"Oh? Looks like it's open."
At the top of a staircase lined with a red carpet that seemed to symbolize sacredness and nobility, a towering and heavy door stood slightly ajar—just wide enough for a single person to pass through.
Through that narrow opening, the dim interior could be seen clearly.
Candlelight flickered inside.
And standing before the throne was a colossal pair of fingers, as though an emperor awaited the tribute of his subjects.
The Two Fingers.
Just as the name implied, it was a massive creature consisting of nothing but two enormous fingers.
Sparse white hairs grew across the joints like weeds.
Judging by its appearance, no one could tell how many ages the Two Fingers had endured. Its surface was covered with the scars of time, like a candle flickering in the wind.
It was also riddled with wounds, as if it had once been through a great battle.
Despite its battered condition, the Two Fingers remained the mouthpiece of the Greater Will.
Within the Roundtable Hold, it was still the most revered existence.
Almost divine.
Even Sir Gideon Ofnir could only regard it with awe.
Incidentally, anyone who wished to meet the Two Fingers had to possess a fragment of the Elden Ring—a Great Rune.
Only those with the qualifications to become Elden Lord were granted an audience.
Other Tarnished, those who had already failed, were not worthy.
Although the Two Fingers had never stated this explicitly, it was a rule he had learned through countless cycles.
Just as he stepped onto the staircase, preparing to meet Enia, the Finger Reader who served the Two Fingers—
A notification suddenly appeared in the group chat.
Otto Apocalypse: My friend, the matter you entrusted to me last time has yielded results. Shall I send it over now? @Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: Yes. Send it.
[Group Notice: Otto Apocalypse has sent a red envelope to Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife.]
[Group Notice: Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife has received the red envelope.]
Chika Fujiwara: Huh?! Otto and Mr. Tarnished are secretly doing shady things together without telling me?!
Forever Seventeen: Ara ara… perhaps Otto and Mr. Tarnished are engaged in some secret transaction.
NorthernNorthernNorthern: Secret dealings.jpg
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: …
Seeing the flood of messages in the chat, he genuinely had no idea what expression he should make.
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: I only asked Mr. Otto to help analyze some items from the Lands Between. Can any of you do that?
Chika Fujiwara: Really? If it's analyzing objects, then… I can't… waaa…
Forever Seventeen: Ara, little Miss Chika, you're still too innocent. Just because they say they're analyzing objects, does that mean that's really what they're doing? What if that's just a cover?
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: …
Yakumo Yukari, you troublemaker!
One day I'm going to throw you into a flaming cauldron and boil you alive!
Otto Apocalypse: Miss Yakumo Yukari, Miss Fujiwara, my interactions with the Tarnished are purely academic. I'm simply interested in the place called the Lands Between, and he happened to need someone to analyze certain things. That's all. Please don't misunderstand.
Forever Seventeen: Ara, I didn't say anything at all.
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: …
What else are you planning to say?
Too lazy to deal with the chat any longer, he moved the chat window aside.
Instead, he began carefully reading the paper research report Otto had sent.
"Otto really is impressive…"
As he flipped through the report, he didn't hesitate to praise him.
Otto's analytical ability was truly remarkable.
Almost everything written in the report matched what he himself already knew.
The object in question was a stone containing a strange power.
It could attach light to itself.
And it had fallen from the sky.
Not only that, Otto had also returned the research material—the Ruin Fragment—completely intact.
Although it was called a Ruin Fragment, it was actually just a tiny shard.
Ruin Fragments originated from the sky temple Farum Azula.
Originally, Farum Azula had been the domain of the ancient dragons.
Later, Godwyn campaigned there and formed a close friendship with Fortissax, after which the ancient dragons became allies of the Erdtree's forces.
They had even sent Lansseax as a dragon priestess to communicate with Leyndell and the Erdtree.
However, by that time Farum Azula had already begun collapsing.
The Dragonlord Placidusax had retreated into a temporal rift.
That was why Godwyn had been able to conquer the place so easily.
Later, for reasons unknown, Maliketh, the wielder of the Black Blade and guardian of Destined Death, took it over and made it his domain.
When the ancient sky city began to collapse, countless fragments imbued with strange powers rained down from the heavens, scattering across the lands of Limgrave.
The Ruins Greatsword in his backpack had been forged from that very stone.
Soon, he finished reading the report.
It seemed that cooperating with Otto had indeed been the correct decision.
Still, caution was necessary.
Someone with both extraordinary intelligence and ability was not someone you could afford to trust carelessly.
Just then, another notification sounded in the group chat.
Aizen: Mr. Tarnished, are you planning to conduct research on your own world? I also have some experience in academic study. Perhaps I could be of assistance. @Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife
Chika Fujiwara: Huh? Uncle Aizen does research too?
Aizen: Yes. While my abilities are not on the same level as Mr. Otto's, I do possess some achievements in research. Since we are all members of the same group, I simply wish to contribute what little help I can.
Inside the barracks of the Fifth Division in Seireitei, Aizen had just finished his meditation with his sword.
As he looked at the messages in the group chat, a faint smile appeared beneath his glasses.
Ever since the Tarnished had joined the chat, he had been quite interested.
Especially in that slime capable of transforming into others.
If that ability could be improved and integrated into the Hōgyoku, then perhaps he could move one step closer to perfection.
And the Soul King, sitting high above in the Royal Palace, could naturally be replaced.
Such a stagnant and corrupt system of rule deserved to be overthrown.
A trace of contempt flashed through his eyes.
Chika Fujiwara: Uncle Aizen is amazing… and so kind too…
Aizen: No, compared to Mr. Otto, I am far inferior.
Forever Seventeen: Ara ara… are you really just trying to help, Mr. Aizen?
Inside one of her gaps, Yakumo Yukari looked at Aizen's message in the group chat and couldn't help smiling.
When old foxes meet, why pretend to be ghost stories?
Aizen: I don't understand why Miss Yakumo Yukari would have such a misunderstanding. I truly only wish to lend a small helping hand.
Tarnished Who Wants to Save His Wife: …Thank you for the suggestion, Mr. Aizen. But I won't need your help for now.
Aizen?
Perhaps it was just his imagination.
But something about that man felt… off.
Even through the group chat, he could smell the heavy stench of hypocrisy and schemes.
Compared to Sir Gideon Ofnir, this man felt even more dangerous.
Better to keep his distance.
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