Elden Ring, building a legion of ashes

Chapter 44 The Secret Agent's Attack

Xia Tong rode his Torret across the alpine meadow, feeling quite pleased with himself.

After all, he obtained the legendary ashes—the "Headless Horseman" Ruthel.

With Ruthel by his side, he won't have to struggle alone carrying the ball in the front anymore.

But recalling his battle with the shadow of the graveyard, he still felt lingering fear.

He never wanted to experience that feeling of being devoured alive again in his life.

After reviewing the events, Xia Tong had a vague guess about the shadowy cemetery.

First and foremost, without a doubt, that guy was a gravedigger parasitized by insects.

They belong to the category of "insects" and seem to have some kind of kinship with the so-called "corrupt relatives".

They are not undead, but rather a kind of living, alien creature that lives underground.

Most importantly, there are two very menacing tentacles above the head of the graveyard shadow.

Its shape is exactly the same as the huge scenting organ that the "black-striped gray moth" extends when courting in the real world.

Since it's a moth, it's easy to associate it with Michaela.

Michaela's image is that of a "newborn butterfly," who parasitized himself in the cocoon of the sacred tree in order to become a god.

Speaking of Michaela, one cannot help but mention this divine being who longed to resurrect the soulless demigod Godwin, but unfortunately his eclipse ritual in Thor failed.

Moreover, the locations of the graveyard shadows are mostly related to the Temple Knights.

The Temple Knights are loyal to those demigods who have lost their souls, the same kind as the Dead Prince Godwin.

Therefore, we can make a bold conjecture.

Are these shadowy graves actually the retinue created by Michaela?

"This guess is a bit too crazy."

Xia Tong shook her head, deciding to temporarily stop thinking about these obscure stories.

He lightly kicked the horse's flank, signaling Toret to run faster.

The most urgent task now is to pick up Miss Irena and Melina as soon as possible.

……

Inside the pilgrimage church.

Miss Irene sat quietly by the campfire.

In front of her were several pieces of uneaten smoked "rolling mutton" jerky wrapped in leaves.

"I wonder how Lady Xia Tong is doing now?"

"He set off early this morning; I wonder if he's accomplished what he was supposed to do? Has he encountered any danger?"

Irena was filled with worry.

Lord Xia Tong is truly the most powerful, loving, and gentle knight she has ever met.

She didn't know if calling Lord Xia Tong a knight was appropriate for his status.

But he did possess the noble qualities that knights celebrated.

During the day, she chatted with her sister Melina.

They talked about Xia Tong's adventures before meeting her, and also about the happy days she and her father Edgar lived in Moen City.

Melina was always very calm and patiently listened to her recount everything.

She really likes Sister Melina, and she also really likes Lord Xia Tong.

After chatting, Melina returned to the Blessing Room to rest.

Although Irena could not see the blessing, she knew what it was.

That is the blessing of the Golden Tree, the guidance of Queen Marika, which can only be seen by those who are recognized.

By this time, it was completely dark.

However, the moon in the sky was very bright, casting its silvery light through the broken dome.

Because the pilgrimage church is located at the highest point of the Weeping Peninsula, Irena can also hear the whistling wind outside the church.

The wind wasn't rushing; instead, it sounded very gentle.

Guided by her memory, she crawled into the makeshift tent to rest.

But what she didn't notice was that the church had fallen into an eerie darkness at some point.

This darkness, like ink dripped into clear water, quickly spread throughout the entire pilgrimage church, swallowing the moonlight.

A figure appeared out of nowhere from the deep black fog.

His footsteps made no sound, yet he was there.

He walked step by step toward the unsuspecting Irene.

Strangely, he was not robust; in fact, he appeared rather thin.

He was dressed in a black, one-piece cloak with a hood, looking exactly like a church assassin.

But in his hand he carried a huge, rusty iron machete that seemed out of place with his demeanor.

"Who's there?"

Irena's hearing is incredibly sensitive.

Even though the assassin used prayer—"assassin's footwork"—to try to conceal the sound of his movements, Irena still keenly sensed something amiss.

People like her who are blind are overly sensitive to sound, and their intuition is exceptionally high.

Therefore, it was easy to notice that "something" was approaching from behind.

Although the moon above the pilgrimage church was bright, it could not penetrate or shine into the man-made black fog.

The assassin, wielding a rusty iron machete, slashed fiercely at Irena's gaunt back!

"when!"

With a piercing clang of metal.

The enormous wood-chopping knife was actually blocked by a small, exquisite dagger.

Melina materialized and appeared beside Irena at some point.

Her golden right eye was wide open, fixed on the assassin before her. Looking at his familiar church attire, she slowly asked:

"Are you a secret agent sent by Doublefinger?"

The envoy did not answer.

A dangerous smile curved his lips beneath the shadow of his cloak.

Then, he exerted force with his wrist and was about to sweep the large machete towards Melina!

Although Melina is currently only a spirit, and the "Mission Dagger" in her hand is a divine weapon that she has materialized, it does not mean that she is powerless.

Suddenly, a golden, holy light flashed across the short sword.

A crescent-shaped golden blade of light flew out of his hand and shot towards the envoy.

The light blade was so fast that it drew a golden line through the black mist, accompanied by a whistling sound.

With a clang.

Seeing that things were not going well, the envoy decisively discarded his heavy iron machete and dodged.

Immediately afterwards, he drew a broadsword from his waist.

This is a weapon that is wider and heavier than a regular straight sword, and its attack power is among the top of straight swords, although its attack range is slightly shorter.

The envoy lightly stroked the sword with his left hand.

"call--"

The entire broadsword was instantly engulfed in a raging, scorched-yellow flame.

"Madfire?"

Melina's eyes suddenly turned sharp.

She stared intently at the ominous flame; it was clearly a mad fire.

"You are the secret agent of Two Fingers, why do you use Mad Fire? Have you betrayed the law?"

Melina had a vague suspicion that the envoy's mind had been corrupted by the Mad Fire.

"Irena, come behind me."

Her eyes were fixed on the envoy's movements, while she urgently called out to Irena.

The "holy mark on the finger" on the envoy's left hand emitted a faint light once again.

Centered on him, the surrounding black mist became heavier and stickier, and even his breathing gradually disappeared.

"Assassin's footwork combined with dark prayer?"

Melina frowned.

There was clearly no sound of footsteps around; this was due to the use of high-level prayer, which had virtually eliminated all sounds of movement.

"Right rear!"

Irena suddenly shouted.

At the same time, the black mist behind Melina's right suddenly surged violently.

The envoy darted out from behind like a ghost.

His right arm retracted backward, the tip of his sword, burning with madness, aimed directly at Irena's back.

"Why must they kill Irena? There must be some conspiracy behind this."

The thought flashed through Melina's mind, and her body instinctively shielded Irena behind her.

Then, she suddenly raised her left hand.

A golden prayer barrier rose from the ground, blocking the way for the two.

"Click!"

The golden barrier cracked under the heavy blow of the Madfire Broadsword, but it managed to block the fatal attack.

A strong wind blew between the two, and much of the surrounding black mist was dispersed.

Seeing that their sneak attack had failed, the Dark Prayer was also broken.

The envoy raised his hand and waved it away, no longer maintaining the black mist or lowering the volume of his footsteps.

He looked at Melina's hood, which had slipped off during the battle, and his smile was laced with a sinister and terrifying glint.

"You're just a tiny, one-eyed girl, and you only have a spirit body. What makes you think you can fight me?"

The envoy's eyes shone with a murky, manic yellow.