Liurnia

Riding down to the lake with Hyetta seated behind me on my horse, the player kept his horse at pace with mine; Up ahead from afar, was the checkpoint held off by a wall of wooden stakes with an opening in them, manned by a few Raya Lucaria foot soldiers and two soldiers.

"I really hope this doesn't turn into an escort mission chat, I'm getting bored here!"

Well it could be worse, player, I could be a helpless npc that needed your protection! "Tarnish lord, might I have a word first." I spoke aloud while stopping my horse from going any further, the scenic view of the lake and the far away academy was more dazzling to see in person than the game's graphics held…

Not saying the game's graphics were bad at all, I've seen some dogshit graphics and Elden Ring was far from being dogshit. Pretty much everywhere you go, you could slap it as a desktop wallpaper.

"He better ask me to wipe that camp out, I'm so done with escort missions!"

While the player hopped off his horse to walk over to me and prompt a dialog box to pop up, it said 'What's on your mind?'

The player selected it, making me nod while I gestured forward, "I know not what those soldiers may do to intruders, but perhaps you should allow me to communicate with them for safe passage? Afterall, wouldn't it be rude to just up and walk into an encampment without announcing one's intentions first?" I inquired.

"That's…actually kinda cool if that would work. That actually makes it feel more RPG-like, if you could talk down the enemies."

"-Let's fucking do this! Soldier Rick of God, about to roll a nat 20 charisma on these soldiers!-"

"Yoo! Thanks for the five hundred bits, gnomeslayer5000!"

Two prompts popped up for the player to select, one saying 'No, let's push forward', and the other was 'Go forward and ask for passage.'

"Oh, you know chat what I'm selecting, I've got to see this!"

The player selected the latter option, earning a nod from me before I spoke, "Then fear not, my lord, allow me to head out and ask for passage!" I announced, before heading out on my horse.

Surprisingly, Hyetta stayed quiet right until we were close on approach to the encampment as she softly gripped my shoulder, "Dearest, Knight, what about me? Will I be in danger if those soldiers deny us passage?"

You know, beside the gameplay mechanic of just having Hyetta just appearing across the lake sites, I'd like to think the enemies to the player were just chivalrous to Hyetta…headcannon wise. I answered Hyetta as one of the soldiers took notice of me, as he got up from sitting on the grass and withdrew his sword out, "Worry not, by my word in honor, none shall grace their blade to marr you!" I courageously announced.

"-Chad Rick wooing his maiden-"

"Haha, yo, thanks for the hundred bits fanglord!"

Guess my dialog with Hyetta was overheard by the player and chat, go figure.

I lifted my arm as I halted my horse, keeping a respectable distance from the encampment of soldiers, "Hail, Lucarian soldiers, I request passage for myself, my maiden, and my Tarnish lord!" I hollered over.

The soldier didn't say anything, but grunted a bit, before finally sheathing his blade and glared at me, "About time, some Tarnish lout had someone sensible speaking on their behalf." The soldier grouched, his voice deep and a bit gravely.

"Poggers, chat! Sir Willem rolled that nat 20!"

"-My only question, how will Sir Willem get into the academy-"

"Ay, thanks for the two hundred bits, Dadofmilk. But yeah, huh. Guess we'll have to see."

I too, will have to figure that one out.

I nodded at the soldier, and responded back to him, "If I may ask then, will you allow us safe passage? My lord is on a journey across the lands to become an Elden Lord, if you would be so kind as to let us through?"

The soldier grunted back before answering, "The toll per person is five hundred runes." He hollered back.

Not a bad price, I suppose. I turned to look over at the player and gestured to him to come over, "I have enough runes for myself and my maiden, how about you yourself, my lord?" I shouted over, I could see out the corner of my vision, Hyetta cupping her cheek, most likely in embarrassment of being called my maiden.

The player himself hopped back onto his Torrent, and trotted over before hopping back off to speak with the now peaceful soldier I talked down; the soldier himself faced the player, no doubt giving prompts of options for him.

"Oh shit, this soldier sells a spare academy key!"

…But why?...Whatever, that just gives me a chance to enter the academy with the player. The soldier spoke again for whatever the player selected, "Aye, many tarnished have passed through here, some have been fell by our blades, others we in turn fell to theirs, only to rise back up from the dead."

That makes sense lorewise and gameplay wise.

The soldier reached out and seemingly collected his ruins, before facing me as the player hopped back onto his horse, "By what name do you go by? Your voice sounds familiar, but I can place my finger on it."

Reaching up to take my helmet off, allowing my face to be fully seen by the player and the soldier, "Apologies, allow me to mend that! I am Sir Binard Willem. Once a soldier of Godrick, now I serve under the tarnished!" I will introduce myself.

"Neat, his face doesn't look that bad with that ashen grey hair."

Guess that answers what color my hair color is, I don't have a mirror to actually see what I look like for my face and hair.

The soldier smirked a bit, before responding, "Ah, I thought I recognized that face too, we fought once during Godrick's retreat into Stormviel castle, tis was a grand battle we had!"

I nodded back, before placing my helm back onto my head and spoke once more, "And now, more grand battles await me, as I serve the tarnished!"

The soldier reached up to shake hands, "Aye. The name's Sir Henry Windsor, tis was a good chance meeting we had today!" he remarked as he shook hands, before allowing me and the player through the encampment.

"Hey chat, didn't Miyazaki once say in an interview, that he's still working on a better RPG, and elden ring wasn't anywhere close to his vision?...I kinda feel like this would be it, if more enemies had dialog like this!"

"-Awesome mod, 10/10, would recruit soldier Rick of God all over again!-"

"Hehe, yo, thanks for the two hundred bits whackadoodle!"

Before long, as the player and I reached the nearest grace at the bottom of the hill, where a nomadic merchant was currently seated beside his bonfire. Stopping at the grace, I halted my horse, and hopped off. "A word, tarnished lord!" I requested, prompting the player to hop off his own horse while I let Hyetta off the horse as well and let her sit atop an outcropping of rocks for the moment.

I turned back around as the player walked up to me, allowing a prompt to show up saying "What is it?" the prompt asked.

After the player chose the prompt, I nodded at him before stepping out near the water to gesture at the far off distance where the player could get the first map fragment of Liurna and many other trees and enemies around it. "I believe this is where we should part ways for now, you have my finger to summon me afterall, this place is full of treacherous fauna."

"This is actually fine, you know, chat, I don't have to worry, and I'm pretty sure Chad Willem can defend Hyetta just fine!"

"-Rick the one man army for his maiden, let's fucking go-"

While the streamer thanked the bit donor, turned back towards the player and continued to speak with him, "As much as I enjoy fighting alongside you, I wouldn't want to be too much of a hindrance to your exploration of this area! I say, we should meet up at the academy when you are ready to storm it!"

"-Five bucks says Sir Willem rolls nat 20 on all the soldiers leading up to the gate, allow you safe passage as well!-"

"No shitten! After that last dialog, I'm half expecting it to come true!"

Another prompt popped up, saying "I have a key for you, you may need it to enter the academy!"

The player of course selected the prompt, earning a chuckle of warmth from me as I was handed the key, "Ah, that cuts our time measurably to search for one, but now you must look for one yourself!"

I then nodded and spoke again, "But I am sure you'll find another one! This land is full of secrets! Who knows, it might be guarded by a dragon for all we know, ahaha!" I chuckled with amusement, while at the same time, fulfilling a role as a possible hint for another key to the academy as an npc.

"Can you imagine, Chat, if Fromsoft actually made an npc like this? Be fucking wild!"

Not a second later, the player walked to the grace after my dialog was finished with him, and rested at the grace. The player though seemingly sat there and rested, leading me to believe a new cutscene was about to happen at night or something.

While indeed the player's character had rested at the grace till night time, I myself spoke with the merchant in the meantime; buying a lantern from him was a simple affair, while getting the recipe for the crystal dart.

Before long, Melina appeared from out of thin air next to the player, and took a knee next to the grace and stared over up at me, "A word, former Soldier of Godrick." She requested with a gaze in her lone eye that reflected some suspicion towards me.

"Yo! She has more dialogue now!"