After some time...
Having kindled a new Site of Grace, Lloyd couldn't help but sigh as he gazed at the Corrupted Haligtree before him.
"Disgusting..."
Coming from the Dark Souls world and having survived countless horrors, Lloyd had long developed a high tolerance for grotesque monsters and repulsive sights. Whether it was facing abominations stitched together from severed limbs or witnessing the rot spreading across Millicent's body, he could approach without flinching, his expression calm and his heart unmoved.
Yet even he couldn't help but furrow his brow slightly after pushing deeper into the Corrupted Haligtree. Because this place was truly vile.
First, there was the terrain itself.
As a colossal tree, its branches twisted and overlapped at different heights, creating an uneven and treacherous landscape. Misstep once, and you'd plummet to your death. The whole place already had an ominous, deathly feel to it.
Under the influence of dual corruption, the already grim terrain became even more scarred and eroded. The Haligtree's decaying bark and splintered branches made the ground uneven and cratered, reducing what little stable footing there was. Even those few remaining spots were often tainted by the corruption, forming semi-toxic pools that slowly built up the Corruption meter with every step.
And if that weren't enough, the infection had caused the Haligtree's surface to sprout all kinds of grotesque, pointless "decorations."
Festering, pus-filled wounds... a stench that hung heavy in the air... worms writhing across the bark... and in certain corners, clusters of fly eggs packed so densely they could make someone with trypophobia drop dead on the spot...
Even Millicent—who was practically born of rot—felt uneasy in this place. Her own corrupted essence seemed to recoil in disgust.
Rot had always been grotesque, but the Kindred of Rot and Scarlet Aionia proved that even corruption possessed its own strange kind of aesthetic—twisted, yes, but not without a certain insect-like elegance.
The Corrupted Haligtree, however, had none of that. It was pure filth, devoid of any beauty whatsoever.
And if the environment was sickening, the monsters were even worse—perhaps more so than the landscape itself.
First came the giant flies and the living maggot men—old acquaintances Lloyd had encountered back in the Dark Souls world.
The giant flies, each larger than a human, lacked sharp limbs but made up for it by spraying wriggling parasites from their abdomens. Once they latched onto a victim, they gnawed and burrowed relentlessly. Without immediate treatment, the bleeding would never stop, and the victim would die as their life drained away.
As for the maggot men, from a distance they resembled pale skeletal forms fused to the Haligtree like undead sentinels. But up close, one could see that their "skeletons" were nothing more than countless writhing maggots entangled together.
Being struck by one didn't just inflict physical pain and bleeding—it scattered maggots everywhere. The sound of those creatures squirming and twisting together was enough to shred a person's sanity.
Aside from these familiar horrors, Lloyd also encountered two new types of creatures.
One resembled a dark red grub, usually hiding within the rotting, pus-filled wounds of the Haligtree's bark. When someone drew near, it would suddenly lunge out, attacking by rolling its body or swinging its head.
If the angle was right, it would even spew a foul, corrosive pus imbued with the power of decay. Its range was short, but the spread was wide, and its infectivity was terrifyingly high—getting hit once was enough to contract the Corruption status immediately.
The other was a caterpillar about two meters long, its body a mix of dark red and yellow-brown hues. Its stats weren't particularly high, but it was a nightmare to deal with. Aside from its head, its entire body was covered in dense, needle-like bristles. You didn't even need to attack it—just touching it would hurt. Without ranged attacks, the only way to fight it safely was to strike its head.
Worse still, despite its slow movement, it loved to ambush prey. You could be walking calmly one moment, and the next two would drop from above, or one would crawl in from the side of a branch. Combined with its repulsive appearance and the absurd hit detection on its bristles...
It wasn't exactly deadly, but in terms of sheer nastiness, it surpassed all the others.
And as if the revolting terrain and monsters weren't enough, the shard's influence brought with it an additional, unnervingly abstract debuff.
Unlike other dungeons' special zones, which merely amplify damage types in limited bursts—still bound by the Law so you couldn't be one-shot—and could be mitigated through talismans or spells...
This dual corruption, however...
The cumulative damage from Scarlet Rot was already absurd—once infected, you were essentially waiting to die unless you could remove it.
Now, infection also triggered a bleeding effect. Not only did this ramp up the damage even further, but when combined with monsters that could stack bleeding, it actually fed back into the corruption. It wasn't quite instant death, but it came close.
A hellish map, hellish monsters, and hellish effects...
With these three curses combined, even Lloyd felt a twinge of a headache, momentarily questioning whether this place was the Haligtree or some sort of exclusive members-only restaurant.
If Lloyd felt this way, those around him were in an even worse state. Elizabeth wore an expression of open disgust, Millicent's face was drawn tight with discomfort, and even the usually stoic Melina struggled to keep her composure in the face of such a grotesque sight.
Honestly, none of them wanted to move a step further in this place—let alone fight those abominations that felt like pure mental contamination just by looking at them.
But the worse it was, the clearer it became that something was terribly wrong with the Haligtree. Which meant they had no choice but to press deeper and find out what had happened.
So, though reluctant, they steeled themselves and followed Lloyd inside.
And then...
And then they fought without taking a single scratch.
Though the map was pure hell and the monsters were downright grotesque, it was precisely because of that harsh environment that Lloyd discarded all his usual formalities. Abandoning melee combat entirely, he picked up his staff and, taking advantage of the wide gaps between the branches, bombarded the monsters with spells from what felt like eight hundred li away.
Midway through the assault, Lloyd had a sudden thought. He pulled out his Dueling Disk, tested it, and discovered that pairing the Dueling Disk with the Dueling Talisman worked wonders against the creatures in this area.
To summarize: while the Dueling Disk's casting speed was much slower than a staff and its mana cost higher, the trade-off was greater damage output, better mana efficiency, and even changes to certain spell types.
Take the basic Glintstone Pebble spell—normally, a staff would fire a single shot with one swing. But with the Dueling Disk, once a card was inserted, it would consume about one and a half times the mana to summon a Glintstone projection of a Wandering Noble that continuously fired three Glintstone Pebbles at the target over a short duration.
The monsters here were disgusting, yes—but the price for such powerful mechanics was their low stats and poor mobility.
And with Lloyd's three companions by his side, even if they weren't thrilled about fighting these repulsive creatures, handling the ones that got too close was no problem.
So, with their teamwork—and Lloyd having cast aside all pretense and fully embraced his role as a "wheelchair mage"—the ones suffering now were the monsters themselves.
After pushing forward for some time, Lloyd came upon a golden Fog Gate.
Beside it, slumped against a white statue, was a red-haired girl wearing an eyepatch. Her body was covered in festering wounds, her skin deathly pale, and her limbs twitching from the pain. Between ragged breaths, she murmured weakly.
"Sister... where are you..."
"It hurts... it hurts so much..."
Lloyd approached, crouched down to examine her condition, then turned to Millicent behind him.
Millicent looked at the girl, hesitated, and said softly, "I don't know her... but she must be my sister. How is she?"
"Not good."
Based on Lloyd's examination, just like Millicent, this girl's soul contained a fragment of corruption's essence. But her infection was far more severe than Millicent's had been at first.
Now, besides the original Scarlet Rot, a second form of corruption raged within her. The two corruptions clashed violently, each fighting for dominance, tearing apart her body and soul in the process. The internal struggle hadn't ceased; the wounds were only growing worse.
After confirming her condition, Lloyd extended a finger. A small cluster of souls condensed at its tip, which he held to the girl's lips—hoping to replenish her weakened soul and, perhaps, earn a bit of trust.
But it didn't work.
Maybe the pain had driven her past reason, making her instinctively reject everything. Or maybe she simply didn't trust Lloyd.
Either way, she didn't react to his gesture. She stayed slumped against the statue, sobbing quietly.
After a moment, seeing that her condition was worsening, Lloyd sighed, dispersed the souls from his finger, and reached out to pull her into his arms.
Then, gripping her chin with one hand, he tilted her face up and looked down at her corrupted features before lowering his head.
The girl froze, startled by the sudden contact, then realized what he was doing and began to resist, struggling weakly.
But it was futile.
Even though Lloyd held back his Strength to avoid damaging her soul, his precision and technique made resistance meaningless. In just over ten seconds, he broke through her defenses and, ignoring her struggles, forcibly poured his souls into her.
Her body thrashed harder, her tear-streaked face twisted in agony—pitiful and fragile.
But soon, her resistance began to fade.
She could feel it—the energy flooding into her wasn't harming her at all. On the contrary, it was protecting her shattered soul, suppressing the two conflicting forces within and mending her inner wounds.
The pain began to ease. Her trembling stopped. Slowly, she even began to respond, accepting the process rather than fighting it.
After a long while, Lloyd finally lifted his head.
The girl's eyes fluttered open. Her once-pale face was now flushed a deep, vivid crimson.
"Thank you..."
"You're welcome."
After confirming that her condition had stabilized for the time being, Lloyd extended his hand and conjured a Warmth beside her. Then he gently ruffled her hair.
"Your state is stable for now, but the conflict between the corruptions isn't resolved yet. Stay here for a while. Once I've retrieved the fragment below, it should be taken care of."
The girl blinked.
"Then can I come with—"
"Good girl."
Lloyd pinched her cheek.
"Wait here for my return."
"...Yes."
She wanted to say more, but when her eyes drifted past Lloyd to the Millicent standing behind him, she realized he didn't really need her as a guide anymore.
Still, as she watched Lloyd stand and prepare to enter the Fog Gate, she lifted her head, her face flushing as she spoke softly.
"Um... my name is Polyanna."
"I'm Lloyd."
With that, Lloyd placed his hand upon the Fog Gate. Upon entering, a wide circular arena opened before him.
At its center stood a towering figure mounted on horseback.
[Corrupted Knight • Loretta]
The knight was tall and imposing, her once pristine silver-white armor now marred by spreading corruption. Her upright posture was bent in pain, her movements stiff and heavy. When she saw Lloyd enter, she didn't attack immediately. She struggled, as if wrestling with her own will, before the corruption finally overtook her, and she raised her scythe—its blade crawling with corruption—toward Lloyd.
Then she saw it.
The torrent of magical energy rushing straight toward her face.
Boom—
[Acquired Sorcery: 'Loretta's Special Move']
After erasing the knight's health bar with a single Comet Azur, Lloyd stepped up to Loretta's fallen form.
"Please... go down below..."
"The source of corruption... end it..."
"Save... the Haligtree..."
With the last of her strength, Loretta forced out those few words before her eyes slowly closed.
Then, without hesitation, Lloyd lifted her up again.
Loretta opened her eyes, dazed. She glanced down at her smaller body, then over at the equally confused gray-haired horse girl beside her. Her mind went blank.
This is...
"I revived you," Lloyd said after a pause.
"And your horse too, by the way."
Loretta: ".........?"
Gray-Haired Mare: "......"
After briefly explaining the situation and asking Loretta to keep an eye on Polyanna at the entrance, Lloyd didn't linger.
Activating the Site of Grace that appeared after the battle, he moved forward, found a platform, opened the treasure chest resting there, and then stepped onto the classic Souls-style elevator—descending into a new area.
The "Haligtree Branch" of Elphael.
The corruption here was even worse than in the canopy above. Beyond the familiar monsters, new abominations roamed this place—dual-corrupted soldiers, dual-Cleanrot Knights, and even monstrous Royal Specters tainted by corruption, capable of spewing parasites from their mouths...
Yet even so, before Lloyd—who had long since discarded all pretense of restraint—none of them posed any real threat.
After pressing deeper into Elphael, Lloyd soon came across another figure in a state similar to Polyanna's—collapsed in the corner of a room, writhing and wailing from the agony of corruption.
This time, armed with experience, Lloyd quickly completed the healing process. After stabilizing the person's condition, he continued onward... only to find yet another one.
And judging by her condition, the degree of infection and pain was even worse than the previous two.
After another round of treatment, Lloyd pressed forward once more...
"Don't you think you're starting to have a few too many sisters?"
Having just finished healing yet another red-haired girl, Lloyd withdrew his tongue from her corruption-filled mouth, then pulled out a piece of Corrupted Moss Medicine and swallowed it, purging the infection he'd contracted in the process.
Faced with his question, Millicent had no answer. She didn't even know what to call her relationship with these "sisters." In truth, she hadn't even realized there were so many of them to begin with.
Lloyd didn't dwell on it. After a casual quip and a brief recovery, the group moved on once again... and soon encountered Millicent's fifth sister.
But unlike the previous ones, this "fifth sister" showed no signs of suffering. Instead, she had completely embraced the corruption. Her body was nearly consumed by it, and dark red butterflies fluttered around her form. The moment she saw Lloyd and his companions, she attacked without hesitation.
And then...
There was no "then."
Before Lloyd or the others could even intervene, Millicent single-handedly defeated her, sustaining only minor injuries in the process.
This time, after the battle, Millicent didn't finish her sister off, nor did she ask Lloyd to heal her—because it wasn't necessary. Having accepted the corruption, that form was her normal state. She no longer suffered from it.
Despite her corrupted nature, the sister was a gracious loser. Once she realized Millicent didn't intend to kill her, she ceased fighting and even pointed them toward Malenia's location.
"The situation inside is... strange. I wanted to see it for myself, but the Goddess commanded me to stand guard here and prevent anyone else from entering. So I cannot leave..."
Before long, after passing the fifth sister and advancing a little further, Lloyd finally understood what she meant by "strange."
At the very base of the Haligtree—the source from which all corruption once flowed—there was no corruption at all.
It was spotless. Clean and immaculate.
After activating the Site of Grace at the base, Lloyd scanned the surroundings carefully, ensuring there were no strange monsters or traces of rot. Then he opened his inventory and summoned Seriel and Trina.
He hadn't summoned them earlier because, after recent events, Seriel and Trina were now bound together—calling one meant summoning both.
While Seriel could handle herself, Trina was terrified of the outside world. Even in her sleep, she would tremble instinctively. For her sister's mental and physical well-being—and since Millicent was capable enough as a guide—Seriel had chosen to stay dormant until now.
But with Lloyd standing before Malenia's golden Fog Gate, in an area untouched by corruption, he finally called them forth.
This time, as both appeared, and Trina sensed her sister's presence, she didn't need Lloyd's Dream Nail to awaken. After a brief tremor and a faint struggle, the little purple flower opened her eyes and stared at the gleaming Fog Gate ahead.
"Malenia..."
After gathering everyone and confirming their readiness, Lloyd placed his hand upon the golden Fog Gate and stepped through.
Tap, tap, tap.
Hearing the soft footsteps behind her, the red-haired woman resting against the roots of the Haligtree slowly opened her eyes, her voice quiet and heavy.
"I've been dreaming... for such a long time..."
She rose from her chair and walked unhurriedly toward a fallen metal prosthetic. Picking it up, she carefully fitted it onto her ruined arm.
"My body... dulled like tarnished gold. My blood... steeped in decay."
"Countless corpses piled high, all for the day that one person would return..."
After securing the prosthetic, she picked up a helmet from the ground and slowly placed it upon her head.
With her face—nearly destroyed by rot—now hidden beneath the helm, she turned at last toward the intruder who had entered her chamber.
"Feel it well. I am Malenia, Blade of Miquella—undefeated in battle..."
Her words suddenly caught in her throat.
"...Sister?"
...