Although Frieren responded to the palace's host with majestic momentum, she actually walked very slowly.
She was admiring the view.
If it weren't so completely untimely, she would have even wanted to loot the place before fighting the BOSS. It had to be said, this premier palace of the Lands Between was indeed magnificent and resplendent; the thought of its imminent destruction felt like a pity.
This was the last look. After this, not even ruins would remain.
Based on the magical reaction between herself and Godfrey alone, just standing still and releasing their materialized mana was enough to overturn the ceiling. Once they started fighting, it would be equivalent to a demolition.
The two had already locked onto each other's aura.
The silver-haired girl ascended the steps dotted with sparks, looking up to see that the canopy of the Erdtree was almost burnt out. Even Leyndell, which had already been ravaged, was now covered in a layer of ashen color.
She detested the sight of ash. It was best to end this dilapidated scene as soon as possible and let abundance return.
Ahead lay the throne.
It was located before the inner space of the tree sealed by the Thorns of Rejection. The immense venue was like a colosseum, where visitors came for a royal audience.
A wave of hot wind blew against her face, carrying specks of ash and sparks.
Even Frieren couldn't help but wave her hand to wipe away the sparks. As she stepped onto the final stair, she saw Godfrey, with his white hair and white beard, facing the giant Erdtree in a contemplative state, his arms crossed, waiting silently.
Compared to their first meeting, his aura had undergone an earth-shattering change.
First, the Great Rune had fully integrated; second, the final Grace was bestowed upon him, returning him to the peak of the First Elden Lord.
No.
It should be said that he was in a state surpassing his peak.
After all, back then, Godfrey did not enjoy the entire Erdtree's Blessing alone. Now, in a sense, he represented the final lingering rhyme of the Golden Order, using the power of the rules to intercept the representative of another Order.
"...To be able to fight until now, it is truly not simple. Tarnished, warrior bereft of the Golden Blessing, that great Elden Ring is indeed right before your eyes."
The King, clad in blue battle robes, turned around and lifted his battle axe with one hand.
"However, I have returned here precisely to be granted an audience. Frieren, you and I share the same goal."
"Godfrey, coming back after an entire age of Kings... it's easy to meet a bad end. But I will give you the conclusion a warrior deserves."
Frieren stood ready, holding her staff and sword.
Ever since the Dark Moon Greatsword was fully reinforced, she used this equipment configuration more and more. At the same time, her silver mage robe bore an extra touch of embers; accompanied by lingering sparks, her entire body exuded the aura of the First Flame. In fact, she was already equivalent to a weakly guided Soul of Cinder Incarnation, showing signs of repeatedly probing the rules.
She had an intuition that before long, she would be able to liberate even stronger power, using battle to merge with the world.
Thud!
Godfrey took a heavy step and stood straight, whipping up a gale that overturned sand and stones, shaking the entire palace.
His oppressive pressure was a cut above their first meeting; having Grace upon his body was indeed different.
In contrast, Frieren never had any trace of Grace or a Great Rune. She relied entirely on a mix of chaotic powers, yet achieved a balance within the danger.
Their eyes met, and they saw the heartfelt joy in each other.
This was how it should be.
Betting on the rise and fall of dynasties and the changing of eras, they finally stood here to decide victory and defeat, as well as life and death.
The host made the first move. His great axe swept out, unleashing a shockwave that cleansed the dust and ash in all directions. The terrifying airwave slammed over like a city wall; even Frieren only barely dodged it.
Such heavy force. If she met the weapon head-on, her bones might even break.
He gave her no extra time to think.
Follow-up chops crashed down one after another. Out of probing intent, Frieren parried with the Dark Moon Greatsword with a ping. It was a deflection technique to offload force, yet it still made her arm go numb.
Suddenly, the battle axe turned from a chop to a hook, and with a gentle flick, the sharp edge actually deviated her weapon.
So fast!
In the instant Frieren's left side was exposed, Godfrey delivered a knee strike. It exploded like a cannonball, blasting away the clouds from bottom to top.
However, his expression did not soften in the slightest, because his knee was left with a patch of frost that he only shook off after regaining his footing. On the other side, the silver-haired girl slid away lightly within a Sorcery: Zamor Ice Storm.
In that split second just now, she had blocked in time with Ash of War: Hoarfrost Stomp.
Both were secretly startled. The instantaneous transition between offense and defense tested one's fundamentals the most, and surprisingly, both remained unharmed. This meant that it would be difficult to distinguish superior from inferior through pure martial arts; they had to find advantages in other tactics.
The Soul Cinder King is worthy of being a battlemage, Godfrey thought, finding it tricky, but his fighting spirit soared even higher.
He attacked again.
Wielding the cumbersome two-handed long-handled battle axe, he moved with dexterity and freedom. His gestures combined hardness and softness, causing Frieren to frown deeply.
For the first time since coming to the Lands Between to fight, the situation forced her to give up on parrying to find openings. Because every time she did so, Godfrey would dissolve it with hooks, turns, and smears just like before, his soft power tangling around her until she was counter-attacked and nearly lost her balance.
In reality, the First Elden Lord was a cut above in weapon combat.
The reason he couldn't directly convert this into an advantage was that she kept releasing Sorcery: Glintblade Phalanx and Sorcery: Ancient Death Rancor to harass him, preventing him from focusing on suppression.
Sorcery: Miriam's Vanishing!
The silver-haired girl vanished on the spot, simultaneously pulling open a distance with the steps of the Ash of War: Bloodhound's Step.
Sorcery: Comet. A majestic barrage of continuous attacks aimed at Godfrey, forcing the latter to spin his battle axe to chop them down one by one.
He danced very fast, yet with economy of effort and precision, demonstrating perfection in weapon manipulation. He could shatter the Comets with a light touch; they completely failed to hurt the First Elden Lord, whose perception was fully open.
The first change on the battlefield had appeared.
Frieren actively pulling away meant she sought another tactic, determining that mid-range combat was meaningless, so she returned to her familiar territory.
She naturally knew Godfrey would not allow it. Here it came.
Rumble!
The giant battle axe slapped heavily onto the ground. The terrifying force rising from the soles of her feet instantly lifted the petite silver-haired girl into mid-air. The twisted light wall protecting her body had already shattered; one could imagine the terrifying power.
She simply went with the flow to maintain levitation, stretching out her hand to condense an Incantation: Lightning Spear.
In the next moment, spear and axe collided.
The electric current exploded into a red, tree-shaped lightning bolt connecting heaven and earth. It seemed to cancel out, but in reality, Frieren pointed with her jade finger, and the flowing light scattered across the sky re-condensed to cover the throne plaza with a rain of lightning. Once hit, it was enough to cause long-lasting paralysis and stiffness.
However, Godfrey had a combo after this strike. As he lifted the battle axe, the ground erupted with firelight shooting straight into the clouds, as if a volcano had erupted.
Boom!
The collision of two energies tilted the plaza, and even the high branches of the Erdtree shook, shaking off more ash.
The Demigods outside the palace couldn't help but pause their actions, subconsciously observing. Everyone guessed it would be intense, but they didn't expect such a huge commotion right from the start; the momentum didn't look like they were merely demolishing a palace.
By the time their battle reached a white-hot stage, the entire battlefield would turn into a chaotic pot of porridge.
Both sides coincidentally prepared to go all out and transition phases.
The Demigods of the Golden Lineage and the Stars' Order factions simultaneously resolved to seize the advantage as soon as possible; otherwise, delay would bring trouble.
Clang!
As Godfrey leaned on his battle axe with one hand and took a deep breath, the surrounding smoke and dust dissipated.
Even he needed a moment to recover after such a continuous fierce assault. Even when blood boiled, veins bulged, and the fight was hearty and dripping with satisfaction, one had to pay attention to regulating breath; an excellent warrior would not ignore details.
Frieren also floated down from the air.
Taking advantage of the situation, she supplemented buffs like Ash of War: Oath of Vengeance and Incantation: Black Flame Protection, and drank her Wondrous Physick to enhance defense and HP.
She foresaw that next, it would be a contest of durability.
If either of them were bullying weaklings, they would have countless tricks. But in a battle between equals, the means for effective killing were few, and the options narrowed. Yet, she did not want to drag this out for too long.
With the premise of a hidden enemy explicitly known, Frieren was thinking about entering the Erdtree as soon as possible...
"You are impatient, Tarnished."
Godfrey, gripping the battle axe tightly with both hands again, seemed to become even more dangerous. His sharp gaze stared at the enemy, and the oppressive edge seemed to come from all directions.
"You aren't worried about the risks inside the Erdtree? Is it all planned out?"
"From beginning to end, you are the biggest obstacle, Frieren."
"So as long as you defeat me, it won't be a big problem for you?" The silver-haired girl revealed a smile. "My situation is more difficult than yours; I have to deal with more dangerous matters. But this is not your advantage, Godfrey."
"Why?"
"I heard you used to be a highland warrior with a barbaric style. At least right now, I don't feel that determination. Let me show it to you first."
Before her voice fell, Frieren stabbed a blade through her own abdomen.
Activated Ash of War: Seppuku.
Fresh blood dyed the weapon red. Not only that, but what flowed out was a more evil, more polluting blood of an Ancient God. She carefully wiped both weapons and simultaneously added Incantations related to blood loss. Preparation complete.
When it came to leveraging small force for big impact and dealing damage quickly, the most suitable option for her right now was Bleed.
Especially since she took the risk to use a portion of the Ancient God's power. Strictly speaking, the current Frieren was more than just a Semi-Soul of Cinder Incarnation state.
She was actively and experimentally blending different energies. On one hand, the six Great Runes provided a baseline to suppress conflict; on the other hand, her opponent was the First Elden Lord. Where was there room for opportunistic tricks? Not taking some risks would be doing a disservice to the arduous journey that brought her here.
Incantation: Swarm of Flies!
Although she didn't like this Blood Incantation, it was perfectly suitable as a capability to guard and enhance bleed buildup.
Not only that, Frieren, having equipped the talismans given by Millicent and Alexander, had completed her build. Only the execution remained.
Not far away, Godfrey immediately realized the enemy's change.
Maintain distance first.
He stomped on the ground, whipping up a shockwave that scattered the Swarm of Flies, but they immediately pounced back.
Accurately speaking, they were covering Frieren's charge. The silver-haired girl's figure flickered and was already close at hand. Immediately after, the blade in her hand sliced open a monstrous wave of blood, seething with murderous intent.
Weapon Skill: Bloodboon Ritual.
Even Godfrey didn't react immediately to the sudden twinblade stance. He was cut on his left wrist just like that, and the wound instantly expanded and became infected.
It was stained with Frieren's blood, and her blood had major problems!
The Great Rune and Grace forcibly canceled out the pollution. Simultaneously, the movements in his hands accelerated, and the battle axe swept horizontally. Unexpectedly, Frieren dodged with a low stance, following up with Sorcery: Carian Slicer in both hands, drawing a cross-shaped cut on his chest.
Crack!
The breastplate that had accompanied him through unknown years of conquest snapped in response, protecting its master from a surprise attack at the end of its lifespan.
Misjudgment. The enemy's attack speed suddenly increased.
Recovering his senses, Godfrey immediately changed moves. He no longer used wide-open attacks with long wind-ups and recovery frames, but instead used a large-range, fast horizontal sweep to forcibly force Frieren back. Although the power was a bit weaker, no one wanted to take a full-strength blow from the First Lord.
The two crossed past each other again, yet coincidentally maintained a medium distance.
He admired the Soul Cinder King's ability to repeatedly switch styles. Just now she wanted to win with magic, and now she was conducting Cursed Blood attacks. If it were an ordinary person, this would be considered capricious and unspecialized, but on her, it wasn't a weakness; rather, it was part of a troublesome mechanic.
Experience was meaningless.
To be enemies with Frieren, one had to adapt to changes, possessing enough means to hedge against her endless stream of moves.
In the past, Godfrey's enemies were not as specialized as his combat specialization, nor did they have more diversity than his breadth of knowledge. In the end, before the First Lord, these were all weaknesses leading to their own deaths.
But she was different; she turned everything into her own use, reaching the pinnacle of perfection.
Fundamentals were always universal, and the Soul Cinder King was strong precisely because of her fundamentals where mastering one meant mastering all.
So I can't just use my consistent style either. As the thought reached him, Godfrey flashed forward to collide. While Frieren dodged, he shouted loudly and actually began to circulate a vast power of the storm—
Whoosh!
It was a chill as if snow-capped mountains were collapsing, more exaggerated than any Storm Incantation, surpassing the sharpness of the Serpent-Hunter. It was unstoppable.
The magical defensive barrier instantly shattered, and parts of her armor were swept away.
A materialized tornado swept through the palace, collapsing a small half of the Queen's Bedchamber, while spots of fresh blood spilled where the silver-haired girl stood. Apart from the Ash of War: Seppuku, there was also the damage just caused.
Fortunately, she had prepared damage negotiation Incantations in advance; otherwise, taking this hit might have affected her combat performance.
She undid the buttons of her breastplate, letting it fall with a clatter.
The battle had reached white-hot intensity. At this point, external protective items were meaningless. It had finally come to the time for both sides to contest their physiques. It looked like Godfrey still had tricks up his sleeve.
Golden Blessing!
The First Elden Lord was bathed in golden light, radiating brilliance. Every gesture seemed to carry a Holy-attribute shock.
A single step of his whipped up flames that seemed to be mixed with Holy Fire, pouncing at her face.
Frieren intercepted with blood claws, crimson blades flying out. At the same time, her staff wasn't idle, releasing Sorcery: Stars of Ruin to pursue relentlessly, firmly locking onto all of Godfrey's movement trajectories.
Intending to pursue, he was annoyed enough to dodge.
Reasonably speaking, the defense of the Golden Blessing could completely block it, but no one dared to gamble on the Soul Cinder King's magic, even if the power was a bit small...
In the next moment, Godfrey understood. The enemy was buying time to switch to a new weapon. He saw the silver-haired girl take out a long blade. It did not have the aura of the Lands Between; instead, it was highly compatible with that polluted blood, full of evil nature.
"Senior Maria, I'll borrow your sword for a moment. Drink blood, Rakuyo."
Skill: Crimson Moonfall!
She activated the Weapon Skill to pierce her own body. Attached with fresh blood, it boiled up like flames. Combined with the existing Seppuku status abnormality, it was even more eerie, and the oppressive pressure increased suddenly.
Frieren's deep and hollow eyes of Insight aimed at Godfrey.
In this moment, the will of the Ancient God and the final Blessing of the Erdtree rubbed against each other. Both sides mutually annihilated and collided, absolutely refusing to yield.
She had prepared an opportunity to use the Hunter account's ability beforehand, launching a surprise attack with the power of Yharnam never before fully displayed in the Lands Between. The reason was simple: the safer and more reliable Ember abilities had to be saved for later, for that unknown strong enemy.
To deal with Godfrey, she would use this.
____
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