Chapter 836: Who Stole My Money!

After defeating Margit, the Fell Omen, the entire game truly enters its familiar rhythm once you step into Stormveil Castle.

As an open-world game, Elden Ring, while amazing many players, also presented a peculiar feeling: it lacked a certain flavor, feeling a bit unlike a Souls game.

Even though the Tree Sentinel at the beginning became the refund teacher for countless players, and exploring the Dragon-Burnt Ruins led many astray into Caelid due to a trapped chest, leaving them utterly disoriented from the torment.

Or perhaps some players found the right path and arrived at the Weeping Peninsula, south of Limgrave.

But these are all open-ended gameplay styles, and players mostly felt like they were playing a traditional ARPG, just with a higher difficulty, where three to five small mobs could easily lead to their death.

Truth be told, this large-map exploration, despite making players feel like the content was incredibly rich,

Offering many interactive elements and discoveries almost everywhere they went. Even on the map, like Castle Morne in the Weeping Peninsula, players could see soldiers from different factions clashing.

Delving deeper, one could understand the lore of this region: the Weeping Peninsula was once the territory of the demi-humans. But it was later conquered by Godfrey and incorporated into the Golden Lineage's sphere of influence.

After conquering Castle Morne, the Golden Lineage dispatched nobles and soldiers to garrison and rule it, and residents of the Lands Between also began to settle there. Years later, due to experiments or the interbreeding of different species, Misbegotten demi-humans were born on the Weeping Peninsula. They possessed higher intelligence but were dominated by the human nobles and soldiers of the land, becoming low-status servants subjected to abuse.

With the shattering of the Elden Ring and the decline of the Golden Lineage, Godrick in Stormveil Castle was powerless to govern this frontier castle. Over many years, the Misbegotten population grew. As the demi-human queen was hunted down by the local humans, a rebellion finally erupted.

Rising up as slaves, the Misbegotten took up arms, firing the first shot of the uprising in the Lands Between. Former servants wielded cleavers and began to resist. Traces of battle were visible everywhere; the bodies of Godrick's personal guard lay scattered, like a purgatory. Countless corpses of soldiers and residents piled up in the open spaces of the castle, and the stench reaching to the heavens, along with countless flies, turned this place into a dead city.

From the BOSS battles to the fragmented lore, these aspects were very satisfying to players. But as a Souls game, it still lacked something players expected.

That was the labyrinthine design. Various dungeons, although filled with traps, were still a bit different from what players envisioned.

Putting aside the story and BOSS battle difficulty, what players looked forward to most in Souls games was the meticulously designed maps. The three-dimensional maps in Dark Souls Prequel, the intricate Yharnam Village in Bloodborne, and Ashina Castle and Fountainhead Palace in Sekiro.

Paired with the uniquely characteristic mobs in the game and various traps and mechanisms, these points were truly what players anticipated. However, the open-world map and various outposts in Elden Ring did not provide players with that sense of ingenious design.

Including the monsters in various ruins, aside from the treasures obtained through exploration, many players still felt it was just a simple mob-piling. Except for farming Runes, and the initial excitement, in most cases, players would just ride their Spirit Steed and bypass these troublesome mobs. But upon reaching Stormveil Castle, the interconnected three-dimensional design, the clever elevators and shortcuts, and the traps that run through the Souls series, all made players exclaim: "This feeling is back!"

………………

After defeating Margit, the Fell Omen, and triggering the cutscene with Melina, the Witch, Song Ren arrived at the Roundtable Hold Site of Grace. Here, he met new friends, including a teacher who could teach him incantations, though sadly, he was a hopelessly heroic knight.

He reinforced his weapon with the Blacksmith and, while there, experienced Fia's hug in the small room. He had to admit, Fia, the Deathbed Companion, was a true fanservice provider in Elden Ring!

Song Ren never expected there to be such an interaction as a hug. The only frustrating part was that after the hug, he felt drained, and his maximum HP mysteriously decreased by a segment.

Moreover, the most frustrating thing for Song Ren was that in the main hall of the Roundtable Hold, he was invaded by an NPC Red Spirit. This Red Spirit Guy, wielding a scythe, gave him no chance to fight back. Especially when trying to summon his Spirit Ashes, he couldn't use them against this Red Spirit BOSS.

Fortunately, he had already spent all his Runes before triggering this Red Spirit.

“Next up, I should head to Stormveil Castle for the main quest and find that Godrick the Grafted.”

After preparing, Song Ren didn't intend to delay. Having just defeated Margit, the Fell Omen, his confidence was soaring. The Red Spirit in the Roundtable Hold? That was just an accident.

Passing through the gate where he defeated Margit, the Fell Omen, he found himself at the main entrance of Stormveil Castle. Here, Song Ren encountered another NPC. Amidst the flickering firelight of the broken city walls, there was a small open room. Entering it, Song Ren saw the NPC standing in the corner, tall with a pale face, a massive shackle around his neck. Upon seeing the Tarnished, he greeted him proactively.

“Excuse me, over there… could you come here?”

“You're Tarnished, right? If you want to enter the castle, I advise you not to go through the main gate. Go through that cave over there. No one else knows that small path but me.”

Looking at the shady NPC, Song Ren's first instinct told him this guy was no good. “Through the small path? Definitely a trap!” Song Ren resolutely refused.

“Alright… I understand, it's normal for you to be suspicious… I respect your choice. If you insist on going through the main gate, I will shout for them to open it.”

“…But think about it again, is that really a good idea? I advise you to consider it carefully.”

After a moment's thought, Song Ren still went to the main gate. After all, he only had a little over a thousand Runes, so what if he died? It wasn't a big deal! Plus, his gut told him this NPC definitely wasn't a good person.

However, as the gate slowly opened, Song Ren's brows furrowed. The bloodstains wouldn't lie; he saw countless bloodstains on the path ahead, no less than those near the Tree Sentinel when he first started his journey.

“How did these people die?” Controlling his character to run forward, Song Ren felt a pang of curiosity.

“Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…”

A whooshing sound came from his ears, and soon Song Ren understood how these people died. Passing through the wide intersection around the corner, a group of prepared soldiers stood ready, and on both sides of the high walls, hidden crossbow turrets lay in wait. Before he could react, he was shot full of arrows, like a hedgehog.

“So, this guy was actually a good person!?”

Respawning at the bonfire, he returned to the room, but the previous NPC was gone. At this point, Song Ren felt a bit guilty. He had misunderstood a good NPC!

Thinking back, when he first went to the cathedral in Bloodborne, didn't he also treat that eerie old lady in red as a villain?

Carrying this guilt and sentiment, he proceeded along the seemingly safe small path. But soon, Song Ren felt that full Souls-like flavor. The small path was secluded and narrow, home to black sculpted figures that wielded sharp claws, often hiding in the trees to deliver a vicious blow.

Here, Song Ren learned to constantly press the lock-on button. Entering the small attic, distant soldiers would hurl flames, and those seemingly harmless wooden barrels, resembling roadblocks, would explode directly, making him feel a palpable sense of malice.

Of course, that wasn't the most crucial part. The true moment of helplessness came when he was searching for a key, and he was backstabbed!

“So the key should be here, right?” Entering a pitch-black room where he couldn't see his hand in front of his face, Song Ren immediately spotted the treasure chest hidden in the corner. However, before he could run over to pick it up, he heard a strange laugh from behind him.

“Hehehehehehe…”

Aside from this eerie laugh, there was a desperate clanging sound. The entrance door had closed! At the same time, a sound of metal clashing came from another corner. Pressing the lock-on button, Song Ren discreetly swallowed a mouthful of saliva. There, a knight clad in silver-white armor, holding a sword and shield, was menacingly approaching him.

“Damn it! Who the heck was that?!”

As the knight emptied his health bar, Song Ren couldn't help but curse out loud. He hadn't even spent his over ten thousand Runes yet!

Respawning at the checkpoint, he advanced cautiously, drinking a healing potion every time he lost even a little health, ensuring his survival. Because if he died again, those Runes would truly be gone. Battling through obstacles, he finally reached the small attic on the second floor again. Song Ren trembled as he entered, but to his surprise, this time the door to the small black room didn't close again.

But then, something even more bewildering happened.

“Damn it! Who stole my money!? How did over three thousand Runes disappear?!”

(End of Chapter) <>