle long lost.

You needn't worry your heads about it now.

Whatever it is, it is not related to what you are thinking of."

The two nodded amongst themselves and went ahead.

A long walk had them exchange some of their pasts, roles, and whatnot, until they reached the topic of "Skills".

At first, Yhorm was confused, but Siegward's eyes, although behind armor, looked very impatient.

He had heard the "Voice", but, Yhorm hasn't.

Dagruel took the initiative to explain what they obtained, hoping they'd understand his simplified explanation.

-"Alright, listen closely.

Within the soul of any being, there is will, and from that will, comes power beyond understanding for the normal entity.

For stronger willed people and creatures, that power is stronger.

These powers are skills.

What is the name of the skill the voice spoke of, Siegward?"

Siegward answered Dagruel's question instantly, with a tone of excitement.

-"It was called.. Hm.."

Dagruel waited for an answer.

-"Yes..?"

He was anticipating the skill's name, but it was taking too long, and as it was taking so much time, Yhorm could only watch in amusement.

-"Mm...

I seem to have forgotten what it is called.."

Dagruel's eye twitched.

This.. Fellow..

Is very strange.

Yhorm laughed, and Siegward did as well.

-"Classic Siegward act.."

Classic..? This is normal for them as well?!

Dagruel was not one to be shocked or surprised, but this was an event beyond all reason...

Then Siegward shot up from his laughter.

-"I REMEMBER NOW!

[Onion Knight]! THAT'S WHAT IT WAS!

AHAHAHAHA! PERFECT FIT!"

The shouting noise from Siegward reverberated throughout the entire desert, there is probably not a single human, giant or monster that hasn't heard that.

-"Onion..?"

Dagruel's eyebrows and eyes had the formation of deep concern.

Why would he laugh at that..?

Just what is this man...!

Wait..

Now that I think of it..

He does look like a..

-"Anyhow! The skill's description was magnificent!

It said something along the lines of "For the honor of all those I serve, I shall charge into the fray!", it was an epic moment to witness, and then...

I heard it say something about sub... sub.. mm..."

-"Sub-Skills?"

Dagruel picked the line up for Siegward, who continued.

-"Ah yes, that! Thank you, anyways,

I heard a total of 3, if I am not mistaken.

One was to grant me tenacity, making me unshakeable, the second was to give me agility, to make me able to move faster in this heavy armor, not that I can't anyways!

The third was a weird one, it was a sort of..

Summoning skill I think? Mmmm...

Yes, that's what it is.

A skill that summons forth a squadron of knights like me from the past!"

Siegward finished that sentence with all his excitement released, and Yhorm nodded in acknowledgement.

Dagruel was also satisfied with that information, and now, after all that was done and dusted, they finally entered the town.

Obviously with Yhorm being extremely gigantic in comparison to even the giants in the town, he had to stay outside and observe.

-"I will be waiting for you, old friend!"

Yhorm sat a way's off and took to falling in thought, and seeing him do so, Siegward proceeded deeper into the town with the newfound friend, Dagruel.

-"Say, Dagruel, how expansive is this world?"

Dagruel thought for a moment, and he came up with the best possible answer in his opinion.

-"It is large, massively so, you can go for days on end and still be in the same regions, it also differs greatly from region to region.

You have this desert, which is actually the land farthest to the west on this continent, of which there are three, the Magic Continent, which is this continent, the Ice Continent, home to the arguably two strongest beings known to this world, and the land which houses the Golden El Dorado, home to another strong being, who was formerly a human, much like you.

If you go to the east, you will go from this desert, to a holy empire ruled by unorthodoxy, to a merchant kingdom filled with greed, to a quiet forest filled with the deadliest of monsters, to a conqueror's empire which has halted its conquest long ago.

As you can see from all I have said;

It is a world of contradiction."

Dagruel finished his talk, and Siegward clapped.

-"Uhahaha! You have a beautiful way with words, friend!

And I can only hope your words speak true, for contradiction is the only way anything can be anything!"

Dagruel smiled, he had never seen someone so entertaining in quite a long time..

He seems so lively.. He and his friend..

Unlike..

Sitting on a chair right before them was Dagruel's old friend, Dino.

Dino was an Angel, an Angel without a home.

The reason Dagruel's smile now turned to a frown looking at Dino was because..

-"Dino...

Can you do something to aid my people, please?"

Dino opened one eye and saw Dagruel and Siegward.

-"You got a guy who looks really strong, can he do it instead..?"

Dino spoke in a very slouched tone, like he was so done with life, words barely left his mouth as he didn't even put force into talking.

Dagruel's eye twitched, and he was about to throw Dino into the sky as a form of waking up.

But, Siegward intervened.

-"Oh! Good eye there little boy! I can do just that!

And I can have Yhorm help out as well, it wouldn't be fair you guided us here without us compensating, yes?"

Dagruel was stunned, but he quickly reclaimed himself, and answered.

-"...If you do not mind..

I am sorry this lazy.. Piece of work.. Won't help."

Dino shut his eyes, without so much as a thank you.

-"It's fine, he seems tired anyways, let him rest."

Siegward was fooled by Dino's ploy.

-"No you se-"

Dagruel got caught off by Siegward rushing to call for Yhorm.

"Sigh.."

Dagruel stared at Dino, a stern stare.

-"What? He accepted it just fine, can't blame me.."

-"I.. Sigh.. You.. Ugh..

We'll discuss this later.

What do you think of them?"

Dino opened one eye again.

-"I don't know..

They seem decent."

Dagruel's eyes blanked out at this response.. He forgot how simple Dino talks because he doesn't want to waste energy in talking.

I can't blame him also.. He didn't talk with them for long..

Sigh... Dino..

Dino is a close friend to Dagruel, both have lived together for a long time.

Dino practically wandered into Dagruel's land since he had no where to go and sleep properly, and Dagruel, confused at the time, just let him in.

As much as Dino is basically useless, he is not draining on any part of Dagruel's land, save for a chair or a couch he sleeps on, which Dagruel lets him use.

Sometimes Dagruel wants to make him work, but all is futile against Dino's mighty resilient laziness.

"Although.. That giant definitely is interesting...
He seems to have a skill... And yet.. he doesn't at the same time..?"

Dagruel stared in disbelief at Dino.

He, of all people, did an observation like this..!?

This might be the start of him being useful! Hopefully..

-"He is truly a sight to behold.. The way he swings his sword so effortlessly...

How experienced can one man be..?"

Those words left Rimuru's words as he saw one man sparring with Benimaru and Shion.

It was Artorias.

This was them preparing for the upcoming battle against the Orcs, as planned.

Shion and Benimaru usually fight each other a lot as tests of strength, but this time, they had asked Artorias to join in.

Artorias by himself could probably take Rimuru in a straight match, and that was no exaggeration.

I shouldn't get on his bad si-

Before he could even finish his thought, a massive sword-clanging sound rung throughout everyone's ears, which made Rimuru jump back a little bit, that took him out of focus.

Woah! That made me move back a little..

Benimaru and Shion both used their swords to block an enormously heavy downwards strike coming from Artorias, normally, this wouldn't be anything of notice, but this was something remarkable for Benimaru and Shion.

Being able to develop synchronization like this is key to winning many future battles.

-"Good job Sh-"

-"Nic-"

And there they go...

A loud crashing sound was the prevalent noise now, as both Benimaru and Shion were sent smashing into the ground, the second they took their focus off of Artorias thinking they had him blocked, he somersaulted and broke through their unfocused guard.

It seemed all so unreal, and way too quick to Rimuru.

Artorias scolded the two for even thinking about talking during a spar, let alone facing each other when the foe is right there in front of them.

The two seemed so surprised to be getting scolded, again, they weren't used to such things.

Looks like he'll make a good counter-balance to my spoiling... Eheh..

Rimuru could only sigh, but, this was still a good moment to keep in mind for the future.

Other people started to come toward Artorias, but he stopped any attempts at getting a spar, as he wanted to finish the preparations for the upcoming battle.

Walking alongside him, Rimuru, Benimaru and Shion moved at equal pace to that of Artorias'.

-"You're harsh.. But.. A good leader is wary for his subordinates..

That is what made you great, I presume..?"

Benimaru asked a very good question about Artorias' past, and he answered truthfully.

-"My men... I wish I had any.

I was known mainly for being a loner, of course, along with my good buddy over here."

Artorias patted Sif before continuing.

"Now that I think of it deeply.. I'm grateful I didn't have any.

I am thankful there weren't any further slaughters in the abyss.. Besides me and.."

He looked at Sif, regretful of what arrogance he had to venture in the heart of enemy territory brimming with confidence..

Rimuru stared at Artorias, although not visible, he can feel the sadness from Artorias' tone, very hidden as it may be.

Shion and Benimaru were also listening closely, but chose to keep quiet instead, which was very rare to see.

Deciding to speak up, Rimuru found it in his heart to try and get closer to Artorias.

-"Listen, after we finish this battle, I want to hear it all, all of your story of that world, I want no details left out no matter what.

You are one of us now, one with my future kingdom!"

To be fair, Rimuru cringed a little on the inside saying this, this was, after all, a knight with no time for child's play, but in reality, that's all he could think of at that moment, which made him wonder,

I should've just stayed silent...

Artorias had a hard time accepting reality, he wanted to cling to being his Lord Gwyn's subordinate, he wanted to eternally cherish the fact he ever served him.. But.. Something inside him was telling him to do the opposite.

Abandon the clinging to the past, because if he sticks to the past for too long..

He might never live to see tomorrow.

He thought and thought and thought about it, but he could not finish his thoughts, as a loud voice came from the far side of the battle field.

-"That's our battle call, Lord Rimuru."

Benimaru affirmed what everyone was thinking, and Shion grabbed her sword tightly.

-"Let's go then, everyone!

Let the battle begin!"

Loud shouts came from everyone in the vicinity, as Rimuru ordered everyone to take positions, and he then looked at Artorias.

"What will you do now, Artorias?"

Artorias needed no time to think about that now.

What needs to be focused on right now, is the present, and at the present, only one thing is clear:

-"I will fight, of course, what am I if I do not repay your acceptance of me."

Artorias didn't even wait for Rimuru's response, and Sif rushed forward before him, joining up with Ranga.

And within a second, Artorias disappeared into the fray.

-"Now what?"

Rimuru looked around, and decided to act like a cool dude, and flew to the air, and observed the battle arms crossed.

"It's better than sitting still.."

He saw the absolute slaughter that was ensuing.

Shion was decimating all the lines, Benimaru was causing literal hellfire to devour his opponents, Hakurou was cutting through all the lines.

But there was one opponent, rather, two, that were of interest.

Is that a fucking plague mask? In this world?!

And from that aura.. I can only assume..

No, both of their auras..

They're the leaders..

AND ARTORIAS IS FACING THEM HIMSELF!?

WHAT HAPPENED TO REGRETTING GOING IN ALONE!?

Rimuru flew down closer, but still a little bit off.

Artorias was absolutely man-handling the two, a massive beast who Rimuru would guess to be the Orc Lord the Dryads spoke of, and the plague-masked individual.

He was using a tiny bit of a weird untraceable energy, but Rimuru could tell it's an enhancer, but he was curious.

[Great Sage], can you scan that energy? I'm very intrigued by it.

It's not showing up on my radar as a match to any element.

[Great Sage] Immediately responded, it seemed to have given absolute priority for this.

{Searching...

Confirmed, element does not correspond to any element previously registered within currently accessible information.

Register element under custom name?}

Hm...

Please do, and choose the name you deem fit.

Rimuru gave out his word to [Great Sage], who got to doing so, and after a few seconds, it came up with the perfect name.

{Success, new element registered, "Hollow" element has been added to Unique-Skill [Great Sage]'s analysis information base.}

Alright! The more information I have on my allies, the more I can work with them.

Oh an- WOAH!

Rimuru dodged a flying head that was coming towards him at extreme speeds.

It was the detached head of an orc that tried to attack Shion, which only lead to it being annihilated.

The head sprayed blood all throughout the air, and some got on Rimuru's body, however, it didn't matter much to Rimuru, as he continued to observe the battlefield.

Hakurou was slicing and dicing, serving up hundreds of plates worth of Orc bodies, using his extremely refined and potent [Hazy Style], which involves many attacks, the one Hakurou had been using as of now was [Black Flame Slash], an extremely deadly attack that when used with intense speeds, can wipe out entire fields of armies.

Rimuru's gaze was stunned, it was a very mixed and mashed scenery of attacks, but it was beautiful.

Shion's rash cleaving of armies that caused entire tremors to rock the land back and forth, Benimaru's [Hell Flare] incinerating every single body..

Rimuru could also feel Souei cutting up some enemies off near the lands of the Lizardmen.

Oh, the poor Lizardmen, they were about to engage, but Rimuru's subordinates saved their arses before they were encircled.

Shifting his gaze back to Artorias, Rimuru saw one thing:

Blood spread everywhere.

Artorias had absolutely cleaved the plague masked man, his split-in-half body was laying in two neatly equal pieces on the ground, right down the middle.

Rimuru had a chill run down his spine, something he didn't think he had.

God damn! This man is no fucking joke! So coldly splitting him in half!

Gel.. Gelbud..?

{Answer, the name you're thinking of is the name of the individual "Gelmud".}

Yes! That! Thank you, [Great Sage].

Gelmud's blood is staining the ground!

Reminds me of myself.. Bad memories.

Ceasing his thoughts, Rimuru flew even closer to the ground.

-"HYAAH!"

The Orc Lord smashed the ground with intense might, his angry roar reverberated throughout the entire land.

Artorias swiftly jumped to the side, and using his left foot as a launch, he sprung forward, and with a slash, he split the Orc Lord's body in half.

Or that's what he thought.

That's what he thought..

Someone came and kicked Artorias in his side, which sent him a fair distance away, but he managed to stop his flight through the air by thrusting his sword into the ground.

He was split from his friend Sif, as both were on either side of the now new contestant.

-"Gehehehaha! Oh Gelmud, how much you suffered in your final moments, eh?

No matter, I guess I'll have to carry it out myself, hate it as I may!

I'm sorry for this, not!"

A clown-mask wearing individual with an interesting attire.

By now the Orc Lord's army had already been mostly wiped out, and the main focus was on this theater, Artorias and Sif battling against this new enemy and the Orc Lord.

"Big ol' piggy, how 'bout you feast on that body, it's useless to leave free power, ain't it?"

The Orc Lord then immediately partook in devouring Gelmud's dead body, which made him change.

He evolved.

It was turning out to be an extreme battle, and Rimuru had to go down.

{Warning, enemy threat level seems to be much higher than the Orc Lord.

Extreme caution advised.}

Then a loud and clear voice rung through everyone's heads.

{Confirmed, individual "Geld" has evolved into "Orc Disaster".}

This isn't a slaughter on our side anymore..

This is a full blown disaster..!

No, disasters!

Rimuru made contact with the ground, and stood beside Artorias.

Then he connected through thought communication with the others, and told them to keep close to Sif's side.

They needed whatever advantage they need to ensure absolute victory.

It was not a fun time anymore.

This was a time of hardship.

-"Artorias, we're with you."

-"..."

Artorias knew to stay absolutely focused at times like this, and he used a little something of an empowerment on his body and sword.

The clown then bowed a little.

-"Name's Laplace, at yer service!"

Then he instantly disappeared, and reappeared before Rimuru and Artorias, launched a triple mid-air spin kick at Artorias.

-"ARTORIAS!"

Rimuru tried to do something, but the kick came out way too fast for him to even react.

Artorias used a blocking stance with his sword, which sent him digging into the ground, and a spit of blood coming out of his helmet.

Laplace turned to Rimuru immediately and attacked with intensely concentrated ferocity.

He was absolutely no joke, and he was aiming to finish the battle quickly.

Rimuru changed into his slime form to become smaller to dodge the incoming palm slam, which barely succeeded.

Then he formed into a human again, but his formation was so that he rose into a lunge directly at Laplace's torso.

-"Hehaha!"

Laplace jumped back, but he hit something solid.

He hit Artorias' armor.

Artorias grabbed Laplace from his neck, he absolutely dwarfed this clown, and he began crushing down.

The Orc Lord, now the Orc Disaster, was busy dealing with Shion and the others, endlessly regenerating.

"AYE AYE! YER.. CHOKIN'... ME!"

Then Laplace laughed.

He punched Artorias' helmet with a hell of a force, and Artorias was sent pummeling to the ground.

Rimuru rushed at Laplace, who kicked Rimuru with another superspeed kick, and Rimuru hit the ground as well.

Laplace moved to finish off the two, but the two were saved by another newcomer.

Or, to be exact, multiple newcomers.

Six newcomers had surrounded Laplace, and all dashed at him with a large sliding attack, which made them exchange positions in a beautiful way.

Laplace jumped away from everyone's field of vision, as he seemingly knew the attacks were coming even before they were released.

Immediately standing up, Artorias stayed on his guard, the six warriors that had just slid in gave chase to Laplace, as Rimuru also stood up.

-"Rimuru, go deal with the big one, go!"

Artorias urged Rimuru to kill the Orc Disaster quickly before things get out of hand, and he called for Sif and ran after Laplace.

-"Artorias! Be careful!"

Artorias took those words to heart and tracked down the six fighters who chased after Laplace, the sounds of dirt dragging was audible to all near the area, even amidst the forest.

-"Sif, if anything should happen, you back to them immediately, alright?"

Sif barked at Artorias in disagreement, he was trying to argue back, but Artorias shut him down with a jump forwards into the air.

Sif ran after Artorias, who had now plunged down onto Laplace's position.

Laplace dodged, and two of the formerly mentioned warriors followed his position.

Laplace dodged and dodged and dodged, which only affirmed Artorias' thoughts.

He definitely has some form of foresight, we cannot beat him, so we'll have to force him into a position where he will have to take a hit.

But Artorias had to think no longer, as Laplace bowed quickly, and bid farewell.

-"Tsk tsk, you lot are a big nuisance! No matter, my fight here is done!

Bye-bye!"

Laplace disappeared from view afterwards, which lead to the fighters lowering their weapons.

Sif stuck to Artorias' side, and he looked at the now grouped together six warriors facing him.

-"Benimaru! The second the head flies off, you burn it!"

-"Yes!"

Benimaru prepared a [Hell Flare], and Rimuru jumped at the Orc Disaster, sending a wind attack at him, but the Orc Disaster smashed the earth below Rimuru with his foot, sending a shockwave making everyone standing stumble or cancel any attack they had prepared, which forced Rimuru to have to prepare an attack himself.

He drew out his sword, and sliced the head of the Orc Disaster off, and commenced the struggle for devouring.

They were fighting for who would eat the other first, Rimuru realized there would be no way around this, as no one besides him in the nearby area is strong enough to kill the Orc Disaster.

-"You big pig! Just die! Ughhh!"

Rimuru kept recollecting himself and moving around as the Orc Disaster ate through him more, and his subordinates still couldn't pin the Orc Disaster down properly.

Then the cavalry arrived.

Artorias and the six warriors came back, and the battle ended that moment.

-"Ahhhh you guys really saved me back there.. I was terrified as hell!

I thought I was going to get ripped apart if I make one mistake!"

Rimuru took a deep sigh of relief and Artorias laughed slightly, all of Rimuru's subordinates were preparing a massive feast.

But nothing comes to peace, not when it's centered around Rimuru.

He would not get a good night's rest, not yet at least.

Because, a distant laughter was approaching.

A bad omen, that laughter was.

But also, a lone knight was coming to their direction.

A knight who had just fended off an entire country's attempt of assassination, an entire guild's headhunting requests.

Be wary, for the God of War comes.

Part 1 End.